SWR VS Ordinary Parent's Guide for Reading

[WhereHopeGrows]

Can someone help me compare these two programs? I am interested in what you like/dislike about each. Are there others I should consider? I am trying to decide what to use for my 5yo next year. I purchased SWR, but I'm feeling intimidated by it.

[PeterPan]

If you have 3 hours one evening to sit down, reading SWR, use my Quick & Dirty Guide to Getting Start, etc., you can do SWR. If you want to use OPGTR or something else, you can do that too. I'm pretty convinced that it's not in the perfection of the curriculum but in the doing that the results come.

 

If you want to do SWR, spend 1 hour a day with it for the next 5 days, and I'll bet you have it nailed down and are ready to go. If you don't want to do that, another curriculum is perfectly fine. Don't guilt-trip yourself with worry.

 

Did you teacher your others to read? What did you use with them? Can you find something easy that your oldest can do with the 5 yo? And you know what you could do... Take the phonogram cards from your SWR stuff and do them as a letter of the week thing with your 5 yo. Use Alphabet Art for your fun things to go with the letter. So for the letter A you would learn the sounds the phonogram A makes, do the activities in Alphabet Art, etc. That would kill 26 weeks and be quite fun. Then you'd start into the multi-letter phonograms and the first five rules. At that point maybe you'd be feeling a bit better and be ready to start into the formal spelling and reading portion of SWR. You can break it up like that you know.

[FO4UR]

I've been hacking it out with SWR for a while now, and recently switched to Word Mastery. http://donpotter.net/PDF/Word%20Mastery%20-%20Typed.pdf ds6 was just hitting the wall with SWR - it was frustrating after Section G....not helping him at all. I think my ds6 needs to work with the phonograms one-by-one before jumping back into SWR (which I plan to use again after Word Mastery....).

 

I do this in a very SWR-way, meaning I have ds spell the word lists by dictation. The difference is the make-up of the lists he's spelling. SIGH!!!!!

 

We are keeping up with phonogram memorization, but saving spelling rules for when we go back to SWR.

 

For my younger dc, I will likely do Word Mastery in K-1st grades and SWR 2nd and 3rd. (and I wish I started that way for my eldest...poor guinea pig:001_huh:)

[Jayne J]

I've never used, nor even seen SWR, but I have used OPGTR, and we really love it. It is simple, straightforward, comprehensive and "open and go." There is very little prep time, materials needed are easily found at home (index cards, markers, alphabet magnets) and are not really vital to have (nice, but not vital)

 

I generally don't like scripted stuff--it makes me sound like a robot:D. But I just skip the scripting and teach the lesson myself. If you are nervous, the scripting is a nice help.

 

We didn't use the OPGTR to teach letter sounds, but jumped in right after that section, and it has worked very well. The only suggestion I have is to use a whiteboard when teaching from this book. Ds was overwhelmed by the large amount of print on each page (large print for the child to read, and small print for the parents scripted parts.) With no pictures and only black and white print, he panicked and could not focus. ElizabethB, on this board, suggested writing his part on a whiteboard for him and Voila, easy peasy.

 

If you want bells and whistles, this is not the program for you, but if you want thorough, simple, and easy this is a great book.

[FlockOfSillies]

OPG -- don't like the font. Kids tend to see the book and go, "Ew. Don't wanna." So I adapt by using a lap-sized whiteboard and dry erase markers. My kids love erasing and even doodling is a rare treat. I put a tape flag where we leave off and that's that.

 

SWR -- haven't used it specifically, but bought WRTR (Spalding). I couldn't get over the "Do it exactly this way, down to the last detail, or else your child will be ruined for life" vibe. Not to say that SWR is that way, but anyway, I figure teaching a kid how to read ought to be simpler than that. You shouldn't have to sit down for three hours to figure out how to use a curriculum when all you're doing is teaching your kid to read. Those three hours could be spent actually teaching. I know SWR and other similar programs have the spelling and all that included, but it seems like it's making things more complicated than they have to be.

[RootAnn]

If you have 3 hours one evening to sit down, reading SWR, use my Quick & Dirty Guide to Getting Start, etc., you can do SWR. If you want to use OPGTR or something else, you can do that too. I'm pretty convinced that it's not in the perfection of the curriculum but in the doing that the results come.

 

If you want to do SWR, spend 1 hour a day with it for the next 5 days, and I'll bet you have it nailed down and are ready to go. If you don't want to do that, another curriculum is perfectly fine. Don't guilt-trip yourself with worry.

