My 2nd/3rd daughter has struggled with reading since kindergarten. She was always the youngest in her class (Dec 23rd when the cutoff is Dec 31st), which might be part of it. Covid erupted when she was in 1st grade and she finished that year not reading. Last year (2nd grade) we homeschooled and did AAR level 1. It went slowly, but we finished level 1 and she now can decode any words that correspond to what was taught in AAR level 1, though doesn't read fluently.
(We got her evaluated at the end of 1st grade. She doesn't have any learning disability they could detect at 6.5 years old, if anything, she is above average in most areas tested).
This year, we are continuing with AAR level 2, but I would like to accelerate the reading, because it is affecting her self esteem ("all my friends already know how to read"), as well as expand on LA in age-appropriate ways. Also, last year I found we didn't do AAR every day - it was hard so she tried to avoid it some days, and I didn't insist every time. To add variety and support the learning, I was thinking of adding one or a couple of the following:
1. Explode the Code, starting in book 2 as a review and covering 2 more books
2. FLL level 1 - I looked through it and it seems to be too slow and basic for her, but I could use it, one week on one week off, in the off weeks continue with WWE1 which we started last year but only got half way thru.
3. Lightning Lit & Comp - grade 2 (she loves reading books with me)
4. Bookshark LA grade 1
5. WriteShop Junior B (she loves the idea of "publishing" a book)
My questions:
1. Which curricula can work well with AAR2, support the reading process and expand on it?
2. If she is still learning to read, should I even bother with grammar, spelling, writing etc?
3. How many minutes of LA in a day is enough? too much? her attention span is not great, and also we are doing math, science, history (listening to SOTW) and Hebrew.
Thank you.