Academy of Reading
The Academy of Reading software was designed by two Ottawa-based neuropsychologists
specializing in learning. A Loyalist pilot project found the Academy of
Reading program did live up to its claim that 10 hours on the program
will increase your reading level one grade. You are taken through progressively
more challenging drills of visual and auditory matching and phonemic awareness,
which build the subskills and “automaticity” inherent in reading skills.
As you master the component skills, it then introduces reading comprehension
exercises from kindergarten to grade 10 levels. For the program to improve
your grade reading level, you need to spend at least one hour three times
a week on it. Contact Catherine McEvoy, CAL Co-ordinator, for more information.
Learning Plus
Learning Plus, developed by the Educational Testing Service, offers 105
hours of instruction in reading, writing and math (35 hours each). A pretest
in each area determines which lessons are “strongly recommended”, “recommended”
and “optional” and highlights the lessons accordingly. A handbook is available
with all lessons, which offers more exercises on each topic. You may take
as long as you need to complete the lessons. The $20 software fee includes
access to all components: reading, writing and math. Post-tests are included.
Perfect Copy
The Canadian writing skills program, Perfect Copy, offers skill practice
in eleven areas: abbreviations, apostrophes, beginning and ending punctuation,
capitals, easily confused words, commas, irregular verbs, numbers, other
punctuation, pronouns and subject/verb agreement. You will learn by correcting
grammatical errors in 300 interesting articles, stories and letters. While
correcting, you have access to grammatical rules and clues.
Skills Bank
SkillsBank is one of Loyalist’s most popular learning packages. This program
covers core concepts in reading, language, writing and information skills.
Pre-tests are available in eleven competency areas including vocabulary
building, reading comprehension, grammar and usage, punctuation, spelling,
language mechanics, sentence structure, and clear writing and paragraphs,
among others. Each of the pre-tests assigns (or not) lessons based on
the results. Language instruction is thus individualized to each student’s
needs. All scores are automatically recorded so that the instructor may
monitor the student’s progress. Four pre-tests are also available in Information
Skills: Dictionaries and Books, References, Consumer Information, and
Maps, Charts and Graphs. Student and class progress reports are available.
A+ Italian & A+ Portuguese
A+ Italian and A+ Portuguese use a 15-step program ranging from masculine
and feminine words to verbs and phrase construction. Within each step,
the program teaches by showing the word or word grouping and matching
it with its meaning in English. Its correct pronunciation follows. At
the end of every five steps there is a test which reviews your ability
to understand the written and spoken language of your choice. The program
also includes a crossword and unscramble game as well as a vocabulary
builder.
Berlitz Spanish
Berlitz Spanish is an interactive software course that will help you understand,
speak, read, and write Spanish. Listen to native speakers pronounce Spanish
or record your own voice and play it back. The accent meter helps you
improve your Spanish accent by telling you how close you are to a native
or tourist accent. Berlitz Spanish contains a dictionary and grammar guide.
There are twelve units ranging from introducing yourself to speaking full
sentences. A test is included after every three units so you can check
your progress.
Encarta French & Encarta Spanish
In Microsoft Encarta French and Spanish, you gain speaking, listening
and vocabulary skills in a 3D Virtual Environment. Progressing from a
beginner or intermediate level, you can move through the ten units sequentially
or at random with the aid of Encarta’s Personalized Study Plan and Progress
Tracker. By interacting with other people in the 30 videos provided, you
learn French or Spanish in realistic situations involving travel, school,
business, or health and fitness. Using a microphone, you can record and
listen to your own voice. Reference tools, including grammar, pronunciation
and special words, are available to guide you toward mastery of the French
or Spanish language.
EZ Language - German or Russian
EZ Language for the Russian or German Language teaches you the language
while you learn interesting facts about the culture and country. EZ Language
provides you with eight areas of study: Basic Phrases, Arrival, Eating
Out, Shopping, Sightseeing, Hotels, Public Services, and Sports. EZ Language
also allows you to practise by recording and playing back your speech.
At the end of a study area, you can take a test to see how much you have
learned in that area.
