To Her the Words Looked Like They Were Under a Magnifying Glass

Not every dyslexic learner experiences the words and letters moving around. Some do, and in those who do, they don't see it the same. Interesting. 

I’ve shared how Josie and one of my seven-year-old students opened my eyes by sharing what happens to the words and letters when they read. Since this revelation, I’m feeling even more joy in my teaching. (Here are links to the last two emails. Josie. Sweet seven-year-old) 

My meeting each and every student exactly where they are is even more astute, because I’m listening more intently, asking the right questions and teaching them how THEY learn using Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™.  

I’m continually amazed and very pleased that Silent Elephant “e”™ alone has made such a difference in their lives and that my asking the right questions has sparked a different awareness in me, making me an even better teacher.    

A few days after my little seven-year-old student shared that the letters jump around on the page, I asked one of my ninth-grade dyslexic students to explain what she saw on a page of printed material.

I had been trying many teaching techniques to help Ahva develop smoothness (fluency). When she read aloud, she would physically tense up and her breathing became extremely labored. Her anxiety and tenseness were palpable. It contributed to her choppy reading.

I had her read sentences several times stretching out vowel sounds to give her more time to think about what the ending sound in a word was and more time to contemplate the next word in the sentence.

She unconsciously began bobbing her head slowly with every word. I had her put her hand under her chin so she could feel the bobbing.

When the bobbing subsided, we began working on phraseology. I taught her how to find prepositional phrases in sentences.

As she is in Part 14 now, I had her read the following sentence: “The lanky man in the dark blue suit was hurriedly walking toward the cashier at the counter to deposit money in his savings account.”

We discussed that our brains always strive for meaning. Our brains naturally break sentences into phrases: “The lanky man - in the dark blue suit - hurriedly walked - toward the cashier - at the counter - to deposit money - in his savings account.”

I taught her to focus on the questions her brain would naturally ask as it sought meaning in what she was reading:

• What about the lanky man?

• What is he wearing?

• Where did he walk?

• Where is the cashier?

• Why did he go to the bank?

• Where is he depositing his money?

 She did begin to read with more fluently, smoother, but she couldn’t read a phrase that was longer than three or four words smoothly, even though I encouraged her to try to smoothly combine two short phrases in one breath.

I would have her read each sentence several times to practice. After reading a sentence several times, she ultimately read it smoothly as if in conversation.

However, I was still concerned that she needed multiple repetitions of a sentence to reach conversational fluency.

Thinking of Josie, I asked this awesome, conscientious ninth grader to explain what she saw on a page of printed material.

She explained that she could see a space of about 1.5 to 2 inches clearly and all around that space of clarity everything was distorted and stretched!

I sat stunned!

I asked her, “Is that why you only read three or four words smoothly and then have a long break before the next three or four words, and after practicing the sentence several times you appear to read it smoothly, because you have it memorized?”

She smiled at me a little shyly, and said, “Yes. Now you understand.”
Wow!
Ahva’s brain focuses on printed materials in a hyper focused way, much like a magnifying glass, where the center is super clear, but the periphery is distorted.     

I sat admiring this young woman for her tenacity and positive mindset. I was in awe. I shared with her how Josie and my seven-year old saw print. I could see the relief on her face when she realized I understood and that she wasn’t alone seeing words differently. She was relieved there was help.

Here is Ahva’s story in her own words:  
“Before I first came to tutoring with Linda, I just avoided ever reading on my own or in front of people. If I ever did read, within an hour I would get dizzy and have to stop. It was hard for me.

I would panic if I were called on to read in class. I’d feel sad about it afterwards and think I was just dumb or not trying hard enough.

I would try to read. It felt like the words were always moving depending on where I looked on the page.

Due to that, I would start to read and get two or three words read and get stuck on each group of 3 words that followed.

Now that I’ve been working with Linda, I have improved hugely. I can now get through sentences without freezing. My head hurting when reading has almost completely gone away. I am now willing to read in front of people!

I am VERY happy with where I am now in reading, and I am very thankful for having Linda help me through it! Not to mention she is a very good and kind woman whom I am very happy to call my friend!”
Ahva, 14 years old
This is amazing. I am so proud of her for being able to share her story with us!

Even though I wrote Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™ to teach dyslexic learners the way they learn, I’m still happily amazed at how the strategies and activities written into every component of every lesson also takes care of the letters and words moving and shifting. 

Silent Elephant “e”™ does the trick because of continual engagement of every part of their brain, in every SINGLE thing they do throughout EVERY lesson. It’s sort of magic. But really, Silent Elephant “e”™ teaches them the way THEY learn.

If you are questioning whether someone in your life is dyslexic and you’re not sure what to do, feel free to contact us here silentelephante@gmail.com. 

And last, your child (children) may not be struggling to learn to read, but you may know someone who is, please share this blog post. 

Contact us here - silentelephante@gmail.com Linda Smith-Jones 208-859-4406

Silent Elephant “e” Stops the Words and Letters From Jumping Around

In my last email (link here), Josie’s shared with us how she used to struggle with learning to read, write and spell and how differently she learns now because of Silent Elephant “e”™.

What a change from the shy, introverted, frightened of failure young girl I met to the beautifully confident and self-assured high school student she is today. Her life turned a complete 360.
 
Josie’s revelation about how the letters and words used to jumble up for her when she was reading and how the activities and strategies in Silent Elephant “e”™ stopped them from doing that made me so much more aware.
 
As I am teaching, I’m listening to my students for greater understanding. I’m listening more carefully as they share with me.
 
Just last month one of my seven-year-olds told me the letters were jumping off the page when she was trying to read!
 
I stopped short! This put me in my careful listening mode.
 
In the past, before Josie wrote about her experiences, I may have just listened politely to this little one without truly understanding what she was trying to explain to me.
 
She was really asking for help.
 
She was feeling comfortable enough in our relationship to share what she thought other people would think was silly—after all, letters don’t jump off a page.
 
But they did for her. 

Now because of Josie’s brave sharing of her own journey, I approach comments like this very differently. I know I need to know more.
 
I know I must ask questions and I must ask the right questions. I have to truly understand as well as I can what is going on with my students in order to guide each of them to becoming the successful reader I know they will become!
 
I knew I needed to honor what she was experiencing, so with this little one, I began gently asking questions to help her share more of what she was seeing such as:

• Do the letters jump up towards your eyes? (“No.”)

• Do the letters jump onto empty, blank space on the paper? (“No,” she replied rather sadly. I could tell that she wished the letters did land in a blank space.)

• Do the letters land on top of other letters? (“Yes.”)

• Do the letters land on top of other words? (“Yes.”)

• What is it like to see letters jumping on top of other letters and other words? (“It’s very hard to tell exactly what letters or words I am supposed to look at. It’s very messy.”)

I knew she was feeling very frustrated with trying to read, but sharing her frustration with me about the letters jumping around was helping her relax a little.
         
