Every English teacher must attend this workshop. It is interesting and an inspiring experience. You are waking up teachers. No more boring and monotonous English classes. English alive!

Excellent presenter. Alan has a thorough understanding of subject matter and fantastic presentation skills. All educators should do this course.

Wow, what a privilege to attend a course delivered by a master educator! I am looking forward to applying this in my class. Thank you so much and may all your dreams (for THRASS) come true!

As a first year teacher, this course was fascinating and eye-opening. It makes perfect sense and has explained a lot of things I see children do. I think that it would greatly help those children who struggle with making sense of reading and writing. Thank you for the inspiration and knowledge.

Really enjoyable. As a high school teacher, I feel I have grasped more of the fundamentals of the English language. This is more than just a system: it is a method of approaching literacy that stimulates my creativity and offers endless opportunity for implementation in my classroom. Alan was fun! I feel more equipped to deal with issues in my high school classroom.

Course content excellent (an eye opener). Pace at times a little fast. I wish I had my whole staff here. Your presentation style is fantastic – animated, energetic and your passion comes through strongly. I definitely want to be involved in the future, especially, if possible, as a pilot school.

Extremely valuable and informative. So much so that we will take this information back to our Committee and Director. We hope that this could be rolled out to all our schools. Presenter lively and very knowledgeable. I feel this kind of course should be done over more than two days, as there is too much for two days.

Very valuable and useable - both in the class and personal capacity. Resources very practical and useable. Presenter very energetic and audible. Hope you can roll out to District. Will share with provincial team to inform province (Western Cape) – and hope that training for all Advisors in Province with follow later.

Can’t wait to implement and watch the demonstration lessons on the DVDs. Excellent. It was worth every penny. Thanks to NAPTOSA. Presenter vibrant, full of energy. A tool that I will definitely use.

The best course I have attended in nearly 30 years of teaching. Being someone who is fortunate not to have experienced spelling or reading problems, I have really struggled to assist learners who do. I’m glad to say I was on the right track, as I based what I did on my ideas of what was the logical method of explanation. Thank you for confirming this very uninformed decision. I thoroughly enjoyed the two days.

Alan, I think you are one of the most enthusiastic educational psychologists there’ll ever be. Your two day workshop has been very educational. I specialised in literacy and, I must say, I’ve been enriched in so many ways. I think you are doing a fantastic job. We have so much work ahead of us, but if we take your example with us, we will pretty soon have a literate South Africa.

A very exciting energetic two days. I have really enjoyed myself. As a Foundation Phase teacher, I believe that your programme has much to offer. I look forward to implementing THRASS and then reaping the rewards of success with the children. I love your positive attitude and energy. I can’t wait to mime to panda, dolphin and cheese! So much to absorb, so much to share with the children.

I found this course the most stimulating literacy course I’ve ever attended. I’ve been searching for a programme for a hearing-impaired learner that is more relevant and interactive and THIS IS IT! Thank you for this fully inclusive program that I can’t wait to start implementing.

Very interesting and inspiring. The presenter was excellent. He made it fun. The English language will make much more sense to our learners if we use THRASS. All schools in South Africa should use this programme. I can’t wait to go back on Monday and try this programme with my class.

Dynamic and clear presentation. Our questions were answered regarding exceptions and accents. A very through progression observed and able to absorb and record thoughts and procedure as best possible. Great potential to reach many learners if taught properly (and enthusiastically). Very learner friendly. A must for all schools especially remedial pupils. Gives a plan and point of reference from which to work or build on.

Our school is becoming a resource centre. THRASS will be a most valuable tool in empowering teachers. Very inspiring presentation, kept us interested in spite of the vast amount of information we had to process. Your method of teaching certainly holds the attention of learners. I have been inspired to design more support activities for our type of learners (mentally challenged).

Very interesting and will change our way of teaching. I teach at a school for children with a mental and physical handicap and think the course is very appropriate. Would like to have other teachers at my school attend the course. Thank you for an interesting, fun, two days.

Very well structured and informative. I really enjoyed the training. It has also taught me HOW to spell and read English words as well as synthesis.

