Bulletin Vol 41 Autumn 2009

DSF Literacy and Clinical Services are collaborating with Learning Difficulties Australia to bring Sir Jim Rose to Perth this September.

Sir Jim Rose to visit Perth

This is a wonderful opportunity for all professional groups interested in reading a c q u i s i t i o n , w h o l e s c h o o l l i t e ra c y programmes as well as how best to prevent literacy failure. There will be two separate presentations both offering insights into current research findings; evidence from practice; and, the changing face of literacy teaching in the UK. The first presentation will be of particular interest to classroom teachers, literacy support teachers, LSCs, school psychologists and speech pathologists. It will be held at the Duxton Hotel on Monday 14th September from 8.30 am to 12.30 pm. The second presentation will be aimed at school principals and is being run with the support of the WA Primary Principals' Association, the Junior School Heads Association of Australia (WA), and the Australian Catholic Primary Principals' Association (WA). It will be held on

The second presentation will be aimed at school principals and is being run with the support of the WA Primary Principals' Association, the Junior School Heads Association of Australia (WA), and the Australian Catholic Primary Principals' Association (WA) Tuesday 15th September, also at the Duxton Hotel and also from 8.30 am to 12.30 pm. School principals are being offered the opportunity to attend this session with a member of the school's early childhood teaching staff or a literacy support teacher. Sir Jim has been closely involved with changes introduced to the English curriculum following the release of his 2006 report, commissioned by the British Government, entitled “Independent Review of the Teaching

of Early Reading”. The recommendations made in the report resulted in far reaching changes to the curriculum; the effect of which has already been a measurable and significant improvement in early reading outcomes. Given the significant improvements achieved, the Children's Secretary (Government Minister responsible for education), Ed Balls, confirmed in January 2009 that £9m of funding for training in early years settings and primary schools would become part of the Government's drive to ensure that every child learns to read. The funding is designed to ensure that all local authorities commit to the highly successful Communication, Language and Literacy Development programme created in response to Sir Jim Rose's recommendations on early reading. This £9m commitment, in addition to the funds already provided, means that every area will employ a specialist teacher whose role will include training and supporting early years practitioners and primary school teachers. As a consequence of the changes made to date, standards of children's literacy in England have never been higher. The Government has committed to providing effective early intervention and ensuring every child gets the help they need to learn to read. Sir Jim was also commissioned by the British Government to conduct an 'Independent Review of the Primary Curriculum'; a task completed at the end of last year. His report drew on information from the National Strategies, Ofsted, national data and visits to early years settings and primary schools. The results indicated that there had been considerable, though uneven, improvements in the provision for, and teaching of, beginning readers over the 2007 / 2008 school year. What was evident, in particular, was the finding that low socio economic status did not have to result in low literacy levels. Instead Sir Jim found that “very few children are incapable of learning to read. Failure to learn to read is far more often to do with the nature of the teaching than the nature of the child”. Continued on page 2

index 01-02 02 03-04 05 06 07-08 09

Sir Jim Rose comes to Perth We need Tutors! Extraordinary People - Jackie French Important Dates for your Diary Term 2 Professional Learning Smart Spelling Advice & Tips Innovative Computer Software

10-11 12-13 14-15 16-19 20 20 21

Structured Synthetic Phonics Programme Making up for Lost Time in Literacy New Resources from DSF Personal Best Training Success with Jolly Learning Foundation History New Staff Members

Bulletin Vol 41 Autumn 2009

22 23-26 27 28 28

News from the Library Recommended Software & Books Software & Books Order Form Membership Form Hawaiian Acknowledgement

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“very few children are incapable of learning to read. Failure to learn to read is far more often to do with the nature of the teaching than the nature of the child”. In response, the Children's Secretary suggested that: “We know that ensuring children are confident communicators and able to read and write well is vital to their development and progress at school. I am delighted that Sir Jim is reporting such success in our implementation of his recommendations. I'm also encouraged that teachers have embraced the programme and are reporting on its successes. It is essential that as a result of the Government's early reading policies we are ensuring that every lesson uses phonics - within the context of a broad and rich curriculum - and that every child, who needs something extra, gets the one-toone support they deserve.”

“Every child, who needs something extra, gets the one-to-one support they deserve.”

In a separately released Ofsted report; “Responding to the Rose Review: schools' approaches to the systematic teaching of phonics” (May 2008), it was noted that many teachers have been 'surprised by the joy' shown by children as they master phonic skills and how that has created a 'virtuous circle'. Children's increasing command of the skills has led to staff's expectations being raised which, in turn, is improving the pace and demand of teaching and leading to further success. In addition to Sir Jim we have asked an Australian educator; John Fleming, to present on his experiences as Principal of Bellview Primary School in Victoria. Bellfield was considered to be one of the most disadvantaged schools in Australia when John became Principal in 1996. The school had issues with student behaviour, engagement and academic performance. John set out to change the culture of the school. In 1996 Statewide Achievement Data indicated that over 85% of the students at the school were failing dismally in literacy and numeracy. Through a clear vision, determination and passion the school implemented a structured, sequential, data driven curriculum to turn this around. By 2005 Statewide data indicated that the students at Bellfield were now performing within the top 10% of the State. A firm belief in the ability of all students, no matter their background, lead

the school to setting high expectations for all students. John will present the Bellfield story prior to Sir Jim's presentation at both sessions.

Mr John Fleming For further information about the sessions or to access a registration form, please see the flyer included with this edition of the Bulletin or visit our website at www.dsf.net.au . Mandy Nayton Executive Officer, DSF Literacy and Clinical Services

Further Reading: 1. The “Independent Review of the Teaching of Early Reading” (2006) is available on www.standards.dfes.gov.uk/rosereview/ 2. Details of the Communication, Language and Literacy Development programme are available on http://nationalstrategies.standards.dcsf.gov.uk/node/83253 3. The 2008 Foundation Stage Profile outcomes were published in September 2008 and are available on http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000812/index.shtmland 4. The Ofsted report; “Responding to the Rose Review: schools' approaches to the systematic teaching of phonics” (May 2008) is available on http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/Ofsted-home/Publications-and-research/Browse-all-by/Documents-by-type/Thematic-report/Responding-tothe-Rose-Review-schools-approaches-to-the-systematic-teaching-of-phonics/

DSF LITERACY SERVICES

NEEDS: POTENTIAL TUTORS! We are looking for qualified teachers with at least 2 years experience to join our growing list of specialist teachers. Other professionals wishing to train as Dyslexia-SPELD tutors should seek further information in terms of their suitability. DSF tutors assist children and/or adults with learning difficulties and disablilities on a one-to-one basis. Training courses are run at the Foundation each term. We are keen to register specialist teachers and tutors who live both within the metropolitan area and in regional areas. Please contact DSF Literacy Services for registration requirements Telephone: (08) 9217 2500 - email: [email protected]

www.dsf.net.au

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Xtraordinary People: Jackie French Our interview in this edition is with the acclaimed author, Jackie French. Jackie has written more than 130 books for children and adults which cover fiction, history, gardening, pest control and chooks! Jackie has dyslexia and recently spoke to DSF Psychologist Gemma Boyle about her experiences both at school and as an adult.

DSF: When did you first find out that you have Dyslexia? JF: I think it was when my son was in his first or second year at school. I'd known that I had problems with reading and writing but I never really put a name to it or really thought about it as an adult. It was only when I saw the problems my son, niece and nephew had that I really put a name to the problems I had experienced all my life. When I was at school no one used the term dyslexia, or ever talked about learning difficulties. You were either dumb, or you weren't, and if you were dumb, you were put in the gardening group and picked up papers in the school yard until you were old enough to leave school. DSF: So it wasn't until you had to source information for other members of your family that you began thinking more about your own difficulties? JF: Very much so. I certainly knew that I had major problems at school and at university as a consequence of my inability to write, spell and learn arithmetic. For me it was actually both good and bad. I was very good orally and at public speaking. I was certainly very good at telling stories. By Year One, the class teacher was allowing me to tell a story to the class every afternoon if the class had behaved. That went on till about Year Three or Four. But because I was good in some areas, and an utter failure in others, there were some teachers, not all, who assumed that because obviously I wasn't a stupid child then it must be that I really wasn't trying. Back then, even though no-one actually acknowledged learning difficulties, there were a few teachers who seemed to realise that some kids did have difficulties in specific areas. It was also the case that in those days corporal punishment was common and as a result of one particular teacher, my hands were red and bleeding for the entire six months she had our class. It was continual bashing over the hands with the ruler, continual assaulting and abuse because I was daydreaming, I was careless, I was a messy little girl who left smudges on the page. No matter how hard I tried I couldn't write neatly. No matter how hard I tried I couldn't spell and the same with arithmetic and that was a difficulty that continued well into high school. I

remember, to the teacher's absolute horror, qualifying for a state-wide mathematics championship. They couldn't understand how I could do well in some areas of maths but would fail when it came to remembering simple mathematical processes. DSF: Perhaps some teachers could understand this range of abilities in a student better than others? JF: Very much so, and it may be that given the lack of awareness, some of the teachers may have had learning difficulties themselves. The other both good and bad thing was that I started reading before I went to school, basically just by word recognition. In fact, I still don't read the way most people do. I read by scanning the page. In Year 1, I snuck into the library at lunchtime and I was reading Black Beauty. It was in the old-fashioned form with tiny text and tiny pictures and had very, very thin pages. I was absolutely entranced looking at the pages as fast as I could before I was discovered. I remember the teacher and the headmistress standing over me, trying to work out how this kid who couldn't read simple books was obviously making sense of this book. I remember both of those women with extraordinary gratitude and affection. My class teacher at that time was only in her first year which means she probably would only have been 17 or 18. I think in those days you would only have had one or two years of teacher training. She would have been very young and certainly very inexperienced yet she understood very quickly that I was trying my best in certain areas. DSF: And they were the years where you were telling stories to the other children in the afternoons? JF: Yes. The headmistress at the end of Grade Two printed off a copy of the first book I wrote, Tresses and the Unghostly Ghost, for every kid in the school, after she had corrected my spelling! The headmistress of my infant school was extraordinarily supportive and nice. In my first two years of school I don't remember ever (after those first few months) being made to feel stupid, ever getting the ruler, being told I was dirty or absent-minded or anything like that. Continued on page 4

