1. What does "Orton-Spalding Method Based" mean?
2. What is a multi-sensory teaching method?
3. Why aren't blends and word families used with this method?
4. "Explicit Phonics," what is meant by this term?
5. Why are all of the sounds of the phonograms taught first in isolation?
6. How can the consonant sounds be pronounced without the /uh/?
7. Why aren't the names of the alphabet letters taught with their sounds?
8. Isn't it difficult to teach writing and sounds together to beginning students? What about correcting writing patterns of older students?
9. Isn't it difficult for young children to use the "clock face" for writing reference points?
10. Why not have both the lower case and capital letters on the Phonogram Flash Cards?
11. What do you tell the student when the written letter sometimes appears different   when  it is printed?
12. Why not have writing instructions and spelling rules on the Phonogram Flash Cards?
13. What is "Phonemic Awareness"?
14. Aren't the illustrations with keyword captions the same as pictures  for context clues?
15. Why are spelling words taught in the order of use frequency?
16. Why is spelling taught before reading?
17. How important are spelling rules?
18. Does this method teach the "schwa" unstressed vowel sound /uh/?
19. Isn't the freedom to work with "invented" spelling important?
20. How can schools and parents help students, 4th grade to college, that are poor readers and spellers learn to read with comprehension, spell accurately & write compositions?
21. How can I get my 7th graders who reads at the 1st grade level to believe that they won't fail with "just on more method"?
22. What is the value of marking the spelling  words?
23. How are the programs taught step-by-step without teacher training?
24. What is meant by a "non-consumable" program"
25. What is taught in the first 5 weeks in order to begin reading?
26. Isn't the Orton method for Special Education? I have heard that it is not needed for normal students.
27. Does this method work for dyslexic students?

28. Testimonial and Tips on Teaching English as a Second Language (ESL/TEFL)

29. Who should use the YesPhonics™ Programs and when should a child begin?
30. Are the Phonics Codes for English  Illustrated Phonogram DVD (Y03D) and Phonics Codes for English Phonogram DVD (Y03IID) for the Students/Children or for the Teachers?
31. Who can use the "Yes, Your Baby is A Genius" Program?
32. What is the difference between the reading methods for teaching right-brain, "Yes, Your Baby Is A Genius" (birth to 5 or 6 years old) and left brain "Phonics for English Reading, Spelling & Writing Express  (k-college) program?

1. What does "Orton-Spalding Method Based" mean?

"The Writing Road to Reading" by Romalda Spalding (1950-1990) is the basis for the instructional method used in the YesPhonics™ programs. Mrs. Spalding was an elementary school teacher and a student of Dr. Samuel Orton, a neurologist and language-learning researcher.

Dr. Orton isolated the most common spelling patterns of the English language into 70 phonograms. A phonogram is a letter or combination of letters that says one or more single voiced sounds in a word. The phonograms are the 26 alphabet letters and 46 multi-letter combinations consisting of 2-4 letters, each has 1-6 single voiced sounds. They represent the 45 sounds heard in English speech.

The 72 Orton-Phonograms used in this program are: a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, k, l, m, n, o, p, qu, r, s, t, u, v, w, x, y, z, sh, ee, th, ay, ai, ow, ou, aw, au, ew, ui, oy, oi, oo, ch, ng, ea, ar, ck, ed, or, wh, oa, oe, er, ir, ur, wor, ear, our, ey, ei, eigh, ie, igh, kn, gn, wr, ph, dge, tch, ti, si, ci, ough, gu (Fourteen less often used phonograms are presented in 2nd grade.)

Mrs. Spalding discovered that her Special Education students were learning to read better than her other students. Using Orton's methods and phonograms, an Extended Ayers Spelling Word List, 29 simple spelling rules and word markings, she developed the highly successful, multi-sensory, systematic, explicit phonetic language arts method known as the "Spalding Method"; designed to teach all students.

With the phonograms and spelling rules, 93-97% of the English language is phonetically accurate.

