Some thoughts on Reading

See Spot Listen

Estonia – A fascinating approach to helping kids with reading difficulties is being experimented with in this Baltic nation.  If your child lacks a little (or a lot) of confidence in her reading skills, get her to read to the family dog.

A young reader holds the attention of his listener . (AFP photo)

The library of the city of Tartu invites kids to come by twice a month, pick a dog from the several brought in on those days, and simply read to them.  The manager for this project, Ewa Roots, says that it not only helps kids overcome their reading difficulties but helps them improve their socialization skills as well.

“Dogs are calm listeners and unlike other kids or adults, will never be critical when a child makes mistakes while reading,” she said. “Sessions with dogs boost self confidence and children start to feel more free and secure to express themselves”

This small nation of 1.3 million boasts a 100% literacy rate so I’m inclined to believe they may be on to something.  Why not give it a shot yourself and let us know?

84 Year Old California Man Decides to Learn to Read

Like most of you, I would find life without reading  something I would not like to contemplate for long.  And yet, we know there are thousands of adults in our communities who either struggle with it or are simply illiterate.  We here at Paradigm  know well that it’s not just kids we have helped to learn to read over the more than 30 years of Alpha-Phonics‘ existence but quite a few adults as well.  Recently we ran across this story that is well worth repeating.

John Var, of Roseville, California, has managed a long life and successful career as a carpenter without knowing how to read.  He even graduated from high school in his upstate New York hometown in  spite of his doctors proclaiming his “learning disability” would never allow him to decipher the letters on a written page.

John Var Learns to Read (photo: Philip Wood, Press Tribune

One day three years ago, he wandered into the Roseville public library and asked for help with a book.  When the librarian learned that he was illiterate she suggested he join the library’s adult literacy program.  He decided that indeed, it was about time and soon he was coming home with books  and spending most of his free time reading them.  He has a lot to catch up with!

Have you ever considered teaching someone to read?  If so, you’re on the right website to begin.  Alpha-Phonics is not just for kids, that’s why it won’t remind you of a children’s book when you first see it.  It’s a serious, practical, and efficient way to learn reading and we can prove it!  You don’t have to be an accredited expert to teach reading; we’ll teach you how and it’s easy.  All you need is a copy of Alpha-Phonics and you will be ready to bestow a gift that will change someone’s life forever.  Learn why Alpha-Phonics works so well:

Zee v. Zed

I’ve always taken it for granted that over here (the U.S.) we say “zee” and over there (everywhere else English is native) they say “zed”.  Now, like a late blooming 4 year old, I ask “Why?”

Well, like many puzzles we’d like to get to the bottom of, there is more than one answer.  “Zed” clearly comes from the Greek “zeta”, so that takes care of that.  But why did Americans change it to “zee” when before the Revolution, most everyone here said “zed”?  Well, there you have it: the Revolution.  After we clipped the ties that bound the two nations it appears that it just wasn’t cool any more to say it the way the British said it, and so, because of the several accents already prevailing in different regions, those that didn’t sound British were emphasized and finally “zee” came out the winner.  Nothing formal or intentional, you understand, but just because that’s the “American Way”.

So I’ll bet all of our American readers who have taught their kids the alphabet song have done so saying “zee”.  After all, the key to learning the song is that it rhymes, right?  Here’s a version that uses “zed”.  You will see it permanently posted on our links column to the right of the page.  (You can refer to it once in a while when you want to remember the “words” to it!)

 

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About Peter Watt

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