This post provides information about the types of training we provide to enable effective use of our methods and materials. This is low cost and based on distance teaching and adult education methodologies so it can be provided to programme users flexibly, as well as both locally and internationally.

Training can be organised either through distance modules supported by tutorial letters or through face to face workshops for therapists, teachers and parents.

1. If introduced through either modules or workshops, a course of training is provided in series. Each module or workshop has a theoretical and a practical side. The training is non-formal in nature and its aim is to develop both an understanding of the theory underpinning lack of fluency in reading, writing and spelling as well as practical experience in working with methods and materials which can get kids right.

2. As the aim is to develop theoretical understanding as well as practical expertise, training is presented step by step in seven modules or workshops, supported by materials. The face to face workshops can be certificated for CPD purposes.

3. The theoretical side of each module or workshop is focused on content contained in chapters on the programme, as well as video links, supporting materials and user manuals. The practical side is  introduced through practical experience in working with our methods and materials. This is supported by demonstrations and hands-on work.

4. All of the chapters on which the theoretical side of the course is based have been published internationally and are downloadable free of charge. You can get access to these via links in the sidebar, or by emailing me at pottercs@gmail.com

5. After registering for training, the written materials and accompanying links to videos can be sent to you module by module by email if working at distance, or introduced workshop by workshop if it is possible to work face to face.

6. The practical side of each module or workshop is case study based, and focused on work done with children who are poor readers. There is normally focus on children at foundation level and middle school level who are poor readers, as well as on children who have reading difficulties at either foundational. basic or intermediate reading level. Each person is asked to identify two children with whom they will be able to work on a practical level.

7. Each module or workshop in the course follows consecutively, with the aim of building on skills learned in the previous module or workshop. This means that both the theoretical and the practical sides of the course are completed in tandem, and step by step.

8. Interchangeability of distance modules backed by tutorial letters and face to face workshops backed by written handouts is based both on the non-formal nature of the course, as well as its aims. These are:

• to introduce participants to methods and materials which can be used practically in working with children
• to provide a starting point for participants who wish to work with children who are poor readers, and
• to provide enrichment and new directions to participants who are alread working with children who are poor readers.

9. As the training provided is non-formal, it does not lead to formal certification or to a certificate of competence. A certificate of attendance can be given if a workshop is being completed for purposes of CPD. Understanding of the content covered is then normally assessed for purposes of CPD through an assignment, involving completion of a short multiple choice questionnaire as well as work on practical application.

10. The aim is to link prior learning to the training provided, and the certificate of attendance is designed to be added to participants’ previous experience as well as to support new directions in the future. Certificates of attendance can also be linked to participants’ continuing professional development.

11. The focuses of the workshops supporting the course are:

• Workshop One: Developing Reading Fluency in Poor Readers.
• Workshop Two: Developing Phonemic and Phonic Skills in Poor Readers.
• Worskhop Three: Developing an Individual Support Plan: Using Profile and Error Analysis to Identify Reading, Writing and Spelling Weaknesses.
• Worskhop Four: Linking the Development of Phonics, Reading, Writing and Spelling in Poor Readers.
• Workshop Five: Developing Orthographic Transparency in Poor Readers.
• Workshop Six: Developing Writing and Spelling Fluency in Poor Readers.
• Workshop Seven: Classifying and Labelling Learning Difficulties based on Response to Intervention.

12. The focuses the tutorial letters supporting the course modules are as follows:

a. Tutorial Letter One focuses on course orientation, as well as the programme’s materials. After completing your registration and receiving Tutorial Letter One, you will receive a library of 27 reading fluency books drawn from my practice’s database, for use in your practical work with children at basic and intermediate reading levels. In addition, you will receive six activity books, for work in developing children’s in language, phonemic and phonic skills, reading and writing and level at foundational level.

b. Tutorial Letter Two focuses on work at foundational level in the programme, to support the first course module and the first course assignment. This module is based on a foundation level manual, a parent questionnaire, a checklist for assessing school and programme readiness, and a checklist for use in readability assessment. These are used for placement on the methods and materials used with children at  at foundational reading level.

