WEBVTT 00:08.320 --> 00:09.768 Hey, everyone, it's Chris. 00:09.864 --> 00:21.832 And welcome back to at yout Fingertips Braille, Then and now. I have a topic for you today that I hope will be really encouraging. And I want to offer this to. 00:21.936 --> 00:23.576 People who are just starting to learn. 00:23.608 --> 00:25.752 To read braille and people in the. 00:25.776 --> 00:29.080 Midst of their braille journey, and then perhaps people who have been reading for. 00:29.120 --> 00:36.490 Quite a long time. So I was thinking about increasing your braille reading speed. 00:36.650 --> 00:39.066 Now, if that sounds intimidating, do hang. 00:39.098 --> 00:49.978 In there with me, because I have some things that I think will be really helpful and that you would find pleasurable in doing that. So I was looking up a few. 00:50.114 --> 00:53.430 Resources, and one study I came across. 00:53.730 --> 00:59.140 Was written by folks from the American. 00:59.260 --> 01:05.204 Foundation for the Blind and the American Printing House. And it was a study done in the late 60s. 01:05.332 --> 01:12.804 And I thought, well, you know, this is kind of old stuff, almost 60 years old. What can we learn? And then I found a more recent. 01:12.892 --> 01:19.012 Article, also by Judy Dixon. So I wanted to bring a few thoughts to you and see if they. 01:19.036 --> 01:31.066 Would be helpful to encourage you in your braille journey. So, interestingly enough, this study that was published in 1969 studied various Braille readers. 01:31.178 --> 01:36.810 In the school grades, so maybe our fourth grade through high school years here. 01:36.850 --> 01:39.466 In the U.S. and while I didn't. 01:39.498 --> 01:45.466 Read the whole study, I did take away a few really important tidbits that I thought were helpful. 01:45.658 --> 02:10.620 One of the things that I read in the study is that readers who examined a character or a word that had dots mostly in the top of the cell, so maybe dots one and four, they were able to recognize those letters or words more quickly. And dots that were red or that. 02:10.660 --> 02:16.428 Occurred in the bottom part of the cell were recognized more slowly. So that got me to thinking about. 02:16.484 --> 02:33.182 Why that might be. And so when I taught a braille class last year to our unmute group, I talked about keeping a flat finger and making sure that you're reading with. 02:33.206 --> 02:35.502 Your finger pad and also that you. 02:35.526 --> 02:43.432 Read with a light touch. So as I instruct my students as well, I do tell them that if. 02:43.456 --> 02:45.320 Your finger isn't flat, you're going to. 02:45.360 --> 02:48.392 Miss dots 3 or dots 6 at. 02:48.416 --> 02:49.352 The bottom of the cell. 02:49.416 --> 02:51.880 So you might think that an M. 02:51.920 --> 02:53.544 Is really a C if your finger. 02:53.592 --> 03:01.352 Is not positioned in a way that you can take in that whole letter. So while you're laying your finger on. 03:01.376 --> 03:04.248 The letter, feeling dots 1, 3, and. 03:04.304 --> 03:10.712 4 without scrubbing up and down on the letter is really the best practice. 03:10.856 --> 03:16.656 And of course, using a light touch is also awesome as well. And so they did Find that people. 03:16.728 --> 03:39.060 Who read words that had a higher incidence of dots in the bottom of the cell maybe had a slower time. And I suspect that's because they were not keeping their finger flat. Also, if words were unfamiliar, people who felt more comfortable with braille uncontracted braille. 03:39.400 --> 03:41.568 Read the words more easily if it. 03:41.624 --> 03:51.308 Was uncontracted than if the word that was unfamiliar was contractions. And then of course, those folks that. 03:51.364 --> 03:56.284 Felt more comfortable with contracted braille, maybe it didn't matter so much, but unfamiliar. 03:56.332 --> 04:09.564 Words were easier for more beginning braille readers to read if they were all spelled out. And that being said, I also. Those were a few takeaways from that study. 04:09.652 --> 04:12.252 I also read an article by a. 04:12.276 --> 04:25.077 Gentleman who taught at the Louisiana School for the Blind, or Center for the Blind rather, and he was talking about this two handed reading technique. Now, I wasn't taught to read with. 04:25.133 --> 04:28.373 Two hands by anyone in particular. I just did it naturally. 