| Did you know that most American children may not | | | | their accompanying sounds is usually highly boring for |
| learn to read as well as they should? | | | | such young children, so they often lose interest. Often, |
| Consider these facts about American education: | | | | the children are so focused on sounding out each letter |
| *Our children rank close to the bottom in math and | | | | that they do not get around to learning the meaning of |
| science when compared to international scores. | | | | the word. For example, Amy may be able to figure out |
| *Our educational system has lower standards for our | | | | the word "cat" by slowly sounding out each letter as |
| public schools, yet budgets for education and, of | | | | "cuh-aaa-tuh," but she may not actually understand that |
| course, taxes seemingly grow continuously over time. | | | | she is pronouncing the word "cat." |
| *Our current methods for teaching children how to | | | | Another significant problem with using the phonics |
| learn to read are faulty and have increased the | | | | method is that, while most consonants have only one |
| number of students who suffer from learning | | | | possible sound, all of the vowels can be long or short. |
| disorders. | | | | When confronting a new word, it is hard for many |
| *Our SAT verbal scores have descended into historic | | | | adults to decide which vowel sound to use. Imagine the |
| lows. In fact, it has been estimated that there are more | | | | frustration for a young child who is just beginning to |
| than 11 million functionally illiterate adults in America | | | | learn the rules of reading! When children experience |
| today. | | | | this difficulty in discerning which vowel sound is correct, |
| Why Has America Fallen Behind Other Industrialized | | | | it is common for them to begin to feel that reading is a |
| Nations When It Comes To Education? | | | | chore; in fact, they may even begin to resent having to |
| There is no foundation more important to education | | | | learn at all! |
| than learning how to read. Reading is the cornerstone | | | | Method #2: The Whole Word Method (a.k.a. The |
| of knowledge and wisdom. Without a solid | | | | "Look-Say" Method) |
| understanding of how to read and comprehend words, | | | | With this method children are taught to recognize |
| children cannot properly read the books that are so | | | | entire words or sentences rather than individual letters. |
| fundamental in their perception of the world around | | | | Instead of teaching children how to sound out words, |
| them. They cannot study decently. They cannot | | | | this way forces them to learn through rote |
| develop to their full potential. | | | | memorization. |
| It's obvious that a child's ability to learn to read is vastly | | | | In fact, the look-say method was developed in the |
| influential upon the success of his or her life. So why | | | | early 1800s, and it was originally designed to help deaf |
| can't America get its act together and teach its | | | | children to learn to read. While it does seem to be |
| children to read as fluently as other industrialized | | | | effective for deaf individuals, why use it to teach those |
| nations? | | | | who don't have hearing disabilities? |
| The reason is simple. There are basically two main | | | | The New "Syllabics Method" May Be The Solution! |
| methods used in the United States for teaching | | | | We can avoid the problems associated with both the |
| children how to learn to read, but both of these | | | | phonics method and the whole word method by |
| methods have serious shortcomings that have not | | | | implementing the new syllabics method. This method |
| been properly addressed. | | | | for teaching children to learn to read includes focusing |
| Method #1: The Phonics Method | | | | on a single syllable at a time, not just one letter and not |
| The phonics method is the most widely known method | | | | the entire word. Any English syllable usually contains |
| for teaching children to learn to read. Basically, children | | | | both a consonant and a vowel, although words such |
| must first learn the alphabet by memorizing the letters | | | | as "a" and "I" only contain a vowel. This will make it |
| and the sounds that they make. Once students are | | | | obvious to children when to use a long vowel and |
| familiar with each letter's sound, they are taught to | | | | when to use a short one, without having to memorize |
| blend two letters together, and then three letters, and | | | | each word one at a time. In fact, this extremely |
| so on. | | | | effective method requires almost no memorization, |
| There are multiple problems with this method. One of | | | | and children can quickly learn to read more than 1200 |
| the main problems is that learning these letters and | | | | of the most common words in English. |