Cognitive skills such as working memory, attention, sequencing and processing speed underlie writing skills.
To spell, students need to be able to hear the sounds within words and match these sounds to the correct letters. To write organised, understandable text, students must not only have good oral language, but must also hold the concepts, vocabulary, and grammatical form of sentences and paragraphs in working memory. Research shows that students who struggle with spelling and writing lack these cognitive skills.
Does it work?
In two scientific studies1,2 a significant improvement in students’ writing skills occurred after Fast ForWord computer-based cognitive and literacy skills training.
Program progression
Click on the program names on the left for more detail. Contact Sonic Learning’s health professionals for advice on which programs are right for you.
STEP ONE: Fast ForWord Language/Literacy
Builds cognitive foundations so that students can remember and organise their thoughts for writing.
- Memory
- Attention
- Processing speed
- Sequencing
- Phonemic awareness
- Oral language
STEP TWO: Fast ForWord Reading
Builds grammar, vocabulary, sentence structure, punctuation and comprehension
- Phonemic awareness
- Decoding
- Vocabulary
- Grammar
- Punctuation
- Comprehension
Exercise examples
Ele-bot (from Fast ForWord Language for primary school)
Students build grammar, sentence structure and language comprehension skills as they determine which illustrations correctly match the spoken sentence.
Leaping Lizards (from Fast ForWord Reading 2)
Students improve punctuation, grammar and comprehension by selecting which word or symbol belongs in the blank space.
Watch Fast ForWord demonstration video
