Tutor Test based on the book

The Teaching of Reading (and Spelling): a Continuum from Kindergarten through College

Section One.  Questions that a tutor should be able to answer:

1.  How does reading upside down affect comprehension?

2. What are some of the benefits for a tutor of reading and writing upside down?

3.  How would you personally define reading?  Is there any perfect definition of what reading is?

4.  How would you define dyslexia?  Is there any definition of dyslexia that you think is better than the rest?

5.  What are the most common misconceptions about dyslexia? 

Section Two.

1. What are the names of the leading experts on both sides of the phonics vs. whole language controversy?
2. Which experts (if any) has clearly and personally demonstrated that his/her method works on real students?  On dyslexics?
3. How phonetically regular is English spelling?  How phonically regular?
4. Whoops!  What is the difference between phonetics and phonics?
5. What is the difference between phonics and phonemics?
6. What is the difference between phonemics and phonetics?
7. Now, how phonetically regular is English spelling?
8. Now, how phonically regular is English spelling?
9. Is spelling taught or caught?  
10. Should we teach manuscript or cursive or both?
11. Should we teach keyboarding?  If so, when?

A "Simple" Fonnix Ken Bee Phun Kwizz.

The correct answers follow the questions.  Try to answer them before you scroll down.

1.  Spell the names of the letters of the alphabet.  Hint: the first seven correct answers are: AY, BEE, SEE, DEE, EE, EFF, JEE.  Write your answers as fast as you can and then go on to the next question.  We really don't want to torture you.  We just want to point out to you that you haven't been taught "applied phonics."

Answer: AY, BEE, SEE, DEE, EE, EFF, JEE, AYCH (or AICH),  AHEE (This vowel is actually a diphthong, an elision of AH and EE.  We personally prefer using YH for this sound following the OH, AH, and UH patterns of showing vowel sounds) JAY, KAY, ELL, EM, EN, OH, PEE, KYOO, AHR, ESS, TEE, YOO, VEE, DUB BUL YOO, EKS, WAHEE (WYH), ZEE

2. The EEK sound can be spelled both eek and eak as in peek and peak.  What is another way of spelling that sound?  Give an example.

Answer: ique (pique, unique, technique, antique, Angelique, etc.  We had hoped to pique your curiosity as well as demonstrating that context clues can be missed even by the best of readers who might not catch the peak, peek, pique homophones as the clue.

3. The ISS sound is easily spelled in words such as kiss and miss.  Give at least three other ways of spelling that sound with at least one example of each.

Answer:  ice as in notice, ace as in palace, uce as in lettuce, and "is" as in analysis.

4. The "un" sound is easily spelled in little words like fun and sun.  (a) What are the two most common spellings of "un" in words that have a base of more than one syllable? (b) Which "un" spelling indicates a human?

Answer: (a) on (onion, nation) and an (American). Partial credit for one as in done.

5. The letter ou sound as "OW!" as in out and pout.  In big words, how are these letters (ou) usually pronounced?

Answer: As a schwa (uh) as in nervous and  courage,  Also OO as in you and rendezvous.

7. The dictionaries commonly use the letters zh to indicate a sound that occurs fairly regularly in English.  How do we usually spell that sound?  Give two different ways and at least two words for each way.  Underline the letters that are used to make the /zh/ sound.

Answer: s and ge and si as in measure and exposure; loge, luge, and prestige;.Asia, Persia, vision, and invasion.

8. There is a word shun, but we don't buy gasoline at a gas stay-shun. Besides the ubiquitous -tion combination, how many other ways are there to spell the sound "shun."

Answer:  There are nine other ways: (1) sion as in tension; (2) cion as in suspicion; (3) cian as in musician; (4) ssion as in mission; (5) tian as in Venetian; (6) ssian as in Russian; (7) (tien) as in patience; (8) scien as in conscience; (9) cien as in efficiency.

9. We all know that in little words the "ch" sound is made with the letters ch as in chin, chip, and church.  Give examples of three different "chun" spellings.  Give examples of three other "ch" spellings.  Hint: Choose the letter t for starters.

Answer: tion as in question, tian as in Christian, tune as in fortune.

10. Give examples of two different ways of spelling the "jun" sound.  Underline the letter or letters that give the /j/ sound. 

Answer: geon as in surgeon, gion as in religion, and gine as in engine.