"The Writing Road to Reading" is a teacher's textbook and requires training to understand how to teach the method. The YesPhonics programs build on this method's base and are organized in a  Step-by-Step "Sequence" that coordinates the how and when of presentation and integrates the subjects to be taught with Lesson Plans & Worksheets. These programs are designed for the experienced and inexperienced teacher, tutor, parents and self-learner to be used without training.

2. What is a multi-sensory teaching method?

Children have very different learning styles. When a multi-sensory approach of seeing, hearing, saying and writing the phonograms and spelling words directly from dictation is used, then all students will learn whether they have a learning mode that is auditory, visual or kinesthetic.

A multi-sensory method has a synergistic effect of addressing the stronger learning mode while reinforcing the weakest; it is effective for beginning, remedial and advanced students.

3. Why aren't blends and word families used with this method?

Blends (br=/b/+r/;spl=/s/+/p/+/l/) and short vowel words usually called word families (at. bat. cat) are two or more phonograms (letters) blended together, each letter retains its own sound value within the blend or word.

When the phonograms (single voiced sounds) are taught there is no need to teach the single voiced sounds of blends and word families. In fact this is confusing and counter-productive to teach these clustered consonants in isolation, as separate sound/symbol relationships. These spelling patterns are quickly and easily learned in the spelling lesson.

Blending the phonograms (single -letters and multi-letters) into syllables and words is taught in the spelling and reading lessons. Reading is saying (blending) single voiced sounds (phonograms) together in rapid succession.

The Ayers Spelling List of high frequency words (also see #15) is used to study the structure of the language. These words are used for spelling, vocabulary development and grammar. They are used to learn parts of speech, to build derivatives, to write simple compound and complex sentences and to apply capitalization and punctuation rules. The words listed in word families are often low frequency and are not of immediate use for daily reading and writing practice.

4. "Explicit Phonics", what is meant by this term?

Explicit phonics move form the smallest part to the whole. Students first learn the phonograms (letters and combinations of letters) and their sounds. They then build and recombine them into syllables and words. This method teaches the phonograms explicitly.

5. Why are all of the sounds of the phonograms taught first in isolation?

The phonograms are taught explicitly first and fast. The students need to see phonics in operation.

Memory research has verified the efficiency of teaching all of the sounds of the phonogram at one time, rather than in layers. When the phonogram's sounds are introduced together, the computer brain can store the information in one folder for easy retrieval.

The alphabet letters (phonograms 1-26) are taught first. Then the spelling words begin and are taught with the Lesson Plans and Worksheets concurrently with phonograms 27-72.

Some phonograms have the same sound in every word in which they appear. Others have several sounds, and deciding which sound to use is one of the skills needed for decoding (reading). The sounds of the phonograms are in the order of their frequency of use. For instance, the sound sequence for the phonogram "a" is 1. /a/ (have), 2. /a/ (letter name), 3. /ah/ (ball). It says its 1st sound about 70% of the time, its 2nd sound almost 25% of the time and its 3rd sound less often. When the students try the first sound in a word they will most often be right. If the 1st sound doesn't work, then they should try the 2nd sound and the 3rd sound last.

All of the sounds of the phonogram must be known from the beginning for spelling, writing and reading of common words such as: "me" says the 2nd sound of the letter "e"; "do" says the 4th sound of the letter "o"; "my" says the 2nd vowel sound of the letter "y".

6. How can the consonant sounds be pronounced without the /uh/ ending?

Very easily; simply hold the breath as the sounds are said. This will eliminate the buh, cuh, duh, fuh, guh, or ruh etc. This is a critical point for accurate reading and spelling at a later time.

7. Why aren't the names of the alphabet letters taught with their sounds?

Teaching the names of the alphabet letters first is confusing and non-productive. We don't talk, read or spell by saying and thinking names of letters.

In the beginning this method teaches only the sound sequences of the letters. The names of the alphabet letters are not important at this time, but the sounds are.

