Bricks for the Blind

Bricks for the Blind Bricks for the Blind (BFTB) is a non-profit organization that brings the joy of building LEGO® sets to blind people for free.

Our very own Matthew Shifrin was honored to have been a guest on Through Our Eyes, the official podcast of the Pediatric...
06/03/2026

Our very own Matthew Shifrin was honored to have been a guest on Through Our Eyes, the official podcast of the Pediatric Retinal Research Foundation (PRRF).

The episode explores how blind and visually impaired people of all ages can benefit from building Lego sets independently and we hope this will resonate with families, educators, and professionals in this space.

PRRF's work to fund critical research and support families affected by pediatric retinal diseases is truly meaningful, and we’re grateful to contribute to that mission in this way.

Tune in here: https://brnw.ch/21x349V

05/28/2026

On the latest episode of GBH’s The Culture Show, our CEO Matthew Shifrin sits down with GBH Arts Editor Jared Bowen to explore how adaptive sports are opening new possibilities for blind athletes.

From tennis and cricket to rock climbing, the conversation highlights how thoughtful adaptations can make sports more accessible, competitive, and inclusive.

Listen to the full episode here: https://brnw.ch/21x2UeK

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Video Description: Set against a purple-tinted podcast studio background with two microphones, the center of the screen features The Culture Show logo. The logo includes the show’s title, the GBH News logo, and an illustration of hosts Jared Bowen, Callie Crossley, and Edgar B. Herwick III smiling together over a vibrant orange and yellow backdrop. A white animated soundwave moves across the logo as the audio plays. White text above the logo reads, “Matthew Shifrin talks about experiences for blind athletes”. Below the logo, the words “The Culture Show Podcast” are enclosed in a white oval, followed by the text “Hosted by Jared Bowen” at the very bottom.

05/26/2026

What does a massive LEGO roller coaster feel like when you experience it through touch?

Matthew Shifrin stopped by Bricks & Minifigs in Newton and got rare behind-the-counter access to explore some of LEGO’s most intricate builds — from a working carousel to the Colosseum and towering roller coaster sets.

Using his Meta glasses, Matthew recorded the visit from his perspective, giving us a firsthand look at how he experiences LEGO as a blind builder: through texture, scale, movement, and detail.
This is the kind of access and creativity that makes play more meaningful for everyone.

Special thanks to Bricks & Minifigs Newton for welcoming us in!

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Video description: A vertical video inside Bricks & Minifigs shows shelves filled with LEGO sets, minifigures, and large displays. Background music plays as the camera moves through the store, featuring a moving LEGO roller coaster, spinning carousel, and detailed LEGO Colosseum. On-screen captions share reflections about LEGO building and accessibility. The video ends with wider views of the store and text thanking Ken for the visit.

05/20/2026

This World Bee Day, we’re celebrating creativity, curiosity, and the pollinators that help our world bloom.

With downloadable text-based instructions available for the LEGO Friends Beekeepers’ House & Flower Garden set, more kids can experience the accessible joy of building independently.

Download the instructions today: https://brnw.ch/21x2F34

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Video description:
A short, close-up video shows hands assembling and adjusting a colorful LEGO garden and cottage scene. The miniature build features a lavender house with a dark blue roof, flower boxes, a small front porch, and surrounding greenery. Decorative details include blooming flowers, leafy trees, birdhouses, and small LEGO figures placed throughout the scene.
Throughout the video, hands carefully move and position pieces, highlighting different parts of the set from multiple angles. The camera slowly pans and zooms in on details such as flowers, pathways, and garden elements, creating a soft, playful atmosphere. Toward the end, a young person is briefly visible behind the LEGO display, looking down at the completed build. The overall tone is bright, creative, and spring-like, celebrating nature and hands-on building.

05/15/2026

For Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD), we’re celebrating what can happen when accessibility and inclusion are built into learning experiences from the start.

After discovering our accessible FIRST LEGO League instructions, LAUNCH TEAM Robotics connected with Matthew to learn how they could better introduce blind and visually impaired students to LEGO robotics. What followed? Sets were sent to schools for the blind across states, including South Carolina School for the Deaf and the Blind, giving students the chance to build, code, problem-solve, and explore STEM in a way that was accessible to them.

As Matthew shared with the team, accessibility is about creating pathways in, not barriers to overcome. Starting with accessible LEGO building experiences can open the door to robotics, coding, and confidence-building opportunities that many blind students may have never had access to before.

This is why accessible design matters. And this is why we do what we do.

Happy GAAD!

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Video description: Close-up of a robotics activity table with LEGO-built robots and obstacle structures arranged on a colorful game mat. In the foreground, a person’s hands guide a white and gray LEGO robot near the edge of the table. Other LEGO creations and participants are visible in the background, suggesting a hands-on STEM or robotics competition setting.

For Natalie, building with LEGO bricks is something she shares with her kids—not just something she brings to others as ...
05/10/2026

For Natalie, building with LEGO bricks is something she shares with her kids—not just something she brings to others as a blind tester with Bricks For The Blind.

Through the National Federation of the Blind and BFTB, she’s helped bring accessible building into events and conventions but the impact shows up most clearly at home.

Her oldest son is now part of it in his own way by sorting bricks, building sets, and showing up at events with his BFTB hat and full enthusiasm.

