Blind and Visually Impaired Community
↑
10
↓
Ways to make reading fun for my child (self.Blind)
submitted by ceeh_beeh
Hey, long time lurker, first time poster. My daughter was born with a rare brain malformation which also inhibited the growth of her optic nerves and basically rendered her blind. She's legally blind but has some light perception and a minuscule amount of sight. Anywhoodle, reading... My question about reading is this; how can I make the stories fun for her? I've translated all of her books into braille, I do the voices and she follows along with the braille, but she's just not super into it. Don't get me wrong, the kid loves stories but seemingly only those she writes herself on her braille typewriter. Is it me? Should I ask her to read to the book aloud or keep on with what I'm doing? I was just wondering because all this is still very new to me, even if it's been 7 years into this adventure
theWriteAmy 9 points 4y ago
Best bet would be to ask her directly why she doesn't seem into it.
ceeh_beeh [OP] 5 points 4y ago
I have, and she says she loves all the books we've been reading. Her most favourites are The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe and anything Little Critter related. She's very versatile. I recently read her Shiloh and she was in love. I don't know if she gets too bored easily 3-4 chapters or what, but it seems like I need to switch up reading material every week
LBDazzled 5 points 4y ago
Could you add some tactile/sensory elements to the books?
For example, Charlotte's Web could have some silky webs, maybe a spider, etc.? For Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, maybe spritz the pages with some chocolate-scented perfume, put a crinkly piece of foil in for the "golden ticket," etc.?
For example, Charlotte's Web could have some silky webs, maybe a spider, etc.? For Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, maybe spritz the pages with some chocolate-scented perfume, put a crinkly piece of foil in for the "golden ticket," etc.?
ceeh_beeh [OP] 6 points 4y ago
Ooh, now those are some good ideas! We have some sensory books but I never thought of adding sensory things to our other books. Thank you, seriously thank you! I'll try that and let you know how it goes. If that's okay?
LBDazzled 1 points 4y ago
Of course - I'd love an update! Good luck. :)
OutWestTexas 4 points 4y ago
What kinds of books are you reading? My third grade teacher read the whole Little House series to us and I was hooked! Maybe she needs more challenging books.
ceeh_beeh [OP] 3 points 4y ago
We've done Little Critters, Shiloh, The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, Little Women, Listen to the Wind, Dr. Suess,Berenstain Bears, Milk and Cookies, I'll Always Love You(which made me sob like a crazy lady), Where The Wild Things Are, Charlotte's Web, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Little Prince, James and The Giant Peach, and that's just some of what we have at home. The kid is a voracious reader but often loses interest after a chapter or two. I seriously don't know what I'm doing wrong, if anything. Her teacher says that at school she devours all books within reach
OutWestTexas 4 points 4y ago
Ask her. Maybe she wants to do something special with you.
jrs12 3 points 4y ago
Are her fingers on the right words keeping pace as you read? It's great that she is getting so much exposure to braille and reading at home. It's very common for braille readers to be slower than people who read visually at this age. If you are reading out loud and she is following along, try to pay more attention to her fingers and allow pauses for her to catch up to you. Maybe stop reading the last word at the end of each sentence. Let her read this word with her fingers. This gets the best of both words, practicing fast tracking and actual reading of braille symbols.
ceeh_beeh [OP] 5 points 4y ago
They are indeed. She had a pre-braille therapist that taught her all sorts of things before she actually entered school and has a braille instructor at school. I have been learning braille alongside her just so that we could read together. I always go at her pace when reading books, but having her read the last word is an awesome idea, thanks! Do you think I should read half the sentence and then let her finish it?
jrs12 3 points 4y ago
Good on you for learning braille too! You make me so happy! You'd be surprised the number of parents that don't take that step. Regarding your daughter reading part of the sentence, go with your gut. A heavy mixture of you reading to push the pace and provide an opportunity to read 'sight words' as well as your daughter reading to actually decode is best. If she reads too much she might get frustrated, but too little and she won't be growing her skills. If you think she's ready, go ahead and you read half, let her read half. Make sure too to take lots of pauses to talk about what is happening in the story and take guesses about what might happen next. A big skill soon in school will be rereading text to find evidence. That can be really tough to do in braille because skimming the text is more time consuming. Have you heard of Braille Challenge? It's a competition among braille readers to see who can read the most. Maybe your daughter would be interested if there was competition like this?
ceeh_beeh [OP] 3 points 4y ago
Pah, learning braille to be able to understand what my daughter is learning is kind of a natural response(I hope), also my child needs this for furthering herself, so why not? Have to be able to help her with her homework after all.
We always make sure to take breaks to discuss what is happening in a book, my mom used to do that with me and it's something I've never stopped doing.
I will definitely look into the Braille Challenge and see if they have something like that in my area, as I think it is something she would be interested in.
We always make sure to take breaks to discuss what is happening in a book, my mom used to do that with me and it's something I've never stopped doing.