Fantastic. Time well spent. Definitely supports inclusivity. Alan’s passion and enthusiasm is definitely contagious – can’t wait to implement the programme.

Holistic and complete programme. Exciting computer software. Comprehensive. Course needs to be completed over a week.

Well presented, very energetic. Held my attention at all times. Exciting material. Will definitely report back positively to my school.

Alan, you are good, passionate, energetic, sensitive about other cultures and definitely an entertainer. You need you keep contact with district because we are working hard to make a drastic change in our literacy and numeracy results. We won’t be doing all this without your help. Well done, brother, keep up the good work!

This is an extremely effective and well researched program of instruction, and was presented with useful tips and teaching aids of a very high quality. What I learned: Specific techniques for teaching children and adults to read. To focus on a holistic approach regarding the teaching of phonics, words, sentences and reading. Specific methods of assessment, and evaluation on Keyword Analysis, Keyword Spelling, Synthesis, Keyword and Phoneme Location etc. I enjoyed the workshop.

A very well presented course! Well organised with a passionate and lively presenter. I wish all the courses we have to attend had half as much passion about education. THRASS demands a completely different look at the teaching of basics in education. It is going to take me a good while to assimilate and fully understand this completely new approach. I would like to speak to teachers and schools who have implemented THRASS to get more feedback on the success. Many fashions of teaching have come and gone and I still need convincing that this will work more successfully. Thank you very much for your energy and certainly for enthusing me again about education.

You really have a passion for your subject and put your heart into the presenting of it. You do a fine job of marketing your idea. I am still not sold on the fact that ‘one size fits all’ to the exclusion of all else. Would love to have empirical evidence to support your programme as well as to support your stance on other programmes. Please leave politics out of it – ours and yours – we have plenty here to sink a ship. You have some wonderful good teaching strategies within the programme.

The course was interesting and empowering. I feel very much empowered, at the same time I am left with the challenge of adapting the programme and make it work for Xhosa speaking schools. Thank you very much Alan you made it live. It is catering for all age groups.

Really enjoyed the course content. Will definitely use with the individual children that I work with, that have specific reading difficulties (dyslexia). Feel integrated most essential components of literacy (e.g. phonological awareness, phonics, vocabulary etc). Loved dynamic interactive presenting style, made two days fly past.

An eye opening course which changed my perspective and encouraged me to think ‘out of the box’. Very relevant to the classroom and detailed enough to motivate me. Thank you for all your time, energy and resources.

Thank you very much for a very enjoyable, informative presentation! Thank you for the resources. Good luck and try and get your programme presented on the SABC Learning Channel!

Absolutely terrific! Very insightful and has opened my mind to so many possibilities. I would absolutely apply THRASS. Although course was short, I will be able to apply this in many ways – Phonics are more clear – thanks for the “new phonics” – will help my tutoring effectively.

Lively, energetic presenter – knowledgeable and clear. Easy to follow. Skills rehearsed over and over for easier mastering of the ‘tool’. Valuable. Programme makes sense.

Motivating and interesting. Very well presented – very energetic presenter. Very excited to implement THRASS.

Hugely worthwhile and enlightening! Enjoyed your energy and enthusiasm. You managed to cover an enormous amount of information in two days.

Workshop was excellent. As English is not my first language, I found it very interesting and helpful. Will be able to use and implement method in classroom. Presenter very enthusiastic and passionate about topic. Well done.

Very inspiring presentation. Extremely enjoyable and never a dull moment. Gained tremendously from this approach. Feel ready to share knowledge confidently with others. I now believe this is hope for our literacy levels.

The course was fantastic. I am very enthusiastic about going back to the school and telling everybody about it. Thank you Alan for your energy and passion. I believe it is a part of the success of this course. I am going away “Thrassed”!

An exciting course. I have learned quite a lot in the two days although I feel that the course could have been carried over more days. Keep up with the good work.

Well done! An excellent presentation of a very good programme. It was structured very well. Although I still don’t have all the resources yet I will start using the charts with learners coming to me for learning support.

Very teachable and educational. I am sure pupils will enjoy it as much as I did. Definitely worthwhile sacrificing a Saturday.

