Grace Fernald: VAKT Method

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Grace Fernald VAKT Method

• Mayra Mateos
• University of Miami
• Spring 2006
• TAL 656

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Historical Background

• Samuel Orton
• Grace Fernald
• Marion Monroe
• Samuel Kirk

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Grace Maxwell Fernald 1879-1950

• 1907-Doctoral Dissertation
• 1909-W. Healy Juvenile Psychopathic Institution,
  Chicago
• 1921-UCLA Clinic
• 1943-Remedial techniques in basic school subjects
• Reading disabilities
• Experimental classrooms
• ELL's
• Dyslexia
• Blindness

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Visual Audio Kinesthetic Tactile Technique

• Incorporating multiple modalities
• Memory schema
• Stimulus
• Reading and writing words as whole

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Steps

• Child picks some words, teacher writes word on
  the board, child says the word while tracing the
  letters. Teacher erases the word and child writes
  the word, saying the syllables.
• Same as first, but using sentences.
• Child selects a book he wants to read, working
  together with the teacher, paragraph by
  paragraph. Unknown words are taught.
• The student is taught including phrases, reads
  entire paragraph and reports on what was read.
• The teacher and the child read alone.
• Hallahan and Mercer

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Other interpretations

• (1) inspect the whole word to be learned, (2)
  pronounce or enunciate the whole word, (3) write
  the whole word while pronouncing each syllable,
  (4) dot the "i's" and cross the "it's" in the
  left to right sequence, (5) pronounce each
  syllable and underline it, and (6) pronounce the
  whole word again.)
• Horst Taschow

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Strategies

• Hand shape
• Sign language
• Functional spellings
• Writing frames
• Cartoons
• Actions on 'Post-Its' that can be ordered and re
  arranged
• Cloze procedure
• Color overlays

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Todays Applications

• Summer camps all over the world
• Fernald Child Study Center
• Ability-achievement discrepancy

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References

• Fernald, G.M. (1943) Remedial Techniques in basic
  school subjects. New York McGraw-Hill Book
  company.
• Fernald, G.M., Keller, H. (1921). The effect of
  kinaesthetic factors in the development of word
  recognition in the case of non-readers. Journal
  of Educational Research,4, 355-377.
• Hallahan, Daniel P., Mercer, Cecil D. Learning
  Disabilities Historical Perspectives. Learning
  Disabilities Summit. Retreived March 23, 2006
  from
• http//www.nrcld.org/html/information/articl
  es/ldsummit/hallahan2.html
• Kersey, Harry A. Jr.,Keithley, Anne, and
  Brunson, F. Ward. (1971)FAU Project Report II
  Improving Reading Skills in Seminole Children.
  Journal of American Indian Education, 10
  (3),Retreived April 15, 2006 from
  http//jaie.asu.edu/v10S3imp.html
• Taschow, Horst G. (1970) Using the
  Visual-Auditory-Kinesthetic-Tactile Technique to
  Solve Spelling Problems in Elementary and
  Secondary Classrooms. Saskatchewan Univ., Regina.
  

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Websites

• http//www.funbrain.com/funbrain/signs/
• http//library.thinkquest.org/04oct/01056/Thinkque
  stspellpage1.htm
• http//www.time.com/time/archive/preview/0,10987,8
  04743,00.html
• http//www.bumble.com.au/content.html
• http//www.comicbookproject.org/
• http//www.readingassist.org/
• http//www.nytimes.com/learning
• http//www.dyslexia-australasia.com/shop_boodle.ht
  ml
• http//www.findarticles.com/

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And remember

• When phonics just doesn't make sense,
• Use other approaches to make print work Have
  them look for patterns in words,
• Like "at" in "cat" And "ir" in "birds." When they
  ask, "How do you spell ?" Write the word on
  paper, But don't just tell.
• Do what Grace Fernald would suggest,
• Have them trace, and say, and write, to learn
  best.
• An ode to teachers of diverse learners
  by Susan Mandel Glaser from

http//www.findarticles.com/