I will definitely look into the Braille Challenge and see if they have something like that in my area, as I think it is something she would be interested in.
estj317 2 points 4y ago
Two words Harry Potter. Hahahaha!
I don’t know if this has anything to do with blindness.
I was the same way. I am a naturally really outgoing active person. If you care ESTJ in the MBTI system. Thus my username. I also liked writing story or just making up my own. They were not that creative but at least it was something right. But I didn’t like reading. I liked running around, seeing how far this phone of ours stretched to, it went half way across my complex. It was amazing. Hahaha! Play with CDS invent my own paper toys. And I wasted so much braille paper to write my half page to one page stories.
I got bored and ran out of braille paper one day, and by that time I’ve been outside already. I was running pellmell around my house being really active. My mother made me read the Harry Potter books. I swear I hated the thing, and I hated my mum for making me read it. It was on tapes, red by Jim dale. I would get up after every chapter and complain how boring it was. Things changed after the sixth chapter and then I just read everything from that point on. In my teenage years I read Shakespeare and dickens for fun. I understood shakespeare well when my class was struggling. I had my r/iamverysmart moments trust me. Hahahahahahaha! I was reading nonfiction mostly in my late teens and do mostly that nowadays. Now I just do a bunch of research too.
Back to when I was a kid, my favorite thing was when my parents were done reading to me, I demanded the book and I would pretend to read to them. I made up stories or stupid ones. But still.... hahaha! But yeah.
What are her stories about? Can you read stuff like that? I would try the Harry Potter books with her.
I don’t know if this has anything to do with blindness.
I was the same way. I am a naturally really outgoing active person. If you care ESTJ in the MBTI system. Thus my username. I also liked writing story or just making up my own. They were not that creative but at least it was something right. But I didn’t like reading. I liked running around, seeing how far this phone of ours stretched to, it went half way across my complex. It was amazing. Hahaha! Play with CDS invent my own paper toys. And I wasted so much braille paper to write my half page to one page stories.
I got bored and ran out of braille paper one day, and by that time I’ve been outside already. I was running pellmell around my house being really active. My mother made me read the Harry Potter books. I swear I hated the thing, and I hated my mum for making me read it. It was on tapes, red by Jim dale. I would get up after every chapter and complain how boring it was. Things changed after the sixth chapter and then I just read everything from that point on. In my teenage years I read Shakespeare and dickens for fun. I understood shakespeare well when my class was struggling. I had my r/iamverysmart moments trust me. Hahahahahahaha! I was reading nonfiction mostly in my late teens and do mostly that nowadays. Now I just do a bunch of research too.
Back to when I was a kid, my favorite thing was when my parents were done reading to me, I demanded the book and I would pretend to read to them. I made up stories or stupid ones. But still.... hahaha! But yeah.
What are her stories about? Can you read stuff like that? I would try the Harry Potter books with her.
ceeh_beeh [OP] 1 points 4y ago
Never actually thought of Harry Potter. She seemed to enjoy Fantastic Beasts quite a bit. Huh, I'll definitely have look at the series.
estj317 1 points 4y ago
Hp has apparently gotten a lot of kids to read. I don’t agree with the messages but yeah. I am glad she likes fantastic beasts though
MostlyBlindGamer 1 points 4y ago
Harry Potter books are really good. Challenging and engaging, but not over the top, especially for well read kids like OP's daughter.
The new audiobooks are read by Stephen Fry. I'm told they're very good.
The new audiobooks are read by Stephen Fry. I'm told they're very good.
estj317 2 points 4y ago
Wait what do you mean new Harry Potter books? Frie has always read the Brit versions. I am sorry I prefer Jim dale any day now.
And I agree. I was also pretty well read and written. I read them when I was 8 years old or started then. Probably had sorcerer stone a year or two before. A neighbor gave it to me and I just never did anything with it.
And I agree. I was also pretty well read and written. I read them when I was 8 years old or started then. Probably had sorcerer stone a year or two before. A neighbor gave it to me and I just never did anything with it.
MostlyBlindGamer 1 points 4y ago
Oh I meant the new fangled Audible books, as compared to books on tape.
Of course, one gets used to a voice after a while. I hear something happened to the guy who dubbed the voice of Arnold Schwarzenegger in Spanish and the whole country went into shock when he had to be replaced.
Of course, one gets used to a voice after a while. I hear something happened to the guy who dubbed the voice of Arnold Schwarzenegger in Spanish and the whole country went into shock when he had to be replaced.
estj317 2 points 4y ago
Oh ah, that’s interesting I thought you could find the dale books on the site?
Well, I guess one could.
But yeah, that is interesting. Haha!
Well, I guess one could.