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though they were tomatoes because they didn't have a picture. The same year I ended up in the wrong place for a talk because the place names looked similar and I got them confused. DSF: Are there any assistive technologies that you rely on? JF: Computers! It's much easier for me It has never ever occurred to them that the to write on the computer because reason they are having problems is not I don't need to because they're dumb, it's because they have c o o r d i n a t e . I t means that got a difficulty and they are probably more publishers are actually able to intelligent than many of the other kids. read what I write. My handwriting really varies, but trying or I was stupid or both. By then I was when I'm tired, it can go into a straight line. reading very widely and she wouldn't accept Even when I'm not tired it's messy and hard any material which wasn't in the text book. to read. I do have a tendency to invert my In the areas we were studying, I probably phrases as well, both on the page and when I knew more than she did! When I sat the Year 10 scholarship test and got an 'A' in Geography and a scholarship, one of very few scholarships offered to students in that school, the teacher came up to me and said, “Jackie I was so amazed at your result!”. I looked at her and said, “I wasn't!”. It was probably the only time that I wanted to, or had the power to be rude to a teacher and got away with it. I have to emphasise that these were the exceptions. Many of my teachers and lecturers were very supportive. There was, however, one speak, particularly when I'm tired. Or Linguistics lecturer at university who would sometimes I only give half of a sentence only give me pass marks because of my before I jump to the next one. The publishers spelling, messiness and typos. I made lots of know now that I'm not trying to be typos so everything was just corrected and stylistically avant garde! corrected and corrected. He actually asked I employ someone now to go through my me if I was spastic. I said no, I'm not spastic. work before I send it to the publisher. They He said, well in that case, it is carelessness put in the punctuation, correct the spelling and this cannot be allowed to continue and I and typos. Even a spellchecker doesn't pick can only give you a pass mark. Otherwise this up words when they have been placed in the is work that would be getting High wrong spot. So I employ someone to pick up Distinctions. Even now I make mistakes the most flagrant of the phrase inversions as when I type. I make mistakes with well. That also has a plus side because all coordination. I simply can't see the mistakes authors need to proof read their work. By I make. I remember six years ago buying six outsourcing the editing, I have a lot more cans of Black and Gold potatoes because I time for the creative writing. I also need to DSF: Those later years of schooling must have come as something of a shock? JF: Yes - that was in Year 3, when I had a shocking teacher who just made my life complete and utter hell. And there were other teachers too. In high school I had a Geography teacher who thought I wasn't

employ someone to d o t h e accounts and my BAS statements. You'd probably c a l l m e functionally i n n u m e rate . I a l w ay s i n v e r t numbers and even dates. Publishers now know to check my dates and to check any numbers in my manuscripts carefully. DSF: Given that you are a successful writer, are people surprised to hear about your difficulties? JF: To be honest, I'm not sure. Dyslexia is something I talk about with many school groups. I do that deliberately because in any class there are going to be probably 1 in 10 kids who are Dyslexic and in some cases they are bobbing up and down with excitement because they've got a really good teacher who knows I'm dyslexic and has told them. In other schools, where the teachers are not so sensitive to problems the kids might be having, I'll see the disruptive little group of boys or girls to one side who are making whispering comments and nudging and plotting how to blow up the basketball court. As soon as I say that I'm dyslexic, suddenly they are totally still, and their mouths are open, and they stare. You can just tell as you look over the audience of kids who these kids are because they are absolutely hypnotised. It has never ever occurred to them that the reason they are having problems is not because they're dumb, it's because they have got a difficulty and they are probably more intelligent than many of the other kids. They have got a particular difficulty and need to learn different ways to read and write, like I did. The usual way of teaching is simply not working for them.

It is our belief that many dyslexic children and teenagers are not supported effectively in the school system and consequently fail to either access the curriculum or adequately demonstrate their knowledge and skills. Students with dyslexia have the potential to achieve wonderful things if they are sympathetically and appropriately educated. The Xtraordinary People interviews allow us to provide an insight into the educational experiences of individuals who have persevered, sometimes against great odds, to succeed both academically and in their chosen field of employment.

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Learning Language Literacy The Statewide Speech and Language Service Conference 20 & 21 July 2009, Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre The Statewide Speech and Language Service, which provides speech and language services to districts and schools, is facilitating an inaugural conference for educators and support personnel. The conference will focus on connecting speech, language and literacy development with best practice. Teachers, School Psychologists, Speech Pathologists, and Administrators are invited to attend. DSF Executive Officer Mandy Nayton will present on the links between language awareness and English orthography . . . “Writing down the sounds” - effective phonics programs. For further details and/or expression of interest contact: Roseanne Humphreys, A/Team Leader, Statewide Speech and Language Service [email protected] - Phone: 9264 8933

Important Dates for your Diary

More than Gadgets Assistive Technology Tools for Access and Learning Conference 24 & 25 August 2009, Esplanade Hotel Fremantle Assistive Technology has a critical place in all environments to enable access, learning and participation for people with disabilities, learning difficulties and medical conditions. This inaugural conference is planned by key disability agencies, education and government bodies in Western Australia. The 2-day programme of Australian and international speakers will be of interest to therapists, teachers, education assistants, parents of a child with a disability or students with a disability. DSF Psychologist Kelly Fullarton will present on using assistive technology to remediate students with Learning Disabilities. Register online at www.morethangadgets.com

Learn to Read - Read to Learn Ensuring that ALL students become successful readers Session for Principals - Tuesday September 15th 2009 8.30am to 12.30pm at the Duxton Hotel Presented by DSF Literacy Services in collaboration with Learning Difficulties Australia and with the support of the WA Primary Principals Association, Junior Schools Heads Association of Australia (WA) and Australian Catholic Primary Principals Association (WA). A presentation for school principals by Sir Jim Rose, author of the UK Rose Report, and Victorian Principal John Fleming. In 2005, Sir Jim Rose was commissioned by the UK government to undertake an independent review of best practice teaching of reading. His findings resulted in major changes to the UK curriculum; specifically early reading and spelling instruction. These changes are already achieving success. “Very few children are incapable of learning to read. Failure to learn to read is far more often to do with the nature of teaching than the nature of the child.” (Independent Review of the Primary Curriculum, 2008). Sir Jim will describe the changing face of literacy education in the UK; the impact of a revised national curriculum; and whole-school approaches that have been shown to significantly improve reading, spelling and writing outcomes. John Fleming, Principal of Bellfield Primary School in Victoria for ten years, will also present. Bellfield is one of the most disadvantaged schools in Australia and during his time as Principal, John transformed Bellfield into one of the best schools in the country. John is a strong advocate for a whole-school approach to literacy education through explicit and structured teaching of phonological awareness, phonics and grammar. His vision for teaching and learning resulted in significantly improved reading and writing skills across all grade levels. Sir Jim will also speak at an additional presentation for Teachers, School Psychologists, and other educational professionals. Monday September 14th 2009 8.30am to 12.30pm at the Duxton Hotel.

Please visit www.dsf.net.au to download a registration form or copy the flyer included with this Bulletin

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TERM 2 PROFESSIONAL LEARNING SHORT WORKSHOPS (1½ TO 3 HOURS) ESSAY WRITING WORKSHOP FOR YR 9 & 10 STUDENTS - STUDENTS ONLY The two workshops focus on Text Analysis with particular reference to: Feature Film, Novel and Feature Article. Students will learn to write essays using a model designed to: analyse and discuss representation of themes; identify techniques used to construct themes; and discover how readers are positioned to think and feel about the identified themes. Presented by speech pathologist Jenny Baker Monday 18th May 5.30pm8.30pm (pizza provided) and Monday 25th May 5.30pm-8.30pm (pizza provided). THE SOUNDWAVES PROGRAM Implementing a Phonemic Approach to teach writing, spelling and reading skills throughout the primary school. An introduction to Sound Waves is a whole school, word study program using a phonemic approach designed to teach reading and spelling skills, written by two classroom teachers, Barbara Murray and Terri Watson. Presented by author Barbara Murray Tuesday 19th May 4.00pm-5.30pm. “I CAN SAY IT BETTER THAN THOSE LETTERS WILL LET ME WRITE DOWN” Lorraine will present an overview of current research that highlights why writing is the most challenging of literacy tasks. Taking a case study approach, she will demonstrate how teachers can appropriately intervene based on the identification of specific writing difficulties. Presented by Dr Lorraine Hammond Friday 29th May 9.00am – 12.00pm ALPHA TO OMEGA Alpha to Omega is an effective, structured reading program. It includes phonemic awareness and phonics instruction delivered with a range of multisensory activities. It also links to the popular computer program WordShark 4. Participants will be introduced to the Alpha to Omega program and trial a number of component activities. Presented by Kelly Fullarton: Tuesday 2nd June 4.30pm-6.30pm

HANDWRITING DIFFICULTIES This workshop will describe handwriting speed, quality and endurance issues enabling participants to identify causative factors. Handwriting foundations skills will be discussed and practical strategies provided for classroom management. Jo will demonstrate a range of handwriting resources suitable for use in the classroom. Presented by Jo Glover: Monday 8th June 7.00pm-9.00pm PARENT WORKSHOP: BUILDING SELFESTEEM AND RESILIENCE Research indicates that for a child with a learning difficulty or disability their selfesteem and ability to “bounce back” from challenges is just as important (if not more important) to their future success than the remediation they receive. This workshop focuses on giving parents strategies to develop their child's resilience. Presented by Gemma Boyle and Sarah Crawford: Tuesday 23rd June 7.00pm9.00pm

FULL DAY OR MULTI-DAY WORKSHOPS (lunches provided by DSF) INDIVIDUAL AND SMALL GROUP TEACHING OF CHILDREN WITH DYSLEXIA AND OTHER SLDS Children with learning disabilities re q u i re s t r u c t u re d , s e q u e n t i a l programmes with far more opportunity for revision and practise than does the child who has no difficulty with literacy. This is best provided in an individual or small group situation. This two day course will cover causes and defining features of SLDs, phonological and phonemic awareness, use of structured, sequential multi-sensory methods of teaching and more. This course will prove useful for any teacher who works with students with literacy difficulties and is a pre-requisite for all tutors who are recommended by DSF. Presented by Mandy Nayton: Thurs. 4th & Fri. 5th June 9.00am–3.30pm. EASITEACH INTERACTIVE WORKSHOP This full day workshop takes the participant through the Easiteach advanced training course and also demonstrates how to use Easiteach and

the interactive whiteboard to create engaging and effective lessons in literacy. Participants will explore existing content on the Easiteach package and learn how this content links to current research into how children learn to read and spell. There will be a focus on activities to develop phonological awareness and phonic knowledge. This workshop is completely interactive and participants will also have the opportunity to develop their own lessons under the guidance of two Easiteach Accredited Trainers. Presented by Gemma Boyle and Kelly Fullarton Thursday June 18th 9.00am3.30pm. Participants may elect to opt out of the introductory morning session if they are experienced Easiteach users. THE HICKEY MULTI-SENSORY LANGUAGE COURSE (PART 1) The Hickey Multi-sensory Program is a very effective, highly structured literacy program that achieves excellent results through use of phonics and phonemic awareness, using multi-sensory techniques. Participants in this one day workshop will be taken through the structure of the Hickey Program and will prepare activities for the first 30 sessions. Materials will be provided including: a full set of plastic alphabet letters (rec. retail $33); reading cards; spelling cards; and, a wide range of worksheets and activities. Presented by Kelly Fleming & Gemma Boyle: Monday 22nd June 9.00am – 3.30pm