Very good way of teaching young learners. Will be sure to implement this method and tell and introduce it to as many as I can. Really got me hooked. Wishing you all the best and may we be introduced to many more new ideas and resources.

Very interesting, thorough training. Thought provoking. Will definitely put theories into practice. At times quite mind-boggling. Wish I could feel more sure about how to start and move forward – will have to purchase the scheme of work. Thank you for the wonderful resources.

Good practical application ideas for the classroom. Thorough review of, at times, overwhelmingly vast content base. Perhaps less time spent on origins of programme might allow for more consolidation time ensuring full grasp of new concepts. Super open style non-threatening. Thank you – I’m sold.

Excellent presentation skills. You keep us focussed and interested. Love the programme. Feel unsure of where to start in my classroom. Really like the picture chart and it really does make so much sense. Will find out more, read more and would love to apply in my classroom.

Very informative and I’ve learnt a lot. My child refuses to read at home, because her phonics are not in place. I would like her to develop a love of reading. Emphasis on reading in this particular course would be welcome.

I was very sceptical coming to the course. At most courses I waste my time. This was time well spent. I learnt so much over the past two days. It will just be a problem implementing this at my school. You have ruffled my feathers with a b c and magic letters. Thank you for the motivation to change these. This picture chart will really help my learners. You were interactive with your audience all the time. This should have been done over a period of a week to absorb all the information. This can be tiring over two days. Lots of information.

I learnt a lot. There are still some questions. Hopefully, I can work out certain aspects when I think about them. Alan presented enthusiastically and vibrantly, for a good learning experience.

An eye-opener to the truth about spelling, reading and pronunciation. I must admit, being a high school teacher in a prominent school, there is very little that I will be able to put into my own lessons in English. However, I am now equipped to pass this information on to the teachers of German and French, knowing that they will be able to make full use of it. Thank you Alan for this wonderful opportunity and if you ever develop a course for high school remedial education, I will be one of the first to sign up.

Many things were already known to me. I just don’t implement them in this way. The sessions were a bit long. It was interesting though. A great effort was made to keep us entertained.

Interesting and energetic presentation. Thank you for giving me something to think about and some things to with my pre-school child.

Excellent course. Very excited to start using ideas to help weak spellers and readers. I think it will be very helpful. Thank you for your enthusiasm and your detailed information and knowledge.

Excellent presentation with fantastic ideas. A wonderful program which is exciting and inspirational. The energy of the presenter was outstanding. Thank you for your time and knowledge.

Loved the energy portrayed throughout the course by the presenter. Refreshing – its like a new literacy breeze. Do think you need to allow for more questions during sessions. I think I have a tough task conveying this to my staff. They are set in their ways.

Loved your enthusiasm and passion. Well presented. Would’ve found it easier to grasp initially if we were told what was covered for each grade. Looking forward to exploring your website. THRASS makes sense.

Excellent. Learnt a lot. Thanks for all the hard work.

Very encouraging – because it helps pupils and adults spell and read with confidence. Thrilled I was introduced to THRASS. Lively enjoyable presenter. Wonderful aids to take home. Plenty to digest after hours! Best of enjoyment continuing to promote THRASS.

Thank you for another way of the phonic approach. It is very simple – thank you for doing the groundwork. Your approach was very lively. I enjoyed it. Be sure I will work through this programme on my own – then I will convince other people to use the programme. Reason being English is my second language – so it will take some time. I am impressed by what I saw and experienced.

A fascinating approach and very exciting – so much energy and vitality in the presentation. As a teacher of senior school English, I cannot see how to apply the programme directly, except for Additional Language speakers. I can’t wait to use it with grandchildren one day. Such a fun and sensible approach.

Well orchestrated. I enjoyed your enthusiasm, your vibrancy and all the energy you put into teaching us and advising us on such a wonderful and hopefully successful task/skill for both my home and school.

I acknowledge this course in a scientific light, because the approach embraces all the senses of learning. The rap music is the cherry on the cake. Thank you for two delightful days.

