GB2349974A - Educational device - Google Patents

Abstract

An educational device to facilitate the learning of an alphabet or word spelling comprises a plurality of slide members arranged adjacent to each other and each bearing an array of characters on their surface, and means for selecting a character on each slide member. The selected character is dependent on the position of the slide member relative to the means. In use, each slide member is movable relative to the other slide members to form a word when the selected characters are read together transversely across the slide members. The members may be mounted in a frame with an overlying saddle through which a formed word is viewed.

Description

2349974

BACKGROUND

In language development and word learning many children (and adults who have learning difficulties or were poorly educated) have difficulties in both learning to use dictionaries and in building up words. They may also have problems in realising that, with the limited number of letters in most alphabets, it is quite easy to change words by substituting, adding or removing relatively few letters. Further, although those with a grasp of language may notice 'sets' of words, this concept is difficult to teach with existing educational aids. The present invention partly overcomes these problems.

It is also known that children and adults can be encouraged and stimulated into learning on a voluntary basis if educational activities can be made 'fun' andlor competitive. For this reason we have extended the essential features of this invention to enable it to be played as a game. This game could, in fact, be a product in its own right.

CONCEPT The educational aid consists of sets of alphabets that have been inscribed, in order, on movable strips in such a way that at any given moment a single letter from each strip is highlighted. By moving individual strips relative to the other strips so that a specific letter from each strip is highlighted in a continuous band, specific words can be formed using an additional single letter from one or more other strips. To limit the number of letters that are used at any given moment at least one end of each strip will be a blank; therefore, by substituting a blank in place of a letter the total number of letters in each word can be restricted. The total number of strips in use will determine the level of difficulty with which the intended user can cope. This will determine the maximum number of letters that can be present in each word.

By way of example only, the essential features of this invention will be illustrated and demonstrated with examples containing seven strips in which 1 English is used as the language and utilising the formal Roman alphabet of twenty-six letters. However, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that the invention can be used with any language and with any alphabet that has a fixed number of letters, for example the Greek alphabet of twenty-four letters. For specific languages there could be additional (and /or alternative) letters that have specialised features. Again by way of example only, there could be one or more letters with umlauts on them for use with the Germanic languages. Similarly embodiments could be constructed that make use of Bernard Shaw's 'Proposed English Alphabet' which consists of over forty letters or the more recent Initial Teaching Alphabet of forty letters.

In the English language used to illustrate this invention, words are constructed by the use of the Roman alphabet and are then read from left to right, from the top of the page to the bottom. In other languages one or more of these orders may be reversed. An example of this is Hebrew. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that in the embodiment of this invention, intended to assist the understanding of languages the letter order could be reversed compared with the examples used here to illustrate this invention.

It will also be realised by those skilled in the art that any typeface or font type or size can be used for this invention.

Further, certain groups may also find it advantageous to have all the letters as upper or lower case, if this is deemed to assist the use of this aid.

Those skilled in the art will realise that in many languages the first letter of a particular word may, for grammatical reasons or by convention, start with a capital letter with the remaining letters in lower case. For this reason it may be advantageous in one form of this invention to have the letters in the first strip only as capitals and the remainder as lower case letters.

Further, it is realised by those skilled in the art that the use of such an invention may be enhanced by the use of colours. This could, by way of example only, apply to individual letters or strips of letters where each strip 2 could be a different colour. Again as an aid to learning, the vowels and consonants could be a different colour, thus emphasising the need for the majority of words to have at least one vowel. These colours could be introduced along with other variations that have been proposed.

It will further be realised by those skilled in the art that some learners have specific physical limitations that make it difficult to learn to spell and develop language skills. For this, a version of the invention can be made that minimises the problem this group may have in using the invention and may be specifically designed to assist them in its use. Again by way of example only, the alphabet could be raised in relation to the background, or physically emphasised in some conventional way to enable letters to be identified by tactile means. This would be by utilising any of the alternative forms of letterlword identification used by those with impaired vision. One specific example of the tactile enhancement of the letters to allow use by the visually impaired would be Braille.

Ensuring that each letter on each strip located with an audible 'click' or other acceptable sound form could further enhance such a system. This would allow a sight-impaired user to be fully aware of the location of each letter or letter base by counting 'clicks' or otherwise.

In one specific example the alphabet could be in the form used for those with a speech or hearing impediment. By way of example only, the letters would be in the form of symbols as used in British or American Sign Language, or any other form of sign language. In a variation of this specific example, obscuring all of the letters except those being 'shown' to the observer could enhance learning. An example of this is'fingerspelling'.

Although not restricted to this embodiment, a version of the invention in which the letters were on a cylinder could be advantageous, as the observer would not be able to see how far down the alphabet a particular letter was.