SHORT PROGRAM PRESENTATIONS AND INFORMATION SESSIONS RICHARD LAVOIE'S “F.A.T CITY” DVD VIEWING: The first Wednesday of each month from 5.30 to 6.30pm: 6th May; 3rd June, 1st July and third Wednesday of every month from 1.30 to 2.30pm: 20th May, 17th June, 15th July. FREE INFORMATION EVENING All sessions 7.00pm – 8.30pm The first Wednesday of each month: 6th May; 3rd June, 1st July

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I have used the expression “you need to work smarter not harder” many times throughout my working life - particularly when counselling school-aged clients who present with serious literacy problems. They usually know exactly how far behind they are in relation to the rest of their class and often despair at the amount of catching up that they have to do. Their difficulties usually encompass interpretation as well as construction of written text, with spelling included as an additional obstacle. On more than one occasion, children with spelling difficulties will have been instructed to use their dictionary to look up the correct spelling of a word. These children will also have comments such as “you must edit your work” or “watch your spelling” written across the bottom of their essays – but these suggestions are more often than not completely useless. Dictionaries are cumbersome and editing is difficult. For many of our students, there needed to be a way to allow easy and instant access to the correct spelling of words – a smart way of solving the spelling problem for young writers – and the solution I found was the electronic spell checker.

Smart Spelling by Jenny Baker, Speech Pathologist

This device can provide children with the correct spelling of a word in the time taken to press the “enter” button. They must use a small key pad to type their version of the word onto a screen and are then rewarded with instant feedback regarding the success of their entry. Take the word “definite” for example. A year 8 boy recently spelled it as “definat”. He entered his version into the spell checker and it came up with a list of possibilities from the most to the least plausible. defiant

definite

defined

different

defeating

Clearly the one he wanted was the second word in the list and he had to recognise that “definite” was actually the word he required. He then used the dictionary function to confirm the word he selected was in fact the appropriate one. When he read “having distinct limits, clear in meaning”, he knew he had the word he wanted. Learning to use the spell checker is easy. Children usually have it worked out after one session. What they find difficult is knowing which words they should check. Some only pick up glaring mistakes, while others tend to labour over numerous words per sentence. Most children need 6 to 8 sessions specifically aimed at teaching them how to edit their work, how to identify potentially difficult words and how to learn the words that they constantly spell incorrectly. Without this sort of back up support I find that usage of the spell checker decreases dramatically. Using the spell checker – a case example The photo included with this article is of me working with one of my favourite clients – a young 12-year-old boy named James who lives on a huge wheat farm several hundred kilometres North-East of Perth. James acquired his spell checker about eighteen months ago. Although he was making good progress in learning the conventions of spelling words, his spontaneous writing was constrained by his poor spelling – he would reduce his vocabulary to words he knew he could spell. This made his written output limited and well below his expressive capability. He also spent considerable time trawling through pages of the dictionary in search of words, often failing to realise the first few identifying letters. James learned how to operate the spell checker quickly and within thirty minutes was manoeuvring through all the operations quickly and accurately. However, when faced with the task of employing the device with his own writing, he found it extremely difficult. He seemed unable to recognise which words he needed to check. He entered three words from a possible twenty two error – and these were long complex words such as “difrent” for “different” and “unberla” for “umbrella”. This evidence suggested that he needed urgent work in the area of editing. Continued on page 8

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So for the next seven sessions, James was engaged in numerous activities to assist him with the editing process. Initially we brainstormed the type of word that may need checking. We came up with a list that comprised: ? very long words; ? words with prefixes and/or suffixes; ? words that are hard to say; ? words you have never heard (or seen) before; ? words that you know you always have difficulty with; ? technical words – usually attached to a single topic such as science; ? names of people and places; ? homophones; ? words that look wrong.

Armed with this knowledge, James immediately became more sensitive to the type of words he needed to monitor closely. I used dictations (loaded with words from the categories listed above) to ensure that he was producing written texts with sufficiently complex words. We needed approximately 20-30% error rate to maximise the editing process. Sometimes I would indicate how many errors were present in each line with small tally marks on the left-hand side. Other times I would let James have the first attempt and then I would do a sort of second round revision and let him know how many errors he had omitted to find. During some stages I would also provide him with texts I had written with deliberate mistakes – particularly when we were covering homophones. Because homophones look right, children are not alerted to instances of incorrect usage. Sentences such as: “they all took off there hats.” appear acceptable to many children such as James. As the lessons progressed and James began to internalise the “red alert” words, his ability to identify, correct and ultimately boost his spelling accuracy increased rapidly. He was buoyed by the significant increases in accuracy he could observe when employing the spell checker. He was able to move from accuracy levels in the high 70s to those in the high 90s within four months. Although the spell checker still accompanies James wherever he has to write, he does not rely on it as much these days as his overall spelling knowledge and application have given him much better problem solving skills for spelling. The most recent and up-to-date spell checker available is the Collins English Dictionary & Thesaurus (by Franklin). It is available from DSF Literacy Services for $165 and is small enough to fit in your pocket. It provides phonetic spelling correction for 180, 000 words in UK and US English and it also incorporates a comprehensive dictionary and thesaurus. It contains a learning function that allows children to develop and learn a list of their personal words using traditional spelling games. I certainly do not advocate exclusive use of the spell checker without complementary therapy. Syllables and base words cannot be taught via the spell checker – and these are most certainly needed to understand how words work! Children still require good scientifically based teaching principles in order to learn spelling rules and structures, but they also need to work smart in order to get things right – when it matters most – with the least possible fuss. Electronic spell checkers all them to do just that. Jenny Baker has a private clinic in Fremantle Western Australia where she works almost exclusively in the area of spelling disability. She feels passionate about employing really good learning principles when teaching young children about how words work. She speaks regularly about spelling at professional development events and is currently writing educational material for middle primary students. She has two sons who describe her as a “word nerd”!!

Correspondence to: Jenny Baker Fremantle Speech Pathology Services 58 Quarry Street, Fremantle, WA, 6160 Email: [email protected]

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Innovative Computer Software (and a DVD)

DSF Literacy Services sell a range of computer programs designed to assist in the remediation and development of literacy skills and associated cognitive processes. In addition to popular existing favourites such as WordShark, NumberShark and Earobics, DSF also offer a variety of newly released programs including Eye Track and Math Mania, as well as a brand new DVD called SmartMoves: Body Puzzles for the Mind.

WordShark v.4 WordShark contains 55 engaging games which target the development of reading and spelling skills. The program is based on an evidence-based multi-sensory approach to phonics instruction. WordShark is becoming increasingly implemented as part of literacy programs throughout many West Australian schools and can also be used at home.

Earobics Earobics focuses on developing the underlying skills research has shown to be necessary for literacy acquisition. The motivating games target aspects of phonological awareness including sound discrimination, phonological memory, blending and segmenting syllables and sounds, and associating a sound with a letter or group or letters.

NumberShark v.4 NumberShark is designed to assist students of a range of ages to improve their basic numeracy. The program features 45 games covering operations, numbers to 7 digits, negative numbers, common percentages, fractions & decimals, worded problems and maths vocabulary.

NEW!

Eye Track

This program specifically targets the development of visual perceptual skills. Eye Track is fun and easy to use for students of a range of ages. The Eye Track games cover visual discrimination, visual memory, visual-sequential memory, and visual spatial relationships.

NEW! SmartMoves: Body Puzzles for the Mind This DVD is designed for students in years 3 to 12. It leads students through sequences of increasingly complex body movements. Using the program at home or in the classroom promotes a calmer and more focused environment. The movements can assist children to develop their sense of right and left, whole body coordination, visual-spatial skills, listening, balance and focus.

NEW!

Math Mania

Math Mania encourages students to practise their numeracy skills by challenging them to questions while navigating through a maze. Topics include Numbers, Angles, Time, Measurement, Shape & Space, and a Lucky Dip! There are also challenging and engaging Numeracy puzzles.

Please contact DSF on 9217 2500 if you would like more information on any of these programs.

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Scope and Sequence of a Structured Synthetic Phonics Programme Research indicates that the most effective method for teaching reading is through Structured Synthetic Phonics. Structured Synthetic Phonics programs teach students to associate individual speech sounds (phonemes) with written symbols (graphemes), to blend these sounds to form words when reading, and also to break-up words into their component sounds when spelling. There are a variety of programs available which target literacy development in this way.

Similarities and Differences Between Structured Synthetic Phonics Programs

THE SIX PHASES OF HIGH QUALITY PHONICS TEACHING

TIME

(from the UK Primary National Strategy)

? depends on the learning rate of

1. In Phase 1, the focus is on the development of speaking and listening skills.

students ? introduce two to four letter-sound

relationships per week ? daily lessons

CHARACTERISTICS OF SEQUENCE ? first 5 to 6 letters introduced should

include at least one vowel so short words can be created ? introduction of more frequently

appearing letters early in sequence ? systematic progression from most to

least common sound-letter associations ? begin instruction with consonant

sounds that can be pronounced easily in isolation and which are easily discriminated from each other (e.g. /s/, /m/, /f/). These consonants are also continuous consonants which makes it easier to model blending. ? separate the introduction of sounds

for letters that might be confused because of their sound (e.g. /b/ and /v/) or visual appearance (e.g. b and d) ? teach letter-sound relationships

explicitly ? teach blending of sounds to form

words ? provide opportunities to practice

letter-sound relationships ? review previously taught relationships ? aim to develop the Alphabetic

Principle – letters and letter patterns represent the sounds of spoken language PROGRESSION ? single consonant and short vowel

sounds ? more single consonants and long

vowel sounds ? consonant blends (e.g. /bl/, /st/, /tr/) ? digraphs (e.g. /th/, /ch/, /sh/) ? spelling patterns (e.g. silent e rule,

doubling rule for short vowel sounds etc.)

