Alpha-Phonics and How to Tutor: Why don't I hear more about these?

[Hunter]

I downloaded the Kindle version of How to Tutor which includes the full text of Alpha-Phonics.

 

HTT looks perfect for Cursive First type handwriting practice. I had been using a combination of Spalding and McGuffey's Eclectic Readers, but I like HTT better for a systematic way to practice the Spalding hand, for early readers.

 

I also think HTT provides more support for early sentence composition that just the Spalding list. I did not find my students at all ready for sentence composition after just learning the A-G Spalding list.

 

Don Potter made a list of phonograms to attempt to blend the American Heritage dictionary, Spalding and Alpha-Phonics/HTT.

 

Blending all this looks challenging to me, but I'm hoping I can pull it off. It looks like Don Potter has already been doing exactly what I have been trying to do with Spalding and McGuffey's and CGE dictionary respelling exercises, but with resources better designed to pull it off.

 

Whether someone is just using Alpha-Phonics/HTT as a standalone or as part of a collection of resources, why I don't hear more about it? The math looks really good too. A person can teach an awful lot with a $9.99 Kindle book, and some paper and a pencil. I would think HTT would appeal to people who found Spalding too difficult. But only using HTT as a stand alone, not as a Spalding/HTT blend :lol:

 

I sure do wish someone could make a Ayre's list using Don Potter's phonograms, to use alongside HTT. I think I MIGHT be able to do it by comparing several Spalding spinoffs and the American Heritage dictionary, but wish I didn't have to.

[angela in ohio]

When I started homeschooling oldest (pulled her in middle of K,) I checked How to Tutor out of the library, bought Horizons Math 1, some manipulatives, and a whiteboard, and I taught her all year. I had seen Alpha Phonics at the homeschool store, and so I used the whiteboard and How to Tutor to replicate it. Eventually, I added Explode the Code workbooks, too. That was a great year! Instead of fancy curriculum, I spent our little homeschool budget on zoo and science museum memberships and a wheeled cart for the library.

 

I think you don't hear about it much because (a.) many parents can't see how they can use it easily, and (b.) there is little advertising for it.

[Ellie]

If people ask about phonics instruction in general, I include AlphaPhonics. On this forum, most people are asking more specifically about OPGTR or Spalding/spin-offs.

 

I was going to suggest not trying to compare the Ayres list with anything else, but then I noticed it was you asking the question, and I know how thorough you are, and decided not to. :D But my advice in general is that people pick one thing and use it as completely as possible, rather than trying to use a combination of different methods. Not only does that take a heckalotta brain power that could be put to good use some place else, but it also means that nothing is used to its fullest and whatever is the best characteristic of each one gets lost or watered down, and then it's probable that discouragement will set in because things aren't going the way they "should" because, after all, you're using This or That which is supposed to be so good...

 

Just pick one, Hunter.:)

[edeemarie]

I used AlphaPhonics to teach my oldest 2 to read, but once we started All About Spelling I realized how much they improved by knowing their phonograms. My only problem with AlphaPhonics was it seemed like there were so many exceptions to the rules (the words in the square boxes) and I wish they would have approached it as another sound the letter makes instead. So to help with that I decided to use the WRTR marking system in AlphaPhonics. That way we don't need AAS anymore either, which will save us a lot of money. I have never used the How to Tutor, but I wish I would have seen the cursive phonogram cards before I printed the ones from WRTR- of well!

[Hunter]

If I stick with JUST 4th edition Spalding, I think it would be best to drop the Cursive First idea, and I really don't want to do that. Learning cursive is a big incentive for adults to drill phonics.

 

In order of what my students love:

 

Dictionary respellings

cursive

sentence composition

spelling rules

phonograms

notebooks showing the rules

 

Phonograms and notebooks are last on their list. I've kinda gotten addicted to them though :glare: Don Potter seems to have blended it all without a problem, but I'm not so sure I can :tongue_smilie: I'm FAR more confident about adding the phonograms, than the notebook pages, to HTT.

