Did you K'er already know letters and sounds before starting K?

[Tabrett]

I'm just curoius to know how many dc already knew their letters and sound before starting k.

[Hillary in KS]

2 of mine did. The third knew about half of them.

 

I'm not one for pushing schoolwork on them before kindergarten, though. So what they learned they picked up from videos, older siblings, or just observation.

[MamaT]

Yes, mine did. The oldest two had learned already because they wanted to, and the rest just seemed to learn along with their older siblings.

[Carrie12345]

My older two did. #3 knew the majority of the consonants, but struggled with vowel sounds all through K.

[MissKNG]

Yes, my oldest knew both of these things since about 2.5.

[Guest 4boys]

My oldest three did/do. I credit it all to Starfall and the letter magnets on the fridge!

[GWOB]

Yep. I sent the older two off to ps kindergarten reading. I thought that was normal.

[Momling]

Before this year, I had assumed that all kids who had literate parents or had attended preschool or been exposed to books or programs like Sesame Street or Between the lions or even just Noggin would know their numbers and colors and letters.

 

But... I was totally wrong. In my daughter's public kindergarten class, only about half of the kids could identify letters and numbers (up to 20). It's a relatively wealthy community, though to be fair, the popular pre-school in town is Waldorf, so they were discouraged from watching TV or learning any (pre-) reading skills. Still, it is apparently absolutely possible to have a bright child from an educated family who either isn't ready to learn letters or who was never introduced to the idea.

[Aurelia]

Mine did, thanks to the Leapfrog videos she started watching at age 3.

[kmacnchs]

I make sure mine know their letters (big & little) and sounds before I start K'er work...or are you talking about before they were 5? Then, YES too :)

[JenneinCA]

Two yes (oldest and youngest)

One no (middlest)

 

Oldest learned to read really early with minimal help from me. Youngest learned to read at four with some help from me. Middlest was hard to teach to read. I still don't know what finally worked. All of a sudden he was reading. He was about five and a half.

[FairProspects]

There are many educational philosophies that suggest letters and sounds can be picked up in a very quick period of time if left until a later age (5 or 6). My ds knew letter names from general exposure, but his preschool focused on math & science concepts due to some recent research on early childhood development, so he knew no letter sounds.

 

Some kids pick things up, and some have to be explicitly taught. Within days of being directly taught, my son knew all his letter sounds and was into blending. I could have spent 2+ years teaching him this, or waited and spent only a few days. For us, the latter was the better choice as it allowed him years of development and creative play that might otherwise not have occurred.

 

The "right" path depends on the child and the family, but there are a variety of ways to reach an educational goal, that have nothing to do with whether or not the parents are literate, educated, and engaged ;).

[rockermom]

Yes. The Letter Factory taught him both in less than a week.

[carlychan]

My oldest absolutely knew letters and sounds before we started k. My 7 year old did not. I had done activities, crafts, worksheets, and more for YEARS before K and he just did not want any part of it. He was ready when we started in K though. He was/is rather easy to teach he just wasn't ready.

[believe in miracles]

Older one didn't, younger one did- or should I say does. He'll be officially Kindergarten age this fall. He's been in a learning environment so it was easier for him to pick up on learning them.

[StartingOver]

Four out of Five of my children did. Three of those children read before age 3., I have one more to go, but It hink she will too.

[Aoife]

DS will be 3 next week and knows his letters and sounds thanks to HOP, letter factory and talking words factory. I just ordered OPGTR to use along since I tend to need more structure for myself :P

 

That said my cousin's twin boys were reading at a first grade level at age 3 but DSD struggled to learn when she was 7 so every kids is going to be very different.

[JeneralMom]

Yes, my eldest learned at about 5.5 (he was 6 before he went to K),

and DS5 learned with him (so about 4yo), and my 3yo knows most of them.

[Ellie]

We didn't do "kindergarten." I began doing Spalding for about 6 weeks with dd when she was 5, then again when she was 6, and then 7. She probably knew some letters and sounds when we started Spalding, but I hadn't pushed it; we just sort of eased into more academics when I thought she was ready.

[siloam]

I'm just curoius to know how many dc already knew their letters and sound before starting k.

