Bannatyne Reading Program -- FAQ ABOUT STUDENT AGE LEVELS

Bannatyne Reading, Writing, Spelling and Language Program

Third Edition

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS WITH ANSWERS

Q & A ABOUT STUDENT AGE-LEVELS AND THE BANNATYNE PROGRAM

At what age can I start my three, four or five-year-old child (or children) in the Bannatyne Program?

As soon as your child can converse with you in simple sentences and carry on a continuous meaningful conversation, he or she is ready to begin in the Jewels Series Pearl Workbook 1. This is usually around three or four years of age depending on the child's verbal endowment. Girls are usually ready a little earlier than boys, but the overlap is considerable.
One home-schooled child, who began the Bannatyne Program when he was 4 years old, was reading at the 9-year-old achievement level not long after he turned 5! (See: TESTIMONIALS AND STUDIES)
If you decide to use the Bannatyne Program with very young children, there are several very important considerations to keep in mind. A reasonable degree of fine-motor control is necessary, along with fairly precise hand/eye coordination; so if the child can color fairly well mostly inside the lines of picture coloring books, he or she is ready in this respect. You will harm your child if you are ambitious and push him or her to do something he or she does not want to do. A young child who is not happy to participate is not ready. Go slowly at first, perhaps 20 minutes per day.
The Bannatyne Program is self-pacing and it is the child who determines the rate at which he or she wishes to learn, not the parent or other adult. Never pressure your child to learn anything.
The lesson period should be short, and it too must be determined by the child. Usually only a few minutes a day is called for. Anyway, if you stop the lesson just before the child becomes bored or tired, he or she will always be much more eager to participate next time. Remember, there is no hurry; this is not a race.
Use regular-sized lead and color pencils with strong leads, not the fat pencils. The Crayola^® 50 Count Colored Pencil (non-toxic) pack Code #68-4050 is recommended (see section on Color Pencils in Chapter 9 Helpful Hints and also in the Grapheme Book on DISC 1 after you have purchased the Bannatyne Program).
Right at the outset, teach your child to hold the pencil correctly between the ends of the first two fingers and the tip of the thumb (even if you don't) with the lower fingers tucked slightly underneath as they rest on the surface of the paper, table or desk. There is an illustration of how to hold a pencil correctly in the Pearl Teacher Guide on Page 3C.
Keep the "lesson" time happy, light and full of fun. Use lots of praise, smiles and hugs. Children "work" very happily for people with whom they feel loved--and love!

Why should I bother to use the Bannatyne Program with the verbally gifted young students?

First, because they will almost certainly progress over twice as fast as with any other traditional method of teaching reading.
Second, they will not only learn to read superbly, but also learn to spell, print, creatively write and comprehend language extremely well, and they will learn lots of syntax and grammar along the way.
Third, verbally competent students will learn the inherent structure of all phonetic languages as well as the clear articulation of Western phonemes, and this will facilitate the rapid acquisition of non-English phonetic languages--which, of course, should be taught at the beginning in kindergarten or earlier.
Would you not think it strange if someone asked, "Why use a fine mathematics program to teach the mathematically gifted when they can pick it up from any old arithmetic program?"

Can I use the Bannatyne Program with teenager students and adults who have not learned to read or spell well?

Certainly. Many, many teenagers and adults have learned to read, write and spell efficiently by progressing through the Bannatyne Program. Rather than expand on this extensive topic here, I refer you to the following Website pages: MOTIVATION OF STUDENTS, LITERACY VOLUNTEERS AND CENTERS and ADULT LEARNERS

The Bannatyne Reading Program is an excellent, tested reading program. The Bannatyne Reading Program is unlike any other reading programs currently available. This means you will find many features which are only in the Bannatyne Reading Program. In some Commonwealth countries the program may be referred to as: Bannatyne Programme, or Bannatyne Reading Programme.