04:28.501 --> 04:57.830 And I'm a lifelong braille reader. So what I did sort of instinctively was in, of course, reading paper braille, because we didn't have braille displays in about 1970 when I was learning braille, but using two hands, I would start the line with my left hand, I would finish it with my right hand. And then while the right hand was finishing, I was going down to the next line to find the next line. 04:57.870 --> 05:03.942 Itself so I could continue reading fluently. And this is called the scissors technique, apparently. 05:04.086 --> 05:14.092 So it's kind of like left, right, move your left, read the first part of the line to with your left hand, finish it with your right hand. 05:14.196 --> 05:17.788 Move your left hand down so you're in constant motion. 05:17.884 --> 05:22.924 And while that sounds really daunting, you could do a little exercise. 05:22.972 --> 05:25.004 If you have access to a Perkins. 05:25.052 --> 05:30.348 Braillewriter, you could have fun banging out a bunch of lines of, let's say. 05:30.404 --> 05:35.916 G's or X's, something that is consistent. So say it's a line of GS. 05:36.028 --> 05:54.772 And then you return, you know, to the next line and you know, go down to the next line and write another line of GS and another line of GS and another line Of GS. And then maybe you change it up and write a whole line of another character. And maybe you just practice tracking. So even though these are all the. 05:54.796 --> 06:00.840 Same characters, it gives your hands the feeling of constant movement, even if it's slower. 06:01.260 --> 06:04.818 Left, right, move down, left, right, left. 06:04.884 --> 06:06.650 Move down, so forth. 06:07.230 --> 06:31.968 So sometimes I have people do some tracking practice like that, just so that they get that feeling of movement with their hands. So, that being said, the fastest readers who read maybe almost 300 words a minute eventually did read with this scissor method. Also, people read several pages a day. 06:32.104 --> 06:33.840 And you know, even if you start. 06:33.880 --> 07:02.562 With a little kid's book and you say, okay, I'm gonna read Redfish, Blue Fish, I'm gonna read that whole little book in a sitting, or maybe you pick up a Dr. Seuss book or some other book that has repeated words in it, and you decide to read that little book, count those as pages. They may not be full on, you know, 25 lines on a page and, you know, 30, 40 cells, you know. 07:02.586 --> 07:04.802 Across, but they're still pages, and they. 07:04.826 --> 07:24.018 Still give you a feeling of accomplishment. So besides the scissors technique I did, and that was mentioned in the article by the gentleman who taught at the Louisiana center for the Blind, there's also a great article by Judy Dixon, and. 07:24.074 --> 07:31.010 She recounts lots of ways to make sure that your braille reading is efficient. Some of them I mentioned already, by. 07:31.050 --> 07:39.042 Keeping a flat finger, a light touch, and making sure that you're. 07:39.106 --> 07:45.458 You're tracking. Reading paper braille is going to be more challenging, perhaps to some folks than. 07:45.514 --> 07:52.386 Reading on a braille display. Now, that is something she mentioned later in the article, because as braille displays. 07:52.418 --> 07:55.026 Have become more available, and especially if. 07:55.098 --> 07:57.918 You are a patron of the National. 07:57.974 --> 08:00.142 Library Service in the US you're able. 08:00.166 --> 08:09.134 To get one of these E readers, which is a braille display. I think that the nice thing about reading on a braille display is that. 08:09.302 --> 08:12.398 You have consistent braille that's not worn out. 08:12.534 --> 08:21.902 If you have any problem with tactile discrimination or any neuropathy in your fingers, that is not an issue so much. 08:21.926 --> 08:24.206 With the braille displays, especially as I. 08:24.278 --> 08:38.382 Really think the orbit displays that they provide. Orbit research that they produce has the best signage quality, braille. And also there's no issue with tracking. 