c. Tutorial Letter Three focuses on work with the four core tests used in diagnostic assessment, which is the second course module and the second course assignment. This module is supported by a manual for the core tests as well as three checklists for rating different kinds of fluency-related difficulties. These are used for placement on the methods and materials used with children at basic and intermediate reading level.

d. Tutorial Letter Four focuses on work on reading fluency, which is the third course module and the third course assignment. This module is supported by a manual for the 3 x 3 Oral Impress Method, and a checklist for use in readability assessment at basic and intermediate reading levels.

e. Tutorial Letter Five focuses on assessment of phonemic and phonic difficulties, which is the fourth course module and the fourth course assignment. This module is supported by a manual on the instruments and rating scales used for assessing needs for phonic instruction, as well as needs for work in the writing and spelling fluency area of the programme.

f. Tutorial Letter Six focuses on work with writing and spelling fluency, which is the fifth course module and the fifth course assignment. This module is supported by a manual on the Seven Vowel Phonic Analysis System, which is used for developing orthographic transparency at basic and intermediate reading levels.

g. Tutorial Letter Seven focuses on work with sequential spelling difficulties, which is the sixth course module and the sixth course assignment. This module is supported by a manual on the Targeted Analysis, Revisualisation and Sequential Spelling Programme, as well the materials you have already received in previous modules of the course.

h. Tutorial Letter Eight focuses on response to intervention, which is the seventh course module and the seventh course assignment. It focuses in particular on the language and reading comprehension area of the programme, and on how fluency-based work in reading, writing and spelling relates to difficulties with reading, writing, spelling and rate of work in the classroom. This module is assessed through a final course assignment involving a detailed case study, based on your use of our methods and materials in tandem with the development of your own materials in clinical teaching with one child. The assignment also involves a questionnaire relating to the chapters on which the course is based, as well as the practical side of the work done in the course as a whole.

13. You will see from the above that the training provided is both theoretical and practical. As it is non-formal, it is  introduced either face to face or at distance through a combination of printed materials, videos, workshops and practical work. This is the best way to learn how to use our methods and materials, and to integrate these both with your prior learning, experience and the work you already do, as well as the type of work you aim to do in the future.

You are probably looking at the focuses of the training we can provide, and wondering how this can be related to your own existing commitments and work. The suggestion would be as follows:

Think of the training as flexible, non-formal and modular, involving a series of steps which can be taken through modules supported by workshops. Each of the steps focuses on use of our methods and materials, with the steps being introduced in sequence based on either face to face contact or through distance teaching methodologies.

Given this, the first thing to decide is if you want to embark on the journey. If you decide that you do, we can then negotiate your involvement in the modules or workshops and your envisaged timeline. We can also negotiate your deadlines for each workshop or module as well as each assignment step by step and one at a time.

What this means is that your training can be planned so that it is introduced flexibly so as to fit in with your other commitments. As you work through either the series of modules or workshops step by step, the aim is that you emerge at the end with experience of working with our methods and materials. It is a personal journey and the time you take along the path can vary.

Put another way, what I can do is to plan the steps with you so that your training runs consecutively step by step, with your deadlines for each step geared around your other commitments. This should be possible from my side as I know the programme, and have also run both formal and non-formal training courses before.

So if you are interested in working with our methods and materials and would like training in how to use these in your work with children, you are welcome to email me or phone me.

If you do make contact with me, we will first discuss your prior experience and the work you do as well as your aims for the future and other commitments. We can then work out a time framework and plan for your training which suits your needs. Once there is a plan, we can then involve you in workshops or in a series of distance modules step by step.

The aim is that as you complete both the theoretical and practical sides and network with other users, so your experience and expertise in using our methods and materials will grow. So email me on pottercs@gmail.com or phone me on 0027 82 330 7589, and we can then go forward from there.

I look forward to working with you.