6 Key Elements of That Reading Thing
- relational
People who choose That Reading Thing often have very negative experiences of education. Because of this, the programme works best in an environment where both the tutor and learner come to feel comfortable sharing life experiences and learning from each other.
- and “not like school”
The work is challenging and the learning measurable, but the atmosphere is one of safety, where every error is an opportunity to learn.
- for any student at any level
People access That Reading Thing because they identify themselves as struggling
readers and want to do something about it in a one-to-one instructional setting.
- informal
The programme is specifically designed for those individuals who do not feel ready to access standard literacy courses offered by local colleges. It is also designed to be delivered by anyone with a good level of literacy who would like to help struggling readers.
- not an end in itself
That Reading Thing is geared to lead somewhere else: to a more formal course, to a renewed confidence in an ability to learn, to a friendship with a significant adult, to a broader view of community and the world.
- based on “what readers know about reading”
The majority of struggling readers come to us with a single strategy of guessing based on whole word recognition. That Reading Thing is based on the 7 things that accomplished readers use automatically to read unfamiliar words. These elements of reading English are introduced over 50 levels with “real reading” taking up an increasing proportion of lesson time as the levels progress. Comprehension is emphasised at all levels and context is used as a natural “check” for decoding. Spelling strategies are an integral part of the course.