GB2195487A

GB2195487A - Equipment for teaching reading

Info

Publication number: GB2195487A
Application number: GB08611652A
Authority: GB
Inventors: John Cockburn
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1986-05-13
Filing date: 1986-05-13
Publication date: 1988-04-07
Also published as: GB8611652D0

Abstract

Equipment for the teaching of reading comprises a set of cards or sheets preferably bound into a book bearing words spelled in lower case letters each of which has its commonest everyday sound and is accompanied by a symbol suggestive of its sound. Further sheets bear words ending in a silent letter "e" with a symbol indicating the sound of the vowel modified. Still further sheets bear words containing common letter combinations in which the letter combinations are also represented by symbols suggestive of their sound. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Teaching equipment The present invention relates to equipment for the teaching of reading, in particular, to young children.

In the teaching of reading, a difficulty which has not always been appreciated in the past is that words which are exceedingly simple to the experienced reader may use the same letter, or letters to represent very different sounds and as give rise to serious difficulty for a child not yet familiar with such variations. For example, in the sentence "He met her", although the three words are exceedingly simple, the vowel "e" has three entirely different sounds, and may cause great confusion for one learning to read for the first time.

The present invention provides teaching equipment designed to avoid this pitfall.

The invention is defined in the claims appended hereto. It consists of equipment in the form of a set of cards or sheets, preferably bound in book form, and bearing words and symbols arranged in a way which will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 shows the letters of the alphabet in upper case and lower case form, each letter in lower case form being accompanied by a symbol comprising a sketch or picture suggestive of the sound of the letter. Figures 2,3 and 5 show sheets or cards bearing words spelled out in lower case letters accompanied by symbols as an aid to pronunciation, and Figs. 4 and 6 show symbols representative of the pronunciation of common letter combinations.

Referring first to Fig. 1, the pupil learns the names of the letters and their common everyday sounds, and throughout the set of sheets which make up the equipment of the present invention the convention is adopted that the lower case representation of a letter represents its everyday sound in most common use, and the upper case representation represents the name of the letter. Each letter in its lower case form is accompanied by a symbol in the form of a little sketch of a common object which will be familiar to the chiid, and which suggests the sound represented by the letter.

For the initial stages of teaching, sheets are provided of a kind of which Fig. 2 is a typical example. Words are chosen in which each letter has its common everyday sound and they are spelled out in lower case letters, each letter being accompanied by the symbol shown in Fig. 1 suggestive of its sound. A considerable number of sheets of this kind are provided, covering all the vowels and consanants, and further sheets may be provided as complementary reading exercises in which the symbols are omitted.

In a further stage, sheets are provided in which words are included ending in a silent "e". On these sheets, a typical example of which is shown in Fig. 3, words are spelt out as before but the fact that the final "e" of each word is silent is indicated by the omission of a corresponding phonetic symbol placed above it, and the fact that the sound of the preceding vowel in each word is changed, on account of its being separated from final "e" in a word by a single consonant, is indicated by the preceding vowel having its counterpart, in upper case form placed above it, indicating that its name has, under the circumstances, become its sound.

In a further stage, sounds of letter combinations or a sibilant represented by the letter "c" followed by "e" or "i" are introduced.

These are each represented by a symbol. The symbol may consist of a picture of a common object, as before, but in some cases the required sound may be represented by the name or sound of another letter, as is shown in Fig.

4.

Fig. 5 shows a sheet bearing words containing such letter combinations. A number of such sheets bearing a wide range of words using the letter combinations is preferably included in the set.

Further letter combinations are introduced, preferably a few at a time, until each set becomes thoroughly familiar. Fig. 6 shows 30 common letter combinations arranged in five sets of six, the sets to be introduced progressively.

The material described so far covers all the sounds commonly met with in the English language, with a quite small number of exceptions. These few exceptions are introduced in the final stage, with the warning that they must be treated as exceptional. The sound of these exceptions are indicated by symbols or letter combinations as described above.

Preferably, the sheets as described so far are bound in book form, so that they are kept in graded order, and the pupil can work through the book progressively from the beginning.

1. Equipment for the teaching of reading comprising a set of cards or sheets bearing words in which each letter is sounded and has only its common everyday sound, each letter is represented in its lower case form and is accompanied by a symbol suggestive of its sound.

