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1)
Dear Amy, Could you recommend a phonics program for an almost
4 year old who is a very quick learner, wants to learn to
read? Thank you.
Hello, Thanks for your email.
Here are my thoughts:
Some reading specialists would
disagree with me but this is what I think... For the most
part, phonics programs are incredibly similar. In fact, my
staff and I frequently joke with each other, "Phonics is
phonics." With that said, the biggest differences, in my
opinion, are mainly cosmetic. I think Frontline Phonics is
good for extremely young kids because it has little songs and
phrases that are fun and oriented toward young children.
However, most phonics programs are very expensive and some are
hard to follow. I would suggest finding one that fits your
budget, and that you think you can teach then let that be your
guide. Here are some more phonics pointers: "Phonemic
awareness" is the processing ability that readers use to
distinguish one sound from another. This means that
"Phonemic awareness" is the processing ability
necessary to learn how to sound out words. (phonics) This
processing ability has been studied by many scientists and
most agree that it fully develops in a child by the age of 6.
(Some studies say five; some say six and a few say seven.)
That means that a child younger than 5 may not have the
ability to "catch-on" to phonics. But not
necessarily, phonemic awareness develops early in some kids.
In other words, don't be disappointed (or worried) if your
child doesn't pick up on phonics or doesn't like working with
phonics. The practice can't hurt! :)
Happy Reading!
Amy Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
2)
Hello Amy, My son is 7 years old and is in the second grade.
He uses Learning Language Arts Through Literature as his
reading program. He does very well in his course work but
doesn't seem to transfer what he has learned to other reading
material. He is frustrated and thinks he is a bad reader. He
wants us to buy him one of the nationally advertised phonics
programs so he can read the 24 chapter book like the 7 year
old on TV. I can watch his eyes kind of glaze over as he gets
lost or frustrated. Any suggestions?
Hello,
Thanks for your email. Here are my thoughts:
"He does very well in his
course work but doesn't seem to transfer what he has learned
to other reading material." When you say this, I am not
sure if you are talking about not transferring reading
techniques or actual content (facts, dates etc) that he has
read about in the past. If he is having a hard time
remembering what he reads, then the problem is probably
centered more around language comprehension. If you teach him
how to sound out a certain type of word and then later when he
sees a word like that in another situation but does not
remember how to sound it out, that is different. If he is
having a hard time remembering how to sound out words that you
thought he knew, the problem is likely something to do with
phonemic awareness and or symbol imagery. If this is the case,
working on one of those phonics programs probably won't work.
I suggest you find out more about phonemic awareness and
symbol imagery to find out if this is the weakness that is
hindering your son's progress. I suggest reading "Seeing
Stars for Symbol Imagery" by Nanci Bell, Gander
Publishing, San Luis Obispo, California. Her book is very
informative and easy to read. Let me know if I can answer any
other questions.
Best Wishes,
Amy Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
3)
Hi Amy,
I really need some help. We are homeschooling two of our 3
sons. One of our sons is very bright and benefits from a lot
of structure and ongoing challenges. I realized that his time
needs were distracting me from important help that the other
two boys needed. The other two have significant reading
delays. They are about in grades 3 and 5 (ages 9 and 11). We
are a reading family, treasure good books and do a lot of
reading aloud. But so far neither of these two are capable of
reading on their own. I own about all the phonics programs out
there, and we have daily lessons in phonics and reading,
taking it by small steps. I have tried to take a wait and let
them mature approach, but now I'm getting concerned,
especially for the 5th grader. I'm looking for some direction.
I probably should get them tested to determine the specifics
of their skills. Thanks.
Hello, Thanks for your
email. Here are my thoughts:
As for your two sons who are
having trouble with phonics instruction...Phonemic awareness
is the processing ability necessary to sound out words. Most
studies say that phonemic awareness will fully develop by the
age of seven, some studies say five, and some say six. If your
sons are nine and eleven and are having trouble absorbing
phonics instruction, they almost certainly have some phonemic
awareness weakness. I think that it would be a great idea for
you to have your sons tested. You can use the Let's Go Learn
Reading Assessment or have them tested by a reading specialist
in your area. As for improving their phonemic awareness, I
suggest you find a workshop on phonemic awareness designed for
reading teachers. I know that workshops can be expensive but
in my opinion, it is the best way for a parent to learn how to
administer reading instruction for phonemic awareness
weakness. Let me know if I can answer any other questions that
you have.
Best of luck and happy reading!
