pehp Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 Hello everyone, I've been lurking here for a couple of years, but am finally going to jump in because my son will be 5 in June and I'm starting to work with him in a more formal manner. By way of introduction--I'm polly, my son is 4, my daughter is turning 1 next week, I'm a SAHM with a philosophy degree from William and Mary (that SWB connection! it makes me love her even more!), MA in english and a JD. And....now I'm channeling all this obsessive love of learning to homeschooling my children. ;) He knows all his ABCs and the letter sounds, but does not read (except that he can sound and spell out C A T and sometimes a few other, similar, simple words). We are working our way through the MUS primer, and it is sufficient for our purposes at this point. He has very good handwriting (maybe this is related to his excellent fine motor skills--he's always been strangely good at fine motor activities?) and so for fun, every few days, I let him copy a few words or sentences, or allow him to make grocery lists for me (I spell out each word....) The only other thing we are doing/have done is to do a very casual study of buildings through history. He's obsessed with buildings, structures, etc. so we are starting with the ancients (pyramids! stonehenge!) and going through Rome (Parthenon! aqueducts!) through the Middle Ages (castles! cathedrals!) and into modern times (skyscrapers! crazy bridges!). So far we've only really covered Egypt, but it has been rather amusing for both of us. I own MUS primer, as well as a mudpies and magnets book. And the first ed of TWTM. ;) My first, basic question is: what do you recommend for teaching reading? I've checked out, and we've fooled around with, 100EZ lessons, from the library. We first tried when my ds was 3 and it was clearly just not going to happen. I sort of fooled around with it not long after he turned 4 (summertime) and I was on the fence as to his readiness. I can't decide if it's the program or just his development. I don't want to rush him. (But the 'rhyming' part of the EZ lessons was just sort of asinine to him--he hated it, though he liked the sounding out....and so perhaps I should just deviate from the 'script.') I looked at a thread here that listed the curricula that folks regretted and was amazed to see 100Ez lessons listed frequently! So that led me to ask what else is out there that might be worth considering. FWIW, I've considered using K12 online (not through a public school, just independently) but I don't really know much about their LA program or whether it would be worth it *at all* for a 5 yo this fall. That's a lot of rambling to get to the point: what's your favorite learn-to-read program? TIA! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JenniferLynn Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 Hi, My DD 5.5 used OPGTR last year and we liked it. We followed the lesson structure, but did not do all of the sentence reading until the end, when her stamina increased. I am starting it with my 3.5 YO twins now too. We also used Bob books along the way for more practice. They enjoy the Leap Frog DVD's but for us the most valuable with the first Letter Factory for introducing letter sounds and it looks like you are past that. Jennifer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kristinannie Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 Hi! Welcome to the board. I am also a former attorney who homeschools and my oldest is 5. :grouphug: I looked at K12, but there was way too much computer time involved and it seemed too much like PS at home for my taste. My son went to pre-K at a Christian preschool. We did some supplementing at home during the second half of the year. We started doing Miquon Orange. I can't recommend this enough! The C-rods are such a great manipulative for really understanding math. We used Ordinary Parents' Guide to Teaching Reading to learn CVC words (along with MCP readers...love them). Once we were through the CVC words nad OPGTR was causing daily tears, I started using Struggling Reader as our main phonics program. It teaches phonics through games and works so well. I absolutely love it. They also have phonemic awareness which I am using with DD4. We just started doing their sight words with DS5 because he is reading short and long vowels and doing most blends. I am doing these games mostly to gain fluency and to be able to have him read faster. The program includes optional testing materials so can you see if there are any holes in reading ability. We also do lots of read alouds. The Sonlight book lists are great. I also love the suggestions at Mater Amabilis. You can see what we are doing in my siggy for K (although we have moved onto mostly 1st grade materials since my son flew through the kindy stuff). Welcome to homeschooling! This is a great place to get lots of info! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zenjenn Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 I'm going to bunk the curriculum trend and tell you what I did to teach both my kids to read: - ClickNKids phonics (web site), one lesson a day (probably wouldn't start this until age 5) - Phonics books (like BOB, but there are other similar phonics books as well) My experience with both of my kids is once we completed all 100 CnK lessons and worked through phonics books during the same time period, they could read simple books independently. Then, I just let them go hogwild at the library. Check out 20 or 30 books at a time, bring them home, and let them read like 3 hrs a day. No joke. Pretty much did nothing else for school except math, writing practice, and letting them read constantly (orally sometimes, but mostly to themselves.) Shower, rinse, repeat until they were reading fluently, which they both were within a few months, including my child who is mildly dyslexic. Dyslexic child's fluency came more from context than phonics, so we had to continue to work on advanced phonics after that time, but fluent reading on a child's part, even without a great grasp on phonics, opens up SO much in terms of other areas of study. