This week, just a few rules and strategies to help learners.
The Suffix ‘ed’
The suffix ‘ed’ can make three different sounds /t/, /d/ and /id/. The new reader has to work out which sound the letters ‘ed’ are making after the root word in order to say the word correctly. Below are some ways to help work out how to pronounce the suffix. To be able to understand these ways, you will need to be able to identify voiced and unvoiced sounds, so if you are unsure, look at the page headed ‘alphabet’ and look under the features of vowels and consonants. The unvoiced consonants in the alphabet are c, f, k, p, s and t and therefore the rest of the consonants are all voiced.
The suffix ‘ed’ is pronounced /id/ when the consonant before (it at the end of the root word) is a ‘d’ or ‘t’ e.g. added, batted.
The suffix ‘ed’ makes a /t/ sound (which is an unvoiced phoneme) when it follows an unvoiced consonant except for ‘t’ e.g. hopped, huffed, kicked, missed.
Finally, the suffix ‘ed’ makes a /d/ sound (which is a voiced phoneme itself) when it follows a voiced consonant, apart from the letter ‘d’ e.g. begged, robbed, yelled.
So to sum up, the rule is that after an unvoiced phoneme, the ‘ed’ is pronounced /t/, after a voiced phoneme, the ‘ed’ is pronounced /d/ unless the final letter of the root word is a ‘t’ or a ‘d’, in which case the ‘ed’ is pronounced /id/.
This Nessy video explains when to add ‘ed’ onto a word. Where the video mentions adding the ‘ed’ onto a ‘real’ word, it is referring to the ‘root’ word. It is advisable to add the ‘ed’ onto an alphabetical code poster under the sounds /t/ and /d/ so the learner is reminded if they hear a /t/ or a /d/ at the end of a word, they need to distinguish if the sound is part of the root word and is represented by the letter ‘t’ or ‘d’ or if the sound is a suffix and made by the letters ‘ed’.
Nessy Youtube channel
Teaching to read and spell tricky word ‘one’
Teaching the reading and spelling of Tricky Words are detailed on the page ‘Tricky Words’ (Common Exception Words). However, it is difficult to map out the word ‘one’. The best way to teach this word is to refer to the words ‘alone’ and ‘lonely’ because in these words the word ‘one’ is pronounced as it was originally and how you would expect it to be , so in these words the sound buttons can be used under the word, identifying the split digraph o-e. The meaning of alone and lonely can be connected to the word one to explain easier how the pronunciation of the word has changed over time, but still uses the same spelling. Meanings and origins of words can be found on https://www.etymonline.com/ which can help learners understand unusual spellings.
Happy New Year everyone and I hope 2022 is kind to you all. PJ π
Happy New Year to everyone! Wishing you a Happy and Healthy 2022.
I am ready to start the New Year and am welcoming new ideas and strategies to help teach and support children, especially with their reading and spelling. Over the holidays I came across the following video regarding stressed syllables. The Kelly and Phillips Conquering Literacy intervention programme I follow has a teaching point for stressed/accented syllables. I find this really difficult to teach and the students find it tricky to understand. Therefore, I was really grateful to come across the video which gives some great strategies to explain how we stress one syllable of the word and how it can change the meaning e.g. think of the sentence ‘I object that the object should be placed there.’ I haven’t used the strategy in the video yet, but I really think it will help the students understand.
Accented/stressed syllable
I was surprised the other week to discover that many children of different ages had difficulty spelling the words ‘Mr’ and ‘Mrs’ although these words are among the year 2 common exception words. Then a colleague pointed out that children hardly ever write letters to others these days and so rarely have the need to write these titles. It made me think further that actually not so many years ago all adults were known to children by their full title of ‘Mr’ or ‘Mrs’ but nowadays children tend to call friends of their parents by their first name. and it only tends to be teachers who still keep their title. Ok, this all makes me sound and feel really old! I then wondered if the younger generation realise how the words Mr and Mrs were derived? Most probably do know, but I explain this when I teach spelling and reading the tricky words ‘Mr’ and ‘Mrs’ as described below.
