momma aimee Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 Big Brother is 6.5 and we did Kindy in 3 quarters last year (that is we accomplished my goal list) and so we are really .25 of the way in to first now at the fall start (starting Aug 1 after taking July off). he does ETC great, no issues, but he is not reading independently. he can read word-by-word with a lot of slow decodeing, but it is not clicking and he is not taking off, we've had no light bulb go off. so when did you child actually start to "read" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marie131 Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 I'm sure it's probably quite different for every child. Only my oldest child is reading, he started reading well indendently sometime half-way through grade 1. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*Lulu* Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 (edited) Nm Edited July 16, 2012 by BLA5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 My 9 yo *could* read earlier, but didn't really take off into independent, joyful reading by choice until 2nd grade. Now she reads voraciously, books wayyyy above her age/grade level. It drove me crazy waiting for "the day" but I'm glad I didn't push. It happened when it happened. Sorta in the same boat with Mo, 6, a rising 1st grader. She can read Bob books and Biscuit books and other easy readers, but she is completely resistant to phonics lessons (which she needs in order to progress to reading more interesting/engaging books). It's been a big source of frustration for me, because I know she is so close, but I had to just back off - trying to do phonics was really turning reading into a source of frustration and conflict, not enjoyment. So now I'm reading aloud to her daily, and she is reading a book to me every day, too - whatever she wants to, so mostly Biscuit books. I'm trying to trust the process, that at some point reading for enjoyment will click for her, too, and that she might become more open to help. I truly don't know if this child will ever let me teach her, though - such a different personality from her big sister. Good luck! :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathryn Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 (edited) When we finished Sing, Spell, Read and Write Level 1, he was exactly five and a half. That's when he really was able to read anything he wanted independently and did so. I think it just clicks differently for different kids. ETA - he's also an 11/05 birthday. Edited July 16, 2012 by kebg11 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrsanniep Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 Both my boys were reading independently definitely by age 6. My youngest, age 7, who just finished first grade, recently read the entire Little House of the Prairie series. Both my kids score in the 99th percentile for all things language/reading/vocabulary, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unfrumpable. Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 We're about on the same schedule as you are, part way through 1st grade. My son is a 10/05 guy. He definitely does not like to read independently. As a matter of fact, he does not read independently at all. He will read aloud to me and that's about it. From books anyways. However, he is always trying to sound stuff out and reading words that he comes across. He is getting better, but reading has definitely not "clicked." He does the slow decoding too, even for words he has read and known for a while, it drives me crazy! We are going to be starting Spell to Write and Read here in August. I figure a lot of the phonetic stuff will be review for him, but I'm hoping it will help to build his confidence in reading. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seshet Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 Both of mine were reading independently before Kinder. They are both 2E, though, and reading is a strong area for both. 6 isn't anything to worry about. He'll likely be reading by the end of 1st, which is completely normal. So, I wouldn't worry. Just keep working with him, he'll get there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momma aimee Posted July 16, 2012 Author Share Posted July 16, 2012 thanks, i am just ready for it to click -- i know he has the tools he needs -- i just keep waiting... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairProspects Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 Well, just to show the other perspective, my older ds never did have that click and it was one of the first signs that he was dyslexic. After 2 solid years of phonics instruction, I had him tested. