OnTrack Reading

In Multisyllable Treatment, I demonstrate how to integrate the multisyllable method used in the OnTrack Reading curriculum with The Spalding Method. This part proves to be quite simple to do once all of the new phonograms are acknowledged. All that is required is that you become reasonably comfortable with the simple rule by which words are chunked and the three exceptions which are also easy to learn and apply.

For now, this completes the discussion on The Spalding Method. I’ve listed sufficient information to enable you to modify Spalding easily so that the methods I discuss in here can be incorporated if you should decide you wish to do so.

I’ve also added a Page at the end of the discussion on The Spalding Method that contains all of the PDF files that should be downloaded if you decide to implement the changes discussed here. That Page is PDF Files for Revising Spalding.

And again, here’s the next (and last) Page on Spalding, Multisyllable Treatment

In Survey of the Ayres List, today’s Page being added to the Guide, I try to fairly assess the impact of some of the changes I’ve suggested be made to phonogram structure of The Spalding Method.

I think many reading instructors, and parents too probably, would agree that sometimes we complicate things unnecessarily, and it’s certainly possible that the changes to The Spalding Method which I’ve suggested so far might add to complexity, rather than reduce it. In an effort to address this, I surveyed the word list used in Spalding and noted when each of the phonograms in the suggested structure first appear in the modified Ayres list used in the 5th Edition of The Writing Road to Reading.

I believe the net result is a significant decrease in complexity because, as shown by the survey, the additional instructional load presented by the new phonograms is minor, whereas the dropping of the five rules governing the final e removes a quite-complicated feature of The Spalding Method.

Now, change of any sort adds its own level of complexity, of course. And, as I’ve said before, I don’t really expect this to be adopted formally. However, due to the unique structure of The Spalding Method, any parent could easily decide to implement the modifications suggested here simply by coding the words in accordance with this new structure.

For example, the word house would just be coded with the ou underlined and the se underlined, with no further explanation, since /ow/ is the first sound of the ou phonogram and /s/ is the first sound of the se phonogram. There would be no need to tell your child that the ending e “does job 5, which is no job.”

So if you’re interested, here’s the Survey of the Ayres List.

Explaining the Ending “e” is today’s addition to the Guide on the sidebar.

Sorry about the 404 error if you tried to locate yesterday’s addition. I forgot to switch it from draft to published. It’s the entry above today’s on the sidebar, titled Reasons for Modifying Spalding.

Today’s suggested modification is the big one. If I were to ever use Spalding in a classroom I would drop the five rules for the final “e” that Ms. Spalding devised and borrow from Phono-Graphix to explain the ending “e” on so many English words. No rules, just a few more phonograms, and pretty easy ones to learn at that.

This change would really clean up the notation Spalding uses, which can even confuse adults at times if discussions on websites are any indication, and I think it would make it even better than it now is. But, of course, everyone who makes changes to an existing reading curriculum thinks they’re making “improvements.” It’s just that Phono-Graphix is so straightforward that it’s very easy for a young child to comprehend, and I’ve seen it work well with so many kids besides. In my judgment, what I’m suggesting would be an improvement to a curriculum that is already excellent.

Incidentally, I used to work with a child who really struggled due to low cognitive skills. The best reading he would do would be when he would read sentences written at prior sessions, using words that had already been introduced via The Spalding Method, so I think Ms. Spalding was definitely onto something with her Writing Road to Reading.

Read all the gory details regarding this proposed change here: Explaining the Ending “e”.

Reasons for Modifying Spalding lists the rationale for each of the changes suggested to The Spalding Method on the Page More Spalding Modifications.

Frankly, I doubt that this work will ever be adopted anywhere, any time for full classroom use. The reason I’ve included it here is to help you understand some of the modifications I’ve made to Phono-Graphix as I’ve incorporated Spalding’s techniques in my private reading practice at OnTrack Reading. Spalding’s approach makes a great deal of sense, and has stood the test of time, but it would take me far too long to use it in remedial work, but incorporating many Spalding’s elements has certainly improved the results I used to get using Phono-Graphix as originally designed, particularly in the code knowledge area.