Thank you very much for the enthusiasm towards this area of learning. I have enjoyed and looking forward to implementing this – with my remedial learners but also telling people about this way of approaching phonics – spelling, reading and writing. I feel I need to read through the books (and DVD) to make sense of all that has been taught over these two days.

Worrying at first but by second day I began to see the whole picture. Sometimes too fast but I know there was a time factor. Resources are good – pity they are not available here in South Africa just yet. Presentation was excellent. Huge change of mind-set for us. We need the raps here!

THRASS makes sense and I think it could be the answer to South Africa’s literacy problem. Just felt that the course was too condensed and rushed through too quickly.

An interesting course. A really new approach to phonics, handwriting and reading. Some very worthwhile activities – especially useful for remediating problems. We look forward to telling our staff about THRASS.

A most inspiring course: full, comprehensive, fun, thought provoking and delivered with passion. I can’t wait to try these ideas with my class and more especially my immigrant children. You are certainly very passionate about THRASS – go for it and the best of luck to you.

The course was inspiring and the presentation was excellent. Would like to be able to implement THRASS at our school but would have to consider such thing as budget and the fact that all the staff would need to be on the course to understand how THRASS works and be inspired. Thanks for your energetic presenting skills – much enjoyed.

Would be good if implemented in junior classes so that it can be enforced throughout the junior school. Good presentation with humour, which is important. Antics also break the ice and gives meaning to subject.

Very informative. I particularly like the yellow and blue charts which will serve as excellent aids when teaching immigrants. You are a very passionate and inspirational teacher and I was very impressed with your stamina.

Fantastic. I will put it to use in our school.

Interesting and informative. I think I will be better equipped to help the learners who have spelling, reading and writing problems now that I have been empowered. I do know that I can help a little boy who was transferred from Gauteng and did THRASS there.

Very informative and exciting. Time was a bit too short. Fascinating. Very captivating.

Well presented – very energetic. I like the ideas of THRASS and would definitely implement it with my own child. Would have liked more tips on handwriting. Will take it back to school and encourage foundation phased to implement. Very good idea for teaching spelling and reading.

Very well presented – lively and interesting – can’t wait to try it – feel a little apprehensive – but will definitely give it a go. Good charts and apparatus. Thank you for inspiring me in my doting years.

Very interesting and lively course. Informative and practical. Alan is very demonstrative, which kept me alert and ready for more! Very keen to apply this in my classroom.

I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of the course. It was interesting and I would dearly love my school to use THRASS in the near future. Alan, you should be on the stage!

Excellent presentation. I am more enlightened by what I have heard and seen during the past two days. Thank you for this excellent map of teaching handwriting, reading and spelling skills. I will carry this with me to share with my future peers who have not been exposed to THRASS. I will be definitely be using this in my class.

Most beneficial. Will definitely love using your grapheme and phoneme charts. Hopefully, will be able to get your rap CD and picture cards. Feeling THRASSed out but thank you.

Very full and comprehensive. Would have liked more input on applying system to High School level. have taken away ideas though and appreciate thoroughly your attitude about importance of reading books with children. Spelling is becoming more of an emphasis, and having to read a required number of books in high school again. Thank you for all your energetic input.

Wonderful dynamic presenter. Why were we not taught this before! I thoroughly enjoyed my hours with you and hope that I will be able to present this to my school as I was the only person they sent. I wonder if the people who have not been here would be able to ever come to understand what we have learnt. Thank you for your time and all your years of research. I am learning more daily from the children I teach. My own child has a language learning problem and this has increased by awareness of the problems in spelling English sounds.

Very inspiring. Alan is a wonderful presenter. I will definitely implement with learners. Would like more practical activities.

More practical interaction. Course well presented. Well done, Alan.

A very interesting and exciting programme. Our kids can really benefit. Great way of doing assessment. Maybe a five-day programme for teachers to fully understand THRASS?

Very fast-paced, but interesting. A good framework. I will have to adapt my learning material, as I am an Afrikaans teacher. Look forward to visiting website for more info and material.

Outstanding presentation. A lot of information within two days, a bit tiring. Would be more appreciative if it was stretched over five days.