11. Although the most common spelling of the sound "shun" is tion, we never spell a single English word that ends with the" shunt" sound tiont.  Give examples of the two ways we spell the "shunt" sound.  Underline the letter or letters that produce the /sh/ sound.

Answer: tient as in patient and cient as in efficient.

12. The ending "ur" sound is spelled ur in fur.  Give examples of five different ways we have of spelling that sound.

Answer: ar as in altar; er as in alter; or as in color; our as in colour; ir as in fir.

13.  The ending "urd" sound is spelled urd as in curd.  How many other ways can you spell this sound?

Answer: 16! (1) ard as in coward; (2) erd as in herd; (3) eard as in heard; (4) ird as in bird; (5) ord as in word; (6) ered as in answered; (7) erred as in referred; (8) irred as in stirred; (9) ored as in colored; (10) oured as coloured; (11) urred as in slurred; (12) uard as in blackguard! (13) ared as in collared; (14) ured as in measured; (15) red as in euchred (16) eured as in chauffeured.

14. The "ul" sound is usually spelled le as in able or pickle.  Give examples of words in which the "ul" sound is spelled al, el, il, ol, and ul.

Answer: al in pedal; el in nickel; il in peril; ol as in pistol; ul as in mogul.

15. The ending "k" sound in little words is spelled "ck" as in sack, deck, pick, dock, and tuck.  "Big" words don't use the ending ck for the /k/ sound.  Give at least one example of a word ending with ac, ec, and ic.

Answer: Pontiac, Aztec, picnic.

16. The ending "sk" sound in little words is spelled "sk" as in mask and bask.  What four letters are often used to represent that sound in "big" words?

Answer: sque as in grotesque and picturesque, or mosque and Basque.

17. The "shul" sound is never spelled shul in any English word.  Give examples of at least two different "shul" words.  Underline the letter or letters that make the "sh" sound. 

Answer:  cial as in special and tial as in partial.

18. What is the correct pronunciation of the word "a" 99% of the time it is used?

Answer: "uh" Notice the difference in meaning when you say, "Gimme uh break!" and "Give me AY break!"

19.  Even though they are not words but parts of words, you can pronounce "resh" as in refreshments, "titch" as in stitches, and "trange" as in strangers. 

• Now, which word does the word part "titi" rhyme with: city, fish, tie dye, bit eye, or ditch? 
   
• Which word does the word part "fici" rhyme with: sissy, dish, lie, sigh, hick eye, or stitch? 
   
• Which word does the word part "missi" rhyme with: missy, fish, my sigh, miss eye, or hitch?

Answer: 

• The letters "titi" always rhyme with fish as in petition, competition, and repetition. 
•  The letters "fici" always rhyme with dish as in official, beneficial, and that should be sufficient to make my point. 
• The letters "missi" rhyme with fish as in mission, permission, and commission.

20. It is said that dyslexics often transpose letters getting the sounds out of order as in reading the name "Bart" as "Brat."  In our language there are a number of letters that are normally transposed so that the sounds are read in reverse order.  Give the three most common "dyslexic" letter combinations and at least one example of each.

Answer: le as in able (cf. label), wh as in what (hwut) and re as in acre.

21. The schwa (unstressed vowel sound) can be spelled many different ways.  How many different ways can you spell the schwa? Write at least one word for each different way the schwa sound is spelled.

Answer: a as in above, e as in petition, i as in legible, o as in mutton, u as in rubble, ou as in courage.

22. Even though there are two schwa sounds in the word democracy, can you give a solid reason why everyone should pick the correct letter or each of the two schwa sounds?  If yes, explain. If no, just accept the fact that your answer is being graded as an incorrect response.

Answer: DEMoCRATic  as opposed to deMOCracy.  If you know other structural forms of polysyllabic words you will find that the stress changes and what in one form is the unstressed schwa is now a clearly stressed vowel in another.  This is a good argument against funNETik spellings of FAHnikx and fohNEEMiks.  Note the consistent phon in phone, phonetic, phonics, and phonemics. 

23. In 1954 21% of all First Graders could correctly spell the word yellow.  How many do you believe could correctly spell the word yell? (1) 5%, (b) 10%, (c) 15%, (d) 20%, (e) 25%, (f) 40%.

Answer: 5%

24. If the correct answer were to be have been 40% would it mean that yell is easier to spell than yellow?

Answer: Yes.

 25. If the correct answer were to be 10% would it mean that yellow is easier to spell?

Answer: No.