:iagree: I have started both my kids out with Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons (100EL). They weren't "easy" and we took a break with Child #2 on about Lesson 44 and did some phonogram work a la SWR for a few months. Now, we are back in 100EL, although we are only doing the stories and we started back on lesson 25 or so. We are almost back up to Lesson 44 and it is going MUCH better.

 

I'm not sure I'd want to teach reading solely with SWR. We'll restart SWR "from the beginning" when we finish 100EL with Child #2. It is tough, but it is thorough and it has helped Child #1 zoom in her reading skills this past year (although not improve much in spelling!).

 

Haven't ever used OPGTR, so can't speak to that. But, I agree with what OhElizabeth said above.

[FO4UR]

SWR -- haven't used it specifically, but bought WRTR (Spalding). I couldn't get over the "Do it exactly this way, down to the last detail, or else your child will be ruined for life" vibe. Not to say that SWR is that way, but anyway, I figure teaching a kid how to read ought to be simpler than that. You shouldn't have to sit down for three hours to figure out how to use a curriculum when all you're doing is teaching your kid to read. Those three hours could be spent actually teaching. I know SWR and other similar programs have the spelling and all that included, but it seems like it's making things more complicated than they have to be.

 

 

SWR is that way.;) As with anything, we all have to evaluate what works and what doesn't by the results we see in our dc!

 

Cutting SWR (and WRTR) down to the basics, there is HUGE value in the dictation method for spelling. My ds6 does not hold things in his brain by simply seeing it - or even using letter tiles. The actual act of retrieving the letter from his brain to match the sound to spell the word is THE only thing that works for *my* ds6. Spalding isn't for everyone - not all kids need to write in order to read - but I think any parent can do it. I agree that the manual is confusing...and it seems like too much fuss for a simple process.:iagree:

[FlockOfSillies]

OK. I hadn't looked at it, so I didn't want to assume anything. :-)

 

I happen to be using Apples and Pears Spelling right now with my 7yo. It involves a fair amount of dictation, so we'll see whether it does the trick for him. It has a tm, but it's almost not enough direction for the parent. But it's open-and-go, so that's nice. I just wish SWO had been more than fun busywork for him.

[WhereHopeGrows]

SWR -- haven't used it specifically, but bought WRTR (Spalding). I couldn't get over the "Do it exactly this way, down to the last detail, or else your child will be ruined for life" vibe. Not to say that SWR is that way, but anyway, I figure teaching a kid how to read ought to be simpler than that. You shouldn't have to sit down for three hours to figure out how to use a curriculum when all you're doing is teaching your kid to read. Those three hours could be spent actually teaching. I know SWR and other similar programs have the spelling and all that included, but it seems like it's making things more complicated than they have to be.

 

Yes, I'm feeling some of this. But I figure that since I already have SWR I will see what we can do with it. Since it is summer, I do feel like I have some time to experiment. However, I am not going to beat myself up if I cannot teach them in one of the most "ideal" ways, kwim?

 

I do have 100 Easy Lessons here, and could try that. I have heard good things about Alpha Phonics. I could try that. Or, OPG sound do-able too. I am not really sure which one would be the best match for my child. I may just have to try one and see how it goes.

 

Thank you everyone for the great feedback. We used MFW K and 1 with the older two children, and I am not happy with it. Yes, they learned how to read, but my oldest is struggling with reading comprehension, and I don't think she really knows how to sound out words. When she doesn't know a word, I think she just makes something up for it and moves on. She is so highly motivated, and she is always driven to continue, but I think there have been some gaps in her learning. I don't want to see this continue with my third child.

 

I am not totally sure where my 8yo is at. I still need to sit down with him and spend some more time assessing him. He is naturally more gifted, but he may have some learning gaps too. These gaps are due to family circumstances in large part, so I cannot blame the books, and I apologize if I am making it sound that way. But in part, I think the books can help lead to greater success.

 

After MFW K and 1, we used Primary Language Lessons (Emma Serl) one year, and then moved info Sonlight LA. I am not planning on repeating Sonlight LA. It has a focus on creative writing, and not enough on grammar etc. Overall, I know it is time for a change. I sure do appreciate all of the feedback and help. Thank you! :)

 

PS. Thank you so much for putting up with all of my questions on the boards right now. I am new here, but I sure wish I'd known about this board years ago!

