Readbooks! Frequently Asked Questions

Reading is the first step toward literacy. ReadBooks! Because Braille Matters encourages families to consider braille at the earliest possible age and to read print/braille books together at home. Braille is the only independent means of reading and writing for a child who cannot see.

Proficiency in braille is strongly correlated to future success in school and in the job market. The majority of blind people who are competitively employed use braille. Studies show the most proficient braille readers are those who started braille at a young age and who received frequent braille instruction in school.

Families with young blind children, birth through seven, receive a free ReadBooks! book bag containing print/braille books, a braille primer for parents, braille alphabet cards, bookmarks, tactile graphics, and a resource book. Braille Bags are available in English or Spanish.

You can order a ReadBooks! bag by filling out our ReadBooks! order form. You may also call us at 800-548-7323 ext 520 (or 617-266-6160 ext 520 in Canada).

If you are an educator or professional working with blind children, please be sure to review our participation agreement before you order. Parents and care givers do not have to sign this agreement.

If a family contacts NBP directly, a bag will be shipped to your home. National Braille Press also works with early intervention professionals and teachers of the visually impaired who identify families for the program and who deliver the bags. No disclosure of families' personal information is required. Agencies identify families who could benefit and NBP sends them the requisite number of bags.

Start-up funds for the ReadBooks! program came from Mellon Charitable Trust. A significant grant from Readers Digest Partnership for Sight Foundation launched the program across the country. Additional funding from other foundations will enable us to continue to reach every blind child in the country; these foundations include BNY Mellon Charitable Giving Program, Alice P. Chase Trust, Edith Glick Shoolman Foundation, May & Stanley Smith Trust, Delta Gamma Foundation, Moses Kimball Fund, and John W. Alden Trust.

ReadBooks! bags are appropriate not only for totally blind children but also for visually impaired children whose vision may be unstable or who may not be able to efficiently read print when the material is too lengthy or complex. Program participants are encouraged to request a book bag for any potential braille reader.

Of course, you may not yet know exactly what your child's abilities will be. What can he see? Will she be a braille reader? Some parents may not know the answers to these questions until their children are much older, but that doesn't mean you can't expose them to braille in the mean time! Just fill out the form, order a free Braille Bag, and begin the lifetime of learning and reading that you and your child will enjoy, no matter what their abilities may be!

Sorry! This program is designed and funded as a family outreach project and our book bags are intended for distribution to families. If, however, you or your agency wishes to purchase a bag, the cost is $55.

Yes, please do! Family members are encouraged to order book bags for their children.

Please help us by ordering only the bags you need at this time. Unless we are temporarily out of stock, we promise to ship book bags within a week of finalizing your order. (99% of the time, we ship bags to you within one week!)

Due to funding restrictions, we are not currently able to offer ReadBooks! bags to older children. If this would be an important resource to you for older students, though, please let us know.

ReadBooks! bags are available in English and Spanish.

"Just Enough to Know Better," a braille primer, cannot be translated into Spanish because Spanish braille does not contain contractions.

Thanks to generous support from several foundations, book bags are sent free to families throughout the United States and Canada. Parents and professionals from other countries who would like to obtain a book bag can purchase one for $55 U.S., plus shipping costs. To inquire about overseas shipping costs, contact our customer service department at orders@nbp.org. Be sure to include your mailing address.

Parents and caregivers may order by filling out this online form.

Educators and agency professionals need to print, fill out, and sign this form first. After you have faxed the agreement, you can order bags online.

You may also email us at orders@nbp.org, or call us at 800-548-7323 ext 520 (or 617-266-6160 ext 520 in Canada).