American Action Fund for Blind Children and Adults
Future Reflections Special Issue on Braille LIVING AND LEARNING
Our Family's Journey to Braille Literacy
by Cassie McKinney
From the Editor: As president of the National Organization of Parents of Blind Children, Cassie McKinney is a tireless advocate for blind children across the country and in her native state of Tennessee. In this article she relates the journey to Braille literacy that she shares with her son Robert.
As a leader in the National Federation of the Blind and president of one of its divisions, the National Organization of Parents of Blind Children (NOPBC), I would love to write to you about my fluency and appreciation of Braille. As a blind adult, I would be thrilled if I could write an article full of the wonderful adventures that the code has taken me on. However, that is not my story. As a child with low vision, I was never given the opportunity to learn Braille. As an adult, I have struggled to learn even uncontracted Braille, despite my continued efforts. My story is the leading force that pushes me to be an advocate for Braille, not only for other blind children, but for my own son, Robert.
When I learned that my son was blind, I wanted all the best things for him. I wanted him to be literate and independent, and I wanted him to grow up with the philosophy of the Federation. I wanted him to be part of the Federation’s loving and empowering community.
Robert has always been a smart and outgoing child, but when he started school he had to overcome many challenges. Most of them arose because the people around him held misconceptions about children with low vision. Because Robert can read large print, the education system did not understand why we wanted him to learn Braille. As his mom, though, I notice the small things: how tired his eyes are at the end of the day, and the way he rubs his eyes during homework because everything looks blurry to him.
I wanted better for Robert, and so we pushed. The teachers said, “If you want him to learn Braille and really use it, he has to go to the School for the Blind.” My response was, “Absolutely not. We will work extra hard at home, and you all can work with him at school.”
The day the Braillewriter came home was like Christmas at our house. Everyone in the house wanted to see how it worked. Everyone wanted to try it out. Robert was excited to demonstrate.
Every night Robert and I do homework, and we learn and practice our Braille. We are learning Braille together, and it will be life-changing for both of us. Robert comes home with new contractions he has learned, and he teaches them to me.
The overwhelming part about this journey is that at his age, ten, Robert doesn’t fully understand the impact he is having on my Braille literacy. The more we work together, the better we both become. This increases his growth as a young man. It teaches him that hard work is worth it. It also teaches him that he has a role in promoting Braille literacy: to show its significance to his peers and to be able to encourage others who are learning.
Robert’s independence has increased as he has gotten older. He is a leader in his school, and he enjoys taking his turn to be line leader for his class. His peers don’t see him as the “blind kid.” They know him as Robert. He’s the first one to go down the biggest slide. He’s the one who loves telling stories about his adventures with his mom when they go to national convention with the NFB.
Robert has been surrounded by our Federation family since before he was even born. He cherishes the time he gets to spend with his NFB friends from all over the country. Each year he looks forward to the events that we will attend. He says, “It’s fun, because we don’t have to pretend to fit in with everyone around us. We just get to be who we are.” This is what I wanted for him, to know that he has a place of belonging, a place where he can be himself and find support unlike any other we have ever known.
This is a story about our family’s journey to Braille literacy. We aren’t fluent yet, but we work toward that goal every day. Some day, when Robert is asked to write an article like this, he will be able to talk about how it all started. It started because his mom wanted better for him than what she had when she was growing up. She gave him all the tools he needed: the support of his parents and the unwavering support of the National Federation of the Blind.