Hadley

Everyday Braille Writing, Punctuation

Workshop 16: Hyphen, Dash, Ellipses

Opening

Hadley presents Everyday Braille Writing Punctuation, Workshop 16: Hyphen, Dash, Ellipses.

Workbook Page 16: Dash Practice

You've brailled many sentences with a lot of different punctuation! Now let's practice a final set of punctuation symbols. If you haven't completed Braille for Everyday Use, Punctuation, Workshop 16: Dash, Hyphen, Ellipsis, we recommend you do that first.

Go ahead and load your writing device with paper.

First is the dash. The dash is a two-cell symbol: dot 6, dots 3-6. It uses the bottom dot on the second side of the first cell and the bottom dots on both sides of the second cell.

Now move to your writing device. First, you'll hear the whole phrase. Then you'll hear it again with all the punctuation. Continue to use capitalization and punctuation as you would in print. Some phrases use a space next to a dash and some do not. You'll hear when you need to include a space. To give yourself time to braille, select Pause to write, then select Play to get the next item to write.

Braille the phrase:

Colleen — and her trusty dog

C-o-l-l-e-e-n, space, dash, space, and her trusty dog

Now write the phrase:

Scary things—spiders and snakes

Scary things, dash, spiders and snakes

Next, braille the exclamation:

Where — oh, there!

Where, space, dash, space, oh, comma, there, exclamation point

Finally write the phrase:

Good food, apples and spinach

Good food, dash, apples and spinach

When you're ready to check your braille, select Next.

Workbook Page 16: Checking Dash Practice

To check your work, turn to page 16 of the workbook. Feel the dash, hyphen, and ellipsis in the top left corner of the page.

Above the middle line, you will find the four phrases you just brailled. Read the phrases you wrote and then read them on this page to compare and check your writing. Check your dashes.

Did you use dot 6, dots 3-6?

When you're ready for more, select Next.

Workbook Page 16: Hyphen and Ellipsis Practice

Now move down to the next line on your writing device. Let's practice the hyphen and ellipsis.

The hyphen uses dots 3-6, or the bottom dot on the first side of the cell and the bottom dot on the second side of the cell.

The ellipsis uses the same dots as the period, dots 2-5-6, but three times in a row. This is the middle dot on the first side of the cells, and the middle and bottom dots on the second side of the cells.

Start by brailling the phrase:

five-year-old

five, hyphen, year, hyphen, old

Notice that there are no spaces between the words and the hyphen.

Next, write the phrase:

Red-hot

Red, hyphen, hot

Now, try the phrase:

Well ...

Well, space, ellipsis

There are always spaces around the ellipsis unless it is used next to punctuation.

And write the phrase:

Wait...I'm coming!

Wait, ellipsis, I apostrophe m, coming, exclamation point

Finally braille the phrase:

I never thought...

I never thought, ellipsis

When you're ready to check your braille, select Next.

Workbook Page 16: Checking Hyphen and Ellipsis Practice

Check your work with page 16 of the workbook. Below the middle line, you'll find the five phrases you just brailled. Read the phrases you wrote and then read them on this page to compare and check your writing. Check the ellipses. Did you use three periods in a row?

When you're ready for more, turn to page 17 in your workbook and select Next.

Workbook Page 17: Sentence Practice 1

Let's practice writing the hyphen, ellipsis, and dash in some sentences.

Start by brailling the sentence:

We need to have a mid-year celebration!

We need to have a mid, hyphen, year celebration exclamation point

Now write the sentence:

You know … an un-birthday party.

You know, ellipsis, an un, hyphen, birthday party, period

Next, braille the sentence:

We could celebrate you turning 49 1/2.

Be sure to spell out the number 49 1/2.

We could celebrate you turning f-o-r-t-y, hyphen, n-i-n-e, hyphen, and, hyphen, a, hyphen, half, period

Now write the exclamation:

I think—it's a great idea!

I think, dash, it's a great idea, exclamation point

Finally, braille the sentence:

Would you like to plan — or should I?

Would you like to plan, space, dash, space, or should I, question mark

Select Next to check your braille.

Workbook Page 17: Checking Sentence Practice

Check your work on page 17 of the workbook. Feel the ellipsis and dash in the top left corner of the page. Check your sentences to make sure they match. Did you use the ellipsis and dash correctly?

If you have any questions, just reach out to a Hadley braille expert.

When you're ready, turn to page 18 in your workbook and select Next.

Workbook Page 18: Sentence Practice 2

Let's finish the story. Write the sentence:

Let's invite … well, friends and family too!

Let's invite, ellipsis, well, comma, friends and family too, exclamation point

Next, braille the sentence:

We can start with a to-do list.

We can start with a to, hyphen, do list, period

Now write the sentence:

First — invitations ­— for everyone.

First, dash, invitations, dash, for everyone, period

Next, write:

You may say, “that's a lot …”

You may say, comma, opening quotation mark, that's a lot, ellipsis, closing quotation mark

Finally, braille:

But—the more-the-merrier!

But, dash, the more, hyphen, the, hyphen, merrier, exclamation point

When you're ready to check your braille, select Next.

Workbook Page 18: Checking Sentence Practice 2

You can check your work on page 18 of the workbook. Check out that last sentence, did you first use the dash with two cells, and then the hyphens with only one cell each?

Select Next to complete this workshop.

Completion

Congratulations, you have completed the Everyday Braille Writing: Punctuation series! If you have any questions about braille punctuation, just reach out to the braille experts at Hadley. We are happy to help!