I suddenly remembered my dyslexic daughter telling me when she was little that tall letters slid across the lines to hook up to other words. She said tall letters from the next word would slide over to the word she was trying to read, so she would often add those sounds to the word she was reading. When she pronounced the word wrongly out loud, she realized it was incorrect because it was out of context. She would then struggle to correct it.
 
I have always sensed my daughter’s and my struggling students’ frustration. I have always known of their pain and sense of helplessness.

But now, I am so pleased that I can truly offer them hope, because I know from Josie’s experience that Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™ is helping many children. (Here's the link to Josie.)
 
When I think about what Josie shared, I’m excited because I KNOW that my young seven-year-old will soon no longer experience the letters jumping off the page. She will soon be reading fluently and feeling confident.
 
I also realize, happily, that Silent Elephant “e”™ has probably helped many of my students who never mentioned the letters and words moving but experienced them stopping as they learned to read with Silent Elephant “e”™.
 
This is a wonderful realization and a happy understanding to share.
 
Silent Elephant “e”™ is the answer! Silent Elephant “e”™ is here to help. It stops the movement and jumbling of letters and words that some dyslexic learners experience when they try to read. It sets their life on a success path.
 
This is such a good feeling - there’s a path to success laid out ahead for them. It’s fun, it’s engaging, they love it – it’s Silent Elephant “e”™!

If your child has ever quietly mentioned letters or words moving around, contact us. We will set up a path of success.

If your child is dyslexic, contact us. Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™ was written to ensure that dyslexic learners learn to read. It teaches them the way they learn by activating all parts of their brain with fun and engaging activities throughout every lesson.

AND, even if your child is not dyslexic, they will also love learning to read with Silent Elephant “e”™. They will fly! (This little kindergartener never looked back. Here's the link to her story.)
 
Click here to explore our website. Click here to email us for information.

"The Words and Letters Would Jumble Up" - Josie in Her Own Words

She Shared How the Letters and Words Moved

I had no idea how the sweet, shy girl who walked in my door would open my eyes and stop me in my tracks.

Today Josie’s a bright, happy, full of life, confident young teenager. She often makes me giggle while we are working together. She is not the person who walked my door.

Josie began tutoring with me because she struggled with reading, writing and spelling. At that time, she was so painfully shy that she could barely lift her eyes to look at me—her self-confidence was rock bottom.

It was obvious after visiting with her for just a few minutes, that she is a bright, intelligent girl. I knew I could help her, and so our journey began.

During the time we have worked together, Josie diligently persevered with a positive attitude attempting every learning task I presented to her in Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™.

I have seen subtle changes in her as her reading, writing, and spelling skills grow. She is now a smooth, fluent reader with excellent comprehension!

I have watched her self-confidence blossom. Now her head is held high; her shoulders back as she smiles self-assuredly when I ask her to read and when I ask her questions. Her eyes meet mine with strength and confidence.

My heart bursts with pride for her every time she walks in the door.

A few weeks ago, Josie reached a place of feeling so secure in herself that she felt at ease sharing how she used to struggle in reading and learning. She shared what she sees now when she reads words and how my tutoring and Silent Elephant “e”™ has helped her.

I sat in amazement as she shared. I listened silently. My heart went out to her.

I felt that I understood much of what she was telling me and I could empathize with her, but I also felt that there was so much more she wanted to share if she could find the words (and SO much more I wanted to understand).

I asked her if she would write about her struggles to explain to me exactly what reading used to be like for her and how it has changed. I also asked her to write about her feelings. This is what she wrote:

“Prior to tutoring with Linda, when I looked at words, they appeared scrambled and jumbled.  Random letters from other words on the page would combine with the actual letters within a word I was trying to read.

Linda has taught my brain how to break down words, so when I’m focusing, I don’t see scrambled or jumbled words anymore.

I am able to read and see all of the phonics rules we learned by imagining the colors we used for each rule. If I have to read a tough word, my brain will picture the color parts that I need to read the word. I also remember the colored posters that I learned for the rules.

First I look for prefixes, suffixes and root words. Next I look for where the purple line(s) will be to divide the word into syllables. I listen to the syllable parts in my head. I look for small words within the word. Usually by then, I get the word. I don’t have to do all of these steps all of the time.

I like reading more now than I used to. When I was younger, I hated reading. I would get so frustrated. I didn’t want to read.

I really liked picture books, and I loved being read to.

I still don’t like to read out loud in class.

After tutoring with Linda, I love to read. It’s fun. ELA (English, Language Arts) is my favorite subject in school now. Josie Age 13”
 
Are you as stunned as I to learn of all of her difficulties and challenges; that letters moved around on the page and were scrambled and jumbled? When I read her beautifully written piece, I sat amazed.

In all the time I have tutoring her I never knew that letters were moving around the page for her!

I did actually notice when Josie first began coming to tutoring with me that she was having difficulties with clarity and focusing in on words when she was reading. I asked her mom if she would consider taking her to an eye doctor. Josie did need glasses and wears them now.

The glasses do help with clarity, but they can’t stop the letters from moving on the page. What stabilized the letters on the page for Josie were the colors and the teaching techniques I use in Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™.

Josie’s confidence and ability to share her experiences and feelings opened a giant door for me.  Because of her, I am asking better questions of my struggling students. I am asking them what they are seeing on the pages. This is continuing to open doors of understanding for me.

I thank Josie from the bottom of my heart for feeling the confidence to share and helping me become a better teacher. She has helped me understand the importance of Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™ yet again. Without Silent Elephant “e”™ she would be a painfully shy 13-year-old desperately struggling to understand her world instead of the confident, head high student who moves about her classrooms feeling in complete control of her learning.

Next time I will share the experience of two more students who answered, “What do you see on the page?”   It’s eye opening.

If you are questioning whether someone in your life is dyslexic and you’re not sure what to do, feel free to contact us.

Linda Katherine Smith-Jones                              Nina Henson

For the First Time Ever, She Felt Brave Enough to Read Aloud in Class (Even Science!)

For the First Time Ever, She Felt Brave Enough to Read Aloud in Class (Even Science!)

“Mrs. Jones, can I tell you what happened to me at school today?” This question came from my student Becca at the beginning of our tutoring session.

 
“Of course!” I quickly replied.
 
Becca started sharing, “My 504 Plan says I’m not supposed to be called on in class to read aloud. It makes me extremely nervous. But my science teacher called on me to read aloud today. I thought I’d try because the typing was on light blue paper. The light blue paper made it easier for me to read the words.”
 
I asked her, “How do you feel you did reading aloud?”
 
“I think I did pretty good. I read quickly and smoothly,” she happily replied.
 
“That’s wonderful to hear! You’re becoming a better and better reader every day! Do you think the light blue paper helped?” I questioned.
 
“Yes. My science teacher copies our work on pastel papers – pink, light blue, mint green and lavender - so we can organize them in our folders. The pastel papers make reading easier for me. It helps the letters in paragraphs – big chunks of sentences – to stop tilting back and forth so much.”
 
That gentle statement started my brain racing, “Tell me more about the letters tilting back and forth in paragraphs.”
 