Amy Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
4)
Hello Amy, I heard about a reading program for four year olds.
I have a four year old that I would like to home school, so
when she starts public school she could be ahead. I have an
eight year old that has reading difficulties and thought if I
could start my younger one sooner it would benefit all of us.
Thank You for you time and any information you can pass along
to me.
Hello, Thanks for your email.
Here are my thoughts:
1) Should you begin teaching
your 4 year old to read? Well, there are several schools of
thought regarding when to teach children how to read. I got an
email recently from the mother of a 19 month old by who said
her son loved books so much she wanted to begin teaching him
to read. On the very same day I got an email from someone
asking me about "delayed reading," a program that
does not teach kids to read until age seven. My own
preferences are somewhere in the middle. I certainly don't
recommend teaching babies to read, but it is probably not
necessary to wait until the age of 7. This is what was a
wonderful and wise speech pathologist that I used to work with
said to me: "A child who is ready to learn to read will
show an interest in sounds. Don't ask the child to say the
sound or to repeat after you. Say the sounds yourself and when
the child is ready, he or she will start repeating after
you." That really stuck with me over the years. Learning
to say the sounds in isolation should be fairly easy for the
child who is ready to learn. Phonemic awareness is the
processing ability that allows us to learn how to sound out
words. Most scientists say that this develops by age 5, some
say 6 or 7. If you decide that she is ready to learn to read,
what programs should you use? Well, Frontline Phonics has been
very highly rated, you might like that. "Total
Reading" is also used by a lot of homeschoolers. When
choosing a program, remember that any good reading instruction
should include these three things: 1) Learn to sound out
words, 2) Learn to memorize words that cannot be sounded out,
and 3) Learn to use contextual cues when reading.
2) "I have an eight year
old that has reading difficulties and thought if I could start
my younger one sooner it would benefit all of us."
Unfortunately, if your 8 year old has a reading problem and
your 4 year old has the same kind of problem, learning to read
at 4 probably won't be any easier than it will be at 8.
However, if your 4 year old does have a reading problem
identifying it and getting help ASAP is a great idea. If you
do decide to teach her to read now, approach things slowly and
don't pressure her. If she is having a hard time, don't start
worrying until she is 5 or 6. Chances are she will be just
fine!
Happy Reading!
Amy Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
5)
Hi Amy, My daughter is 5 years old and just starts
kindergarten this year. Is it too early to teach her to read?
If not, could you recommend some materials?Thanks.
Hello, Thanks for your email. I
apologize for not returning your email sooner, this last week
has been crazy. Here are my thoughts:
There are several schools of
thought regarding when to teach children how to read. I got an
email recently from the mother of a 19 month old by who said
her son loved books so much she wanted to begin teaching him.
On the very same day I got an email from someone asking me
about "delayed reading," a program that does not
teach kids to read until age seven. My own preferences are
somewhere in the middle. I certainly don't recommend teaching
babies to read, but it is probably not necessary to wait until
the age of 7. This is what was a wonderful and wise speech
pathologist that I used to work with said to me: "A child
who is ready to learn to read will show an interest in sounds.
Don't ask the child to say the sound or to repeat after you.
Say the sounds yourself and when the child is ready, he or she
will start repeating after you." That really stuck with
me over the years. Learning to say the sounds in isolation
should be fairly easy for the child who is ready to learn.
Phonemic awareness is the processing ability that allows us to
learn how to sound out words. Most scientists say that this
develops by age 5, some say 6 or 7. If you decide that she is
ready to learn to read, what programs should you use? Well,
Frontline Phonics has been very highly rated by
www.homeschool.com, you might like that. "Total
Reading" is also used by a lot of homeschoolers. When
choosing a program, remember that any good reading instruction
should include these three things: 1) Learn to sound out
words, 2) Learn to memorize words that cannot be sounded out,
and 3) Learn to use contextual cues when reading. I hope this
is helpful to you. Let me know if you have any more questions.
Thanks!
Amy Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
6)
Dear Amy, My 8 yr. old daughter is beginning 3rd grade work
this year. She continues to have difficulty with reading and
reading comprehension. She frequently misreads words, guessing
based on the first few letters rather than reading a complete
word. She will occasionally read words backwards such as
reading, "saw" as "was". Her abilities
vary from day today. One day she will be reading solidly at
grade level and the next day she will have trouble with basic
phonics. Reading for her is a chore and she becomes easily
frustrated when I ask her to re-read a word or sentence. Can
you tell that I am a bit frustrated too? I would appreciate
any suggestions that would help me to help her. Thank you.