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QTMom Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 My dd could read independently in Kindergarten. My ds didn't read independantly until toward the middle to end of 1st grade. He had such difficulty at the end of K and the beginning of first grade and I was starting to really get concerned, but we just kept plugging along until he just took off and started reading. I gave him plenty of books that were short and easy to build his confidence and really drilled phonics sounds/rules and it worked for him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenangelcat Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 Shortly after her 4th birthday for my oldest (6). She loves to read. Her sister is now 4 and we're still working on recognizing all the letters in the alphabet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Governess Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 My oldest was reading independently at three. My youngest isn't there yet and she is almost six. I'm guessing based on her progress that she'll be there around halfways through first grade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kristi26 Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 I started assigning independent reading for my boys when they were pretty young. ODS had to read in his bed for quiet time starting around 3-4 years old but of course, he wasn't reading at that point. He didn't really start reading the books until he was finished with first grade. That summer, he really started getting it and reading what he wanted to read not just looking at pics. DS2 (he's 9 now) was probably around the same time. DD is 6.5 years old now. She will read to me when I choose books for her (or she chooses because I told her to) but she doesn't just read them to herself at this point. She still needs to read to someone and get help with words here and there. She just recently (like days ago) finally had her light bulb moment after a LOT of focus on reading! I don't know if any of that helps, hoping it will! Good luck! It'll come to him, just give him time! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blondeviolin Posted July 16, 2012 Share Posted July 16, 2012 My oldest was 4.5. She is not a reader (at newly 6) like some of the kids here. She prefers to stick with picture books rather than chapter books. Her decoding level is pretty high, but she still struggled over words she doesn't know at all (the classic misinterpretation of unknown vocabulary). My son is 4.5 and he can sound out a fair amount of words, but he's not fluent at this point. It'll probably happen around September or so for him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommy22alyns Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 Both girls read independently before K, and I barely taught them at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mandamom Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 nm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mathwonk Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 We had two boys. Both had high IQ's, but the first started reading very early and the second did not.. My mom was a kindergarten teacher and had scads of early learning materials, but still the second child did not respond to any of them. I conjectured he was afraid we would stop reading to him every night. Since he loved sports eventually we got him a subscription to Sports Illustrated and he started slowly reading it. Now (30 years later) he's a better reader than me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MEVmom Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 This is good to know. My first child practically taught himself. He skipped straight from blends & decoding to reading everything at about 5.5 yrs. My 2nd child turned 5 in May. We've been doing phonics & BOB books for about 6 months now. She is decoding well, but still needs me right there with her. And she stumbles a lot, even over words she's read before. She has gone through a few Bob book sets but no big click for her so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 What is good about threads like this is that it shows (I hope) that there is a wide range over which kids "start to read" and, barring a significant LD, they are all fine - they will read when they are ready. *I* think the take home is don't sweat it too much, it will happen in its proper, good time - at least, that is what I keep telling myself! :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jilly Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 My oldest DS didn't start to read independently until he was nine. He is my strongest reader now, and most days you will find him with a book in his hand.:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mathwonk Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 Another thread: http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/showthread.php?t=408029 reminded me that sometimes there is a visual reason for not reading well. My cousin was a slow reader for years, then when he lived with us one year at about 10 or 12 years old, at my school they discovered he had "lazy eye". when they solved that with an eye patch, it helped. Not the usual reason, but something to know about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boscopup Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 My oldest skipped the sounding out phase and went straight to reading at 4.5. My middle is 5.5 (6 in November) and still very much sounding things out. If we read something many times over and over again, he is now starting to read them without sounding out every word. Anything new, he has to sound out again. I doubt he'll be reading independently any time soon. Right now, he still needs a "cursor" (notched card) to help isolate the word and its phonograms. Otherwise, he tries to guess the word. There is a slight chance he's mildly dyslexic (he thinks in pictures like his grandpa, and grandpa is mildly dyslexic, though I never knew it until this year!). He's too young to be tested for that, and we're already using materials/methods that are good for dyslexia, so I'm not worrying too much about a diagnosis at this point. What we're doing IS working, as I'm seeing huge progress with just 10 minutes a