Hadley

Contracted Braille Workshop 17:

Dot 56 Final-Letter Contractions

Opening

Hadley presents Contracted Braille Workshop 17: Dot 56 Final-letter Contractions.

Page 1

To begin, 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.

Now, let’s learn the dot 56 final-letter contractions.

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

These new contractions are the final-letter groupsigns for f-u-l, i-t-y, n-e-s-s, and o-n-g.

Dot 56 groupsigns use dots 5-6 in the first cell and the final letter of the group of letters they represent for the second cell.

Final-letter groupsigns must follow a letter or a contraction, so they are used only in the middle or at the end of a word.

Above the line, you’ll find four rows of braille. Let’s read these together.

In the first row is the first sign, ful.

Now, let’s read the second row.

This is the groupsign ity.

In the third row is the groupsign ness.

And in the last row is the groupsign ong.

Below the middle line are four rows of words.

These words all use a final-letter groupsign in the middle or at the end of the word.

Let’s read the first row.

It says, “skillful,” “grateful,” “hopefully.”

Now, go ahead and read the second row.

This says, “unity,” “pitying,” “ability.”

What does the third row say?

If you read, “witness,” “toughness,” “kindnesses,” you got it!

Finally, read the last row.

The last row says, “song,” “along,” “longitude.”

Turn the page.

Page 2

Feel the ful groupsign in the top left corner of the page.

The ful groupsign is dots 56-l.

Above the middle line are four rows of braille.

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

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

Read the four rows above the middle line, and find which row has the ful groupsign.

If you said the third row, you got it!

Below the middle line, you’ll find three phrases.

Read the first phrase and find the word that uses the ful groupsign.

Did you say the second word, “powerful?” That’s right!

This phrase says, “a powerful woman.”

Now, read the second phrase, and find the word that uses the ful groupsign.

This time, it’s the first word.

This phrase says, “delightful play.”

Finally, read the last phrase and find the word that uses the ful groupsign.

It’s the last word. The phrase in this row says, “fragile, light, and graceful.”

Move to the next page.

Page 3

Feel the ity groupsign in the top left corner of the page.

The ity groupsign is dots 56-y.

Above the middle line are four rows of braille.

Which row shows the ity groupsign?

If you said the second row, you’re right!

Below the middle line are three phrases.

Read the first phrase and find which word uses the ity groupsign.

It’s the first word. This phrase says, “university student.”

Now, read the phrase in the second row and find which word has the ity groupsign.

This time it’s the last word. This phrase says, “with considerable intensity.”

Finally, read the words in the last phrase that use the ity groupsign.

Did you find it twice? That’s right!

The ity groupsign appears in the second and fourth words in the phrase, “the ability of humanity.”

Turn the page.

Page 4

Feel the ness groupsign in the top left corner of the page.

Ness is dots 56-s.

Above the middle line are four rows of braille.

Which row shows the ness groupsign?

If you said the last row, you found it!

Below the middle line are three phrases.

Read the first phrase and find which word uses the ness groupsign.

If you said the second word, that’s it!

This phrase says, “the toughness of an athlete.”

Now, read the next phrase and find which word uses the ness groupsign.

This time it’s the first word. The phrase says, “happiness that’s unwavering.”

Finally, find which word in the last phrase uses the ness groupsign.

It’s the third word in the phrase, “with unequaled fairness.”

Go to the next page.

Page 5

Feel the ong groupsign, dots 56-g, in the top left corner of the page.

Above the middle line are four rows of braille.

Read the four rows and find which one is the ong groupsign.

If you said the first row, you got it!

Below the middle line are three phrases.

Read the first phrase and find the word that uses the ong groupsign.

It’s the second word. The phrase reads, “one lifelong dream.”

Now, read the next phrase and find which word has the ong groupsign.

This time it’s the third word. The phrase says, “on the wrong side.”

And finally, read the last phrase and find the word that uses the ong groupsign.

Did you say it’s the last word? That’s it!

This one says, “the rabbit belongs.”

That was a tricky one!

Turn the page.

Page 6

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

The contractions ful, ity, ness, and ong.

Now, find the two columns at the top of the page.

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 both columns of braille.

Which column has the final-letter groupsigns in this order, ong, ness, ity, ful?

If you chose the second column, you got it!

Continue down the page to find three numbered sentences. Read sentence 1.

If you read, “The thoughtful older couple imparted incredible kindness to the struggling young couple,” well done!

What does sentence 2 say?

This one reads, “A strong, successful work ethic includes responsibility and productivity.”

And now, read sentence 3.

Sentence 3 says, “Enjoying the crispness of the fall and winter mornings was a lifelong endeavor.”

Great reading!

Move to the next page.

Page 7

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

These are the groupsigns ful, ity, ness, and ong.

Now, find the four rows of uncontracted, spelled-out words near the top of the page.

Read the word in the first row.

If this word was brailled with contractions, how many contractions would it use and what are they?

This is the word “carefully.”

