The Phonics Plus Five Blog

RSS Feed Homepage

Articles: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Story Smarts: A New Program for Reading Comprehension
2008-09-25 15:55:00
I am delighted to be able to tell you that, in collaboration with my long time colleague Dr. Laura Berlin, I have developed a new reading program titled "Story Smarts ." It is a 30 story, full color program that teaches children the essential skill of "telling stories" and it is available online.You can purchase the complete program for less than $50 or you can purchase sets of five stories for less than $2 a story. Parents often tell me, "The teacher says my child is having troubling telling stories." "Whenever I ask my son what he has done in school that day, he never answers." "My daughter dreads having to write her daily journal entry." Story Smarts is designed to handle those problems. But there is more.
More About: Reading , Program , Reading Comprehension

Standing Up to the Demands of the Classroom
2008-09-22 16:07:00
A teacher in the mid-West realized the obvious: that telling kids to ?sit still and quit fidgeting? did not do much good. So, like bookkeepers in the era of Charles Dickins, she has the students using new, adjustable-height stand-up desks that don?t ever require them to sit still.
More About: News , Demands , Standing

Dealing with Handwriting Problems? Turn to qwertyuiop
2008-09-21 21:27:00
In case you don?t find yourself seated in front of a computer on a regular basis, the sequence ?qwertyuiop? may seem a bit odd. Should that be the case, you are probably equally unfamiliar with its neighbors-- ?asdfghjkl? and ?zxcvbnm.? In combination, these represent the three main rows of letters on a keyboard. They came to the fore recently when I was reading an article about Philip Roth, the novelist. Talking about Roth?s drive, passion and/or obsession with writing, it said ?Never a day passes when he does not stare at those three hateful words: qwertyuiop, asdfghjkl, and zxcvbnm.?
More About: Writing , Problems , Handwriting , Turn

A Recipe for Success?
2008-09-11 16:33:00
The BBC in England recently announced that 11-year-olds in schools around Britain will receive free cookbooks. The goal is to help tackle the obesity epidemic that, just as in our country, is overtaking the youth there. The head of schools in the government said that the goal is to have everyone be able to prepare basic, nutritious dishes from scratch--in contrast to the current pride that exists in not being able to cook properly.
More About: News , Recipe , Success

Bad Handwriting? If It's Any Comfort, The USA Is Not Alone
2008-09-07 19:42:00
When I was a child, several of my older relatives were illiterate (no small factor in my going into the line of work that I chose). And I recall that when they had to write a letter, they went to a "scribe" --one of the more learned people in the neighborhood. There, they would dictate what they had to say and he (it always seemed to be a "he") would put their words on paper. Then the letter would sent on its way. It's been a long time since I heard the word "scribe" but I came across it recently in a British newspaper, The Independent, which reported that thousands of teenagers need "scribes" to help them write their exams because they are incapable of answering questions in longhand themselves.
More About: News , Handwriting , Comfort

Did You Know that Lobsters, Birds, Cats and Dogs Can Do Math?
2008-09-05 15:35:00
Math is, unfortunately, one of the least liked subjects in school. For many children, it is just a series of painful memorization of tables, lots of tedious calculations and nothing much in the way of being interesting. if you want your youngster, or yourself, to see math from a new and somewhat amazing perspective, get hold of the book by Kevlin Devin titled The Math Instinct: Why You're a Mathematical Genius. http://www.amazon.com/Math-Instinct-Mathe matical-Genius-Lobsters/dp/1560256729
More About: Dogs , Cats , Math , Birds , Achievement

Michael Phelps: A Golden Example
2008-08-21 14:37:00
A while back, in one of the blog entries, I wrote about the fact, that despite the pessimistic predictions, children with ADD often turn into successful adults. Now we could not have a clearer example of this brighter picture--Michael Phelps. Diagnosed at age 9 with ADD, he now is the Olympic champion with eight gold medals.
More About: Achievement , Golden

