PHONICS TALK NEWSLETTER - Volume 9 - February 2004 - by Dolores G. Hiskes, DORBOOKS, Inc.

DYSLEXIA REVISITED The feature article in this issue discusses dyslexia and its various permutations. Is it just a product of improper teaching methods? Or Is it an inborn organic condition? Can it ever be cured? (1) FEATURE ARTICLE: DYSLEXIA REVISITED (2) BREAKING NEWS (3) KIDSTUFF (4) A VALENTINE SPECIAL! (5) COMING SOON 1) FEATURE ARTICLE: DYSLEXIA REVISITED What is dyslexia? Most experts agree that, in general, it is the result of an inability to distinguish and/or process the sounds that make up speech, for whatever reason. When trying to define dyslexia, it's difficult to find any one group that totally agrees with another--in either its definition, diagnosis or treatment. What can we do about it? Some experts feel that dyslexia is inborn and can never be cured, while others believe there is no such thing as dyslexia, and it is just a result of improper teaching methods. It is at this point where opinions begin to diverge. Merck's Manual defined dyslexia as: "Failure to see or hear similarities or differences in letters or words...Inability to work out pronunciation of unfamiliar words...Tendency to substitute words for those he cannot see..." Since whole language programs do not teach students individual letter/sound correspondences, how can they hear the sounds comprising the word? And if children are encouraged in first grade to substitute words for those they cannot read, do not these programs actually train children to do the very thing that medical journals define as dyslexic? My own experience is that while true dyslexia is much rarer than is commonly thought, it indeed can be an inborn organic phenomenon--our own son has it. Although he was taught how to read with explicit phonics, he still struggled with learning. Although he is now 45 years old, has graduated with honors in Microbiology from the University of California, and frequently reads a book in one sitting, he still needs to think twice before writing "b"'s and "d"'s in order not to reverse them! Children exhibiting dyslexic symptoms who were taught with whole-language methods have what I term "whole-word dyslexia" and no longer exhibit any signs of reversals or confusion once they learn how to read properly. It can be difficult to differentiate from true organic dyslexia. But whether dyslexia is organic or educationally-induced, treatment still consists of good phonics remediation. Whether irregular eye movement patterns are a cause or consequence of poor decoding skills, the remedition is still the same. When phonemes are individually learned, slowly blended into syllables and words, and then built into sentences, eyes are being patterned to move together smoothly from left to right across the page. It is eye training at its simplest, most basic level. It is my experience that if bad training can be a cause of dyslexia, then good training can help overcome it! We are not born with the ability to automatically move our eyes from left to right--it is an acquired skill that is absolutely necessary in the earliest stages of reading. Without it, irregular eye movements, reversals, etc., can become established that result in slow and/or inaccurate reading. Eye-tracking skills must be well-established before real learning can take place. Some students get over this hurdle quickly once they learn how to read correctly, others need more time and training to correct irregular eye movements. Sporadic and irregular eye movements have become so firmly entrenched that specific convergent eye exercises are needed to help them get over this difficulty. This process actually can be painful for some students! A resource specialist recently wrote to me: "This 4th-grade girl put her head down when she started the long vowel sections of Phonics Pathways because she said it made her hurt all over. Previously there had been heavy use of context, requiring a lot of self correction to get through a passage. Decoding had been mostly by context and configurational clues. "Comprehension was seriously impaired because of lack of attentional capacity, and she had often exhausted herself with the decoding, and frequently inserted words that weren't there. "She experienced a great deal of mental anguish when she had to read the long-vowel endings in Phonics Pathways. Rewiring the brain is no fun, but what a tremendous difference it has made in her reading!" If a child must concentrate so hard just to decide the phonemes correctly, he cannot focus on meaning at the same time. It's not that eye convergence and tracking exercises will teach reading per se, but rather it will set the stage for allowing learning to happen if teaching then proceeds sequentially and systematically, with decodable