 

They all probably know their alphabet, just from the alphabet song. None knew the sounds. Really I didn't try to teach them before K.

 

Edited to add, given some of the tone of this tread, that I did read to them constantly, and they did watch a lot of educational TV, so I am sure they knew some of the sounds, I just didn't formally teach them. Part of that was because of time/energy. My kids are very close in age, and I spent a LOT of time just making basic needs and keeping the house clean. The rest was because I just didn't see the need to push it. My oldest learned to read very quickly and it was very easy because she had no maturity issues. I see a lot of people pushing their kids to be reading early and often they do run into maturity issues. It worked with the first to wait till K, and I didn't see the need to change anything.

 

Heather

 

Edited January 21, 2010 by siloam

[Crimson Wife]

Before this year, I had assumed that all kids who had literate parents or had attended preschool or been exposed to books or programs like Sesame Street or Between the lions or even just Noggin would know their numbers and colors and letters.

 

But... I was totally wrong. In my daughter's public kindergarten class, only about half of the kids could identify letters and numbers (up to 20). It's a relatively wealthy community, though to be fair, the popular pre-school in town is Waldorf, so they were discouraged from watching TV or learning any (pre-) reading skills. Still, it is apparently absolutely possible to have a bright child from an educated family who either isn't ready to learn letters or who was never introduced to the idea.

 

I could've written this post almost exactly except for the Waldorf part. When I was looking into schools for my oldest, I'd expected virtually all the K kids to know their letters & sounds and at least half to be reading. I was frankly shocked when I was told that only about half knew their letters and only a few kids out of the class were reading. As my DD could already read Magic Treehouse type books at 4, this was one of the big drivers of us deciding to HS. By the time she would've entered, she was reading long chapter books like Little House on the Prairie so it really would've been a mismatch.

 

My 2nd is not as advanced when it comes to reading as his big sister. He seems to be about a year behind where she was. She learned her letters & their sounds at 18 mos, started pointing out which letters words she heard orally began with at about 3, and was sounding out CVC words at 3 3/4. DS learned his letters & sounds at 2 1/2 and at 4 he's now at the "cat starts with c" stage.

[gardening momma]

Other: dd6 knew all her letters and most sounds, but not every single sound that every letter can make. We're learning those now in AAS Level 1, which we started after we finished our reading lessons (100 EZ Lessons).

[Sahamamama]

Yes, but so far this only applies to one child! ;) We'll see what the twins (3) do when they get to Kindergarten. They know the letter names and consonant sounds. They know the short vowel sounds, and we've begun working on CVC blending -- c-a-t and m-a-n and so on. They seem to like it and we'll see how it goes. Our K'er is reading at a strong 4th grade level, but that's just the way she is. We don't think this is normal, it's just her gift. It's definitely NOT my teaching! :lol:

[LoveBaby]

my first 3 knew their letters, but not all their sounds before K. my youngest is well on her way to learning all of her letters and her sounds by 2.5 because she is sitting in on her older brothers phonics lessons!

[Dinsfamily]

My oldest two do/did. The jury's still out on the baby.

[dragons in the flower bed]

The 12yo & 9yo were both reading already when they hit what would traditionally be their kindergarten year. The now 7yo knew many letter sounds and all of the letter names when he hit the K year. My youngest (now 4) knows a handful of letter sounds. I doubt he'll know all of them before he enters his kindergarten year, but I wouldn't be willing to say he definitely won't.

[FairProspects]

I need to stop reading this thread. Its making me feel like a cr*ppy parent. Why do we need to compare anyway? K'ers are at where they're at when they start, and they move forward from there. Just keep swimming...

[Daisy]

My husband teaches ps first grade. He always has at least 5 children who do not know their letters or sounds by first grade. These are children who have gone through ps kindergarten and sometimes even Head Start. It happens. Most of them are doing just fine by the end of the year. They just weren't ready or they didn't have the same exposure to books that the other children had early on.

 

To answer the question though, we are a family of voracious readers so both of my children were reading prior to Kindergarten. But all of you are welcome to come help us in math since we struggle with that.