Congress Gives Boost to High Tech Learning in the Classroom
2008-08-20 15:54:00
Congress has given the go-ahead for a new center to explore ways advanced computer and communications technologies can improve learning. It is called the National Center for Research in Advanced Information and Digital Tech nologies and it will focus on "bringing education into the 21st century."
More About: News , Congress , High Tech , Learning

Can One Person Make a Difference?
2008-08-15 23:10:00
The new film Swing Vote is designed to spread the optimistic message that "one person can make a difference." But we don't have to go along with the rather far-fetched story line to see that this message has validity. In a recent biography of Shakespeare, Bill Bryson tells us that if we use the Oxford Dictionary of Quotations as a guide, then we find that Shakespeare produced roughly one-tenth of all the most quotable utterances written or spoken in English since its inception." Imagine, a single individual is responsible for roughly 10% of the most quotable things ever said. it is, as Bryson says, "clearly remarkable."
More About: Make , Person , Difference

Dyslexia: Making a Change
2008-08-07 15:47:00
Scientists at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh recently announced some interesting results of a brain imaging study of dyslexic students and other poor readers. They showed that with intensive remedial instruction, the brain can permanently rewire itself and overcome reading deficits.
More About: Reading , Change , Dyslexia

Educational Software--A Neglected Realm of the Digital Age
2008-08-06 15:35:00
Some years ago, a colleague--Laura Berlin--and I were attracted by the wealth of educational software programs that were appearing on the scene. To help parents make decisions in this area that was so new and unfamiliar, we wrote (for Microsoft), a book titled Parent's Guide to Educational Software . We were certain that this would be the beginning of burgeoning field.
More About: Achievement , Realm , Digital

Books Enter a New (Digital) Age
2008-08-03 15:18:00
If you've picked up a student's backpack recently, its weight may well have surprised you. Those books can be incredibly heavy. Now, through the rise of e-textbook sales, that may change--lightening both the backpacks and the strain on pocketbooks. Sales of digital books for college students jumped almost 30% from 2006 to 2007.
More About: Books , Reading , Digital , Enter , Digital Age

One Thing on the Rise--A Need for Teachers of Chinese
2008-07-25 18:25:00
With cuts all around us in education, it's interesting to see one field taking off. It is the hiring of teachers who know Chinese . Recognizing the growing power of China on the world stage, schools around the country and seeking to expand their programs, particularly in Mandarin, the main Chinese dialect. But, they are not finding it easy to create these programs.There simply are not enough competent teachers around to teach the language.
More About: News , Rise , Thing , Teachers

Funds To Be Cut for Reading Education
2008-07-23 15:51:00
Last month. both the House and Senate Appropriations Committees approved versions of an appropriations bill which funds federal education programs. Both versions end funding for Reading First, the program which supports a set of reading efforts in grades K-3. If the bill passes in its current form, Congress will have cut funding for PK-3 literacy by $1 billion over two years.
More About: News , Education , Funds

The Amazing Power of Music
2008-07-21 21:36:00
Our usual view of academic success is limited to the "three R's"--reading, 'writing, 'rithmetic." But we would do well to think of adding music to that list. This year, touring the United States, is a dynamic, highly skilled, youth orchestra from Venezuela. It was started many decades ago by Dr.José Antonio, an economist, trained musician, and social reformer who believed that poor, dreadfully poor, Venezuelan kids would find a path out of poverty via classical music. His view has proven to be totally on target.
More About: Music , Power , Amazing , Achievement

Teacher Challenges Overuse of Phonics
2008-07-14 15:46:00
Recently, Maurice Wolfthal, an experienced teacher and librarian, wrote an article for the Arizona Republic newspaper on the issue of phonics education. He starts out, pointing up the ethical problems that have marked and marred the No Child Left Behind Act--the quintessential government act that makes intensive phonics the law of the land. The problems include a whole range of serious questions about the selection of contractors and publishers (those who receive the money). But his criticisms extend far beyond administrative misuse. He challenges the entire approach, saying, "intensive phonics promises much more than it delivers."
More About: Reading , Teacher , Phonics

