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1)
Hi Amy Hope you can help us. My husband is wanting to learn
phonics to read more fluently as he has been practicing and
reading better. Is there a phonics program for adults. would
appreciate your help.
Hello,
Thanks for your email. Here are my thoughts:
I
have worked with a lot of adults, and I do not usually vary
the material that I use. I use the same material for all the
students that I work with, 5 years old or 55 years old.
Phonics are the same no matter how old you are. Some companies
do customize their products to be more dignified and less
child-oriented. However, usually I find them to be extremely
expensive. I have heard Lexia Learning has a program for
adults and a company called "Grammarkey" sells a
video called "Ready for Adult Phonics." I found the
key to successfully working with an adult on their reading is
determination and commitment. Adults with poor reading ability
have made
it
a point to construct their daily lives in a way that avoids
reading. This makes reading practice difficult. A child with
reading problems must read every day in school, that way
reading practice is built-in to their daily lives, they can't
avoid it. DAILY reading practice is what will make the biggest
difference for your husband. Let me know if you have any more
questions,
Happy Reading,
Amy
Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
2)
Hello Amy, I would like to see if you could help direct
me. I am going to teach a 23 year old young man to read. I
will need tools to help teach him the basics and I don't know
where to start. I found "Hooked on Phonics" on the
internet, but the cost was $300.00! Do you have any
suggestions about other tools I may use to help? Thank you.
Hello,
Thanks for your email. Tell me a little bit more about your
situation...
1) Have you ever taught reading before? Do you have experience
as a teacher?
2) Is this 23-year-old man your son or relative?
3) What are the circumstances surrounding this man's reading
issues? Is English his second language? Does he have other
learning issues besides reading? Specific diagnosis? What is
his education level?
Can he read at all? If so, how much? If not, does he know his
letters and sounds?
4) How much time per week do you plan to spend teaching him
how to read? Will anyone else be working on his reading
skills? Where will you be working with him? Library? School?
Kitchen Table? Will you be working with him one-on-one or in a
group?
5) Is this man enrolled in any kind of school or does he work
or neither?
6) Has anyone ever tried to teach this man to read before?
If you can answer these questions, I can give you some more
succinct advice.
Have a great day!
Amy
Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
2a)
Hi
Again Amy, I am not a teacher, although, I raised 2 daughters
and helped them along the way. The young man is my son-in-law
as of April 2001, and he did graduate from high school, how I
don't know.
He
is very embarrassed and does not want anyone to know that he
can't read. He would like to learn to read and get a better
job. English is his first and only language. I'm sorry, but I
really don't know if there are other learning issues. I do
know that his parents did not take time with he or any of the
other siblings while growing up. He seems to communicate
normally, although, he is not very social. We took him out to
eat once and I could tell, he could not read the fish house
menu.
I will be the only person working with him, and we will be
working at my home.
I cannot imagine not being able to read. It is an enormous
handicap to not be able to read. I would like to help him open
the door to the wonderful world of reading. Thank you for your
help.
Hello,
Thanks for your response to my email. I apologize that it has
taken me so long to get back to you. Here are my suggestions:
1)
I suggest you have your son-in-law tested to determine his
strengths and weaknesses in reading. An assessment will give
the information on where to direct your instructio
n.
Reading specialists in your area would be able to do that. Or
if you want to have him do a reading test on line, you can go
to www.letsgolearn.com Reading is a complex subject, more that
most people realize. A reader experiencing difficulty may have
weaknesses and or strengths in a variety of areas. It is
important to find out where you son-in-laws issues are.
2)
It's hard for me to know the exact nature of his weaknesses
however, from you descriptions it sounds as if he has a hard
time sounding out words as well as spelling. I suggest you
look for something that talks about "Symbol
Imagery."
3)
I HIGHLY recommend that you take a workshop for reading
teachers. Teaching yourself how to be a reading teacher will
be the best way for you to help him.
In
a nutshell, get him tested to determine the exact weakness,
find a program that treats that weakness, and get yourself
trained in that program. Teaching an adult to re
ad
is a big commitment for the student and the teacher. Working
on his reading at least 4 days a week is recommended, 5 is
better. I hope this helps.
