Help me through my sticker shock, please! (AAS, AAR)

[Katydid]

I really want to get AAR pre-level 1 for my 5yo dd. She still doesn't know all her letter sounds and I know she would absolutely adore the activities, etc. in this program.

 

And I really want to try AAS with my 7yo ds who is an advanced, but reluctant reader and a pretty natural speller. He taught himself to read and has had no phonics and I can see him starting to struggle with pronouncing larger words he is not familiar with. He usually just guesses at it and is usually missing key sounds in his attempts. I want to get him solid in phonics before he starts to really dislike reading (even more than he already does). AAS seems fairly quick and painless for this, but I know he will move rather quickly through level 1 and possibly level 2, as well.

 

So I loaded up my cart over at All About Learning Press and it comes to: $234.70 :blink: Plus shipping. For one subject each for two kids. :glare:

 

And I've already spent more than I bargained for for all the other subjects, so to spend an extra $250ish would really put me way over budget.

 

So either tell me I'm crazy and to find a cheaper way to do these subjects, or tell me these programs are worth it and to find a way to make it happen. :tongue_smilie: (FTR, I do have an almost 2 year old and a baby on the way that I could re-use these products with.... ):svengo:

[nukeswife]

I just posted my AAR over on the swap board, but other than finding it used there isn't a way to find it for a better price. AAS and AAR are the same price no matter where you buy it from.

[warneral]

Resale seems to work but what I don't understand is - you need to keep the phonogram cards! SO I'm thinking you'd need to order the extra phonogram set in order to re-sell.

[kandty]

Wow! Has the prices gone up? I thought the AAS was $40 each level and the first level was $30. No idea what the AAR cost. AAS is nonconsumable, so it can be reused with each child and seems to cost less in the long run if you have more than one child. I have heard a lot of complaints on this board about the price of AAS, but almost all the other programs I looked at run $20-well past the AAS amount and I would have to buy a new book for my youngest when he was ready for that book. :confused:

[Jen500]

I really want to get AAR pre-level 1 for my 5yo dd. She still doesn't know all her letter sounds and I know she would absolutely adore the activities, etc. in this program.

 

And I really want to try AAS with my 7yo ds who is an advanced, but reluctant reader and a pretty natural speller. He taught himself to read and has had no phonics and I can see him starting to struggle with pronouncing larger words he is not familiar with. He usually just guesses at it and is usually missing key sounds in his attempts. I want to get him solid in phonics before he starts to really dislike reading (even more than he already does). AAS seems fairly quick and painless for this, but I know he will move rather quickly through level 1 and possibly level 2, as well.

 

So I loaded up my cart over at All About Learning Press and it comes to: $234.70 :blink: Plus shipping. For one subject each for two kids. :glare:

 

And I've already spent more than I bargained for for all the other subjects, so to spend an extra $250ish would really put me way over budget.

 

So either tell me I'm crazy and to find a cheaper way to do these subjects, or tell me these programs are worth it and to find a way to make it happen. :tongue_smilie: (FTR, I do have an almost 2 year old and a baby on the way that I could re-use these products with.... ):svengo:

 

Aside from the $$, I wouldn't use AAS w/your ds. It's scripted and has no grade levels (have to go through all the books) and doesn't have very difficult words, so I wouldn't recommend it for an advanced child. It sounds like he needs some phonics instruction. Maybe someone can recommend something specific for that. ETC?

 

Your youngest can learn the letter sounds free on http://www.starfall.com or with the leapfrog letter factory dvd (your library might have it). Or you can just do your own letter of the day type thing and do your own activities.

[boscopup]

Personally, I wouldn't use AAR pre-level 1 unless I had a child with an LD that really needed it, because I think those skills are easy to teach to the average child with materials that are freely available or very inexpensive. It just didn't seem worth the high cost to me, but I also haven't needed to teach those skills to either of my children so far - they've picked them up on their own (even the child with speech delay who has had to be directly taught most things).

 

For learning letters, get Leapfrog Letter Factory and let her watch it multiple times. Many kids learn their letter sounds within a few days with this program. ;) It's about $7.50 on Amazon, and it even gives you some free time to clean the house or just relax and read a book in another room. :D

 

I use AAS, but if your child is a natural speller, I think you could get away with another program very easily. What about MCP Plaid Phonics? It's a workbook. Or you could do the free phonics lessons on thephonicspages.org. There is also OPGTR or Phonics Pathways done at an accelerated pace.