Hello, Thanks for your email.
Here are my thoughts about your daughter:
1) I feel terrible saying this
but if your daughter is having these kinds of problems in 2nd
grade, she will almost certainly have a harder time in 3rd
grade. In the United States, 3rd grade is where a student is
required to begin reading large quantities of material
independently. I talk to droves of parents who tell me that
their son or daughter was doing "OK" in 1st and 2nd
grade but really went down hill in 3rd grade.
2) "She frequently
misreads words, guessing based on the first few letters rather
than reading a complete word." This is very common for
kids who have weak phonemic awareness. I have seen kids who
even sound out each of the letters then say something totally
different when they say the word as a whole. They sound out:
"/s/-/t/-/ar/-/t/" and then they state the whole
word, "straight." It may seem to you that what she
sees on the page is not what is coming out of her mouth. It
may seem like she can't match the two things up. This is a
very common symptom of phonemic awareness weakness.
3) "Her abilities vary
from day today. One day she will be reading solidly at grade
level and the next day she will have trouble with basic
phonics." This too is common for phonemic awareness
weakness. Another factor may be what some people call
"Symbol Imagery." This is ability to hold on to
letters and words in your mind. You might see that she will
learn a word like "whose" and she might know it all
day, but the next day it's like the word is brand new to her
again.
4) "Reading for her is a
chore and she becomes easily frustrated when I ask her to
re-read a word or sentence." I am sure that this is very
hard for her. I had one parent who described her daughter as
having similar difficulties as your daughter. Her daughter was
a little bit older and had to write a book report. Just
reading the book for the report was very hard on both of them,
writing the report was very difficult and took all weekend. On
Sunday afternoon when they had finished the rough draft of the
report, she said to her daughter, "And now for the easy
part! Just copy this onto a clean sheet of paper." Her
daughter began to scream and cry. I told that mother to
imagine what it would be like if I gave her an entire page of
Japanese text and asked her to copy it onto a clean sheet of
paper, that is similar to what it is like for her daughter to
copy a page of text.
5) "Can you tell that I am
a bit frustrated too? I would appreciate any suggestions that
would help me to help her." Well, it sounds like your
daughter is weak in some of the processing abilities necessary
for reading. I am sure this situation is very frustrating for
you and your daughter. I have known master teachers who had
been working with beginning readers for years who wanted to
pull their hair out because of this kind of difficulty. Twenty
years ago, most people thought that phonemic awareness could
not be increased. Thankfully, that is not the case anymore.
The first step is to get your daughter tested with a full
reading assessment. My company, Let's Go Learn, Inc. is
offering an on-line reading assessment on www.homeschool.com.
If you decide you want 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.
I hope these things are helpful
to you, please feel free to email me with more questions.
Happy Reading!
Amy Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
7)
Dear Ms. Pedigo,
My daughter will be 5 on Sept. 22 so could not start
Kindergarten this year (cut off was Sept. 1). She is very
advanced socially, emotionally and intellectually. She spoke
over 100 words at 1 year of age; has always spoken very
clearly and articulately. She has always LOVED reading books.
She constantly asks how to say or spell words. She is reading
simple Dr. Seuss books, understands phonics, single letter
sounds, letter blends, does simple math, understands basic
o'clock and thirty when it comes to telling time. I would like
your opinion on the following: We plan to send her to a
private christian school next year. This year, because of the
cut off date, she is in the Pre-K or "4's" class. I
purchased the Alpha Omega Kindergarten Homeschool Pak and I
have started teaching this to her. Our hope is that we can
have her start in first grade next year since I've
homeschooled the Kinder portion. I haven't yet spoken to the
school she will attend next year but since it is private they
will test her and we will go from there. I would never do this
unless she was emotionally and socially ready..which she is.
What is your opinion/recommendation on this whole scenario?
Thank you so much.
Hello,
Thanks for your email. I
apologize that it has taken me so long to email back to you.
Here are my thoughts:
1) It sounds like your daughter
is already way ahead of the game! She will certainly do well,
no matter what grade she begins at next year. If you are going
to teach your daughter to read at home before she goes to
school, I recommend you find out what reading instruction
methodologies they use at her school. Reading programs can
differ dramatically and you may want to follow their lead so
as not to confuse your daughter when she starts school. That
way if she goes to K or 1st, the things you have taught her
will be very helpful.
2) Should she go to 1st grade?
