Page 11 - The Red Well-Read Reader

The Red Well-Read Reader is designed for all the following readers:

First and Second Graders
Younger Children (limited usage)
High School Students (remedial programs)

Adults in Literacy Programs

Foreign Students (working primarily on pronunciation)

Also, because this book covers every utterable sound, every spelling thereof, and virtually every

monosyllabic word of the English language, it should be of some value to everyone who has a
keen interest in the language; such as teachers and crossword puzzle enthusiasts and Scrabble

players.

The greater number of stories herein are written either in rhythmic prose or verse. Because
of this they tend to be humorous. Students will laugh at stories that they will not fully

understand–of which there will be many. This feature, however, does not detract in the least
from learning. On the contrary, it enhances learning. It is the sine qua non of learning. This

Latin expression, incidentally, is apropos to explain the learning process propounded throughout

this book: one need not know Latin to hazzard a guess at the meaning of this phrase. Even if
one guesses wrong, it is inconsequential; the next time the foreign phrase is heard, the better
it will be understood.

When a youngster begins to read he or she is thrilled just to pronounce the printed words on a
page. Indeed, this is a giant leap in learning, and the student should feel duly proud of himself
or herself. The newly-learned skill, called decoding, however, is of limited value.

Comprehension is a far greater skill. As comprehension is learned the student will feel

significantly prouder and more confident of success. Comprehension is like an appreciation of
fine wines, developing slowly and becoming more and more refined over time. But unlike the wine
connoisseur, the young wordsmith will learn a skill of boundless value.

Although apparently paradoxical, the method used herein focuses mainly on decoding while
letting comprehension alone, to come later as it may in its own time. By and large, each story
presents just one new sound or phonological structure; however, many of the stories are rather

sophisticated in part and are far beyond the ken of most beginning students. Not to worry:

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