 

Some folks have been pointing out HTTS as another alternative to AAS, as it teaches the same rules and such. I cannot directly compare the two, but it sounds like HTTS would be better for a natural speller, since it moves quicker. You could still use the AAS letter tiles. HTTS is less than $30.

 

SWR is another one to look at. It's $100, but it's a one time purchase. It could be used for both kids - learning to read and spell.

 

There are several options. I am spending the money on AAS right now (have through level 4 - we're in level 3 right now), but I just purchased HTTS this morning from the Book Depository (just under $23 with their 10% off code), and I'll use it alongside AAS for a bit, then decide which one I want to continue with after AAS level 4. If nothing else, it will give us some harder words to add into our lessons. ;)

[morosophe]

You're in almost my exact situation, except for the being over budget part. (To be honest, my husband and I are really bad at making budgets. On the other hand, we're both such skinflints that we've managed to do pretty well without a budget so far.) My husband points out that a sixty-dollar curriculum is two full tanks of gas, at current gas prices. There's a different way to look at it!

 

I have two sons, one seven, who's about to start the program, and one three, who's going to be moving into prereading skills soon. I've already let them both "play" with the phonogram CD, and I plan to have younger brother around as much as possible to listen to the practice with the phonogram cards. Hey, it worked for catechism questions.

 

And you don't necessarily know how long it will take for your oldest son to get through Level One. You could put off getting Level Two, which is available with free shipping from Sonlight, until you need it. (Of course, since that free shipping is media mail, it will take a while to get to you.) You could even just get the Basic Interactive package, and have fun with the phonogram CD and the letter tiles. In fact, the first three "lessons" in Level One can be summed up as playing with the alphabet phonograms and letter tiles (talking about the color coding, for instance), along with working on segmentation: this site has a similar approach when it talks about Elkonin boxes. Once you think your child has mastered segmentation, all the phonograms for each letter, and knows his alphabet and his vowels, you move on to the actual spelling. If you'd rather play around with those things and save up for Level One, that's something you could try.

 

I will say that there are many, many attractive prereading programs out there, some of them even free. I've found links to quite a few even just on these boards. And I didn't even bother with a prereading program for my oldest son at all. (I did send him to preschool three mornings a week. It cost $60.00 a month, which was less than minimum wage for the teachers but still added up to almost $600.00 for me over the year.) Check out here and here, for instance. And don't forget about Starfall! I'd say, knock that part off the price tag, and maybe it'll seem a little more doable.

Edited June 2, 2011 by morosophe
Wow, I went exclamation point crazy. Sorry.

[morosophe]

Aside from the $$, I wouldn't use AAS w/your ds. It's scripted and has no grade levels (have to go through all the books) and doesn't have very difficult words, so I wouldn't recommend it for an advanced child. It sounds like he needs some phonics instruction. Maybe someone can recommend something specific for that. ETC?

 

Actually, AAS does take a phonics approach to spelling, so it's a very good way to work on phonics skills without frustrating your child by suggesting that he or she needs help with reading. It also gives actual *spelling* helps--check out their free sample to see how it suggests whether to start a particular unknown word with "c" or "k." (That, of course, is also a phonics rule on the pronunciation of "c" at the beginning of a word turned around for spelling, but it's far more important in spelling than in reading, where a child can easily figure out which pronunciation to give the c by trying both with the rest of the word.)

 

That's why I, who have gone the "100EZ" and "ETC" route so deprecated by another poster on another thread (for viable reasons, obviously), am trying to shore up my children's phonics with All About Spelling.

[Katydid]

I just posted my AAR over on the swap board, but other than finding it used there isn't a way to find it for a better price. AAS and AAR are the same price no matter where you buy it from.

 

Oh, really? I can't seem to find it over there.... could you point me in the right direction?

 

 

Thank you for all your replies, so far! I admit that the reason I'm attracted to AAR for dd is that it is all planned out. I'm having a baby in September and I think having something fun I can do with just her that is all laid out for me would keep her from feeling lost in the shuffle. I've looked at other "K" programs and by the time I bought all of the required books (I don't want to have to rely on the library too much), it seems to be even more than AAR. And from what I've read, AAR is more than just learning letter sounds.

 

I do realize I "could" put all this together myself with cheap/free resources, but I honestly don't know if I want to. :tongue_smilie:But, still... it's a lot of money!

