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The alphabet:
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(1) The student is shown how letters can be made with three basic forms that are so fundamental, even infants recognize them. They are a circle, a line and an angle. To make the forms fun they are called ball, stick, and bird.
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Ball - Circle |
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Stick - Line
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Bird - Angle
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(2) The student can actually build the alphabet letters with the three basic forms, utilizing four sense modalities to learn the configurations and their sounds.
BIG STICK WITH BIG STICK STUCK 0N TOP
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BIRD FLYING UP WITH LITTLE STICK THROUGH HIM
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BIG STICK WITH A BIG BALL STUCK TO IT
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- (3) Beginning reading is taught in capital letters.
- (a)Thereby limiting the initial memory load.
(b)This also avoids letter reversals, since the big stick is always first.
BIG STICK WITH TWO LITTLE BALLS STUCK TO IT
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BIG STICK WITH
LITTLE STICK STUCK AT THE TOP
LITTLE STICK STUCK AT THE MIDDLE
LITTLE STICK STUCK AT THE BOTTOM
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BIG STICK WITH A STUCK UP LITTLE BALL
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Averting letter reversals
After the student has built the letters with the three forms
there is immediate transference to regular print.
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(4) Letters are called by their most usual phonic sound, rather than by useless alphabet names. This is another way the system avoids initial memory overload.
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(5) Exact sound discriminations are not required since in English there is considerable variation for a letter and its sound. This is especially important for children, dyslexics and the learning disabled, who are unable to make fine sound discriminations. Their inability is used to help them learn to read.
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(6) The alphabet sequence has been changed.
- (a) The simplest letter is presented first.
I as in "icky"
(b) In order to avoid visual or auditory confusion, letters that sound
or look similar are presented at a distance from each other.
(c) The most used letters are presented early in the sequence allowing
immediate immersion in story reading.
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(i) In this way a letter and its sound is immediately anchored in meaningful language.
(ii) The stage is set for "code approximation."
Immediate immersion into story reading:
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(1) Word building already begins with the presentation of the second letter.
(2) The hilarious science fiction stories start the presentation of the fourth letter.
With the presentation of the sixth letter the main character VAD appears.
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(3) Word building is taught. The student is shown how to use the phonic sounds to actually build a word that makes sense in the context of the story he is reading. Note: this is cognitively very different from the usual procedure of teaching how to take words apart. This means that phonemic awareness is not a necessary prerequisite for learning to read, although knowing the phonic sounds is.
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(a) This encourages neural anticipation of what the target word must be.
(b) And requires that only two word components be kept in short-term memory at one time.
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(4) Immediate immersion into story reading allows for code approximation. The student is told the truth - the letters are a sloppy code. Therefore, "You are a detective and the letters are your clues. The only way you can be sure of the exact sound of a letter clue is to see if it makes a word that makes sense in the story." Our research showed that four-year-olds, the learning disabled, and even the severely retarded found this a natural and easy task. Were we surprised! See IN SEARCH OF THE IQ CORRELATIONS, 1977. Ball-Stick-Bird Publications.
Already with the presentation of the 13th letter the continuing story has become dramatic.
In this way the contextual clues encourage code approximation.
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(5) Reading principles such as ow, sh, long i, long a etc., are taught by presenting the pattern as a word list. The words in this list are immediately put to use in the ongoing narrative.
- (a) Since the words in the list become a part of the continuing story, a fun game is to anticipate what will happen next in the narrative.
(b) This technique has functioned as an implicit teaching of spelling not just for students but also for some of their teachers.
Words from the word list are immediately imbedded in the continuing narrative.
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(6) Developmental linguistics determines the level of sequential difficulty of the language in the stories as well as their layout.
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(a) The narratives of books #1 and #2 are told primarily with just nouns and verbs in the present tense. Only gradually are the more complicated parts of speech introduced.
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(i) In this way beginners need read only a few words to get the gist of the story.
(ii) Our research showed that this approach functions as a demonstration of how language is built and therefore how to play the language game.
(iii) The language game is eagerly imitated by students. As a result, the system goes beyond the mere teaching of reading, producing profound changes in the language use and thinking.
(b) The layout of the beginning stories is in story-engram form with each of these thought packages having a line of its own. For more of a description of story engrams see Popular Articles by Dr. Fuller -"Stories: The Brain-compatible way of Teaching Humans" on this web site.
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(i) Layout in story-engram form functions as a visual presentation of how the language game is played.
(ii) It also teaches, albeit implicitly, the raison d'être of punctuation.
Example of simple story engrams with page layout in story engram form.
The no-failure reading adventure:
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(1) Lessons, such as letters, dipththongs, and their phonic sounds, etc., are repeated in book after book.
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(a) In this way, if learning has not occurred the first time round, it will the second or third time round - always in the context of another hilarious space adventure.
(b) These repetitions function as drill. However, students eagerly deciphering a goofy space adventure are unaware they are participating in a phonic drill.
(c) Our research demonstrated that this repetition within story context precludes the need for frequent tests to determine whether learning has taken place. Thus the system avoids the constant fear of failure that tests tend to create.
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(2) Our research also showed that it is counter productive to require exact pronunciations of either the phonic sounds or the words they make. Instead of a "No!" when mistakes occur, what really works is a sweet smile and the correct pronunciation by the instructor. Speech therapists have found the system and its techniques effective speech therapy.
(3) By making learning to read a joyful and exciting adventure, Ball-Stick-Bird has introduced thousands of non-readers to the pleasure of mankind's greatest invention - written communication. And it achieves this feat without fear, without frustration, and in record time.
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