2. Grapheme-phoneme (letter-sound) correspondences are introduced in Phase 2. Blending and segmenting skills are taught using simple VC (e.g. at) and CVC words (e.g. sip). 3. In Phase 3, the grapheme- p h o n e m e correspondences of the alphabet are completed and teaching progresses to sounds that are represented by more than one letter (e.g. /ch/ and /ay/). 4. Children in Phase 4 learn to read and spell words which have consonant blends (e.g. /bl/ and /st/). 5. Phase 5 exposes children to other spelling alternatives as most phonemes can be spelled in more than one way, and most graphemes can represent more than one phoneme. 6. Phase 6 focuses on word-specific spellings and provides guidelines for making choices between spelling alternatives. References ? Department of Education and

Training Western Australia, http://k10syllabus.det.wa.edu.au/content/lea rning-areas/english/scopesequence/reading-ec ? United Kingdom, Primary National

Strategy, http://www.standards.dfes.gov.uk/ ? Jolly Phonics: Jolly Learning Forum,

Re: JP Steps / Rules, http://members5.boardhost.com/joll ylearning/msg/15.html ? Read Write Inc., Oxford University

Press, United Kingdom. ? Dandelion Readers, Phonics Books

Ltd., United Kingdom. ? Guidelines for Examining Phonics and

Word Recognition Programs, Texas Reading Initiative, Texas Education Agency (2002).

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Dandelion Readers

Read Write Inc.

aimst nop

masdt

bcgh

I n p g o

defv

c k u b

klru jwz x y ff ll ss zz CVCC words using above sounds CVCC words using above sounds CVCC words using above sounds

qu & be wh

Pre-Primary

Reception

A small number of consonant and short vowel sounds (eg s, a, t, p, i, n) increasing to all single letter phonemes to develop fluent blending of cvc words.

Using common consonants and vowels.

satp inmd

Year 1

ck e u r

r j v y w

hrm

The 44 phonemes in English in order to make links between visual and sound patterns in words.

h b f ff l ll ss

th z ch q x ng nk ay ee igh ow oo (as in zoo)

gock

dgo ulfb ai j oa ie ee or z w ng

oo (as in book)

ar or air ir ou oy

v oo y x ch sh th qu ou oi ue er ar

ee ea y (as vowel)

-ed -ing + tch

ow o-e

-le Extended Phonic Code Teach long vowel sounds and r-controlled vowels ai, ee, oa, ur, ea, ow, oo (as in boot), igh, oo (as in look), or

oo u-e

Teach other alternative long vowel sounds and r-controlled vowels including a-e, oe, o-e, or, ear, u-e, ie, i-e, ar, au

Teach letter sounds and how to blend 2-3 letter words

ipn

oy oi

Teach alternative long vowel sounds and r-controlled vowels including ay, a, e, o, ow, er, ir, e, ai, ou, ew, ue, i, y, oul, u, a, aw

UK Primary National Strategy

f e l h sh

th ck ng

DETWA Scope & Sequence

sat

ch sh

Jolly Phonics

or aw air are

Teach alternative long vowels ay a-e ea igh y ow o-e

ir ur er ou ow ay a-e ai ow o-e oa oo u-e ew

Teach other alternative vowels ir ur au aw al ow oy

Initial two letter blends (eg. dr, bl, st, tw, sk) and final two letter blends (eg. nt, ft, sk, mp) to develop fluent blending of words when reading. Year 2 Alternative representations of the 44 phonemes in English in order to make links between visual and sound patterns in words. Three letter blends (eg str, spl, scr, thr,) and letter combinations that represent different phonemes (eg ‘ow’ in window and how) to develop blending of words when reading. Year 3 less frequently used representations of the 44 phonemes in English in order to make links between visual and sound patterns in words letter combinations that represent different phonemes (eg ‘ear’ in hear, pear, heart, pearl) to develop fluent blending of words when reading

tion cious tious

Reading & spelling CVC words using letters & short vowels y z zz qu Reading & spelling CVC words using a wider range of letters, short vowels, some consonant digraphs & double letters ch sh th ng Reading & spelling a wide range of CVC words using all letters & less frequent consonant digraphs & some long vowel phonemes. ear air ure era r or u ow oi ai ee igh oa oo Year 1 Segmenting adjacent consonants in words & applying to spelling Blending adjacent consonants in words & applying to reading Reading phonically decodable 2-syllable & 3-syllable words Using alternative ways of pronouncing & spelling the graphemes corresponding to the long vowel phonemes. Spelling complex words using phonically plausible attempts Year 2

ear ure

jvwx

Here are some examples of the order of introduction of sound-letter associations:

Recognising phonic irregularities, applying less common grapheme-phoneme correspondences.

N.B. It is often easiest to select the sequential order of the phonics program by initially choosing a series of decodable reading books. These will dictate the order of introduction of the sound-letter associations.

Applying phonic skills & knowledge to recognise and spell an increasing number of complex words.

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MULTILIT began as a research initiative of Macquarie University, Sydney. Professor Kevin Wheldall, director of MUSEC (Macquarie University Special Education Centre), and his team of researchers have, over the past 15 years, endeavoured to find the most effective way of helping lowprogress readers catch up with their peers.

Delivery of the MULTILIT Reading Tutor Program The MULTILIT Reading Tutor Program is tutor led and should be delivered at least 34 times during the week if done at school (35 minute lessons) or, if delivered by a tutor, 2-3 times a week (45 minute lessons) with parent involvement at home.

Research-based Professor Wheldall, Dr Robyn Beaman and fellow researchers from Macquarie University have conducted extensive research on reading and other aspects of effective instruction in a variety of settings, including community projects, mainstream and special schools and clinics. Their findings have been published in a range of peer reviewed journals (see www.multilit.com for the full list).

MULTILIT (Making Up Lost Time in Literacy) MULTILIT has a proven track record, has been evaluated by scientific research and is affiliated to a respected university. It is at the forefront of effective literacy instruction.

The MULTILIT approach was endorsed by the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Education and Training's Inquiry into the Education of Boys, in their report entitled “Boys: Getting It Right” (House of Representatives Standing Committee on Education and Training, 2002): 'The knowledge and practical instructional techniques developed in MULTILIT by the researchers at Macquarie University should inform and enhance initial and remedial literacy instruction throughout Australia and form the core of remedial reading programs in primary and high schools.' (p114) House of Representatives Standing Committee on Education and Training Report into the Inquiry into the Education of Boys - Boys: Getting It Right October 2002 MULTILIT's overall approach to literacy instruction fits comfortably into the recommendations made by three independent government inquiries into the teaching of reading conducted in Australia, UK and USA. These three inquiries came to the same conclusion after examining a large body of scientific evidence: children need explicit instruction in five key areas to become skilled readers - phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. More importantly, those children struggling to learn to read need intensive instruction in these areas. It is not enough to provide struggling readers with a sympathetic ear only or simply 'more practice'. The MULTILIT Reading Tutor Program (revised) takes the research and applies it to effective teaching practice, incorporating all five key areas mentioned above. It is an efficient and powerful approach to helping readers of all ages who are significantly behind their peers.

Who needs the program? The program is suitable for any low progress reader aged 7 years and above (no upper limit) who is having difficulties with learning to read. If you have a student struggling to make sense of the written word, a systematic program such as MULTILIT is essential for the student to make progress. MULTILIT takes a noncategorical approach to reading difficulties which means that the focus is not on the 'why' but on the 'what needs to be done about it '. Over 900 schools across Australia are using the revised MULTILIT Reading Tutor Program. Children typically make 15 months progress in word recognition in just two terms of instruction. A one-day professional training workshop for schoolbased staff ensures that the program is implemented correctly. In the words of a teacher from South Australia: 'Before MULTILIT these students had rarely contributed in class, were embarrassed about their reading abilities and had low self-esteem. After around two terms they had completely changed. They were excited about learning, were the first to volunteer to read aloud in class (which completely surprised their teachers) and they entered high school much more confident in their abilities. I can't speak highly enough of the merits of MULTILIT.'

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The MULTILIT Reading Tutor Program

Becoming a licensed and accredited MULTILIT tutor

A tutor or teacher is faced with an enormous amount of choice when it comes to selecting resources. Finding a resource that is based on scientific evidence, user-friendly as well as affordable is a challenge. MULTILIT revised the first edition of the MULTILIT Reading Tutor Program in 2007 to reflect ongoing research and development as well as feedback from users. The program is ideally suited to a tutoring environment where you are working in a 1:1 situation and carefully addressing individual student's needs.

Tutors are often entrusted with the most challenging children, so choosing an appropriate, evidence-based program is imperative to ensure they have the greatest chance of success. Licensing is now available so that individual tutors, clinics and community organisations can enjoy using MULTILIT in their business or organisation.

The MULTILIT Reading Tutor Program has three strands: 1. Word Attack (phonics) 2. Sight Words Reading (reading of connected text).

3. Reinforced

Word Attack Developing efficient and accurate phonic skills is critical to the acquisition of literacy. A placement test establishes a student's current level of decoding and will reveal any gaps or weaknesses in this area. Professor Wheldall describes the MULTILIT Word Attack strand as 'the engine of the program' - struggling readers invariably need instruction in the area of sound/symbol correspondence. The tutor systematically works through each level of the Word Attack component of the program, applying scripted interventions when errors are made. Once the current level of Word Attack has been mastered, the student progresses to the next level. Students, very quickly, begin to make progress and gain the skill and confidence to tackle unfamiliar words. Both accuracy and fluency are addressed through the Word Attack part of the lesson. Unless you are reading with some speed (fluency), your comprehension is compromised. A targeted phonemic awareness activity is done routinely to prepare the student for the reading of new words at the next level.

Sight Words The second component of the program teaches the student to automatically recognise 200 sight words. Automatic recognition of these words improves a reader's ability to read text fluently and with understanding. Again, a placement test is used to determine the correct commencement point in the program. The list of words have been taken from the 200 most commonly used words in children's text. There is a small spelling element to the program, but reading is the main focus.

Reinforced Reading The last strand of the program is known as Reinforced Reading. This component ties everything together. It is during this part of the lesson that the student learns to generalise the skills learned using levelled or real books, chosen carefully to be at an instructional level (90-95% accuracy). The well-known Pause Prompt and Praise method is used with some critical changes in line with current research. Just 15 minutes of Reinforced Reading a day can make a significant difference to reading progress. Both comprehension and fluency are addressed during this part of the lesson. A 40-minute DVD is included in the kit explaining how to effectively read with your student, how to choose the right book and how to deliver the prompts. This is a great training tool for parents and reading volunteers or teacher aides.