 

And afa AAS goes, I've specifically had it recommended to me for my ds in another thread. :confused: I was not taught with phonics, so I need a lot of hand-holding when it comes to teaching it. Plus, I expect I'll be using it with dd soon, too, especially if we continue with the AAR program (oh how I wish I could see level 1... I think that would make this decision much easier!).

 

Decisions, decisions....

[morosophe]

Thank you for all your replies, so far! I admit that the reason I'm attracted to AAR for dd is that it is all planned out. I'm having a baby in September and I think having something fun I can do with just her that is all laid out for me would keep her from feeling lost in the shuffle. I've looked at other "K" programs and by the time I bought all of the required books (I don't want to have to rely on the library too much), it seems to be even more than AAR. And from what I've read, AAR is more than just learning letter sounds.

 

I do realize I "could" put all this together myself with cheap/free resources, but I honestly don't know if I want to. :tongue_smilie:But, still... it's a lot of money!

 

That's why I directed you to those couple of sites; they both do a pretty thorough job of the planning. On the other hand, there's so much *work* involved in them! To be fair, that's probably an issue for the AAR prereading stuff, too. As I said before, I have trouble enough with my three kids that I keep sending my preschoolers off to the local preschool several mornings a week just for the breathing room! (Or maybe it's just that I'm lazy. 3-4 is a very difficult age, but you've already gotten past that with your daughter.)

 

And afa AAS goes, I've specifically had it recommended to me for my ds in another thread. :confused: I was not taught with phonics, so I need a lot of hand-holding when it comes to teaching it. Plus, I expect I'll be using it with dd soon, too, especially if we continue with the AAR program (oh how I wish I could see level 1... I think that would make this decision much easier!).

 

Decisions, decisions....

 

I do have Level 1, and I think it does plenty of hand-holding. That's part of why I like it, too!

 

Hey, I'm the one that picked Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons because it was cheap, it holds your hand every step of the way... and I had literally checked it out for free from the library to see what it involved.

[boscopup]

Thank you for all your replies, so far! I admit that the reason I'm attracted to AAR for dd is that it is all planned out. I'm having a baby in September and I think having something fun I can do with just her that is all laid out for me would keep her from feeling lost in the shuffle.

 

I am doing a combo of Webster's Speller and OPGTR with my 4.5 year old. It's really pretty easy. We started with the syllabary in Webster's (Elizabeth has put her K'er's lessons in a big long thread here), learning the sounds of various syllables - both open and closed. I think that will get us way ahead in the long run, btw. Then we go over to OPGTR for some word/sentence practice to break things up. We spend about 10 minutes at the white board and just do the next thing, wherever we are. It's really quite easy, and I like that I don't have to do a bunch of activities. I just pull out a printout (Webster's) and the OPGTR book, and head to the whiteboard.

 

That pre-level doesn't even get them reading. So it just seems like a lot of money when it doesn't even teach actual reading yet. If it was going to get them through a first grade level reading, I could see it being worth the money, but as it is, there are $20 products that take a child from letter sounds to 4th grade level reading that are laid out in easy-to-use lessons.

 

I'll probably use AAS1 for K, once my son is reading decently (right now he still sounds everything out first, but can read sentences with CVC words and 'a' and 'the', which he pronounces phonetically - they weren't taught as sight words).

 

I'm not trying to talk you out of AAS necessarily, but do realize that you'll need multiple levels very quickly, so if money is an object, there might be better choices for you. I am using AAS and love it, but if the money was going to be a hardship for my family, I absolutely would be finding something else. AAR... it just doesn't interest me at all, at least not the pre-level.

[Katydid]

That's why I directed you to those couple of sites; they both do a pretty thorough job of the planning. On the other hand, there's so much *work* involved in them! To be fair, that's probably an issue for the AAR prereading stuff, too.

 

Yeah, I've seen LOTW and Hubbard's Cupboard before... and to be perfectly honest, I can't stand all the cutesy crafts. :tongue_smilie:There seems to be only a little of that in AAR (which I know dd would love, so this would be the compromise) and I find AAR's much more... how do I say it? Aesthetically pleasing? ;) Plus they have the cute alphabet and poetry books, fun games all laid out, and that adorable zebra! :svengo:

[Katydid]

I am doing a combo of Webster's Speller and OPGTR with my 4.5 year old. It's really pretty easy. We started with the syllabary in Webster's (Elizabeth has put her K'er's lessons in a big long thread here), learning the sounds of various syllables - both open and closed. I think that will get us way ahead in the long run, btw. Then we go over to OPGTR for some word/sentence practice to break things up. We spend about 10 minutes at the white board and just do the next thing, wherever we are. It's really quite easy, and I like that I don't have to do a bunch of activities. I just pull out a printout (Webster's) and the OPGTR book, and head to the whiteboard.