When explaining how to read and spell the words Mr and Mrs, I refer the students to days gone by, when the lady of the house was called the Mistress. I write the word ‘Mistress’ on the board and then begin rubbing out letters until only the M r and s are left showing. I explain that the word Mistress was a long word to have to keep writing out, so it was abbreviated to the three letters Mrs and over time the pronounciation was changed from Mistress to ‘Missus’ to refer to a married lady and is followed by the lady’s surname. The same applies to the word Mr as it used to represent the word ‘Master’ to apply to the Master of the house. Therefore I write the word ‘Master’ on the board and remove all the letters except the M and r. I explain that eventually it was abbreviated to ‘Mr’ and gradually it was changed to be pronounced as ‘Mister’. I add that because these words are always part of somebody’s name, they always begin with a capital letter.
Don’t forget SEND Station for short, cheap training sessions on a variety of subjects. More details on https://www.sendstation.co.uk.
This week is my last blog post before Christmas, Therefore, I just wanted to add some Christmas items and last minute information. This year, more educators worldwide have started to teach reading skills based on the Science of Reading research, which has proven to be really effective. Assistive technology continues to be developed and the strengths and skills of neurodiverse individuals are beginning to be recognised and valued.
He always knew he was a little different, but he let his light shine regardless of what others said. Be more like RUDOLPH!
Gingerbread Man or Christmas Reindeer?
Did you know, if you wanted to make Christmas themed biscuits, you can just use your gingerbread man cutter if you have one? Just turn it upside down and the gingerbread man’s head will be Rudoph’s nose, the legs his antlers and the arms can be the reindeer’s ears. Use a cherry for Rudolph’s nose and ice more detail on his antlers for a better effect. I will upload a picture when I actually get to make them myself to demonstrate further!
Spelling generalisation for ‘ou’ or ‘ow’
This week, I have come across some helpful information explaining when to use ‘ou’ or ‘ow’ in a word when spelling. The usual ‘best bet’ is to use ‘ow’ at the end of a word and ‘ou’ in the middle of a word. However, there are many exceptions when the ‘ow’ can be used in the middle of words. Today a fellow educator explained clearer: ‘ou’ usually in the middle, ‘ow’ usually at the end unless the word ends with n, l, er or el. To remind pupils of these exceptions, they use the phrase ‘The brown owl has a flowered towel’. I like this idea and the accompanying phrase and will be using this in the future to help explain the spelling.
Win a Nessy Hairy Soft Toy!
This week I won a Nessy Hairy soft toy, which I look forward to receiving and introducing to my students who love learning on the Nessy programme! You can be in with a chance of winning one too, just by going to the Nessy facebook page and answer the questions in the Nessy Hairy competition (all the answers can be found on Nessy Hairy you tube channel).
Don’t miss out on the 40% off Nessy Reading and Spelling, Nessy Fingers Touch Typing, and the Spell and Type Pack! Use the code HOLIDAY21 on all Nessy@home products available to parents up until 22 December 2021 on the Nessy.com shop ‘Nessy at Home’ page.
Fun Reading Games
My favourite educational reading games this month (and the ones the children have really enjoyed playing ) are:
Truggs – a card game, which is similar to the old fashioned game ‘Beat Your Neighbour’, but the players have to read the word on the cards as they place them down. This game is good to learn how to read longer words and it is a good chance to remind the learner to chunk the words into syllables to read accurately. The winner is the player who has the most cards at the end of a set amount of time or who wins all the cards.
Blah, Blah, Blah – another word card game, but this time the winner is the first to play all of their cards. This game encourages learners to sound out each of the phonemes accurately before blending a word and helps players to identify the graphemes, as they have to match one of the graphemes on the previously played card when it is their turn.
