That Reading Thing and EBLI Compared

posted in: Secondary literacy

Since the Sounds-Write speech to print symposium, I’m getting lots of questions about how That Reading Thing compares with EBLI. Both TRT and EBLI are rooted in exactly the same phonics soil and have both been around for the same number of years so there are many conceptual similarities. Here are some of the differences I’ve gleaned from tutors who are familiar with both programs: That Reading Thing costs £170 (£160 until September 30th) which comes out to just over … Read More

Linguistic phonics for secondary students

posted in: Secondary literacy

What kind of results can you expect from an age-appropriate linguistic phonics programme in a large urban secondary school? Does it work with young people who have given up on reading and school? Report from That Reading Thing in Tower Hamlets Note from Tricia – The voice in this report is that of Sarah Warburton who was the TRT lead in the now closed Gap Project in Bethnal Green. She delivered That Reading Thing as a linguistic phonics intervention to … Read More

DfE validated programmes & Phonics for teens with SEN & Dyslexia

Quick answers to two frequently asked questions about phonics for secondary schools. Question 1: Are secondary and special schools required to choose from the DfE’s list of validated phonics programmes? No! Those programmes are validated for primary only and may be inappropriate for both the age and stage of students at secondary school. That Reading Thing meets the DfE’s criteria for phonics interventions for older students as laid out in the 2021 Framework for Reading. Read more in this blog post. … Read More

Why not to teach syllable types

posted in: Secondary literacy

Teachers who have been teaching rules, syllable types etc for years might think there’s ‘something missing’ from That Reading Thing. What’s missing is the burden on memory that prevents students from learning to read quickly. We ask our tutors to ask themselves, am I tearing down a barrier to reading or building one up? Dyslexia tutors who are trained in programs like Orton-Gillingham are showing an interest in linguistic (speech to print) phonics and this has led to more frequent … Read More

Phonics for secondary schools

posted in: Secondary literacy

In her OFSTED blog post, ‘Supporting secondary school pupils who are behind with reading’, HMI Gill Jones writes: “(Secondary) pupils who can’t read unfamiliar words accurately will need phonics teaching. Regardless of age, special educational need or background, the same knowledge of the alphabetic code and phonics skills underpins all reading. Intensive practice should soon make sure that pupils can read age-appropriate texts accurately and automatically.” That Reading Thing is truly age-appropriate phonics for secondary, adult and transition to secondary … Read More

Literacy for Teens who ‘Don’t do education’

In the early years, That Reading Thing was used mostly with young people who had some connection to the local youth offending team, either in the YOS system or at risk of being on their books at some point. ‘I don’t do education’ was a common statement at the first session. That sentiment was echoed by a woman from the Basic Skills Agency who insisted, ‘You can’t just sit a young offender down at a table and teach them to … Read More

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