Free Braille Resources for Teachers and Families
The best free braille resources in English come from a handful of institutions, not from apps: Hadley and UEB Online for courses, ICEB and BANA for the official rulebooks, Paths to Literacy for classroom ideas, and the National Library Service and Bookshare for braille books. Almost all are free; fewer are free and without an account.
Below are those and others, grouped by type of resource (courses, rulebooks, printables, books and libraries, tools and organizations), with three details most lists leave out: what format it comes in, who it is for, and whether you need to sign up.
Key points
- The best material is free and institutional. Hadley's braille workshops, the UEB Online courses and the ICEB rulebook cost nothing. No commercial product matches them.
- "Free" and "no sign-up" are not the same. UEB Online is free but requires an account and charges for an optional certificate; Hadley's workshops can be watched without an account; Bookshare is free for eligible US students but requires proof of a qualifying disability.
- Braille books for children are free in the US through the American Action Fund's Free Braille Books program and the NLS. Many families never hear about either.
- The official rules are free too. The Rules of Unified English Braille (third edition, 2024) and BANA's Nemeth Code (2022) can be downloaded at no cost.
- Link lists go stale. Every URL on this page was checked on October 7, 2026; the ones that did not respond are listed at the end, by name.
How we checked this list
Each URL in this article was opened and its HTTP response checked on October 7, 2026. For each resource we recorded what we could see on the provider's own site, and nothing else:
| What we checked | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| That the URL responds | A resource page full of dead links is worse than no page |
| Format | A PDF, a desktop program and a website are used differently in a classroom |
| Who it is for | Teachers, families and adult learners need different things |
| Sign-up and cost | "Free" sometimes hides a required account or a paid certificate |
What we do not do: describe what an organization "usually offers". If it is not written on their site, it is not on this list.
Braillito is ours. Two resources on this page are ours: a printable PDF and a web translator. They appear where they belong by type, not first, with the same details as the rest, and we say openly which others beat them.
Free courses
Hadley: braille by sight, by touch and for everyday use
A US organization offering short, free workshops for people with vision loss and the people around them. For teachers and families, the Basic Braille by Sight: Reading Series is the place to start: eight workshops on uncontracted UEB (letters, numbers, punctuation, fractions, money and time, capitals), about four hours in total. It continues in a Writing Series, a Contracted Braille Series and Braille Special Symbols series, and there are Braille for Everyday Use workshops on labeling things at home and reading signs.
Page: Basic Braille by Sight: Reading Series. Video workshops · free · account optional (a no-cost account saves your progress).
For learners with vision loss, Hadley also offers braille by touch through audio-delivered courses mailed to the home.
UEB Online: the one with a certificate
Online training in braille literacy, mathematics and music, with competency exams, run by the NextSense Institute in Australia. It is the only option on this list that issues a recognized certificate.
Page: uebonline.org. Web platform · free · account required.
The courses are free, with an optional AU$50 administration fee for a completion certificate. Four programs: UEB Literacy (30 lessons in two modules), Mathematics (introductory, advanced and extension), Braille Music Notation (11 introductory lessons) and Foundations of Braille Literacy (nine video presentations).
Braille Brain: UEB and Nemeth for school teams
A braille training project funded by the US Department of Education and run by California State University, Los Angeles with the American Printing House for the Blind (APH). It is aimed at teachers of students with visual impairments, paraprofessionals, parents and school teams, with courses in UEB Foundation, UEB Advanced and Nemeth.
Page: braillebrain.aphtech.org. Web platform · check the site for sign-up details.
Paths to Literacy: the bank of classroom ideas
The resource site of Perkins School for the Blind and the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired. It is not a course but a huge collection of articles, lesson plans and activities written by working teachers.
Page: pathstoliteracy.org/learning-center/braille. Web pages and PDFs · no sign-up.
Three pages worth the click:
- Free online resources to learn braille: their own list of free courses.
- Braille for sighted classmates and family members: exactly the problem of a regular classroom, keeping braille from being one person's private language.
- Dots for Families: lessons designed for families learning at home.
The official rulebooks
The codes themselves are free. If you need the exact rule for a sign, go to the source rather than a summary.
| Document | Who publishes it | What it covers | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rules of Unified English Braille, third edition, 2024 | International Council on English Braille (ICEB) | The full UEB code: every letter, sign, indicator and contraction | Free PDF, and free braille files (BRF) in seven volumes |
| Guidelines for Technical Material, 2014 | ICEB | Math and science in UEB, with sections being revised | Free PDF and BRF |
| The Nemeth Braille Code for Mathematics and Science Notation, 2022 | Braille Authority of North America (BANA) | The Nemeth math code, updated for use inside UEB | Free PDF |
| Music Braille Code, 2015 | BANA | Braille music notation in North America | Free PDF |
For a reader-friendly introduction to those codes, see our articles on braille contractions, the Nemeth Code and braille music.
Printables
| Resource | What it is | Sign-up |
|---|---|---|
| Printable braille alphabet chart (Braillito) | One US Letter page with the letters, numbers, capital indicators and basic punctuation, free to photocopy. It is ours | No |
Two honest warnings about our PDF, because it is ours:
- It is a chart, not a method. It puts the alphabet on the wall. For teaching, Hadley's workshops and Paths to Literacy are far more useful, and just as free.
- It is printed in ink, not raised. No sheet from a regular printer can be read by touch. For that you need an embosser, a slate and stylus, or the transcription service in your area.
