#phonics

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At this point tumblr user @/ms-hells-bells reblogged with this link:

This reblog included this link:

This reblog included this link:

I just personally listened to episodes 1 through 8 of this podcast and believe it to be key in understanding what has happened and why as far as this switch in reading instruction and how things are coming back to phonics (though now they're referring to 'the science of reading' for reasons that are explained in the podcast).

In searching for resources for myself, being a parent, I have found this book with accompanying book for the child, which can be bundled when you select to purchase:

Children's cartoon series that focuses on the lives of all the English letters. Each one has its own personality that is in part derived from its phonic function, and they all have relationships with each other that come from how the different letters relate to each other.

This was inspired by the thought that kids might learn the alphabet just as well if the letters had full names like Kappa instead of the tiny names they have today. This evolved into the thought that every letter has its own personality and that we could tell stories about them because they're all characters (ha).

Here are a few notes that I thought of in the shower and couldn't sleep until I wrote them all down:

Subconsciously I am 100% basing this on a combination of the Mr Men books and the Wayside School series.

Every letter has a proper name based on their ancestral Greek letter names*, but they are typically called by their nicknames (the English versions). I do not know what to do about C and the like.

The letters have genders because that makes them easier to remember.

They should have English or Australian accents because it's a kid's cartoon.

Speech bubbles must always be present when characters are talking. This is a phonics-focused edutainment show. The kids need to read.

C & K are married. K gets jealous when she sees her wife hanging around H because she knows what kind of effect H has on letters like S or T.

In one episode K is really upset and she refuses to make a sound when forming words like KNOW or KNIFE. Some of the letters don't get it, but her friend G helps her out.

I & E are sisters. E is the popular sister whom everyone wants to include in everything. The other vowels say "We're just not the same without you!"

I is always trying to be like E, which is why she's often trying to make the same vowel sound. When E is asked to help spell the word FRIEND, she brings her little sister along even though I doesn't actually do anything.

In one episode, E feels overwhelmed by everyone's expectations of her, so she decides to take a Self Care day. But that means that all the other letters need to figure out how to make words without any E's. Soon they start to panic because their words are all messing up now. This is reflected in the dialogue, such as "A S_lf Car_ Day? What do_s that m_an?" This is pronounced without the underscores, for comedic effect. Anyway, I decides that she has to take her sister's place. After some fumbling around, she realizes that she can't do everything her sister does, but she can still be useful. SKATE can't be SKATI, but with some help they can still make SKATING, for instance.

Ampersand is a letter. At first they think they're a punctuation mark, but then their adoptive family (grandparent . parents ! and ? siblings , ; – ) reveals that their full name is "And per se and", which means "& itself" and used to be said at the end of the alphabet song.

I am very open to discussion on this.

Please, reach out if you have any thoughts. I do not have anywhere near the skills to do something like this for real, but I want this idea to be out there and for someone to make it. And I am willing to be involved.

This is Tumblr, let's collaborate.

and out of sheer curiosity I am, I guess, now going to read "Bleak House" by Charles Dickens once I get through my current To Be Read list?

Anyways, for those unaware, it is Public Domain in the USA, which means you can 100% legally read it online or download to your favorite reading app from Project Gutenberg!

"Bleak House" by Charles Dickens is a novel written in the mid-19th century that explores the themes of social justice, the inefficiencies of the legal system, and the personal struggles of its characters.

The narrative primarily revolves around several characters involved in the interminable court case of Jarndyce and Jarndyce, delving into their lives, relationships, and the pervasive influence of the legal system on their choices and fates.

The story is introduced through the eyes of Esther Summerson, a young woman of uncertain parentage, who finds herself at the center of the unfolding drama.

Lego Star Wars: Quick Trip (2016)

Story: Quinlan B. Lee -- Art: Unknown

Amongst the declining test scores and declining population of people who read for fun, I wanted to do a fun little survey.

P.S. fanfiction counts as reading