I specialize in reading so I am not an expert on school
readiness but I will tell you what I have experienced in the
past. I once taught vacation-bible school for two summers in a
row. The first year I taught the kids who were on their way to
first grade. The second year I taught the kids who were on
their way to Kindergarten. There was a huge difference. It
wasn't so much socially or emotionally but the kids going into
first grade were just more adept at handling themselves in a
classroom-oriented situation. The pre-K kids had a hard time
sitting in chairs for an extended period of time and a hard
time being quiet for a long time etc. In my opinion,
Kindergarten is less about kids learning content than it is
about easing into school. Kindergarteners do some play
activities and some academic activities; by 1st grade they are
better able to handle a full day of academic oriented tasks.
Even if I thought my daughter was ready for the kind of
content taught in a first grade classroom, I would not let her
miss Kindergarten. But of course it is up to you. Talk to your
school, I am sure they will know better than me about what
will work with their program.
3) I think teaching her some
reading this year before she goes to school is a good idea.
However, studies say that "phonemic awareness," the
processing ability necessary to sound out words, doesn't fully
develop until the age of 6 or 7. So if your daughter seems to
have a hard time with some parts of reading, don't worry she
will probably be fine. When I worked in a Kindergarten
classroom, we had pre-K kids come in for half-day visits in
the springtime to see what it was like. Perhaps that would be
a good idea for your daughter.
Let me know if I can answer any
more questions that you have. Happy Reading!
Amy Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
8)
Dear Amy - My daughter is seven. (March will be eight) She has
such a hard time with reading. We have tried many different
programs and different ways to teach her, but still she has
trouble. We have gotten readers for level one readers, such as
The big bug or Dan is in the pan. They are for K-1st. She
really struggles with them. We have now noticed that it is
trickling over to her other subjects. What would you recommend
doing? Should we drop all other subjects and just do reading
until she has a grasp on it? Please help as we are at the end
of our rope. Thanks so much for your time.
Hello, Thanks for your email.
Here are my thoughts:
1) If she is having that much
trouble with reading, I am sure it is effecting her other
subjects and that will only continue to get worse. Once a
student progresses to a third grade level in any subject,
independent reading is expected. So even though she may be
good at something like mathematics, she might miss the
instructions because they are in written form.
2)"Should we drop all
other subjects and just do reading until she has a grasp on
it?" In my personal opinion, yes, I would discontinue
other subjects until she has a grasp on it. However, you will
want to engage in some effective reading instruction to bring
her up to speed. I worked at a specialized reading company for
many years and we worked with all of our students on an
intensive basis. (Daily for 3 or 4 hours) Lots of kids were
pulled out of school all together because increasing their
reading skills was just more important than the history lesson
they could not read about anyway. I am a big fan of immersion
instruction when it comes to reading.
3)"She has such a hard
time with reading. We have tried many different programs and
different ways to teach her, but still she has trouble."
With out seeing her personally, I can't know the exact nature
of the problem. However, what you are describing sounds like
it might be a problem with "phonemic awareness."
Phonemic awareness is the ability to distinguish sounds within
words, this processing ability is necessary for people to
learn to read. This makes it possible for people to sound out
words. I am assuming, if your daughter is having trouble with
basal readers, that she has a hard time sounding out words.
Phonemic awareness is the single best indicator for reading
success, so I am guessing that your daughter is probably not
doing as well as she should in that area. Receiving direct
instruction in boosting phonemic awareness is the best
solution. But be careful what route you choose, "phonemic
awareness" has become sort of a buzzword in the reading
world lately so some phonics programs have started throwing
that word around a lot.
4)"What would you
recommend doing? " I recommend having your daughter
tested with a full reading assessment. Getting an accurate
profile of her reading strengths and weaknesses is the first
important step to designing accurate effective instruction for
your daughter. My company, Let's Go Learn, Inc. is offering an
on-line reading assessment on www.homeschool.com. If you
decide you want 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.
I hope these things are helpful
to you. Please feel free to email me more questions. Happy
Reading!
Amy Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
9)
Greetings Amy: Thank you for the information you have on your
website. I do, however, have a question that you answered in
part in the 'frequently asked questions.' My wife and I have a
four-year-old boy that loves to be read to. He will sit for
over an hour, asking for another book to be read as each book
is finished. I am thankful that he (and his two year old
sister) likes to be read to. The problem I am having is
knowing where to go from here. He likes to work with letters
and sounds, and has learned some. We never push him to read or
practice letters and sounds. He asks to be read to, and then
we end up working on letters and sounds while we are reading.
