Reading For Sure

Reading for Sure (primary school to adults)

When pupils have mastered the phonologic (sound by sound ) reading in stage 2 of STEPPING AHEAD, they can rightly announce “I can read!!”

Well, yes, if the printed text is in a phonetic language; that is, a language where each alphabet letter has one corresponding speech sound. That is not the case with English where three out of every four words cannot be pronounced by sounding out the individual letters. This seventy five percent of irregular words are often called ‘demons’ or ‘tricky’ and mustbe learned from repetition and memory. Of course this does not provide a satisfactory outcome for at least fifty percent of potential readers.
In other languages which were originally unphonetic, the alphabet has been changed or additional pronunciation marks have been added to eliminate ambiguity in written and spoken words.

The English language was subjected to such adaptation with the introduction of the International Pronunciation Alphabet (IPA) at the end of the nineteenth century and remains as a pronunciation code in English dictionaries.
However, the IPA is not adaptable for teaching English reading as the pronunciation of unfamiliar words requires dictionary use which is beyond the ability of most beginning readers.

How Reading for Sure began

Reading for Sure has solved the problem of the irregularities and ambiguities of English by producing a Universal Pronunciation Code which can be overprinted on any text and phased out when the reading becomes automatic through practice. This instruction, through coded phonics, is the unique feature of Reading for Sure and the reason for its twenty five year success.

Coded phonics – The System Teaching Kit

The pupil is introduced to the Universal Pronunciation Code in a step by step progression, beginning with the pronunciation signs for short vowels, followed by stories with words containing long and mixed vowels. Error free reading of continuous text begins immediately. The pupils read the supplementary readers- the Phonologic Fun Books –with confidence, knowing that the words will not ‘trick’ them. The reading practice, provided by the System Teaching Kit and the supplementary readers, leads to automatic reading without relying on the code.

Reading is the cornerstone required for all learning but other areas of literacy need to be addressed as well. Reading for Sure has this covered in its extension activities that are integrated at every step of the learning to read process. read more

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