I also smiled at myself and thought, “How could I be surprised when yet another one of my dyslexic students shares with me how the letters and words on the page move around for them?”
 
Becca continued, “When I look at a paragraph - a large chunk of sentences - the whole chunk tilts and rocks back and forth from side to side until I blink and refocus. This tilting motion used to make me dizzy until I got blue light lenses in my glasses.
 
“Also, when I try to read a sentence within a paragraph, the words blur, and the letters scrunch together with no space between the words. Then I blink and the words will usually become clear and move apart. I may need to blink a few times.”
 
Becca went on softly sharing her experiences, “Often, I lose what line I’m on and what word I’m on when reading silently or aloud, so I use my finger (finger tracking) to keep my place. If I lose my place, I try to refocus. When I’m reading aloud and try to refocus, I usually accidentally read the word above the word I’m supposed to be reading. Then I must try refocusing again until I find my place.
 
She smiled gently and shared as if an afterthought, “I’ve found that if I use pastel pink and aqua pens to write answers on my school papers it’s easier for me. I can’t use black because the black answers will blend in with the black text printed on the worksheet and then I don’t know where I am.”
 
Letters and words moving as they are reading is not uncommon for dyslexic learners, but not all dyslexic learners experience this either. Further, the letters and words moving is quite individual to the dyslexic learner. Many of my dyslexic students have shared how the letters and words move for them in completely different ways. (Click here to read other blog posts that describes how some of my dyslexic learners perceive the printed word. It's very interesting.)

 In Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™ I teach decoding words using multi-sensory activities, colors and symbols that stimulate and activate the parts of the dyslexic brain that aren’t easily activated for dyslexics. Silent Elephant “e”™’s symbols and colors have specific meanings that my students learn to help them as they decode and comprehend what they are reading. 
 
It has been my experience with my dyslexic students who have letters and words moving (even racing off the page) that the techniques they learn in Silent Elephant “e”™ begins to “control” the movement of words and letters. This makes it so much easier for them to learn to read and to read both out loud and silently. They begin to read quickly and smoothly and with great comprehension.
 
I was curious about Becca’s experience with the words and sentences moving. Had Silent Elephant “e”™ changed this for her like my other students? Was it Silent Elephant “e”™ that had helped her read aloud quickly and smoothly in class for the first time? I want her to use the tools that are helpful for her, but foremost I want her to rely on her knowledge of decoding.
 
Since she was sharing her experiences, I asked her to reflect on what she had learned with Silent Elephant “e”™ and how it helped her read smoothing and quickly.
 
A big smile spread over Becca’s face as she explained, “A while after I started tutoring with you, I began noticing  that I’m reading faster and smoother. I also don’t have to read things 5 to 8 times before I can understand what I read. I used to read something 3 or 4 times just to figure out what the words were. Then I would read it 2 to 4 more times to try to understand what I was reading. Now I just read something 2 or maybe 3 times and I feel good! I know what I’ve read!
 
“I feel that if I keep learning more with you (through Silent Elephant “e”™), I’ll be able to read something quickly and smoothly just once and completely understand what I’ve read,” she contentedly said.
 
“I totally believe that will happen,” I said.
 
“What do you think is helping you the most?” I asked.
 
Becca thought for a while and then said, “I can hear single sounds in words now (Phonemic Awareness, Part 1). Using the colors in phonics helps my brain focus on the parts of the words and keeps the letters from moving so much on the page. Spelling makes sense now too. Everything is just making so much more sense!”
 
I smiled. I could feel her joy and relaxation! “I’m so happy for you! We’ll keep working with Silent Elephant “e”™ and you’ll keep blazing along in reading!” We giggled with delight and anticipation.
 
I’ve talked several times with Becca’s mom over the last 7 months. Her mom tells me, “After just 6 hours of tutoring with you, I’m seeing so many differences in Becca. I asked her last night how she felt about tutoring. She said that she loved it.
 
Mom continued, “Hearing individual sounds in words was new for her. I never knew she couldn’t hear the individual sounds!
 
“Becca said that when you teach her, you teach in a way that makes everything make sense.”
 
When I talked to her mom last week, Mom said, “I don’t know how to explain this to you, but I’ll try. In the past, I’ve always worked with Becca on her spelling - trying to help her spell phonetically and trying to help her memorize sight words. Nothing worked.”
 
Mom continued, “I’ve tried to help her with her writing, because when she wrote, nothing really made sense. Her thoughts seemed disjointed and incomprehensible. I’d read back to her what she wrote and ask her if it made sense. She’d say, ‘No.’ But she had no ideas for how to fix her writing. I knew Becca had wonderful thoughts inside her. We could verbally discuss a story or book she’d read, but somehow Becca couldn’t get these awesome thoughts down on paper.
 
“But now, since tutoring with you,” Mom paused and emotionally told me, “Becca’s thoughts are flowing from her brain unto paper! The girl I knew that was inside is coming out for all to see! Becca’s spelling is remarkably better! Her sentences are coherent, making good sense and revealing her emotions!
 
“I just never knew how much Becca was struggling to achieve all that she did accomplish! I can never thank you enough!” Mom exclaimed.
 
“Thank you for telling me this. It means a lot to me to know that Becca is developing and advancing significantly in her reading writing and spelling. I’m so proud of her and happy for her!” I humbly said.
 

This is why I am a teacher. This is why I wrote Silent Elephant “e”™. Children need to be taught the way they learn best – the way they love to learn.
 
Here are a few general suggestions of tools that may help your dyslexic students if the letters move around when they read. These are also helpful when sending assignments to dyslexic students on the computer.

• First, use simple, clear font such as Century Gothic.

• When handwriting for them, use large clear letters

• Use larger font size

• Double space the text

• Print on light pastel colored paper

• Check into colored overlays

As Becca shared, there are tools that are very helpful to her. But what really changed Becca’s life and led her to feel brave enough to read aloud in science class was being taught to read the way HER brain learns.
 
This is what Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™ does -
it teaches dyslexic learners the way they learn – through multi-sensory, whole child, whole brain, whole body activities throughout every single concept. Therefore, every one of my students have become successful readers and students, even in college.
 
If you are concerned about your dyslexic learner, contact me. We’ll put our heads together and come up with the best path for your young one.
 
To further learn about and to try to imagine what it is like for Becca to read print, you might wish to watch a video by Googling “What do dyslexics see in print when trying to read?” Again, I have to mention that my experience has been that they all experience it differently so this is just an example of what they could possibly be experiencing.

Contact us here -

Linda Smith-Jones silentelephante@gmail.com

Nina Henson nina.silentelephante@gmail.com

Not So Much a Teachable Moment - Happy Holidays

Not So Much a Teachable Moment

Greetings this Holiday Season!

For me, pretty much every moment can be turned into, or already is, a teachable moment. It’s just the way I am, I LOVE teaching which makes it extremely easy for me to see almost everything as a teachable moment.
 
Though I realize the holidays are a dynamic time filled with teachable moments, I realize that when I have all my family around me opening presents, setting the table, cooking together, sitting down to enjoy our dinner, I’m not so much in a “teachable moment” mood.
 
