HI Lora, I came in during the middle of second grade so Kind of jumped ahead. My car accident was in October of 62 and I went back to school in early February of 63. they started us on typing in the fourth grade on those good old Royal typewriters. I had Braille books through out grade school but by the time I got to high school everything except math and geometry came on tape. I don't remember when I started using a brailler but I started learning Braille on what we called a pin board. It had the sets of Braille cells and we put little pins in to make the letters. Back then I wanted to be a teacher because my grade school teacher was a blind woman. Ended up sharing my time over the years working in an auto plant, being a musician and computer support. Katie Hill The Reconnection & reiki Healing Get yur personalized numerology chart Kaitlyn@xxxxxxxxxxxxx AIM SStarangel@xxxxxxxx -----Original Message----- From: bksvol-discuss-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:bksvol-discuss-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Lorana Chanicut Sent: Sunday, December 11, 2005 7:23 AM To: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Subject: [bksvol-discuss] Re: OT: Learning Braille When I started learning Braille in kindergarten, they spent the first year just working on Grade 1 Braille. Then they introduced contractions in first grade, and I was very happy. It helped me read faster. Long about third grade, though, they taught me to type, and said that I had to turn in everything typewritten thereafter. The first assignment I typed was a contractions assignment for English. Something about how would you contract can not using the apostrophe, and other such words. So, I wrote c't for can not, and x's for it's, and when I had to write a sentence and used the word always, I wrote alw. They had to explain to me why that didn't work, and I guess I haven't done it since. I am an excellent speller, and was even in school. I won a city wide spelling bee in sixth grade. To be fair, though, until I left high school, every book and assignment I ever received was in Braille, so I never had to depend on cassette textbooks, which I believe are a serious problem for those working on grammar and spelling during the formative years. Just my two cents, Lora ----- Original Message ----- From: "Kaitlyn Hill" <Kaitlyn@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> To: <bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> Sent: Saturday, December 10, 2005 12:01 PM Subject: [bksvol-discuss] Re: OT: Learning Braille > Back when I was learning I had learned all my letters and began the > learning > of spelling before I lost my sight at the age of 7. Even though I can > visualize words in print still when I think of a word it is in the Braille > letters including the contractions. The one thing that helped me with my > spelling was getting on a computer. After 15 years at a keyboard my > spelling > is great it is mostly typos where the errors come in. I also have a bad > habit of leaving words out when typing or adding and leaving off S's on > words. > > Katie Hill > The Reconnection & reiki Healing > Get yur personalized numerology chart > Kaitlyn@xxxxxxxxxxxxx > > -----Original Message----- > From: Jill O'Connell [mailto:jillocon@xxxxxxxxxxxx] > Sent: Saturday, November 19, 2005 11:48 AM > To: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx > Subject: [bksvol-discuss] Re: OT: Learning braille > > I couldn't agree with you more on this issue and it is amazing to me how > many educators disregard the fact of literacy and start teaching > contractions immediately. I think it goes back to teaching whole word > recognition that was so popular for sighted students years ago until it > was > discovered that phonics were extremely important in being able to spell. > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Julie Morales" <mercy421@xxxxxxxxxxx> > To: <bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> > Sent: Saturday, November 19, 2005 9:03 AM > Subject: [bksvol-discuss] OT: Learning braille > > >> Hi, Cindy. Actually, there is a grade 2 braille, a contracted form, maybe >> what you might call shorthand, but most, if not all, people start out >> with >> grade 1, which is everything spelled out, as it would be in print. >> Sometimes, kids have problems with spelling if they're not taught to >> spell >> things out letter by letter but with the grade 2, because they don't see >> all >> the letters so never