THRASS TWO-DAY CERTIFICATE, SOMERSET, JAN 3-4, 2007

Clear, informative, mind-boggling. Plenty of information to take away, work with, work on, read, pass on, enthuse others with. Love the multi-sensory approach. Inspiring, active speaker.

Great. Lively, entertaining, informative. I finally know what a consonant blend is! (and feel more confident about teaching phonics). THRASS treats children as intelligent beings, and motivates learning.

A very good course which cleared up a lot of confusion of phonics. A simple and structured way to approach the teaching of phonics. Impressed with the enthusiasm of Alan Davies.

Impressed with the simplicity of the basic idea that letters just make different sounds. Well presented course, moved a long well the majority of the time. Alan Davies very dynamic.

Hopefully, the better resources available now will enable me to utilise THRASS within the classroom and for my own special needs 1:1 pupils. THRASS has come along way recently!

I learnt a lot! I really like the yellow picturechart as it gives children somewhere to put sounds and organise their ideas.

Are 2 days enough, to grasp so much information. The charts will become a very useful teaching aid.

Inspirational, worrying, (as I now need the conviction and skill to implement it). Dynamic, upsetting (to know what we should have been told as children), enjoyable, both individually and for me to see the staff moving forward together.

Makes you think! Lots of great ideas already forming plans.

Very good. Alan is very enthusiastic and keeps you interested and gets the points over clearly.

Opened my eyes. Validated previous good practice and highlighted areas for development. Can’t wait to try it in school and then initiate its use throughout the school based on my piloting of materials. Totally thrassed by the end.

Excellent – lively. I have learned a lot.

Lots of practical ideas that can be used in class straight away. An interesting and informative course.

Very dynamic presentation of basic common sense. Practical approach to reading, writing and spelling.

Entertaining and fun! Can see the logic of the programme.

Very enjoyable course. Made me very aware of how we teach children mainly using phonics. Great to hear of successes using a different approach. Interesting materials used to support teaching.

The map makes phonics make sense now. I have somewhere concrete to start and a common reference point – important as I share classes. I need to use the CD to learn the sounds before I’d feel confident to use in class – although I’m more on the way now. Looking forward to using it. You didn’t need to sell it to me as much. I already thought it was great. I’d have preferred more practical getting me to do the sounds properly as that is the biggest step to use it confidently and to teach it properly.

Very interesting, enjoyable, good use of charts etc. Easy to understand and very helpful to the children.

Even doing a repeat day 1 was valuable, as new knowledge given. Day 2 full of good ideas to further use of THRASS. All entertaining – fun- thank you.

Enthusiasm is admirable. Liked the content and feel more empowered but I have a lot to “unlearn”.

You’ve worked very hard and are very enthusiastic and this is very refreshing. I understand that there are lots to fit in so you need to work quickly. As someone who was poorly taught to spelling in the late 60s/early 70’s and then identified as a borderline dyslexic my spelling is still very poor. I wish I’d been taught this way. However, due to the speed of the course I did find myself feeling disheartened that I simply couldn’t quite see some of the phonemes (I still don’t ‘get’ the er/ar sound), nevertheless my class and I will embrace this scheme and we will learn together. Well done – you don’t need to sell yourself so much, we’re here because we love it!

Excellent! Provided the phonic ‘building blocks’ which I’ve been seeking in my work with learners. Also made me realise that ‘the system’ has failed many of our ‘SEN’ youngsters. I will definitely be using THRASS.

The course gave me excellent ideas about teaching and reviewing phonics – many thanks. I know it will benefit a lot of my children. 2 criticisms: 1. Please answer the question and avoid waffle, teachers can smell it a mile off. 2. The profilecard needs simplifying very confusing. Above all, marvellous. [What! waffle = “to talk or write using a lot of words but without saying anything important”. You are the first person ever to accuse me of talking waffle on a THRASS course! Alan]

Good pace and variation and use of equipment to keep attention span. Good reinforcement of points to get info to sink in!

A fascinating two days, it made me think about language in a new way. I would certainly consider teaching my pre-school child to read, write and spell using the THRASS system. I found the weight of information and technical language challenging at times. Though the pace of each session kept me interested and engaged. I would have liked clearer demonstration of which stage we were studying at any time, but the whole thing came together well by the end of the second day. Many thanks!

I just wish I had been taught this. Being a poor speller I have began to see how things can fit together, in a more organised way. Thank you. You mentioned you were not a ballet specialist, with all your dancing, I beg to differ. An enjoyable and insightful course.

Pace of some sessions a bit slow for me what I am well aware others with different backgrounds might think it went too fast! Now feel confident to promote this to parents and other staff – and am aware now of ‘revision’ I need to do on my own articulation of phonemes as areas are rusty.

Great entertainment. Especially for somebody whose first language isn’t English. It made sense of the English sounds, and spelling pattern. Thank you, I will use it on my own child.

Very useful. I have put into practice everything from Day 1 in October and today has filled in some gaps. I can’t wait to do some of the activities with my class – they love the rap!

Courses are like Christmas presents, they are all wonderfully packaged but some excite and some disappoint. I knew when I left home in the dark and rain this morning that I would not be disappointed. Alan is such an enthusiastic speaker that one cannot fail to be interested, entertained and informed. I have been implementing THRASS now for a very short time and we are very excited with the results. I am so glad I was able to complete the second day – only sorry there isn’t a third – thank you.

Another very interesting and inspirational day – if only I had been taught this method of learning phonics when I was at school. Your dynamic and passionate approach can only enthuse others to share your ideas. Thanks again.

Makes a great deal of sense – why isn’t it being used by every school in the UK?

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