 

That pre-level doesn't even get them reading. So it just seems like a lot of money when it doesn't even teach actual reading yet. If it was going to get them through a first grade level reading, I could see it being worth the money, but as it is, there are $20 products that take a child from letter sounds to 4th grade level reading that are laid out in easy-to-use lessons.

 

I'll probably use AAS1 for K, once my son is reading decently (right now he still sounds everything out first, but can read sentences with CVC words and 'a' and 'the', which he pronounces phonetically - they weren't taught as sight words).

 

I'm not trying to talk you out of AAS necessarily, but do realize that you'll need multiple levels very quickly, so if money is an object, there might be better choices for you. I am using AAS and love it, but if the money was going to be a hardship for my family, I absolutely would be finding something else. AAR... it just doesn't interest me at all, at least not the pre-level.

 

I do appreciate what you are saying, but my goal for dd is not necessarily to get her reading right away, it's to have something fun (for both of us) to do with her so she doesn't get lost in the shuffle of the new baby/toddler/2nd grader craziness that will be our year this year.

 

And if I get AAS, I will buy levels one and two now, while knowing I may need level three before the year is up (which I figure I could buy later with the new AAR level, if we decide to go that route).

[JudoMom]

No way would I pay that amount of money for phonics and spelling. We use Phonics Pathways and it costs around $20.

 

It's inexpensive, easy to use, and the lessons can be as long or short as you'd like. It can be used for spelling as well as teaching reading (though I've never used it for spelling--we use Sequential Spelling which cost me $30 used for all 7 levels).

 

This works for us--my boys' spelling has improved over last year, and of all my boys (except for ds5 who is just learning), ds7 reads at the lowest grade level in the house--he reads fluently on an 11th/12th grade level.

[Katydid]

*sigh* Everyone is talking me out of it :tongue_smilie: Does no one think it's worth it? :bigear:

[Jen500]

*sigh* Everyone is talking me out of it :tongue_smilie: Does no one think it's worth it? :bigear:

 

Well, just keep in mind that AAS has a relatively aggressive affiliate marketing program. http://all-about-spelling.com/affiliates.html

[fourcatmom]

I just bought level 4 and 5 and I think I spent about $180. It is quite expensive and now I need to order the other levels. I hope you find what you are looking for.

[boscopup]

I just bought level 4 and 5 and I think I spent about $180. It is quite expensive and now I need to order the other levels. I hope you find what you are looking for.

 

Wow, that's expensive! Both of those levels are $40 each, so that's $80. Then you need the Tiles and magnets, which are another $15ish, I believe. Of course, you can't really start in level 4 very easily, so you'd be missing the student packs of levels 1-3 (each containing phonogram cards, sound cards, key cards, and word cards).

 

I'm not sure how you got $180 for just two levels. :confused: You can normally get started with levels 1 and 2 for about $100.

[boscopup]

Well, just keep in mind that AAS has a relatively aggressive affiliate marketing program. http://all-about-spelling.com/affiliates.html

 

Honestly, this part doesn't bother me so much. I did get the e-mail asking me to be an affiliate. I declined. At any rate, if someone is an affiliate, it won't help them to market the program without a link in their sig that says they're an affiliate. If they have the link in their sig and mention that they are one, then you know where they're coming from when they post. If there is no link in their sig, they get no money if you buy the program, whether they're an affiliate or not.

 

So I don't think this really matters all that much. Several companies have affiliate programs (PR, TOG, etc.).

[8filltheheart]

*sigh* Everyone is talking me out of it :tongue_smilie: Does no one think it's worth it? :bigear:

 

I'm another one that says save your $$. There are lots of things that do cost quite a bit of $$ for quality, but AAS is unnecessarily expensive w/very simple words and not much for what you get. ;)

 

There is a recent discussion about it on the accelerated board.

 

If you want something all planned out with games/readers/songs/instruction, I would recommend Sing, Spell, Read, Write. I love it. I use the 1st grade level for both K and 1st and move through it at their pace.

