How is the programme designed?

The aims of our programme are to develop a resource of low cost material which can be used by parents, teachers and therapists to teach children to read, write and spell. This is done through the use of electronic material, all of which can be sent out by email. This makes it possible to deliver the material anywhere in the world quickly, and at low cost.

The methods and materials in the programme focus on developing basic skills and automaticity in reading, writing and spelling. Automaticity in reading is developed through use of phonically based, large print readers, the content of which can be used to teach children to read, write and spell. Automaticity in writing and spelling is also developed on the basis of phonic methods, which are used to develop the working memory skills involved in spelling individual words accurately, as well as writing and spelling words accurately in sequence.

What materials are available?

There is a core series of twenty graded reading fluency books for children who are poor readers. There are also branching series of reading fluency books at different reading levels, which can be used in working with children with reading difficulties. These are best used with manuals, which outline the methods which are likely to lead to optimal results.

In addition, there is a foundational level of materials, for children who are starting out but experiencing difficulties with establishing the relationship between sound and letters. This series consists of basic readers with accompanying activity books. These materials are best used with manuals activities are based on use of simple, low-cost equipment for introducing the sound/letter relationships with children, and also the use of a word and sentence maker with key words drawn from the foundation readers.

What methods are used in working with the programme materials?

The methods which have been found to be effective in using the programme materials are described in a series of manuals. These are made available to you once you are a member of our network.

We suggest becoming a member of our network as this will provide you with access to both training materials and workshops. These are low cost, and designed to provide you with the practical experience necessary to work with the materials effectively. Networking and trouble-shooting with others who have used the methods  effectively is also helpful. 

What methods and materials are used in working with reading fluency?

A manual for use in developing reading fluency is usually provided to you first, after you join our network. This normally takes place through involvement in working with us with children, as well as through the workshops we run with parents, teachers and therapists.

Once you have worked with at least five children on reading fluency as well as the development of phonemic and phonic skills, additional manuals detailing methods for using the materials for developing writing and spelling can also be made available to you. These are used most effectively working with support from others who have previously had success. 

The reason for this is that developing reading fluency is usually a matter of using the right combination of methods and materials, as well as persistence. Developing writing and spelling fluency is more complex, and involves the right combination of materials, methods linked to the child’s learning preferences and learning style, as well as persistence.

What methods and materials are used in working with writing and spelling fluency?

As with the methods and materials for developing reading fluency, methods and materials as well as  manuals for developing writing and spelling fluency are made available through involvement in working with us with children, or through the workshops we run with parents, teachers and therapists. The requirement for making these additional methods, materials and manuals available is usually that you have used the reading fluency methods and materials successfully with at least five children.

The reason for this is that writing and spelling difficulties are normally linked to reading fluency, phonemic and phonic difficulties as well as difficulties with working memory for both individual words and words in sequence. If you have had experience in working with reading fluency and have found our phonically-based materials and methods useful, you will also be likely to have access to both pre and post-test scores on the children with whom you have already worked, as well as additional evidence which indicates that the children’s parents have found our reading fluency methods and materials effective.

It will then be possible to build on this experience, and to develop the right combination of materials to target the child’s specific difficulties with spelling and use of written language, and then use methods linked to the child’s learning preferences and learning style. The published materials we have available are books of graded phonological referencing materials, as well as materials for developing sequential memory for words through targeted revisualisation.

These can be seen in the following section of this post. 

Materials available for use by others

There are eighty books of materials in the practice’s database. The following have been published internationally in the United States. If you look on the left hand side of home page, you will see that the titles of the books are listed with links to the publisher’s website. These are made available in the widgets bar on the left hand side of the posts made on this website.

These can be copied and dropped into your browser. Once at the publisher’s website, each book of materials is made available to you at low cost as a pdf. After download, the font size can then be adjusted prior to being printed out one-sided on A4 sized paper, and bound.  

The list of books of materials published so far is as follows. Each book has been named after one of the characters in the stories on which our reading fluency books are based. 

Materials for Phonological Referencing

Jill the Dog’s Choice: Level One Activities for Phonological Referencing (short vowels with single beginning and single ending consonants)

Jud the Rat’s Choice: Level One Activities for Phonological Referencing  (short vowels with double beginning and single ending consonants)

Doctor Skunk’s Choice: Level One Activities for Phonological Referencing (short vowels with double and triple beginning and double as well as triple ending consonants)

Max the Mole’s Choice: Level Two Activities for Phonological Referencing (long vowels based on vowel digraphs)

Mrs Squirrel’s Choice: Level Two Activities for Phonological Referencing (long vowels based on vowel digraphs)

Materials for Reading Comprehension using Partnered Paired Reading

Edna Rabbit’s Choice: Stories for Partnered Paired Reading (level one stories and comprehension activities)

The Hare and the Tortoise and Other Stories for Partnered Paired Reading (level two stories and comprehension activities)

Mrs Weasel’s Choice: Fables and Stories for Partnered Paired Reading (level two fables, stories and comprehension activities)

Mrs Fieldmouse’s Choice: Fables and Stories for Partnered Paired Reading (level three fables, stories and comprehension activities)