You can delay teaching the letter names. This lowers the learning load for the students and speeds them on their way to reading.

Strange as it may seem, children who enter school without having learned the names of the letters or capital letter formation learn these sound/symbol relationships more easily. They have nothing to unlearn.

8. Isn't it difficult to teach both writing and the sounds together to beginning students? What about correcting writing patterns of older students?

On the contrary, teaching the sounds and handwriting together saves time and is a beneficial factor in building cognition. The multi-sensory method is used by seeing, hearing and saying the phonogram sound sequence and dialogue aloud and writing it from dictation.

All students should use precise manuscript handwriting while learning the phonograms. There is a high correlation between remedial readers and poor handwriting. If the letters are made incorrectly, they are also pictured incorrectly. This is a serious cause of failure in both reading and writing.  Correcting the handwriting patterns with manuscript writing will make the "brain connection" to printed material. Later cursive writing may be taught/used.

9. Isn't it difficult for young children to use the "clock face" for writing reference points?

Young children, who aren't telling time, find this very confusing (as do many adults) and have difficulty with the concept of using the "clock face" numbers as reference point. The YesPhonics™ programs use a circle with numbers 1-2-3-4 as reference points and eliminates any cross-reference to the "clock face'. This makes it easy to comprehend and follow.

10. Why not have both the lower case and capital letters on the Phonogram Flash Cards?

In the beginning this method teaches only lower case letters. The capital letters that are less often used, are taught as they are needed. The instruction for capital letter formation is in the "Phonics for English Reading, Spelling & Writing Express " Program Manual. Teaching the lower case letters alone is less confusing and eliminates the problem of interspersing lower case and capital letters.

11. What do you tell the student when the written letter sometimes appears different when it is printed?

Say, "This is the way we write the phonogram (letter) /a/-/a/-/ah/. This is not always the way that machines print it in books." (The name of the phonogram is its sound sequence)

12. Why not have writing instructions and spelling rules on the phonogram Flash Cards?

The writing instructions are not often used and the spelling rules are too numerous to be listed on each phonogram card to which they apply. If the spelling rules are fragmented onto the flash cards then there is no sequence or structure to teaching them. In this method they are taught with the spelling words, lesson plans and worksheets.

It is better to keep the often used Phonogram Flash Cards uncluttered and focused on their specific purpose of teaching the sound sequences and dialogues of the phonograms.

Instruction on "How to Teach Manuscript Writing" and the "Spelling Rules Chart" are in the "Phonics for English Reading, Spelling & Writing Express"  Program Manual.

13. What is "Phonemic Awareness"?

Phonemic awareness is the ability to hear the sounds within a word when it is spoken. There are 45 sounds in the English language; they are heard and practiced in the 72 Orton Phonograms.

The phonograms teach Phonemic Awareness which is literally “sound” awareness. It is the understanding that words are made up of sounds and being able to hear, recognize, break apart and manipulate the individual sounds that make up a word. For example, it is the ability to recognize that the word “mother” is made up of the separate sounds /m/-/o/-/th/-/er/. Children vary greatly in their natural ability to hear the sounds within words. Many do not realize the words they hear break apart into smaller sounds (phonemes). Hearing the individual sounds within a word is difficult because when we speak, we effortlessly blend all the sounds together which hides the phonetic nature of spoken language. In order to read and spell fluently these sounds (phonemes) must first be taught systematically and explicitly in isolation which is easilyaccomplished with the phonograms.

14. Aren't the illustrations with keyword captions the same as pictures for context clues?

For fast, accurate and fluent reading it is vital to know the phonogram sounds in order of use frequency. When reading, the student tries the 1st sound that is most often correct, if that doesn't work then they try the 2nd sound, then the 3rd sound etc.

Many of the phonograms have the same sounds with differing use sequences, for instance, the phonogram (letter) "a" has three sounds with the sound /ah/ as its 3rd sound, the phonogram (letter) "o" has four sounds  with the sound / ah/ as its 1st sound.