Instant Immersion English
Instant Immersion English delivers an authentic English learning environment
to your desktop. This language-learning suite includes five titles: Talk
Now!, World Talk, Speech Solutions, English Talking Dictionary and Who
Is Oscar Lake? Native English speakers introduce dialogue skills and reinforce
pronunciation principles. The English Talking Dictionary delivers 7,000
terms and you can also run its directions and definitions in 12 languages,
including Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, and
Vietnamese. Speech recognition technology - the next best thing to a conversation
partner - lets you record your own voice. Instant Immersion’s Who Is Oscar
Lake? title rounds out this comprehensive suite. In the ultimate test
of your new skills, you’ll have to solve a puzzling mystery in English.
Learn to Speak English
Learn to Speak English offers you a complete, in-depth learning system
to achieve all-around English fluency. Unique “real-world” conversation
simulations, speech recognition and record/playback enhance your learning
experience as you converse and compare your pronunciation to native speakers.
Develop your reading, writing and grammar skills as well while learning
to speak. Adjustable study plans allow you to learn at your own pace,
and progress tracking will provide vital feedback and encouragement on
your areas of improvement.
Parallčles Multimedia French
Parallčles Multimedia French is a “culture and communication” based program
that lets you explore unique French culture while learning common vocabulary
and phrases. Parallčles allows you to practice by recording and playing
back your speech. Parallčles’ lesson menu includes educational facts,
new fashions, sports, holidays, festivals, tourist attractions, transportation,
vacations, weather reports and a wine and cheese guide. Each lesson is
supplemented with sound, video and text, as well as an English definition
of all the terms and phrases used.
Practice Perfect German
Practice Perfect German is a two-part learning package. The first part
consists of learning the proper pronunciation of the alphabet, vowels,
consonants, word pairs, combinations and numbers. The second part improves
your vocabulary skills through text, picture, oral, flash cards and associations.
Throughout the program, you have access to a video clip gallery that shows
the proper mouth articulation for each word or letter. The program also
features an English-to-German translator and, with the use of a microphone,
you can use the pronunciation check to rate your accent on a scale of
Tourist to Native.
Speech Works
Clear Speech Works is a tool to help people with accents or dialects speak
English more clearly. Select your first language from a list, and Speech
Works will tailor the program to include only the areas that will benefit
you the most. You can practice listening and speaking at your own pace.
Throughout the program you can click on words to hear a model voice. Try
to imitate the model voice and record yourself, then listen to your recording.
Move through the 24 units at your own pace.
Teach Yourself Japanese
Teach Yourself Japanese begins by teaching you the basic building blocks
of the Japanese Language, the KANA syllables (the Japanese alphabet) and
then continues on to vocabulary building, basic conversation, grammar
and phrase construction. The program uses a six-step program of increasing
difficulty. At the end of each step, there is a short test that covers
all the aspects of the section, including reading, writing, speech comprehension
and pronunciation. Throughout the program, you can use the software’s
voice recorder to practice the pronunciation of all the words taught in
the program.
Electronic Grammar Workbook
Electronic Grammar Workbook is a business communications tutorial with
exercises designed to improve your ability to write business letters and
memorandums. This program informs you how to set up a letter using the
proper layout for the introduction, body, and closing paragraphs. The
proper setup for a memorandum includes using the proper headings To, From,
Date, and Subject. Some types of exercises included in this tutorial are
fill in the blanks, true/false, multiple choice, scrambled sentences,
and sentence revision.
BookMaster SpeadReader
Bookmaster SpeedReader is a more advanced speed-reading program for those
who want to improve their reading speed and comprehension. Choose a passage
and a rate, and adjust your rate as you feel comfortable. Comprehension
tests and vocabulary previews are included.
SpeedReader II
Davidson SpeedReader II is for those new to speed-reading. Preview the
program and then sharpen your eye response with letter and word exercises.
Next, move to longer passages to test your speed and comprehension to
gain more experience.
Speaking of Spelling
Speaking of Spelling is divided into three main parts. The first section,
Speaking of Spelling, is an explanation of the origins and complexities
of English spelling. This should take approximately half an hour to complete
and includes tips on improving your spelling and specific spelling rules.
