Read John Walker’s informative explanation on the Literacy Blog: http://literacyblog.blogspot.co.uk/2015/05/ita-great-idea-but-dismal-failure.html
Read MoreLearning to Read
Independent review of new ‘Dandelion Readers’ and ‘Rescue’ series
Thank you Melinda Crean, of Top Notch Teaching website, for reviewing the ‘Rescue’ series and Dandelion Readers Level 4, ‘Toad and Newt’. To see the review click here and scroll down: http://topnotchteaching.com/reviews/reading-spelling-ideas/
Read MoreLetter from a parent of a struggling reader: who and what helped her son?
Susan Godsland (newly named ‘Godsend’) was contacted through her website www.dyslexics.org.uk by a parent of a struggling, 7 year old reader. Here is a letter from that parent:
Read MoreThe importance of alternative spellings
One of the most difficult aspects of the English Alphabetic Code is that a sound in a word (phoneme) can be spelled in different ways. In ‘transparent’ alphabetic codes, a sound is consistently spelled the same way. Children learning to read English soon discover that many vowels and consonants can be spelled in different ways. […]
Read MoreIs the word ‘yacht’ decodable?
Read this entertaining post about whether and how the word ‘yacht’ is decodable. Thanks to John Walker of the Literacy Blog http://literacyblog.blogspot.co.uk/2015/04/the-strange-case-of-word-yacht.html
Read MoreAdjacent consonants – why children need practice
Many children struggle when reading words with adjacent consonants. These are words that have two consonants side by side within a word, e.g. f l a g. The leap from three-sound words (e.g. h a t) to four-sound words (e.g. l i m p) is very difficult for many beginner and struggling readers. The step […]
Read MoreSpecial Needs Information Press reviews Rescue Series
Rescue Series – from Phonic Books Stories by Clair Baker Illustrations by Drew Wilson This is another well designed and structure reading series produce by Phonic Books. The engaging storylines and accompanying illustrations will appeal to the readers and will hopefully encourage all who read them to continue to develop their reading skills.
Read MoreTeaching beginner readers to read and spell – watch this video clip
A great video clip by Alison Clarke from Spelfabet about the confusion beginner readers encounter when phonics is not taught in an explicit, systematic and structured way.
Read MoreHurray! Talisman Card Games now available!
New fantastic card games that help catch-up readers practice reading – out now! https://www.phonicbooks.co.uk/talisman-card-game.php
Read MoreCommon misconceptions about Synthetic Phonics
Here are some common misconceptions about Synthetic Phonics. Thanks to Susan Godsland of www.dyslexics.org.uk for flagging this up. It is on the Reading Reform Foundation message board: http://www.rrf.org.uk/messageforum/viewtopic.php?t=1835
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