Braille books and libraries
Most libraries for blind readers require proof of eligibility, because they operate under copyright exceptions that only apply to people with print disabilities. It is not red tape for its own sake; it is what makes them legal.
| Program | What it offers | Conditions |
|---|---|---|
| National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS) | Free braille and audio books, downloads through BARD, and a 20-cell braille eReader on loan | Free for US residents who cannot read or handle regular print because of a disability. Apply through your state's network library |
| Bookshare | Accessible ebooks, including braille-ready files (BRF), audio and large print | Free for US students with a qualifying disability, funded by the US Department of Education; no IEP or 504 plan required. Eligibility is confirmed by a qualified professional |
| Free Braille Books program (American Action Fund) | A free braille book every month from a popular children's series, for the child to keep | For blind or low-vision children in the US who read braille. Online application |
| Free braille books for children (APH ConnectCenter) | A list of programs that send free braille books to children | Depends on each program |
| Louis database (APH) | A search of accessible educational materials from more than 60 US organizations, including NIMAC, Bookshare and Learning Ally | A search tool, not a library: it tells you where a title exists in braille or other formats |
Online tools
| Tool | What it does | Format |
|---|---|---|
| Braillito braille translator | Translates English text to Unified English Braille, grade 1 or contracted grade 2, and braille back to English, in the browser. It is ours | Web |
| BrailleTranslator.org | Translates text into several codes (UEB grades 1 and 2, US and UK English, French, German, Spanish and Czech) and generates a downloadable image | Web |
| BrailleBlaster (APH) | Professional braille transcription software from APH, built on liblouis, designed to produce full textbooks | Desktop program |
Where each beats us, plainly: BrailleTranslator.org covers more languages than our English translator, and BrailleBlaster does something we cannot: produce a whole textbook, with formatting, tables and transcriber's notes. Our translator is for a word, a sign or a note; not for a book. Both ours and BrailleBlaster use liblouis, the open-source translation library. Learning apps are compared separately in the best apps to learn braille.
Organizations to contact
What follows is what each organization says it does, not what we assume it will do for you.
| Organization | What it is | What a school or family finds there |
|---|---|---|
| American Printing House for the Blind (APH) | The US national producer of educational materials for blind students | Learning materials, the Louis database, BrailleBlaster and the ConnectCenter resources for families |
| Braille Authority of North America (BANA) | The body that sets braille rules in the US and Canada | The official codes and guidance, free to download |
| International Council on English Braille (ICEB) | The body that maintains Unified English Braille | The UEB rulebook and technical guidelines |
| National Library Service (NLS) | Part of the Library of Congress | Free braille books, BARD and the braille eReader |
| Hadley | A US nonprofit for people with vision loss | Free workshops, including braille |
| Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (TSBVI) | A state school and resource center | Teaching resources, and co-publisher of Paths to Literacy |
A practical tip for writing to any of them: ask about a service, not for "help". "What is the deadline to order braille materials for next school year, and what do you need from us?" gets an answer. "Can you help us?" stays in the inbox.
What we left out, and why
An honest list also says what it dropped. We checked these and they did not make it in:
- perkins.org and nfb.org returned 403 to all our checks. They very likely work in a normal browser and are only blocking automated requests, but we cannot say a page works if we did not see it work. Perkins's Paths to Literacy, which did respond, is above.
- actionfund.org also returned 403, so we link to Paths to Literacy's page about its Free Braille Books program instead.
- Seedlings Braille Books for Children did not respond from our network.
- Direct links to specific PDFs, except where there was no alternative: we link the page that lists them. File paths change with every edition; pages do not.
Where to start, depending on what you need today
| Your situation | Start with |
|---|---|
| A blind student joins your class next month | Teaching a blind student: a classroom checklist, and order adapted materials now |
| You want to learn braille yourself, by sight | Hadley's Basic Braille by Sight series, and braille for beginners |
| You will teach braille to a child | Teaching braille to a blind child, Paths to Literacy and Braille Brain |
| You will teach braille to an adult | Hadley, and learning braille as an adult |
| You need the exact rule for a sign | The Rules of Unified English Braille, from ICEB |
| You need a certificate | UEB Online, from the NextSense Institute |
| You want braille books for a child | The NLS and the American Action Fund's Free Braille Books program |
| You want something for the wall, today | Our printable braille alphabet chart |
| You want the whole class to learn | Paths to Literacy's pages on sighted classmates, and braille games and activities |
Frequently asked questions
Where can I get free braille materials for the classroom?
From Paths to Literacy (activities and lesson ideas, no sign-up), Hadley (free workshops), ICEB and BANA (the official codes, free to download), and the NLS and Bookshare for braille books for eligible readers. Our printable alphabet chart is free to photocopy too.
Is there a free braille course for teachers?
Yes, several. Hadley offers free video workshops in uncontracted and contracted UEB, with an optional account. UEB Online, from the NextSense Institute, is free, requires an account and is the only one that issues a certificate, for an optional AU$50 fee. Braille Brain, from Cal State LA and APH, covers UEB and Nemeth for school teams.
Are there free braille books for children?
In the United States, yes. The American Action Fund's Free Braille Books program sends braille readers a free book every month to keep, and the NLS lends braille books free to eligible readers. APH's ConnectCenter keeps a list of other programs.
Can I print braille on a regular printer?
Not raised. A regular printer prints the dots in ink, which is fine for a sighted person learning to recognize cells by sight, but cannot be read by touch. Raised braille needs a braille embosser, a slate and stylus, or a transcription service.
What is the difference between "free" and "no sign-up"?
A lot, in practice. Paths to Literacy and the rulebooks are free and need no account. Hadley is free with an optional account. UEB Online is free but requires one. Bookshare and the NLS are free but require proof of eligibility. If you are running a training session for twenty teachers, that difference decides which resource you use.
How do you keep this list up to date?
By checking every URL and putting the date in plain sight: all links on this page were checked on October 7, 2026. If you find a broken one, or a free resource that deserves to be here, write to us and we will fix it in the next review.