3 In a related variant the letters would be in the form used for Morse Code or Semaphore. In these types of example, introducing a competitive element whereby groups could play games where they have to identify the word being coded could enhance learning.

In an alternative embodiment some or all of the conventional symbols of the alphabet could be replaced by (or augmented with) those phonetic symbols applicable to the language it was intended to be used with. In this, a direct link between speech and language may be aided. Thus, in a specific embodiment of such a version, it may be advantageous to have additional symbols occupying the space that a single letter normally takes up.

In a further embodiment, a version of the present invention could have each letter replaced with a symbol or picture that those at an early stage in language development commonly use to identify each letter. Again by way of example only, some United Kingdom educational establishments use a system of language aids called 'Letterland ITM in which, for example, 'a' is replaced with 'Annie Apple'. In a more general example each letter would be placed in conjunction with the image that is commonly used to represent that letter. For example a ball may be for'b'while a zebra is used to represent the letterY.

In any of the variants used in the learning aid, making it competitive could make the educational process more enjoyable. Again by way of example only, giving each letter a value would enhance this competitive aspect. Such a value scale could be similar to but not limited to the scale used in existing products such as 'Scrabble'Tm and 'Lexicon'Tm.

A particular game that this invention would assist in playing is 'Doublets. In this game one word is changed into another in a series of steps, with each intervening word differing from its neighbour by only one letter. The challenge is both to form the chain of linked words and to do so in as few steps as possible.

4 It will be appreciated that, while not implying any endorsement or agreement with the owners of such products, the present invention could be used as an aid to assist in the playing of word based games. By way of example only, if used with 'Scrabble ITm a version of the present invention, utilising seven strips, could assist players in selecting words. This also applies to those who undertake 'crosswords', in this case having more strips of letters than seven would be advantageous.

PRACTICAL ASPECTS OF THE CONSTRUCTION OF THIS INVENTION In its simplest form, this learning aid could consist of flat strips of letters mounted in a framework in such a way that they can be moved by means of sliding the strips parallel to each other. While not restricted to this design; in the examples shown here these letters will be. vertical with respect to the strip. This means that words can be read across the strips with the letters in their conventional alignment. In the central region of this invention and at right angles to the strips of letters will be an overlaying 'saddle'. The bulk of this would be translucent or opaque depending on the material it is made from. Within this would be an exposed area that is equal to, or slightly wider than, the total height of the letters, thus allowing one letter from each strip to be clearly seen. Depending on the complexity of the product, this is achieved by completely exposing a letter or having within the saddle an area of increased transparency. Alternatively, the saddle could be made from a transparent material with a pair of laterally bisecting lines which would be used to indicate letters or complete words.

In one embodiment, for example, on the saddle and adjacent to where the slit is, each strip is numbered in sequence with the first strip being number 1. In this way the total number of letters used and their position in each word can easily be seen.

In an additional embodiment, each letter will be numbered to indicate its relative position in the alphabet. Again by way of example only, if this were applied to the Roman alphabet the letter 'a' would be numbered 1 while 'z' would be numbered 26. In this way their position in the alphabet can be seen.

In use, the strips of letters are then moved in a vertical plane, such that any letter combination can be made within the exposed slot in the saddle and so make complete or incomplete words. For those strips that are not being used to produce a word; they can be placed so that the most convenient end containing a blank is placed in the slot in the saddle.

In its simplest form, the strips can all be moved freely, and independently, parallel to each other. However, there could be advantages in incorporating a method of enhancing the stability of the letters. This would be in such a way that letters forming part of a word being constructed would be perfectly located within the exposed area of the slot in the saddle. The achievement of this could be by any of the conventional ways that those skilled in the art would use. These, by way of example, would include; magnetic locating areas, 'click' ridges or grooves.

To assist the movement of these strips, the extreme ends of each strip could include some means of making it easier to move them individually or in groups. Such methods could include (but are not limited to) small finger sized holes or raised ridges or knobs. For those users with a physical handicap, the means of moving the strips could be greatly enlarged, as could the whole of this educational aid/game. From this it will be apparent to those expert in the art that this concept could be extended to enable seriously handicapped people to use the invention to demonstrate particular words to others.

In a further embodiment, the discrimination between each letter could be emphasised. By way of example only, this could be a traverse line or ridge.