Headline Humor
2008-07-07 18:10:00
In today's crisis-filled world, headlines often seem only to add to the list of issues we have to worry about. But there are also headlines--real headlines-- that (albeit unintentionally) lead to some smiles. Police Begin Campaign to Run Down Jaywalkers Safety Experts Say School Bus Passengers Should Be Belted Drunk Gets Nine Months in Violin Case Survivor of Siamese Twins Joins Parents
More About: Humor , Headline

More Overseas Students Coming to the US
2008-07-05 15:32:00
As we all know only too well, the U.S. dollar has been losing its value. But there is a bit of a silver lining to this painful situation. As the dollar plunges, the cost of college for many foreign students also drops, bringing many overseas students to our shores. With American universities widely considered the best in the world, our universities have suddenly emerged as a bargain for a growing number of international students. The influx is expected to reverse the declines in foreign student enrollment that followed September 11, 2001.
More About: News , Students , Overseas

Electronic Smog: What Is It? and Why Should We Be Concerned?
2008-07-02 15:42:00
Regular readers of my blog know that my main concerns are in education and in enhancing education so that children's skills blossom. But there is a range of ancillary issues that plays a big role in accomplishing this goal. One of those issues concerns the health of children. That is where electronic smog comes in. It is the term that has been created to capture the fact that the electricity that powers our civilization gives off a range of effects that appear to be dangerous.Scientific evidence has begun to show that it may be causing cancer and miscarriages as well as making some people allergic to modern life.
More About: News , Electronic , Concerned , Smog

Schools Feel the Clutches of Higher Gas Prices
2008-06-02 19:01:00
Like all of us, schools around the nation are feeling the effects of high gas prices. As but one example, Nash-Rocky Mount schools in North Carolina burned through about $729,000 in fuel in the last fiscal year ? nearly twice as much as in the previous year. In an effort to cope, schools are coming up with a range of strategies--all of which involve cutting services. In Minnesota, for instance, one district plans to eliminate classes every Monday to come up with the extra $65,000 it needs to fill its buses' tanks. The superintendent commented "I know $65,000 may not sound like a lot, but it's more than one teaching position,"
More About: News , Schools , Gas Prices , Higher , Feel

The Right Way to Write?
2008-05-30 13:56:00
Reading, and reading problems, get lots of attention. But writing, and writing problems, which are equally important receive far less time and effort. The consequences of this neglect are serious?as many discover once they leave college and try to move up the career ladder. Skilled writing is an enormous advantage for both academic and job success. It is also in enormously short supply. To deal with the problem, schools have placed one technique into center stage. It goes by the name of ?journal writing.?
More About: Writing , Write

The State of Education in the State of Our Nation
2008-05-26 18:43:00
Former Colorado Gov. Roy Romer is the chairman of "Ed in '08"--a project that received $60 million to try to make education a prominent issue in the race for the White House. In a recent radio interview, he acknowledged that, even though it is of central importance to our children and to the nation, it has been difficult to get candidates to talk about education. It keeps being pushed into the background by issues of the economy, health care and the war. But the project has lots of valuable things to say about ways to fix our schools and strengthen the economy. Those who want to keep up with the state of education today can turn to http://www.edin08.com/
More About: Education , Nation , Achievement , State , The State

The Magic Touch
2008-05-21 17:01:00
A few weeks ago, a familiar scene played itself in my office. It started when a mother brought her six year old son to see me because he had not made any progress in reading during this school year and she was, understandably, distraught. I began some preliminary testing. In the one-to-one situation, it was not easy, but at least it was possible to keep his attention to the task at hand. However, if at any point, I did not attend directly to him (for example, when I turned to the mom to get some information), he bounded out of his seat in an instant. Then he raced over to one or another of the toys in the room. It would not be amiss to characterize his behavior as much like ?a jack in the box.?
More About: Magic , Tips , Touch

