give_me_a_latte Posted December 31, 2010 Share Posted December 31, 2010 My son (age 4) is really exploding with his reading. We've been doing HOP, and we kind of stalled mid way through the 1st grade level back in October. On his own he has picked up so much over the last few months, I'm thinking we can cruise through the rest of 1st grade HOP in a week or so. And I fully anticipate him cruising through the 2nd grade level quickly as well. My question.....do we move from phonics into spelling? He's already starting to spell simple words and sound words out in his head, so I'm thinking that would be our next logical step. I plan to use AAS, and I think we could probably do Level 1 right now...but I want to go ahead and finish HOP first. Advice? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trying my best Posted December 31, 2010 Share Posted December 31, 2010 Reading and Spelling go hand in hand! Reading is easier than spelling though. So practice both :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted December 31, 2010 Share Posted December 31, 2010 I had my DS finish the HOP K-2 set before I started him on AAS. So far the spelling words have been super-easy but there's so much more to the program so I'm glad I started him at Level 1. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted December 31, 2010 Share Posted December 31, 2010 DD had trouble with HOP because she went through a phase where she found too many words on a page (in the story books) intimidating. So we've been using Word Mastery, which just has lists of words, no stories, and I've been letting her choose what books to read aloud, either on her own or with me alternating sentences/pages. We're nearly done with Word Mastery, and when that's done we'll keep working on the read alouds while moving on to spelling, for which we'll use Webster's (both Word Mastery and Webster's Spelling I obtained from www.donpotter.net). Webster's will basically go through all the phonics again, only with DD applying it to writing words rather than reading them, so that will provide good reinforcement as she makes progress in reading. One thing to consider is where your son's writing skills are. I held off on spelling partly because DD wasn't ready for much writing yet. You could, however, do spelling orally or with letter tiles, etc. I just didn't see the point until DD was both reading and had the fine motor skills and stamina down for writing the words. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoPlaceLikeHome Posted December 31, 2010 Share Posted December 31, 2010 DD had trouble with HOP because she went through a phase where she found too many words on a page (in the story books) intimidating. So we've been using Word Mastery, which just has lists of words, no stories, and I've been letting her choose what books to read aloud, either on her own or with me alternating sentences/pages. We're nearly done with Word Mastery, and when that's done we'll keep working on the read alouds while moving on to spelling, for which we'll use Webster's (both Word Mastery and Webster's Spelling I obtained from www.donpotter.net). Webster's will basically go through all the phonics again, only with DD applying it to writing words rather than reading them, so that will provide good reinforcement as she makes progress in reading. One thing to consider is where your son's writing skills are. I held off on spelling partly because DD wasn't ready for much writing yet. You could, however, do spelling orally or with letter tiles, etc. I just didn't see the point until DD was both reading and had the fine motor skills and stamina down for writing the words. :iagree: My ds read very well but was not ready for a lot of writing until he was 7 1/2sih:) You could try white boards and chalk boards with different colors for writing, but again he may not be ready for a long while for schoolish stuff even though he is advanced. I would take advantage of his love of reading. You could read tons of books together with you doing most of the reading:D You could also do art activities with crayons, chalk, clay, etc. to get his fingers ready. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted December 31, 2010 Share Posted December 31, 2010 AAS is a great program to use with a kid who lags in physical writing ability because it's easy to adapt to be less writing dependent. My DS can't even write his name yet, but he can do the AAS lessons with the letter tiles and the HWOT pre-k manipulatives (wooden pieces, magnetic stamps, etc.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
give_me_a_latte Posted January 2, 2011 Author Share Posted January 2, 2011 Thanks for the ideas! His handwriting is okay. He's almost finished with HWT Pre-K, so he can write capitals. He's writing some words on his own...like POP or DAD. One reason I chose AAS is because it isn't completely dependent on writing in the early levels. I think I'll go ahead and order AAS level 1 to have on hand when he finishes HOP. Can anyone suggest a reading list? We do plenty of read alouds....but what about good beginner books for him to work through? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Beginner books we've gone with have included everything from BOB books and other comparable phonics readers, to Level 1 beginner books, to easy Dr. Seuss books. Books we'll read aloud together include things like Berenstain Bears--she'll read the children's quotes, or one sentence on a page where I'll read the rest, etc. The exact parameters for reading aloud together are continually negotiated based on what DD feels comfortable with and what I think she's capable of. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
give_me_a_latte Posted January 2, 2011 Author Share Posted January 2, 2011 He was bored with BOB books, and he's already reading Dr. Seuss. Little stinker ;-) All I can remember from when I was an early reader are things like Amelia Bedilia or Nate the Great. There HAS to be better options out there!!!! Maybe I'll poke around curriculum sites and see what they include in their packages. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dana Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 He was bored with BOB books, and he's already reading Dr. Seuss. Little stinker ;-) All I can remember from when I was an early reader are things like Amelia Bedilia or Nate the Great. There HAS to be better options out there!!!! Maybe I'll poke around curriculum sites and see what they include in their packages. What motivated my son was Calvin and Hobbes. :lol: He was a bit older than your son though. My son didn't start to read until he was 6 - then he self-taught himself. AAS has been great for us since he didn't get any phonics (or reading instruction). You might ask the children's librarian if they have some recommendations. We did a lot of read-alouds where I'd have my son do one character's lines on occasion (Winnie the Pooh). The Dragon books by Dav Pilkey were good. (I hate Captain Underpants though.) Max and Ruby (and any other Rosemary Wells books) are also good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mammaofbean Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 He was bored with BOB books, and he's already reading Dr. Seuss. Little stinker ;-) All I can remember from when I was an early reader are things like Amelia Bedilia or Nate the Great. There HAS to be better options out there!!!! Maybe I'll poke around curriculum sites and see what they include in their packages. frog and toad poppleton oliver pig super fly guy ricky ricotta and his giant robot good night, good knight i don't know what suess he is reading but for earlier readers my dd loved brand new readers, she did not like bob books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 ricky ricotta and his giant robot My DS loves this series! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
engu Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 What is AAS? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 All About Spelling Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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