Well, that’s it for this year. Thank you to everybody for reading my new blog. Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy and Healthy New Year. PJ π
This week, the MP Matt Hancock proposed a new Dyslexia Bill for all primary aged children in the UK to be screened for dyslexia. This Bill has now passed through the first stage in the Commons and Matt Hancock’s speech is available to watch on Parliament Live via the direct link https://parliamentlive.tv/event/index/1f5ec3c7-be92-4d7a-a6d2-59c4491e17e8?in=14:05:06. This proposed Dyslexia Bill will hopefully raise awareness and help more dyslexic children get the support they need as soon as possible. I do wonder how they are intending to screen all the children though, so I am interested to find out more. Although dyslexia screeners are useful to identify certain weaknesses and strengths which may indicate dyslexia, some screeners are better than others. Therefore, I think screeners should not be fully relied upon, but be used alongside background information from the child’s parent and observations from the child’s teacher. Level 5 trained dyslexia specialists can also assess a child for indicators of dyslexia by talking to the child’s parents and their teacher for more information and performing various assessments. This would have a more accurate picture of the child than by just using the data from a screener. I hope that the campaign will encourage more people to learn about dyslexia to ensure that the dyslexic child is taught in the way they learn best, so that their educational and emotional needs are met. Dyslexia specialists can teach or recommend programmes and strategies that would suit the dyslexic individual’s learning style and advise teachers how they can be supported in the classroom. Kate Griggs, founder of Made by Dyslexia discusses the proposed new Dyslexia Bill in an intervew for Times Radio, which can be found at the time 2:52:25 to 2:57:30 via the link https://www.thetimes.co.uk/radio/show/20211208-4349/2021-12-08.
Completing a checklist with a child’s parents and the teacher can also help to understand whether there is a likelihood of dyslexia and whether further investigations should take place. Checklists are useful as they can outline a learner’s strengths and weaknesses and help to inform a supportive teaching strategy, which should be put in place as soon as there is a need identified, without waiting for a formal diagnosis. Example checklists for dyslexia can be found on the British Dyslexia Association website on https://www.bdadyslexia.org.uk/dyslexia/how-is-dyslexia-diagnosed/dyslexia-checklists
The British Dyslexia Association describe how to look out for signs of dyslexia on their ‘Is My Child Dyslexic?’ page on http://www.bdadyslexia.org.uk and this information can be found directly through the link https://www.bdadyslexia.org.uk/advice/children/is-my-child-dyslexic. A dyslexic individual can usually be identified at an early age and signs of dyslexia in early years include: difficulty learning nursery rhymes, difficulties paying attention, background of slow speech development, poor auditory discrimination, difficulty keeping rhythm, forgetting names of friends and teachers, difficulties with sequencing and displaying obvious good and bad days in their learning. Details of more signs of dyslexia to be aware of in the early years can be found on the British Dyslexia Website and through the link https://www.bdadyslexia.org.uk/advice/children/is-my-child-dyslexic/signs-of-dyslexia-early-years.
Christmas at Nessy! Fill your stocking with 40% off Nessy Reading and Spelling, Nessy Fingers Touch Typing, and the Spell and Type Pack. This yearβs Holiday Sale runs 4th – 22nd December. Use the code: HOLIDAY21 in their shop https://www.nessy.com/en-gb/shop
DYSCALCULIA – FREE KINDLE BOOK
To raise more awareness about dyscalculia, the kindle version of the book βCode Green on Dyscalculia (2021)β will be FREE on Amazon till 12 December 2021. This book is recommended as a guide for teachers, parents, maths interventionists, SENCOs and other professionals who have an interest in disovering more about dyscalculia.
CHRISTMAS IS COMING!
If you are counting down the days to Christmas, then there are only 16 sleeps until Christmas Day! I think that I definitely need to start Christmas shopping now! Stay healthy and happy. PJ π
If we could look into each other’s hearts and understand the unique challenges each of us faces, I think we would treat each other much more gently, with more love, patience, tolerance and care.
This week I share my recommendations of books about dyslexia, sessions to support the dyslexic learner and offers from Nessy for great dyslexic programmes to help with reading and spelling.
Kate Griggs
Last week I read the really interesting book ‘This is Dyslexia’ . This book was published in 2021 and is written by Kate Griggs, the founder of the global charity ‘Made by Dyslexia’. It is a great guide for dyslexic individuals and also gives lots of information about dyslexia for parents, employers and educators. ‘This is Dyslexia’ explains how the dyslexic mind processes information differently to the neurotypical brain and how dyslexic employees have the skills needed for the everchanging workplace environment. The book is set out in a dyslexia friendly format and there are also lots of QR codes throughout the book, which will link you to inspiring videos. Kate Griggs is an award-winning campaigner and dyslexia advocate, who has been researching dyslexia for many years. She also wrote the lovely children’s book ‘Xtraordinary People’ which helps dyslexic youngsters understand and celebrate the strengths that come with dyslexia.
