I have to say, one of the blessings of being on the Homeschool Crew is learning about items you never knew you needed before. We recently received three such items--samples of the products available from See-N-Read. Oops, I should say four. In addition to the three tangible reading tools there is a "virtual" version to help with reading online.
The tools are thin rectangles of plastic, mostly blue-gray in color with a clear window allowing you to focus on one line of text. The 3 x 5 1/2 size is perfect for paperback and softback books. The 3 x 8 1/2 inch size can be used with textbooks and anything written on typing paper. The third sample is a Memory Mark. It is availalbe in the same sizes, but rather than being clear the window is cut out to all for highlighting or underlining text. I was concerned that the cut out feature would compromise the intregity of the plastic and would quickly tear but I've been using it for a month with no problems.
As I mentioned, I wasn't aware we needed these tools. My Schnickelfritz has really improved his reading skills this year. Sure, he occasionally skips a word or substitutes "a" for "the," but I thought we were doing well. We did much better though when he held a See-N-Read tool over the page--no more skipped words. He even mentioned that things didn't seem to wiggle around as much--I didn't even know he perceived words on a page that way.
I confess to have kept the Memory Mark for myself. I don't like the tools for casual reading as I felt they slowed me down, but in some cases slower is better--like Bible study. And I was able to make crisp, clean underlining (wiggly lines take my attention away from the words I was trying to focus on the first place). We found a second handy use for the Memory Mark in math class. By turning the tool vertically it helped Fritz keep his columns lined up in multiplication.
There is a free 7-day trial available for the eSee-N-Read, a virtual tool for use on PC's. We're not big fans of reading at the computer but it would certainly help in this age of downloading and reading out-of-print books available on sites like Project Gutenberg. You can also find research articles and testimonials on the effectiveness of these tools at the website.
The eSee-N-Read costs $29.99 for one seat license, $69.99 for 3 and $99.99 for 5 seats. It is available for most Windows formats and a Mac version is coming soon. The smaller See-N-Read and Memory Marks are $2.99 and the larger sizes are $3.49. There are discounts for purchasing in bulk.
You can see what my fellow Homeschool Crewmates think of the See-N-Read products by clicking here.
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