[NFB-Braille-Discussion] Literacy for Adult Learners

Sat Jul 10 03:13:02 UTC 2021

Hello Sanho,

The key to building your reading speed is to read Braille as much as you
can. You should strive for reading every day. If you read for a set time
period every day, you'll notice over time that you can read more pages
during that time interval. Say, you read five pages an hour, set your goal
for seven or eight. When you have reached that, raise your page goal again.
Always have some Braille reading material handy.

If you haven't learned the two-handed reading technique, it is time to do
so. It may slow you down to begin with, but with practice your speed will
get faster. If you are not familiar with this technique, here is a brief
description. Start reading the line with your left hand. Somewhere towards
the middle switch to the right hand. While the right hand finishes the line,
track back with the left and move to the beginning of the next line. This
way your left hand is in position to start reading, as soon as the right one
has reached the end of the previous line. The right hand meets your left one
somewhere in the middle again. With this technique, you don't waste time
tracking back to the beginning of the next line. The faster you read, the
more noticeable the time lag is, if you have to track back to the beginning
of the next line, before you continue reading again. I learned Braille as a
young adult and I wish that someone would have given me both pieces of
advice then. I had to teach myself the two-handed reading technique after
having read one-handed for almost ten years.

You can also do tracking exercises in which you move your fingers across the
lines faster than you can read for five minutes every day. See what you can
pick up, but don't focus on reading. This should also increase your speed
over time.

Finally a friend told me about a speed reading technique taught in speed
reading courses for sighted people. When you read, don't move your lips to
pronounce the words, just think of the words in your mind. That is a habit I
am struggling to break.

Good luck and keep on reading.

Cordially,

Ellen

-----Original Message-----
From: NFB-Braille-Discussion
[mailto:nfb-braille-discussion-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Sanho
Steele-Louchart via NFB-Braille-Discussion
Sent: Friday, July 9, 2021 10:47 PM
To: NFB Braille Discussion List <nfb-braille-discussion at nfbnet.org>
Cc: Sanho Steele-Louchart <sanho817 at gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [NFB-Braille-Discussion] Literacy for Adult Learners

Steve,

A very welcome reminder. Thank you. I already use braille for labeling and
other limited tasks. 120 would be a great target for reading documents aloud
in court, for instance. 240 would just be an excellent speed for silent
leisure reading. We'll see what happens.

I'll make sure my braille display is charged tonight and I'll buy or print a
new hardcopy book ASAP. Then I'll read as often as is practicable.

On 7/9/21, Steve Jacobson via NFB-Braille-Discussion
<nfb-braille-discussion at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> Sanho,
>
> I don't know much about your background, so it is hard to be very
specific.
> However, I can think of a number of people just within my NFB chapter 
> that can likely read at least that fast.  Beyond that, though, you 
> don't have to read braille that fast to have it be useful.  I have 
> seen people who learned braille as adults and worked hard enough at it 
> that they could read out loud at a very respectable rate.  You don't 
> have to read at 240 words per minute to use braille to read from your
notes for a presentation, for example.
>
> I would not at all want to discourage you from achieving the fastest 
> rate you can, but be aware of the fact that speed is only part of the 
> picture, and if you happened to not reach 240 words per minute, you 
> will find braille to be very useful.
>
> Best regards,
>
> Steve Jacobson
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: NFB-Braille-Discussion 
> <nfb-braille-discussion-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of Sanho 
> Steele-Louchart via NFB-Braille-Discussion
> Sent: Friday, July 9, 2021 7:53 PM
> To: nfb-braille-discussion at nfbnet.org
> Cc: Sanho Steele-Louchart <sanho817 at gmail.com>
> Subject: [NFB-Braille-Discussion] Literacy for Adult Learners
>
> All,
>
> Good evening. I hope everyone's had another wonderful Convention.
>
> Does anyone here know of braille readers who learned as adults and 
> read at the standard 240+ WPM? I've only heard of one or two people 
> managing it; most people tell me it's never going to happen. I refuse 
> to accept that.
>
> Warmth,
> Sanho
>
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--
Warmth,
Sanho
He, Him, His

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