This word should have two contractions: the ar groupsign and the ful groupsign.

Now, read the word in the second row. How many contractions should be used and what are they?

The second row says, “conformity.”

There should be three contractions used: con and for, as well as ity.

Now, try the word in the next row.

The word “thoughtfulness” should have four contractions: th, dot 5-ou for “ought,” then ful and ness.

Finally, how many contractions should be in the last word?

Did you say “tactfully” has one contraction? That’s right: ful.

Great work!

Continue down the page to find four fill-in-the-blank sentences.

Read sentence 1. Then read the two words in the next row.

Which word fills in the blank to complete the sentence?

If you said the second word, “pity,” you got it!

The sentence should say, “Please, I don’t want pity.”

Now, read sentence 2 and the words that follow and find which one fills in the blank.

The second word is correct, “mugful.”

The sentence reads, “Everett starts every day with a mugful of coffee.”

How about sentence 3?

The first word is correct, “along.”

This one says, “We walked along the beach on our first date.”

Finally, find the correct word in sentence 4.

The correct word is the second choice, “grayness.”

And the sentence reads, “The grayness of the clouds that day put everyone in a bad mood.”

If you’d like to try the activities on this page again, you can always select Replay.

And if you’d like some help, reach out to a braille expert.

When you’re ready, turn the page.

Page 8

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

These are three more final-letter groupsigns: t-i-o-n, e-n-c-e, and m-e-n-t.

Like the other final-letter groupsigns, these must follow a letter or a contraction.

So, they’re used only in the middle or at the end of a word.

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

The first row is the groupsign tion.

Now, let’s read the second row.

This is the groupsign ence.

And the last row is the groupsign ment.

Below the middle line, you’ll find four rows of words.

These words all use final-letter groupsigns in the middle or at the end.

Let’s read the first row together.

These words are, “ration,” “nationally,” and “recreation.”

Now, go ahead and read the second row.

If you read, “science,” “absence,” and “henceforth,” you got them all!

Finally, read the last row.

This row says, “experimented,” “treatment,” disagreement.”

Go to the next page.

Page 9

Feel the tion groupsign in the top left corner of the page.

Above the middle line are three rows of final-letter groupsigns.

Read all three rows and find which one has the tion groupsign.

If you said the last row, you got it!

Below the middle line are three rows with phrases.

Read the first phrase and find which word uses the tion groupsign.

Did you say the last word, “distraction?” That’s right!

This phrase says, “an unusual distraction.”

Now, read the phrase in the second row and find which word uses the tion groupsign.

This time it’s the first word.

This phrase says, “relationships are important.”

And finally, read the last phrase and find the word with the tion groupsign.

It’s the second word. The last phrase says, “the combination for the safe.”

Turn the page.

Page 10

Feel the ence groupsign in the top left corner of the page.

Above the middle line are three rows with final-letter groupsigns.

Which row shows the groupsign ence?

If you said the first row, you got it!

Below the middle line, you’ll find three phrases.

Read the first phrase and find the word with the ence groupsign.

The first word is correct, “silence.”

The phrase says, “silence is golden.”

Now, read the next phrase and find the word that uses the ence groupsign.

This time it’s the second word, “presence.”

This one says, “my presence is required.”

Finally, read the last phrase and find the word with the ence groupsign.

If you picked the last word, “coincidence,” you got it!

The last phrase reads, “an unusual coincidence.”

Move to the next page.

Page 11

Feel the ment groupsign in the top left corner of the page.

Above the middle line are three rows with final-letter groupsigns.

Which row shows the ment groupsign?

If you said the last row, you’re right!

Below the middle line are three phrases.

Read the first phrase and find the word that uses the ment groupsign.

Did you say the second word, “amusement?” That’s it!

This phrase says, “the amusement park trip.”

Next, find the word that uses the ment groupsign in the second phrase.

This time it’s the last word.

This one reads, “an important commitment.”

Finally, read the last phrase and find the word with the ment groupsign.

It’s the first word.

The last phrase says, “improvement takes time.”

Turn the page.

Page 12

Feel the groupsigns tion, ence, and ment.

Near the top of the page, you’ll find four rows of braille.

Read the words in the first row and find which word is “document.”

If you said it’s the last word, you’re right!

The ment groupsign is dots 56-t.

Now, read the words in the second row and find which one is “recreation.”

“Recreation” is the first word.

In the next row, find the word “experience.”

“Experience” is the last word.

And in the last row, which one is “nation?”

It’s the first word.

Continue down the page and find a list of five words.

Go ahead and read the first word.

How many contractions are in this word and what are they?

If you said there are three contractions in “accomplishment,” you’re right!

They’re cc, sh, and ment.

Now, read the word in the second row and find the contractions.

The word “originality” has two contractions: in and ity.

Next, read the third word and find the contractions.

This word, “information,” has three contractions: in, for, and tion.

What about the fourth word?

The word “difference” in the fourth row has three contractions: ff, er, and ence.

