Hooked on Phonics?

[lil' maids in a row]

I have enjoyed reading this forum and have finally decided to jump in!

 

My oldest has just started kindergarten (I'm very new at homeschooling). I have been using Hooked on Phonics (Kindergarten) to augment the Sonlight program that we are using for L.A. Sometimes I get a bit nervous about this though because I never hear other homeschoolers talk about using Hooked on Phonics. We have been enjoying the program and my daughter is doing a great job. I just wanted to check in and make sure there isn't some glaring flaw with this program that I just don't know about. Is Hooked on Phonics an acceptable reading program for kindergarten?

 

Thank you,

MJ

[sweetpea3829]

I'm a new homeschooler too. I have HOP for grades K-3 and have been using K level with my 4 and 5 yr olds. I'm not crazy about the program. I felt like there was not nearly enough explicit phonemic awareness instruction and it just dove right into sounding out words after learning all of the letter sounds.

 

I haven't gone very far in the K level workbook...we actually had to begin the program over after a long-distance relocation and are only in the Pig Wig section, lol. I do see SOME phonemic awareness tasks but not enough, I think.

 

It probably doesn't help that we can't use the CD-ROM because the kids' computer is busted. When we did use the CD-ROM, the kids enjoyed the games.

 

Currently, I'm researching a more thorough approach than I think HOP has provided.

[ElizabethB]

It does have a lot of sight words, you should make sure you are teaching those phonetically, here is how and why to teach all but 5 of the most commonly taught sight words phonetically:

 

http://www.thephonicspage.org/On%20Reading/sightwords.html

 

Also, it does not teach everything you need to know to sound out any word, it should be followed up with a more comprehensive phonics program like Phonics Pathways or OPG. Both of these teach to about a 4th grade level.

 

My personal favorite is Webster's Speller, it teaches to a 12th grade level!

[5Wizards]

I have used it to supplement other phonics activities we do. I don't like to use just one thing though.

[lil' maids in a row]

Thank you so much for your quick response! I am glad to hear that I am not the only one using the program. I feel unsure about myself as a reading teacher. I've been worried about adding to this program for fear it would cause confusion. Is there a quality phonics program that would be useful to bring alongside Hooked on Phonics, or should I just stick with what we are using for now and switch a more intensive phonics program in first grade? Thank you so much for your help.

 

MJ

 

I am having difficulty with the spell check and am writing this while overseeing a playdough activity with 3 kiddos, please forgive my mistakes ;).

[Aludlam]

I'm now on kid 2 with HOP. I also use Explode the Code - can not say how much I love those workbooks. We also use All About Spelling. My first grader has not started it yet. I will probably start her after Christmas. I've learned LOTS of rules using AAS that I didn't know!

[mom2boys030507]

I have used Hooked on Phonics to teach all 3 of my boys to read. I have found it to be very effective. I do continue to have them read aloud to me from the emergent reader list from Heart of Dakota. I also still have my oldest read to me to make sure that he is able to say words correctly. At this point, my boys are able to sound out pretty much every word and those they can't we go through together and they get it after a time or two.

[Crimson Wife]

I used HOP K-2 with my 2nd child and then moved him to All About Spelling.

[Whereneverever]

I used HOP then OPG with DD 1- at 7 she can read anything she wants.

 

I am currently using HOP with DD2 (4 years old) and once she needs it I'll add in OPG again.

[kwickimom]

I am using it in conjunction with OPG. My ds LOVES HOP, he likes the charts and the computer games and the readers. I just go back and forth between the two and I make sure to have him sound out the sight words and teach him the rules for those, even if we haven't hit that yet in OPG. He'll already know it when we get to it.

[Joyoflearning]

My DD learned to read with HOP with our daycare lady when she was 2 years old and then went straight into Bob books with it. We never taught sight words but sounded everything out and she picked reading up easily. She then went into Dr. Suess and leveled readers. She reads very well now, but we do PR to make sure that she understands how her phonics relates to spelling (although she seems to be a natural speller). I just started HOP with my son (3) and I like it but I will reinforce it later with PR for him also.

[hsbaby]

My son learned to read using HOP. I didn't supplement with anything. I plan on using it with my 4 year old next year:).

[mytwomonkeys]

we own K-2 & HOP master reader. i really like HOP. i'm using it currently with my son (exclusively), and he's progressing beautifully. i also used it with my daughter (not exclusively), but i purchased it when i noticed some holes in her reading a few years ago. HOP filled those gaps nicely back then, so i've continued with it:)

[shanezomom]

I used HOP K and 1st grade and it really worked well for us. Then for reading we used Headsprout online. It was pricey but got my son reading. I had previously stayed away from computer stuff but hey, it worked when other approaches didn't, such as the Bob books.