The "key words" of the caption depict the sound sequence of the phonogram that is easily and quickly learned. The caption is a short concise memory device. For instance, the phonogram "ie" has two sounds sequenced by use frequency /e/ (long) - /i/ (long), its illustration is a slice of pie and its caption is "piece of pie"; the phonogram "ea" has three sounds sequenced by use frequency /e/ (long) - /e/ (short) - /a/ (long), its illustration is a child eating bread, its caption is "eating bread is great". The "keywords" are not random words with the first letter representing the phonogram (letter) such as a=apple.

15. Why are spelling words taught in the order of use frequency?

Dr. Leonard Ayers ferreted out the one-thousand words in most common use in the everyday world and by numerous tests has arranged these in the order of increasing difficulty, marking off the points at which each successive grade could use the spelling word list.

Teaching the Extended Ayers Spelling Word List of the 1000 (plus derivatives) of the most commonly used words taught in the order of use frequency, explains  most of the spelling problems in the English language in words that we use most often.

The spelling words are the building blocks of the language. The first 100 spelling words make up 30% of all that we read and write. The student needs to learn to write these words without needing to pause, analyze or think.

In order for the beginning student to learn to construct literate English sentences they must learn spelling words in order of use frequency; not only words in categories or of the letters/phonograms being taught. From the beginning the students construct oral and written sentences using the words from their Spelling Notebooks. The sentences are read aloud to the class. When the logic of the language is clearly taught, students spell their way to reading.

16. Why is spelling taught before reading?

Phonics awareness and auditory processing skills can be more precisely and efficiently taught through spelling rather than randomly taught through "implicit" phonics applied to pronouncing words for reading. Phonics for reading alone gives only approximate pronunciations for many words.

Early learning of correct spelling patterns (while avoiding programming or misinformation such as "invented" spellings), allows elementary students to write with increased precision and creativity. As a result, they can then read at their interest and speaking vocabulary levels, enjoying quality literature with its obvious benefits.

The student's first reading "in context" experience is to read the sentences she/he  has written from the spelling words. Correct spellings of words are the same as standard "book print". Accurate spelling guarantees fluent reading.

In the spelling lessons the students obtain the basic knowledge of how the written language works. At the completion of the spelling list at the end of the 3rd grade the student can decode (read/pronounce) the longest of unfamiliar words syllable by syllable.

At this point, students are able to read anything in their comprehension vocabularies, about 30,000 words. Compare these with the 900 words third-graders are able to read using Whole Language.

17. How important are the spelling rules?

This method teaches 29 spelling rules in the phonogram dialogues and with the spelling words. The spelling rules are not taught in isolation. The spelling words are referenced to the spelling rules and the students Worksheets and are coordinated through the "Sequence" and presented with the Lesson Plans.

The knowledge of spelling rules is a real short cut to spelling accuracy. Learning one rule for many words is much easier than memorizing each word individually as is taught in whole language.

The sound/symbol relationship and spelling rules that should be taught with phonograms and spelling words are  highly relevant because those that do not know them cannot learn to spell except by whole-word memorization. About 10% of students have enough photographic memory to do quite well. Around 30% lack this visual ability and another 50% cannot perform this task well. The failure to teach English as a sound/symbol/rules system causes sustained frustration, slow thought, low self-esteem and failure for at least 60% of writers and readers.

18. Does this method teach the "schwa" unstressed vowel sound /uh/?

Worldwide English spellings are relatively uniform, whereas speech is very diverse. We use "Think to Spell" as a memory device; the word is sounded and spelled the way it is written. Then it is pronounced in the normal speech of the student.

In the rhythm of speech, vowels in unstressed syllables are often muffled and sound like /uh/, this is called "schwa". Unless we "think" the vowel as it is written, spelling will not be accurate.

