Virtual Games

Screenshot of the Braille Jeopardy game board. Categories including "Punctuation" and "Braille Riddles' are listed across the header row.

Every other week, the PRCVI Outreach Team hosts Braille Games! - a 90-minute virtual games room for British Columbia students and their teachers. In honour of World Braille Day 2022 we are sharing our Jeopardy-inspired braille games! These games are intended to provide students with a fun, engaging means of testing their Unified English Braille knowledge with peers who are also learning to read and write in braille.

Instructions are listed below, along with suggestions for ensuring a fun, accessible experience for all. But remember - every time a UEB sign is given as an answer, the student needs to provide the dot numbers in order to gain full points! 

Virtual Braille Jeopardy

Like the popular game show, contestants answer a series of trivia questions (in the form of a question) within five thematic categories that each contain five questions ranging in value from 100 to 500 points. The value of the available points for a correct answer reflect the difficulty of the question. For example, the category "Braille Contractions" might contain the following questions:

For 100 points - "This part- and whole-word sign is represented by a full cell." Answer: "What is f-o-r, dots 1-2-3-4-5-6"

For 500 points - "These signs, each representing words that begin with U, differ only by a dot 4." Answer: "What is "under," dot 5 U; and "upon," dot 4-5 U."

Braille Jeopardy Instructions

Educator roles (2):

  • A host to help navigate the game board and narrate the questions
  • A scorekeeper to keep track of point totals and to announce turns
  • More experienced braille users (e.g., older students or adult braille readers) may also be included as players or as hosts/scorekeepers

Players - A minimum of two players are required. Larger groups are certainly possible, but this means that individual students answer fewer questions per round and may have a limited range of questions to choose from. This is important since some players may feel more comfortable with questions from the 100-200 point range if they are new to braille. 

Materials - Since this game is intended to be played over videoconferencing, no materials are required for students to play. If helpful, students may want to have a Unified English Braille alphabet chart, contractions chart, and perhaps a braille writing tool (but none are required). 

Steps to Play 

  1. The scorekeeper determines the game order. This can be determined by any number of criteria: The order in which the students entered the videoconferencing room, alphabetic, randomized, etc. 
  2. The host announces each of the category names on the game board from left to right. 
  3. The first player selects a category and a question (by available point total). For example: "I'll take Braille Contractions for 400." The host reads the question and gives the player time to answer. The host can offer the use of a "lifeline" to each player (to a maximum determined by the host). The nature of the lifeline is determined by the host. For example, if a player is finding a question very challenging, they may be given the chance to "Ask a Teacher" for a clue. 
  4. Each player responds in the form of a question and must answer the question, whether they know the answer or not. Points are awarded for a correct answer, even if the player uses a lifeline. 
  5. When the next player starts their turn, the host reads out the five categories. The host may also read out the remaining questions in that category if needed. For example; "Under "Braille Contractions," 200, 400, and 500 remain." The player then makes their selection.
  6. This process repeats across turns until no unanswered questions remain on the board. The player with the highest point total wins!

Braille Jeopardy Files

Each file is in PowerPoint format (.PPTX). Slides are linked so that the host can easily move between the game board and individual questions. 

The below zipped (.zip) file contains an HTML file (.html) as well as files for functionality and styling of the game. After unzipping the file, open the .html file to launch the game. Use standard screen reader commands to navigate the game board (a table) and interact with buttons.

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