[Sahamamama]

I need to stop reading this thread. Its making me feel like a cr*ppy parent. Why do we need to compare anyway? K'ers are at where they're at when they start, and they move forward from there. Just keep swimming...

 

But you're not a cr@ppy parent! I agree, it's pointless to compare children. In fact, I have so-called "identical" twins, and I can't even begin to compare THEM! They may look exactly alike (to other people), but they are so different from each other. Snuggles is forever counting and sorting and talking about numbers, while Tickles seems to love words (ask me how I know :glare:). She's my little puppy-like chatterbox, always right at my elbow and always talking and talking and talking. "Let me tell you a story, Mommy!" Her quieter twin is over in the corner, putting together a jigsaw puzzle. Sugar Lump (the firstborn) is on the sofa, her nose in a book.... That's just the way they ARE.

 

And these are all girls. Now, if I had BOYS, where do you think THEY would be? Jumping on the bed? Swinging from the chandelier? :lol:

[8filltheheart]

I am die-hard anti-academics for young children. Research shows that sitting and "doing" academics actually hampers higher level cognitive development of young children. Playing is far more valuable than academics for upper level cognitive skills.

 

My kids start K not knowing letters or recognizing numbers (though they definitely know how to count simply b/c we count in daily life) They start K (or even delayed to 1st for my extremely hyper little boys) ready to learn. Of my 6 oldest, 4 finished 1st grade reading on a 3rd+grade level. 1 was completely on grade level and 1 had a lot of difficulties learning to read and wasn't reading on grade level until 3rd grade.

 

All of my older kids are extremely bright and advanced (even the one that didn't read on grade level until 3rd grade.......by the end of 8th grade he will have high school credits for alg1, geo, alg2, physics and French 1. The ds that only read on grade level is a college senior chemical engineering major with a 3.5+ GPA and he is only 20)

 

So......if your kids don't know their letters or aren't reading by the end of K......don't worry. :001_smile:

Edited January 21, 2010 by 8FillTheHeart

[siloam]

I need to stop reading this thread. Its making me feel like a cr*ppy parent. Why do we need to compare anyway? K'ers are at where they're at when they start, and they move forward from there. Just keep swimming...

It it makes you feel better my 6yo ds is now in 1st grade and isn't reading. Now he is also most likely dyselxic. I did actually start working with him a little before his K year, when he turned 5 because he has speech issues. He has been working with phonics indirectly through speech therapy or directly for 2 years and still can only read a hand full of words. I don't let it bother me, because he is making progress and I don't want to push.

 

Though I have the added benefit of being here before. My oldest didn't start learning to read till K because, well I had ds and with 3 in diapers (my kids potty train late too) and one being a newborn, I just didn't have the energy to care! She was reading at a 7th grade level by the end of 3rd grade, so it didn't hurt her much. My 2nd dd is dyslexic and could spell for a whole year before she could blend. She reads above grade level now, though her fluency is lower than grade level (probably always will be). My 3rd dd is classic dyslexic and is reading, through probably a little below grade level. Though right now she is trying to read a book above grade level and making a good go of it. I didn't ask her to, she is just that determined to read the book herself (go girl!). I may be able to get her fluency up, but she will probably always struggle with spelling (she is just like me). Then there is ds, who on top of probably being dyslexic had constant ear infections as a child, which means he wasn't hearing properly during developmental milestones. It wasn't till he turned 5 that it dawned on us that his speech issues weren't going to just go away like is older sister and we had to take action. He was talking in full sentences, but you could only make out a couple of words. Now we can understand most of what he says, and he is learning to hear the different sounds in words, though he still really struggles with the first sound of words and hears the ending much better. He can't blend yet, but it will come in time.

 

Hang in there, if you are doing what you should then don't worry what other kids are doing. You will get there even if it isn't with the rest of the crowd. When they graduate from college no one will care if they started reading at age 3 or 10 or somewhere in between.

 

Yes, do keep swimming...

 

Heather

[lulubelle]

One yes. One no. The third isn't there yet, but seems like she will.

[In the Rain]

I voted yes.

 

One knew all of her letters and sounds. The other knew most of them.