While he doesn't seem to be an exceptionally bright child, he
does like to be read to and work with letters. Where can we go
from here?
We have thought of
getting one of the phonics programs that are available, like
Hooked on Phonics or FrontLine phonics, but we are not sure
that that us the best thing to start with. What do you think
we should do? I don't like the idea of just reading to him
when he is showing an interest in learning more. We probably
read to him a total of 1 1/2 hours a day. He would have us
read more, but we don't. Should we? Thank you very much for
your concern and the time that you sacrifice to help parents
teach their own children.
Hello,
Thanks for your email. Here are
my thoughts:
1)"He likes to work with
letters and sounds, and has learned some. We never push him to
read or practice letters and sounds. He asks to be read to,
and then we end up working on letters and sounds while we are
reading. While he doesn't seem to be an exceptionally bright
child, he does like to be read to and work with letters. Where
can we go from here?" Reading to him is great, an
interest in oral and written language is always a good sign.
It sounds like you have been on the right track already. Some
people confuse an interest in being read to with reading
readiness. Reading readiness would be indicated by some of the
other things you mentioned, like his interest in letters and
sounds.
I have never been a great fan
of super early reading instruction, however encouraging his
existing interest can't be a bad thing. This is what was a
wonderful and wise speech pathologist that I used to work with
said to me: "A child who is ready to begin learning to
read will show an interest in sounds. Don't ask the child to
say the sound or to repeat after you. Say the sounds yourself
and when the child is ready, he or she will start repeating
after you." That really stuck with me over the years.
Sometimes when I am with my gaggle of nieces and nephews, I
will just start saying specific consonant or vowel sounds as
we are playing with blocks or legos. They usually don't say
anything or they say something different. After a while, if
they repeat after me, then we say sounds to each other over
and over. There are about 42 sounds in English, some linguists
and speech pathologists dispute that number by one or two.
Saying sounds in isolation may be very easy for your son, or
not. The ability to distinguish single sounds within words is
called "phonemic awareness", this is what ultimately
allows children to "sound-out" words. Some
scientists say this processing ability does not fully develop
in a child until the age of 6 or 7, so you may find that
saying distinct sounds in isolation may not be a simple task
for your son. I think you should begin by saying the consonant
sounds with your son. If he finds these really easy, you can
move on to the vowels. Go slow and only practice for a few
minutes at a time. If you decide to do this, it is important
for you to remember to say each sound IN ISOLATION. In all my
years teaching teachers to teach reading, (say that ten times
fast!) I had a very hard time trying to get teachers to say
each of the consonants in isolation. Some of them would say
PUH for /p/ and TUH for /t/. You can understand why people do
this, consonants were never meant to be pronounced in
isolation. Since every syllable has a vowel sound, we
automatically add a vowel where there isn't one. These are the
consonant sounds we use in English, there are others that have
snuck into our language that are from foreign derivatives.
Remember these are sounds, not letters. Some sounds use
different letters. Like the sound /k/ as in "kite",
is the same sound in "cut" and "school." I
don't recommend teaching your son to write or read letters
quite yet but just learning to say each of the sounds will be
a great foundation. Saying them in isolation can be harder
than you remember. After he has learned to say all the sounds
after you, you can start saying words that use that sound. You
can say things like /m/ and then say "map" or
"make."
2)"We have thought of
getting one of the phonics programs that are available, like
Hooked on Phonics or FrontLine phonics, but we are not sure
that that us the best thing to start with. What do you think
we should do?"
If you find that your son has
an easy time learning to say the sounds in isolation, then
perhaps formal reading instruction is in order. Are you
planning to homeschool your son? If you are not, then perhaps
you would want to hold off on instruction for him because you
don't know what kind of reading instruction he is going to get
in school. You might start teaching him one way and then the
school would start teaching him another way and it could get
confusing for him. However, if you are planning to homeschool,
starting out with a solid phonics program would be a good
idea, if you are confident that he can say the sounds in
isolation with out difficulty. Frontline Phonics has received
very good reviews, I have never seen it in practice but it
looks good. However, I always remind people that reading
instruction should not be solely phonics. The best reading
programs involve instruction for the three skill areas of
reading: 1) sounding out words (phonics) 2) whole word
memorization and 3) contextual cues. All of us need to know
how to sound out words but we also need to have a large
selection of words memorized. And last but certainly not
least, we all need to understand what we are reading as we are
reading it. So, with that, I recommend supplementing any
phonics based program with some sight word memorization as
well as guided reading instruction.
