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Need some encouragement/advice - phonics


Susan in TN
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My "just turned" 6yo is not learning to read. After over a year of Phonics Pathways and a few phonics iPad apps (PocketPhonics, Reading Raven, a couple others) she can't remember the names OR sounds of most letters aside from short a, i, and o, s, t, and occasional others. If its outside her actual PP lesson, she even struggles to remember the ones she seems to know best. We have been trying ETC 1 and it's beyond her. She does OK with handwriting/copying letters.

 

I'm just not sure what to try next. I've taught my 4 other kids (even my spectrum kids) to read with Phonics Pathways and a few other things like ETC and I just can't seem to find anything that clicks with her head. She is fine with the lessons (we are basically going over and over the first parts of PP) and she loves doing her iPad phonics games (although I think she's sometimes finding ways of getting the right answer without really "knowing" it?). Nothing sticks.

 

None of my kids have been early readers, but she just doesn't seem to be progressing at all. It could be that she is not developmentally ready. But if there is another underlying issue of some kind I don't want to just wait around when she needs some other kind of help.

 

I'm so discouraged right now - I think I may need to set it all aside for a week or two so complete frustration doesn't set in. :tongue_smilie:

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I think you need to go multi-sensory. Either make or buy some sandpaper letters she can trace with her finger as she says the sound, so she is hearing, seeing, and feeling the sounds all at once. You could also give her a visual trigger to recall the sound by gluing chocolate chips on a C for example. Chocolate starts with /c/, C says /c/ kind of deal. These are some Orton-Gillingham examples, and I think with a 6 y.o. who is struggling to remember sounds, it is probably best to start moving in that direction. O-G programs are the gold-standard for kids who struggle or may be dyslexic.

 

Phonics Pathways is great, but it's not likely to be enough for some kinds of kids.

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I would seriously consider an O-G method of phonics! It is not worth making her and yourself miserable!! :grouphug:

 

Saxon Phonics is a fantastic O-G based program that is multisensory and has been around a long time with great reviews!! I used it for my Step daughter and it took her from being a miserable speller who just couldn't understand to understanding and getting straight As in school! :D Everything you need to teach it is included in the kits for each level!

 

Other good O-G programs for struggling students are:

 

Barton - great tho considerably more expensive

Wilson - great, cheaper then barton but steep learning curve with less hand holding.

LOE- fantastic although needs adapting due to being written for 8 years old up remediation.

Spalding - just couldn't wrap my mind around it I think i need more hand holding :lol:

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I would be looking into evaluations at this point. Lots of kids aren't ready to make the progression to reading at this point, but I think it is unusual to have been actively working with this age child without them being able to pick up individual letter sounds.

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I would be looking into evaluations at this point. Lots of kids aren't ready to make the progression to reading at this point, but I think it is unusual to have been actively working with this age child without them being able to pick up individual letter sounds.

 

I do suspect that evals are where you are ultimately headed here, but in the meantime while you wait, switch to an O-G program designed for dyslexics and see if you can make some headway with those letter sounds. Our favorite is Recipe for Reading because it is inexpensive, but you do have create your own materials from the book. If you want it all done for you then Barton is excellent, but pricey.

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My son was the same at just turned 6. He couldn't say the alphabet, tell you all the letters, not to mention their sounds either. I did take him to have his vision checked by a COVD (I think that is the right acronym- it's been awhile). Anyway, after reading and worrying I just decided to assume he was dyslexic and use programs accordingly. I started I See Sam with him as I had seen other moms with similar kids have success and he didn't have to know the whole alphabet to start but just a little at a time.

 

We actually started making progress, it was not fast, but there was progress. By that summer he was doing so much better. He went through AR2 IIRC and last year I started him off with Blend Phonics at the beginning of the year- just turned 7. We made it through that by Christmas and then started work on Webster's Speller and some other things. His reading really made a HUGE jump this summer and now he is reading everywhere(at just turned 8). I didn't think it would happen but it finally did. We are still working on Webster's Speller and How to Teach Spelling as I notice he still wants to guess at those longer words sometimes but I cannot believe it.

 

I did the reading assessment at Sonlight-( which I know is pretty generic but at least a general idea) he scored right at 2nd grade at May and topped at 4th earlier this week.

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My older son attended a good kindergarten that taught intensive phonics. It all went right over his head, despite being one of the oldest students with a early Autumn birthday.

 

I was young and poor, it was only the early 90s before internet, so I just tried doing with him, how I had learned to read. I taught him to memorize some words. I made him up his own little books by tracing pictures from coloring books, because I couldn't draw, and our small public library had nothing.

 

In two weeks he was reading the books I wrote and THEN he understood the phonics. My older son and I can be whole-to-parts people.

 

Also, unlike me, my son is an incredibly gifted artist, and I've since learned from Waldorf and other sources, that these children can be slower to "wake up". My son started out dreamy, but then before puberty shot ahead of peers, especially socially, and although not gifted he was so socially adept that he managed to graduate from a junior college at 19, having paid his own way through, accumulating no debt, and also having $5,000.00 to take off to Las Vegas with.

