Introduction Reading Theory About Dr Solomon English Alphabet Preface Initial Premise Prerequisites Factors in Beginning Reading Help Your Child Read Common Questions
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Initial Premise

Reading is based on auditory sequential analysis and synthesis of the sounds represented in printed words. Two developmental prerequisite skills are necessary. The first is the ability to blend consecutive phonemes (single sounds). The second is the capacity to blend two combinations of phonemes (syllables).

Reading for Sure offers a method of mastering these basic human capacities essential to reading. This method differs from other approaches to reading in that Reading for Sure encourages an analytic attack in deciphering words. The analytic word attack consists of breaking-up words into sound components, and then blending the sounds to utter the whole word. It is based on the premise that correct pronunciation of words is the basis of accurate, independent reading.

This approach is based on research which shows that where a word in reading is pronounced correctly it can be matched with "in the head" knowledge of the same word heard in speech. In this way the reader recognises the word. In contrary approaches such as the "whole language" or "global" methods, word attack is based on recognising the whole word by remembering it from prior reading or by guessing it from understanding the meaning of the sentence or passage. Evidence suggests that a possible fifty percent of pupils are unable to learn to read English effectively by relying on sight recognition and context clues.

This inability is often the result of causes within the English language itself as in the following example which illustrates 14 ways of sounding the letter combination "ea":

"How on earth would you react to the great idea to create a bureau to check your heart, head and ears. We could serve a beautiful meal of bream and pears, then go to the theatre."

Apart from its general effect as an initial or remedial reading programme, the confusion engendered by such ambiguity can be corrected by the diligent application of this manual.

Where to next :: Prerequisites

 

learning to read
Dr Julia Solomon

The Solomon Method

A marking system that
takes the 'Guess Work' out of English pronunciation!