[8filltheheart]

I thought I was posting my reply under yours. I don't know how it ended up where it did. Anyway, I was trying to let you know that you aren't a bad parent or teacher at all!!!!

[ubermomto5]

yes, all four of mine have known most of the letters and sounds. one or two letters (u and w with this last boy) have needed more work. 2 of them were reading bob books before they were 5. this not from 'schooling', mostly from reading together, and with each prek we make a long hallway line out of cards with the letter and pictures/stickers starting with that letter. they love to stand 'reading' and repeat the sound.

[Pamela H in Texas]

My daughter knew the sounds well. She was reading very well (chapter books) by that time.

 

My son knew several letter sounds and certain key sounds (like ou since it's in our name), but didn't know most letter sounds, much less combo sounds.

[MamaHappy]

My older son did not know most sounds going into K.... I didn't really go over this with him for his pre-k year. Now my younger son will pretty much know all letters and sounds going in to K I think.

[Crimson Wife]

I need to stop reading this thread. Its making me feel like a cr*ppy parent. Why do we need to compare anyway? K'ers are at where they're at when they start, and they move forward from there. Just keep swimming...

 

Don't feel bad! In my extended family, about half were early readers (age 3 or 4) and the other half were average readers (age 6 or 7). But *ALL* of them wound up with similar academic outcomes. You wouldn't have been able to tell past about age 10 which were which.

[arcara]

Mine have all picked up letter recognition and sounds by the time they're 3.

[Renee in NC]

I said no, but that isn't totally correct.

 

My 16yo did not.

 

My 11yo did, but still did not read until 7.5

 

My 8yo did, but still can't read now! (Leap Frog)

 

My 7yo doesn't know them now.

 

My 5yo knows most of them.

 

My 3yo knows some.

 

It's hard not to blame yourself if they don't know things you think they should when you think they should. My 11yo has dyslexia, my 8yo has dyslexia and other things going on as well, and so does my 7yo.

 

However, if you think it is hard as a parent, think of how hard it is for those children who *don't* know what their peers know.

[Renee in NC]

Don't feel bad! In my extended family, about half were early readers (age 3 or 4) and the other half were average readers (age 6 or 7). But *ALL* of them wound up with similar academic outcomes. You wouldn't have been able to tell past about age 10 which were which.

 

This is true! I have a cousin who didn't really read until 5th grade and she went to Duke and then went on to get her PhD in something Biology related. I read at 3 or 4 (no one is sure) and didn't get my PhD!:tongue_smilie:

[DawnM]

:iagree:

 

Thank you. You worded it better than I could have.

 

This is just like the "when did your child start to......" whatever....be it walking, talking, or pooping in the potty.

 

Research also shows that when a child is ready, he/she will be far more receptive and in effect, "catch up" with their skills in whatever is necessary.

 

Dawn

 

I am die-hard anti-academics for young children. Research shows that sitting and "doing" academics actually hampers higher level cognitive development of young children. Playing is far more valuable than academics for upper level cognitive skills.

 

My kids start K not knowing letters or recognizing numbers (though they definitely know how to count simply b/c we count in daily life) They start K (or even delayed to 1st for my extremely hyper little boys) ready to learn. Of my 6 oldest, 4 finished 1st grade reading on a 3rd+grade level. 1 was completely on grade level and 1 had a lot of difficulties learning to read and wasn't reading on grade level until 3rd grade.

 

All of my older kids are extremely bright and advanced (even the one that didn't read on grade level until 3rd grade.......by the end of 8th grade he will have high school credits for alg1, geo, alg2, physics and French 1. The ds that only read on grade level is a college senior chemical engineering major with a 3.5+ GPA and he is only 20)

 

So......if your kids don't know their letters or aren't reading by the end of K......don't worry. :001_smile:

[TxMama]

My oldest son was reading at 4.

 

My oldest daughter did not (and did not read well until 7 or 8).

 

My youngest son did not ( and is just taking off with reading at 7).

 

My youngest daughter knows her letters and sounds and can read a bit at 4.

 

For my olders, the age they started reading had absolute no bearing on their long term academic success.