08:38.446 --> 08:43.982 Because your finger can't wander to the next line because you only have one line. And so that's really great. 08:44.166 --> 08:50.414 I know one particular person that I know of chose to work with a. 08:50.422 --> 08:52.462 Braille display because this person had some. 08:52.486 --> 08:54.382 Tremors, and they found it a little. 08:54.406 --> 08:56.822 Bit tricky to read braille with a. 08:56.846 --> 08:57.926 Little bit of tremor. 08:58.038 --> 08:59.846 And so having access to a braille. 08:59.878 --> 09:02.630 Display that they couldn't wander off the. 09:02.670 --> 09:04.170 Line was really helpful. 09:04.830 --> 09:10.502 And so just reading, reading, reading, you know, when if people read print as. 09:10.526 --> 09:13.078 A child, they were inundated with braille. 09:13.174 --> 09:27.946 I'm sorry, inundated with print everywhere. And so you really couldn't get out of Reading, because it was just everywhere and you were constantly presented with it. And the thing about reading braille is that we all have to make an effort to read it every day, which. 09:28.018 --> 09:30.554 Can be more challenging for adults for. 09:30.562 --> 09:36.794 Whom braille is not their first reading medium. So just finding ways to read it. 09:36.882 --> 09:39.018 Finding ways to use it, reading and. 09:39.074 --> 09:45.898 Making labels, reading and writing down phone numbers or short notes, even having access. 09:45.954 --> 09:47.562 To the good old Perkins brailer and. 09:47.586 --> 09:49.900 Kind of banging out, you know, and. 09:49.940 --> 09:56.160 Then starting with something small. I know Judy Dixon had several suggestions. 09:56.580 --> 09:59.852 Starting with something small, maybe making it. 09:59.876 --> 10:02.680 Interesting for yourself, reading with a friend. 10:02.980 --> 10:04.780 I know that when I first started. 10:04.820 --> 10:06.572 Teaching, there were a couple ladies that. 10:06.596 --> 10:08.172 I taught who, when they were done. 10:08.196 --> 10:09.772 Learning the braille code, they would get. 10:09.796 --> 10:12.600 Together at a little restaurant and read together. 10:13.140 --> 10:15.912 Also, we started a braille reading group. 10:16.036 --> 10:20.176 At the place agency where I work. And so after people are done reading. 10:20.208 --> 10:22.256 The code, they have an actual reading. 10:22.288 --> 10:25.648 Group class where they come and they're encouraged to read out loud. 10:25.744 --> 10:28.240 And everybody is understanding because they know. 10:28.360 --> 10:53.050 The journey of learning braille was maybe an arduous one, but they've arrived and they know the various contractions. Or in some cases, maybe people are reading some uncontracted braille, but they read together and everybody's in the same boat, and so they really enjoy it. And then finally, just reading for enjoyment, finding things that you really like, having. 10:53.090 --> 10:55.114 A book near your chair or near. 10:55.202 --> 10:57.098 Bed at night, some people find that's. 10:57.114 --> 10:58.506 A great way to fall asleep reading. 10:58.538 --> 10:59.610 To a braille book. 10:59.730 --> 11:01.594 But there are so many great ways. 11:01.642 --> 11:05.270 To maintain whatever level of braille that you have. 11:05.570 --> 11:20.074 So if you're reading uncontracted braille, no problem, you can find it. It's a little more challenging to find books in uncontracted braille, but then again, if you have a braille display that will furnish you with the uncontracted code. 11:20.122 --> 11:26.870 Of whatever book or chapter or, you know, document that you're reading, that's all the better. 11:27.570 --> 11:28.842 So I hope that this is an. 11:28.866 --> 11:32.746 Encouragement to you to not only read. 11:32.818 --> 11:39.402 More and spend time with braille, but maybe some ways in which to increase your speed, which will also increase your. 11:39.426 --> 11:42.790 Comprehens and will encourage you and help. 11:42.830 --> 11:44.950 You to feel like you can use. 11:44.990 --> 11:46.850 It as an everyday tool. 11:47.470 --> 11:51.606 So next time we'll be back with more tips and tools. 11:51.798 --> 11:57.890 But until then, thanks so much for listening to, at your fingertips, Braille then and now.