Fresh Publication of an all time phonics classic
I am proud to announce the July 3, 2014 republication of Florence Akin's 1913 phonics classic, Word Mastery. I first published Word Mastery on my website as a free ebook in PDF format back in 2004. The document got as many as 30,000 hits per month back then. Many parents have emailed me over the years to tell me that they used the method successfully with their children, many of whom had previously struggled to learn to read.
Available Formats & the Significant Advantages of This New One
What makes my paperback edition of Word Mastery especially useful is the large clear print, much larger than the original. Since the book is in public domain, it is possible to download the Google scan from Google Book. I think most people will prefer the advantages and convenience of my new handy paperback edition.
A Complete Course
Word Mastery is a complete course in phonics in a single book. I believe it is one of the most complete courses ever published. It teaches every sound in spoken English and every major spelling pattern. There are well chosen pictures to help the students learn to associate the sounds (phonemes) with the letters (graphemes) that represent them. There is no need for any teaching aids other than the book. It is highly cost effective. There is no need for extensive training in order to teach it effectively.
Our Rationale
We are convinced that if every elementary student in America were given a copy of Word Mastery in first-grade and were to study it through third-grade, we would see an improvement in reading achievement unparalleled in recent history. It is an effective, yet inexpensive, answer to a seemingly unsolvable problem.
Dyslexia
While the method is perfect for beginning readers, it is also an especially powerful tool for helping students with reading problems. It was a part of the original equipment that Anna Gillingham and Bessie Stillman gave to their dyslexia teachers. Gillingham developed her famous dyslexia program under the guidance of the famed Dr. Samuel Orton, famed clinician and neurologist.
How to Purchase
You can purchase a copy from Amazon: Word Mastery
I have produced a set of Decoding Fluency Practice Cards for developing rapid word identificaion for fluent reading. Cards for the first 33 pages of the Word Mastery program are available for free. While not strictly necessary, since the book alone is a complete program, they are quite helpful. They cover all the short vowels
Word Mastery Alphabet Flashcards. These are basic alphabet cards for teaching fluent letter identification. Both Print and Cursive are taught on the same card, which is a very valuable feature.
Linguistic Verification
Here is a study I did that verifies the Linguistic Completeness of Word Mastery. This study verifies beyond dispute that all 44 English speech sounds and all major spelling patterns are taught.
Special Cursive Edition of Word Mastery
I created this edition upon the request of a third-grade Word Mastery student who asked me if I could make him a cursive edition. I designed Word Mastery Cursive as the definitive answer to the lack of experience reading cursive in today's classrooms. This book will teach students to read and spell cursive through reading and writing words categorized into their spelling patterns (orthographic structures). The contents are exactly the same as Florence Akin's 1913 Word Mastery, but in cursive font. This is a unique book. I have not seen anything like it. I think it will serve a special role in restoring cursive handwriting to the modern curriculum.
First Readers Anthology: Regular Edition and First Readers Anthology: Cursive Edition.
I have published two decodable text readers. One is in regular print and the other in cursive. They are perfect companions to my two editions of Word Mastery. By working through both Anthologies the students gain experience in reading regular book print and handwritten cursive.
Instructional Audio for Word Mastery
You can download my Instructional Audio for Word Mastery by clicking on the link above. Parents and teachers new to this powerful way of teaching reading with phonics will learn all they need to teach the program successfully the very first time. Their students can used the audio to practice between classes. Even teenaged and adult, wanting to improve their reading, will be able to do so just by listening to the audio instruction. Here is an Contents and Progress Chart for my Word Mastery Audio.