Again by way of example; any method that would be used by those skilled in the art can be incorporated into this invention to assist in the movement and/or stability of the strips, relative to each other. By way of example, the strips could be 'tongue and grooved'. While not limited in any way to this 6 method, this could be similar to that which was used in many designs of slide rule as utilised for mathematical calculations.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that these methods already used to locate and stabilise individual letters can be adapted for use with the present invention. Again by way of example only, this could include the type of magnetic locating devices used in US patent 4865324.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, that to have the letters of a suitable size for easy reading, the total length of this invention is relatively long compared with its width. This limitation could be overcome in a particular embodiment of this invention in which the letters (and blanks) were inscribed on the surface of flat concentric rings. The letters would be facing upwards and placed (andlor mounted) in turn on a flat surface which can be rotated around a common axis. Over this and at right angles to the plane on which the wheels turn can be included a saddle containing a transverse slot. Each flat ring is then rotated, relative to the other rings, about their common axis. By rotating the rings, words are formed within the saddle in a manner similar to that observed in the long version of this invention. In this embodiment the letters (and blanks) are equally spaced around the ring so that each takes up the same angular distance. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that, due to the different size of each ring, either the size of the letters will vary from the inside to the outside, or the strip of letters. If they are of the same size the percentage of the circumference that each strip of letters will occupy will be reduced as the radius increases.

In a related embodiment to that made using a complete circle, a form of the invention could be constructed in which each strip containing the letters was curved but the strips remained flat in the other plane. Such a curvature would reduce the overall length of the invention but would not in any other way adversely affect its use or function.

In an alternative but related embodiment the invention could be made in a circular form such that the strips of letters formed concentric rings by which 7 they covered the surface of the cylinder. In this embodiment each complete alphabet (and blank) would form an individual cylinder. This would mean that the total length of the cylinder being determined by the total number of alphabet sets present and the radius of the cylinder being determined by the size and space between the letters within each individual alphabet. In this embodiment the position for the word would, by way of example only, be marked by a slot (one letter wide) in a single bar that crosses the rings with letters on it.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that once the letters have been positioned to create a particular word; it is possible that other words will be formed above and/or below the position of the first word that has been selected. The positions and location of these can be more easily seen if it is possible to move the saddle across all of the strips in the position they have been moved to. Using as an example the 'long' version of this invention, this could be moved in a manner similar to that used by the slide on a slide rule. Similarly, in the circular version, this effect can be achieved by rotating the bar around the centre of the circle. In both cases the relative position of each strip does not change. In those embodiments of the game in which there is a scoring system, additional 'points' could be awarded to the player who can simultaneously produce these additional words.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the 'tail' below the saddle varies in length depending on how near the letter in use is to the start of the alphabet. Such a variation in length may itself help those developing language skills to appreciate the relative position of letters and, subsequently, words in a dictionary.

The invention can be made in a number of forms and types. For classroom use it can be made of robust wooden strips and even in a very large form on which a teacher may demonstrate to a class. In addition it can be made in a small or travel form. For these uses it may be advantageous to utilise the curved or cylindrical variations to reduce the size of products covered by this invention.

8 Although the material from which the invention is made is not limited to any particular form, its concept is ideally suited to mass production using injection moulded plastics. In one embodiment made in this way, each strip would be injection moulded.

NOTE: It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that to utilise this information and to see these additional words the maiorily of all the letters must be visible. Consequently, if this was required then an embodiment would have to be made in which all of the letters were visible but with the visibility or appearance of the 'main' set enhanced. Byway of example only, this could be achieved by having the saddle translucent but with a clear slot to indicate the position of the main word being formed. An example of some of the words formed in this way is shown using 'hatched' letters in the examples illustrating this invention.

In the various embodiments considered so far all the variants that are used are completely mechanical and do not make use of any electrical or computational aids. However, those who are skilled in the art it will appreciate that the essential features present in the mechanical form can be utilised or adapted for other technologies. This will be illustrated by the following examples.

While retaining the essential features of the present mechanical design it could be extended so that the movement and relative position of the letters to each other was detected. The data could then be shown andlor utilised on a computer, thus allowing the words formed to be recorded and displayed. This could, by way of example only, be used to assist in the learning process by allowing 'scores' to be recorded, thus enhancing the pleasure of any game being played. In addition, by having additional dictionary and vocabulary data pre-loaded on a computer, the mechanical data could be used in conjunction with such stored electronic information. By way of example, this link could be used to enable the correctness of any formed word to be verified and the 9 value' of that word utilised. This in turn can be utilised to summate any scores that are obtained.

It will be obvious, to those skilled in the art, that it is possible to reproduce the essential features of any of the embodiments of the present invention proposed for a physical version with computer code. This would replace, in total, the mechanical form of the invention with a computerbased version. If such a replacement was made then this would enable additional features to be easily added to the educational aid. By way of example only, these could include (and be incorporated in any combination) the following:

a) An electronic scoring system b) A direct link to a stored dictionary and/or thesaurus. These could be of the conventional adult type or the specialist versions devised to assist in learning. Of these a possible example would be the Storybook Dictionary (ISBN 0 601 07179 4) by the late Mr Richard Scarry, of which a computer based version already exists.

