01_ Unlock Your Imagination with Tactile Stories!
In honor of Reading Month, we're excited to host a special "Tactile Storytelling Event" for visually impaired children! We hope it will be a fun way for our young friends to use their imagination through the sense of touch.
Wondering what tactile stories are? For visually impaired kids, they offer a whole new way to experience stories. Instead of seeing the tale unfold, they feel it.
"Wow, so this is what a wolf's ears feel like!" or "This is what a princess's dress is like!"
By touching different shapes and textures, their imagination blossoms even more. Ready to dive into the world of tactile storytelling?
This time, our special guests are two students, Kim Sion and Kim Hwan, who are huge Pokémon fans!
02_Meet Our little Star
Our first visit was to Sion’s home.
Our first stop was at Sion's home, where she greeted us with her adorable smile and a sparkling accessory that made her shine. Sion chose the story of "Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf" for her tactile storytelling experience.
As she listened to the story read aloud, Sion immersed herself by feeling the shapes of the wolf and Little Red Riding Hood through touch, bringing the story to life in her imagination.
Sion, wearing cat ears and blue glasses, smiles as she touches the Dot Pad.
"Hi, I'm Sion Kim. Today, I read a tactile story for the first time! At first, I was curious, but the more I read, the more fun it became."
On the left, a hand is touching the Dot Pad, showing the wolf’s ears in tactile graphics. On the right, Sion is exploring the tactile graphics of the Dot Pad with her fingers.
Sion is touching the Dot Pad while listening to the teacher’s story, as her mother watches nearby.
On the left, a hand touches the tactile graphic showing a basket with milk and cookies. On the right, Sion smiles as she enjoys reading the tactile story.
I especially liked the part where we read Hansel and Gretel toward the end. It was so interesting, but I was a bit disappointed that we only got to read a short part of it. Reading on the Dot Pad wasn’t hard at all. In fact, it was so cool to touch and feel the shapes! The rounded textures popping up felt great, and I had so much fun!
Hwan, wearing a blue T-shirt, is holding a Dot Pad displaying a tactile graphic of a running Pikachu.
After visiting Sion, we headed to Hwan’s home. With his adorable wavy hair, Hwan greeted us shyly. The story he was most excited to read was Heungbu and Nolbu.
Hwan: Hi, my name is Hwan Kim. Today, I read a tactile story for the first time, and it was so much fun! The part where Nolbu was crying made me laugh so much. It felt great to see him get what he deserved!
On the left, a hand touches the tactile graphic on the Dot Pad, and on the right, the Dot Pad displays an image of Nolbu crying, which was Hwan’s favorite part.
Hwan: It was a bit tricky for me to touch and feel the pictures while reading the tactile story. I think I prefer listening more than using my hands, as it felt a little overwhelming to process everything. But it did make me think that I’d love to try drawing pictures on the Dot Pad instead!
A hand touches the wolf's ears on the Dot Pad, and on the right, Hwan explores the wolf's ears with his mom.
Hwan: The part I remember most from the story was the wolf’s ears. They were so big and pointy, and that really stuck in my mind. It was so much fun to feel them, and I especially loved pressing the button to go to the next page. Pressing the arrow button on the Dot Pad was super exciting!
03_There's One Thing I Really Want to See!
"Is there anything else you'd like to feel on the Dot Pad?”
Sion's Story
Sion: There’s something I really want to see on the Dot Pad. I love Pokémon! I especially wanted to feel Pikachu. While I was touching it, I imagined Pikachu storing electricity in its cheeks to create a million volts. The spot I was feeling on the Dot Pad reminded me of Pikachu’s cheeks, and it made me smile!
A tactile graphic of Pikachu is displayed on the Dot Pad, with a hand touching Pikachu’s cheeks.
Hwan's Story
Hwan: "I’d love to listen to music, too. I’m really curious about how sound will come from the Dot Pad. Also, I love the little vibrations that happen when the device connects—I could feel that all day! And would I want to read another tactile story? Of course! I’d especially like to read the Green Frog story next. It’s my favorite story because it’s fun and cute. I definitely want to read that one next time!"
Hwan is exploring the Dot Pad’s tactile graphics with his mother.