day. I will also be getting his vision checked soon. He had the basic eye chart on the door check at his well child appointment, and I thought that was a bit fishy, as he couldn't see past the top line with just one eye at a time, but he could read down to the 4th line (or whatever line was considered "normal") with both eyes. The doctor didn't mention it, but that just sounds weird, so I'm going to have an eye doctor take a look. My DH needed glasses at a very young age and can basically see blobs of color without his contacts, so there is genetic possibility of just plain bad vision of the 20/20 type. Interesting thing is that middle child could blend at just turned 4, whereas older child couldn't blend until 4.5 (but once he could blend, he could instantly read). Youngest could blend at 2.75, and I won't be surprised if he's reading independently before he turns 5. Oldest and youngest are just those typical early readers. They are definitely not the norm, and I would expect many 1st graders to still need some guidance in reading, but at the same time, I know your kid has an alphabet soup of issues, so I also wouldn't put an LD past him either. Go with your mama gut. If you think he needs to be checked for something, get him checked. :) Oh, and my dyslexic dad? He didn't learn to read in 1st grade with all the other kids. They put him in a special ed class for a couple years. Then finally he did learn to read, and he took off once it "clicked". It just didn't click in 1st grade like it was "supposed to". It clicked later (I'm not sure what age). He was still very advanced in high school. He tells me how the teacher gave him a syllabus with homework assignments in Algebra at the beginning of the year, and he did all the homework the first week and turned it in. His teacher was shocked and had him just help the other students the rest of the year. :D Definitely a 2E kid! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merry gardens Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 Well, just to show the other perspective, my older ds never did have that click and it was one of the first signs that he was dyslexic. After 2 solid years of phonics instruction, I had him tested. Most of mine were reading independently by first or second grade. dds (dear dylexic son) started reading independently at age 10. I purposely held him back and kept him on highly controlled texts because he wasn't reading--he was taking wild guesses. That can be a very difficult habit for a child to break! It's only in the past year that his de-coding skills became strong enough to really read independently. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EKS Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 My older son, who has dyslexia (and is 2E), read fairly fluently, meaning that he no longer had to laboriously sound out each word, in 3rd grade. This was after doing a lot more than just standard reading instruction. He began reading for pleasure in May of 3rd grade. My younger son began reading early and could read without sounding out by age 3. He began reading for pleasure (silently, on his own) at age 5. He might have done so earlier, but he had some vision issues that we didn't catch until he was 5. My point is that every child is going to be different. My two were at opposite ends of the spectrum. If your son continues to have trouble for another year, despite coherent instruction with a well regarded phonics program (I see from your signature that you already know he is 2E; it might be time to move to something more comprehensive than ETC) and consistent practice (I recommend 2-3 short sessions per day), it might be time to get an evaluation for dyslexia. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathryn Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 I think you're getting a range of different ideas of what constitutes "independent reading" also. It looks like some are answering based on when beginning readers could be read independently, some are answering on when the child enjoyed reading on their own, and some on when a child could pick up and read anything they wanted on their own. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Element Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 My 9 yo *could* read earlier, but didn't really take off into independent, joyful reading by choice until 2nd grade. Now she reads voraciously, books wayyyy above her age/grade level. It drove me crazy waiting for "the day" but I'm glad I didn't push. It happened when it happened. My dd was the same way. She could read just about any word at 4.5 but she had no desire to read independently until this spring (she turned 7 on Memorial Day.) They just have to find the right series. Ds read independently at 5.5 when he discovered Magic Tree House books. Dd just never took to MTH or anything else ds read. However, I found a Secrets of Droon book at Goodwill for her a few months ago and she devoured it. She has since read the whole series from our library. It just takes time (and the right book!