C) Such an electronic system would be highly advantageous to the learning process. This is because the meaning of any word that was formed could be displayed using a style appropriate to the age and educational development stage of those using the invention. Again by way of example only, this could be entirely or in part in picture form for younger (or less able adults) d) Again by way of example only, this would include additional sound (including electronically generated words, phrases and sentences) to aid the learning process or enjoyment of using the invention as a game.

e) The electronic version of the invention could include a printout of any generated information, which is deemed to be of use to the player or their instructor.

For both the electronic and mechanical versions of the educational aid there could be incorporated a device to record, project/display or limit the time available to the person(s) using the invention. This would be to make the using of the invention more competitive or to assist in recording or monitoring the skill of the person using the invention. The use of the patent will now be illustrated using simple examples.

In example W of a 7-strip version of the patent, the saddle is initially across the centre with all the strips in the same position. From this the word 'lame' is made. By moving strip 4 to 'p' this is changed to 'lamp' and then by changing the fourth strip to W lamp becomes 'lamb'. In example W a similar series of transformations is used to change 'land' to 'hand' and then to 'band'. These types of exercises are typical of the vocabulary and word construction skills that the invention will help to develop in those children just starting to use language. In addition, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that each of these words could easily be changed from singular to plural by incorporating an 's' in strip 5.

Example 'C' shows the type of exercise that a slightly more skilled operator could undertake. Here the starting point is a six-letter word in which a pair of letters is simultaneously changed so that 'hassle' is transformed into 'haggle'. These middle letters are then changed again to produce 'hackle'. It will be noted in this particular example that in addition to the word 'hackle' the words 'leg', 'oh', and 'mow' have been simultaneously formed.

In all of the examples shown the words illustrated are constructed using fewer letters than this particular version of the invention uses. For this reason, in each of the examples shown the distal strips that are not in use have the blank positioned across the saddle.

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Claims (1)

1. Claims

   An educational device to facilitate the learning of an alphabet or of word spelling by a user, comprising a plurality of slide members arranged adjacent to each other and each bearing an array of characters on their surface, and means for selecting a character on each slide member, said selected character being dependent on the position of the slide member relative to said means, the arrangement being such that, in use, each slide member can be moved relative to the other slide members to form a word when the selected characters are read together transversely across the slide members.

   2. A device according to claim 1, wherein the slide members are slidably mounted in a frame, the means for selecting a character on each slide member comprising a slot in the frame through which said selected character is visible to the user.

   3. A device according to claim 1, wherein the slide members are mounted to slide in a frame, the means for selecting a character comprising a saddle disposed on the frame overlaid transversely across the slide members, said selected character on each strip being that visible adjacent to the saddle.

   4. A device according to claim 3, wherein the saddle is at least partially formed from a transparent material, said selected character being that positioned beneath, and visible through, the saddle.

   5. A device according to claim 3, wherein the saddle has two parts spaced from each other on the frame, said selected character being that visible between said parts.

   6. A device according to any of claims 3 to 5, wherein ridges and corresponding grooves are provided on the saddle and on the upper surface of each slide member, the ridges cooperating with the grooves to positively retain each slide member in a chosen position.

   19 7. A device according to any of claims 3 to 6, wherein the saddle is slidably mounted to the frame.

   8. A device according to any preceding claim, wherein means for moving the slide members are provided on each slide member. 9. A device according to claim 8, wherein the means for moving the slide members is configured to enable two or more slide members to be moved as a 10 group. 10. A device according to any preceding claim, wherein each slide member has a tongue along one edge that locates in a groove in the edge of an adjacent slide member. 15 11. A device according to any of claims 2 to 10, wherein the slide members are flat strips and are mounted for longitudinal sliding motion parallel to each other in the frame. 20 12. A device according to any of claims 1 to 10, wherein each slide member is a flat annular ring, each ring increasing in radius and mounted concentrically with the other rings for rotation about a common axis. 13. A device according to claim 12, wherein the means for selecting a character 25 extends radially across the flat annular rings. 14. A device according to any of claims 1 to 10, wherein each slide member is a cylindrical collar, each collar being mounted coaxially with the other collars. 30 15. A device according to claim 14, wherein the means for selecting a character extends across the outer surface of all the cylindrical collars parallel to their axis of rotation.

   16. A device according to any preceding claim, including means for electronically detecting the position of the slide members and means for displaying data specific to said position on a computer.

   17. A device according to claim 16, including means for generating sounds specific to the positions of the slide members.

   18. A device according to claim 16, wherein a number is associated with each character on each strip, the computer including means to sum the numbers associated with the selected character on each strip to thereby generate a score.

   19. A device substantially as hereinbefore described, with reference to the accompanying drawings.