A MULTILIT licence includes accreditation training which is three days of professional development covering the implementation and monitoring of the program as well as Positive Teaching as a behaviour management system. An ongoing licence fee entitles you to refresher training, discounts and support. Speech Pathologists and Educational Psychologists can also become licensed to use the program as an adjunct to their programs. It is only right that every tutor is confident that the reading programs they offer their clients are thoroughly researched and in alignment with best practice. If you would like to find out more about the MULTILIT Reading Tutor Program for use in your school or MULTILIT licensing for your business, please contact 1300 55 99 19. Further Information and background reading ? www.multilit.com ? An Evaluation of MULTILIT 'Making Up Lost Time in Literacy' is available

on www.multilit.com or www.dest.gov.au ? National Inquiry into the Teaching of Literacy: www.dest.gov.au ? Rose Report: www.standards.dfes.gov.uk ? National Reading Panel:

www. nationalreadingpanel.org Alison McMurtrie [email protected] 1300 55 99 19

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New Resources Developed by DSF

Magnetic Morpheme Cards By middle primary, many of the words students are required to read and spell are of Latin and Greek origin. It is important for students to learn the spelling patterns associated with word etymology. Latin words have a predictable structure of prefix + base word + suffix. Greek words are often scientific terms and combining forms are compounded. Anglo-Saxon words are short, common and everyday words. Each magnetic card contains a morpheme – an element of speech which carries meaning. These include prefixes, base words and suffixes. On the back of each card is information about the morpheme including the definition, etymology and function. (Eg. “struct” – Latin root: meaning – to build). The cards can be used on a magnetic whiteboard for word building activities which focus on word families. Each morpheme is colour-coded to indicate its origin (Green = Anglo-Saxon, Blue = Greek, Red = Latin). The Magnetic Morpheme Cards assist students in becoming more familiar with these important elements of language structure. Such activities are perfect for upper primary and secondary students.

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Stairway to Reading Success Poster Due to popular demand, the “Stairway to Reading Success Poster” presented in the last issue of the Bulletin has been improved and is now available for purchase. This colourful A1 or A2 size laminated poster details the development of reading acquisition. The “Stairway to Reading Success” poster combines the essential elements of an effective evidence-based early reading program. The graphic representation includes the five pillars of effective reading instruction consistently identified throughout the research: ? an oral language emphasis, including phonological and phonemic awareness; ? systematic and explicit phonics instruction; ? opportunities to develop reading fluency (through repeated oral reading); and, ? explicit instruction in both vocabulary and reading comprehension strategies (including grammar at both the word level [morphology], and sentence level [syntax]). The A2 size poster is $10 and the A1 size poster is $25. It would make a great addition to the staff room or classroom.

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T h i s l i n ke d s et o f a c t i v i t i e s particularly targets blending and segmenting of (1) speech sounds and (2) the letters which map onto those particular sounds in a one to one relationship. However, it is also set up with the central aim of children coming to work with these sounds and the sound-letter links in an automatised way so that they eventually do not have to think about this.

Personal Best Training for Beginning Literacy An approach for developing children's automatised use of Phoneme Awareness and in linking this awareness to phonics patterns in English reading and spelling.

To do this we continually encourage them to try to beat their own best time (i.e., they try to achieve their Personal Best or PB time on each occasion that they do the target activities indicated below.) This approach is based on (1) two very recent models in the research literature for how language and literacy are developed, and how problems in literacy may arise (i.e., the psycho-linguistic approach to language and literacy development; and the double-deficit theory of dyslexia); and (2) interventions consistent with those models developed for literacy problems in older children. We are currently developing this approach for young children in our Catch Them Before They Fall Project for early identification and intervention in literacy problems. We believe that this activity is particularly appropriate for children who have slow access to stored speech sound information in memory (i.e., phonological retrieval) as measured by slow rapid automatised naming (RAN). However, we suggest that PB training should not be emphasised for any children in the class with a history of stutter or dyspraxia, or any other condition affecting speech fluency, without prior consultation with a speech pathologist. The approach can be used with a range of different learning points. The emphasis is on taking children first to accuracy and then to automaticity. That is, to the point where they can respond both accurately and fast. The way we understand the research at present, accuracy must come first. The activities outlined give an example of the approach we are suggesting based on one of the sets of sound-letter links that is used to commence a synthetic phonics programs in early literacy education (i.e., ideally towards the end of the pre-primary year or in some cases at the beginning of Year 1): These sounds are /s/ /i/ /t/ /m/ /a/ /p/. The basic approach could then be used with the remaining seven to ten sets of sound-letter links to be systematically introduced until all the speech sounds in English have been introduced. Different

phonics programs will have different sequences for how these are introduced. In the DET Scope and Sequence document for English Writing in Early Childhood, the sounds /s/ /a/ /t/ /p/ /i/ /n/ are suggested. We have used “sitmap” here because this group of sounds will better allow children to create people's names for the story they write at the end of this series of activities. If teachers do not wish to introduce decodable names at this early point, they can use “satpin” or some other group of appropriate sounds. Any group of sounds consisting of a small number of consonant and short vowel sounds will be appropriate (although ideally use sounds from frequently occurring sound-letter relationships, a range of easily differentiated sounds, and two continuant sounds). Teachers can adapt the activities to suit their own particular sequence. NB: THE FOCUS INITIALLY IS ON THE SOUNDS WE MAKE WHEN WE SAY WORDS NOT THE LETTERS WE USE TO WRITE THESE SOUNDS DOWN. HOWEVER, THE EXPLICIT INTRODUCTION OF THE SOUND-LETTER RELATIONSHIPS DOES HELP STUDENTS ISOLATE AND IDENTIFY THE SOUNDS. Before doing these activities, children need to be able to identify all 6 sounds in the set when they hear them in spoken words; also, they will ideally have learned the sounds and names of all the letters in the alphabet before starting this type of activity. This approach takes children through from:

Stage 1: Making simple spoken CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant) and VC words with these sounds; to Stage 2: Mapping onto these sounds the letters we use to write the sounds down with; to Stage 3: Making the same VC and CVC words but in written form (with the letters); to Stage 4: Reading and writing these words. This approach also trains children in automaticity on each of these stages along the way.

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Materials and Equipment Required: ?Bell (or something to signal time to cease activity)

? Music

(e.g., CD player; piano)

? Open

space with access to small group tables (3 – 4 children per group)

? Magnetic

white boards (sufficient for at least one per small group but preferably one per child) with sets of onsets and rimes for possible words that can be made from each set of soundletter links you work with (onset = all sounds up to first vowel in word; rime = vowel and all sounds after)

? blank white labels to write letters on

? stop

watches (ideally, one per child, but you can manage with one per group)

Stage 1 ? Explain to the children that they

are going to be sounds of our language. Each child will be a particular sound. For example, Child A will be a /s/ sound; Child B will be an /a/ sound, and so on. You will probably need to give the same sound to more than one child and will need more consonants than vowels. ? Children mill around the room each making the sound they have been given and listening to the other children's sounds. (Make sure that the children are only making the actual sound they have been given and not adding the /uh/ sound after it as this will confuse them. So, for example, they need to say /ssssss/ making the sound by continuously blowing the air through their tongue and lips rather than producing the /s/uh/ sounds by fo rc i n g a i r t h ro u g h t h e i r voicebox; or make the /mmmm/ sound with their lips, rather than by voicing which gives /m/uh/.) ? When the bell rings children make VC or CVC words by getting together with one or two other children so that their sounds together will make a word. They stand next to each other in the

blended and segmented to make many different spoken words. ? The teacher then visits each “word” in turn, and the children say their word by saying their sounds in the correct sequence while other children listen. This can be done a few times so that the children get better at p ro d u c i n g t h e wo rd w i t h coordinated sounds to get closer to sounding like a real word. ? This Stage 1 process should be repeated as often as time permits (we suggest up to 3 or 4 times) so that children can make different words with different children in the same session. As you can see, Stage 1 provides training to automaticity in blending sounds, but of course it gives good practice in segmenting, in listening to sounds and generally working accurately and fast with speech sound information. Stage 1 can be done in as many sessions as teachers observe their children need. More able children can be engaged in trying to arrange themselves into longer words which use their sounds or composite words, people's names etc.

we are doing in literacy is representing sounds on the page with written symbols we call letters. Teacher then goes round and reads out each word. Children then form a circle with their letters still in correct order and a small break between each “word”. Children in each word take turns to move to centre of circle and go round reading all the other words. Again, this whole Stage 2 process should be repeated as often as time permits (we suggest up to 3 or 4 times) so that children can make different words with different children in the same session. To improve fluency at the end of each round, when children are in the circle, teacher can give each word group a number sticker then call numbers (e.g., Group 1 reads Group 4; Group 2 reads Group 6). Reader group then has to run together to group to be

read and read the word aloud, then run round circle and back to group place). ? At the end of each round teacher or more able students can write the words the students have made up on posters which can be put on the notice board for the whole period these particular sound-letter links are being worked on. ? This activity can be extended to have some fun with teacher throwing bean bag to individual children who teacher knows have s u f f i c i e n t c o m p e te n c e o r confidence to go round and read each word. However, if some children are taking a long time to click this will alert teachers that these children may need to work more intensively with this type of activity in a subgroup (NB the majority of children should be reading quite a lot of the words by the time this process has been repeated 3 or 4 times with the same set of sound/letter links).

Stage 2 ? Repeat Stage 1 procedure with

? butcher or poster paper

?children's workbooks

correct order and produce their word by saying their sounds in order. It is usually fun for them to try to coordinate this and produce the sounds in a sequence which is fast enough but not overlapping so that the result sounds like a spoken word. ? Children who cannot make a word go to the teacher who has the whole class collaborate to work out words that those children could be in. This may mean rearranging some of the words children have already made so that the children can all end up being in a word. ? During this process, children are repeatedly segmenting and blending speech sounds. There can be discussion of whether some suggested groups of sounds would make a real word, or a nonsense word and this can be extended to having fun with what any nonsense word which sounds particularly good might mean. ? The aim is to have all children in real words, but in desperation, nonsense words can be used as these also teach children the key point here that sounds can be

? ?

?

?

the “sitmap” sounds, but this time children will each have a different sound from last time. They also are now given a sticker which shows the letter we most often use to write down their sound (lower case). Children mill around to music. When music stops children stand together to make written words; they need to stand in order to make the word read correctly from left to right. Once they have made their word, instead of saying their own word (as in Stage 1), children go round and read each other's words aloud. As for Stage 1, children tell the teacher if they cannot get into a word. Teacher then guides children through a process of blending and segmenting till all students are in a word (or a nonsense word). NB Nonsense words are really useful because they underline the fact that what

? ?

?

?