But yeah, that is interesting. Haha!
gracers94 2 points 4y ago
Just throwing this out there, you said that you translated her books at her home but that you are also learning Braille right now. Is it possible that things could be incorrect in your translations? I’m thinking about things like contractions or which can be easy to forget as a learner (I’m currently learning right now so I know the struggle). Also if she’s doing a lot of reading at school maybe she just wants to do something else at home
ceeh_beeh [OP] 1 points 4y ago
I had her braille instructor at school look at my translations and she said it was all correct. That's the thing though, she'll pick out books to read and then wander off part way through it but she'll always come back to finish it.
angelcake 1 points 4y ago
Audio books might be more enjoyable for her. A good reader can turn them into a real adventure.
ceeh_beeh [OP] 1 points 4y ago
I'll give them a try. I think they might be a big hit with her because she loves listening to people talk and she loves being told stories
angelcake 1 points 4y ago
It’s a great resource and I would imagine that reading and grill can be quite dry. Especially for a youngster. Most libraries have some audiobooks available so that would be a place to start without spending money, you could do a trial of audible which gives you access to a lot of books and will give you an idea as to whether it’s worth paying for a subscription.
ceeh_beeh [OP] 1 points 4y ago
Thanks for the answers, you guys are awesome! I'm so happy I found this! I'm going to be using all ideas given to me and go from there.
Most of the time I have no idea what I'm doing and feel really lost, but you amazing people just made it a little easier! So, from the bottom of my heart... Thank you for all of the tips, tricks and ideas.
Most of the time I have no idea what I'm doing and feel really lost, but you amazing people just made it a little easier! So, from the bottom of my heart... Thank you for all of the tips, tricks and ideas.
dankswed 1 points 4y ago
Why don't you try writing stories with her? Have her read some of those she's written with you? At the end of the day, your girl is still a kid. To be perfectly honest, some kids *love* reading, and some don't. What does a parent with sighted children do when their kiddo isn't into reading?
ceeh_beeh [OP] 1 points 4y ago
She loves reading and will pick out books when she gets home to enjoy while eating her snack. She just wanders off part way through them but always comes back to finish them. I'll definitely try writing some stories with her. Maybe that will help, having her stories on paper to read.
As for sighted kids not into reading. I honestly have no idea what parents do. My son is a book lover and will spend his days with his nose in a book.
As for sighted kids not into reading. I honestly have no idea what parents do. My son is a book lover and will spend his days with his nose in a book.
dankswed 1 points 4y ago
Hmmmm ... How long are the stories you're reading? Could they be too long? As you said, she wanders off. Maybe they're too long for her and she kinda wants a "break".
How old is she?
How old is she?
ceeh_beeh [OP] 1 points 4y ago
Sorry, I should have clarified better. I translated all of her picture books and smaller books into braille and that's what she chooses to read on her own most of the time. The longer books are ones I read to her and we talk about what's going on in the story. I'll probably do the same thing with braille when she wants to read longer books, or I'll find her ones that are already done that way.
She's 7, 8 next month, so I'm not expecting a super long attention span at this time. As it is right now, she loves reading and will attempt to read anything she can get her hands on, but often wanders off during a book. I assumed that she doesn't find reading really interesting but I just don't know. Maybe you're right and she does just need a break
She's 7, 8 next month, so I'm not expecting a super long attention span at this time. As it is right now, she loves reading and will attempt to read anything she can get her hands on, but often wanders off during a book. I assumed that she doesn't find reading really interesting but I just don't know. Maybe you're right and she does just need a break
dankswed 1 points 4y ago
Honestly, to me, a 7/8 year old who's actively initiating reading with mom is into reading. Like she sounds like she enjoys it, and maybe just needs short breaks. Is she wandering off after like one page, or after a chapter? Maybe try adapting to a shorter span for now, the start lengthening that time little by little?
TactileImages 1 points 4y ago
I would suggest making tactile drawings with settings and characters of each book. This will hopefully absorb the kid more into the story. It will also give you something fun to do together. It will also help orientation.
There is a collegue of mine who created this tutorial for DIY tactile images and I suggest you try this unless you have a swell paper printer or something else to create embossed images.
Otherwise, pen and paper are enough for embossing:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLwHvOsNL3ozYx064vLvCWpVS3s7GDhsIj
Or use the glue te hnoque for more durable tactile images. Or use silicone for nice at touch tactile images.
There is a collegue of mine who created this tutorial for DIY tactile images and I suggest you try this unless you have a swell paper printer or something else to create embossed images.
Otherwise, pen and paper are enough for embossing:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLwHvOsNL3ozYx064vLvCWpVS3s7GDhsIj
Or use the glue te hnoque for more durable tactile images. Or use silicone for nice at touch tactile images.
ceeh_beeh [OP] 1 points 4y ago
Thanks for the idea! I'll give the video a watch, and will definitely look into tactile drawings for her books.
This nonprofit website is run by volunteers.
Please contribute if you can. Thank you!
Our mission is to provide everyone with access to large-
scale community websites for the good of humanity.
Without ads, without tracking, without greed.
scale community websites for the good of humanity.
Without ads, without tracking, without greed.
©2023 HumbleCat Inc • HumbleCat is a 501(c)3 nonprofit based in Michigan, USA.