reading practice. "Eye training" is not new or unique to America--it has been part of Chinese and Tibetan medicine for many thousands of years. No doubt there are false and overblown claims made by many practitioners. But it is my experience that "dyslexic" students who were taught how to read incorrectly have benefited greatly from vision/motor training, which in its simplest form should be embodied in any good phonics reading programs. It's certainly an important component of Dorbooks' products! One mother recently wrote, "My son is 9 and this is our second year of homeschooling. In October our local library included your book. I was the first to take it out and I now have our own copy. I read in the back about the activities to help hand and eye coordination. These were the same exercises we did for Perceptual Vision Dysfunction Therapy. "What a difference it made! My son loves it so much that It is one subject I get "Great Mom, I love doing Phonics Pathways! Pyramid has been a tremendous boost in our family to reinforce blending. My 5 year old read the very first pyramid story last week and it really made her day!" Whole-language programs frequently claim they do teach phonics. But the question is, what do they mean by "phonics"? So beware! As Mark Twain once said: "There is nothing in the world like a persuasive speech to fuddle the mental apparatus and upset the convictions and debauch the emotions of an audience not practised in the tricks and delusions of oratory!" (2) BREAKING NEWS YES Reading Center Receives New Grant! This highly-successful and inspiring tutoring program is attracting more rave reviews and generous responses from the community it serves. Now, four years after the Belle Haven Elementary School-based program was founded, a $150,000 grant has brought the tutoring program one step closer to a long- held dream: expanding to another campus. Mary Shaw, who founded YES Reading with volunteer tutors Molly McCrory and Jean Baciga- lupi, said she was thrilled at the prospect of an expansion. "I always felt that the model wouldn't be complete until we had shown how to replicate it," she said. Read the rest of this exciting and heartwarming story by Rebecca Wallace of The Almanac: http://www.AlmanacNews.com/morgue/2004/2004_01_07.yes.shtml (3) KIDSTUFF A kindergarten teacher was observing her classroom of children while they drew. She would occasionally walk around to see each child's work. As she got to one little girl who was working diligently, she asked what the drawing was. The girl replied, "I'm drawing God." The teacher paused and said, "But no one knows what God looks like." Without missing a beat, or looking up from her drawing, the girl replied, "They will in a minute." (4) A VALENTINE SPECIAL! Valentine's Day will soon be upon us! It's a time to remember those we care about. And I want to thank all of you for your interest in education, and Dorbooks in particular. So from now until the end of February, two special gifts will be included with the purchase of any of Dorbooks' products: 1--A special, wriggly Dewey-The-Bookworm bookmark will be included for you to color, assemble, and enjoy (I hope to get a photo of a completed Dewey up on my website for those of you who are curious to see what he looks like!); 2--and a small booklet that can be helpful in deciding where to begin teaching. This "Literacy-At-A-Glance" booklet is a quick and easy test for knowledge of short-vowel sounds, blending, and connected reading. (Note: the supply of these booklets is low, and we may run out before the end of the month. There will be no more printed at this time.) These gifts are from my heart--to express my gratitude and thanks for your business and interest throughout the years. I hope you like them! (5) COMING SOON Throughout the years many of you have shared wonderful tips and tricks you have discovered while teaching children how to read. I have also developed some unique teaching ideas, a few of which are posted on my site as well as incorporated in my games. This information has been accumulating in bits and pieces for quite some time. Since others of you have requested assistance for just this kind of information, I have decided to organize and feature this material in an upcoming, special edition of Phonics Talk. Watch for it! I invite you to submit your ideas for inclusion as well. Have you found something that has worked especially well? Is there a neat teaching trick you'd like to share, either for individual teaching or for a classroom environment? Let us know--we'd love to hear from you! Contact us at dor@dorbooks.com, or by phone (925) 449-6983. In the meantime, Happy Valentine's Day to one and all! Dolores © 2002-2004 Dolores G. Hiskes May only be reprinted with permission from the author