The Activities section contains several quiz-like modules that reinforce
your knowledge of spelling. The most effective of these activities, Spell
Bound, allows you to select words of different point values to further
test your skill. The Resources section includes several supplementary
items, such as lists of frequently misspelled words, spelling rules, and
a test of accumulated spelling skills.
Spell It Deluxe
Spell It Deluxe will help you learn the basic rules of spelling and master
commonly misspelled words. Begin by choosing one of six levels of difficulty.
(Intermediate level is the recommended starting point for College students.)
Each level of difficulty includes 39 word lists containing 20 words each.
Next study the word list, using the sound option if you wish, and play
with the list using the activity screens, such as crossword puzzles or
spelling bees. You can track your progress through record- keeping and
progress screens.
Super Tutor Spelling
Improve your spelling skills through fun games and quizzes. From the program’s
Main Menu, choose the Museum, Library, Music Store, Retro Depot, Theater,
Sweet Shop, or Sports Arena. Each category has 12 groups of 20 words.
Select the word list you want to work with, and then learn about Spelling
Secrets, hunt for words in Mark My Words, and drag and drop letters to
spell words rearranged in Cast a Spell. You can shoot down misspelled
words in Word Disaster, take part in a spelling bee in the Word Garden,
or take a quiz and monitor your progress in the Spelling Quest.
Windows Vocabulary
Windows Vocabulary helps you to build a more educated vocabulary by using
three unique learning formats: multiple choice, matching tests, and drilling
in root words. Final reports with graphs measure your progress and success.
This step-by-step guide contains 1200 words you should know and emphasizes
words frequently used on standardized tests.
Word Attack 3
Word Attack 3 uses a game-like format to test your vocabulary knowledge.
Word lists range from beginner to challenging. Special interest word lists
which cover such areas as business, math, architecture and the environment
are also included. Custom word lists can also be prepared.
WordSmart Vocabulary Builder
Wordsmart Vocabulary Builder is a fun vocabulary builder. Five user-friendly
options allow you to expand your vocabulary: flashcards, column matching,
sentence completion, audio repetition and an animation laser review game.
This interactive program provides an enjoyable vocabulary learning experience,
no matter your skill level.
Getting It "Write"
Getting it “Write” is an interactive exercise on memo and letter writing
organization, but the principles are relevant to all writing activities.
At the completion of the program, you should be able to define the main
message and purpose of your document, use free-thinking activities to
generate ideas for your document, organize these ideas for effective presentation,
write a rough draft and revise the draft to ensure it is unified and readable.
IdeaFisher
IdeaFisher was developed by Marsh Fisher, co-founder of Century 21. His
philosophy is that we are all creative, but our memories are poor. IdeaFisher
helps get your memory and creative juices flowing. This brainstorming
tool helps you generate ideas for anything from a writing project, to
an ad, to a personal problem. IdeaFisher is divided into 2 sections: QBank
and IdeaBank. QBank provides 50+ questions to get you thinking on any
topic. IdeaBank provides hundreds of associations to help you brainstorm.
This is a sophisticated tool and recommended for the computer-literate.
Two new modules include Strategic Planning and Speech Presentation.
Middle School Suite
Middle School Suite is for those wishing to improve their use of the English
language. These programs provide complete coverage of fundamental grammar
principles such as nouns, verbs, clauses and punctuation in a step-by-step
learning environment. There are over 500 practice problems with samples
and self-help tutorials in 53 key subject areas. These programs allow
you to work at your own pace while an intuitive interface encourages in-depth
study.
The "Write" Words
The “Write Words” is an interactive exercise on eliminating cliches, jargon
and slang from your writing. You will practice writing letters that are
brief, clearly written and effective in reaching your goals. After the
lesson, you should be able to clarify your goal, reduce wordiness, use
words with unambiguous meaning, eliminate cliches and common jargon, write
in the active voice, and choose words that allow the reader to read quickly
and effortlessly.
Writing Made Easy
Writing Made Easy provides lessons and exercises on “volumes” of grammatical
concepts, from the use of the apostrophe to subject-verb agreement. The
volumes are progressively more challenging. Test yourself at the end of
each volume by correcting a passage which reviews the concepts in that
volume. An index of the material available in each volume is kept beside
computer #47.