[pitterpatter]

DD4.5 is using HOP Kindergarten right now. We actually started the second half of it today. Already bought Grade 1 too! She's doing very well with it and enjoys the little skits the animated children put on before/after each word family.

 

To mix it up and for extra reinforcement, we also use The Mailbox: Word Family Helpers. It features some fun, age-appropriate activities for the most popular word families. We also download and print out little phonics readers from readinga-z.com for extra reading practice. I've purchased some of the books recommended by HOP online for extra reading as well.

 

Since Explode the Code is so popular, I considered using it in conjunction with HOP, but could never figure out how to make it work. Plus, ETC seems writing-intense sometimes. We are just now finishing up learning how to write our lowercase letters (already finished capital letters). I may look into it again when we start HOP Grade 1 as her handwriting will be better then and she'll already have had that first exposure to phonics via HOP.

 

Before originally starting HOP, we spent a month or so learning and reviewing letter identification and sounds. That was invaluable to DD's success with HOP, I believe. We also practiced rhyming a bit.

 

We use this in conjunction with HOP Kindergarten.

 

 

Used the four workbooks above, plus Star Fall the month before starting HOP to cement DD's letter identification and sounds.

[Kathleen.]

I began using HOP with my 8yo when she was in preschool and was raedy to read. Our library has the entire program. I gave it a try and it really work. Her reading level kept getting better. We stopped after grade 1 because it became too easy. My 5yo didn't take to reading so early. We tried for a while last year then hit a wall. After a long break we started back up in August and now she's read through the K book, but we're rereading all the books. We're also doing OPGTR (found this at the library by chance) to keep us moving forward so we're not stuck in word family-ville forever. We also started All About Spelling Level 1 where she really learned her sounds. And I threw in ETC (Book C). Oddly enough all these programs complement each in some way. The variety helps.

My 5yo is in half day K so I have a nice window in the afternoon when she's totally into it.

Edited December 29, 2011 by Kathleen.

[ForeverFamily]

I used HOP (K-2nd) to teach my Dd5 how to read. HOP worked great for her and I plan on using it with my Dd4 soon to teach her how to read. The only thing I am going to do differently with my Dd4 is teach her all of the sounds that each letter makes (i.e. the Letter "C" makes two sounds, etc. ) and vowel and consonant teams (i.e. ou, ow, etc.). And some simple rules as we go along such as.... A,E,O, and U will often say their name at the end of a syllable. That way when she is supposed to learn "sight words" she can do more sounding out of those words. But even without doing all that for my oldest Dd she did a great job learning how to read. One of the things I like the most about HOP is that it breaks the lessons into small managable chunks and all of the little readers come with the program so it really is open and go.

 

Just in case it is helpful here is how HOP is set up...

 

In the K level 1

Unit 1

Lesson 1: kids learn to read words ending in at, they then read a simple story in the lesson book to practice at words.

Lesson 2: Kids learn to read words ending in an, they then read a simple story in the lesson book to practice at and an words.

Lesson 3: Kids learn to read words ending in ap, they also are supposed to learn the sight words "he" and "a." They then get to read a simple story in a little book. The first book is titled "Cat."

 

This is a pretty typical setup for HOP. They usually have three lessons per unit, sometimes more, and on the last lesson of the unit the kids are supposed to learn 2-4 sight words. They are then able to read out of a simple story book that comes with the HOP program. By the time my Dd5 got to Grade 1 Lessons she was pretty much sounding out all of the sight words. Also if you buy the current HOP sets, not older or used ones, they have an access code that you can use to login to their website and print out extra worksheets. Hope that helped. I know sometimes when trying to decide on using a program it is nice to know before hand how the program is set up. So I hope I was able to give you a better picture about how HOP is set up! Best of Luck!

[Tsutsie]

We used K - 2 and the Master Reader program with GREAT success. I highly recommend it to anyone who asks!

[...................]

We use it as a break from Advebtures in Phonics and my son loved it!!! I see no problem with HOP. Obviously you might get better results if your child is comfortable with letter sounds first. But HOP itself is fun and effective. My son loved the readers. He cried when we went back to AIP.

[Tarreymere]

It was a good start for a couple of mine, and the kids enjoyed it. They did get started reading pretty quickly and it was relatively painless for me too. I didn't use it past the first couple levels, although I probably should have.

[bmb1373]

We used the HOP k-2 program along with Alpha Phonics. They overlapped in many areas and reinforced where HOP might have been weak. We are now doing McGuffey Readers and Explode the Code. It may be overkill but the ETC is fast and fun and the McGuffey Readers take less than ten minutes. I liked the HOP because it was pretty painless... we could do it in the car and it was a break for him from being with me. I will be using it with my 4 year old next year as well.

[Mommy22alyns]

Both girls used HOP pre-k and K in preschool and then took off reading on their own. I basically turned them loose with the CD-ROM and readers and they largely self-taught.