I’m in a “I’m in love with all of them” mood. I love them.
I love spending time thinking about them and how wonderful and individual each of them is and how fun we are all together. For me, even in the middle of the hubbub, it’s a time of loving. It’s all about loving my family.
 
Now that I think about it, maybe that loving is a teaching moment – maybe that loving is me teaching me to relax and just love and enjoy them all and the wonderful gift they are in my life.
 
This is what I wish for you this Holiday Season – for YOU to find time in all the busy to realize how much you love your family and friends and enjoy that feeling of loving.
 
The best to all of you and yours!

Contact us at

silentelephante@gmail.com                               nina.silentelephante@gmail.com

COOKIE SCIENCE!

COOKIE SCIENCE!

Hello Friends,

Woah! Here we are in the midst of the holiday season and things are speeding up.

Sometimes it feels like our kiddo's learning can get pushed to the back burner at this time of the year, but it’s so important to keep their learning active. Long periods not focused on what they have learned and are learning makes it hard for them to retain the information, especially if they have dyslexia or any other learning difference.
 
Here are ideas centered around the fun of baking holiday cookies which takes the fun of learning into life knowledge areas as it keeps what they’ve learned active and growing.

    THE SCIENCE OF COOKIES    

The science of cookies is both yummy and “Wow, so that’s how cookie dough becomes cookies in the oven? I didn’t realize all of that!” 

1. This video brings all the steps happening in the oven from cookie dough to yummy cookie into view with simple explanation and art. It’s fun for every age. I enjoyed it.

1. This article adds to the info in the video. It goes into greater depth about exactly what is happening in the oven to that cookie. It gives you a lot of background info and will be perfect for your older kiddos.

1. Practicing reading and phonics –
   When your dough is becoming cookies in the over, you could use this article for reading and phonics instruction. Have your kiddos mark the vowels, digraphs, blends and syllables, then read the article.

1. The science -
   Comparing and contrasting the information on the video with the article sets their new science knowledge more firmly in their brains.

1. The next exploration into cooking science could be, “How does it get from raw ground beef to a hamburger on my bun?” or “How does is get from raw turkey to something we can’t WAIT to enjoy.” This exploration opens so much more science. 😊

 We’ve done science and reading, let’s take cookie baking into math. 

1. This recipe gives you both the standard and metric measurements for making the cookies.

2. This opens wonderful discussions and comparisons between the two.

Now let’s think Social Studies -
This recipe also opens comparison of cultures and countries. It’s from Great Britain, and the cookies are referred to both as biscuits and cookies for both countries. This opens the doors for learning about another culture, another country and how their customs are different from ours even though they are English speaking.
 
Have fun with these three. It’s been fun finding them for you.
I can’t wait to hear about your experiences.
 

Enjoy your children’s bright-eyed eagerness as you make memories this Holiday season. 

Contact us here with questions and thoughts. I’m eager to hear about your adventure with cookie science.

Keep a song in your heart!

Why Syllables are NOT a Mystery to Silent Elephant “e”™ Readers

Why Syllables are NOT a Mystery to Silent Elephant “e”™ Readers

Is the skill of dividing words into syllables a mystery to you? Do you really understand why dividing words into syllables is important?
 
This is for sure, it’s not mysterious to children learning to read with Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™.
 
When they reach Part 13, Level 1, they are typically at an instructional 6th grade reading level and have mastered the phonics rules for one syllable words.
 
They’re ready to dive into Parts 13 and 14. There they will learn how to divide multisyllabic words into syllables and learn why understanding how to divide words into syllables is important to their reading success.
 
In Parts 13 and 14 children become totally immersed in their learning of the 8 syllable rules because they are taught them using fun, whole body, multi-sensory activities that engage all their senses and multiple parts of their brain.
 
As they progress through Parts 13 and 14, they begin each day’s lesson by sharing all the syllable rules they’ve learned up to that point. At the end of Part 14, they easily and successfully share all 8 rules, how they use them and why.
 
Their knowledge of all 8 rules is tucked firmly “under their belt” ready to “move into action” whenever they need them. They are confident and clear about all syllable rules and easily begin to decode any new multisyllabic word they come upon.
 
At the end of Part 14, Level 1, children will be able to read any genre they’d like to read and apply their skills for dividing words into syllables to decode unknown words. Their reading vocabulary will continue to grow and grow, as will their reading ability level!
 

For you and your young learners, here’s the list of the 8 rules with clues that Silent Elephant “e”™ uses to support their fast progress in learning the rules and using them successful in their reading.
Rule 1: Every syllable has one vowel sound.
Clue: Rule #1 begins with “Every".

Rule 2: Compound words
Clue: “Into” is one of the easiest compound words at Kindergarten and first grade level.
 
Rule 3: Twins in the middle
Clue: Think of yellow.
 
Rule 4: Prefix/Root word                                             
Clue: Think of green first and then brown.
 
Rule 5: Root word/Suffix                                              
Clue: Think of brown first and then green.
 
Rule 6: VCCV & VCCCV
Clue: Use your fingers. (First, they’ll put up 4 fingers and then wiggle one at a time to show VCCV & then they’ll use all 5 fingers to show VCCCV.)
 
Rule 7: VCV                                                                             
Clue: The hardest syllable rule!
 
Rule 8: VV                                                                      
Clue: A bit tricky in the beginning, because your brain will always want to think of “two vowels go walking” first.
 
To further support you helping your young learners, here are some clues for accenting syllables:

• The first syllable of a root/base word is accented most of the time in English. ie: mon’e tar y, vig’il ance, hon’or ar y

• Prefixes and suffixes are never accented. ie: bond’age, re turn’, green’er, im plant’

• An ending syllable in a multi-syllable word ending with a “y”, “ie”, “ey” making a long “e” sound is never accented. ie.: dad’dy, cook’ie, kid’ney

• When there are twin/double consonants in the middle of a word, the unaccented syllable has the silent twin. ie.: funny = fun’ y, account = a count’

• When the twins in the middle are “c” or “g”, the syllable with the “c” or “g” making the hard sound will be the accented syllable. ie.: ac’ cent, sug’ gest, ac’ cept

Because Silent Elephant “e” learners review and share their knowledge of the rules at the beginning of each lesson and because of the multi-sensory activities that helped them learn the rules, they’ll have ALL the rules completely mastered at the end of Part 14.
 
From that point on they are free to pick up any book and feel successful. They have their knowledge of decoding multisyllabic words to help them decode any words they come across
 
When your young learner has completed Silent Elephant “e”™ Level 1, Parts 13 and 14, they will be at least at an instructional 7th grade reading level. This means they will be able to successfully read anything at a 6th grade reading level.
 
Typically, if children don’t have dyslexia or other learning differences, getting to this 6th grade level takes less than two years. If they have learning differences, it may take longer, maybe two years or more, but my experience has been with Silent Elephant “e”™, learning differences or not, they always get there.
 
They always become successful readers who love to read.
 
This is the important point, they always get there!
 
