The Phonics Road

[sweetpea3829]

Who's using this and loves it?  Or doesn't love it?

 

I'm already planning ahead for next year, because I truly, truly loathe LLATL.  I just don't like it, at all.  I've been trying to like it...but every time I sit down to plan with it...I don't.  It's like a bad '90's haircut.  

 

Love the concept (learning language through literature) and that's incorporated easily enough...but I hate everything else about it.  

 

So I'm thinking about trying Phonics Road next year...but oy, it's expensive!  And I'd probably end up buying both the 2nd and 3rd levels.  

 

I wish I could see it beforehand, though.  It's a lot of money to spend on something.  

 

Would it cover everything for Language Arts?  

 

ETA: Does it cover everything WELL for Language Arts?  Could I ditch AAS...we will be finishing level 4 this year.  The website says students should start at level 1, but in looking at the scope and sequence, I don't see that level as being necessary for my oldest two.  Can I get by with levels 2, 3 and 4?  

[Ellie]

Or you could buy Spalding--everything you need forever for less than $50. Phonics Road author Barbara Beers used to do Spalding, and when the Latin craze hit in the very early 90s, she mushed her Spalding knowledge with Principal Approach and Latin and came up with the Phonics Road. :-)

 

Spalding does everything--spelling (children learn to read by learning to spell), penmanship, capitalization and punctuation, simple writing, and it can be a more comprehensive writing and grammar--with one manual (Writing Road to Reading) and some phonogram cards.

[sbgrace]

I did two levels. No, I don't think it covers everything well. I felt the grammar and composition/literature, at least in those first two levels, was insufficient. My kids can't make a chart of a concept and learn/recall it (grammar). The composition/lit felt like busy work much of the time to me. I think a friend liked the literature  well enough though. She used all levels, but supplemented both composition and grammar for her daughter. She would agree that those two weren't enough.  My kids were reading when we started Phonics Road, so I didn't use it to teach reading, and neither did my friend.

 

I think the spelling is quite thorough. If your child will click with a rule based approach to spelling, I imagine PR is at least as good as any other rule based spelling program.

 

I hated watching the videos and taking notes to teach. I get why she does it, but I disliked the process immensely. Still, I would have continued if it had worked. I switched after two levels because I had a child who didn't learn spelling from rules well, and needed a different approach.

 

I don't think I would buy three levels. If you want to try it, start with I'd start with just one!