Older Students Filling California College Campuses
2008-05-19 15:07:00
High school graduates are not the only ones waiting for college acceptance letters. Increasingly, the older generation is in the same boat. At California State University, Sacramento, for example, the number of students between the ages of 50 and 64 grew by 76 percent from 1986 to 2006. Across the state, the number of California college students between the ages of 50 and 64 rose 61 percent between 1986 and 2006. Among people ages 40 to 49, enrollment increased 32 percent. Overall enrollment climbed 33 percent during the same two decades.
More About: College , Students

"The Debacle of Testing Literacy Ability"
2008-05-10 22:19:00
As those who follow the education scene know well, literacy testing takes up a huge amount of time, effort and money. Tom Sticht, an international consultant in education, in reviewing the field has termed the situation "The Debacle of Testing Literacy Ability." He summarizes the state of affairs as follows: "Despite extensive use of standardized tests by the 50 states, 30-year reading trend data show minimal if any improvement for 9-, 13-, or 17-year-old children since the early 1970s...Further, the testing of adult literacy in 1992 and again in 2003 shows little or no improvement in literacy at the lowest levels and a decline at the highest levels."
More About: Achievement

Musical Genes? They May Even Tell Us Something About Dyslexia
2008-05-08 20:58:00
As a four year old, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was reported to "play faultlessly and with the greatest delicacy" Behavior like that makes musical talent intriguing and mysterious. Given that certain families produce abundant numbers of musicians, sci­en­tists have long sus­pected that talent in this realm mu­sic might have ge­net­ic roots. Now research indicates that they may be right. Sci­en­tists in Finland say they?ve found ap­prox­i­mate loca­t­ions in our ge­nome where genes af­fect­ing mu­si­cal tal­ent may lie. The find­ings suggest not only that mu­si­cal abil­ity is partly ge­net­ic but it may share ev­o­lu­tion­ary roots with lan­guage.
More About: News , Musical , Dyslexia , Genes

Reading First ?But Not With Comprehension
2008-05-07 02:01:00
At the heart of the No Child Left Behind law is a $6 billion program called Reading First. In a front page story this past week, the Washington Post offered the disheartening news that that "students enrolled in the program are not reading any better than those who don't participate." Guided by the idea that comprehension is the ultimate goal in reading, the study focused on reading comprehension, rather than other aspects of reading such as whether kids grasp phonics.

Dyslexia and Different Languages
2008-04-28 18:15:00
This month, a fascinating study was reported, showing that dyslexia affects different parts of children's brains depending on whether they are raised reading English or Chinese. The study was conducted by Li-Hai Tan, a professor of linguistics and brain and cognitive sciences at the University of Hong Kong and was reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI's), Tan's group studied the brains of students raised reading Chinese. They then compared those findings with similar studies of the brains of students raised reading English.
More About: Reading , Languages , Dyslexia

Education in America: An Institution in Crisis
2008-04-22 14:02:00
We hear over and over again about the problems in America n education. Unfortunately, dire warnings have become so commonplace that we often don't pay them much heed. But Bob Herbert, a columnist in the New York Times, has offered some facts and figures that should make us take notice. For example, An American kid drops out of high school every 26 seconds. More than a million drop out every year. These are among the highest dropout rates in the industrialized world. Roughly a third of all American high school students drop out. Another third graduate but are not prepared for the next stage of life ? either productive work or some form of post-secondary education. Think about it! Two-thirds of all teenagers old enough to graduate from high school are leaving, without the skills to negotiate the modern world.
More About: News , Education , Crisis

Time for Some Smiles
2008-04-18 19:41:00
With all the many problems that are swirling around us, it's easy to feel a bit downcast. When that happens, a smile can work wonders. Hopefully some of these one liners will do that for you. Time is a great healer, but a terrible beautician. If #2 pencils are the most popular, are they still #2? I live in California, and my watch is three hours fast, I can't fix it, so I'm moving to New York. Living on Earth is expensive, but it does include free trips around the sun. If lawyers are disbarred and clergymen defrocked, doesn't it follow that electricians can be delighted, musicians denoted, cowboys deranged, models deposed, tree surgeons debarked and drycleaners depressed? It's not who you know, it's whom you know. (It's so nice when jokes also teach some language.)
More About: Smiles