Every single student I’ve tutored has become a successful confident happy reader AND they’ve had fun along the way. They love reading and are eager and ready to read. Most of my students began Silent Elephant “e” way below grade level and were considered to always be a non-reader. With Silent Elephant “E”™ They ALL got there!
 
That, after all, is our vision!

Every child deserves to learn to read AND have fun doing it.

In this video I share a thorough overview of Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “E”™.  

If your child is dyslexic or has other learning differences, check out these blog posts.  
Of course, contact me at silentelephante@gmail.com and visit our website at silentelephante.com and our blog.  Both have TONS of info for you on teaching reading, writing and spelling.

YAY for DATA! YAY for Their SUCCESS!

YAY for DATA! YAY for Their SUCCESS!

I have 11 YEARS worth of Silent Elephant “e”™ data. 11 years!
 
I’ve been watching Silent Elephant “e™” truly change children’s lives (and their parent’s lives!) for 11 YEARS!
 
During those years, I’ve taught preschool through high school students who were struggling to read, write and spell. Some were staffed into special education. I have also had a few students who were not struggling at all but whose parents knew about Silent Elephant “e”™ and wanted their children to have a solid foundation in reading, writing and spelling.
 
Over the years my students have included those with:

• Dyslexia

• ADD or ADHD

• Speech and Language Disorders

• English Language Learners

• Autism

• Hearing Impairments

• Down Syndrome

• Dyspraxia

• Central Auditory Processing Disorder

• Low to Extremely Low IQ

• Other Learning Differences

• Those with No Learning Differences

 
I share all their differences, because IN SPITE OF their differences, they have ALL SUCCEEDED in becoming fluent, confident readers, writers and spellers. Some needed the gift of time, to move at their own pace slowly but steadily, which is a powerful component of Silent Elephant “e”™. Others quickly moved through the entire program.
 
THE point here is – THEY ALL HAVE SUCCEEDED!
 
Regardless of having learning differences or not, THEY ALL HAVE SUCCEEDED!
 
Are you ready to be impressed by the 11 years of data, the quick, amazing progress my kiddos are making in a short amount of time?

Over the last 11 years, students learning with Silent Elephant “e”™ 1 ½ - 2 hours/week, on average:

·Advanced 1 grade level for every 2 months of instruction. (Think of this: my students are not taking a school year to advance a grade level—they’re advancing multiple grade levels in one year.)

·Advanced to their age-appropriate grade level in 4 months (some in as little as 2 ½ months). (Some of them were 2-6 years behind their grade level when they began learning with Silent Elephant “e”.)

·Advanced 4 grade levels with 6 months of instruction. (😊 Wow!)

·Mastered Part 1, Phonemic Awareness within 3 months. (In 3 months, they understood the basics of written language and were ready to fly!)

In these last 11 years, 9 of my students have successfully exited out of special education which is unheard of. All nine of them are now competent, confident students who are having a good time in school learning easily and are proud of themselves.

Also in these 11 years, I have been able to support parents and teachers in their decision to refrain from placing a child in special education because the student was being tutored using Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e™” and both the school and the parents knew the success of Silent Elephant “e”™ students.  

I’m so pleased to share all of this with you!

 
I’m so proud of all those whose lives have been touched by Silent Elephant “e”™ (students and parents) from the beautiful, profoundly dyslexic young woman who is no longer struggling and is in her junior year of college majoring in neuroscience to the sparkling little one who began second grade this fall reading on a sixth-grade level after two years of learning with Silent Elephant “e”™ beginning in her Kindergarten year.  

If you are wondering how Silent Elephant “e”™ can support your children as their (and your) comprehensive pre-school to college reading, writing, and spelling program, please email me at silentelephante@gmail.com or call me at 208-859-4406. You will love watching their success as much as I do.   

Keep a song in your heart!

OK! It Only Took 2 Years for Them to be Reading on a 6th Grade Level, Now What?

After my last blog post when I shared how my data and my experience shows that it only takes 2 years with Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™ for kids to be reading words at a sixth-grade level, I could hear some of you wondering, “After my 8-year-old is reading 6th grade level words, what do we do in reading, writing and spelling?”

Well, the fun continues. It just shifts a little.
 
Comprehension is an integral part at every stage of learning with Silent Elephant “e”™, but once your child is decoding at an instructional 6th grade reading level, your main focus will shift to comprehension.
 
Of course, you’re never going to leave out phonics instruction totally, as children need continual review and more practice with higher level vocabulary words and sentence structure. Silent Elephant “e”™ has you covered there, too.
 
Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™ provides you with an excellent review of all phonics rules using higher level vocabulary in Level 2, which brings your child’s word recognition skills to 9th grade reading level. Then, even higher levels of vocabulary and sentences in Level 3, brings your child’s word recognition to a 12th grade reading level readying them for college.
 
As they are learning these higher-level words they’ll always be mentally referring back to their initial whole body, multi-sensory learning of that phonetic concept. They will also continue using all the Silent Elephant “e”™ markings and colors that connect to those initial multi-sensory activities.
 
Once a child has the basics of what I call the “mechanics” of reading under their belt, they can decode anything they’d like to read.
 
Imagine the freedom your child will feel being able to phonetically read whatever he/she would like to read.
 
With Silent Elephant “e”™, little 7- and 8-year-olds can pick up a book of their choice and fluently read it. They will read smoothly and quickly! Their fluency will aid their comprehension as they won’t be focusing on decoding as much. They will focus on comprehension skills – understanding and remembering what they’ve read.
 
You, as their teacher and parent, can use Bloom’s Taxonomy to guide your questions as you discuss what they’ve read. You’ll be able to develop their accuracy and their maturity in comprehension. You’ll be able to enjoy reading and discussing wonderful books together and there are SO MANY wonderful books to read and love: picture books, chapter books, the classics.

Last week’s email shared my experience with students with learning differences whose parents had been told their child would never read. These are heartwarming stories. Their lives are changed forever. Thank you Silent Elephant “e”™! Here's the link for your convenience - It Only Takes Two Year!
 
This week let’s take a look at a couple of young ones who began learning to read with Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™. The best way for me to introduce you to these two lovely young readers is with their blog posts. 😊
She Was Reading on a Fourth Grade Level at the End of Kindergarten
2600 Pages in One Month! She Beams With Pride
 
In far less than 2 years, these happy young readers were flying, and they are only 2 examples of the success of learning with Silent Elephant “e”™. 

Contact us here -

Linda Katherine Smith-Jones Nina Henson

It Only Takes 2 Years!!

It Only Takes 2 Years!

Today I’d like to share more of my experiences with Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™  and continue my thoughts on why I am realizing it shouldn’t take 6 years for a child to be able to decode 6th grade reading words.
 
Over the last 10 years that I have taught reading, writing and spelling with Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™ it’s been my experience that children master phonemic awareness and learn all the phonics rules and are able to apply the phonics rules to fluently decode 6th grade words by the end of their 2nd grade year, about 8 years old. In other words, it takes about 2 years to achieve reading 6th grade words. 

