Weekly Resource - The Logic of English

The Logic of English is a scripted spelling and reading program that follows in the footsteps of Writing Road to Reading and Spell to Write and Read.   Although I haven't looked closely at All About Spelling I know it has a similar focus - PHONICS!   Many call this stream of teaching materials - Spalding after Romalda Spalding who wrote the original Writing Road to Reading book in the 1970's.  Here is a comparison of Spell to Write and Read with the Logic of English - if you are trying to decide between programs.  The learning curve for these program is steep and that makes many moms miss out on really helping their children grasp how phonics works and our words are put together.  The resource I want to share with you today might help you over that hump!

Today I want to direct you to a FREE resource that any parent who finds themselves trying to remember or teach phonics might be able to use - the Logic of English you tube channel.  If you know nothing about this program you should start with the introduction video.  You'll need to set aside an hour - but it is a good investment and has convinced many a mother that this a valuable way to teach reading and spelling.  Although the content of the site is specific to using the Logic of English program - the principles will apply to any phonics focused program that uses techniques similar to Spalding.

On the channel there are three different "tracks".  The teacher training course is a series of 22 videos (most segments are 15 to 25 minutes long) describing the philosophy and techniques of the program. Although geared towards classroom teachers and includes many references to the teachers manual, I think parents who are really interested in this concept can benefit from it too.  The second track is the weekly lesson series and is meant to be a model for how the teacher should present lessons.  Here she provides a sampling of the different types of lessons - weekly spelling lists, phonogram practice sessions, morphology lessons and "crazy words" - to give teachers a taste for the approach and method. The third track is more general information and thoughts about handwriting.

If you want a good overview of the philosophy in general you can read Uncovering the Logic of English (your local library might even have it).  This is a comprehensive phonics based reading and writing program.  This channel provides a great overview and very specific help to those wanting to use this approach in teaching their children.  In the process, her materials can also assist those who have chosen a different program based on the Spalding philosophy.