3)"We probably read to him
a total of 1 1/2 hours a day. He would have us read more, but
we don't. Should we?"
Your son enjoys being read to
and that is a good thing. However, being read to is a form of
entertainment. Most kids enjoy being read to just as much as
just being told a story or listening to a story on a CD.
Entertainment like this in the form of oral language is
certainly healthier than something that "does the
thinking for you" like TV or video games. Never the less,
it is entertainment and you should only do whatever fits into
your schedule. Don't feel guilty that you don't have time to
read to him as much as he would like you to. I suggest setting
aside a specific time each day for reading and sticking to it.
(Like 30 minutes before bed or 30 minutes each day after lunch
etc.) If your son likes reading that much, you might find it
fun to read him a longer book that would be read over several
sessions instead of reading lots of short books. You guys can
talk about how the story is going and discuss what you think
is going to happen next in the story etc. Your 2 year old
might not be as keen on that...
I hope this all helps you. Feel
free to email me more questions. It sounds like reading is
going to be a strength for your son!
Happy Reading!
Amy Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
10)
Hi, I'm an Aussie mum with a son who is struggling to read. I
wanted to give you some background and ask you advice. My son
is in year four this year. When he began school, he went to a
small, private school that had a strong phonics program. He
was there for kindergarten and year one. His reading was
progressing fine and he was shining in every area he
attempted. That school closed and we had to change schools.
This new school recognized phonics but did not work
reinforcing phonics or going over the rules and how to sound
out words. He was there for two years. Currently we are away
from Australia and I have been homeschooling for a year now. I
plan to continue this when we go home to Australia in October.
My son has had his eyes tested before we left last year and
the eye doctor found that his visual memory and visual
sequencing were both very poor. I'm not sure exactly what this
means but I know it does effect his reading. He is very good
at math, in fact, last year he finished his grade 3 book, a
grade 4 book and was ready to start the grade 5 book, but his
reading has held him back severely. The doctor gave us some
exercises to help. I have noticed that his eyes often drop
below the line he is reading and also he constantly mixes up
words like for/of, that/what, where/were, here/there etc...
and really struggles to sound out new words. He's a bright boy
and finds it very frustrating! What I thought, was that when
we get home, to purchase a good phonics program and start
again with how to pronounce different sounds etc... and also
to go back to the eye doctor and see what he had to say. What
would you advise? My son really hates writing, it's always a
struggle to get him to write much more than four lines. He
really likes drawing (stick figures, planes etc...) and he's
very creative with his Lego. I would really appreciate your
input. Thanks for your help.
Hello,
Thanks for your email. Here are
my thoughts: I am asking myself if your son is having
difficulty because of incomplete phonics instruction or if he
is having difficulty acquiring the skill of sounding out
words. Children in Kindergarten and first grade (especially
very bright children) may seem to read well because they
memorize words easily and use the pictures and concept of the
story line to help them figure out the words. These are good
reading strategies when used in conjunction with sounding out
words. Once a child gets to third grade, the quantity of
reading gets so large that these tactics (with out the added
skill of sounding out words) cannot suffice. I have worked
with hundreds of kids and the majority of them have been in
3rd and 4th grade. Even a minor reading issue will become
evident in third grade since this is where a student is
required to read independently. In the United States, this
expectation is extremely sudden. In second grade, the students
are still reading picture books and learning to sound out
words, the very next year they are required to read chapter
books independently. A lot of the parents I have worked with
report that their children seemed fine until third grade.
"The teacher never said anything to us about his reading
and now he is falling way behind." If you think that your
son is having difficulty because he had incomplete phonics
instruction, then perhaps some supplemental phonics might be a
good idea. If you think that he has already had efficient
phonics instruction and is still having difficulty with
phonics, a full reading assessment would be suggested to
identify any issues. My company, Let's Go Learn, Inc. is
offering an on-line reading assessment on www.homeschool.com.
If you decide you want 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, reading comprehension, listening comprehension and
vocabulary.
I have heard people say again
and again that the child they are working with just needs
"more phonics." Sometimes that is true, but
sometimes the reason the student is not catching-on to phonics
is not because of lack of instruction. I am remembering a
student I worked with in Texas five years ago. She was a sixth
grader; let's call her Stacey. Stacey was one of the smartest,
brightest kids I ever worked with, she was almost senatorial.