 

If I do have to pick though, I think I should use HTT for right now. All the struggles I've had with cursive and sentence composition look like they will instantly disappear.

[laughing lioness]

I used AlphaPhonics, purchased in 1991 for $12.95 to teach all 5 of my kids to read. They are all excellent readers. It's such a GREAT program. No bells or whistles, but solid, phonetic reading instruction. LOVE AlphaPhonics!!

[Hunter]

I spent hours and hours reading the book today and did some of the lessons myself. This is cheap and very very simple if I just do the book as written.

 

I just doesn't look hard to add in the Potter phonograms, though, if I don't try to notebook any rules. The phonograms look like they will explain almost every word in italics.

 

As for handwriting and early sentence composition, I can't imagine how it can get better than this. :001_huh:

 

I have some wordsort ideas that will work perfectly with this.

 

I ordered a used hardback copy of HTT today from a new Amazon seller, for dirt cheap. It's already been shipped with a tracking number. :001_smile: The Kindle edition is good, but I think a nice hardbound copy will be better. I've been getting some great deals from brand new sellers lately. :D I got a full Saxon 54 kit for $1.00!!!!!

 

Has anyone used the math lessons? I've only skimmed them. I"m waiting for the hardcover book to really read the math. I'm still struggling a bit to find what I need to get students ready for Saxon 54, especially now that the printer is broken. The math looks like some Waldorf math pages I've seen.

 

I seriously do not get why this isn't talked about more :001_huh: I keep reading and reading to look for where the weeds are. I'm such a curriculum hopper, that knowing me, I'll be asking the same thing about something else in a few weeks, but...all the time I see people singing the praises of things that at first read are immediately pathetic compared to this.

 

Laughing Lioness and Angela, did you do a lot of handwriting practice? Did you use manuscript or cursive?

Edited August 18, 2012 by Hunter

[angela in ohio]

Laughing Lioness and Angela, did you do a lot of handwriting practice? Did you use manuscript or cursive?

 

I did a lot with my oldest. She had learned some horrible modern print in K, and so I had to un-teach that. I printed handwriting pages from donnayoung.org and made her a handwriting "book" in a binder.

 

My next was a non-writer. Literally. She could barely print a letter correctly for K or 1, so I divorced phonics and handwriting. We worked on building hand strength and learning basic shapes/strokes, and then we did phonics with letter stamps or orally. She did printing for less than a year, and then I switched her to cursive which helped a lot. Eventually she merged the two and now you can't tell there was ever a problem unless she writes quickly.

 

I did a lot less practice with my little guy. I regret that. Yikes! :glare: If I had another child, I would just do cursive first.

 

I didn't use the math, though I read it a few times and incorporated concepts into my casual math instruction. I can speak to the Saxon thing, though, as I know some IRL homeschoolers who do no formal math until 5/4. They teach measurement, money, fractions, and time through real life and play. They also drill math facts through games.

[Hunter]

I did a lot with my oldest. She had learned some horrible modern print in K, and so I had to un-teach that. I printed handwriting pages from donnayoung.org and made her a handwriting "book" in a binder.

 

My next was a non-writer. Literally. She could barely print a letter correctly for K or 1, so I divorced phonics and handwriting. We worked on building hand strength and learning basic shapes/strokes, and then we did phonics with letter stamps or orally. She did printing for less than a year, and then I switched her to cursive which helped a lot. Eventually she merged the two and now you can't tell there was ever a problem unless she writes quickly.

 

I did a lot less practice with my little guy. I regret that. Yikes! :glare: If I had another child, I would just do cursive first.

 

I didn't use the math, though I read it a few times and incorporated concepts into my casual math instruction. I can speak to the Saxon thing, though, as I know some IRL homeschoolers who do no formal math until 5/4. They teach measurement, money, fractions, and time through real life and play. They also drill math facts through games.

 

It looks to me that the strength of HTT is in the copying. I see some people say it moves too fast, but I'm wondering if they are just READING the lessons. Thank you so much for sharing the specifics of your handwriting experience.

