Plan Your Visit

• Hours of Operation
• Guided Tours
• Driving Directions
• Materials for Teachers and Students
• Group Tours
• Visiting Frankfort Avenue

Materials for Teachers

Contents

• Scheduling Your Tour: Contact person, tour times, and facilities information
• Museum Tour: General description, learning expectations, and relevant Kentucky Academic Expectations
• APH Plant Tours: Hands-on Tour for Students in Grades 1-3; Plant Tour for Students in Grades 4-12; Some Facts About APH
• Preparing Students for the Tour: Suggested pre-tour and post-tour activities
• Assessment: Evaluation Sheet

Museum Tour

General Information:

Hour-long tours are offered for students in grades 1 through 12. The students will explore the visual, audio, and hands-on displays in the museum. Exhibits include: educational aids used in music, mathematics, geography, and science; machinery used at APH to produce braille and "talking books"; and some of the earliest books ever produced for blind readers (did you know that the first books were printed in raised letters of the alphabet?). Students will have the opportunity to use braille writing devices, "read" embossed books with their fingertips, feel their way around the world using a tactile globe, and listen to voice synthesized software.

Learning Expectations:

• Students will learn about Louis Braille and his development of the first practical touch system for both reading and writing. They will understand the basics of how braille works.
• Students will be able to name the types of accessible media available to people who are blind or visually impaired (i.e., braille, large type, sound recordings, computer files, and tactile graphics).
• Students will learn about the production processes for producing braille, tactile graphics, and talking books at APH.
• Students will be able to identify significant developments in the world of learning for people who are blind and visually impaired.

Relevant Kentucky Academic Expectations:

• Historical Perspective (2.20)
• Culture and Society (2.16, 2.17)
• Economics (2.18)
• Government and Civics (2.14, 2.15)

APH Plant Tours

The American Printing House for the Blind offers two plant tours for students. Each tour lasts approximately one hour.

• Hands-On Tour for Students in Grades 1-3:
  Students learn about braille and the production process for creating pages of braille and raised-line pictures. They will tour the area of the plant where braille pages are embossed and see the press machines in operation. They will also visit the product display room and the museum, where they will use braille writers to emboss their names in braille.
  
  
• Plant Tour for Students in Grades 4-12:
  Students learn about braille and the braille production process. They also learn about the production of talking books at APH. This tour includes a visit to both the braille and talking book production areas of the plant, the product display room, and the museum.

Note: Students will be walking through manufacturing areas--it is important that they stay with their group and walk only in the areas designated by the tour guide. Objects in the display room should be handled carefully and used only for their intended purpose. Please share this information before the tour.

Some Facts About APH:

• The American Printing House for the Blind is the oldest printing house for the blind in the United States and the largest company in the world producing products solely for people who are blind or visually impaired. Annually, APH produces over 20 million pages of braille and records over 2 million audio cassette tapes.
  
  
• Weekly Reader^® is printed in both braille and large type at APH in several editions for students of various grade levels. Braille production of this school magazine began in 1950. The large type edition was first published in 1985.
  
  
• Reader's Digest^® is recorded monthly in the plant studios. The recorded edition reaches subscribers at nearly the same time as the print edition reaches newsstands.
  

Scheduling Your Tour

Tours are free of charge and should be scheduled at least two weeks before the tour date. (Reservations are accepted up to six months in advance.) Please indicate the type of tour you want scheduled (museum or plant tour). Should you need to cancel your tour, please call seven days before the scheduled tour date.

Contact:

Roberta Williams at (502) 895-2405, ext. 357 or e-mail: rwilliams@aph.org.

Tour Times:

Classes can tour the museum between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. Allow 1 hour for the tour.

Group Size:

Due to limitations of staff and space, tour groups are limited to 50 people. A teacher must accompany all groups, and there should be at least one adult chaperone for every 10 students.

Facilities:

The plant and museum are wheelchair accessible. Museum displays have print and braille labeling and audio information. Low-vision devices are available. To help us serve you better, please inform us at the time of scheduling if any member of your group requires special assistance. Restrooms are located in the hallway beyond the reception area. There are no public dining facilities.

Buses:

Buses unload and park on Frankfort Avenue, directly in front of the American Printing House for the Blind. Follow this link for Map and Directions to APH. A sidewalk leads from the street to the front door of the building. Ramp access is located in the front parking lot.

Preparing Students for the Tour

To prepare your students for their tour, share the material at Student Information/Activities. It includes background information about the company and the museum, tips for a successful tour, information about blindness and dog guides, a brief introduction to braille with exercises, a list of vocabulary terms, and a list of resources.

Suggested Pre-Tour Activities:

• Encourage students to find braille in their community--on elevator panels and on signs in buildings. Your school may have braille on the room number signs. Some restaurants may have menus available in braille.
  
  
• Ask the students if they know someone who uses special aids for reading or writing due to blindness or visual impairment. What kinds of aids are used? Special lenses to magnify print, books recorded on tape, or books and magazines printed in large type are a few examples.
  
  
• Discuss the different ways your students access information. What technology and tools are necessary to use the information?
  
  

Suggested Post-Tour Activities:

• Engage students in a discussion about Louis Braille's dot system. Why was it a significant contribution to the education of blind people?
  
  
• Ask students to discuss how information is made accessible to people who are blind or visually impaired. How do the students access information? What are the similarities and differences?
  
• Have students write reviews of their tour experience and send the reviews to APH. Let them share what they learned through a classroom exhibit or newsletter.
  
  
• Become "Curators-For-A-Day" (curators research, care for, and display museum artifacts). Select artifacts in the classroom to put into your school museum. Write an information label for each one, providing the name of the artifact, its purpose, and how it is used. Include color, size, and any outstanding characteristics. What would a museum visitor learn about your class through these artifacts? Why are the artifacts important to know about?

Assessment

After your tour, please take a few moments to complete the APH Museum Tour Evaluation Form. Your comments will help us better serve other teachers and students in the future. Thank you in advance for your comments.