learn how things are really spelled out. My husband >> has >> problems with that, so teaching kids to read can sometimes be twofold. >> They >> need to learn how to read both grade 1 and grade 2, but when they're >> learning their spelling, I think it's important that they focus on >> spelling >> out the words and not just learning the contractions. Take care. >> Julie Morales >> To be in your children's memories tomorrow, you need to be in their lives >> today. -- Unknown >> mercy421@xxxxxxxxxxx >> Windows/MSN Messenger (but not email): >> mercy0421@xxxxxxxxxxx >> ----- Original Message ----- >> From: "Cindy" <popularplace@xxxxxxxxx> >> To: <bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> >> Sent: Friday, November 18, 2005 10:22 PM >> Subject: [bksvol-discuss] Re: OT: heavy books >> >> >> Thanks for the info, Gail. >> >> I'm wondering--if a bright sighted child who has the >> inclination and desire can be reading by age 3 (as >> mine were, just from my reading to them and their >> following along, and some books that had certain words >> in the story that the child could read when the parent >> story-teller cme to it--and Sesame Street and Electric >> Company), and if young chldren who are brought up with >> another language in addition to English is in the >> house can be bilingual at a very young age, by >> couldn't a child as bright as Kasondra's Andrew seems >> to be, who seems to want to read, also learn braille >> at a young age? I think Kasondra is right to start to >> teach him when he's three. One can make a game of it. >> >> Speaking of which--I remembered when I was young how I >> enjoyed playing with alphabet blocks, and I bought >> them when my children were very young and played with >> them with them and made simple words which they read. >> But I've never seen Braille blocks. I gather from >> posts here that one doesn't learn Braille letter by >> letter but that there is a short of short-hand. Maybe >> one of you could invent and create a graduated set of >> Braille blocks for kids. The first set would be the >> simplest words that they need to learn, and they can >> play at making sentences (Pat the dog; the dog ate his >> food). A more advanced set could be whatever the next >> phase is. And I won't even take a cut of the profits >> for my idea (lol). >> >> Cindy >> >> --- "Gail The U. S. Male" <gail1959@xxxxxxxxxxx> >> wrote: >> >>> Cindy, indeed, some forms of blindness are >>> hereditary. Most totally blind >>> kids start learning Braille in either Kindergarten >>> or first grade. The child >>> could be taught at a younger age, I suppose, but >>> most kids aren't. >>> >>> -----Original Message----- >>> From: bksvol-discuss-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx >>> [mailto:bksvol-discuss-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]On >>> Behalf Of Cindy >>> Sent: Friday, November 18, 2005 6:16 PM >>> To: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx >>> Subject: [bksvol-discuss] Re: OT: heavy books >>> >>> >>> That's a cute story, Kasondra. How old does a child >>> have to be before he can start learning to read in >>> Braille? Are you and/or your husband bind? Are some >>> forms of blindness hereditary? Forgive me if I'm >>> being >>> too personal. >>> >>> Cindy >>> >>> --- Kasondra Payne <Kassyp36@xxxxxxx> wrote: >>> >>> > Cindy, >>> > >>> > I just walked in my bedroom to answer the phone, >>> and >>> > I found my two-year-old >>> > son, Andrew on the floor, trying to read a Harry >>> > Potter book. My husband >>> > always keeps one on his side of the bed, and >>> Andrew >>> > just took off the cover, >>> > opened the book, and started turning pages. It >>> was >>> > so cute that I just >>> > thought I should share it with all you guys. >>> Andrew >>> > will read Braille >>> > someday because he is blind, but at least he shows >>> a >>> > healthy interest in >>> > books now. Yes, that particular book is very >>> heavy, >>> > but it was already on >>> > the floor, so Andrew could move it easier >>> > >>> > Kasondra Payne >>> > >>> > -- >>> > No virus found in this outgoing message. >>> > Checked by AVG Free Edition. >>> > Version: 7.1.362 / Virus Database: 267.13.4/175 - >>> > Release Date: 11/18/2005 >>> > >>> > To unsubscribe from this list send a blank Email >>> to >>> > bksvol-discuss-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx >>> > put the word 'unsubscribe' by itself in the >>> subject >>> > line. 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