Further, Silent Elephant “e”™ was written so this goal can be achieved with only 2 hours of instruction per week. Again, that’s what my data is showing because I only meet with my students for 2 hours a week. Of course, if they spend an hour per day learning with Silent Elephant “e”™, they will be decoding words at a 6th grade level even sooner.
 
Why would this be true? Why is this my experience over and over?
 
Well, they learn so easily and quickly because they are learning the way they learn best, through whole child/whole brain, multi-sensory activities that stimulate all parts of their brain for both learning and retaining what they have learned. These whole child/whole brain, multi-sensory activities are embedded into every moment of their instruction in Silent Elephant “e”™. My experience and data share the results.

I can hear some of you thinking, “But my child struggles with reading. It’s so difficult for them!”
 
If your child has a learning difference, multiple learning differences or any learning struggles, it may take longer for him/her to reach that 6th grade word recognition level.
 
But, you can rest assured that he/she will attain that level with Silent Elephant “e”™ faster, more steadily and with more fun than with any other reading program. This is because they will be learning using all their senses (multi-sensory) therefore connecting their learning in all parts of their brain. In the case of dyslexic learners, it activates under stimulates parts of their brain and makes learning and retention of learning much easier. 
 
This has been my experience with Silent Elephant “e”™, it may take them longer if they have learning differences, but they get there and they have fun getting there.
 
Let me share an example. I have been tutoring an ELL boy for 2 ½ years who has multiple learning differences and speech and language processing disorders (one can barely understand his English or his native tongue). He is also considered to have a low IQ.
 
When he came to me halfway through his 3rd grade year, he wasn’t reading at all. He didn’t know letter sounds or letter names. He was illiterate and basically non-verbal.
 
Today as I write this, he has mastered phonemic awareness and knows all letter sounds and letter names. He fluently reads simple to complex words, such as: so, ran, sphinx, lush, squint: words with single consonants, consonant digraphs and/or consonant blends. He knows how to read and write (spell) words with the suffixes -s, -es, -ed, and -ing. He has also mastered the first 425 words on the Fry Word List of the most common words. Further, he is formulating answers to high level thinking questions. 
 
When this beautiful boy, who has a goal of becoming a police officer, first came to me, his teachers were sure that he’d never learn to read.
 
That thought crossed my mind from time to time also when we first began, but I knew I couldn’t give up on this sweet, hard-working boy. He certainly isn’t giving up! Like I said, I knew he WOULD take longer than 2 years because of his learning differences and his language processing difficulties, but I had faith he would get there because of my experience with Silent Elephant “e”™. We started out very slowly and have slowly picked up speed. 
 
He’s now reading early readers’ books. You should see the smile on his face as he shows me a book he’s read: one about veterinarians, one about astronauts, one about dinosaurs. He beams with pride! He is feeling the freedom and joy of reading.
 
His dad, who had been told his son would never read, says over and over to me, “You, Mrs. Jones, you are really teaching him to read!”
 
I humbly thank his dad and I think to myself that I’m so glad I wrote Silent Elephant “e”™. It has been the steady, consistent, multi-sensory instruction his son needs to understand language and learn to read.
 
From my experience with other students, I know that now that he’s almost finished with Part 6 of Silent Elephant “e”™ his reading growth will speed up! I can’t wait, I can already see his face beaming with both pride and relief. He realizes he is succeeding. He is feeling the joy of reading.
 
This Fall he headed off into middle school with more of a feeling of confidence and that he has a future than he has ever felt. He’s still not reading on grade level yet, but he knows he is moving there, however long it takes.

This young success story has not been my only student whose parents were told their child would never read. Recently I had a fun experience with one of my 9th grade boys admitting to me with both embarrassment and pride that he got caught red-handed reading his mom’s text messages. A year ago, he was a nonreader.
 
He hadn’t meant to snoop into his mom’ phone, he just started reading, got caught up in what he was reading, didn’t even realize that he was reading so effortlessly, and didn’t even think about the fact that he really shouldn’t be reading his mom’s private messages. 😊
 
His mom told me later that she didn’t know whether to be excited and happy, because he was actually reading and engaged in reading or to be upset because he was reading things she hadn’t planned on him reading. In the end, she was thrilled!
 
He shared, “I wasn’t trying to snoop. I just started reading and I got so excited that I couldn’t quit. My mom was stunned!” He asked me immediately to give him a reading assessment to see what reading level he was on which, of course, I did. We celebrated the growth he’s made in ONLY 9 MONTHS.
 
Let me go back to where I started today, it’s been my experience with Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™ over and over these past 10 years that when you teach children, especially struggling children, the way they learn best with whole child/whole brain, multi-sensory activities embedded into every moment of learning, it doesn’t take 6 years to be reading at a 6th grade level. The average is 2 years, and that’s the average!
 
Those who don’t have learning differences learn more quickly but EVERY SINGLE ONE will succeed. That’s been my experience. I have many, many success stories. And I LOVE it!
 
Check out this blog post to enjoy a young one who flew - She Was Reading at a Fourth Grade Level at the End of Kindergarten.  There are also many more success stories here on my blog.
 

Contact us here – Linda Smith-Jones                   Nina Henson

Every Child Deserves the Joy and Freedom of Reading - gift for you!

Every Child Deserves the Joy and Freedom of Reading

With all my heart I extend to you this thank you gift! 

I truly appreciate that you are with us on our Silent Elephant “e”™ journey to ensure that EVERY CHILD experiences the JOY and FREEDOM of READING.
 
That is my passion. That is my WHY!
 
EVERY CHILD experiencing the FREEDOM and JOY of READING has been my passion, my why, for as long as I can remember, even before I realized my daughter was dyslexic. That realization just added fuel to the fire inside me.
 
I’ll say it again – EVERY CHILD DESERVES THE FREEDOM OF BEING ABLE TO READ, whether they have learning differences or not. (See my blog post It Shouldn’t Take 6 Years)

As you know, reading opens up every child’s world. It gives them the ability to explore and choose like nothing else can. It provides options. It paves their way.
 
I have had the privilege of watching student after student fly free because of Silent Elephant “e”™.  I am proud of Silent Elephant “e”™. I am even more proud of these confident and happy young people whose lives were completely changed because of Silent Elephant “e”™, such as the young 16-year-old who is starting college early. (More about her later.)
 
Now, back to your thank you gift!
 
I wanted to give you something to show how much I appreciate you for sharing my passion for EVERY CHILD HAVING THE FREEDOM OF READING.
 
My thank you gift is a PDF of Silent Elephant “e”™ ‘s  Lesson 51 - Vowel Digraph “ui” makes a long /oo/” also called Juicy Juicy.
 
I named my Silent Elephant “e”™ lessons with names that strike curiosity and interest in our students and also tells them what they will be learning. This name makes them giggle and it begins their multi-sensory process of learning “ui” and of having that knowledge at the ready for the rest of their lives when they come up against an unknown ”ui” word.
 