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chepyl Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 DS was reading by 5.5. We went through 100ez lessons, read Bob Books together and then we started with any easy readers I could get at the library. We read every other word out loud together for a few weeks, then every other page, then he read the whole thing to me, tthen he read silently on his own and told me about the book. The shared reading really helped him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs.Gregg Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 DD1 was reading independently as in she would pick up a book and start reading without help by about 7... Grade wise she was end of 1st grade (started K at 5yrs 2mo). DD2 who is 6 1/2 is entering 1st in the fall. We started K when she was 5yrs 10 mos. I full expect that she will be reading independently by the end of 1st grade at 7yrs 1/2. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngelaNYC Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 Dd(18) was right around 4 and continues to be a voracious reader (just bought herself a nook, as a matter of fact). Dd(15) was 3.5 - so precocious, then school pretty much killed any love of reading at all. She still won't read for pleasure. Ds(11) was 4 when he could read beyond the BOB books. He didn't progress much for 3 years, then he got a little better. Then at 8 years old I realized he is dyslexic, then he made a lot more progress when I changed the way I taught. So I'd say he started to truly read independently at around 9.5, but just scraping at grade level. Last week we finally went for a full battery of testing (for free, yay!) and I should get the results sometime in the next week or so. I can't wait to know the full extent of his dyslexia so I can readjust his homeschooling to accommodate his specific needs. He also doesn't read for pleasure...yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aurelia Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 DD could read beginning readers fairly fluently around 6-6.5, but started reading everything in sight closer to her 8th birthday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calendula Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 My daughter went from struggling through Frog and Toad to racing through the 3rd and 4th Harry Potter books the year she turned 8. We did waldorfy K-1st grade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted July 17, 2012 Share Posted July 17, 2012 I remember Hobbes, one day, turning to me and saying, "Mum, do I have to say 'c-a-t'? Can I just say 'cat' instead?" Good luck - he'll get there. Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeatherDanae Posted July 18, 2012 Share Posted July 18, 2012 I'm in the same boat as you. My 6yr old is struggling to read and it seems like nothing that I do has been helping! It's hard to take a step back and just encourage the joy of reading, but that's what I think needs to happen first before they really take off and want to read. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ritsumei Posted July 18, 2012 Share Posted July 18, 2012 :hurray::hurray: My 5.75 just read independently TODAY for the first time!! :hurray::hurray: He's precocious with a lot of things, and finishing up 1st grade work in most topics, but has been completely uninterested in reading up to this point. Tonight seems like it may be a bit of a turning point; I finally found readers that are easy enough - we got some Bob Books and a couple others that he should be able to handle. Hopefully I'll be able to expand. Once he gets a little more fluency with harder words I'm thinking that a steady diet of hero books will be very motivating for this particular kid. If it's heros, he's interested, LOL. I was super excited at B&N about a Superman phonics set they had, but it turned out that it wasn't phonics or easy readers or anything when I looked at it. It said phonics, but it wasn't limited vocabulary or sounds at all. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
3andme Posted July 18, 2012 Share Posted July 18, 2012 Well there seem to be a lot of early readers but my experience was much different. My two older sons didn't read fluently until they were 8 and 9 respectively. They were not formally diagnosed with dyslexia but reading was a significant challenge for both of them and it wasn't for lack of exposure. We read to them, they did phonics at Montessori for 3 years and had extra reading instruction for 2 years before finally it clicked. My youngest is 6 and looks like he might be reading a little earlier - maybe by 7. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sagira Posted July 18, 2012 Share Posted July 18, 2012 I think it really clicked for ds at a few months after he as five. I started teaching him phonics the day after he turned five, and he took off. I learned to read at 5 too. Dd is still 4 and has done phonics the Montessori way, moveable letters and all that, but she's not reading yet. Her pre-K seems to think so, but I don't see her reading yet. She recognizes some words and looks at pictures, but in my book that is not really reading. I'm going to start teaching her this fall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Closeacademy Posted July 18, 2012 Share Posted July 18, 2012 Blending clicked for my oldest toward the end of first grade. She actually started reading books on her own sometime in third grade. My youngest had everything click in fourth. For us, graphic novels, cartoon and comic books were what made everything click and reading fun. Once it was flowing smoothly, I introduced "real" books for them to read for school.:001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momma aimee Posted July 18, 2012 Author Share Posted July 18, 2012 My oldest skipped the sounding out phase and went straight to reading at 4.5. My middle is 5.5 (6 in November) and still very much sounding things out. If we read