Hadley

Braille Special Symbols Workshop 1

Special Symbols and Electronic Addresses

Opening

Hadley presents Braille Special Symbols Workshop 1: Special Symbols and Electronic Addresses.

Page 1

First, make sure you have your braille workbook with you.

If you don’t already have one, call Hadley at 847-784-2816, and we’ll mail one right out to you.

Let’s learn some special symbols you’ll need for reading email addresses, web addresses, social media posts and other digital content.

And as you’ll discover in this workshop, there are other uses for these symbols too.

Feel the braille in the top left corner of the page.

These are the special symbols for the @ (at) sign, the # (hashtag), and the _ (underscore).

Above the middle line are three rows of braille. Let’s read them together.

In the first row is the @ sign.

The next row has the #.

This symbol can also be called the pound sign for weight measurements or the print number sign.

In print and in braille, this symbol is the same for all three uses.

Now, let’s look at the third row, this is the _.

Below the middle line are three rows of braille. Let’s read these three rows.

The first row says, “[email protected].”

The second row says, “#funny.”

The last row says, “go_go.com.”

Turn the page.

Page 2

Feel the braille in the top left corner of the page.

This is the @ sign; dot 4 in the first cell and dot 1 in the second cell.

The @ sign in print is the lowercase a with the tail of the a circling around the letter.

Above the middle line are three rows of braille.

As you read the braille and work through the activities on these pages, use the Pause button or spacebar for as long as you need to.

Then, select the Play button, or press the spacebar again, to hear the feedback for that item.

Which row contains the @ sign in an email address?

If you chose the third row, you got it! It says, “[email protected].”

Below the middle line are three more rows of braille.

All three rows contain the @ sign. Go ahead and read the first row.

Did you read, “[email protected]?”

Now, read the next row.

If you read, “[email protected],” excellent reading!

Notice the alphabetic wordsign “go” is standing alone next to the hyphen.

Finally, read the last row.

This says, “[email protected].”

We saw in the middle row that the alphabetic wordsign “go” is standing alone next to the hyphen.

But in the last row, the word “it” is not standing alone, so the alphabetic wordsign cannot be used.

The same rules that apply to contractions in general also apply in email and web addresses.

Move to the next page.

Page 3

Feel the hashtag in the top left corner of the page.

The hashtag is dots 4-5-6 in the first cell and dots 1-4-5-6 in the second cell.

In print, the hashtag is two parallel vertical lines crossed by two short horizontal lines.

Above the middle line are three rows of braille.

Which row says, “#sydney?”

If you chose the first row, you got it!

Below the middle line are three more rows of braille.

Go ahead and read the first row.

This says, “#puppytraining.”

Notice that hashtag phrases are written without spaces, even when they have more than one word.

Now, give the next row a try.

Did you read, “#golivenow?” Well done!

Finally, read the last row.

This one says, “#socialgood on Twitter.”

Turn the page.

Page 4

Feel the braille in the top left corner of the page.

You’ve learned this symbol as the hashtag.

It can also be used as the pound sign for weight measurements, or the print number sign.

Above the middle line are three rows of braille.

These can be a little tricky, so let’s read the first row together.

This says, “20# turkey.”

Since “20 hashtag turkey” or “20 number turkey” wouldn’t make sense, we know the symbol should be read as the word “pound.”

Give the next row a try on your own.

Did you read, “16# shotput?” Well done!

Now, read the last row.

This one says, “A 7# baby.”

Below the middle line are three more rows of braille.

Let’s read the first row together.

This is read as, “take the #56 bus.”

Notice the numeric indicator is needed after the # sign, before any numbers.

Now, read the next row.

This one says, “bring a #2 pencil.”

Finally, read the last row.

Did you read, “step #5 is wrong?” You got it!

Go to the next page.

Page 5

Feel the underscore in the top left corner of the page.

This symbol is dots 4-6 in the first cell and dots 3-6 in the second cell.

You might recall from previous workshops that this symbol is also used to represent a blank.

The underscore is sometimes called the low line or the low dash.

It’s also used in other ways; for example, to show where a person should sign their name on a document.