[Jen500]

Honestly, this part doesn't bother me so much. I did get the e-mail asking me to be an affiliate. I declined. At any rate, if someone is an affiliate, it won't help them to market the program without a link in their sig that says they're an affiliate. If they have the link in their sig and mention that they are one, then you know where they're coming from when they post. If there is no link in their sig, they get no money if you buy the program, whether they're an affiliate or not.

 

So I don't think this really matters all that much. Several companies have affiliate programs (PR, TOG, etc.).

 

The op doesn't have a lot of posts so I just wanted to give her the info. (There have been several lengthy threads on this topic)

[WishboneDawn]

I do appreciate what you are saying, but my goal for dd is not necessarily to get her reading right away, it's to have something fun (for both of us) to do with her so she doesn't get lost in the shuffle of the new baby/toddler/2nd grader craziness that will be our year this year.

 

And if I get AAS, I will buy levels one and two now, while knowing I may need level three before the year is up (which I figure I could buy later with the new AAR level, if we decide to go that route).

 

Dancing Bears and Apples and Bears might be more up your alley. It's another program for kids with LDs but it's suitible for regular kids and MUCH cheaper. There's a lot of variety on the activities and it really leaves my son with a firm foundation for decoding unfamiliar words.

 

The books are available in their entirety online to view so you can get a good sense of what they'll be like.

[scrapbabe]

Well I'm gonna go against the grain and say I love AAS and think it's worth every penny. But I'm not sure why it's $250 for you to buy it. I would spread it out and buy one level at a time. I haven't used AAR yet, so can't help you there, but AAS has been wonderful for us. My 11 year old learned to read without really knowing phonics. Just doing level one AAS with him has helped him a lot. He was a horrible speller and couldn't sound out bigger words. He is doing so much better and actually picked up a chapter book yesterday and read the whole thing (he never does that). I think it's worth it, but I would spread it out only buying the levels as needed and maybe selling my old levels to recover some of the cost (unless you'll use it with your youngers).

[johnandtinagilbert]

Well, just keep in mind that AAS has a relatively aggressive affiliate marketing program. http://all-about-spelling.com/affiliates.html

AAS would be an excellent way to bring some phonics in for your eldest son. Whatever method you use, do it now. You are right in thinking it will make him hate reading. That happened twice over in my family and it was a grave mistake. You may find that AAR is not necessary. Although a new product, many families have simply started at level 1. You'll find your elder son will think the words are easy initially...that's b/c he has them memorized. Be sure to really have him show his understanding of Rules and Markings. Those are the things that will help him with a larger reading, writing, and spelling vocabulary. Remember, you can start slowly! Buy a little now, a little later. It'll be just fine.

 

eta: I thought I had a gold mine when I "taught" my kids how to read w/ a $20 program...if you add in the remediation and the variety of materials I bought for the rest of language arts....that $20 cost me a fortune in remediation. My philosophy is to spend on what is important. Fundamental programs for reading and math are worth every.penny. Costs shift over the career of home schooling based on grade and personal library.

 

So far as affiliates....I'm an affiliate for the Phonics Road. The reason people choose to be an affiliate is because they have used and believe in a program. Deciding to be an affiliate is the highest form of recommendation that *I* can offer. I believe in 2 products enough to endorse them with my name and reputation. That's a pretty big compliment for those companies. It's a "risk" I'm willing to take b/c I am certain of the programs' quality. Affiliates on this forum have done a wonderful job in helping many of us navigate towards or away from a program. "MerryatHope" is a wonderful help concerning AAS. You may want to pm her. If there was such a thing as a WTM affiliate...I'd be one. Do you know how often I plug this forum!?!?!?! :tongue_smilie:

Edited June 2, 2011 by johnandtinagilbert
eta: cost

[AmyinMD]

My 4 yo loves AAR. She is always asking for me to work on it with her. It is easy to pull together each day and has a lot of fun activities. My dd is already rhyming words and gets so excited when she gets them right. None of my children have been early readers though. I keep waiting for one that just picks it up really easily but that hasn't been the case with any of my kids yet. 2 of my 4 older kids really really struggled to read.

 

I am already homeschooling 3 other children plus I have a 3 yo with Autism. My 4 yo can tend to get lost in the shuffle. She loves Ziggy the Zebra and I think the coloring pages that go with the program are really fun. Each one has a little art activity that gets her excited but they are always easy things I can pull together quickly. Like for the letter D we used a pencil eraser and paint to add spilled dogfood to the picture but dd loved it. I also really like all of the phonemic awareness activities. It's not just about learning your ABCs.