Nessy offer
NESSY OFFER Use the codes CYBER21 and BLACK21 to take 40-50% off all programmes until December 3, 2021. Donβt miss out!
SEND STATION offer various short courses and I have attended one of the sessions regarding the alphabet arc previously, so I can definitely recommend it. An Alphabet Arc is a good way for children to have visual and multi-sensory support to practise blending and segmenting to read and spell. It helps practise the sequence letters of the alphabet and understand the alphabetical code, a skill that is essential for reading and spelling. If youβd like to learn how to use an Arc and have your very own set of Arc resources join Sarah Singletonβs master class Alphabet Arc session. This session is just Β£9.50 per delegate which includes booking fee, handouts, resources including an Arc and Certificate of Attendance. Follow the link to book your place: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/163964681777 or go to https://www.sendstation.co.uk/ to discover more sessions that are on offer.
and Finally…….
The most important things in life aren’t things, but people, places and memories.
With Christmas approaching, remember 'your presence is more important than your presents'.
Instead of a video about the Science of Reading this week, here is a video about the Science of Kindness…..
I have been a bit puzzled the last few weeks as the British Dyslexia Association (BDA) recently started a petition asking the government to acknowledge that the sole use of a systematic, synthetic phonics teaching programme does not meet the needs of all students, especially those with dyslexia. As I have studied with the BDA, I am fully aware that their training teaches dyslexic tutors to use systematic, synthetic phonics programmes as part of their specialist teaching interventions. Unfortunately, the BDA’s statement was not clear and has been misunderstood by many, as it appeared at first that they were stating this way of teaching phonics was no longer a good idea, despite all their approved phonics programmes being based on Orton Gillingham, which is a synthetic, systematic approach! However, I have now looked into their statements further and have discovered that the important, but very easily overlooked words here are ‘sole use’. The British Dyslexia Association have not been impressed with the latest government Reading document and wanted to emphasise that not all children will be able to learn to read with just a systematic, synthetic, phonics teaching programme on its own, but many learners will also need to use other methods alongside phonics, such as teaching of phonological awareness, syllable work, morphology, orthography and etymology. Learners with specific learning difficulties may also need an extra individualised, explicit, multisensory dyslexic intervention to enable them to flourish .
This statement from the British Dyslexia Association has also made parents and educators in many other countries confused. It is unfortunate that their statement was not very clear at first and has therefore been misunderstood by many, because those involved in education, especially dyslexic tutors in countries such as America have been working very hard to prove that a synthetic, systematic phonics programme based on scientific research is the best way forward to teach children to read and these are the very programmes that are used in dyslexic interventions, approved by the BDA. Many states in America are still teaching reading to pupils by asking them to memorise words, use context to guess words and skip words they do not know. This method of reading is not in line with the Science of Reading methods and is resulting in a higher than expected number of students in America continuing to have difficulty in reading.
The best ‘cue’ to a word is the word itself.
Mark Seidenburg
Nessy Offer – Use the code and get 50% off
Donβt miss it! 50% off all home educational packs at Nessy.com from today until Sunday.
This week I attended the live webinar ‘Dyslexia: What’s New?’ hosted by the University of Birmingham. One of the speakers was Professor Margaret Snowling, a world leading expert in language difficulties including dyslexia. Professor Snowling’s talks are always interesting and this week she was able to share some theories and information regarding overlapping difficulties that often challenge the dyslexic individual. SPLDs that often co-occur with dyslexia include dyspraxia, ADHD, DLD and dyscalculia.
