Money is definitely an object, however, I am planning on homeschooling our two younger children in the coming years so anything I buy now will likely be used more than once. My rising kindergartner can read bob style books and my pre-K aged child knows a few sight words. Our 7 year old learned to read pretty much on his own. I did help him but, truthfully, he didn't need it. Unfortunately, my younger children aren't quite as eager to learn and get very frustrated when they don't make the leaps and bounds in progress that their older brother made. This is why I am interested in AAR. I don't know exactly how the system works but I have searched the reviews and most of the reviewers speak of how much their children enjoyed it. I want all of my children to have the love for reading that my husband and I have but I've discovering that my enthusiasm alone isn't enough to motivate our younger children. I probably will skip AAR this year but am thinking about starting it next fall when we start homeschooling our rising kindergartner. Thank you all for your help! @Kate - I have been hoarding these items in my cart for a few days and was going to make a final decision tonight! I'll get book 4 instead. Perfect timing! Thanks! :) @strawberryjam - When do you suggest beginning the beyond the code books? If I start with explode the code book 4 should I go ahead and do beyond the code in tandem or should I wait until he is further along?

I prefer a traditional, beautiful cursive. My grandmother had the loveliest handwriting I've ever seen and the closest seems to be the older Zaner-Bloser. However, we use A Reason for Handwriting because the books are more exciting for my son. Here is the link to ARFH sample. http://www.areasonfor.com/ARF%20HW%20C%20SAMPLE.pdf

Thanks to the both of you for your help! Kate, I was actually looking at Explode the code and wasn't sure if I should start him around book 4 or 5 or skip straight to Beyond the Code. I will pick up book 5! They look like fun books! I'm becoming less nervous about this whole transition to homeschool. Gathering curriculum is quite overwhelming but now that my plan is a little more stabilized I'm getting more and more excited! Thanks again!

Hi everyone! My husband and I are brand new to the homeschooling lifestyle and are trying to come up with a plan for our rising second grader. My son is currently in public school but isn't flourishing due to our school being a poor performer in the area. Plus, he is 2-3 grade levels ahead of the other children in his class so he gets bored and checks out of whatever the teacher is covering. The principal says, "We aren't equipped to handle his special needs" so we came to the decision that homeschooling would be better for him. I discovered All About Spelling and felt that it would be a great match for our family and am planning on starting out in level 1 as suggested by the manufacturer. My question is regarding All about Reading. Since my child is reading and comprehending at about a 4th grade level would he even benefit from AAR? I understand that it would help my emerging readers who are yet to be in school but I was wondering if I could skip this program for the time being. We came to the decision to homeschool rather abruptly and haven't much money to be utilized on curriculum. Any advice would be greatly appreciated! :)

Looks great! Thanks!

What about the Little house on the Prairie series? Or Anne of Green Gables? I loved those when I was her age! :)