 

To reuse the program the only thing I will need to purchase is another student book which I think is around $25. I did get the deluxe package but you could probably save money by getting the basic package. I think you can buy the zebra puppet on Amazon or you can use your own. My dd adores Ziggy though.

[nukeswife]

I think they are worth it, but I usually don't pipe in with recommendations right away because I'm an affiliate(I even made sure to put that in my signature) and I've had some backlash because of that.

 

AAS has been wonderful for my two older kids. My son (who will be in 7th grade in the fall) was a horrible speller although he could read fairly well. AAS has helped him see the why in spelling and has also improved his reading as well. My dd is a struggling reader and she does have issues that will require vision therapy, but AAS has helped make the struggle a bit easier, she is starting level 2 and now that she knows more about syllables sounding out unknown words is becoming a bit easier. They also both really enjoy the program and although the words are easy in the lists, it has been transferring over to their writing where they aren't sure about longer, harder words, but can now work through them due to the rules taught in AAS.

 

My youngest used AAR really quickly. He knew all his letter sounds and names, but was lacking in the areas of rhyming and fine motor skills needed to write letters. He loved using AAR because it's fun and I liked it because it helped me to make sure he didn't get lost in the shuffle of having another child a struggling reader (who's going into 4th grade in the fall) and a middle schooler. Since it was all laid out for me and I just had to gather a few craft items from our shelves/drawers, it was easy to implement.

 

I hope my thoughts have helped you a little, like I said I tend not to say much because some think I'm just out to "sell a product", but I only became an AAS affiliate because after many trials and curriculum hopping we always seemed to come back to it and I truly believe it's a great program that can really help kids understand phonics and spelling.

Edited June 2, 2011 by nukeswife

[Wheres Toto]

I'm another one who loves AAS. My son is young and a very early reader so we are using it as a combination spelling program and phonics/reading review. We are going very slowly through Level 1.

 

I looked at AAR for my 3 year old and I feel like that it would just be busy work for her. She already knows her letter sounds and isn't quite ready for blending yet. There are many, many free resources around (that I've used a ton of ink and paper printing out) and she has sporadic interest in doing them. She is totally bored of the ~one letter at a time~ programs. I definitely could not justify the cost for AAR for her.

[KristenR]

I have a 4 year old who can read and write very comfortably. She has no problem doing AAS1 and the words are rather easy and she has not problem with them- however I NEVER regret purchasing the program. I look forward to working up to higher levels with her and REUSING my AAS1 with my two younger daughters.

 

For me it was worth the price. (I didn't splurge on the tote bag and stickers- those are unnecessary expenses.)

[Love_to_Read]

*I* want the AAR for much the same reason as you...4th grader getting the bulk of school + baby getting the bulk of remaining attention + two in the middle who need to learn to read. I love the samples, I love the notes that tell you WHY certain activities are done...and yet, I've already overspent quite a bit on next year in general. But I don't want to let the boys fall by the wayside...

 

FTR, I'm an affiliate, too, but I wasn't sure of the forum rules on signatures yet. I'll gladly share my link if anyone wants it by PM, but I'd rather not have it come across like I'm posting for the money.

 

I like the way the program lays out what to do in a very research-based manner. It reminds me of my college days, trying to write the perfect project, incorporating everything we'd learned about how things *should* be taught....except that I majored in secondary ed. and swore that I'd NEVER teach little kids the alphabet. So, in a way, this has me nodding my head that yes, it's multi-sensory, it's rule-based, it builds phonemic awareness, etc., and in another way, it has me feeling all inferior that I don't know any of this stuff for early childhood, and I don't know if I'll realistically get around to researching and learning and doing without the hand-holding of a good curriculum.

[SnMomof7]

I am going to...tentatively post here. I am an AAS affiliate, but there is no way I would be one if I didn't adore the program and what it has done for our family.

 

When AAR came out, even though I LOVE Marie Rippel (everything she touches is just SO good IMO), I thought it was pricey. But I bought it anyway. My 2nd DD (who I am using it with) already knew most of her letter sounds (LeapFrog Letter Factory - get it), BUT I wanted something to do with her that was open-and-go, systematic, and would be fun for her. She always wants to 'do school' so I know what you mean about wanting something to do together! Yes, we love it. She begs to do it. I adore the phonological awareness games (so fun) and so do all my children. Our AAR Pre-1 has actually turned into a bit of a family-circle-time because even my 8-year-old and 2-year-old want to sit in on the games with us :)! I wasn't expecting that. My 8-year-old has said how SHE would like to do 'Ziggy' as we call AAR around here because it is SO fun - and this child is reading early chapter books fluently! I told her I would let her teach it to DD3 in a year or two and she was so excited!