Friday fairly interesting. Saturday extremely boring – perhaps because I am not Foundation Phase or Remedial.

Excellent programme and presentation. Time frame too short and recommend one week to present programme.

Very good speaker. Enjoyed listening. Very good way of teaching reading and spelling. Think it is a lot of info for a young weak child to absorb. Thing the big charts should have colour pictures. Would not teach the handwriting as I feel ‘ball and stick’ is much easier for children with fine motor problems. Think the profilecard is far too complicated. Think it is generally a very clever programme.

This course put into perspective that there is not 5 vowel sounds in English or even Afrikaans, but 20 and that by grouping the sounds it gives children the opportunity to form spelling choices. Also by writing the correct spelling choice above the wrong one the children can see the right spelling. This course combines learning with fun, and in our curriculum you can integrate it with different learning areas. This was really fun and excellently presented. We have to find ways to adapt it for our Braille children.

Valuable information with a lot of new insights. Presenter is informative and charismatic. Too much information to be absorbed in short period of time. Good and welcome resources.

What a dynamic workshop. You made us so aware of the need for change and to remain flexible in our teaching. We need to reflect and teach accurately and effectively. Thank you for making us aware of the obvious. Looking forward to implementing your strategies and skills as soon as possible and once again look forward to the challenges and rewards of teaching and imparting accurate knowledge to our pupils.

Very interesting. A lot of information at once but definitely worth exploring. Buy-in from school/other teachers difficult. Resistance to change? Where to go from here? How to implement? Local resource centres would be helpful. What about teaching more than one language at a school? Two different phoneme-grapheme charts? Confusion? Glad to know about this before being taught otherwise.

A huge challenge to implement, as a previously synthetic phonetic teacher who is glad to have this reminder of a mindshift. In our fast changing world this came at an opportune time for me. A wonderful approach to support phonics as a building foundation to a future literate world.

Very informative and interactive. Not enough time. Need a follow up.

I’ve learned an enormous amount of work in a short space of time. Could be stretched over more days. I love the way the picturechart sets out the sounds as it is a much easier way to teach the learners. I am definitely introducing this method of teaching to my colleagues and learners.

A wonderful enlightening course, I learned a lot and it validated many things that I already do in my teaching. A bit too much to take in all at once though and I think my brain got a bit mushy towards the end. Very valid and interesting. Feel like I need more training to do it properly.

Excellent course, but huge info overload. I don’t feel totally confident that I have absorbed enough to remember it all to go ahead and teach any age group, which I would like to be able to do as a remedial teacher. Maybe this will come with time and use. I love the concept.

Impressive presentation. Look forward to training staff at school and implement programme. THRASS is appealing to young and older learners and I am very positive that each learner will enjoy learning to read in this fun way. A new way of teaching sounds and letters has been opened unto me. I hope it could be implemented in every school in the country.

Thanks for a wonderful two days. Really learnt a lot and will definitely be passing on the message of THRASS. Feel more confident in helping the learners when it comes to all these aspects.

Great course! I am definitely going to use this and change my whole way of teaching phonics. Alan, you are a great presenter (lots of fun). I’ll be looking at your website. Can’t wait to start.

I really enjoyed the course and found it very interesting. I feel that it was well presented and that the resources and audio-visual aids were top class. It will be interesting to see if our children with weak visual, auditory and spatial awareness memories will cope with it. It will also require much practice for the teachers before they feel confident and comfortable with it - but I think working alongside the children as they learn will be an exciting adventure.

Excellent presentation – good at keeping group interested and attending. Lot of information to absorb in short space of time – but can observe videos supplied (and on the internet) to learn the information. Will be difficult to persuade other people re: this method, especially as only method that can be used. Makes a lot of sense, but got to have good visual memory skills. Excellent course.

Very inspiring and feel it will be revolutionary in the schools. It lends itself to loads of incidental learning as well as loads of repetition. Hopefully, resources will not be too expensive once available in South Africa. It would be difficult to implement without some of the resources. You made it interesting and it was an excellent overview and insight to THRASS. I can’t wait to begin.