We pronounce the word "about" /uh/.bout. In spelling we stress the /a/.bout (long a) and say in speech /uh/bout. We pronounce the word "account" /uh/.count. In spelling we stress the /ac/.count (short a) and say in speech /uh/.count. We stress the vowel according to the applicable  spelling rule.

In reading, if none of the vowel's sounds work for their normal speech, then the student is advised to try the schwa sound /uh/ (rel./a/.tive, rel./uh/.tive; al.ledge,/uh/.ledge). In this program the two schwa vowel sounds that are of concern are "a" (ago) and "e" (agent). The schwa sound of vowel "o" as in love (being so numerous) has been added as its third sound. The schwa sound of vowel "u" as in circus (for practical purposes) is the same as its first sound. The schwa sound of vowels "i" and "y" need not concern most learners.

"Think to Spell" is used for words with double consonants; both are pronounced for spelling (ap.ple, lit.tle, fol.low, sum.mer).

19. Isn't the freedom to work with "invented" spelling important?

Using "invented" spellings for composition naturally leads to trouble with reading. Accurate spelling is the road to reading; it corresponds to printed material and is critical to the reading process. Incorrect spelling practice "wires" the brain wrong and tends to be permanent; it is strongly associated with reading disability.

Complete phonics taught explicitly is directed to spelling applications. Learning to spell words through the dictation process phonogram-by-phonogram, syllable-by-syllable creates a long term memory base more quickly and efficiently than just noting what is already on the page to be spelled or read. (Also see #16.)

20. How can schools and parents help students, 4th grade to college, that are poor readers and spellers learn to read with comprehension, spell accurately & write compositions?

Building a solid  phonetic language arts foundation is more important, at this time, than attempting to acquire more academic skills without this foundation. Learning the 72 Orton Phonograms and the Ayres 1000 high frequency spelling word list with the 29 Spalding spelling rules will accelerate students to higher learning that utilizes the abilities to read with comprehension, spell accurately and write original compositions.

The teaching instructions are necessarily written for classes of beginners, whether in Kindergarten or 1st grade. Older students beginning with this method, regardless of their other training in lower grades, need this same teaching method and practice, as do the students just entering school although they proceed at a faster pace. All learners need to begin at the beginning of the program and progress through it using the "Sequence" to insure that they do not have gaps in their basic phonetic knowledge.

Much reading aloud, in class or at home is needed to develop the habit of reading accurately. In reading we are trying to learn from the author and not to substitute our ideas for theirs. Reading aloud can develop the habit of precise enunciation and improves both vocabulary and grammar. This practice in the skills of reading as well as learning to get the ideas from the printed page is essential. Correct meanings can only be learned from accurate reading. The student should work out new words as they occur. Words that present difficulties are not told or taught ahead of the story but are sounded out to produce the correct word.

This study should integrate teaching the use of the dictionary, building derivatives, sentence and paragraph construction with punctuation and writing compositions based on history, science and literature. Many literary quality books are read aloud in class or at home.

When teaching the complete program in school is not feasible, then it should be done at home. Schools can easily teach commonly used correct spelling patterns found in the 72 Orton Phonograms to help the students to become better spellers and readers. With little supervision, the students can teach these to themselves using the "Phonics Codes for English Illustrated DVD (Y03D) along with the "Phonogram Sheets".

21. How can I get my 7th grader who reads at the 1st grade level to believe that they won't fail with "just on more method"?

We need to remove the "blame" for failure from them. Far too often, they have been told that they are incapable of learning - in fact that they are the problem or that their parents are. They are suffering from "sustained frustration" (Retarding America, The Imprisonment of Potential " by Michael S. Brunner 1993) from the inability to learn to read in public schools. They fail over and over again because most of their school hours are spent being asked to do things no one has yet taught them to do. This is very demeaning to them. "Invented' spellings and "Picture Clues" are examples of this type of academic activity. These children must be made to understand that the methods used with them previously have not been correct and have not addressed their leaning style. The Orton-Spalding method has been known to bring 13 & 14-year-olds grade levels up 4 grades within a summer.