Another speaker was Neil Mackay and although it was the first time I have seen him, I have read a lot of his work. Neil, an independent consultant, trainer and former teacher is one of the world’s foremost thinkers on dyslexia, describing his role ‘to identify and meet the classroom-based needs of vulnerable learners and present them to my audiences in ways that enable them to reflect on and develop their practice’. He created the concept of ‘Dyslexia Friendly Schools’ and in his talk he emphasised the need for all individuals to experience success to keep motivated, advising that work in the classroom should be differentiated by outcome, rather than the need to have the learning reduced. He stated that ‘Time is variable, but the learning is constant’ and he continued to elaborate that some children may require preteaching, peer support or inclusive accommodations to access the learning, but they do need to be exposed to the whole curriculum. To be inclusive, lots of modelling of what is expected from the dyslexic learner will be required, these children should be given examples to refer to throughout a lesson with other visual and multisensory resources and they need to be able to use various ways to display their knowledge (including in tests) i.e. using diagrams and labelling, mindmaps, flowcharts etc. These methods should be available for all students to use at some times during lessons, rather than just given as separate work for the dyslexic learner. In subjects that are not assessing for spelling, grammar and handwriting, the dyslexic learner should always be encouraged to use alternative forms to demonstrate their knowledge. They need to have the opportunity to verbally express what they have understood with a peer or supporting adult being the scribe or have speech to text software available. Paired and group work can be beneficial to all students by using the strengths of each learner, but especially for the dyslexic learner who can explain what they know, without the pressure of having to write it down themselves if the pairing/group is allocated a scribe. Without any of these accommodations, the dyslexic learner is likely to write very few words, and/or use simple language and not be able to participate fully even if their capabilities in that subject are a strength.
Reaching their Full Potential
Neil Mackay’s talk and advice reminds me of an inspiring biography I read a few years ago ‘A Little Edge of Darkness’ (a boy’s triumph over dyslexia) written by Alex Faludy and his mother Tanya. Alex is severely dyslexic, but was the youngest person to pass English Literature GCSE at the age of nine and A Level at the age of eleven. This true story of Alex’s life demonstrates how the right accommodations can ensure that a child’s full potential is reached.
Another mother who ensured her dyslexic son reached his full potential was Pat Jones, mother of Mike Jones, the founder of Nessy Education. Mike’s life was detailed in the film ‘Mical’ and I wrote about how he overcame his barriers to learning in my blog on 28.8.21 Talking about Nessy etc. These life stories show how important it is that dyslexic individuals have someone who can advocate for them.
Executive Function
Research has shown strong correlations between dyslexia and deficits in executive functioning. Executive function is a set of cognitive skills and processes that enable us to plan, focus attention, remember instructions and multi-task successfully. For easier understanding, the executive function is often referred to as the ‘CEO’ of the brain, because it deals with monitoring performance and prioritizing tasks. Difficulties with executive function can make it hard to focus, follow directions, remember instructions and prioritise work. This video from Nessy.com explains executive function further and gives some helpful strategies for those who encounter difficulties with these skills.
Nessy youtube channel
Doubts that Creep
As we head towards winter again and the same worries are in the world from last year, I am reminded of this poem from 2020 by Tomas Roberts………
Keep strong, keep healthy and keep smiling….. π PJ
Do you find that sometimes you are given information, but don’t question anything? For many years I just accepted the fact that the alphabet consisted of 26 letters, 5 of which are vowels and the rest are consonants. I never thought to question what is so special about those 5 letters that they are called vowels and I didn’t really know what was the difference between vowels and consonants, I just knew which category each letter was in. However, now I have learned why the vowels are different and I feel this extra information is useful for both the teacher and the student. Therefore, I want to try and explain – just in case you are like me and have never been told before why vowels are different to consonants.
In the English alphabet the five vowels are: a, e, i, o and u. The letter ‘y’ is usually classed as a consonant in the alphabet, but it is actually a semi-vowel, because although it makes a consonant sound in words such as ‘yes’ and ‘yell’, it can also make a vowel phoneme in words such as ‘funny’, ‘gym’ and ‘shy’. The vowels are special because when they are articulated nothing is obstructing the airflow and the mouth is open. All the vowels are also voiced sounds, so the vocal cords are used; we can check this by either feeling the vibration of the vocal cords on our neck as we say the sound or (and I prefer this method) we can try and alter the pitch of a sound and if we can do that, it is a voiced sound. There is at least one vowel in every syllable of a word. In fact, when we clap the syllables in a word, we are actually clapping and counting the vowel phonemes as we open our mouths to articulate them.