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8filltheheart Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 I really like Sing, Spell, Read, Write. It is fun and easy to use. As far as reading readiness skills, it sounds like he is rhyming; that is one indicator for reading readiness. 2 other biggies are being able to discern both initial and final sounds. (for example, if you say the word dog, being able to identify auditorily both the /d/ and /g/--when the word is pronounced normally.) A 3rd is sequencing/completing patterns. HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lea1 Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 Ordinary Parents Guide to Teaching Reading has worked very well for us. My two sons already knew most of the letter sounds before we started so we just skipped that part. In the beginning (we started when they were around 4.5), they would balk a little when they saw all of the words on the pages (we sit on the couch together to do it, one on each side of me). It overwhelmed them I guess, although we never had any tears or anything. I ended up putting the words and sentences for each lesson on index cards for a while and they really enjoyed that. They liked to collect the cards as they sounded out the words and then count them at the end. When they were reading pretty well, we just went back to using the book again and they were fine with it. They are now (recently) 6 YO and are both reading at a 4th grade level. We will be finished with OPGTR in another month or two. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spaceman Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading If you allow it, playing around on starfall.com or watching some phonics videos (LeapFrog letter factory, talking words factory, or preschool prep letter sounds) might ease him into it a little more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anmom Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 For something a little different and as a supplement, we have used the Ready 2 Read program on The Moffatt Girls blog and love it. DD has learned a ton with it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ErinE Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 I'll second OPGTR with a few warnings. My dd would fuss whenever we tried to read from the book, saying there were too many words and the letters were too small. After reading a few tips on the board, I changed the structure of our reading lessons. Once dd learned the letter sounds, we started slowly working on the whiteboard. I write down each word one at a time and letting her erase the words when she was finished reading. We then moved onto the sentences, again working slowly and stopping when her frustration was too high. Some lessons took multiple days. Her pace has picked up, where I can write down multiple words and sentences, and she can read without melting down. My ds seemed to go from CVC words to reading overnight. My dd is taking longer, but it seems each child has their own pace. There are many great discussions on the forum regarding tips for helping your child to read so I highly recommend you search the archives for information. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pitterpatter Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 100EZ Lessons didn't work for us either. Wasn't my teaching style and certainly not DD's learning style. I started Hooked on Phonics (Kindergarten) with DD this past fall. (She was 4 years, 4.5 months.) The first day was a little rough, the second was better, the third was amazing. We haven't looked back since then and she loves it. She's a book hound, so the little story at the end of each lesson reels her in. She loves the DVD skit each day too. HOP is very nicely designed. Very legible and colorful too. We use these two teacher resources as well. Very appropriate for children with minimal handwriting skills. You can always use letter stickers or stamps for the little bit of handwriting some of the activities request. Or, just skip them. There is plenty to choose from. Not every HOP word family is in there, but it works great with HOP and breaks up the lessons. When we use the activities in this book, we break up the corresponding HOP lesson into two days. There's a sample on the publisher's Web site. Not everyone is into sight words, but we are. HOP calls them helper words. Again, this is great for children with minimal handwriting skills. Each word is presented in a little six-page booklet. We divide each booklet into two days for better retention. Pages 1-3 first, then 4-6 the second day. For the activities that require handwriting, we use letter stickers or stamps. For page 3, we use Scrabble tiles, magnetic letters on a cookie sheet, thread letter beads onto a pipe cleaners and letter cards off-page. As we go along, I continually ask DD was word she made, found, etc. A very fun way to memorize! DD has learned 32 words with this book so far. She remembers them all. (We do review daily with a word wall.) You can view the contents of this book on the publisher's Web site. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arghmatey Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 At Last! A Reading Method for Every Child by Mary Pecci worked very well for my child, who was four at the time. I encourage you to read the reviews on Amazon. The price on Amazon, however, is confusing. I purchased it through the author's website. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathleen in LV Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 Hi! Welcome to the board. I am also a former attorney who homeschools and my oldest is 5. This is a small world, as I fit this description as well. Like many others, we are using the OPGTR, and it's working reasonably well. We started when my ds(5) was 4. I can't say he loves it, but he tolerates it & is learning from it. We started supplementing with the Bob books, again as others have mentioned, which are plentiful at our local library. And now we also supplement with picture books he selects so it's more fun for him. Depending on the length & difficulty, we might take turns reading pages or sentences. But he definitely prefers to read books of his choosing. And now a lot of his reading "lessons" include reading things he needs to do something he enjoys -- like reading the directions to a new board game. Good luck!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TracyP Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 Welcome!:) I do like 100EZL, but I am fairly sure it is not going to be a good fit for my 3rd child. I will be :bigear: to see if I can get some ideas too. If you do decide to use 100EZL, I would not be afraid to deviate from the script. The rhyming, say it fast, etc. get old quick if you have a child who gets it. As long as I knew my kids could do it, I just skipped those parts. If they read the words perfectly the first time, I didn't make them repeat the words. I also have used bits and pieces of Phonics Pathways. I checked OPGTR out from the library along with PP, and I new that OPGTR wasn't going to be a good fit. You might want to take a look at both of these before you purchase. I also like ETC, especially for a supplement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beaners Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 We did Funnix here, which is like 100EZ on the computer. I skipped through things we had already mastered, and stopped when my daughter could read the most difficult passages although we hadn't done those lessons. It worked well for us, but I have seen a lot of people say they didn't like it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MusicMama Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 I use Phonics Pathways. I like the clear phonics instruction, and the fact that it is not a scripted text. The teacher has a great amount of flexibility and well, teaching to do. This is the exact reason some hate it. I like being able to purchase a text and it not be so exact and scripted that I can mold it to my teaching style and the learning style of the many students I will have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy Posted January 8, 2012 Share Posted January 8, 2012 My dd learned to read with just the Nora Gaydos books. (They are about the simplest books out there.) I didn't know anything else, and she just seemed to "get it." I later picked up SWR as a spelling program for her, and since it is also a reading program, I will use SWR to teach ds3 to read. (We are already doing some phonics, but he is not ready to read, yet.) I really believe in the multi-sensory approach and the connection between learning to spell and learning to read. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pehp Posted January 8, 2012 Author Share Posted January 8, 2012 Thank you for these useful tips!! I will be checking out these resources soon. I really appreciate it. I kept thinking he might just figure it out because I did that as a child, but I think I'm going to need to be more 'structured' and intentional in actually teaching reading. I think one issue with 100EZ is that he gets it and the same say it fast/slow etc ends up being dull for him, and he loses interest. And the rhyming just doesn't jive with him at all... Thank you so much!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy Posted January 8, 2012 Share Posted January 8, 2012 Hi! Welcome to the board. I am also a former attorney who homeschools and my oldest is 5. This is a small world, as I fit this description as well. Cool! Me too! I thought I was all alone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pehp Posted January 8, 2012 Author Share Posted January 8, 2012 Cool! Me too! I thought I was all alone. That is cool!! Do you all find your legalese sometimes leaks into family life? I found myself telling my 4 yo that his behavior was not mitigated by the circumstances recently ....:001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JKKJ04 Posted January 8, 2012 Share Posted January 8, 2012 That is cool!! Do you all find your legalese sometimes leaks into family life? I found myself telling my 4 yo that his behavior was not mitigated by the circumstances recently ....:001_smile: This is funny, what was his expression? We tried 100 ez lessons, not loved here. Monday we are starting IEW PAL program, I think she will love it. We will go both the writing and reading. I have read/heard great things about PAL. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracy Posted January 8, 2012 Share Posted January 8, 2012 That is cool!! Do you all find your legalese sometimes leaks into family life? I found myself telling my 4 yo that his behavior was not mitigated by the circumstances recently ....:001_smile: :lol: Not so much with the kids. I always worked in corporate law departments, so I am always worried about reading everything I sign, insurance issues, etc. I find myself getting very caught up in copyright issues with our curricula. Sorry OP for the hijack! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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