So, on the off chance you’ve got nothing else to do today, here’s Reasons for Modifying Spalding for your reading pleasure.

I’ve added More Spalding Modifications to the Guide Pages on the sidebar today.

If you use The Spalding Method, you might be interested in my thoughts on the changes I’m advocating here, but frankly, until you see where I’m going with all this, it will appear that it’s not worth the effort. So, I’ll tell you where I’m headed.

After I explain the proposed changes on the next Page I write, I’ll then try to post a PDF file of what I think Spalding should evolve into, that being a blend of Phono-Graphix and Spalding. I’ve used Phono-Graphix for years, but have added significant elements of The Spalding Method to what I do and I believe the two methods blend beautifully.

Phono-Graphix addresses some of the weaknesses that I see in Spalding and, equally important, Spalding definitely addresses some of the weaknesses that I encountered in Phono-Graphix in the first years I used that program. Blending the two is resulting in clients (kids) routinely exiting my program with 100% scores on all three skills tests (blending, segmenting and phoneme manipulation) and also with code knowledge scores in the 90-96% level including a decent grasp of many of the overlap options (the second and third sounds of the letters and digraphs, or phonograms.)

To make the change I’m suggesting will involve adding about 15 more phonograms to Spalding’s 70 phonograms, but most of them are trivial to teach and their introduction will completely eliminate Spalding’s cumbersome five rules for the final e which befuddles so many parents trying to use the method.

While I’m not optimistic that anyone will ever pick up on this and use it, and while I’ll probably never teach Spalding to a full classroom, one advantage of putting information on the web is that someone, somewhere, might access the information and run with it. I’ve done much thinking about The Spalding Method over the years and I have a lot of experience incorporating it into Phono-Graphix. This seems as good a place to document the results as any.

So, here is the new Page, More Spalding Modifications.

I’m going to spend a few days summarizing my thoughts on The Spalding Method as they’ve developed over the years, beginning with today’s new Page, Modifying The Spalding Method.

This first change is one that cries out to be made, but the committee that wrote the new 5th Edition of The Writing Road to Reading apparently couldn’t decide to do it. Fortunately, it’s an easy change to make and any sensible parent or teacher will likely decide to go with it once it’s been pointed out to them.

I’ve had discussions on various websites in the past about this and have never understood the logic behind staying with something that can only serve to confuse your child as you try to explain print to him. So please take a look at Modifying The Spalding Method before you use the method with your own child.

Today I’ve added no Guide Pages, but I did make a few changes to existing Pages because I’ve completed the description of the OnTrack Reading Multisyllable curriculum.

If you’re interested, start with Multisyllable Decoding-1 and follow the threads of the discussion from there.

If and when I ever get the Advanced Code Workbook to a publisher so that you can order one, it will have the complete multisyllable curriculum in it, but all of the necessary word lists and worksheets can be downloaded now from this website for your use.

I’ve also moved the Page titled The Spalding Method to the end of the Guide and will spend a few days writing Pages that detail how Reading Reflex’s Phono-Graphix method could be integrated with The Spalding Method and result in a considerable improvement to certain aspects of Spalding.

Yesterday I said I’d add a Page to the Guide on The Spalding Method.

If you’re a homeschooling parent, this is the gold standard of reading programs as far as I’m concerned. The remedial curriculum that I’ve developed is closer to that found in the book Reading Reflex, but the two curricula are quite similar in their basic approach to helping your child understand print.

The Spalding Method, however, will take much longer, particularly if you start from scratch. The reason I don’t use it in remediation is because I’m mainly required to straighten out misconceptions and get a phonics approach into a child’s head, and my clients usually are well past the initial learning phase. The Spalding Method would, I feel, take too long for me to use in a private practice setting.

The Spalding Method differs dramatically from the curriculum in Reading Reflex in one significant regard. It aggressively teaches a set of rules that explain spelling tendencies in English. I have examined a lot of curricula and seen a lot of ineffective rules (”first vowel does the talking” comes immediately to mind here) and Spalding’s rules are excellent. If you’re going to teach phonics rules and you’re not going to use The Spalding Method, at least read the rules she advocates.

I encourage you to read The Spalding Method before deciding on a reading curriculum.