The vowels can make long, strong sounds as in pΔper, hΔ, hΕ«man, pΔ«per or short, weak sounds as in cΔt, shΔd, trΔm, sΕck,Β Εnder. It is important that learners understand which letters are vowels and can differentiate between the short, weak phoneme and the long, strong phoneme, because spelling rules often depend on this. Most phonics programmes refer to vowel phonemes as either ‘long’ or ‘short’ sounds. However, because I use the programme ‘Nessy’ for interventions and Nessy calls the vowel sounds ‘strong’ or ‘weak’ to explain the spelling rules easier, I now refer to the vowel sounds as either ‘long, strong’ or ‘short, weak’ to ensure the children have a good understanding and can apply the wording from Nessy as well as other phonics programmes.
Many intervention and phonic programmes will also encourage writing either a breve or macron symbol over the vowel when talking about the phoneme (sound). The breve can be written over the vowel to indicate if it is a short, weak vowel sound e.g. c/ /Δ/ /t/ and the macron can be written over the long strong vowel sound e.g. /h/ /Δ/. I find using these symbols very useful to demonstrate which phoneme I am talking about and children can go through words and use the symbol to indicate if the vowel is making a short weak or long strong vowel sound to strengthen their reading and spelling skills.
Syllables in words can be closed (ending with a consonant) or open (ending with a vowel phoneme). A vowel will usually make a short, weak sound in a closed syllable (when a vowel is followed by one or more consonants in a syllable) e.g. hΔn, pΔn/dΔm/Δc. A vowel will usually make a long, strong sound in an open syllablle e.g. hΔ, hΕ«/man, pΔ/per.
Have a look at the page on this site entitled Alphabet for more information about the definition of consonants and vowels. Also, take a look at the page Phonological and PhonemicΒ Awareness page for more details about syllables.
Tricky words
Although tricky/common exception words have some βtrickyβ parts to spell and read, they all have some typical grapheme/phoneme correspondence that has already been taught. Therefore, the learners need to ensure they are reading/spelling those parts of the word that they already know and only have the βtrickyβ part to work out. However, what happens when you have a word such as ‘one’ which is difficult to demonstrate any phoneme/grapheme correspondence? This is when it is useful to look at the origins of a word and look at words which include the word ‘one’. The word ‘one’ was originally pronounced differently as demonstrated in the words ‘lonely’ , ‘only’ and ‘alone’. These words and their meanings are therefore best to be introduced along with the word ‘one’ to understand the spelling. The origins of words can be discovered on the website https://www.etymonline.com/ which is a really great website, as it is useful to look at the etymology as well as morphology of words to be an accurate reader and speller. Many older children (and adults!) find it fun to discover the origin of a word and find out how the word and its meaning has changed throughout history, which usually explains unusual spellings.
BARRINGTON STOKE PUBLISHERS
Barrington Stoke are having a free early evening online event for those who would like to meet the team and hear more about their books and using them in schools AND they have a special guest appearance from former teacher and superstar-writer Ross Montgomery! Register here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/…/barrington-stoke…
I don’t know about you, but I have found these dark days make it difficult getting up in a morning. However, I am reminded of a poem by Tomas Roberts aka Tomfoolery, whose poetry I really like. I have placed the youtube video below of his poem ‘The World Awaits’ for you to enjoy. Have a good week. PJ π
Further to my recent blogs regarding the Science of Reading, here is a video I recently discovered which gives a clear explanation about this research. The following video is from Australia, but the information is relevant to everyone as it involves scientists and reading experts from many different countries. Sit down with a cup of coffee and have a look if you are able to, as it is really quite interesting and informative as an introduction to the Science of Reading and how this extensive research influences how we should now teach children to read.
