“Mrs. Jones, I’m On Fire!!“
Can you Build Self-Confidence and Self-Pride with a Reading Program??? Really???
As a follow-up to my last blog post about developing self-confidence and self-pride with Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”, I want to share some quotes from my students and their parents:
“I never thought I’d learn to read, but I really am reading!”
“’Angie’ is actually picking up books and reading them at home for enjoyment now! We never thought that would happen. We’re so proud of her!” (Just 4 months after starting tutoring with me.)
“I have an ‘A’ in my 7th grade English class this trimester, and I’m not in special education anymore! Can you believe it?” (Two, YES TWO of my 7th graders told me that just last week!)
“I have to tell you about writing my (10th grade) English paper. I only had four words come up with red, wiggly lines under them! I’m such a good speller now!”
“My husband and I came home last night to find ‘Marcus’ and his sister sitting at the kitchen table reading Harry Potter together! Two years ago, he couldn’t read at all!”
“Mrs. Jones, when I’m reading with you, I’m on FIRE!” a second grader constantly and proudly tells me.
So how does this happen?
How can a reading program elicit such success that it bubbles right out of the children learning with it?
The very first key IS the program—a program that really does teach the learner the way the learner learns.
As you know, I developed Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e” to do that very thing. I spent years researching, writing, editing, rewriting, piloting, and rewriting again to make absolutely sure that Silent Elephant “e”’s activities were dynamic, thought provoking and taught the learner the way he/she learns.
The second key that I have not really emphasized before is how I wrote Silent Elephant “e” to set a solid unshakeable foundation for each learner.
To be successful, readers MUST have that stable unshakeable footing and to achieve this “cement-like” foundation that will not wobble around on them, Silent Elephant “e” begins by assessing to find their personal level of success, wherever that may be.
Finding their personal level of success begins for ALL learners by assessing their knowledge of phonemic awareness. Silent Elephant “e”’s phonemic awareness assessments begin with the basics—individual sounds within a word. Just individual sounds and where the individual sounds are in a word.
From that starting point, we continue assessing, taking note of their strengths and their successes and watching for that spot where they begin to be challenged—where their foundation has cracks or crumbles.
When we find where they “wobble”, we back up and settle down into their personal level of success and begin teaching from there.
When we teach from their personal level of success, they learn easily and retain everything. They are not grasping, confused, or stumbling trying to understand what is being presented. They learn each concept presented and how it links to what they already know. Their foundation strengthens, solidifies.
The third key is how Silent Elephant “e” presents each concept. Silent Elephant “e” moves forward methodically, carefully, as slow or as quickly as the learner needs making absolutely sure that each new concept becomes their new personal level of success.
In this deliberate way, concept-by-concept their foundation becomes solid, their understanding of themselves as successful readers grows, their self-confidence blossoms, and they become eager to take risks—to try the new. Their pride in themselves is unmistakable and a joy to behold!
Every student (Kindergartners through high schoolers) I tutor at home or work with at school when I volunteer have needed to begin with Lesson 1 in Phonemic Awareness! Everyone!! Missing this foundational piece in learning to read is the reason they have struggled or failed to learn to read!
Upon completing just a few lessons in phonemic awareness, many children have said their first words of self-confidence and self-pride to me, “Reading is actually making sense! I can hear the single, individual sounds in words now. I never heard that before! I think I will be able to learn to read!”
So, how does a reading program effect their self-confidence and self-pride?
By being the one that was written for them!
By being the one that makes them burst out, “Mrs. Jones, I’m on FIRE!”
If you are questioning whether Silent Elephant “e” is the comprehensive reading, writing and spelling program you’d like to purchase, feel free to contact us.