Continued on page 18

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Stage 3 ? Children continue to work with

? Names that can be made are:

the same sounds in the words which are now up round the room. They work in small groups and ideally use magnetic white boards with tiles consisting of possible onsets and rimes for the target set of letters. If magnetic white boards and tiles are not available, this activity can be done on the table or a mat with nonmagnetic tiles made from card. ? The main point is that the children do not have to write the words at this stage. This is because we know that approximately half the children who have language and literacy problems also have delay or deficits in motor skills and coordination. At this stage, we do not want handwriting to reduce the mental energy children have available to learn the links we are making between the spoken sounds and the letter patterns we need to write these down with. ? Teachers can initially guide the children as a group to put words on the board which reinforce the relationships between the sounds they hear when they say the words and the code used to write down these sounds. It is important at this stage to demonstrate again that the letters are a code for the spoken sounds and can be blended into words, then segmented to make new ones just as the children did when they were milling around in Stage 2. ? Once the children have “got the hang of it” they can be encouraged to make up more words in their own groups. ? Example of the different tiles (all lower case) needed for the “sitmap” group are: s i t m a p it at ip ap am im t ? VC and CVC words that can be made from these tiles are: it at sit mit pit sat mat pat sip tip sap tap map tit tat

Sam Tam Tim Pam (we think that the psycholinguistic approach suggests that children can learn that people's names have a special first i.e., capital letter at this stage) ? A compound word which children will know and be able to make will be: TimTam ? When the groups are ready, this activity can be extended by getting children to group their words into families which go together by sound and letter pattern. Children could collect words as follows: it sip Tim sit tip Sam mit sap Pam pit map Tam at tap TimTam sat mat pat tit tat ? Once children have words in these families arranged in columns, they can then do some PB training. First, they take turns to read words accurately, and then once they have accuracy, they read them as fast as they can a few times to build fluency. ? While all this is happening, teacher, EA or more able children act as scribes for each group to write down all the word families that are made by each group. If these are written in family columns this will save teachers time later. These need to be collected by the teacher to be used in Stage 4. ? Wherever teachers observe that individual children have handwriting skills which will support them copying the word families they have worked out together on the white boards, into their own workbooks, they can start them doing this. The emphasis on words that go together should be preserved. ? Other words which can be made where the direct sound-

letter relationship is preserved by the more advanced children are: apt amp tamp stamp spit spat and plurals of all the nouns above (e.g., “mats”) as well as different verb forms (e.g., “sips”) etc. ? More advanced children may make other words where the sound-letter link is less direct (e.g., “mass” where we write down the /s/ sound with “ss” or “pass” where the “ss” actually follows a different form of the /a/ sound). You could hold a separate discussion with those children but these issues will tend to confuse children whose PA is less developed so should perhaps not be followed up with these children at this stage. ? During this stage, word work can be included which examines with the children what job some of the words the children have created will do w h e n t h e y a re u s e d i n sentences. For example, “mat” is a name word or noun, but “pat” is a doing word or verb etc. This is optional and you may leave it unless it comes up naturally in the course of the activities. It may also come up when adding the /s/ sound to some words – for nouns, this is when there is more than one of them and for verbs, it is when we are talking about someone else doing the action (i.e., I am not doing it; and you are not doing it – we don't have a /s/ sound).

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Stage 4 This is the stage where the development of automaticity is most emphasised. The aim will be to get children's PB times down well below their starting speed on a particular set of words (this may take a few sessions). ? Teachers take the lists of words that the students have written down and write personal lists for children to practise and improve their time on. At this point, teachers can adjust lists to children's emerging skills if necessary, though after the above work with the words, most should be coping well. ? Teachers need to ensure that children can read all words in the list accurately before they start working towards improved automaticity (i.e., reading aloud as fast as they can). That is, automatisation training should not begin until accuracy is reached. Training can be done at school or at home. When children are being shown the activity at school initially, more able children can be used as time keepers who will time and record the times for children in their group. ALWAYS THE EMPHASIS IS ON DOING YOUR PERSONAL BEST AND NOT ON COMPETITION BETWEEN STUDENTS. Ideally a target speed should be identified. ? (Note: The average level for 6.0yrs – 6.8yrs on the Neale Analysis is 20-30 words per minute. Given that students are trying to improve their personal best (with practise) it is anticipated that a target rate for year 1 students of 30 – 40 words per minute would be reasonable). ? Teachers may also like to get the children to compose a story on the class white board with children using the words they

have created with the magnetic tiles. ? Stories can be more easily made by adding four or five high frequency words at the appropriate level (these words are listed in Blake's Word Lower Primary Word Bank or other such lists; see our resource list) which would be gradually introduced at this stage. Children can be told that some of these words are tricky ones that don't completely follow the sound to letter rules they are learning. High frequency words, however, should be introduced in the same way as all words (ie “Lets think about the sounds in the word 'his'. How many sounds are they? What are the sounds and how will we write down each sound?” The tricky bit should be identified, highlighted, and discussed…ie the /z/ sound in the word his is written down using the letter 's'. Once the code has been identified the word will need to be practised and memorised so that the child can recognise it automatically. ? The story can then be copied down by more able children and given to all children in a reproduced form once they have learned the high frequency (at times, irregular) words. They can then take the story home and read it to their parents and have great success in doing so. ? If children are still having difficulty reading the story fluently, then using the PB approach to increase their speed has been shown by the research to help. Year 3 to 5 children have been shown to very much improve fluency in four to five readings of the target passage closely spaced in time (e.g., on consecutive

days) with error correction as required. ? We believe that this additional work will also be useful in young children especially if they have been brought to accurate reading of the words in the story by the above approach. ? Children's reading on this set of sound-letter links can generally be further consolidated by using decodable readers which target the same set. Decodable readers (e. g., Dandelion Readers) are now becoming more widely available. These readers systematically introduce sound-letter links in a published sequence and feature only a small proportion o f a ge - a p p ro p r i ate h i g h frequency/irregular words. If children then take home readers from this program linked to each set of target sounds as you work with this approach, this will ensure that they have very high success in their home reading as well as the necessary practice to consolidate this new learning. Examples of such readers are the Dandelion Reader series and the Read Write Inc series (contact DSF for details).

For further information about this approach please contact Steve Heath at the Child Study Centre, The University of Western Australia, or Mandy Nayton at DSF Literacy Services. © Steve Heath and Mandy Nayton 2008

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JOLLY LEARNING PROGRAMS are wellresearched literacy programs that have become increasingly popular over the past few years. They consistently achieve excellent results; assisting children to overcome difficulties with early literacy skills. The programs can be used with individuals, groups and whole classes and the results are consistently positive.

Success with Jolly Learning

Jolly Phonics introduces the sounds in a systematic way with an action for each sound. Blending skills begin straight away and the sound groups are introduced in structured groups of 4-5 each week. The Rose report in the UK clearly endorsed the Synthetic Phonics approach for all students and the inclusion of synthetic phonics in the new Australian National Curriculum has been strongly recommended. JOLLY LEARNING is a good example of a synthetic phonics program and it has achieved excellent results worldwide. This approach to teaching literacy skills is becoming more prevalent throughout Australia and research suggests that children taught in this way are frequently over one year ahead of their age level. JOLLY PHONICS can be used to assist with the development of phonemic awareness skills in pre-primary and to teach structured phonics, reading, and early writing and spelling skills to Year Ones. JOLLY GRAMMAR 1 and 2 is aimed at children in Years Two to Four and introduces additional spelling patterns and important elements of English grammar and spelling. English is an ever-changing, alive and fascinating language. It is, however, a very complex orthography with many words

drawn from other languages. Children are fascinated by this knowledge and really benefit from, and enjoy, the study of vocabulary, spelling and grammar using JOLLY LEARNING programs. In JOLLY GRAMMAR, each part of speech (for example – proper nouns and adjectives) is given a colour and a sign. This helps children remember the information and also make the learning process enjoyable. General sentence structure, length of writing and vocabulary improve and reluctant writers begin to enjoy the writing process. It is our belief that this is because the JOLLY GRAMMAR approach gives children definite rules and a structure for their writing efforts. It has been our experience that JOLLY PHONICS and JOLLY GRAMMAR programs offer a systematic, clear method of teaching early literacy skills. The approach is engaging and enjoyable for both children and teachers. Children who arrive feeling completely negative about literacy begin to write and read with confidence after using JOLLY LEARNING. This is perhaps the best endorsement of all. This review was provided by Victoria Carlton from the International Centre for Excellence who tutors students using the program. A range of JOLLY LEARNING products are available from DSF Literacy Services. For information about these products, please phone (08) 9217 2500 or visit our website:

www.dsf.net.au

Are you interested in the history of the Foundation? In 1969 a small group of parents met to discuss their concerns for their children who, at the time, were not coping with school. Thus began a 40 year history. ? Were you or your family involved with the organisation in the early

years? ? Were you ever a tutor for the organisation and do you have any

anecdotes you would like to share? ? Were you ever a volunteer and/or a committee member for the

Foundation History

organisation and have something remarkable to relate to us? ? Do you have any old relevant photos we could copy?

If you could assist us in any one of these areas we would appreciate hearing from you at your earliest convenience. Research/History group: Dr. Mike Lee 9330 4943 Kaye Farley 9341 3724 Bernise Reid 9341 2895

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Priscilla Kelly (Office Manager) Priscilla works at DSF as a member of the office staff. She is the Office Manager in Administration, and the Membership Coordinator. This administrative role is a departure for Priscilla, as her background is in education, specifically Art Education. She is thoroughly enjoying her new role and the acquisition of new skills. She particularly enjoys the harmonious, cheerful and generous spirit in the DSF workplace. Do not hesitate to call Priscilla with any queries regarding membership.

Lorna Shorthouse (Administration) Lorna has recently joined the team at DSF and works Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. Her role is in Events Co-ordination and Administration and she will be helping out across all areas of the Foundation. Lorna's wide experience includes reception, desktop publishing, events and administration and she has a Bachelor in Communications.

New Staff

Sarah Crawford (Psychologist) Sarah works at DSF from Tuesday to Friday. Her role involves assessing children and adults with learning difficulties and disabilities, presenting information sessions for parents, and running parent workshops with Psychologist Gemma Boyle. Sarah has had previous experience working in a classroom environment with children with speech and language difficulties and one to one with children with a variety of needs.

The DSF Literacy and Clinical Services welcomes these new members to our team!

Fiona Smith (Administration) Fiona also works for DSF part-time, Tuesdays to Thursdays. Her chief responsibilities include co-ordination of the Professional Learning calendar, maintaining the DSF website, and helping with the day to day running of the office. Fiona has partially completed a Diploma of Education, in addition to a Bachelor of Science, and intends to pursue a career in education.

Kelly Fleming (Tutor Manager) Kelly co-ordinates tutor meetings, assists clients in finding suitable tutors, ensures that the tutor register is kept updated and keeps in touch with our tutors via regular newsletters. She also presents the Hickey Multisensory Language Course with Psychologist Gemma Boyle. Kelly works part-time at Central TAFE as the co-coordinator and lecturer of the Foundations Course for Adults with Dyslexia. She is also a DSF tutor and when not working at DSF or TAFE, Kelly tutors adults and school students who have Dyslexia. Alina Nayton (Bookshop Coordinator) Alina works at DSF part-time and is also completing her studies in Animal Science at UWA. Her primary role at DSF is to manage and coordinate the bookshop resources and she also carries out general administration duties. Alina really enjoys working in such a friendly environment and being part of a great team of staff.