PATOSS
PATOSS is the professional association of teachers of students with specific learning difficulties, for all those concerned with the teaching and support of pupils with SpLD, for example: dyslexic, dyspraxic, dyscalculic, ADHD. I am an asssociate member of PATOSS, which shows that they recognise that I am qualified as a specialist teacher for those with dyslexia and therefore able to teach as well as assess for establishing and reviewing a teaching programme for individuals with Specific Learning Difficulties. I am therefore able to use the PPM suffix and logo on correspondence or marketing materials to identify myself as a “Patoss Professional member” and could be included on their specialist tutor list if I wished. PATOSS and the BDA (British Dyslexia Association) have lists on their websites for approved, qualified dyslexia assessors and tutors who offer a private service for dyslexic individuals who need extra tuition or full dyslexia assessments.
The Phonics Queen
Experienced educator Natasha Tuite aka ‘The Phonics Queen’ is on facebook and offers lots of guidance for phonics. Her next zoom training session is ‘Phonics and Spelling in KS2’ for a nominal cost of Β£25 per person on 11th November 4.00pm-5.30pm. Be quick if you wanted to join her as her training usually gets booked up quickly. To book up, just email her at: thephonicsqueen@gmail.com or join her ever increasing facebook group ‘The Phonics Queen’ to keep up to date with more phonics information.
Touch Typing
For those children who still find writing very difficult by the time they are in the upper years of Key stage 2, then I would definitely recommend that they learn to touch type as this may be the way forward to help them to get information written down quickly and if it is their usual way of working, then this can be used in many tests/exams if requested. Nessy Fingers is a typing programme from Nessy.com at a fee of Β£30 p.a. but there are also free online typing programmes such as BBC Bitesize Dance Mat and Typing Club for older students.
Free event on Eventbrite -Dyslexia: What’s New?
Dyslexia: What’s New? is an free online event hosted by the University of Birmingham on Thursday, 18th November 2021 6pm – 7pm. Tickets are available on http://www.eventbrite.com. Join experts answering your questions on dyslexia and providing updates based on latest research.
About this event
This event is part of ESRC Festival of Social Science at the University of Birmingham Do you have dyslexia or care for a child or young person with dyslexia, or are you a teacher interested in learning more about dyslexia? In this online event experts from the field of dyslexia will answer yourquestions on the latest research and current trends to support dyslexic children and young people in education.This event will be facilitated by Dr Maria Reraki (Course lead, PGCert Dyslexia and Literacy Difficulties, University of Birmingham) and Ms Vikki Anderson (Teaching Fellow – Language, Literacies & Dyslexia, University of Birmingham), with an introduction by Professor Margaret Snowling CBE, FBA, FMedSci (University of Oxford) and panellists Katrina Cochrane (Positive Dyslexia), Neil Mackay (Action Dyslexia)and Dr Harriet Cameron (University of Sheffield). To have the panel address your questions, please send them to esrciaa@contacts.bham.ac.uk.
The above event looks as if it will be helpful to many of us and it will be good to see the introduction from Professor Snowling and hear from Neil Mackay. I wrote about Professor Snowling in a previous blog and mentioned her valuable, extensive research with regards dyslexia. Neil Mackay has written books advising how to identify and meet the classroom based needs of vulnerable learners and I have used his advice on many occasions. I have found their work really interesting and informative, so I look forward to joining this event from the University of Birmingham.
Finally, as the saying goes: ‘Take time to smell the roses’. (I do need to remind myself of this!) Have a good week everyone. PJ π
In an earlier blog, I wrote about the Science of Reading, which explains how we learn to read and the proven strategies to help learners. This week, I want to tell you about some very inspiring people who are experts in specific learning difficulties; many of whom have helped us to understand the Science of Reading and have written books regarding dyslexia, which I have found really helpful in my studies.
The first book I would recommend is called ‘Overcoming Dyslexia’ by Dr Sally Shaywitz. This book explains dyslexia, describes how the brain works and demonstrates what skills are needed to be able to read fluently. It is a book which is useful both for the educator and the parent of a dyslexic child. Dr Shaywitz is an American physician-scientist who is the co-founder and co-director of the Yale Centre for Dyslexia and Creativity and her research has been used for the framework for modern understanding of dyslexia through scientific research.
