Thanks, everyone. I am planning on starting with OPGR and maybe using ECC or MCP Phonics for extra at a SLOW pace this coming year. Great idea for AAS. I have been wondering about that. I could see him loving the tiles. I actually went to a used curriculum sale and purchased SSRW for $50.00. I thought my daughter might like it. It seemed overwhelming and a lot of busy work. Still I have their cd, all the readers, and games I could use. But I don't even think I'll use it for my visual little girl who is not inclined to school like her big brother. I have so many friends who love it but it looks confusing to me! I think I'd prefer phonics to be simple and have it separated from spelling and handwriting. I think I have a game plan. I will take it slow as he will only be 4 1/2. But I do think if he is eager to learn to read. I could begin teaching him his phonics which will give us more time to simply enjoy learning other things. I almost got the MFW K curriculum for $7.00! I would have used that as fun ideas for this year. I may look for it again just for the fun activities not for the phonics, etc. Let me know if you have any other thoughts. My husband wants to make sure our ds does not skip a grade as he gets older. He doesn't want our son to go to college a year younger and I agree. I know school ebbs and flows. Still I think it seems nice to learn phonics at a leisurely pace. Thank you so much for all of your thoughts. I appreciate it.

The thing is my son is ready to do kindergarten but we are going to wait a year as he will be 4 1/2 in a year. Would you suggest just reading from the SL list and doing some of the lessons from OPGR this year. And then for his kindergarten year doing OPGR with MFWK? What do you plan to do? I don't WANT to get ahead.

I wonder if you could do MFW K and use OPGR for their phonics or combine the phonics? I have heard MFW K is more like preschool and MFW 1 is much harder with a lot more writing. That is a good idea to go slowly in actual K year for MFW 1. I am in the same boat as you as I don't have to do K this year. He loves to learn, though, and is showing an interest.

Celia, Did you start out with SSRW K or SSRW 1?

I am planning to teach phonics with my son who will be 4 1/2 this fall. I have considered MFW, A Beka, OPGR, and SSRW. I have different friends who prefer a certain curriculum. I am leaning towards doing OPGR with my son and using ETC or MCP Plaid Phonics. Although A Beka and SSRW may still be an option. The thing is my little girl who is 3 1/2 is SO much different. She loves songs and visuals and learning is not as interesting to her. She'd rather be playing where my son LOVES to learn. My question is should I just do SSRW with my 4 1/2 son since she may be more inclined to SSRW? My close friend said it is a great program. A lot of my friends love it. I listened to the songs tonight, and they sounded terrible. I haven't looked at a lot of the sample pages. But I didn't like the songs. I thought they could be confusing. Is there another program that would be better suited for my daughter? I would be open to doing two different programs. I just thought am I missing it with SSRW as so many of my friends like it? Would you recommend it or would you recommend another phonics program? Thank you for any thoughts!

Thanks everyone. I will wait on using R&S 1st grade until later. I appreciate everyone's thoughts. Very helpful

Thank you for your thoughts. So how did you choose to do phonics with your child concerning OPGR and R&S 1? Have you used bits and pieces of it from R&S1? I am thinking I should wait on R&S1 until my son is ready for first grade. Would you mind telling me how far you got in OPGR for kindergarten? I am clueless as to when you should begin and finish. Did you buy all the little readers she has suggested on her website? I added all up to be about $300.00. That seems a lot! Maybe she was saying to pick and choose.

Has anyone used Rod and Staff Phonics and Reading? If so, would you mind telling me your experience? I am under the impression that you can use the first grade for kindergarten as they do not have a kindergarten. Is that correct? If anyone has used anything else from their program and have thoughts on it, please share! Thank you!

Thanks everyone! I appreciate all the information.

What did you not like about MFW for kindergarten? A friend of mine told me she loved it and was going to show me her curriculum. I have been trying to come up with a curriculum. MFW is a consideration. I have also looked at OPGR or A Beka Phonics with a mixture of SL 3/4 and FIAR for my 4 1/2 and 3 1/2 children. Anyhow, I was curious what it was about MFW you didn't like. Michelle - sorry. I just saw your response to Pookamama's question. I don't know how to delete my post. I see now why you didn't like MFW.

Holly, Thanks for your thoughts on Five in a Row. I didn't know that about Five in a Row. Actually, I don't much about it but I liked one sample of a lesson plan I briefly looked at. Would you mind telling me more about Five in a Row? Is there a phonics program you did with this curriculum? I appreciate any thoughts. Thank you! Laura

Recently, I have been planning to do Sonlight with my children this fall. They will be 4 1/2 and 3 1/2. I just went to the website for Five in a Row, and it looked real good. So I thought I'd ask if anyone would like to share if they like one curriculum over the other. Or if they have observed any pros/cons for either one or both. If you have any thoughts about your experience with either curriculum, I would greatly appreciate it! Thank you.

Hi, I plan to begin phonics with my son in the fall. He will be a little over 4 1/2. He is real interested in school, loves for me to read to him or look at books and is trying to sound out letters. The boy is very interestd in learning. I am considering either OPGTR (with ETC as a supplement) or A Beka Phonics. Any thoughts or suggestions? I think my son could do either curriculum. My little girl is a year younger and seems to be more visually oriented. I think school may be harder with her so I am trying to think what would be best for both of them. I also thought that I could choose OPGTR and with Julia do something different if need be such as SSRW or A Beka or OPGTR with A Beka supplements. Also, I am thinking about doing SL 3/4 with both of them and possibly Singapore Early Bird with my son. My goal is to be very laid back about it. I won't even call it Kindergarten as we won't officially start our son until he is 5 1/2. I just want to have some materials to do with them as my son is hungry for education and my little girl actually needs more help (she has been delayed with speech but is beginning to pick up more and more). Any thoughts would be great. Thanks!