| Shock, horror, you wouldn't dream of teaching a | | | | problems and has recommended the teaching of |
| tiny baby! And yet you do. Every waking | | | | phonics. Sadly it is a watered down |
| moment. You teach him to recognise everything | | | | middle-of-the-road system called 'analytic phonics' |
| in his nursery, home and, as his world widens , his | | | | where phonic sounds are learned but the same |
| environment. As this powerful bonding between | | | | old damaging guesswork texts are still used. |
| you and your baby grows, so does his knowledge. | | | | Still, as a specialist in phonics I applaud the fact |
| As you teach, he learns. | | | | that children are at least learning that words are |
| "But," you argue, "That's not teaching. That's just | | | | made up of sounds, a small step in the right |
| being with my baby." | | | | direction. |
| Be assured, it is teaching. It is as valid as the | | | | There are, however, many teachers and Heads |
| teaching in any Nursery, Playgroup or Pre-School. | | | | of Schools who refuse to embrace the phonic |
| You are your child's first and finest teacher. You | | | | system. In the face of all the evidence to prove |
| know him better than any teacher ever will and, | | | | that phonics - the system by which I was taught |
| importantly, he is having one to one tutoring in | | | | and by which my 96 year old mother was taught |
| the safest place on earth. | | | | - is the only successful way to teach all children to |
| Now, accepting that you do teach your baby, | | | | read. 'Look and Guess' is easy and, though it fails |
| why do you think it's wrong to teach him or her | | | | a chunk of the population, it's fast and simple and |
| that 'this a picture is an a' but proactive to say | | | | that is why these people refuse to switch. |
| 'this picture is a puppy.' Why is a colourful kite | | | | And here is where your baby takes centre stage. |
| good but a colourful k bad? | | | | Just one teacher who encourages him or her to |
| Babies are spontaneous learners and this period of | | | | guess at words, whether by searching the picture |
| brilliant potential is constantly undervalued and lost. | | | | for clues , by memorising it from another lesson |
| WHY TEACH A BABY? | | | | or contextually, ie fitting a suitable word into the |
| For forty years I have witnessed the crippling | | | | sentence, will do years of damage to your child |
| damage wrought by 'Look and Guess' reading | | | | and its future. |
| methods. For forty years I have gathered one | | | | By age 14 he will read 'biblical' for 'biographical' |
| damaged child after another. All were emotionally | | | | 'lands' for 'lends' 'banker' for 'embankment'. To |
| scarred from having been expected to commit to | | | | escape this damage you can start in your baby's |
| memory every word in every book they read. | | | | nursery. |
| New words could only be guessed at. Their | | | | Place the letters of the alphabet around the |
| reading aloud was hesitant and meaningless, while | | | | nursery and then bid a cheery "good morning" to |
| silent reading was like trying to decipher a foreign | | | | 'a' or 'b' on the walls or 'c' on the floor or 'd' sitting |
| language. By age 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and onward | | | | on teddy's nose. This tiny beginning is the start of |
| they constantly bombed out at comprehension of | | | | your child becoming a super reader. |
| any text, no matter how simple. These children | | | | Synthetic phonics, which I have taught |
| had no effective catalyst to turn a hotch-potch of | | | | continuously since Training College in New Zealand |
| letters and words into meaningful information. | | | | in the fifties, is simply fast phonics to fabulous |
| Ridiculed daily by peer groups - and might I say | | | | reading. Babies and pre-schoolers can have a |
| frequently by teachers - they are marked as | | | | painless path to early literacy with fun and |
| remedial. At best they drift into dead end jobs, | | | | laughter. |
| forever intimidated and fearing rejection. At | | | | For those who have decided on home schooling, |
| worst, though never overcoming their inhibitions, | | | | your child's successful reading is vital to achieving |
| they develop a truculent resilience to authority | | | | an excellent standard in every subject. Children |
| and end up before the Courts. These were not | | | | don't come with operating instructions, parenting, |
| dumb, stupid or slow children, they were all bright | | | | though wonderful is a course with many obstacles. |
| but those vital early years were never harnessed | | | | Your child's reading need not be one of them. |
| - they were never taught to read and so never | | | | MY NEXT ARTICLE |
| developed the skills of thinking, comprehension or | | | | Commercial alphabets have for many years been |
| critical analysis. Every 'slow' child I have rescued | | | | the subject of huge controversy between me |
| has turned out to be a very bright child who had | | | | and shopkeepers. I have approached them in |
| been living in a totally incomprehensible world. | | | | Australia, New Zealand and here in the UK over |
| HOW DOES THIS AFFECT YOUR CHILD? | | | | disastrous alphabet charts. I have found 'w for |
| In spite of the fact that our children in the UK | | | | whale', 'i for ice-cream', 'x for x-ray', 'x for |
| start school earlier than in any other country in | | | | xylophone' and 'c for city' to mention just a few. |
| Europe and are tested ad nauseam a huge | | | | All wrong and totally detrimental to the new |
| percentage cannot read or can read only haltingly. | | | | reader. |
| Whilst denying the blatant evidence that standards | | | | In my next article I shall give you the perfect |
| have been dumbed down, our Government has, | | | | alphabet which leads your child straight into |
| at last, recognized the cause of the UK's literacy | | | | reading. |