Someone else who I admire is Professor Margaret Snowling. Professor Snowling is a British psychologist and world leading expert in language difficulties including dyslexia and has written many books and research papers. Her book entitled ‘Dyslexia’ was very helpful in my studies as it details the causes of reading and spelling problems and strategies to help overcome some of these difficulties. Professor Snowling is president of St John’s College, Oxford, past President of the Society for the Scientific Study of Reading and was one of the joint editors of the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. She served as a member of Sir Jim Roseβs Expert Advisory Group on provision for Dyslexia in 2009 and she has been an advisor to the Government Departments of Education and of International Development, particularly in relation to the early years and specific learning difficulties. Professor Snowling has also been involved in the implementation of randomised controlled trials assessing reading and language interventions in projects led by her partner Charles Hulme, who is also a British psychologist. I have read many interesting research papers written by Hulme and Snowling, which have demonstrated the effectiveness of reading and language interventions. I have also been lucky enough to attend one of Professor Snowling’s online lectures, which she gave for the 50th Anniversary of the Helen Arkell dyslexia charity and she is able to explain all her research clearly so that everyone can understand. Professor Snowling’s recent research mainly focuses on children’s language acquisition and she emphasises how important it is for a child to have a strong foundation in oral language through enriched language experiences, as this is key to success in literacy. Several years ago, Professor Snowling and Professor Hulme, alongside Dr Claudine Bowyer-Crane, developed an evidence-based oral language intervention programme for nursery and reception age children who were at risk of experiencing difficulty with reading. This programme is called the Nuffield Early Language Intervention and has been widely used in schools to develop children’s oral language in order to strengthen their literacy skills.
Another book I used for my studies (amongst many others as well as research papers!) was ‘Dyslexia, A Practitioner’s Handbook’ by Dr Gavin Read. I found this book clearly explained theoretical and practical research in dyslexia and literacy. Dr. Reid is an international independent educational psychologist with active consultancies in several countries and he has written many books concerning dyslexia. He is co founder and director of the Red Rose school for children with special learning difficulties at St Annes on Sea, Lancashire, chair of the British Dyslexia Association Accreditation Board and an ambassador for the Helen Arkell Dyslexia Centre in the UK (alongside Professor Margaret Snowling). Dr Read also wrote and developed the first Masters course on dyslexia in the UK in 1993.
Finally, my ‘go to’ book is ‘Teaching Literacy to Learners with Dyslexia’ written by Kathleen Kelly and Sylvia Phillips. I follow this book for many interventions as it contains the programme I used in order to qualify as a specialist for teaching those with dyslexia. Sylvia Phillips leads the MA Education (Additional Learning Needs – Dyslexia) at Glyndwr University and Kathleen Kelly is Programme Leader for the Masters in Specific Learning Difficulties at Manchester Metropolitan University. I use this book, alongside other knowledge I have acquired from my dyslexia training, to teach their ‘Conquering Literacy’ programme as part of an intervention. This book explains how dyslexia research contributed to the development of their structured, sequential, multisensory, synthetic phonics programme ‘Conquering Literacy’ which should be personalised and taught by a trained dyslexia specialist alongside other essential literacy skills including phonological awareness, with an emphasis on acquiring phonemic awareness skills.
If you ever get chance, I also recommend reading one of the research papers on learning to read by Dr Linnea Ehri. Dr Ehri, an American psychologist, has been one of the most influential and cited reading scientists for many years. She has written over 130 research papers on learning to read and the ones I have read have been really interesting, detailing a scientific approach when conducting controlled studies in order to reveal how individuals learn to read.
By using personalised learning, the benefit of scientific research, the knowledge of potential barriers to learning and using strategies to overcome these barriers, I hope that more children will be able to reach their full potential in reading and writing. PJ π
FREE THIS WEEK
Dyslexia Scotland are please to announce a special author free event for 8 – 13 year olds on 1 November online. Steve Cole is a Barrington Stoke published author who will talk about how ideas can inspire stories even if you have a difficult relationship with words. Find out more and book places here: https://bit.ly/3GaYLXX#DAWScot21
Help your child learn to read, write and spell 