 

Ahem.

 

Okay, AAS. If your child is a natural speller he might not need it for spelling, BUT that syllabification/longer words reading hump can be tough to get over. AAS IS great for that in the higher levels, but I do recommend starting at the beginning to make sure the foundational skills are all in place. We are finished level 1 and are 1/3 of the way through level 2 (but I own up to level 4) - my DD1 is NOT a natural speller, so I can't speak much to that, but we've had a LOT of spelling breakthroughs, she applies her spelling to her work, and she applies the BASIC concepts that she is learning AHEAD into more advanced rules/concepts/syllabification that we haven't learned yet, which is amazing to me. Teaching the concepts phonetically is really the key thing in a spelling program to avoid just the random lists/memorization approach in my opinion. Oh dear, I am starting to rant, sorry! I'm sure you know that already or you wouldn't be looking at AAS!

 

As you can see in my signature, I am remediating my DH with this program and we are starting at the beginning. That is how much I love it. It isn't about the affiliate $$ at all (though it is nice, I won't lie!) I wouldn't waste my time and his on something that wasn't really, really excellent. It took me long enough to talk him into this after all ;). The fact that we can do it in 15 minutes/day is great.

[Katydid]

Well, I don't mind hearing from affiliates (I don't understand why you would be one if you didn't love the product) and I'm still leaning towards the AAS/AAR side of the fence....

 

But I will take a look at the other recommendations that have been made for things that I haven't seen yet before I make my final decision.

 

Thank you all! It is so helpful for me to get some outside perspective on this.

Edited June 2, 2011 by Katydid

[MerryAtHope]

I really want to get AAR pre-level 1 for my 5yo dd. She still doesn't know all her letter sounds and I know she would absolutely adore the activities, etc. in this program.

 

And I really want to try AAS with my 7yo ds who is an advanced, but reluctant reader and a pretty natural speller. He taught himself to read and has had no phonics and I can see him starting to struggle with pronouncing larger words he is not familiar with. He usually just guesses at it and is usually missing key sounds in his attempts. I want to get him solid in phonics before he starts to really dislike reading (even more than he already does). AAS seems fairly quick and painless for this, but I know he will move rather quickly through level 1 and possibly level 2, as well.

 

So I loaded up my cart over at All About Learning Press and it comes to: $234.70 :blink: Plus shipping. For one subject each for two kids. :glare:

 

And I've already spent more than I bargained for for all the other subjects, so to spend an extra $250ish would really put me way over budget.

 

So either tell me I'm crazy and to find a cheaper way to do these subjects, or tell me these programs are worth it and to find a way to make it happen. :tongue_smilie: (FTR, I do have an almost 2 year old and a baby on the way that I could re-use these products with.... ):svengo:

 

How about a cheaper way to do these subjects? I think we can trim your total by $50.

 

I am one who absolutely thinks AAS and AAR are worth it (and, I'm an affiliate too--as others have said, I use and like lots of things but this is the only one I actually go so far as to be an affiliate & put my name on the line for--but it helped my kids tremendously. I'm also not one to say everyone must use it--I'm all for using what works for your family!). My kids were struggling readers and REALLY struggling spellers, and this turned life around for us--they went up 2 grade levels in reading the first year!

 

The statistics show that 34% of kids will struggle with reading (I'm 2 for 2!), and AAR is what I looked for but didn't really find when my kids were younger. For me, AAS works out about the same as math for the year (math is sometimes more!), so it's worthwhile to me.

 

So, cheaper...I'm not sure what you loaded your cart with, but how about this to trim it down a bit:

 

For AAR Pre-1--get the Basic Package ($79.95) and a Ziggy puppet ($17.95). You can use a sterilite box from Stuff-mart for only $1. The AAR box is cute, but you don't *have* to use it. Ziggy I'm rather partial to, I'd get him if I was doing it!

