Welcome to the Braillists

Latest News

  • Our Book Club Now Has an Advanced Group!

    For some time now, we’ve been running our Book Club on a Thursday at 6:00 PM. The idea is that anyone who wants to improve their braille reading can come along, read a page or two of a book to the rest of the group, and get help from other fellow members when they get stuck.

    The current book is “Kensuke’s Kingdom” by Michael Morpurgo, available in both grades 1 and 2 on the latest Orbit Reader SD card, and also available in hard copy via the RNIB library.

    Numbers have been steadily increasing over time and, as such, we’re now able to divide people up according to reading speed – so quicker readers don’t feel held back, and more leisurely readers can keep reading at a pace that suits them. The two groups are called “Intermediate” and “Advanced” and, thanks to the magic of Breakout Rooms in Zoom, they both take place simultaneously using the same Meeting ID and join link.

    When you come for the first time, you’ll be asked which group you’d like to join. If you’re not sure, you can always join one group and switch to the other one the following week if you think it would suit you better.

    Everyone is made to feel extremely welcome, and there’s an opportunity for the two groups to meet together at the start and end of each session.

    So whether you’ve given us a try before but didn’t get on with the format, or you’ve never heard of the Book Club before but think it sounds like something you’d enjoy, please consider joining us on Thursday at 6:00 PM GMT. Sessions last an hour and can be joined by computer, smartphone, tablet or telephone.

    The Zoom Meeting ID is: 893 5322 0947
    Join Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89353220947

    We look forward to seeing you!

  • Next Tuesday: Note Taking: Creating Notes for Yourself

    This session will look at how to take effective notes in braille for your own personal use. We will cover increasing your speed when note taking, ways to organise your notes and the tools that you may wish to use.

    If you’d like to join us, and you’ve already joined us for one of our Tuesday evening Masterclasses in 2021, you don’t need to register again. You will receive a reminder email on the day with joining information, so don’t worry if you’ve lost your link.

    Otherwise, if you’re joining us for the first time, please register at: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZwoceivqz8rGtbEERfYGlXFSR2eIqx-oc9o

    If this time isn’t convenient for you, fear not: all sessions in this series will be recorded and made available at: https://www.braillists.org/media

    They will also be published via our Braillecast podcast – simply search for “Braillecast” in your podcast client of choice, or ask your smart speaker to “play Braillecast”. We are also available on the Victor Reader range of DAISY players and the internet radios from British Wireless for the Blind.

The Braillists is a grass-roots community group connecting Braille readers with Braille technology developers and funders.

Braille is a simple code for representing written language. Almost anyone can learn the Braille alphabet and numbers in under an hour.

We believe Braille has the potential to transform the life of any blind person who has the opportunity to learn it.

Our Aims

  1. Promote the value of Braille as a proven literacy tool that enriches the lives of blind people.
  2. Support efforts to make affordable Braille and tactile reading technologies available to all blind people irrespective of education and employment status.
  3. Provide an open forum for the exchange of ideas about the development of future Braille technology.

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Join the conversation and meet other Braillists on our discussion forum.

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Resources

Please see our Sponsors and Partners for information on organisations who are supporting us.