She could handle herself in a room full of adults,
participating in the conversation, making witty comments etc.
Stacey was attending a special education school. Stacey could
not read. She had been in an intensive phonics program for
four years with virtually undetectable progress. Stacey had
extremely poor phonemic awareness. Phonemic awareness is the
ability to distinguish sounds within words. Phonemic awareness
is a major indicator for reading ability. A person with strong
phonemic awareness will usually learn to read with just about
any type of reading instruction. A person with poor phonemic
awareness may have a very difficult time no matter what type
of instruction. Phonemic awareness is a processing ability
necessary for a student to learn how to sound out words. If
your son has phonemic awareness weakness, he will probably mix
up words, stumble over sounding out words and spell poorly.
This could be the reason that your son hates writing and gets
fatigued after only a few lines. If he is putting a heap of
cognitive effort into spelling each and every word, writing
will be an exhaustive exercise. I find that these same kids
often seem exhausted when just copying words from one page to
another.
If you think that more complete
phonics instruction is needed, Homeschool.com sponsors a
highly regarded phonics program called Frontline Phonics. I
have read a lot about it and it has been very well received.
However, some of the instruction might be a little
"young" for your son. You might have to modify it a
bit. I have found that kids around the age of your son are
becoming aware of being "cool", therefore I try to
make the whatever lessons I am teaching seem hip. Best of luck
to you, feel free to contact me with more questions.
Happy Reading!
Amy Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
11)
Hello Amy, I'm writing because my 7 year old son has been
having a hard time reading. He seems to give up on his self.
He looks at the words and to me does not even try to sound
things out. I would like to find someone to help him. I feel
he needs one on one. Please let me know what you think!
Hello,
Thanks for your email. If he is struggling that much, it
sounds like he could benefit from one-on-one intervention.
One-on-one instruction definitely makes the biggest impact on
reading skills. The kinds of problems you are describing are
most likely due to phonemic awareness weakness. Phonemic
awareness is a processing ability. This processing ability
makes it hard to learn to sound out words. Sounding out words
is a huge part of beginning reading. Poor phonemic awareness
will also contribute to a poor spelling performance.
I am sure this situation is
very frustrating for you and your son. I have known master
teachers who had been working with beginning readers for years
who wanted to pull their hair out because of this kind of
difficulty. Twenty years ago, most people thought that
phonemic awareness could not be increased. Thankfully, that is
not the case anymore. The first step is to get your son's
reading ability tested with a full reading assessment. My
company, Let's Go Learn, Inc. is offering an on-line reading
assessment on www.homeschool.com. If you decide you want 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.
You are fortunate that you are
getting an early start on the issue, a student as young as
your son has a great chance of overcoming any weaknesses in a
relatively short time. The longer he goes without help, the
farther behind he will fall. You are smart to get started
right away. I recommend that you collect examples of the
reading and spelling mistakes that he makes to bring with you
to any proposed reading instructor. Contact me with questions
any time.
Good Luck, Happy Reading,
Amy Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
12)
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 within 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 smartest 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
13)
Dear Amy, One of your FAQs mentions Phonemic Awareness and the
lack some kids may have which leads to poor reading skills.
I'm kinda guessing that this is what my daughter has. I have
determined that in 1st grade the ears, eyes and mouth were not
synchronized to properly read. She looks at a word and then
guesses, hoping that it's the right word. Some of her guesses
include words that don't have the same letters as the one she
is trying to figure out. She doesn't really sound out words,
she just likes to guess or will just skip the word and
continue reading. She's not a strong speller either, but
doesn't always spell with phonics. Her handwriting is poor as
well, which leads me to believe she wasn't taught properly in
reading, writing or spelling. What resources would you suggest
in order for me to help improve her reading ability? She will
be a 3rd grader and I feel that if she's not strong in the
early skills, she will continue to fall behind and not want to
read. I'm homeschooling her and this is very frustrating for
both her and me. This will be our first year of homeschooling.
Thanks.
Hello,
Thanks for your email. What you
are describing does sound like phonemic awareness weakness.
And yes, you are correct, if her weaknesses are not addressed,
she may continue to fall behind and will not want to read.
Phonemic awareness is a major indicator for reading ability. A
person with strong phonemic awareness will usually learn to
read with just about any type of reading instruction. A person
with poor phonemic awareness may have a very difficult time no
matter what type of instruction.