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News from the Library We have a range of new resources at the DSF Resource Library so now is a good time to plan ahead and think about programmes and resources you would like to implement in the classroom or at home.

NEW RESOURCES

READING COMPREHENSION

Newly acquired resources include:

For those of you who may be looking for comprehension resources, Comprehensive Assessment of Reading Strategies (CARS) and Strategies to Achieve Reading Success (STARS) are very popular.

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Grammar Magic 4-9 years

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Grammar Magic 9-12 years - A multi sensory colour coded approach to grammar. By Christine Killey

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Learning Disabilities – From Identification to Intervention . By Jack M. Fletcher, G Reid Lyon, Lynn S. Fuchs, Marcia A. Barnes

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Reading Research at Work- Foundations of Effective Practice. By Katherine A Dougherty Stahl, Michael C McKenna

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Language Development and Learning to Read – The Scientific Study of How Language Development Affects Reading Skill. By Diane McGuinness

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Early Reading Instruction – What Science Really Tells us about How to Teach Reading. By Diane McGuiness

?

Dandelion Readers – Extended Phonic Code Series Levels 1, 2 and 3 This series introduces the various spelling for each sound. The books can be used with any phonic programme. The series has 3 levels. The teacher should decide the appropriate level for the reader.

To enable us to continue to provide a high level of support, we are regularly updating our resources and will be purchasing new material shortly. We will have more on that in our next Bulletin.

CARS is a diagnostic reading series that gives students practice in 12 reading strategies as well as allowing for their self assessment. Each book contains ten lessons, each lesson provides a reading passage and 12 selected response questions. STARS provides students with precise instruction and practice of the 12 reading strategies they need to master in order to achieve reading success. Each book contains 12 strategies lessons. Each 8 page lesson provides instruction in a specific reading strategy. The High Interest Reading Series are good for reluctant readers. Each book has an intriguing and action packed story followed by step by step activities that improve comprehension, vocabulary, writing and critical thinking skills. Celebrity Readers are short mini biographies for reluctant readers designed to improve reading comprehension, vocabulary and following direction skills. Reading for Details in Stories Fun Deck – helps students to identify and remember important details in a story. Stories are on large glossy cards and come in 3 levels. What is the Main Idea Fun Deck – helps students to find the main idea in stories. Also comes presented on glossy cards. Don’t forget to use our web link on our website www.dsf.net.au and search for titles, subjects etc. This will let you know if we have a particular item in the library. I look forward to seeing you in the library. Beth Burton

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WordShark

Memory Booster

Highly Recommended

Highly Recommended

Wordshark is a major teaching resource used widely in schools. It combines the excitement of computer games with the serious task of learning to read and spell and offers 36 different games which use sound, graphics and text to teach and reinforce word recognition and spelling. Wordshark includes: phonics, onset & rime, homophones, spelling rules, common letter patterns, visual and auditory patterns, prefixes, suffixes, roots, word division, high frequency words, use of words in context, alphabet and dictionary skills and more.

Memory Booster is an approach to helping children improve their memory skills. This computer program is effective even without parental or teacher supervision and teaches flexible memory strategies and takes the child through enjoyable exercises that develop and extend learning skills. Memory Booster teaches flexible memory strategies and takes the child through enjoyable exercises that develop and extend learning skills and is adaptive, so the activities are automatically adjusted to the abilities of each individual child. Learning progresses at the pace that is best suited to their needs. However, parents or teacherscan configure the program to make it easier or harder if this should be necessary. It contains attractive and colourful graphics that appeal to children and also has high-quality digitised speech.

? single use - $148 ? 3 x multi-user - $370 ? 5 x multi-user - $589 ? Network Version (10 computers) - $1045

NumberShark Highly Recommended

Computer Programmes and Books for Sale Please note: DSF Members are entitled to a 5% discount on all products

Numbershark is a major teaching resource used widely in schools and at home. The 40 games cover addition, subtraction, multiplication and division in ways which add meaning and understanding to these operations. Finely graded topics cover all levels of skill and the games format provides high motivation. ? single use - $135 ? 3 x multi-user - $330 ? 5 x multi-user - $528 ? Network Version (10 computers) - $1045

Earobics Highly Recommended Earobics Home Step 1 is designed for developmental ages 4-7 and features six interactive games with over 300 levels of play. It systematically teaches the critical p h o n o l o g i c a l a wa re n e s s , a u d i t o r y processing and introductory phonics skills required in learning to read and spell. The games also develop general cognitive skills that support learning, such as attention and memory. Earobics Home Step 2 is designed for developmental ages 7-10 and features five interactive games with nearly 600 levels of play. It addresses all of the skills targeted in Earobics Home Step 1, but at more advanced levels. It also teaches language processing skills that are critical for extracting meaning from spoken language and written text. Earobics 1 Home for Adolescents and adults is designed for ages 10 to adult. It has six interactive programs with over 300 levels of instruction, designed to appeal to older students who are struggling to read faster, spell better and improve their comprehension. ? single use - (Steps 1, 2 & Adol/Adult

version) -$98

? school use - $120 ? home use - $70

Pocket Speller This speller has phonetic spell correction for over 110,000 words and is designed for students with reading ages of 6 years +. If you type in 'nolij' the unit will return 'knowledge'. There is also a 'Confusables' feature which identifies and defines commonly confused words eg. For, Fore, Four. There are 8 fun word games to assist learning. ? $35

Nessy Enter the animated land of Nessy. An exciting interactive learning programme and teaching resource developed by the Bristol Dyslexia Centre, Nessy is a highly structured, multi- sensory learning system to improve reading, spelling and writing skills. The programme includes hundreds of printable resources with many animated, interactive games to reinforce the rules and strategies for each teaching point. Special features include a recording studio where you can create your own lists of words to play with the animated games. ? single use - $286 ? Price for multiple copies on application.

Dictionary & Thesaurus This is for primary school children. The Oxford Primary Dictionary with over 26,000 entries with clear and simply explained definitions plus the Oxford Primary Thesaurus of 50,000 synonyms. It has 100 topics with 60 words per topic to help with homework. It has a 'Confusables' feature, animations and graphics, maths tutor and full function calculator and 7 fun word games to improve spelling, vocabulary and numeracy. ? $65 Continued on page 24

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HANDWRITING: Writing Right SJ Wakefield & Elke Kraus $9.00

Calculators in Classrooms (yr3-7) Paul Swan $25.00 Calculators are very much a part of today's society but they have still not been successfully integrated into many primary schools. This book addresses issues that have impeded the use of calculators in the primary classroom, provides calculator activities and other background information.

This information booklet, written by two occupational therapists, looks at the development of handwriting skills and the importance of teaching methods to improve speed and presentation. Interested parents and teachers will find several useful tips and hints to help guide a student through the three stages of handwriting described.

Maths Terms and Tables (yr4-10)

Right on with Writing

Jack Bane, Linda Marshall & Paul Swan $20.00

Pamela Hutchinson $19.00 A practical workbook and resource for students on how to use metacognitive strategies to improve written language skills. This workbook is designed for use with students 10 years and older and ideally is worked through with a tutor's help.

MATHEMATICS Maths Activity Books Paul Swan $17.00 ea Card Capers: Developing Mathematics from Playing Cards. Paul provides innovativegames using playing cards to develop number work, problem solving, classifying, probability and symmetry. Card games emphasising number facts can be an ideal way of improving childrens' number work. Dice Dazzlers: Short and simple dice games to promote numeracy. This book has been designed with busy teachers in mind. The games are short and simple, easy to learn and play. Most of the games require commonly available dice and where playing boards are required they have been provided ready for copying on to A4 paper or enlargement to A3. Dice Dilemmas: Activities to promote mental computation and develop thinking about chance processes. Again, Paul has the busy teacher in mind. At a glance a teacher may see what type of dice and how many are needed for any one activity. These activities are designed to develop a wide range of mathematical ideas and skills including: mental computation (+, -, and x), place value, and chance processes. Domino Deductions: Developing Mathematics from Dominoes: Dominoes are a cheap, readily available resource ideal for stimulating mathematical activity. Dominoes lend themselves to number work, probability and the development of logical thinking. Paul's book provides a range of fun interactive activities.

Tackling Tables (yr3-8) Paul Swan $25.00 Various methods for learning the tables are reviewed and common elements of these methods are drawn together to provide a framework for teaching the tables. Each table is examined and ideas for making learning the tables more interesting are provided.

Most teachers acknowledge that many children's difficulties with mathematics stem from difficulties with language. Often children experience difficulty completingtests, such as WALNA, because they cannoteither read the question or do not understand the mathematical words that are used. The first half of this book is a mathematical dictionary, where entries are found in alphabetical order. Sometimes you may not be sure of the correct term, so in the second half of the book, terms are grouped under common headings eg 3D Shapes. Every class should have one!

Maths Facts, Fun, Tricks and Trivia Paul Swan $6.95 Million...billion...trillion...what comes next? And after that? And then? How many zeros are there in a googol? Can you prove – with mathematics – that a cat has nine tails? What on earth does 'zenzizenic' mean? What was the simple mathematical slip-up that caused a $200 000 000 space probe to burn up in the atmosphere of Mars? Find the answer to all of these fun questions – and some you wouldn't even think of – inside this amazing book. You'll never think maths is boring again!

READING AND SPELLING: Phonics Activity Sets Small magnetic whiteboards with full set of individual magnetic alphabet letters, diagraphs and vowel teams ideal for phonics work in pre-primary, year one and year two classes or for intervention at any year level. Grapheme representations for all 44 English phonemes plus a number of spelling alternatives. Magnetic boards and letters come in a draw-string calico bag. ? Single sets - $30

Smart Moves - Body Puzzles for the Mind This deceptively simple combination of movements and music can change the way we learn and remember. SmartMoves, a DVD, designed for students in grades 3 – 12, leads students through a series of

B U L L E T I N V O L 4 1 A U T U M N 2 0 0 9 - PA G E 2 5

increasingly complicated body movements that function as a kind of callisthenics for the brain. This DVD includes forty Body Puzzles at varying levels of difficulty. Though seemingly simple, the Body Puzzle movements call on a synthesis of the visual, auditory, motor planning and thinking skills that are the core of learning. Students find them intriguing. Classroom teachers find they help students switch on right, left, and whole body coordination, visual-spatial reasoning, listening, balance, and focus.

Kitehawk Learning Spelling Program

?For families - $77

A collection of memory aids for spelling irregularly spelled words. Amusingillustrations and clever memory aids help to encourage students to create their own mnemonics for difficult to remember words.

