Lightning Phonics: Testimonials

		"Our school district purchased Lightning Phonics this year. Originally, it was purchased to be our Title I intervention. Upon purchasing this program and learning more about it, we decided to use it with all our elementary students. I believe this program helps students of all abilities enhance their decoding skills. It is a quick easy way to introduce, reinforce or enhance all students' decoding skills." Renae Hickert Title I Reading Teacher Johnson, KS February, 2003
		"This is to thank you for being so willing to have me try the Lightning Phonics Program in our school. My students are really excited about it and are constantly asking to do it more often than my time allows! They are remembering the rules and telling me why during spelling class! Best of all is that my one student who has severe A.D.D. and struggles so much is far ahead of everyone else in the program. It has been wonderful for him to have an area of success! The Lightning Phonics Program allows each student to work at his own learning level. It helps students who are new to phonics catch up on what they have missed." Peggy Pollock 4th Grade Teacher Life Christian School Kansas City, MO January, 2003
		"I have noticed that my older students have become more willing to take risks when sounding out an unfamiliar word. Lightning Phonics has also increased my students' vocabulary. I have seen the new words they are learning on the Lightning Phonics pages appear in their writing at times." Marge Schecter 3rd-5th Language Arts Kit Carson Elementary Kit Carson, CO December, 2002
		"The younger students' graphophonic knowledge has really been bolstered by Lightning Phonics. I am amazed at how much phonics my first graders already know and remember since they have started Lightning Phonics. I see a lot more carry over into writing than if they would have just had a phonics page to learn a particular phonetic element." Tracey Weeks 1st Grade Kit Carson Elementary Kit Carson, CO December, 2002
		Application of phonetic skills and rules can make a tremendous difference in a student's reading and spelling success. Proficient readers must be able to apply learned sounds into works and Lightning Phonics gives them the opportunity to do this. The students learn the rules right along with putting sounds together to make words. The technique is fast, taking only a few minutes of each student's time. Since the program is taught individually, every student benefits from the slowest reader to the fastest reader. I'm finding it to be the tool I need for boosting phonetic skills in my ESL students. The students like the challenge of gaining more words each time and I like the program because it is fast, effective, and requires very little preparation time. Everything needed is bound together neatly into one spiral notebook—a student side and a teacher side. Lightning Phonics is adaptable to different ages and grade levels as well. Edna Bolen Second Grade Teacher Sharon Spring, KS November, 2002
		"The Lightning Phonics Program takes each student from their level of phonetic awareness and moved them through the program at their own rate. The daily repetition is the key to success. I have found the students as well as the teacher enjoys the one on one time with one another." Marilyn Sowers Central Elementary School Goodland, KS
		"I have see this program benefit my students who are at all reading levels. Especially exciting is that Lightning Phonics has helped my students that are reading at grade level to attend to the details of words, when many times that is what keeps them from moving to that next step beyond grade level reading. Lightning Phonics has been the tool to lend students support for their decoding efforts." Karla Blach Fourth grade teacher Otis Elementary, CO
		"We are currently using Lightning Phonics with a class of nineteen third graders. It works into our morning schedule to quickly have one-on-one time with each student. By having each student go at his/her own pace it gives me a quick assessment of how each child is progressing with phonemic awareness and the application to decode words. I like the nonsense words on each page as these force the students to apply the rules they have been working on." Joan Franke 3rd grade Otis Elementary, CO
		"I started the Lightning Phonics Program in my room half way through the school year. I use the program every morning as an assessment tool. The program identifies each student's weaknesses at his or her level and provides developmental practice at that level. I have noticed my students applying the rules while they read." Tammy K. First grade Otis Elementary, CO
		"I used the Lightning Phonics Program with my Title I students as soon as we purchased the materials. I used the materials first thing before we began our reading comprehension lesson and did see improvement in all my students. The classroom teachers were quite interested and wanted to use the materials in a classroom setting. As a result, the program was a successful tool for a wide number of students and not limited to just Title I students." Ellen Standley Title I Reading Otis Elementary, CO
		"Thank you so much for all your help. Phonetic awareness, the understanding that words are made up of sounds, is essential to a child's early reading and spelling success. The Lightning Phonics Program does just that, and I can tell that the phonics program really benefits my first graders." Joyce Faulkender, 1st Grade Teacher St. Francis Elementary School St. Francis, KS
		"I have enjoyed using the Lightning Phonics Program for the past year. We never miss a day! This program is ideal for my combination 3rd and 4th grade class, as it is flexible enough to fit a wide variety of levels. The students enjoy the challenge each time they are called to my desk for their turn. They love to see how many sounds they can remember on the master page, and how many words they know on the word pages. They strive to complete one whole page in a day! I can hear them practicing the words and the sounds as they walk away from my desk, so they will remember the first answers for the next day. I feel the program has added a great deal to our phonics, reading, writing, and spelling programs. When a child stumbles over a word, I can remind him of what he learned in the Lightning Phonics Program, and he can recall the sound with a smile and a feeling of accomplishment." Lynn Clark 3rd/4th grade teacher Liberty School Joes, CO