Miss Vole’s Choice: Comprehension and Summarising Activities for Partnered Paired Reading (level four reading, summarising and comprehension activities)

Alphonse Pink Pig’s Choice: Comprehension and Summarising Activities for Partnered Paired Reading (level five reading, summarising and comprehension activities)

Tom the Cat’s Choice: The Vikings — Factual, Inferential and Integrative Comprehension Activities (level six reading, summarising and comprehension activities)

Materials for Reading Fluency (English)

Jud the Rat and Tom the Cat

Tom the Cat Tries to Trick Jud the Rat, but Gets Very Wet and Cold

Tom the Cat Tries to be Clever, but Lands up Sick in Bed

Jill the Dog and the Shop in the Village

Jud the Rat and Max the Mole

Doctor Skunk’s Visit

Going to the Seaside

At the Beach

Jud the Rat and Max the Mole

Doctor Skunk Tries to Find his Lunch

Doctor Skunk’s Visit

Doctor Skunk’s Bus Ride

The Shop Under the Palm Trees

Jud the Rat and Sid the Badger

Sid the Badger –Bus Driver

Sid the Badger’s Test Drive

Doctor Skunk Plays Baseball

Materials for Reading Fluency (Afrikaans)

Jan die Rot en Tom die Kat

Tom die Kat Probeer om Jan die Rot te Truuk, Maar Word Baie Koud

Tom die Kat Probeer Slim Wees en Beland Siek in Sy Bed

Materials for Targeted Revisualisation

Sid the Badger’s Choice: Level One Activities for Targeted Revisualisation

Bill the Hedgehog’’s Choice: Level Two Activities for Targeted Revisualisation

Colonel Tortoise’s Choice: Level Three Activities for Targeted Revisualisation.

Models for working with the programme’s methods and materials

There are a number of different ways in which parents, therapists and teachers have worked with our methods and materials to date. In addition,  both school principals and programme administrators are currently using our methods and materials in reading centres and tutoring programmes.

There is a model for working with the methods and materials if you are parent working with your own child. There are also a number of ways in which the methods and materials can be used if you are a teacher or therapist. There are additional models of programme usage which can be used by school principals or programme administrators who wish to improve reading, writing and spelling abilities in children, and are looking for low cost and effective ways in which this can be done.

These different models for working with the programme materials are outlined in the rest of this post. Each of these approaches is evidence-based.

What evidence is used to determine the level at which to start a particular child? 

If you look on the left hand side of home page of this website, you will see that there are a number of a series of books of materials which are graded in terms of difficulty. They can be used with methods for developing reading fluency as well as methods for developing phonemic and phonic skills. There are also methods for use in developing the working memory skills involved in spelling individual words, as well as for writing and spelling words accurately in sequence.

The level at which to start each child is determined through pretesting on a battery of reading, writing and spelling tests, which yield scores as well as reading fluency indicators. These are then used to determine the child’s learning needs as well as the priorities in his or her individualised learning programme (ILP).

The development of reading fluency is usually the top priority, determining the starting point as well as level in the child’s programme. An initial book drawn from the first ten of the reading fluency books in the core series listed on the website is normally chosen to start working with a child at primary school level. An initial book drawn from books eleven to twenty is normally used to start working with a child at high school level.

Subsequent decisions on additional ebooks are then taken on the  basis of evidence from progress evaluation. Both assessment and evaluation are used to establish whether the child has improved, and also whether the child can benefit from further work with the programme materials, or additional uses of the material to develop skills in writing and spelling.

How is the programme normally used if you are a parent working with your own child? 

To access and use our methods and materials effectively, a parent will need to be working with at least one of their own children. The child will need to be diagnostically tested, and to enable this to take place, the parent will need to make contact with me based on either a teacher or a therapist’s recommendation. This is normally done by cellphone or email, supported as necessary by additional WhatsApp contact.

Based on the child’s reading, writing and spelling test scores from diagnostic testing, as well as additional evaluative evidence that the child has reading, writing and spelling difficulties, an individualised learning programme (ILP) is developed based on the child’s learning needs. The child’s parents are then provided with their first book of materials, which is normally a reading fluency book. A copy of the book can also be made available to a therapist or teacher working with the child if the parent requests this.

The programme is then implemented. Once there there are observable differences in reading fluency through use of the materials with the accompanying methods, additional areas of priority as well as additional methods and materials are added in to the child’s ILP. At this point, the child’s programme  normally involves the parent, teacher or therapist working with the child to develop a number of types of learning areas simultaneously.

At the end of a number of months’ work, the child’s progress is then assessed through post-testing, as well as through evaluation questionnaires. Based on response to intervention, the child’s ILP is then added to or extended, to enable a number of areas of learning need to be addressed. 

How can the programme be used if you are a therapist or a teacher working with a single child? 

To access and use the methods and materials with children as a teacher or therapist, you will need to be a member of our network. This means that a teacher or therapist will need to be want to work with our methods and materials with at least one child. The child will need to be diagnostically tested, and the parent will also need to make contact with me based on your recommendation. This is normally done by email, supported if necessary by cellphone contact.