?For Schools - $240

The Complete Phonic Handbook Diana Hope $25.00 This book is the essential reference for teachers or general readers who want to improve their spelling and reading. It contains comprehensive phonic sounds tables of keywords which demonstrate more than 200 spelling variations for each sound in the English language. Words are colourcoded to show the approximate reading age for students five and over. Specific guidelines for recognising and working with each developmental reading age are included, along with detailed suggestions for activities using phonic family words, lists of compound words, linking consonant words, and a useful glossary of terms.

Alpha to Omega 6th Edition Teachers Pack Beve Hornsby, Frula Shear & Julie Pool $105.00 The Teacher's Pack includes both Teachers& Students handbook. The recently released sixth edition of this popular linguisticallybased, phonics approach to the teaching of reading, writing and spelling is being sold as a teacher's pack and includes a teacher's manual and a student's book. The AlphaOmega program underpins WordShark3 and many teachers use both programs as part of a comprehensive remedial approach.

Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons Siegfried Engelmann $34.00

Mark Nevill $7.95 Level 1 (will suit students in years 3-6) Level 2 (will suit students in Years 4-7) Level 3 (will suit students in years 5 onward) Level 4 (will suit students in years 6 onwards) Level 5 (will suit students in years 7 onward)

Oz Mnemonics Alison Rowe (1997) $23.00

Putting the Sparkle into Spelling Pamela Hutchinson $19.00 A practical handbook for training SLD students in the use of metacognitive strategies to improve their spelling. This book is designed for use with students 10 years and older.

Spelling Essentials Elizabeth Tucker $7.95 This comprehensive, easy reference guide is designed to help students when checking their work. It explains the principle and gives examples of words that fit into that principle and creates an easily accessible word bank for students. The book is broken into vowels, consonants, plurals, tense, prefixes, suffixes, use of apostrophes, rules for capitals, acronyms, abbreviations and root words.

Signposts to Correct Spelling: Bulluss & Peter Coles $22.00 Guidelines to assist with the spelling and reading of English words.

Sound Waves Barbara Murray & Terri Watson A whole school phonemic approach to spelling, reading & writing. At last an exciting new series designed as a whole school approach, introducing and consolidating language skills using phonemic awareness. The Sound Waves program focuses on developing an awareness of phonemes and graphemes.

In only 20 minutes a day this step-by-step programme introduces children to the reading process. Designed specifically for parents or education assistants to work on a one-on-one basis with students in need of structured assistance.

Student Activity Books :

When Words Won't Work:

Level: Beginners - $39.95, 1 - $39.95, 2 - $45.95, 3 - $45.95, 4 - $45.95, 5 - $39.95, 6 - $45.95, 7 - $45.95

A Richdale & L Graham $9.00

Levels 1-7 $14.95

Teachers Resource Books;

Part 1: Defining the Problem &

Sound Charts Consonant/Vowel

Part 2: Intervention

Wall size (x2charts) $59.95 A4 size (x1 flip charts) $4.95

These two small paperback books are written mainly for parents of children who have a reading disability. They are Australian and very easy to read; they do not use jargon and are clear and concise and best read as a pair.

Each poster is double-sided

Let's Sing the Sounds CD $19.95 Continued on page 26

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Sound Waves Beginners Sound Cards $32.95 ? 24 Consonant and 19 Vowel Sound Cards ? large icons ? ideal for games, activities and discussions ? back of card has the large sound box, chant

and action and sound pronunciation key for the particular sound ? games and activity instruction card

included

Sound Waves Sound Cards A5 $24.95 24 Consonant and 19 Vowel Sound Cards with words and graphemes ? ideal for whole class and small group

games and discussions ? back of card has the large sound box, chant

and action and sound pronunciation key for the particular sound ? games and activity instruction cards

included ? excellent as a wall chart or frieze

Teaching Comprehension Strategies A Comprehensive Approach $37.95 This book is one in a series of seven using modelling, guided and independent practice to teach students strategies they can use to develop different reading comprehension skills. Comprehension is a cognitive process. It involves the capacity of the mind to understand, using logic and reasoning. It is not, as students sadly believe, trying to guess the answers to formal exercises, done with a pencil and paper, after reading text. Students need to know how to think about and make decisions about text after reading it. Books A – G are available. (A: 5-6yrs; B: 67yrs; C: 7-8yrs; D: 8-9yrs; E: 9-10yrs; F: 1011yrs; G: 11-12yrs)

44 Sounds Desktop Flip Chart These individual desktop charts enable children to quickly access the various spelling patterns of the 44 phoneme sounds. A useful tool to have at hand during writing and a necessity for every classroom! Single Chart $2.95 Pack of 10 $25.00 (Note: This chart does not include the 'schwa' sound)

Phonics Handbook Tom Nicholson $125.00 One in four school students struggle to read. Phonics Handbook has been written to give assistance to teachers in helping students with these reading difficulties. The book includes diagnostic assessments of phoneme awareness, basic decoding skills,

invented spelling, writing and attitudes to reading. Phonics Handbook includes lesson plans for every phonics skill: from the basic alphabet sounds to blends, digraphs and syllable breaking. Each lesson is followed by a work-sheet for students

The Hickey Multisensory Language Course (Third Edition) Edited by Margaret Combley $195.00 The Hickey Multisensory Language Course has become a classic. It is widely used throughout the UK by teachers working with dyslexic learners of all ages, and is a core text for university courses directed at specialist teachers. The third edition makes explicit links with current classroom organisation and gives examples of appropriate IEP's and suggestions for the use of ICT. To address the need for specific training in phonological awareness, the Hickey Lesson Plan has been modified, and a chapter added which includes specific games and activities to develop pholological awareness, and to develop the use of strategies in reading a range of whole texts.

The Briefest English Grammar Ever! Ruth Colman $15.95 For English speakers who didn't learn grammar at school. Did you miss out on learning the basics of grammar at school? Are you learning a foreign language and need to sort out your verbs, nouns, adjectives and adverbs? Ruth Colman's highly successful, userfriendly The Briefest English Grammar Ever! comes to the rescue. It clearly and simply explains how language works and functions.

labels for $2.50ea)

My Workbook Series K Fisher & A Playford (2001) $34-$38 A series of workbooks that augment the Beat Dyslexia kits. The workbooks contain multisensory worksheets expressly created to follow the same sequence of teaching points as the Beat Dyslexia Kits. Photocopiable. Book 1 $34.00, Book 2 $36.00,Book 3 $38.00, Book 4 $38.00,Book 5 $38.00, Books 6A/B $38.00

Read Write Inc Fresh Start Aimed at pupils in Yrs 5, 6 & 7 who are working below National Curriculum Level 3. A synthetic phonics 'catch-up'program that enables all pupils to become confident, fluent readers. Speed Sounds introduce all 44 sounds and help pupils crack the reading code. Pupils complete an Introductory Module and then progress on to the 33 Fresh Start Modules which contain: decodable and age-appropriate stories and non-fiction texts; comprehension questions to ensure understanding; grammar and spelling activities provide reinforcement; writing activities linked to the texts that build-up children's composition skills step-by-step. ? Handbook $100ea

Dandelion Readers by Phonic Books Ltd. The Extended Code is Now Available! These reading books and associated resources are essential components of an effective structured phonics program. Designed for pre-primary and year one students, they link perfectly to the new DET Scope and Sequence Documents released in December 2007. Dandelion Readers are also suitable for older reluctant readers.

GENERAL:

Each Dandelion Reader includes:

Alphabet Letters

? Phonic Progression. Dandelion Readers

Upper & Lower Case $35.00 ea This range of alphabet letters was developed and produced in Western Australia specifically for the Dyslexia-SPELD Foundation. These unbreakable letters are tactile, manipulative, fully washable and will last a life time. Excellent for learning phoneme/grapheme relationships, alphabet sequence and letter shape. All letters 7cm high.

Language Development Cards Full set of cards plus stickers $10.00 set Ideal for oral language, phonological awareness and phonics activities. These packs include blank playing cards and a wide range of colourful stickers sized to use on the cards. The stickers include pictures sorted by theme and letters, consonant blends and diagraphs. These are invaluable class resources for all levels of literacy learning. (Individual packs of blank cards can be purchased for $3.50 and extra sheets of

follow a rigorous phonic progression ideally suited to the recommended teaching sequence outlined in the DET Scope and Sequence documents. Each level builds on all previous levels. ? Clear phonic sequences ? Practice of blending skills ? Minimal sight words ? Text on a cream background to make it

reader friendly ? Motivating stories with appealing

characters ? Imaginative illustrations ? A games page to encourage further

reading practice ? Worksheets available for the classroom ? Extended code now available

These Readers and associated workbooks are now available for purchase at the Dyslexia-SPELD Foundation.

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COMPUTER PROGRAMMES / BOOKS ORDER FORM (Please photocopy this form and fax to 9217 2599 or post to DSF Literacy Services, PO Box 409 SOUTH PERTH WA 6951) Name:

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Or Invoice to Address:

Mastercard

Visa

Expiry Date:

Credit Card Account No:

Name on card:

Bankcard

Signature:

Date:

Postcode:

ATTENTION:

Is your school a member of the Foundation? To become an Educational Organisation Member please complete this form and post or fax it through to the Foundation along with the membership fee of $160.00 (GST inclusive) or $85.00 if paying after July 1st 2009.

Membership provides your school with the following: ?

Two nominated representatives from the school will be able to access the DSF library and borrow resources on behalf of all school staff.

?

Professional development workshops, specifically designed to meet the needs of your school community provided at a discounted hourly rate.

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All school staff participating in any of the DSF workshops will be entitled to attend sessions at the reduced member rate.

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The school will receive additional copies of The Bulletin, currently distributed three times a year. The Bulletin provides up-to-date information on the teaching of literacy and numeracy, suggested strategies in response to identified learning difficulties, program reviews and summaries of current research.

Annual membership runs from January 1st through to December 31st each year.

TAX INVOICE

ABN: 91 443 012 556

Organisation (School name):

Nominated Rep 1:

Nominated Rep 2:

Address:

P/Code:

Phone:

Facsimile:

Email:

Date:

Signature:

Payment Method

Cheque

Bankcard

Visa

Mastercard

Please make cheques payable to The Dyslexia-SPELD Foundation (Inc)

$ Expiry Date:

Credit Card Account No:

Date:

Signature:

Name on card:

OFFICE USE ONLY

Amount:

DATE:

Proudly supported by Hawaiian

Rec No:/

Hawaiian’s generous support for a third year has provided the funds for the production and printing of this issue of the Bulletin magazine. Our commitment to assisting West Australian children with learning difficulties and disabilities has been recognised as an important community service. The Hawaiian team is also committed to adding value to the lives of young people in need and is proud to support the Dyslexia-Speld Foundation’s worthwhile cause.

For more information about Hawaiian visit www.hawaiian.com.au