Edited June 19, 2009 by WhereHopeGrows

[PeterPan]

Well I understand now where you're coming from! It is true, SWR would probably be a one-shot thing to work for all your kids' issues right now. It would remediate the oldest with holes who skips words. (That's pretty common anyway, but I understand your concern.) It would improve the reading for all of them and the spelling. And once you learn the method, it's not hard at all to teach a number of kids. So I definitely think your logic was on in buying SWR, but you need to sit down and work through it. Here is the link for my free starting guide. http://www.lulu.com/content/364293 Sit down with this tonight, and in a couple hours you'll be up and running, or at least have a fair sense of whether you want to or not.

 

Truly, SWR is very easy to implement with multiple kids (not that I have multiples, but I have common sense). It's just the initial learning curve that gets you. Since you have it, try my guide and see if you can get over the hump. You'll probably see some creative ways to combine your kids. With that 5 yo I'd just do letter of the week for a semester. With the 8 and 9 yo's, I'd combine (yes, you can do this) and teach them together. Give them the diagnostic tests (my guide prompts you to do this) and see. Even working through easy/familiar words is beneficial, because they start to see the PROCESS and the LOGIC of spelling rather than worrying so much about retaining the words. It's why Sanseri recommends repeating lists, because applying new concepts to familiar things helps you cement them. An older dc doing those lists will do them in a more sophisticated way. You can dictate the sample sentences in the Wise Guide to kick it up a notch for your oldest. You can have them do more of the enrichment activities.

 

Also, you might want the McCall-Crabbs/Harby books Sanseri recommends. WRTR (the Spalding Foundation) sells them as well. They're quick to implement but would help with the carefulness of her reading. Also, I don't know what your plans are for science, but a textbook approach can help fill holes like that, forcing them to read more carefully. I like the BJU science from gr 4 up really well. They have study guides and things that make them read more carefully. It's an easy way for you to develop those skills.

[WhereHopeGrows]

If you have 3 hours one evening to sit down, reading SWR, use my Quick & Dirty Guide to Getting Start, etc., you can do SWR. If you want to use OPGTR or something else, you can do that too. I'm pretty convinced that it's not in the perfection of the curriculum but in the doing that the results come.

Yes, you are right. It's in the doing. This is good. I need this reminder.

 

As far as sitting down, I will get a chance to do that as soon as I thin out. I do not like a lot of clutter in the house, so my mission this weekend is to get rid of a lot of things! Then my mind will be clear so I can sit down and figure out whether SWR will work for us.

 

If you want to do SWR, spend 1 hour a day with it for the next 5 days, and I'll bet you have it nailed down and are ready to go. If you don't want to do that, another curriculum is perfectly fine. Don't guilt-trip yourself with worry.

 

This is good too. I appreciated this when I read it.

 

Did you teacher your others to read? What did you use with them? Can you find something easy that your oldest can do with the 5 yo? And you know what you could do... Take the phonogram cards from your SWR stuff and do them as a letter of the week thing with your 5 yo. Use Alphabet Art for your fun things to go with the letter. So for the letter A you would learn the sounds the phonogram A makes, do the activities in Alphabet Art, etc. That would kill 26 weeks and be quite fun. Then you'd start into the multi-letter phonograms and the first five rules. At that point maybe you'd be feeling a bit better and be ready to start into the formal spelling and reading portion of SWR. You can break it up like that you know.

 

These are some excellent ideas. I am going to be looking over this post again after I get those few hours to study SWR. Thank you! :001_smile:

[TC5]

Here is the link for my free starting guide. http://www.lulu.com/content/364293 Sit down with this tonight, and in a couple hours you'll be up and running, or at least have a fair sense of whether you want to or not.

...

Also, you might want the McCall-Crabbs/Harby books Sanseri recommends. WRTR (the Spalding Foundation) sells them as well. They're quick to implement but would help with the carefulness of her reading.

 

Thank you so much! I have been considering for a few weeks whether the trouble I have read about is worth it to use SWR, and a friend convinced me to try it. I found the SWR book only, cheap, and have started reading it, but it is slow-going (I've read Steps 1-5 and 12). I will continue, but other things (like figuring out what to do for math) keep getting in the way.

 

I've just downloaded your guide and haven't read it all but saw that you said I don't have to read the whole book before I start. What wonderful news! I'm still hoping to read it all first, but everything is making sense, and I'm excited to use it, so I appreciate your quick-start guide. Now I just need to get the other books!