In braille, the symbol is used only once no matter how long the underscore line is in print.

Above the middle line are three rows of braille.

Once again, use the Pause button or the spacebar to stop the audio for as long as you need to complete an activity.

Then, select the Play button, or press the spacebar again, to hear the feedback.

Read all three and find which one uses the underscore.

Did you pick the second row? Well done!

Below the middle line are three rows of braille.

What does the first row say?

If you read, “yes_ no_” you got it!

Now, give the next row a try.

This one says, “Name: _”

Finally, read the last row.

This one says, “I, _, promise to stop smoking by May 1st.”

Turn the page.

Page 6

Feel the braille symbols for the @ sign, the hashtag, and the underscore in the top left corner of the page.

These symbols follow the same rules for spacing as they do in print.

Generally, if the symbol is standing alone within a sentence, there should be a space before and after the symbol in braille.

Above the middle line are four rows of braille.

Read the first two rows.

The first row says, “[email protected].” And there are no spaces before or after the @ sign.

Now, let’s look at the second row.

It says, “See you @ 4!”

Because the @ sign is used here as part of a sentence and is standing alone, there is a space before and after the symbol.

Now, read the next two rows of braille and find which row uses spaces with the hashtag or pound symbol.

If you chose the second row, “press # to hold,” you’re correct!

Below the middle line are three rows of braille.

Each row has the same sentence or phrase written two different ways.

Read the first row and choose the correct spacing for “The _ is not for you!”

Did you choose the second way? That’s right!

It has a space before and after the blank.

Now, try the second row. Which sentence correctly says, “Look @ me now?”

The second sentence is correct because it has a space before and after the @ sign.

What about the two phrases in the last row?

Which is correct for “#blackfriday?”

It’s the first one, with no spaces.

Move to the next page.

Page 7

Feel the @, #, and _ in the top left corner of the page.

Next, read the three rows of braille above the middle line and find which row has the symbols in this order: _ @ #.

If you said the last row, you got it!

Below the middle line are five rows of braille.

What does row 1 say?

Did you read, “Write #759?” You got it!

Now, try row 2.

Row 2 says, “Email us at [email protected].”

What does row 3 say?

If you said, “Twitter alerts: #besteuropeantrips,” that’s it!

How about row 4?

This one says, “Mrs._ Ms._.”

Finally, what does row 5 say?

It reads, “Press # for more options.”

Turn the page.

Page 8

Feel the @, #, and _ in the top left corner of the page.

Sometimes, you’ll find more than one of these symbols within a symbol sequence.

Let’s look at a few examples.

Above the middle line are three rows of braille.

Which row has both a # symbol and an @ sign?

If you said the second row, you got it!

Below the middle line are three braille items.

What does number 1 say?

If you read, “barb_p loves #sillysongs,” you got it!

Now, read number 2.

This one says, “Email julio_x to get the latest info from [email protected].”

And finally, what does number 3 say?

It says, “Order 12# boxes @ $2.50 per package.”

Go to the next page.

Page 9

Feel the @, #, and _ in the top left corner of the page.

On this page, you’ll find 13 phrases with various ways these symbols might be used.

Read through the list and then we’ll look at some questions.

Great reading! Now, let’s look at a few questions.

First, what’s a popular Instagram hashtag?

Row 13 tells us #photooftheday is one of the top five.

Next, how much is a bag of mulch?

Row 10 says a bag of mulch is $14.50.

Which symbols do you find in the row that begins with the words, “This is a sentence?”

In row 5, both _ and @ are used.

Which bus route schedule is mentioned?

Row 6 mentions the schedule for #72.

What information do we have about the dog food?

We’re told to get a 60# bag in row 9.

And finally, what time are we told to get to work?

Row 7 tells us to be there by 9:00.

If any of these seemed tricky or you have any questions about the reading on this page, you can always call a braille expert for help.

When you’re ready to complete this workshop, select Next.

Completion

Congratulations! You’ve learned three useful special symbols for reading electronic addresses and social media posts.

If you have any questions about using these symbols, reach out to a Hadley braille expert at 847-784-2816. We’re happy to help!