Evening star., 1954-04-09
School Builds
Reading Skill .
PhOneticuHy
Older Reading
Tool Has Been
StreunIined
By Betty Miles

has ragged through the country
these past years, the 10-year-old
Primary Day School in Bethesda
has gone quietly about its self
appointed taSk-careful school,
ing in the 3 R'S-without the
loss of the freedom and creative
activity that are the hallmark
of modern education.
Teaching the children to read
and spell is the primary goal,
since the school is the direct re-
suit of its founders belief that
the number of reading failures
they observed was unnecessary.
Their reading program is built
around a phonetic chart de-
signed by them which is. in ef-
feet, the schools trademark.
But their philosophy by no
means offers aid and comfort to
citizens who cry for a return to
the 3 RS, no "frills," and
spare the rod and spoil the
child" philosophy.
They do not equate the use of
the older, phonetic technique
for teaching reading with the
older, authoritarian classroom
control. There is control. to be
sure, in the sense that the chill
dren follow a schedule, with a
definite time for reading, and a
specific time for spelling. But
the atmosphere is relaxed and
free.
The work is built around a
project in the modern manner
right now, it's Spring. There
are shoots and sprigs growing
in jars and bottles in the class
room, there are drawings and
poems (the latter are set to
music by the directory inspired
by Spring. and there is modern
dancing. in which the children
make up their own dances SYM
bolizing the flowers and beauty
of the season. During the as
sembly period, they have fun
with puppets.
The phonoviSual method is
basically one in which the chill
dren learn the sounds of the
consonants and vowels by ear
and sight. The phonovisual
chart used, developed to teach
normal children to read, is the
outgrowth of techniques for
teaching the deaf, and for cor
recting the speech of children
with normal hearing.
PhonovisuoI Chort Designed
The phonovisual chart was de-
veloped by Miss Josephine Tim
berlake. former editor of the
Volta Revue, a trained teacher
of the deaf, and Miss Lucille
Schoolf1eld, a speech correction
teacher IN the District schools.
They founded the Primary Day
School along with Mrs. Marie
Strudley Buckley. the present
director, formerly a demonstra-
tion teacher in one of the pub
lie schools for Wilson Teachers
College. Miss Schoolfield and
Miss Timberlake, now retired,
serve as consultants to the
school.
Miss Timberlake long had OBJ
served that she had never seen
a deaf child who had trouble
with the mechanics of reading.
The spelling technique used for
the phonovisual charts she and
Miss Schoolfleld developed was
inspired by the Carolyn A. Yale
charts for the deaf, which help
children, through knowledge of
the vowels and consonants, to
recognize and pronounce words
on sight. The spelling on the
phonovisual charts, which they
also illustrated, tries to capture
the sounds and indicate to the
child how the word is pronounced.
The chief difference between
these charts and other phonetic
methods is that this is so SIM
pie the children can learn. 26
consonants and II vowelS easily
and effortleSsly by the end of the
first grade. First grade children
at the Primary Day School, after
mastering the consonantS and
vowels, can read and spell from
400 to 500 words without study
by June. and can read inde-
pendently, and enthusiastically,
from any first grade book.
A1l-jYnn0rtan is the wav in