Juicy Juicy gives you a clear idea of how Silent Elephant “e”™ teaches a new phonics concept by activating all parts of the brain through fun whole child/whole brain activities. In Juicy Juicy these fun activities stimulate their senses as they learn that “ui” makes a long /oo/ sound.
 
Your gift includes the entire 7-page Juicy Juicy lesson beginning with your directions and their introduction using their sense of sight, smell, and taste. The lesson then continues with learning “ui” words, their meanings and using those words in sentences to develop comprehension. You will also see how we use Silent Elephant “e”™ markings to indicate phonetic concepts. This is another way multi-sensory learning is integrated throughout Silent Elephant “e”™. Each color and symbol has particular meaning which activates the parts of the brain involving symbology and color.
 
Since Juicy Juicy is a 7-page PDF please email Nina at nina.silentelephante@gmail.com to let her know where you would like her to send your thank you gift.
 
Again, THANK YOU so much for being a part of this wonderful EVERY CHILD GETTING TO LEARN TO READ journey with us! We look forward to hearing how you and your kiddos enjoyed Juicy Juicy.
 
As always, we love hearing your thoughts and answering your questions. Contact us at silentelephante@gmail.com or nina.silentelephante@gmail.com, or call me at 208-859-4406 or Nina at 208-860-3125.

It Shouldn't Take 6 Years to Learn to Decode 6th Grade Words!

It Shouldn’t Take 6 Years for a Child to be Able to Decode 6th Grade Level Reading Words!

I know you are probably thinking to yourself, “Why not? Isn’t that the way it works? A child goes to kindergarten and then 1st through 5th grade, that’s six years of instruction. It makes sense that they would be at a beginning 6th grade reading level when they start 6th grade, doesn’t it?”
 
The thing is, if a child is taught to read, write and spell the way they learn (whole body/whole brain/whole child), they learn quickly, they transfer that knowledge to prior and future learning easily and they RETAIN their learning.
 
It all has to do with teaching them the way they learn and that’s what we do with Silent Elephant “e”™. We teach the whole child; we activate their whole brain.
 
Our data shares the story; Children learning with Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™ progress on average one full grade level their first 2 months of instruction. This amazing data isn’t based on daily Silent Elephant “e”™ instruction, it’s based on just 1½ to 2 hours instruction per week. Also, this data includes many students with multiple learning differences which makes it even more impressive.
 
Now add this, our Silent Elephant “e”™  students advanced 4.25 grade levels with 6 months of instruction! That’s advancing over 4 grade levels in just 6 months.
Silent Elephant “e”™ learners experience such rapid growth at first, because Silent Elephant “e”™ Part 1 begins reading instruction where it needs to begin, with phonemic awareness.
Phonemic awareness is the ability to hear the individual sounds within words and is the foundation of learning to read for every child.
On average with Silent Elephant “e”™ children master phonemic awareness in only 3 months.
 
While they are having fun mastering phonemic awareness, you begin teaching them their first phonics lessons in Part 3 – short vowels and the suffix -s. They quickly become excited as they realize they are beginning to know how reading works and are learning to read, write and spell.  

I can’t even begin to tell you how many children who were struggling with reading at the end of kindergarten, first grade, second grade or third grade blossomed within only a month of Silent Elephant “e”™ phonemic awareness and phonics instruction.
 
Both they and their parents expressed their amazement at how fast they were learning, especially if they had been struggling.
 
A parent of a little boy that struggled through kindergarten and just began tutoring with me on June 20th, 2022, sent me this email last night, “’Marcus’ has made so much progress this summer, and I have learned a lot too!”
 
A 3rd grader said to me after just 7 times of tutoring, “I know what you’re trying to teach me. There are single, separate sounds in words! I never knew that. I think I’m going to be able to learn to read now!”
 
A 9th grader said after just 5 times of tutoring, “I never knew what rhyme was! I never heard individual sounds in words before!”
 
A 1st grader’s parent said to me, “I know my daughter doesn’t belong in special education. She’s truly very intelligent. Can you help her learn to read?”

That little kindergarten boy is now hearing individual sounds in words. He is connecting sounds to letter names and shapes. He is beginning to spell two and three letter words. He is beginning to learn the Fry List of words using the word cards he is making. He is happy, excited and so proud of himself. I hardly recognize him as the little boy I met in June! He’s ready to soar with his classmates this fall!
 
It took that newly confident 3rd grader 3 months to go from Primer to a 3.2 reading level and a total of 8 months to be at a 6th grade level in comprehension and a 7th grade level in word recognition. She went from being way behind her peers to being far ahead! Now she’s starting college at 16½ years old.
 
That struggling, scared 9th grader who is now a oh-so confident junior in college majoring in neurology at just 20 years old took 4 months to go from a 5th grade reading level to a 9th grade reading level and another 9 months to reach a college reading level while in 10th grade.
 
That profoundly dyslexic first grader who began tutoring with me halfway through her 1st grade year was frustrated at a mid-kindergarten reading level. Within 6 months she was at a 1.8 reading level – almost caught up with her peers. Within 11 months, she was decoding words at a 6th grade reading level and within 18 months, she was comprehending at a 4th grade reading level – a grade level above her peers. To put icing on that cake, she was staffed out of special education at that time. She continued with me and within 3½ years was reading at an 11th grade level when she completed 4th grade!
 
Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™ isn’t just for those with learning differences, it’s for ALL learners like the sweet, little girl who began with me in July of 2020. She doesn’t have any learning differences. Her mom asked me to tutor her because she was worried about what her daughter’s kindergarten year would like on-line. This bubbly, bright little girl began tutoring with me twice a week for just 30 minutes as she was so young. She didn’t have phonemic awareness and wasn’t reading on a PrePrimer level. She did know most letter names and sounds. Within 7 months, she was at a 1st grade reading level although she was still in kindergarten. In July of 2021 she was at a 4th grade reading level getting ready to enter 1st grade, and within 2 years, she was decoding words at a 6th grade reading level and comprehending at a 4th grade level. Right now, she’s getting ready for 2nd grade.
 
So, you see, when we teach children the way that is best for them to learn and the way they love to learn with Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™, it DOESN’T take 6 years for them to be
reading at a 6th grade reading level, even if they have learning differences.
😊
 
If you have questions and/or want more information about Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™, feel free to contact us.
Linda Katherine Smith-Jones                            Nina Henson

It's Time to Celebrate!!

Ending the summer with their skills strong and growing

 The other day I watched my dog River make muddy footprints on the sidewalk as we walked home in the evening and thought of the animal booklets your kiddos might be making. 😊 Do you have any photos of leaf prints or animal footprints to share?

Summer is so active, and it gives us many fun opportunities to strengthen and build their growing reading, writing and spelling skills with whole child/whole brain activities. Are you ready for another set of ideas? 

1. Study the world wherever you are, on vacation or at home. Explore their world for anything and everything that begins with or has phonetic concepts such as:

·       a particular sound that your children have previously studied

·       a particular consonant sound

·       a particular short vowel sound

·       a particular consonant digraph sound

·       a particular consonant blend sound

·       a particular long vowel sound

Have them draw and write about their finds and then have them learn more by exploring their finds on the internet for further reading, writing, spelling and drawing fun. This searching activity can be especially fun while gazing out car windows on long car rides.
 

