1. Where capitals appear in text they should be pronounced as the name of the
letter, not the sound each makes.
2. The main text as it appears is an approximate transcription of the audio
cassette, which was primarily recorded for the use of children aged six plus.
3. Some of the words used may therefore be unfamiliar to very young children so
you may wish to explain the essence of the text in more simple language.
4. Some of the words on the disks themselves would not be in a younger child's
basic vocabulary but have been included because they illustrate a particular point
and because there is some merit in readers being able to sight-read unfamiliar
words in general reading practice and thus gain an idea as to the meaning of a
word from the overall context in which it appears. In practising the word disks
the reader will often be able to think of other simple words which are pronounced
in the same way thus providing opportunities for the helper to extend the range of
words being learned.
5. Some words have the same sound but different meanings, or the same sound but
different spellings, and it may be found helpful to explain the various differences
at the time each word is encountered. To have included full details in the system
itself would have complicated the learning process, but similar words and those
with other possible variations have been selected in many cases to provide the
opportunity for linked words to be mentioned. Obviously adults, with more
developed word skills, are better able to judge both pronunciation and the
meanings of variable words from the overall context in which they appear in
general reading. A few but by no means all such instances are briefly clarified in
the "helper's" text.
6. A blank disk master (for printing) is included at the end, for words to be copied
from the lessons and for new words to be added from other reading practice.
Photocopies can be made from the blank disk master for use as required.
7. For the "phonetically-inclined" it should be noted that in some cases very
similar sounds have been amalgamated, to aid ease of comprehension/recall of the
reader; technically there are more separate "sounds" than those illustrated, as in day / dare they / their too / took boo / book , but the words are near-enough the same to be classified as such in the clock-face, and to subdivide further would serve no useful purpose.
8. Observations on this learning system are much appreciated; we reserve the right to quote from any such comments received, for publicity purposes.
9. The system begins with a basic clock face which serves as the foundation upon
which "Bricks and Mortar" is based. It is therefore helpful if the new reader is
shown the basic clock face and the numbers are read through from 1 to 12,
emphasising the "clockwise-direction" in all the examples to follow.