I don’t know what the guys at Cambridge (if it was really Cambridge!) were thinking, but they didn’t read the research that’s already out there.
The brain doesn’t read the word as a “whole.” It does look at every letter. THAT’S WHY IT CAN UNSCRAMBLE THE WORDS so they can be read. Additionally, the vast majority of those words are common, everyday words we’ve seen a gajillion times. Furthermore, once the gist of the passage is gleaned, comprehension skills kick in and aid the decoding process.
Family Air Sangs (Familiar Sayings)
These are actual “mis-heard” sayings from an individual who has an auditory discrimination learning disability. They’re also probably typical of what some students with dyslexia might hear.
Read the sayings aloud to figure out what they are. There’s a key below if you have trouble.
- Rocker buy bay bee inner tree hops.
- Turnip out fir play
- Roland’s tone gadders nome hoss.
- Sinkers honkers sick spentz
- Law tent britches full in town
- Diamond died weight fur Nome Ann
- But tune toot a gather
- My tea hoax farm ladle egg horns grow
- High pled jelly gents two theif lag
- A fit furs chewed own suck seed dry egg hen
Translation:
- Rock-a-by-baby in the tree tops
- Turn about is fair play.
- A rolling stone gathers no moss.
- Sing a song of six pence
- London Bridge is falling down.
- Time and tide wait for no man.
- Put two and two together
- Mighty oaks from little acorns grow.
- I pledge allegiance to the flag
- If at first you don’t succeed, try again.
Decoding Practice
Ok, now it’s time for some serious decoding practice. This should give every normal person a real taste of what it’s like to have dyslexia or weak decoding skills. Below are two children’s tales we all know...they’re just written with Italian phonetic code! (Ok, they are a bit fractured!)
Giacche Enne Binnestaucche
Uanse apponta taim uase disce boi. Neimase Giacche. Naise boi. Live uite ise mamma. Mainde da cao.
Uana dei, di spaghette ise olle ronne aute. Dei goine feinte fromme no fudde. Mamma, sci craise, saine, “Oroie, Giacche, teicche da cao enne traide erra forre bonce spaghette enne somme uaine.”
Bai enne bai commese omme Giacche. “Ai garra no fudde; Ai garra no uaine.” I meichese misteicche! I traidse da cao forre bonce binnese!
Giacchesse!!
Mamma scise engri. Giompe appen daon craine, “Uara iu, somme caine creise?” Den sci tro alle binnese aute da uindo.
Necchese dei, Giacche lucchese aute da uindo, enne uara iu tink? Ise disse binnestaucche uate rice ape tru di claodese.
Somme uide!!
Giacche gos appe da binnestaucche. Ise se disse ogghere—isse menne nainte sicchese fit taulle uite tri grin aise! En i garra ghuse uate leise gholde egghese!
Giacche iella, “Ciao!” Den ise grabbe da ghuse enne cuicche claime daon fromme da binnestaucche. Ise go cioppe uita da acchese. Da nainte sicchese futte menne ise faulle enne breicche da necche.
Mamma giompse fromme gioie. Meicchese naise ghuse cacciatore.
Bai enne bai, deigarra no fudde. Deise goina dai! Uatsa iuse? Uara iu goine du uene iore ghuse ise cucchede??!!
Di Tri Berrese
(Disse Librette ise for dose hua laiche to follo di spiecher uail ise spicce)
Uance appone taim uase tri berrese. Mamma berre, pappa berre enna beibe berre. Live inna contri nire foresta. Naise ause. No mogheggia. Uane dei, pappa, mamma e beibi olle go bice. Onele a forghette locche de dorre.
Bai enne bai comese Goldilocchese. Sci garra nattinge to du bedder maiche troble. Sci puscie olle fudda daon di maute; no live cromme. Den sci gos appesterrese enne slipse in alle beddese! Leise slobbe!
Bai enne bai commes omme di tri berrese, olle sanneborne uite send inne scius. Dei garra no fudde, no beddese. En uara dei goine du to Goldilocchese? Tro erra aute inne strit? Colle pulissemenne? Fatte cienze!
Dei uas Italien berrese enne dei slippe onna florrse.
Goldilocchese stei derre tri uicchese. Itte dem aute ausen omme. En giust bicose dei esche erre uanse to maicha di beddese, sci sai, “Go to elle!” Den sci ronne omme craine to erra mamma, tellenerre uat sanimbiceses di tri berres uere.
Uatsiuse! Uara iu goine du? Go complaine sittiolle?
