Lego, one of the oldest and most popular games in the world, has just made braille bricks. The small bricks are thus molded so that visually impaired children can read the numbers and letters of the Braille alphabet with their fingers. An evolution that will make it possible to expand the learning of Braille at school for visually impaired children.
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The goal, to learn to read
With these braille bricks, the goal is not so much the construction as the formation of words or sentences. Imagine these famous Legos rectangles, colored plastic, the basics, with two rows of four small pins. Here, some pins are removed. And those who remain draw a letter in relief, in Braille. This letter is also written in capital letters on the part.
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Thus, all students, visually impaired or not, will be able to play with the same material to assemble syllables and therefore learn to read. The first tests were conclusive, tells Europe 1 Thursday Marie Oddoux, occupational therapist specializing in low vision, who is at the origin of this educational project.
Popularize braille thanks to the Legos
“I had a little kid last year who didn't want to learn braille anymore because he thought it wasn't very interesting and not funny at all. So I went to see him with a prototype of Legos to test them. At the end, he was delighted. He arrived in class and went to see his teacher and he told her that he had decided to continue learning braille because he wanted the box of Legos ", says Marie Oddoux. "Our goal is really to popularize braille to show that it is not obsolete but that it is a means of communication that must absolutely be maintained. We need written supports and to be able to work in that way" , emphasizes the occupational therapist.
Braille is lost and this poses insertion problems, especially in adulthood, believes Marie Oddoux like many specialists. Yes, it is possible for the visually impaired to listen to the written word, but that is not enough. You have to read it with your fingertips, and very soon play Legos to get to know your language better.