22. What is the value of marking the spelling words?

The marking system of the spelling words causes the student to analyze the word and respond with a kinesthetic action that reinforces the correct spelling.

The marking system helps us to define the way our language works. This simple system uses underlining, numbers, x'es and brackets. These markings tell us how to pronounce words that are spelled the same but are pronounced differently, which phonograms are used, which Silent Final e is used, and which sound of the phonogram's sequence is used etc.

Dr. Sylvia Farnham-Diggory, "Schooling" (1990) explains: "Spalding's most remarkable contribution is her invention of the marking system that enables children to connect spelling rules to reading. The marking system is the bridge that connects spelling to reading. After a few hours of practice children find themselves spontaneously marking, mentally, words they see on street signs, buildings, and so on. They "see" these words in their marked form. They are developing, in effect, a coded sight vocabulary. They are not merely recognizing words by sight but are, at the same time, recognizing, what parts of them embody generalizable rules. This provides the student with guidelines for reading by analogy."

23. How are the programs taught "step-by-step"?

In the "Phonics for English Reading, Spelling & Writing Express" programs the "Sequence" gives the step-by-step order of teaching the program for the experienced and inexperienced teacher, tutor or parent for both classroom and one-to-one teaching. The "Sequence" coordinates the how and when of presentation and integrates the subjects to be taught .

24. What is meant by a "non-consumable " program?

 The Program Manuals contain the Teaching Instructions, Lesson Plans and the Ayers Spelling Word List. The Worksheets and Phonogram Sheets for Coloring, Handouts & Wall Charts are on reproducible masters for copying for the student's use.

25. What is taught in the first 5 weeks in order to begin reading? In the "Phonics for English Reading, Spelling & Writing Express" program:

• They will be introduced to phonemic awareness of the 45 sounds heard in English speech using the Phonogram Flash Cards and the Phonics Codes for English Illustrated Phonogram DVD (Y03D), CD (Y03C).

• They will learn 56 of the 72 Orton Phonograms using the multi-sensory method of seeing, hearing and saying the phonograms sound sequences and writing the alphabet letters. The phonograms are easy-to-learn with the illustrated phonogram sound sequence keyword caption coloring/handout sheets & the DVD/CD.

• They will learn 150 of the 1000 Ayers Spelling Words taught in the order of use frequency, as that is the easiest way to learn to construct literate English sentences.

• They will learn 10 of the 29 Spalding Spelling Rules using the corresponding Lesson Plans & Students Worksheets.

• They will write and read sentences using words from their Spelling Notebook.

• They will be introduced to Vowels (long & short) & Consonants, Syllables, Nouns & Verbs.

Reading begins as students read words and construct sentences from their Spelling Notebooks. The students will have instant recognition of high frequency words and do not require controlled vocabulary basal readers. Choose interesting beginning literature, reading is for the discovery of the author's story.

26. Isn't  the Orton method for Special Education? I have heard that it is not needed for normal students.

Dr. Sylvia Farnham-Diggory, cognitive psychologist at the University of Delaware, “Cognitive Processes in Education” (1992). After reviewing over 100 methods described in Dr. Robert Aukerman’s book,  “Approaches to Beginning Reading”, she states:

“We did find only one published program that was extremely helpful, in part because of its practical guidance, and in part because of its theoretical insights, which were well ahead of their time. The program was developed on the 1920’s, but not published until the 1950’s, by Romalda Spalding, “The Writing Road to Reading” (1957-1989-2003).Spalding was an elementary teacher and a student of a famous neurologist named Samuel Orton who specialized in what are called “learning disabilities” especially in the study and remedial treatment of a severe reading disorder called “dyslexia”.

Although Orton’s approach is over 60 years old, it is still surprisingly sound neurologically. He foresaw many principles of contemporary nueropsychology that awaited new technology for their verification. He also saw, logically, how a brain must be instructed.