"I have determined that in
1st grade the ears, eyes and mouth were not synchronized to
properly read. ...which leads me to believe she wasn't taught
properly in reading, writing or spelling." Phonemic
awareness is a processing ability. This means that if your
daughter had phonemic awareness weakness, she probably had it
long before 1st grade. No one could notice it before that
because she was not being instructed to read. Poor or
inadequate instruction cannot create weak phonemic awareness
but it can exacerbate the problem. Poor phonemic awareness
will also contribute to a poor spelling performance, as you
mentioned. I would expect a student with a profile like your
daughter would not always spell phonetically. Some of the kids
I worked with wrote letters that seemed to have nothing to do
with the sound they were saying even if they said the sound as
they wrote it. They would be saying "s" and writing
the letter K. As far as poor handwriting goes, phonemic
awareness doesn't usually contribute to that. It depends on
the kind of handwriting mistakes she is making, but most kids
with poor handwriting have some difficulty with visual-spatial
processing. This means that they may have a hard time copying
a shape, they may approach the task in a very disorganized
way. This kind of student may also print their letters a
different way every time. Or perhaps your daughter is putting
so much concentration into spelling that she is not
concentrating on what her letters look like.
I am very impressed that you
noticed it was a problem with ears, eyes and mouth. Most
people don't automatically understand that those three
processing abilities are working together. Not only do you see
and hear the sounds, you actually "feel" the motor
activity in your mouth. If these three things are not matched
up, it can create a struggle. I am sure this situation is very
frustrating for you and your daughter. I have known master
teachers who had been working with beginning readers for years
who wanted to pull their hair out because of this kind of
difficulty. Twenty years ago, most people thought that
phonemic awareness could not be increased. Thankfully, that is
not the case anymore. The first step is to get your daughter
tested with a full reading assessment. My company, Let's Go
Learn, Inc. is offering an on-line reading assessment on
www.homeschool.com. If you decide you want 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. Don't despair,
increasing phonemic awareness can be hard but it certainly
do-able. You are fortunate that you got an early start on the
issue. If your daughter were a 5th grader, this would be a
more difficult task. I have even worked with adults who could
not read for 40 years because of poor phonemic awareness. One
older gentleman finally learned to read and it changed his
life entirely. "I can read the story to my grandchild for
the first time instead of making it up." I will never
forget the look in his eyes. You and your daughter can work
together to excel in reading, it takes commitment and
determination. Keep at it. Contact me with questions any time.
Good Luck,
Please keep in touch. Happy
Reading,
Amy Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
14)
My son seems to mix up the sounds he sees and hears. Sometimes
he sounds words out with the right sounds and then says the
wrong word. Once he read the word "stump." He said
each one of the sounds, sounding it out. Then when I prompted
him to put it all together, he said, "stank." Why
does he do that?
Hi, The trouble you are
describing sounds like weak phonemic awareness. Phonemic
awareness is the ability to distinguish one sound from another
in a word. A reader with fully developed phonemic awareness
can think about the separate sounds in the word as well as the
sounds blended together. Readers with weak phonemic awareness
will have trouble sounding out words correctly and will
sometimes have a hard time pronouncing difficult words.
However, "phonemic awareness" has become a very
trendy term in the reading world so people are starting to use
it as a blanket term for reading troubles. Labels are less
important than the symptoms he may be experiencing. You may
wish to have him assessed so that you can determine his exact
strengths and weakness in reading. Regardless of the label for
the troubles he is experiencing, he is having a hard time
sounding out words and needs support in that area.
Hope this helps.
Happy Reading!
Amy Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
15)
My daughter's teacher told me that she thinks my daughter has
poor phonemic awareness. Does that mean she won't be a good
reader?
Hello, Not necessarily. Poor
phonemic awareness is an indicator of reading difficulties.
Phonemic awareness is the ability to distinguish one sound
from another in a word. A reader with good phonemic awareness
can think about the separate sounds in the word as well as the
sounds blended together. Readers with poor phonemic awareness
will have trouble sounding out words correctly and will
sometimes have a hard time pronouncing difficult words.
However, "phonemic awareness" has become a very
trendy term in the reading world so people are starting to use
it as a blanket term for reading troubles. Have your daughter
assessed to determine her exact strengths and weakness with
reading. Whether or not she has a weakness where phonemic
awareness is concerned, if she has trouble reading, she should
receive help. Treating the symptoms is sometimes much more
important than figuring out the label of the problem.
Happy Reading!
Amy Pedigo
apedigo@letsgolearn.com
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