Every Child Can Read!™
The Academic Associates Reading program, developed by Cliff Ponder, a school principle, teacher for twenty years and leading authority in reading, works holistically with the brains process’ for learning language, often resulting in students jumping one to two grade levels in reading comprehension.
Why is learning to read so difficult?
Comprehension of written language is far more complex then its spoken equivalent. Not only must the student successfully acquire the spoken language, but they must also learn to “decode” the characters they see on the page into their phonetic and morphemic equivalents. Learning disabilities such as ADHD, ADD, Dyslexia and other vision problems only complicate this process further and often go undiagnosed. Because the Academic Associates program utilizes one-on-one student paced systematic instruction our tutors can help students receive the full benefit of phonetic instruction and work with students in overcoming possible learning disabilities.
What is Phonetics?
Phonetics is a fancy linguistic term for each of the “sound units” in a particular language, such as “th” in “the” or “S” in “snake”. By themselves these units of sound have no meaning, but when combined together make units of meaning linguist's call morphemes. Morphemes, such as the “ing” in “running” and the “tele” in “telescope”, combine together into the complex systems of meaning known as words. Human beings are born with their brains pre-programmed to acquire the phonetics, morphemes and words of the language being spoken around them. The Academic Associates Reading program uses this natural process in order to effectively teach students to read.
How long does it take to complete the program?
The Academic Associates Reading program is broken in thirteen sequential lessons which most students usually complete in 30 to 60 hours of instruction. Though completion of the program is recommended, it is by no means necessary for students to achieve success. Parents and students often notice an improvement in the students reading after only a few hours of instruction.