 

Also a couple of questions -- Should I get the McCall-Crabbs books to start with or wait and see whether I need them? I saw that the individual books are pretty cheap on Rainbow Resource, but do I need them?

 

Do my children need to be writing well before we can start? My 8.5 year-old is fine (although cursive is somewhat slow), but my 6 yo writes quite slowly (manuscript, as Cursive First didn't work for him).

 

I appreciate your time!

Teonei

[HiddenJewel]

Thank you so much! I have been considering for a few weeks whether the trouble I have read about is worth it to use SWR, and a friend convinced me to try it. I found the SWR book only, cheap, and have started reading it, but it is slow-going (I've read Steps 1-5 and 12). I will continue, but other things (like figuring out what to do for math) keep getting in the way.

 

I would suggest just reading through SWR once without trying to figure it all out. Then go back and focus on learning steps 1-11. (Reading through it isn't essential. But being the big picture person I am that was what I needed to do.) If you don't, just start working through the first 11 steps.

 

If you follow the Scope and Sequence steps in the front, you can move through it smoothly. Once you get to Step 12, switch your focus to The Wise Guide and use the red book (SWR) as a reference that has the details for completing the notebooks pages, etc. The Wise Guide will tell you when to complete each of the other steps talked about in the red book. Make sure you make a learning log for yourself.

 

I am a big picture person and I struggled with SWR for a long time. Then I came to the point where I had to just trust the author and start the program. I am so glad I did. Teaching reading and spelling has never made so much sense.

 

It used to frustrate me that SWR insisted it be done a certain way. The farther I get into SWR, the more I realize why they say that. It is a technique that has been consistently effective when all the pieces of the puzzle are there. They cannot guarantee it will work if some of the pieces are missing.

Edited June 20, 2009 by HiddenJewel

[redheadeddaughter]

but I'm holding on to my SWR (Spalding) roots. WE just received OPGTR and b/c I am all sorts of crazy I decided to have my boy try a few lessons out with me on the couch - right before we were supposed to be taking a summer break. Well... although he still doesn't LOVE reading/spelling... he is much more willing to sit down and work through it. With SWR he balked at every. single. step. All of which I knew to be important. He learned his phonograms - we learned some spelling rules - we did the dictation in the little copybooks (and I made my own copy as well, just as recommended). I really like SWR. But for whatever reason, my son doesn't have the attention span for such a fragmented program. Having just the one book for most of the school session is less intimidating for him. He has been writing for 2 years now, but it adds to his frustration level and it seems to limit his retention, not increase it. OPGTR is simple. And that works for my son. We started in the middle of the book and just ran with it. A little review and a lot of progress. Oh, and it also takes alot less time to get through the subject. SWR is still my personally "mommy" choice and I hope to return to that format in 6 months or so. I figure we'll be done with OPGTR by then anyway, so I can ramp up the spelling part after that.

[Dinsfamily]

I just started using SWR with my 5yo ds at the beginning of this month. We both love the program. One thing that really helped me was to build a Learning Log of my own. It really showed me how the program works for my ds.

 

When I was going through the manual, I got ahold of all the "Getting Started" info I could find and it really helped narrow down what I needed before I started the program.

 

Lastly, the ladies on the yahoo group are VERY helpful. I've only had one question about quizzing since I started using it, but they answered it right away and my problem was solved.

[kalanamak]

Yes, I'm feeling some of this. But I figure that since I already have SWR I will see what we can do with it. Since it is summer, I do feel like I have some time to experiment. However, I am not going to beat myself up if I cannot teach them in one of the most "ideal" ways, kwim?

 

 

The FIRST thing I did with SWR is "edit it". I went through with a red pencil and lightly put a slash through all the extraneous paragraphs, like chat about how a teacher was teacher and couldn't read, or why a dictionary from the 19th century is better, etc.

 

The book is a lot thinner that way. :)

 

Start the kiddo out with the phonics cards, and clapping out words as you say them, as you do a quick outline of the method and then just START.

[momofabcd]

.

Thank you everyone for the great feedback. We used MFW K and 1 with the older two children, and I am not happy with it. Yes, they learned how to read, but my oldest is struggling with reading comprehension, and I don't think she really knows how to sound out words. When she doesn't know a word, I think she just makes something up for it and moves on. She is so highly motivated, and she is always driven to continue, but I think there have been some gaps in her learning. I don't want to see this continue with my third child.

!

 

That's interesting. I have felt the same way about MFW for reading. It's what I used for my dd (10), and I feel there were gaps, as well.