Spalding had discovered that her reading disabled students, using Orton’s methods, were learning to read better that her normal students were. So she adapted Orton’s methods, adding some innovations of her own, for all students.”

27. Does this method work for dyslexic students?

In medical references, dyslexia is essentially defined as "failure to see or hear similarities or differences in letters or words, a tendency to substitute words for those he cannot see". The present definition refers to reading disorders known or unknown, frequently resulting in letter or word reversal.

A compelling hypothesis is that those students who no longer had dyslexic symptoms after having been taught the phonograms explicitly were not dyslexic to begin with, but only suffering from a lack in their educational training.

Students who are dyslexic need more time to practice to develop good reading skills, but the end result will be fluency in reading with excellent comprehension.

Also see #28.

28.Testimonial and Tips on Teaching English as a Second Language (ESL/TEFL)

English is the global language in today’s world. It is estimated that over a billion people are in the process of learning English. It is the main language of books, newspapers, science & technology, diplomacy, international competitions, pop music and advertising. It is also the language of media and business - with more than 80% of international companies using it for communication.

Carmen Cobbett , B.SC., is a Certified TEFL Instructor and Graduate of University of Michigan. Her interest in teaching English as a foreign language started when she was an English tutor at the university’s English Composition Board (EBC). She has served as an Examination Officer for several overseas English Entrance Exams that assess ESL university applicants to US universities. She and her family moved from Michigan in the USA to Singapore where she now tutors all ages and levels of students in ESL. She says:

Carmen uses the Phonics for English Reading, Spelling & Writing Express Program, she says, “when I dictate the phonograms”. Dictation is saying and blending the sounds of the word, phonogram-by-phonogram, syllable-by-syllable for the student to write without previously viewing the word. She is saying that the students learn better pronunciation with this method, she infers that they learn to speak through writing the words from dictation. Which of course they do; the same as they learn to read by learning to spell. So the sequence is: Write and Spell to Read and Speak.

If you want to teach your young child (birth to 5 or 6) English, see the “Yes, Your Baby Is A Genius” programs. Children and students (k-college) should use one of the “Phonics for English Reading, Spelling & Writing Express” programs

 If you are teaching a short class or in a situation where you are teaching only conversational English you should get the 72 Orton Phonogram products. The phonograms are the base to build on for speaking, writing, spelling and reading English. The “Phonics Codes for English”DVD or CD used along with the “Phonograms Sheets” for students use is an excellent source to teach the 45 sounds heard in English speech especially if English is not your first language. If English is your first language then you may prefer the phonogram flash cards.

 29. Who should use the YesPhonics™ programs and when should a child begin?

Everyone can learn how to read, no matter what their age or problem. The Orton Phonograms are the primary phonics codes and word-building tools  all readers and writers of English need in order to reach their highest potential. These programs are for all ages and reading levels from beginners to advanced learners.

The "Phonics for English Reading, Spelling & Writing Express program is sequenced  for Levels 1-3 (for beginning students K-3rd grade). Many children can begin the programs earlier at home. Other learners should start at the beginning and work through the program to insure they do not have gaps in their basic phonics knowledge.

Teachers, tutors, parents & self-learners use the programs in schools and homeschools. Students K-College, Gifted, Special Education, Self-Learning: Career Advancement, Remedial, High School, College and ESL/EFL students also use the programs.

30. Are the Phonics Codes for English  Illustrated Phonogram DVD (Y03D) and Phonics Codes for English Phonogram DVD (Y03IID) for the Students/Children or for the Teachers?

The "Phonics Codes for English Illustrated Phonogram DVD" (Y03D) is used for teaching and learning the phonograms' sound sequences and dialogues. The DVD shows the 72 Orton Phonograms through once and is 26 minutes long. The phonogram with its illustration and caption are  shown together on the flashcard. (Steaming DVD extracts may be accessed from the pages that have the DVD as a program component and from its own page.