Amy
Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
3)
Dear Amy, My 30-year-old son is developmentally
disabled. He is high functioning; but in his school years in
special classes the teachers focused on social skills and not
reading. What resources do I need to teach him to read?? How
much can he do on his own as homework?
He
has expressive aphasia which causes him to have difficulty
speaking, although he sure verbalizes a lot as best he can.
Local libraries which have reading programs are full and
cannot accept him. He uses the Internet to check out movie
sites, which he enjoys. He does not recognize many words; but
manages to see key words and see trailers of movie titles that
he recognizes. Thanks for any help or recommendations that you
can provide.
Hello.
Thanks for your email. It is impossible for me to know exactly
how to teach your son to read, but here are my thoughts:
1)
"What resources do I need to teach him to read ??" I
have been teaching rea
ding
and reading instruction for my entire career so I can say that
this is not an easy task. If you are really serious and have
at least two hours a day to commit to his reading instruction,
you can go to a workshop designed for teachers who teach
reading.
2)
"How much can he do on his own as homework?" I don't
want to say that this isn't possible but I never had good luck
with it. I found getting adults to work on their reading
independently to be even more difficult than children.
Children are required to read in school every day so they have
"reading practice" built into their daily lives. I
now work for a company called Let's Go Learn, Inc. We have
developed an online reading assessment and are in the process
of developing online reading instruction. This is the kind of
thing that your son could do on his own to supplement your
instruction. There are lots of other reading software
companies out there, you should find one that suits your son's
level. Just remember that they should not replace reading
instruction.
I
have worked with lots of adults during my career. I know how
difficult it can
be,
but very rewarding. Your son's reading ability can get better.
Learning to teach him yourself is probably the best option
since he will probably need instruction over a long period of
time. One man I worked with, about the age and profile of your
son, worked with me every day for 12 weeks. During that time
his mother sat in on most of my lessons. After the 12 weeks,
she took over his lessons. She brought him back a year later
for another round. It went well. He went from not reading at
all to reading at about a 4th grade level. She continues to
work with him to this day but I have not been in touch with
them in a few years.
I
hope this is helpful to you, let me know if I can answer any
more questions,
Amy
Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
4)
Amy, I really need your help. I am acquainted with a young
man who is in his early 40s. He is a very successful
businessman. One problem, he cannot read. people who work
closely with him know this. i do not believe his employees are
aware of this. I would like to know if there is such a program
that can help him with his reading and math. even just his
reading. one thing is that it has to be on computer. he has
one in his office. is there a program that is voice activated?
I really would like to help this man progress and at least be
able to read some of his correspondence and financial reports?
thanking you in advance for all of your help.
Hello,
Thanks
for your email. I have worked with a lot of adults with
reading issues. One thing to remember is that it is never too
late. I have worked with senior citizens. A person who has
gone that long with out learning to read most likely has a
weakness in what is called phonemic awareness. Phonemic
awareness is the ability to distinguish sounds wit
hin
words, this processing ability is vital in reading
development. People with this processing weakness have a hard
time learning how to sound out words as a child, this makes
beginning reading very very difficult. The first step to
reading improvement is assessment. Even if he can't read at
all, he probably has strengths and weaknesses in reading
processes, these need to be measured to create a way to
increase his reading abilities. My company, Let's Go Learn,
Inc. offers a full reading assessment on line, available on
the Homeschool.com website. If he decides he wants to pursue
assessment and would rather have an assessment in person, look
for someone in your area who specializes in reading assessment
and instruction. Make sure any assessment you choose measures
all parts of reading; sounding-out words, memorizing words,
spelling, reading in context and vocabulary. My company also
has on-line instruction in development that might offer him a
dignified way to work on his reading. However, a student with
extremely poor phonemic awareness may wish to boost his
phonemic awareness before tackling a self-taught program. As
far as voice recognition software, it is still in the
beginning stages. The voice recognition software that they
sell at most software stores works mediocre at best and it
would be very difficult to use that as your only tool for
reading
instruction. I recommend getting some intensive one-on-one
reading intervention and supplementing it with a computer
program.
