Read With Me! vs PowerTools for Reading

The goal of the Read With Me! is to embrace your child’s ability to learn to read naturally during your normal picture book reading time. The words are presented dynamically one at a time in large type and stay on the screen long enough for the child to attend to the words and eventually learn to read them. This experience allows your child to learn to read naturally in the same manner that they learn to understand what you say. To begin, just search our library for a physical book you have available to read. Select this book from our library by touching the start icon. Then go to the Settings to allow the reading experience to be uniquely tailored to your child. For each recorded sentence, choose the number of words that your child will see, as well as the duration for each word. The default settings are reasonable for most children, and you will quickly determine the optimal settings that seem appropriate for your child. The printed text that the child sees has typical punctuation and is presented in an easy-to-read type font. When you dictate a sentence from the book, your child can now see the printed words from the book on the screen. This application carries out automated speech recognition under your command. For best accuracy, you will want to read clearly and with emphasis as you usually do with your child. You activate this recognition by touching the screen before you begin reading a sentence from the book, and touch it again when you have finished reading the sentence. The words from the sentence you just read will then appear on the screen. The words will occur one at a time on the screen, and will follow their sequential order in the sentence (even though some of the earlier words in the sentence might be missing). This method of presentation has been proven to be a valid method of reading text, and it allows your child to focus on each word separately at their center of attention. The printed text that the child sees has typical punctuation and is presented in a large easy-to-read type font. Engaging Your Child Your child is usually engaged in your shared reading times, and it offers an ideal opportunity for giving them the opportunity to learn to read naturally. Our observations have shown that children find the written words as part and parcel of shared reading, especially if it is begun early. Our application is more interactive and somewhat more demanding than normal reading but as parents or caregivers you are starting your child’s road to literacy. The screen accompaniment is necessary because the words in picture books are usually difficult to read because of their small size and fancy fonts. In addition, children look at the pictures and not the words. We believe that learning to read in this manner instills in your child a much more positive attitude about reading and will set him or her on the pathway to reading to learn. You can see the books in our library here. http://psyentificmind.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/ReadWithMeBookList.pdf If you have questions email dominic.massaro at gmail.com For video instructions and demonstrations of the program, see http://psyentificmind.com/videos-2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3R3pGTYwa7E&feature=youtu.be http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5A6dHp-qMg&feature=youtu.be

PowerTools by Tools of the Mind® is an innovative literacy learning platform based on decades of research on the neuroscience of learning and literacy development. The PowerTools for Reading iPad application was designed from the ground up to support children’s literacy development, with multiple levels of carefully crafted eBook text integrating key science content combined with a proprietary intelligent scaffolding system that supports children in developing core literacy skills. Designed to help all children K-3 learn to read and reach grade level expectations in reading, PowerTools embeds executive functions practice in reading and increases the time spent, level of motivation, and effectiveness of young readers’ decoding practice. Continuous, adaptive, personalized feedback is displayed on a PowerTools dashboard for teachers and literacy specialists, with classroom and child level data and analytics to help teachers improve instruction, track children’s progress, and provide targeted individual scaffolding to each student. Please note: In order to use the PowerTools app, users must have a current contract with Tools of the Mind that includes access to the PowerTools Literacy Learning Platform. For more information or to begin that process please contact us at information@toolsofthemind.org .