The 72 Phonogram Flashcards are shown and called by number. The sound sequence and dialogue is said twice. The students and teacher may say the sound sequence with the speaker the second time. The speaker says the keyword caption once.

The teacher may use the DVD to enhance phonemic awareness of the 45 sounds heard in English speech; Showing the DVD once or twice before beginning to teach the phonograms with writing the letters will accomplish this. Showing the DVD first also gives the students an idea of what to expect, and some practice of seeing, hearing and saying the 45 sounds.

The DVD is then used for learning the phonograms, for review and for drill. The phonogram's sound sequence should be rehearsed until the phonogram stands out as a sound in a word. Only with repetition over a period of time will these concepts be retained.

The "Phonics Codes for English Phonogram DVD" (Y03IID) is used for teaching and learning the  phonograms' sound sequences and dialogues. The DVD shows (only) the 72 Orton Phonograms without illustrations or captions.

The 72 Phonograms are shown as the phonogram's sound sequence and dialogue is said once The phonograms are shown through 3 times for a total tape of 21 minutes. They are separated in sections of 10 for control (Streaming DVD extracts may be accessed from the page that has the DVD as a program component  and from its own page.

Infants and preschool children may accelerate precise speech, receive phonemic awareness and learn the phonogram sound sequences and dialogues simply by playing the DVD in their space without instruction.

31. Who can use the "Yes, Your Baby Is A Genius" Program?

This is a right-brain teaching program for children from birth to 5 years old. Babies have a rage for learning; it's more fun than anything else. You can develop the Genius of your baby while "playing" a few minutes each day.

You can teach your baby virtually anything that you can present in an honest an factual way. Babies are born with incredible abilities including: photographic memory, speed-reading, computer-like calculation, high-speed memorization, image visualization, multiple language learning capabilities and perfect pitch.

By using this method for learning to read, children will know hundreds of words by the age of 3 and can read almost any text by the age of 5.

Early educational research and  experience proves that children can learn quickly and easily from conception and lose this ability as they grow older. The "window of opportunity" to easily develop right-brain capabilities is wide open until age 3, it then gradually closes to become almost totally left-brain by age 6.

   Some children with brain injury, mental retardation and Down’s Syndrome have good learning abilities. In these children right brain teaching is the more important to influence the quality of the left-brain. The right brain enables the child to learn subconsciously as well as  to automatically process large amounts of information at high speed. The left-brain processes small amounts of information at a slow speed. The critical period for teaching these children with the right-brain method is from ages 0-3 years old.

  This method has been well tested and documented over many years with children of various mental capacities; it has been developed in the United States as well as in Japan. Many parents have seen amazing results with it use for 30 minutes a day (parent time).

ALL BABIES ARE GENIUSES!!!

32. What is the difference between the reading methods for teaching right-brain, "Yes, Your Baby Is A Genius" (Birth to 5 or 6 years old) and left brain "Phonics for English Reading, Spelling & Writing Express " (k-college) program?

The right-brain method is based on using phonogram and whole word flash cards presented at high speed. This  is perfect for infants because of the right brain photographic memory. They can learn any amount of words that can be prepared and presented to them. They gradually lose this ability as they grow older, between ages 3 to 5 or 6. After age 5 only about 10% of children retain enough  photographic memory to be able to do well with whole word (whole language).

With the right-brain method a child will read almost any text by the age of 5, however this does not translate to spelling. At age 5 they should begin the left-brain training method to learn the spelling words taught in order of use frequency, writing structure, spelling rules and grammar.

  Whole-brain education is accomplished by developing the right brain and connecting it to the left-brain, enabling both sides of the brain to work together in balance.

About the Right-Brain Teaching Method & Program, How to Teach and Results

See: [Yes, Your Baby Is A Genius 1-Orton-Shichida-Doman Method Based Description]

Teaching Manuals, Programs & Components Descriptions and Purchase Information

See: [Yes, Your Baby Is A Genius 2-Manuals & Components Descriptions & Purchase]