04_The Worlds Sion and Hwan Dream Of
We’re so curious—what are Sion and Hwan’s dreams? Can you share them with us?
Sion’s Dream
Kim Sion: "I want to be an oriental medicine doctor! My dad is one, and my dream is to be a great doctor just like him!"
Hwan: "I want to be a firefighter! I think it’s so cool when the sirens go off, and they rush in to put out fires. That’s why I really want to be a firefighter!"
05_What Sion’s and Hwan’s Moms Have to Say About the Dot Pad
Hello, I’m Sion’s Mom.
Sion and her mother are touching the Dot Pad while having a conversation.
"After signing up for the tactile story experience, how did you feel going through it with Sion?"
Sion’s Mom: "This was the first time we’ve had a chance to touch and feel something like this, and I loved that it wasn’t too big, making it easy to handle. Visually impaired children love to explore things by touch. But some things, like an axe or a wolf, aren’t easy or safe to touch in real life. It was really impressive how the shapes were felt through the images, allowing me to explain them to Sion."
"How do you support Sion in gaining diverse experiences in daily life?"
Sion's Mom: Kids naturally want to go outside and explore the world. They love touching and experiencing things firsthand—that’s their curiosity and how they learn. Of course, some things, like an axe or a wolf, are too dangerous to experience directly. We don't have any pets at home, so when Sion is curious about the shape of a dog, it's hard to let her feel every dog we meet on the street. It's not perfect, but we try to offer as many tactile experiences as possible within our limits, hoping it helps develop her senses.
"How do you think the Dot Pad could help Sion?"
Sion's Mom: When Sion was around 6 or 7, she received art therapy. The focus wasn’t just on drawing, but on understanding different shapes. In this sense, I think a feature like Dot Canvas could be really beneficial for art therapy, helping kids quickly recognize and understand forms. It would be great to see how it could complement art therapy in the future.
A hand is touching a braille-printed elementary math book.
Now that Sion has started learning math, shapes have become a bit tricky for her. Converting shapes into braille makes accessibility more challenging and adds extra costs. It was also inconvenient to send out the files for braille printing and then pick them up. But as you mentioned, if simple shapes from elementary school math could be shared via the cloud and drawn directly on the Dot Canvas, it would be much more convenient both educationally and accessibility-wise. As she advances to higher grades and starts working with functions and graphs, I think it would be even more useful.
Hello, I’m Hwan’s Mom.
On the left, a person answers interview questions, while on the right, Hwan and his mother explore the Dot Pad together.
"Was there a moment that stood out to you after the tactile story experience?"
Hwan’s Mom: I thought it was great that he could actually feel the images. Now that he’s in third grade, they’re learning a lot about animals in class. For example, when they talk about polar bears, they describe them as having thick skin and white fur. But it’s hard for kids to picture that just from a description. Being able to feel the shape of animals really helps him understand what they look like.
"How do you help Hwan gain various experiences?"
Hwan’s Mom: There’s a lack of braille materials for learning, so we often rely on support from the welfare center. As for outside activities, Hwan doesn’t have any vision, so he’s not very fond of touching things. For example, when we visit indoor zoos where kids can touch animals, he doesn’t really enjoy it and prefers not to touch them. He’s not very sensitive to tactile experiences, so I try to involve him more in physical activities and exercises.
"How do you think the Dot Pad could benefit Hwan?"
Hwan’s Mom: For example, when explaining animals, if you could zoom in on the shape of ears or eyes to show them in a more detailed and simplified way, I think that would really help him understand the form. And in math, braille books are often very bulky, so kids sometimes accidentally flip two pages at once. But the Dot Pad can display a lot of math problems in one space, so if government support becomes available again, I would definitely want to purchase it.
"Would you be interested in participating in similar programs in the future? Would you recommend it to other parents of visually impaired children?"
Hwan’s Mom: "Yes, absolutely. It would be great if there were more activities like drawing or creating art. At school, they use 3D printers to make artwork, but we don’t have access to that at home. The Dot Pad, however, lets us understand shapes in real-time, which is amazing. My son especially loves writing his name. He always asks me to write ‘Kim Hwan’ on my palm."
Are you interested in the tactile story experience?
Interested in the tactile story experience?
Email us at dot@dotincorp.com for details.
We look forward to hearing from you soon!