Excellent course. I have learnt so much. It was exciting with no dull moments. I am so pleased that Alan used the children who live in very poor areas as his tools for teaching the lessons. If it works in these areas it can work in any area, as these learners are exposed to very little, if none at all, reading apparatus. Thank you for teaching us that learners are not ‘stupid’, we don’t use this word but because we tell them that a word is wrong we are doing this. Now, using the THRASS spelling procedure, we know only a section of the word is wrong. Thank you for all the material.

Very interesting and it went well. Different methodologies of teaching were exhibited throughout the presentation. Too much information – too little time given. The information given will be very useful for learners and educators.

Well presented. Thought provoking. Positive improvement in present teaching methods. Creative and relevant. Although I am a High School “Not English Subject” teacher – certain activities could be used in other learning areas to reinforce what is happening in Language Department. I have been inspired.

Your enthusiasm and energy is great! Wonderful ideas – a lot to get through in two days though. I enjoyed seeing the video clips. It would have helped spending more time getting to know the layout and contents of the ‘flip’ chart. It has made me think about the importance of teaching the THRASS skills more accurately. I can imagine which activities would work wonderfully in classrooms, and what training the teachers would struggle with.

Alan, I did enjoy your presentation, your focus on how to teach learners graphemes and phonemes. Our learners missed the opportunity of being taught the way you did your presentation. I wish this THRASS could also help IsiXhosa speakers because we have a lot of learning problems in our schools. Very informative presentation. Good luck in your endeavours.

The presenter was well prepared, very interesting presenting skills (creative, lively, practical). Thanks a lot for the posters, books, CD/DVD and other material. This is very useful and will not gather dust, but be used to enrich the minds and abilities of learners. Thanks too for the practical hands-on use and demonstrations. May you continue to grow and do good as you feed the minds of learners and teachers.

Very interesting demo – for such a big group of people. Plenty of information delivered in a very lively manner that kept everybody awake. Davies knows his programme very well.

I have learned a lot. I came for both professional and personal reasons. I hope that I will be able to go back to my school and help those learners who have difficulties in learning. Alan Davies is a wonderful speaker who is lively, entertaining and very clear in his explanations. It would be wonderful if South Africa could adopt THRASS as the official program for teaching reading, writing and spelling. Please contact UNISA – they should really get their students to do this course.

Very interesting and original ideas. I have learnt a tremendous amount and am very excited to share my new found knowledge with my colleagues. Alan is a great presenter, who kept us entertained throughout the course and made the time fly. (But now I’m tired!)

Most informative. Made complete sense. The presentation was lively. Everything was well prepared. I would encourage parents to send children to schools where the THRASS programme is used.

Two very exciting days. Great to know there are still new things to learn after over 30 years of teaching. I’m not sure you can teach an old dog new tricks. I will, however, attempt to change my mindset as I feel my children will really benefit from the THRASS programme.

A most informative course taking us back to basics. A method which ensures that each child is able to work at his/her pace. The was well-organised and easy to follow. The enthusiastic presentation was inspiring. Can’t wait to get started!

The course is beneficial. It will help me a great deal. I wish that every school based teacher could attend it. It will be very useful in language teaching. I wish it could be translated in IsiXhosa.

Alan, thank you so much for this course. It is mind-blowing! I heard about it from a relative who did it in Gauteng. She loves working with THRASS at her school. I am converted now too. It’ll no longer be an embarrassment to try to help children with their reading in senior Primary.

Brilliant. I learnt so much. If I was exposed to this type of teaching earlier, it would have been so much better for the learners. For remedial learners it is fantastic. It will make so much more sense to them now. I foresee happier learners from now on.

A most informative and extremely well organized workshop. The research and preparation that has gone into the development of this approach to literacy is ‘mind-boggling’. There are simply NO gaps. Every form of practising and revising this way of teaching has been thought of and documented. Assessment form is amazing! What an excellent teacher and lecturer!

It has been a privilege being on this course. Thank you for an excellent presentation and sharing your expertise with us. I’ve learnt so much and feel equipped to handle the teaching of phonics. Hope you are able to take this into all the universities and colleges.