This Mother’s Day, we’re highlighting what BFTB helps make possible: mothers being able to fully share the LEGO experience with their kids, not as observers, but as co-builders.

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Photo description: A young child in a red shirt plays with a small LEGO-style dump truck on a dark wooden table while an adult steadies the toy with one hand. Other toy vehicles and figures are scattered around the table, including a white and blue toy car nearby and a small black superhero figure in the background. The child appears focused and engaged in imaginative play.

Parents and teachers were stopping at the BFTB table at Perkins School for the Blind’s Early Connections Conference and ...
05/07/2026

Parents and teachers were stopping at the BFTB table at Perkins School for the Blind’s Early Connections Conference and the reactions said it all: “I’ve never seen anything like this.”

Bricks For The Blind founder, Matthew Shifrin, joined the workshop day on campus, where families, educators, and professionals came together to share strategies and talk through what real support looks like for young children who are blind, low vision, or deafblind.

He demonstrated and instructed accessible LEGO building in action, talking with attendees as they tried it for themselves. What started as curiosity quickly turned into real excitement, with people imagining how this could show up at home and in classrooms.

Thanks for having us, Perkins School for the Blind!

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Photo 1 description: Matthew and one attendee participate in a hands-on LEGO activity at a table, with one person selecting pieces from bowls while another assembles a model across from them. A sign on the table reads “Build a Model With Us,” and the setting appears to be a public indoor space with display cases in the background.

Photo 2 description: Matthew stands beside a seated woman wearing a face mask as they participate in a hands-on activity with small building pieces at a conference table.

Photo 3 description: Matthew standing and smiling, wearing sunglasses and holding a white cane stands in a conference room in front of a screen displaying the event schedule. He wears a blazer, conference badge, and white BFTB polo shirt.

May the bricks be with you.Build the galaxy this Star Wars Day by downloading our text-based instructions for nearly 35 ...
05/04/2026

May the bricks be with you.

Build the galaxy this Star Wars Day by downloading our text-based instructions for nearly 35 Star Wars LEGO sets.

Explore the full collection, designed so blind and low‑vision builders like Jacques and Sacheen can build independently: https://brnw.ch/21x2b1j

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Photo 1: Jacques, a smiling man with a full beard and a black t-shirt stands holding a completed LEGO Star Wars BARC Speeder in his right hand and the original set box in his left. The box features the "BARC Speeder Escape" set, showing minifigures of Kelleran Beq and Grogu.

Photo 2: Sacheen, a woman with long, silver-streaked hair and a shell necklace smiles warmly at the camera. In her right hand, she holds a red and white LEGO Star Wars Jedi Starfighter. In her left, she holds a hardcover book titled "So You Want to Be a Jedi?" with small LEGO builds of a market stall and a blue character displayed on top. Star Wars-themed artwork hangs on the wall behind her.

Photo 3: Sacheen holds a large white and blue LEGO Star Wars U-Wing Starfighter. She is wearing a black zip-up hoodie featuring a stylized Mandalorian helmet design with orange and yellow patterns. She stands in front of a dark bookshelf filled with various books and other LEGO models.

Accio LEGO builds!Join Jolene, Renee, and other blind and low‑vision builders in bringing the wizarding world to life wi...
05/02/2026

Accio LEGO builds!

Join Jolene, Renee, and other blind and low‑vision builders in bringing the wizarding world to life with our downloadable, text‑based instructions for over 30 Harry Potter–themed LEGO sets.

Celebrate International Harry Potter Day by exploring our collection and start building the magic: https://brnw.ch/21x28bX

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Photo 1: Jolene is wearing a white polo shirt and a matching baseball cap, both featuring the "Bricks for the Blind" logo, holding a LEGO model of the Hogwarts Hospital Wing. The model shows an interior view with tiny LEGO beds and a clock tower mechanism at the top.

Photo 2: Renee, a woman with dark hair, wearing sunglasses and a black t-shirt, sits behind a white table. She smiles behind a large, multi-level LEGO Harry Potter set. The set depicts the Hogwarts Great Hall with green spires and a lower "rocky" section representing the Chamber of Secrets, complete with a LEGO basilisk and various character minifigures.

Photo 3: Renee sits with a LEGO model of the Hogwarts Express, featuring a red steam engine and two passenger cars on a track, alongside a small build of Hogsmeade station with several minifigures.

No cape? No problem.All you need is a LEGO set and the right instructions.This National Superhero Day, build your favori...
04/28/2026

No cape? No problem.

All you need is a LEGO set and the right instructions.

This National Superhero Day, build your favorite heroes with our text-based instructions, designed so blind and visually impaired builders can create independently.

Check out all BFTB superhero accessible sets:
https://bricksfortheblind.org/instructions/?keyword=Superhero

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Photo 1: A LEGO Batman mech armor figure with a yellow utility belt and bat symbol, posed dynamically on a gray shelf next to cardboard boxes.

Photo 2: A desktop battle scene featuring LEGO Marvel sets: Thor with a lightning effect, Rocket Raccoon piloting a War Machine mech, and several Outrider villains with a small monster build.

Photo 3: A LEGO Spider-Man mech suit in red and blue standing on a purple background, holding a white web net over a smaller Ghost-Spider minifigure.

Photo 4: A tall, brick-built Galactus figure in purple and blue armor standing on a white mantle. He is holding or surrounded by LEGO minifigures of the Fantastic Four: Mr. Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch, and The Thing.

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