Reading curriculum?

[toawh]

My son(6) is going to begin school here in France this fall. I think he will most likely follow most of his education in French and I want to make sure he doesn't forget his English or remain at the level he is at. The goal is for him to be completely bilingual. To this end I plan to only speak to him in English and do SOTW and FFL with him. I'm not sure what to do to keep the reading progressing though. He is currently at a U level. Would you recommend a certain program or reading list? Or how should I go about it?

[threeofakind]

:lurk5:

interesting question, don't have experience, hoping someone does out there :001_smile:

[toawh]

He reads fine in English. I just want to make sure he is progressing at an age appropriate pace and not plateauing where he is. He read at a fourth grade or U level when they tested him at the end of the school year in the States.

[thejourney]

Wow, what a wonderful opportunity for your family!

 

I would have your son continue to read plenty of books in English (chapter books, picture books, short stories, poetry, novels, non-fiction books, and books that correlate with whatever you are reading in SOTW). The book wizard on the Scholastic website gives the guided reading level (and the DRA & Lexile Levels) of lots of books so you can check that you are picking books within his reading and interest level. Let him pick out books that interest him as well. Informally I'd do a combination of silent reading, having him read to you, read a-louds by you and perhaps having him listen to a few audio books.

 

Since your son is already reading at a 3rd/4th grade reading level I'd probably focus more on reading comprehension rather than phonics. If you feel he still has some gaps in regards to phonics you could probably address it with a strong spelling program instead. As for reading comprehension you can discuss select books with your son and/or have him narrate what he has read. If you would like a little more guidance and structure you might want to check out guides such as Jacob's Ladder Reading Comprehension Level 1, Novel Units and MBTP literature guides.

[toawh]

Wow, what a wonderful opportunity for your family!

 

I would have your son continue to read plenty of books in English (chapter books, picture books, short stories, poetry, novels, non-fiction books, and books that correlate with whatever you are reading in SOTW). The book wizard on the Scholastic website gives the guided reading level (and the DRA & Lexile Levels) of lots of books so you can check that you are picking books within his reading and interest level. Let him pick out books that interest him as well. Informally I'd do a combination of silent reading, having him read to you, read a-louds by you and perhaps having him listen to a few audio books.

 

Since your son is already reading at a 3rd/4th grade reading level I'd probably focus more on reading comprehension rather than phonics. If you feel he still has some gaps in regards to phonics you could probably address it with a strong spelling program instead. As for reading comprehension you can discuss select books with your son and/or have him narrate what he has read. If you would like a little more guidance and structure you might want to check out guides such as Jacob's Ladder Reading Comprehension Level 1, Novel Units and MBTP literature guides.

 

What is a strong spelling program? I think this with a good book list to work through might be what he needs.

[thejourney]

What is a strong spelling program? I think this with a good book list to work through might be what he needs.

 

I would look for a spelling program that is based on phonics. Each lesson introduces one or more spelling rules and words are grouped by similar sounds and/or spelling patterns. A few programs you might want to check out are All About Spelling, Spelling Workout and SpellWell. We are currently using Flash Kids Spelling Skills. Each lesson teaches the relationship between sounds within a series of words and spelling patterns, followed by reinforcement activities and a proofreading passage. It is just a workbook but it works well for my natural speller & reader. Since your son is already a strong reader I am guessing he is probably also a strong speller. I would definitely suggest looking through multiple levels of each program to find the level that suits him best. The exception would be AAS where I believe they suggest you begin at level 1 regardless.

 

You can also reinforce phonics rules when your child stumbles over a word while reading to you. Obviously you wouldn't want to do this to the point that your child no longer wants to read aloud but done occasionally it can be very beneficial.

[toawh]

I would look for a spelling program that is based on phonics. Each lesson introduces one or more spelling rules and words are grouped by similar sounds and/or spelling patterns. A few programs you might want to check out are All About Spelling, Spelling Workout and SpellWell. We are currently using Flash Kids Spelling Skills. Each lesson teaches the relationship between sounds within a series of words and spelling patterns, followed by reinforcement activities and a proofreading passage. It is just a workbook but it works well for my natural speller & reader. Since your son is already a strong reader I am guessing he is probably also a strong speller. I would definitely suggest looking through multiple levels of each program to find the level that suits him best. The exception would be AAS where I believe they suggest you begin at level 1 regardless.

 

You can also reinforce phonics rules when your child stumbles over a word while reading to you. Obviously you wouldn't want to do this to the point that your child no longer wants to read aloud but done occasionally it can be very beneficial.

 

Thanks. I'm gonna buy AAS and take it from there.