| Reading is the key to living and enriched life. Without | | | | material from the Bible to Shakespeare. Individuals don't |
| efficient reading skills children are truly left behind. They | | | | need basal readers or reading material that is high |
| may not graduate from school and have problems in | | | | interest,low vocabulary, which for the most part is |
| employment. A method that will provide language skills | | | | neither low vocabulary or high interest. Instead Spalding |
| in a systematic way can be helpful for those with | | | | encourages people to read materials of interest: |
| reading disabilities. That's important because those with | | | | magazines, newspapers, novels, texts., The goal of the |
| serious reading deficiencies are virtually doomed to a | | | | method is to develop skilled readers and writers |
| life of poverty and ignorance.nd ignorance. | | | | because it combines reading with writing development. |
| The Spalding Method is an outgrowth of the | | | | Individuals learn the sound of letters and groups of |
| Gillingham-Orton approach to reading that outlined | | | | letters and how to approach the pronunciation of |
| language development progression through an | | | | words by understanding phonemes, sound groups and |
| organized system where the individual sees, says, and | | | | letters, and blending skills. Spelling is taught |
| writes letter sounds, blending them into words whole | | | | systematically by grouping words into categories with |
| meaning is introduced through the study of root words, | | | | similar sight-sound combinations, developing good |
| suffixes and prefixes. It is a systematic way of | | | | listeners and speakers and writers who want to |
| developing reading skills that allow individuals to | | | | continue to learn, grow and develop their abilities. |
| practice using the modality by which they learn best. | | | | In summary the Spalding method represents the type |
| Research from the International Dyslexia Society | | | | of system that can give parents encouragement that |
| substantiates its effectiveness with many groups of | | | | their child will learn to read and enjoy the process. An |
| children, adolescents and adults. Yet it is not widely | | | | example of how Spalding was applied to a grade |
| used in public school programs that continue to fail in | | | | school in a disadvantaged area of the South |
| the teaching of reading to disadvantaged and learning | | | | demonstrates how it can make a real difference in |
| disabled individuals. For that reason the Spalding | | | | developing the skills of children and influencing behavior |
| Method deserves a serious look since it has the | | | | and attitude towards learning. |
| advantages of developing language skills that are | | | | John Winston was the principal of a school that was |
| based upon sound learning principles and that helps to | | | | falling behind other elementary schools and that had |
| build comprehension along with word attack skills. This | | | | serious behavior problems. Working with several |
| method has even been used to successfully teach | | | | teachers and reading specialists, he discovered the |
| adult non readers and has helped high school students | | | | Spalding program and introduced it in the reading |
| master skills that can allow transfer of learning to other | | | | program of the school. Soon children were learning to |
| subjects and ensuring the actualization of student | | | | read so well that they had programs where they |
| potential. | | | | demonstrated their learning success not just in front of |
| Decades ago Samuel T. Orton discussed a pattern of | | | | parents but other members of the community. The |
| disability that he called strepho-symbolia or twisted | | | | success of the program that took place over two |
| symbols. He searched for ways of understanding this | | | | years to bring children from the lowest to the highest |
| disability while his wife worked on a program to help | | | | level of language skills in comparison with other |
| such individuals learn to read. June Day Orton was one | | | | elementary skills demonstrated how Spalding can be |
| of the first people in the United States to develop | | | | successful in helping children read and enjoy it. |
| teaching materials for dyslexics. Her work continued | | | | Discipline problems disappeared. It was an exciting time |
| with Anna Gillingham who taught at a prestigious | | | | for parents, administrators, children and the community |
| preparatory school, called Punahou, in Hawaii. She | | | | as a whole, especially considering the struggles that |
| teamed with Bessie Stillman, another reading specialist, | | | | had taken place before. |
| to develop a program that was suited for teaching | | | | Since so many different groups have found benefit |
| individuals as opposed to groups, using the multi | | | | from learning to read from the Spalding Method it |
| sensory method that was developed for group use by | | | | should receive serious consideration in applying its |
| Romalda Spalding. | | | | principles and methods to schools that are failing. |
| The Spalding method is holistic in its approach to | | | | Perhaps it is part of the solution of making sure that no |
| teaching language skills. It can be applied to any reading | | | | child is left behind. |