Finally, read the last word and find the contractions.

This word, “longevity,” has two, and they’re both final-letter contractions: ong, and ity.

If you found any of these tricky, or you have a question, just reach out to a Hadley braille expert. We’re happy to help!

Go to the next page.

Page 13

Feel the contractions ence and ness in the top left corner of the page.

You’ve learned that some contractions take preference over others.

For final-letter groupsigns, the most important rule is to use the contraction that saves the most space.

Find the two words near the top of the page. Let’s read the word in the first row.

This is the word “finesse.”

This word uses the ness final-letter groupsign because that uses less space than using the in contraction.

Now, let’s look at the second word.

This is “influenced.”

When brailling words that contain e-n-c-e-d or e-n-c-e-r, use the ence contraction rather than the en along with the ed or er.

Continue down the page to find two more rows of braille.

Read the first row and find which word is brailled correctly.

If you said the first word, you’re right.

“Business” uses the ness groupsign.

Now, read the second row and choose which word is correct.

This time it’s the second word.

“Fencer” uses the ence groupsign.

Turn the page.

Page 14

Feel the contractions, ness, ful, and ence, in the top left corner of the page.

Near the top of the page, you’ll find three sentences.

As always, select Pause while you read, then select Play when you’re ready for the feedback.

Read sentence 1 and find the words that use final-letter groupsigns.

Sentence one has the words, “business,” “unsuccessful,” and “experience.”

Now, read sentence 2 and find the words with final-letter groupsigns.

If you found “headlong,” “diligence,” and “resourcefulness,” you found them all!

Finally, what about the last sentence?

In sentence 3, the words with the final-letter contractions are “availability,” “hopeful,” and “completion.”

Now, continue down the page and find four rows with uncontracted, spelled-out words.

Read the word in the first row.

When this word is brailled with contractions, how many contractions should be used and what are they?

This is the word “redemption,” and it should have two contractions: ed and tion.

How about the word in the second row? How many contractions should it have and what are they?

The second word is “wrongfulness,” and there should be three contractions: ong, ful, and ness.

Now, do the third one.

The word “interference” should have four contractions: in, er, er again, and ence.

Finally, how many contractions should be in the last word?

If you said “accomplishment” should have three contractions, cc, sh and ment, you’re right!

Great work!

Move to the next page.

Page 15

Feel the final-letter groupsigns in the top left corner of the page: tion, ence, ness, and ment.

Now, find the two columns of final-letter groupsigns near the top of the page and read both columns. Which column has these groupsigns in alphabetical order?

If you chose the second column, you got it!

This column reads, “ence,” “ment,” “ness,” “tion.”

Now, continue down the page and find four sentences.

Read sentences 1 and 2 and find which one is brailled correctly.

If you said sentence 1, you got it!

Now, read sentences 3 and 4 and find which one is brailled correctly.

It’s sentence 4. Sentence 3 has four errors in it.

If you need help finding them, call a braille expert. We’d love to help!

Turn the page.

Page 16

On this page we’re going to do something a little different.

Proofreading is an important skill when reading and writing braille.

On this page, you’ll find five braille sentences. Each sentence has errors in it.

Braille errors can be the wrong contractions, indicators or contractions that are missing, symbols written backward or upside down, and so on.

These can be tricky to find.

Let’s read sentence 1 together.

It should say: “Is my appointment on 4-15 or 4-16?” I asked my husband.

What are three errors in this sentence?

First, the capital letter indicator is missing for the first word, “is.”

Second, a numeric indicator is missing for the “15” in “4-15.”

And third, the “ed” should be contracted in “asked.”

Now let’s look at sentence 2.

This one should say, “He was wrongfully mocked for his eccentricity.”

Can you find two errors in that sentence?

This time, the words “was” and “his” were reversed.

Go ahead and read sentence 3 on your own and look for the three errors.

In sentence 3, the first word should be “generosity” with the ity contraction. But instead, it ends with ment.

The word “forgiveness” should use the ness groupsign instead of the en groupsign.

And the word “characteristics” should use dot 5-ch for “character” instead of the groupsigns ch, ar, and er.

Next read sentence 4 and look for the three errors.

In this sentence, the ing in “ginger” should be contracted.

The word “thought” should use dot 5-ou for “ought.”

And the word “it” should use the alphabetic wordsign.

Finally, read the last sentence and look for five errors.

In this one, the of contraction should be used in “professor.”

The st in “stated” should be contracted.

The word “every” should be written using the alphabetic wordsign.

And the words “Friday” and “May” are missing their capital letter indicators.

Did you find all five? Outstanding!

Now that you have some practice with proofreading and editing, you might want to start checking for errors as you write your own braille.

To complete this workshop, select Next.

Completion

Congratulations! You’ve learned the dot 56 final-letter contractions.

If you have questions about these contractions or anything else you’ve learned in these workshops, reach out to a Hadley braille expert at 847-784-2816. We’re happy to help!