Future Reflections Special Issue: Technology
PARENTING COURSES
Hadley Family Education Courses
Hadley School for the Blind
<www.hadley.edu>
(800) 323-4238
The Hadley School for the Blind now offers courses in its family education program in e-book format. Upon enrollment, students will receive a link to the download page, where they can select a format appropriate for their particular e-book reader. Courses for parents of blind children include "You, Your Child, and the Community: Beginning the Special Education Journey."
BRAILLE LITERACY
Paths to Literacy
<www.pathstoliteracy.org>
Paths to Literacy is a joint project of Perkins School for the Blind and the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (TSBVI). The site includes information on many aspects of literacy and literacy training, including emergent literacy, multiple disabilities, struggling readers, dual media, and English language learners.
Evolution of Braille
Braille Authority of North America (BANA)
<www.brailleauthority.org>
Contact: Frances Mary D'Andrea, (412) 521-5797
[email protected]
BANA has released the final segment of a three-part article on the evolution of Braille, authored by the BANA board. The article, "The Evolution of Braille: Can the Past Help Plan the Future?", is posted on the BANA website.
CLOTHING
Touch Clothing
<www.touchclothing.myshopify.com>
Contact: Erik Fitzgerald, [email protected]
Touch Clothing is a manufacturer and designer of fun and interactive clothing. Currently, the company is featuring a line of Braille T-shirts. Special ink allows the wearer to feel and read a Braille inscription. The T-shirts are 100 percent cotton. Inscriptions consist of catch phrases in Braille and print and include ROCKSTAR, LEGENDARY, and CHAMPION. The company offers men's and women's shirts in small, medium, and large sizes.
PUZZLES
The following companies produce puzzles designed to be assembled by touch and/or to offer distinct tactile shapes and textures.
Giant Leaps
<www.flaghouse.com>
(800) 332-9410
Puzzle themes include farm animals, zoo animals, and vehicles.
Tactile Puzzle Jungle: Let's Talk Learning
<www.learninghouse.com.au/tactile-puzzle-jungle.html>
Each animal in this giant puzzle has a tactile piece for children to touch, developing their tactile senses.
Tactile Puzzle Books: View Free
<www.view-free.com/productoverzicht.php?pc=3&taal=2>
All puzzles in the book are Braille embossed and printed in large, clear print. Fun for the whole family!
GAMES
Hark the Sound
<www.cs.unc.edu/~gb/research>
Gary Bishop, a professor of computer science at the University of North Carolina, has developed a variety of free downloadable games for children with disabilities. Hark the Sound is a collection of sound-based games for kids who are blind or visually impaired. The collection includes SonicZoom, a racing game that can be played by using changes in sound pitch; The Last Crusade, a sound-based role-playing game; and SamiSays, a game that allows kids to record stories with sound effects.
Jungle Jive!
<www.ravensburger.com/family_games>
This off-the-shelf game, available at Toys"R"Us and other stores, is a balancing game that involves interactive sounds. Cards must be Brailled for blind players, but the scoreboard is tactile.