 

I think sometimes phonics make more sense AFTER having a small sight list mastered. Also I think some children are not ready to read before 8, and not just the slower ones.

 

I believe in intensive phonics for SPELLING, but believe there is value in sight words for learning to READ. I also think the long standing European method of waiting to teach reading until 7, has proved very successful.

Edited by Hunter
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I agree with hunter about learning the phonics a bit later. My ds5 and I hated OPGR even though he knew all his letter sounds but now he has 50 or 60 sight words he is happy to do the occasional lesson. However learning sight words would probably be harder than learning an individual letter so I don't see that helping you. Sorry think maybe testing your best bet. And since he is not at school just readhim the stuff you want him to know.

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I agree with Saxon Phonics...though time consuming. All about Spelling and/or Reading..less time consuming, but still O-G method. I also agree with videos like leapfrog to really drill those sounds home. My kids loved and learned well from them!

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One of my son's books was about the Teenaged Mutant Ninja Turtles. He wasn't really reading the word "Michaelangelo" but he learned to recognize the first letter, and knew that it was the only long "M" word in his book. Many children learn /ch/ from reading "Cheerios" on a cereal box..

 

My son just needed a bit of context to understand what phonics was even about. He had no pegs to hang the phonics lessons on.

 

Once he understood that "Michaelangelo" begins with "M" and says /m/, he could then understand what the teacher was saying every time she drilled /m/. It was just a place to START. A critical place for HIM.

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It isn't as flashy as other curriculum but I have had fantastic success with Teach your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons. That and a bag of chocolate chips.

 

Ahh, yes, what small pieces of candy can accomplish :lol: I'm not for bribery in general, but when a student believes they cannot handle a large project, if you can break the large project up into tiny tiny tiny goals, and provide an immediate reward for each tiny goal, they quickly figure out they CAN do things. Candy can drag a child over a hump.

 

Skittles were what got my 2E kid to buckle down with Saxon. Overnight, lessons went from taking 5 hours to 20 minutes.

Edited by Hunter
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Does your child recognise shapes - 2D black line on white shapes likes squares, circles etc? If she can do this then she should be able to recognise letters unless there is a psychological thing going on here - fear/frustration etc.

 

I would probably start with something that has meaning to her - her name or a word of a favourite item etc and teach it to her as a sight word - she should already know how to read her name - does she? and then move on to the letters that make up her name and get her to write them while saying their sound. While it is best to use words that do make the correct sounds that are initially taught, having a more meaningful word is actually more important thank this.

 

Then work with only those letters once she knows them to put together words that also have meaning but are more simplified as far as phonics goes. Depending what her name is you may need to teach one or two more sight words to give you options. Eg: Name: Sarah, favourite animal: cat... then you can teach: rat, hat, has, sat, car (yes I know that is more advanced phonics but she has to know it sometime and the word means something to her)

 

I agree that you should get her vision checked and check for processing problems also.

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There is NOTHING better for learning letter names & sounds that LeapFrog's Letter Factory!!! Within just a few viewings my kids had them all down cold (and none of my kids are gifted, to say the least!).

 

The other two things that I credit to my kids FINALLY learning to read were:

- vision therapy - COVD doc

- outsourcing the reading lessons. I had spent a LOT of time doing OPGTR, and they just weren't getting it. I was stressed, they were stressed. I finally hired an Academic Associates tutor. Best money I EVER spent. She is doing basically the exact same thing as OPGTR, but she is seriously the most calm, patient, relaxed person EVER. It doesn't irritate her a bit to listen to CCCCCAAAATTTT 18 times in a row. My kids love her, and the two I was worried about have jumped up 3 grade levels in their reading since June!! I could probably take it back over at this point and finish the phonics, as they now *like* to read and are confident, but DH doesn't see any reason to change something that's working, so I don't have to. :) Everyone says "reading is easy", and insists that you can do it at home. Most people can, but it was NOT my thing AT ALL. Don't be ashamed to outsource if you aren't getting anywhere. It's more important for the kid to learn to read than to keep your dignity! (I'm a little embarrassed to admit on this board that I outsourced, but truly I think people need to realize that for some of us, it really is necessary!)

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I would try to go multi-sensory and also do Leapfrog DVDs.

 

I had the same issue with my daughter (still do somewhat, but she's getting better). I think some kids just aren't developmentally ready. My daughter seemed/seems smart, well-spoken, loves to "do school," but couldn't remember the names of letters for the life of her. Now she remembers a lot of the sounds but lags more with the names (which isn't as important to reading anyway). There was a time when she was 4 that she could just remember NONE of the letters I was teaching her over and over and over. I gave up and let it rest a while, bought the Leapfrog DVDs and sure enough she started telling me the sounds of letters and singing the little songs. :glare:

 

Now I can tell it's starting to click. I think until their little mind is ready, anything you teach is not going to stick. And once the lightbulb turns on, suddenly it will seem that you really improved on your teaching methods. :tongue_smilie:

 

I wouldn't worry yet... but I know it's hard!

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