I
also want to share with you the thing I found most difficult
about working with adult students; reading practice. Think of
it like this: if you are taking a night course to learn
Spanish, and you work at a job with native Spanish speakers,
you will have an easy time practicing. If you did not work at
a job with native Spanish speakers, you would have a much
harder time practicing, it would not be as easy to learn. In
my experience teaching young children how to read, they had to
practice because reading tasks came up all day, every day in
school. This is not true for adults. Adults with reading
problems have constructed their entire lives in a manner that
avoids reading at all costs. Therefore, building reading
practice into their lives, above and beyond instruction, takes
a lot of dedication. Don't let him be too embarrassed to get
help. Phonemic awareness issues have absolutely nothing to do
with intelligence. Without a doubt, some of the smartes
t
people I have ever met have phonemic awareness weakness. I
wish you luck and remember to remind your friend over and over
that it is not too late. He can learn to read.
Happy
Reading,
Amy
Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
5)
Dear Amy, My 15 year old is in 9th grade and reads on a 6th
grade level also my dad who is 53 reads on a 5th to 6th grade
level. I need something to help my child read better and
actually get interested in reading and I also need something
to help my dad read better and comprehend better so that he
can get his GED. I have no idea where to look or where to get
started. Could you please give me some ideas or advise on what
I need to do to get both of them help. Please remember funds
are low so we will be trying to do this at home. Thank you.
Hello,
Thanks for your email. Here are my thoughts:
If
money is short, you should spend money on educating yourself.
I have spent my entire
career
learning to teach people how to read, and teaching people with
reading difficulties is infinitely harder. Therefore, spending
money on a course for yourself is probably better spend than
spending a lot of money purchasing an expensive reading kit or
program. In my opinion, you should seek out a workshop or a
course designed for reading teachers. This will get you up to
speed fastest. When signing up for a class, make sure you ask
if the class is appropriate for someone who is a homeschool
teacher and not a reading specialist.
The
second thing I advise is frequency of instruction. Reading
intervention in schools is sometimes administered once or
twice a week. This is not enough. For your child and
especially your dad, daily instruction is crucial to reading
improvement. Adults with reading issues have fashioned their
lives around avoiding reading. This means that intensive daily
reading instruction is especially important for adults. When I
am administering reading instruction, I work with reading
students 15 to 20 hours a week, one on one.
You
may wish to have a reading assessment done for your child and
your father, this will
tell
you exactly which areas of reading are difficult for them.
Sometimes people don't realize how complex reading is, there
are many skills and cognitive processes involved. This means
that your child and your father will likely have some
strengths and weaknesses in reading skills. The first step to
informed instruction is assessment. A wise old speech
pathologist that I worked with used to say, "You can only
know where to go if you know where you are." Assessment
will also help you monitor your progress over the year.
I
hope this is helpful, let me know if I can answer any other
questions.
Happy Reading!
Amy
Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
6)
My daughter is in seventh grade and reading and spelling
have always been hard for her. Reading and spelling were
always hard for me too and I still don't like reading very
much. Should she be assessed or can we both be assessed?
Hello,
Yes, she or both of you can be assessed. However, reading and
spelling are
not
going to get easier for a seventh grader with out some
intervention. (Instruction in reading is part of a school's
curriculum through the fourth grade in most states) The first
step to intervention is assessment. It will be important to
know what her reading strengths and weaknesses are. If she has
coped thus far, she is probably strong in some areas and weak
in others. As high school and then college approach, she will
be expected to complete larger and larger quantities of
reading and writing. She may be able to get by but she may
feel like there is not enough time in the day to do all the
work required. Getting help now will be more effective than
later. As for you, adults from every walk of life have
difficulty with reading. Studies show that 20-30% of the
world's population has weakness in the processing abilities
necessary for reading. You may want to think about taking an
online assessment; this can give you or anyone the dignity and
privacy they may desire. Or you can go a different route and
have your daughter and or yourself assessed by
a
local professional who can explain everything to you if you
are not comfortable reading a report that would be generated
by an online assessment. If you are interested in improving
your own reading level, go for it by all means. I personally
have worked with business men, construction workers, moms,
grad students and even a few people in their seventies. It is
never too late.
Amy
Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
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