The 2019 Braille Challenge, an academic competition for students in grades 1-12 to show off their braille literacy and qualify for a national competition during the summer, comes to the Washington Talking Book & Braille Library (WTBBL) this Saturday, Jan. 12, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Students can also register until Jan. 23 for a February Braille Challenge WTBBL will host at the Spokane Public Library.

At the Jan. 12 event at WTBBL, students from King, Kitsap, and Snohomish Counties and as far as Wenatchee will participate in the friendly competition, with prizes, pizza, and t-shirts generously donated by the Washington Council of the Blind.

Braille Challenge competitors will be tested according to grade-level braille standards in reading comprehension, braille speed and accuracy, proofreading, spelling, and reading tactile charts and graphs.

WTBBL staff are very excited to welcome guide dog puppies-in-training from the local chapter of Guide Dogs for the Blind to the event. Registration has closed for the Seattle Braille Challenge, but all are welcome to attend the Guide Dog Puppy Presentation from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.

The Braille Challenge was created by the Braille Institute of America (BIA) in 2000 and is a national program. Any visually impaired student who reads braille is eligible to participate in the preliminary Challenge contest events. Learn more at: http://www.brailleinstitute.org/braille-challenge-homepage.html 

To register for the Braille Challenge in Spokane Feb. 23, contact WTBBL Youth Services Librarian Erin Groth at [email protected] or 206-615-1253, or visit wtbbl.org/youth.aspx. WTBBL is a program of the Washington State Library, which is a division of the Office of Secretary of State.