something many times over and over again, he is now starting to read them without sounding out every word. Anything new, he has to sound out again. I doubt he'll be reading independently any time soon. Right now, he still needs a "cursor" (notched card) to help isolate the word and its phonograms. Otherwise, he tries to guess the word. There is a slight chance he's mildly dyslexic (he thinks in pictures like his grandpa, and grandpa is mildly dyslexic, though I never knew it until this year!). He's too young to be tested for that, and we're already using materials/methods that are good for dyslexia, so I'm not worrying too much about a diagnosis at this point. What we're doing IS working, as I'm seeing huge progress with just 10 minutes a day. I will also be getting his vision checked soon. He had the basic eye chart on the door check at his well child appointment, and I thought that was a bit fishy, as he couldn't see past the top line with just one eye at a time, but he could read down to the 4th line (or whatever line was considered "normal") with both eyes. The doctor didn't mention it, but that just sounds weird, so I'm going to have an eye doctor take a look. My DH needed glasses at a very young age and can basically see blobs of color without his contacts, so there is genetic possibility of just plain bad vision of the 20/20 type. Interesting thing is that middle child could blend at just turned 4, whereas older child couldn't blend until 4.5 (but once he could blend, he could instantly read). Youngest could blend at 2.75, and I won't be surprised if he's reading independently before he turns 5. Oldest and youngest are just those typical early readers. They are definitely not the norm, and I would expect many 1st graders to still need some guidance in reading, but at the same time, I know your kid has an alphabet soup of issues, so I also wouldn't put an LD past him either. Go with your mama gut. If you think he needs to be checked for something, get him checked. :) Oh, and my dyslexic dad? He didn't learn to read in 1st grade with all the other kids. They put him in a special ed class for a couple years. Then finally he did learn to read, and he took off once it "clicked". It just didn't click in 1st grade like it was "supposed to". It clicked later (I'm not sure what age). He was still very advanced in high school. He tells me how the teacher gave him a syllabus with homework assignments in Algebra at the beginning of the year, and he did all the homework the first week and turned it in. His teacher was shocked and had him just help the other students the rest of the year. :D Definitely a 2E kid! I am dyslexic, i don't know if i should be worried about it in the boys or not. how different is "standard" phonics learning to read vs what you would consider "methods for the dyslexic"? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aurelia Posted July 18, 2012 Share Posted July 18, 2012 I am dyslexic, i don't know if i should be worried about it in the boys or not. how different is "standard" phonics learning to read vs what you would consider "methods for the dyslexic"? From what I've seen, methods for the dyslexic encourage "overlearning", practicing the concept for more time than you would think it would take to learn it. I think it's partially to instill confidence and to encourage moving it into long term memory in isolation before trying to read long strings of words whose letters aren't in the same place every time. For awhile we used a program for dyslexics (Dancing Bears) after trying a couple for "normal" or "advanced" students and it definitely had more practice than the others. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairProspects Posted July 18, 2012 Share Posted July 18, 2012 For a dyslexic (or even a suspected one - and it does have a genetic component), I would recommend going straight to an Orton-Gillingham program for teaching phonics. Something like ETC is not going to be enough. There are lots of different flavor O-G programs, but the main ones are WRTR, SWR, AAR/AAS, Recipe for Reading (a book that tells you how to create your own), Barton and Wilson. Color-coded tiles are very helpful to dyslexics because it creates a visual cue for their brain to process language. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boscopup Posted July 18, 2012 Share Posted July 18, 2012 (edited) I'm using Dancing Bears, which as mentioned above, has a lot of repetition. It also focuses on learning to read left to right, and you use a notched card ("cursor") to uncover one phonogram at a time. This is sooooo much easier for DS2. In fact, just the other day, I stupidly forgot to uncover 'u' then 'p' and instead uncovered the whole word ("up"). DS2 said, /kw/ ("qu"). Bad Mommy. Dancing Bears recommends using the cursor every single time for quite a while. I'm not sure where it starts letting it off, but I know it's not in the level we're in, so I need to be careful about that! :D Any O-G program would also be a great choice. We'll be adding in WRTR once we get our writing up to speed (we're working on learning to write the phonograms now), and I have AAS tiles to work with also. ETA: And yes, if you are dyslexic, I'd highly suspect your children could be dyslexic also. Edited July 18, 2012 by boscopup Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momma aimee Posted July 19, 2012 Author Share Posted July 19, 2012 :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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