[Tabrett]

This poll doesn't ask if your child was reading. It just asked if they could recognize the letters and identify their sound. That's all! My 4yo can't read. My main purpose for making this poll is my confusion as to why soooo many k homeschool curriculums follow a "letter of the week" style program when most homeschoolers ( I understand why public school must start with letters) dc are past this stage when starting k.

 

I like structure. I like having a daily lesson plan that I follow. I don't do well with curriculums that are designed to go at my dc's speed. I like a program that integrates all LA subjects. I tried using PP's, HWT, and ETC, but it drove me CRAZY because the letters you were learning to write didn't match up in each program. Everything was introduces at different times in each curriculum.

 

I think first grade CLE, MFW, R&S (these are the ones I am familiar with) go way too fast for a k'er. There seems to be a need for a more "all in one" program for k that is not a letter of the week style. Maybe a program that divides 1st grade in half or a program that picks up where preschool drops off. Something where there is a prerequisite of just knowing letters and sounds. Unfortunately, I'm not the kind of person that can do that myself. I like to follow the plan!!!!

 

Horizons seems to do this from the samples, but I think it costs too much!

[Mrs Mungo]

I voted other. We did Montessori-style learning. I taught them letter sounds but *not* letter names before K.

[TxMama]

My main purpose for making this poll is my confusion as to why soooo many k homeschool curriculums follow a "letter of the week" style program when most homeschoolers ( I understand why public school must start with letters) dc are past this stage when starting k.

 

 

Just my opinion....there is far more to being ready to do K work then just knowing the letters and their sounds. Even my early reader was perfectly happy doing a K program.

 

Although some kids are able to work through the reading portion of 1st at a slower pace at 5 many are not remotely able to do the writing portion of 1st.

 

I'm like you and prefer to follow a plan. With my upcoming K'er who knows her letter, sounds and is reading a bit I'll be using MFW K. She needs to work on writing and getting into the routine of school.

 

I hope you find what you are looking for!

[FairProspects]

Thanks ladies! Sometimes I just get frustrated because it seems like every child is accelerated academically on this board, and while I think ds is bright, I don't have anything quantifiable like knowing letter sounds or early reading to go by. Its just my hunch based on how he plays and processes things, but he's so little it hasn't translated to academics yet. It is just relieving to hear others with successful outcomes and later beginnings.

 

And I very much disagree that most K'ers are far beyond the letters and sound stage when they start Kindergarten. That may be the results on this board, but I think they are far from representative of homeschoolers as a whole. Overall, the K programs that we have tried have been very spot-on for 5 year old development, some even advanced and/or expecting too much for this age.

[swellmomma]

My ds6.5 jsut finally figured out his letter sounds jsut before xmas. He is registered as grade 1 this year, but I went into the year with the mind that it was actually K(legally he had to be registered as gr 1, but if her went to PS I would have only put him in K). We are just starting blends now and he is really struggling. Something about working with phonics and having speech troubles does not mix well. I am pretty sure he has ADHD like his older siblings so getting him to focus is a chore, but I am not worried about it.

 

My first ds learned how to read in early gr 1 in ps. Dd went to K reading and by first grade was at a 4th grade level(of course her stint in ps made her pretty much plateau there and we are slowly building up her level.)

 

Baby dd is already recognizing some letters and sounds from sitting in when I work with ds6. I think she will know them all by Kindy, after all she is only 2. She wants to know how to read now, she is always "reading" things around her, whereas ds6 has told me he will never read and I can't make him. He has no interest in learning at all.

[Tree House Academy]

Yes, and because of that, we were forced to start 1st grade after just half a year of "Kindergarten" instruction. 1st grade has progressed at a much more normal pace. Learning the letters and sounds really put him ahead of the curve for K though...like you said, the curriculums for K were behind his level. First grade was more on target, but we had to take English and Math a bit slower because the first grade programs wanted to go too fast (and he was still only barely 5).

Edited January 22, 2010 by Tree House Academy

[Lovedtodeath]

I pretty much did K as described in TWTM the minute DD turned 3. She was reading at second grade level by the time she was 3 and a half, so I voted other.;) At this point, she is not really advanced in much anymore (well, except reading, but she doesn't typically read at the level that she can).