2. Equipment for the teaching of reading according to Claim 1 including further cards or sheets bearing words represented in lower case, each letter being accompanied by a symbol suggestive of its sound, the words ending in a silent "e", and in which the symbol representing the vowel modified by the presence of the "e" is its upper case letter.

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **.

SPECIFICATION Teaching equipment The present invention relates to equipment for the teaching of reading, in particular, to young children.

In the teaching of reading, a difficulty which has not always been appreciated in the past is that words which are exceedingly simple to the experienced reader may use the same letter, or letters to represent very different sounds and as give rise to serious difficulty for a child not yet familiar with such variations. For example, in the sentence "He met her", although the three words are exceedingly simple, the vowel "e" has three entirely different sounds, and may cause great confusion for one learning to read for the first time.

The present invention provides teaching equipment designed to avoid this pitfall.

The invention is defined in the claims appended hereto. It consists of equipment in the form of a set of cards or sheets, preferably bound in book form, and bearing words and symbols arranged in a way which will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 shows the letters of the alphabet in upper case and lower case form, each letter in lower case form being accompanied by a symbol comprising a sketch or picture suggestive of the sound of the letter. Figures 2,3 and 5 show sheets or cards bearing words spelled out in lower case letters accompanied by symbols as an aid to pronunciation, and Figs. 4 and 6 show symbols representative of the pronunciation of common letter combinations.

Referring first to Fig. 1, the pupil learns the names of the letters and their common everyday sounds, and throughout the set of sheets which make up the equipment of the present invention the convention is adopted that the lower case representation of a letter represents its everyday sound in most common use, and the upper case representation represents the name of the letter. Each letter in its lower case form is accompanied by a symbol in the form of a little sketch of a common object which will be familiar to the chiid, and which suggests the sound represented by the letter.

For the initial stages of teaching, sheets are provided of a kind of which Fig. 2 is a typical example. Words are chosen in which each letter has its common everyday sound and they are spelled out in lower case letters, each letter being accompanied by the symbol shown in Fig. 1 suggestive of its sound. A considerable number of sheets of this kind are provided, covering all the vowels and consanants, and further sheets may be provided as complementary reading exercises in which the symbols are omitted.

In a further stage, sheets are provided in which words are included ending in a silent "e". On these sheets, a typical example of which is shown in Fig. 3, words are spelt out as before but the fact that the final "e" of each word is silent is indicated by the omission of a corresponding phonetic symbol placed above it, and the fact that the sound of the preceding vowel in each word is changed, on account of its being separated from final "e" in a word by a single consonant, is indicated by the preceding vowel having its counterpart, in upper case form placed above it, indicating that its name has, under the circumstances, become its sound.

In a further stage, sounds of letter combinations or a sibilant represented by the letter "c" followed by "e" or "i" are introduced.

These are each represented by a symbol. The symbol may consist of a picture of a common object, as before, but in some cases the required sound may be represented by the name or sound of another letter, as is shown in Fig.

4.

Fig. 5 shows a sheet bearing words containing such letter combinations. A number of such sheets bearing a wide range of words using the letter combinations is preferably included in the set.

Further letter combinations are introduced, preferably a few at a time, until each set becomes thoroughly familiar. Fig. 6 shows 30 common letter combinations arranged in five sets of six, the sets to be introduced progressively.

The material described so far covers all the sounds commonly met with in the English language, with a quite small number of exceptions. These few exceptions are introduced in the final stage, with the warning that they must be treated as exceptional. The sound of these exceptions are indicated by symbols or letter combinations as described above.

Preferably, the sheets as described so far are bound in book form, so that they are kept in graded order, and the pupil can work through the book progressively from the beginning.

1. Equipment for the teaching of reading comprising a set of cards or sheets bearing words in which each letter is sounded and has only its common everyday sound, each letter is represented in its lower case form and is accompanied by a symbol suggestive of its sound.

2. Equipment for the teaching of reading according to Claim 1 including further cards or sheets bearing words represented in lower case, each letter being accompanied by a symbol suggestive of its sound, the words ending in a silent "e", and in which the symbol representing the vowel modified by the presence of the "e" is its upper case letter.

3. Equipment for the teaching of reading according to Claim 2 including further cards or sheets bearing words including common letter combinations, and in which each letter combination is represented by a symbol suggestive of its sound.

4. Equipment for the teaching of reading comprising a set of cards or sheets according to claim 3 bound into book form in progressive order.