As the aim of the programme is to provide methods and materials at low cost, a number of teachers and therapists are working with the practice in this way. If the teacher or therapist is initially working with only one child, the decision as to which level of the programme to place the child will be taken based on the child’s reading, writing and spelling levels, as well as additional evidence whether the child has reading, writing and spelling difficulties. 

The results reported by of parents, teachers and therapists are as follows:

After a child has worked through two books using the accompanying methodology, there are normally observable differences in reading fluency. After between six and eight books, the child is normally a fluent reader. Other areas of reading improvement then follow from there. 

The development of writing and spelling fluency is more complex, and usually takes longer. Persistence as well as the use of appropriate methods and materials for developing phonemic and phonic abilities, word analysis and working memory skills are normally needed. As with the development of a child’s reading skills, short twenty minute sessions of work are used to develop the child’s skills. Response to intervention assessment is then used to establish and quantify learning gains made, and to plan the next steps necessary.  

In summary, to work with our materials as a teacher or therapist, you will need to be a member of our network. This is enables you to learn to use our methods and materials effectively at low cost, and gain experience in how the methods and materials work. If you then decide that you wish to continue using our methods and materials materials in your work, there is normally no escalation in costs, whether you work with small numbers of children, or much larger numbers of children.

Our aim is to enable our methods and materials to be widely used at low cost, and this model works well if you a therapist or teacher who works in a practice or in a school, where you are expecting to work with at least five children over a year. Other therapists and teachers report that they are able to get the parents of the children involved in supporting their work by doing additional work at home. Using the programme materials in this way normally leads to improvements in reading fluency, with backwash effects into other reading, writing and spelling skills.

There are also other models which can be used if you are working with a large number of children (e.g. in a therapy centre or in a school environment). A suitable model can be worked out with you, once we know your needs and the particular circumstances in which you work.

How can the programme be used if you want to start a reading centre or reading programme? 

There are currently eighty ebooks, activity books and manuals in our data base. This body of material can be used as a low cost materials base if you would like to start a reading centre or a reading programme in which you work with other therapists, or teachers, or tutors, or volunteers.

In use the materials to start a reading centre or a reading programme, you will need to be a member of our network. You will also need to have experience in working with our materials yourself, or to have at least one teacher or therapist working with you who has had experience in working with our materials. This experience can then be used to train other teachers or therapists, or tutors or volunteers in how to use the materials effectively, as well as to supervise their work to ensure that our methods and materials are used effectively.

There are already a number of therapists and teachers who have started reading centres using our materials, as well as reading programmes in schools. There are also school principals, programme administrators and parents who have indicated that they wish to make a wider contribution in the area of reading, who are working to develop reading programmes both in schools and in the community.

Normally the development of a reading centre or tutoring programme involves the following steps:

1. It is necessary to involve at least one an experienced teacher or therapist who believes, as we do, in the value of using graded phonically based material in working with children with reading difficulties, and who has also seen the value of repetition in developing greater fluency and automaticity in reading.
2. This person might be yourself. Alternatively, if you are a school principal wishing to start a reading programme or a reading club in your school, or if you are a programme administrator or a person wishing to make a wider community contribution in reading, the person you identify might be a teacher who has reached retirement age but still wishes to make a contribution to children who need better reading skills.
3. Alternatively, the teacher or therapist you identify might already be working with our materials as part of an existing school programme, or working with them in a part-time context in the area of reading fluency. The important issue is that it is previous experience in working with our materials in reading fluency which is likely to drive a new programme forward.
4. The reading centre or programme does not need to have physical premises. However, there will need to be space available where work with children can be done.
5. Once these steps have been taken and suitable space for working has been identified, the next step is to work with us to develop a low cost model for using our methods and materials with the children with whom you are working. If things work well, the arrangement can then be extended. If things do not work out, the arrangement can be allowed to lapse with no costs or penalties to yourself, or any of the people working with you.

In a nutshell, there are currently eighty phonically based, large print ebooks in our data base. These are used with tried and tested methods which have been demonstrated to be effective. The aim of networking with us is to enable these methods and materials to be used widely and at low cost.

In summary

Whether you are a parent working with your own child, a teacher or therapist working with one child or with a number of children, or a school administrator or administrator of a charitable organisation or foundation wishing to make an impact on reading, writing and spelling difficulties, there should be a way of using our methods and materials at low cost to do this. If there is not one listed in this post which is appropriate to what you want to do or the type of contribution you want to make, we will try and work something appropriate out with you.

The one element which is common across all the different models is that implementation and use of our programme needs to be evidence-based. Our materials and methods have been workshopped with children who have reading and learning difficulties, and the evidence indicates that where the materials are used consistently and properly, they work well. There are publications which indicate this, and the evidence presented is consistent.

We are aware that home, school and programme contexts vary considerably. So if you wish to use our materials and you find that the models presented in this post do not coincide with the particular uses you have in mind, you are welcome to contact me by email at pottercs@gmail.com so we can take your ideas forward.

As use of our methods and materials programme is based on assessment, my next post will be on the use of evidence in the programme. This will focus on how assessment and evaluation are used to establish whether programme useage is effective.