 

For AAS--See if your son knows the concepts from level 1 & can start in Level 2--here's an FAQ on that. He may not need Level 1, or he may need just a level 1 materials packet --Level 2 does a quick review of level 1, and you can use the packet to cover the concepts highlighted there. So you might just want:

 

Level 2 ($39.95)

Level 1 Materials Packet ($14.95)

Basic Interactive Kit ($29.95)

and again get a $1 box from stuffmart.

 

That gets your order down to $182.75 plus shipping. If you wanted to trim it a bit more, you could get just the divider cards, letter tiles, and magnets separately & skip the phonogram CD-ROM, instead of getting the kit. I think that takes another $7 or so off.

 

Well, just some options! I hope you can decide if it will work for you & your kids!

 

Merry :-)

[Classically Minded]

Merry was the one that influenced me to try AAS last year and I'm so glad I did and yes, I'm an affiliate now too. However, being an affiliate doesn't drive my replies to posts, I post on things I feel I could add valuable input too. It is very expensive but you have to take into account that its non-consumable, so you can use it for all your children or sell it. We went ahead and bought the first 4 levels and after looking over them I'm still very pleased we spent the money. DD7 finished the first level and we are in level 2 now and she still begs to do it.

 

I'm sure you can teach spelling other ways but this one makes it easy to teach and understand and FUN! :D When we finish all 6 AAS levels, we plan on doing Spelling Power because I've heard good things about that program and we would have chose it for now, but it begins at a 3rd grade level so we are waiting.

[peacefully]

.

[Guest]

I feel that the problem is also due to the fact that there are companies willing to open affiliate accounts even for people that do not use their products. There is one that comes to mind but I will not mention who. In any case, I had set up some affiliate accounts (TOG, Amazon and CBD). I only had the links in our blog in the form of widgets (which are obvious) and I rarely ever mentioned our blog in posts. I just had it linked in my signature. I also never added my affiliates in hidden links in posts or my signature. I have never once posted a link on these forums using affiliates. I gave them all up for peace of mind though. Now I can post about whatever I want and not feel like others think I have ulterior motives :). Sorry, not about AAS but since this affiliates thing was mentioned I thought I would post. Sadly these days, unless you know a person, it is difficult to trust the motives. I have been on both sides so I know how both sides feel :).

[2Boys]

I had to throw in my 2 cents. We are completely new to homeschooling and I usually lurk, but this is something I have an opinion on!

I can't comment on AAS, but we have been using AAR for several weeks now. I was hesitant because of the cost but we purchased it at conventin which helped. I wasn't going to buy Ziggy, but my husband encouraged me to.

We love the program. Every day my boys (3 & 4) ask if Ziggy is going to come today! I really didn't understand the whole puppet thing, but they just eat it up! I am so glad we bought it.

My oldest already knew most of his letters and most of the sounds, but it really is more than that. We are only about half-way through and the letters are all solid for him already. We just got back from vacation and in the car they kept asking if different words rhyme. They love the acitivity sheets and I love them too. I am not very creative and love that I can just open the book and everything is there.

I really think this program provides a firm foundation for them (and it is enjoyable for all of us--which means a lot!)

By the way, we have most of the Leap Frog DVD's and they have watched them numerous times. We do some starfall. But I really think the hands-on, one to one interaction has been more beneficial than anything. It wasn't until we started this program that my oldest started pointing out letters and their sounds when he saw them on signs and in books, etc.

Anyway, my 2 cents!

[Five More Minutes]

I'm an AAS affiliate, but I'm not posting an affiliate link here so I'm hoping I come across as trustworthy! :001_smile:

 

For me, AAS has been worth every penny. It's comparatively expensive, but it's good. I love it that it isn't grade-based, but that it works through concepts at the pace that's appropriate for your student.

 

I can't comment on AAR, but as someone who invested in a different phonics program (Jolly Phonics in my case), I found that the open-and-go nature of a program helped me do the phonics work. Expensive, but in retrospect, worth it.

 

I would agree with other posters who say that these skills are worth spending money on if you feel that the programs are a good fit for your students.

[Lightly Salted]

Well I'm gonna go against the grain and say I love AAS and think it's worth every penny. But I'm not sure why it's $250 for you to buy it. I would spread it out and buy one level at a time. I haven't used AAR yet, so can't help you there, but AAS has been wonderful for us.

 

:iagree:

 

and I'm not an affiliate of anything - we just love AAS here. My kids ASK to do it, and my DD continually reminds me that she doesn't want to go back to her old spelling program "because it doesn't teach the rules!" :D