2. Create outdoor art, outdoor paintings and/or sculptures.

Have them name their pieces and write descriptions about their motivation behind each piece. Explore different artists you or they enjoy, learning about the motivation behind their work.
 

3. Plan ahead - As the summer begins to wind down, plan a “gallery opening” of all their summer studies, booklets, and art projects. Make this a special time to be proud of their work and their growth. Have them create invitations and invite family, friends and neighbors for a fun picnic/potluck and “gallery” stroll. You’ll love watching their proud faces as they share their projects and learning with those who care about them.

This summer we send out four other whole child/whole brain summer activity emails with lots of fun and active whole child/whole brain activities that keeps their skills growing and strong. These are fun activities any time of the year, not just in the summer. 😊
Here are the links to the other four: 
It’s Summer – Whole Child/Whole Brain Ways to Keep Spelling Skills Strong
Keeping Skills Sharp During the Summer – It’s Important!
Having Fun While Keeping Their Skills Strong
Prints! Leaf, Foot, and Maybe Hand 
 
If you have questions about teaching whole child/whole brain or how Silent Elephant “e”™ truly is fun, effective and different, feel free to contact us here and go to silentelephante.com.

Keep a song in your heart!

Prints! Leaf, Foot, and Maybe Hand

Remember our main objective?
To keep their skills strong and growing in FUN and ACTIVE ways!

I’m pretty sure you and your kiddos are still in the process of writing and developing their skits or plays. Do you have any fun photos to share of the process?

What about photos from vacation adventures? I would love to see your photos and hear about how their skills stayed strong even when they were on vacation 😊.

Do you have other activities that have kept their skills active and growing that you would like to share with everyone? Send them to silentelephante@gmail.com and we’ll get them out for others to enjoy.
 
I have traveled back to Idaho for the months of July, August and most of September. Idaho’s dry climate is so different from Seattle’s that I always have to readjust to the weather. Thank goodness for air conditioning!
 
I do get to do three of my favorite activities when I’m in Idaho – working in our yard, having lunch with friends I haven’t seen in 9 months and huckleberry picking. I’m hoping the huckleberry crop is a big one, as I’m eager to get in the mountains and very eager for huckleberry apple pie. 
 
Would you like a few more fun and engaging ideas? 😊 

1. Study your own back yard—plants.

• Explore the plants in your yard or in your neighborhood in books and on the Internet.

• What do these plants need to thrive?

• Which plants are "friends", and which don't like to be around each other? There's a good deal of fun information out there about how plants communicate and how they help each other.

• Which plants are native to your climate, and which have been brought in?

• Write and draw a “How to Care For” booklet that includes the plants in your yard or in your neighborhood. Include what they need to thrive, how large they grow and who are their "friends".

• Explore YouTube for “how to” videos demonstrating how to make leaf prints, so your kiddos can include beautiful leaf prints in their “How to Care For” booklet.

 2. Study your own back yard—animals.

• Write and draw a booklet exploring the animals that are native to your environment, wild and domestic. Include where these animals live and what they need to thrive. Also include their friends. :)

• Get a book about animal footprints and/or research them on the Internet. Yesterday morning I saw racoon footprints! I love their little “fingers”. I’m including a photo.

• Include drawings of footprints in their animal booklet. Or, if you are lucky to see footprints like I was, include photos in their booklet.

• It’s also fun to extend this exploration into learning about their own fingerprints and how they are like no one else’s. 😊 They can include their hand or fingerprints in their booklet. They could also include all the handprints of those in your family and compare them.

3. Review the previous year’s reading, writing and spelling skills.

• If Phonetic Reading with Silent Elephant “e”™ was their reading program last year, review the skills they learned and analyze with them how those skills have made their summer explorations easier.

• If they didn’t learn with Silent Elephant “e”™ last year, do the same reviewing and analysis of the skills they learned and how their skills have grown through the summer.

HAVE FUN WITH THESE NEW IDEAS!  LEARNING WITH FUN IS IMPORTANT!
Fun is an integral part of Silent Elephant “e”™!
 

If you missed the last three emails with summer fun ideas, here are the links to the blog posts: 

• It's Summer - Whole Child/Whole Brain Ways to Keep Spelling Skills Strong

• Keeping Skills Sharp During the Summer - It's Important!

• Having Fun While Keeping Their Skills Strong

If you have further questions about summer activities that keep their skills growing, or wondering about how Silent Elephant “e”™ supports your teaching and their learning, contact us HERE or email us at silentelephante@gmail.com.

Having Fun While Keeping Their Skills Strong

Having fun while keeping their skills strong!

What fun new books have your children discovered? Have they found a new book series with the same main characters? Are they identifying with those main characters?
 

Please take a moment to drop me an email (silentelephante@gmail.com) about your favorite new books and the fun summer programs or activities that you and they have been enjoying.  Let’s share ideas and help each other.
 
Here are a few more fun activities that keep their skills strong:

1. Skits or plays use every one of their skills in reading, writing and spelling.

• Write skits or plays together. As you are writing a skit or a play with them, discuss characters, character development and setting to help them create believable characters and action. Have them write out the script either by hand or on a computer.

• Next do auditions for the parts, this is ALWAYS fun. Film the tryouts, watch each other and have fun positively critiquing.

• Together create scenery by researching the environment needed for the play or skit.

• During practice, help them memorize their parts and make their portrayal believable.

• Have them design invitations for the performance and send them out via hand-written cards, emails or texts.

• HAVE FUN AT THE BIG EVENT—performing for family, friends and neighbors.

• Lastly, review the performance with them by asking questions that encourage them to stretch their creativity as they think about their next play or skit.

1. Reviewing what they studied last year in science and social studies is important and can be really fun.

• Explore each subject further to extend their learning using the Internet, books, magazines, and your local library.

• Write, draw, and/or paint about how this new information and knowledge has changed their thoughts or ideas about their previously studied subjects.

• This expanded focus on subjects from last school year will keep their knowledge fresh and prepare them for the coming year.

1. Explore locations that your children might want to visit and locations that are on your bucket list.

• Research where you might want to go on the Internet and at your local library.

• Together draw, paint, or build projects that portray these places in art form. For instance, if Paris is a place you dream about, how can you build a model of the Eifel Tower or Notre Dame?

• Write about what you learned in your exploration that either excites you even more to travel to these places or has you thinking about taking it off your bucket list. This makes for good discussion. 😊

• Share your projects with other members of your family who might want to join you on your adventure.

 The main point is to HAVE FUN and to KEEP THEIR SKILLS GROWING!
 

If you have further questions about summer activities, feel free to contact us. Also check out these blog posts at silentelephante.com, Ten Fun Spelling Activities and Summer's Here, Keeping Those Skills Active and Strong for more ideas. 
Again, send us any other fun activities you've found successful, and we will get them out to everyone.
Have questions? Contact us here.

Keep a song in your heart!