Shannon Trust Method

How it works - A person who can read (the mentor) works through the Turning Pages manuals with a person who wants to learn to read (the learner). No specialist training is needed for the mentor, they just need regular, short amounts of time to spend with their learner. Learning can take place anytime and anywhere to fit in with everyday life.

Turning Pages is a set of 5 friendly, structured manuals which use a synthetic phonics approach. Always starting with manual 1, a learner and mentor aim to work together for 20 minutes, 5 times a week but they will still make great progress with fewer sessions; the aim should be little and often.

Each learner works at a pace that's right for them. There are no entry requirements or exams.

Shannon Trust Method
Shannon Trust Method

Turning Pages is interactive. Learners build and practice their skills working through a range of different activities. 3 progress checks are built into each manual so learners and mentors can be confident new skills have been embedded. As these progress checks are completed Turning Pages reading books become available. These have been written to match the reading skills learners have covered so that they are giving the chance to put their new skills into action and so they can experience the joy of reading for pleasure from early on in the first manual.

'All you have to do is take the first step forward. I promise you, you won't regret it. It will be the best thing you will ever do to better your life....I have got myself to the library for the first time and I read two pages a night of my book.' Turning Pages Learner

Turning Pages manuals

There are 5 Turning Pages manuals. All learners start Turning Pages at the beginning of the first manual. Take a look inside the first part of each manual to see how Turning Pages works and the learner progresses.

Each manual:

  • Is interactive giving learners the chance to write and count
  • Uses a range of activities to learn, practice and embed new skills
  • Includes built-in progress checks
  • Has an introduction for the mentor
  • Uses a double page spread with mentor instructions on the left and learner activities on the right.
  • Uses synthetic phonics
Shannon Trust Method

Although Turning Pages manuals contain all the information needed for a confident reader to help a non-reader, there are some additional free resources available in the downloads section. The main thing is for mentors and learners get the sound of letters and letter combinations right - you can check this with the 'Getting the Sounds Right' download. Teach a Friend to Read

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