		"The Lightning Phonics Program is one of the best-kept secrets a school can have for reading! This tool not only reinforces all the phonics rules, but it also gives students confidence when it comes to sounding out words when they are reading. Another big plus is it doesn't take long to implement this program. It only takes no more than 1 or 2 minutes per student and better yet, there are no lesson plans and no papers to grade! The students at our school are very willing and excited to have their turn at the Lightning Phonics Program. Instead of this being a chore to them they are enthused and can't wait for their next turn. Lightning Phonics is a definite 'must' for any reading program!" Cheryl E. Soderlund K, 1, 2 grade teacher Jennings, KS Elementary
		"As an elementary school teacher, I highly recommend the Lightning Phonics Program. During the past year I used the Lightning Phonics Program with 3rd, 4th, and 6th grades, including Special Ed. The children liked it, I liked it, and so did the parents. The father of a Special Ed. student noticed that their son began to stop and sound out words instead of going on after an incorrect pronunciation. My favorite thing about Lightning Phonics is the one-on-one time with each child; its fast, yet effective. There are no work sheets to hand out, turn in, correct and hand back, and it is adaptable to different ages and levels." Natalie Osbon, Teacher Sybrant School Basset, NE
		"I believe that phonics skills can make a tremendous difference in the reading progress of students. I have found the Lightning Phonics Program to be most helpful in teaching reading in our Title I program. The program is most effective when used consistently. Just one minute a day per student results in almost immediate reading improvement. The format of the program is easy to follow and little teacher preparation is necessary. The program clearly states the rule being taught, reinforces the rule through practice, and finally checks the understanding of that rule through nonsense words. These words give the teacher a chance to check each student's use of the rule in unfamiliar words. The Lightning Phonics Program gives students, pre-K through upper elementary, the tools needed to attack unfamiliar words. I have used this program with Spanish speaking students, Title I students, language delayed, gifted, and special education students. In all cases I have seen tremendous progress due to the individualized nature of the program." Judy Raile, Teacher St. Francis Elementary School St. Francis, KS
		"I have taught second, third, and 5th grade students for nearly forty years in the state of Colorado. I find the Lightning Phonetics Program to be very beneficial because it takes the students from their present level and moves them forward in the reading progression. I use this program for teaching summer school students. It works for the slower readers by giving them another avenue to gain knowledge by being able to sound out and learn words at their speed. I like the program because it is so individualized that it also benefits the more advanced readers and gives them confidence to improve themselves. As ESL students become more language knowledgeable they become more reading proficient by being able to study with the phonics program." Warri Joan Scott Beaver Valley Elementary Brush, CO
		"The Lightning Phonics Program was a program that I accomplished in second grade. I thought that it was very fun and I enjoyed the fact that we had no homework or workbooks. The only disadvantage was that if you overslept or were late for school you didn't get to go to Phonics. (And believe me that was a bummer!) I looked forward to going every day and my teachers always urged me to do it. The phonics program has helped me a lot in pronouncing words, reading skills and all that falls in between. It made me stand up to life and look it straight in the eye because after the phonics program I could read, write, and know I would get a job some day." Janae Glidewell, 5th Grade Student St. Francis Elementary School St. Francis, KS
		"What I like about the Lightning Phonics Program is the continual exposure to the phonetic sounds. Every student has a chance daily to read through the sounds, with no paper work and no homework. The simple repetition is the educator. This program can easily be done before school each day or during study halls. Little time is really needed." Rebecca J. McAtee, 5th Grade Teacher St. Francis Elementary School St. Francis, KS
		"We have found that Lightning Phonics is a solid instructional method that allows students to review the phonics concepts they have learned in a systematic method using minimal classroom instruction time. The program has been used with students of all ages and abilities. The brisk, yet positive method of presenting material has been appealing to many of our students, some who have been known to remind their teachers on a daily basis to not forget to do their Lightning Phonics!" Dianne Helms, 4th Grade Teacher Diane Koester, Resource Teacher Peetz Plateau School Peetz, CO
		"I have had experience with the Lightning Phonics Program for four years. During this time I have used the program with students of all ability levels. It calls upon students to use their long-term memory to remember phonics rules and gives them many chances to apply those rules. Teachers have the opportunity to work individually with each student and focus on items where he/she needs help. One benefit of the program is that students can move along at their own pace. Students are not delayed if they understand a concept, and do not progress if they do not understand. After teaching reading for eight years, I am a firm believer in the benefit of teaching phonics. Phonics instruction is best when it is done in an individualized manner, with many opportunities for the student to apply what he/she has learned. The Lightning Phonics Program does just that! Much can be accomplished by using this program for just one or two minutes a day with each child. During this short time period, the student is learning a new phonics rule and applying it along with the other rules he/she has already learned. I have seen positive results with every student with which I have used the program, even those with learning disabilities." Kimberly Queen, Title I Teacher St. Francis Elementary School St. Francis, KS