 

All of my current math students are adults. One of them reteaches everything I teach her to a niece, but I don't usually teach the child. And everything could change overnight. Even when I'm hiding I seem to accumulate students :-) So I try to keep learning and be prepared for what might come my way.

 

The broken printer shook things up here, but I think in the long run that was a good thing. I think I was headed in the wrong direction in some subjects, especially math.

 

Right now my goal is to get numerous students ready for 54. I think they need the stability of sticking to a math series that is consistent and has understandable instructions. This is more of a self-esteem, stamina and independence issue than math issue. I'm just struggling to find the most efficient default method to prepare students for 54. Even with the broken printer I still have stuff here, but it's such a awkward pile, that it doesn't leave the student seeing her progress through a curriculum.

 

I want 54 to be easy. I only like to use Saxon when the student is placed very low and the lessons are focused on accuracy and speed, not introduction. The students can all complete the 54 lessons, but...I want them to start the series being stronger.

 

I think I'm going to do my best to read the HTT math section on the Kindle this weekend. I'm wondering if the HTT math is like the HTT reading and writing. If the key is lot's of copying. I guess I'll only find out by reading the book, right :-)

[laughing lioness]

Laughing Lioness and Angela, did you do a lot of handwriting practice? Did you use manuscript or cursive?

 

Oldest 2 did- using Italic. The oldest is o.k., 2nd has beautiful handwriting, 3rd ds has a terrible time with legible handwriting (just did some research - it's pretty common amoung "kinesthetic" learners. 4th kids o.k., 5th beautiful. 3,4,5, --oy vey. They don't like italic, can't read cursive. I acutally put both in their bins for school this year and I'm going to let them pick. Thank God for WP!

[Hunter]

What is WP?

 

I used italic with my 2E son in the 90s. NEVER again. Bad, bad, bad advice I was given :-( For multiple reasons.

 

The Spalding 6th edition cursive hand has yet to fail me with remediating any student I have tried it on. Mostly I've decided to pull back and teach manuscript uppercase, unless they WANT to learn cursive uppercase. HTT and the Spalding lowercase cursive hand look to be a perfect pairing for handwriting instruction and remediation.

 

Italic :thumbdown: I know some people love it, but...with me and mine, it has been a tragedy. I know that sounds melodramatic, but I really do think going through life not being able to read cursive, or write with speed and confidence is crippling.

[angela in ohio]

It looks to me that the strength of HTT is in the copying. I see some people say it moves too fast, but I'm wondering if they are just READING the lessons. Thank you so much for sharing the specifics of your handwriting experience.

 

You know, that might be another difference between oldest and youngest. By ds, I could afford a fancy phonics program with workbook pages to fill out. I don't see a difference in reading ability, but he definitely did less handwriting because of that.

[stripe]

I really do think going through life not being able to read cursive, or write with speed and confidence is crippling.

 

Why would someone who writes in Italic be unable to read cursive, or have to write slowly and without confidence? I just haven't seen this, esp the latter part. Or it doesn't seem related to the style.

[Hunter]

Why would someone who writes in Italic be unable to read cursive, or have to write slowly and without confidence? I just haven't seen this, esp the latter part. Or it doesn't seem related to the style.

 

Because the italic is closer to printing, some children, especially those struggling ones that italic is recommended for, cannot adapt the italic reading skills to reading regular cursive.

 

Again for these strugglers, the hand isn't easier to WRITE than regular cursive, in fact I have found the opposite to be true. Struggling students can READ italic easier, but not WRITE it easier.

 

At least in my experience, the combination of joined and unjoined letters is confusing and they end out resorting to a mish-mash of previously taught manuscript and cursive italic and a lot of pausing to DECIDE what to write. The deciding is what kills speed and reduced ability to stay on task.

 

For low IQ students or severe disability that will never allow a pretty hand, Handwriting Without Tears is best. For a struggling student who CAN learn to curve and relax the joiners, Spalding cursive models exactly what their hand SHOULD look like, while still giving exact instructions for perfectly round and straight main letters similar to HWT.

 

I am so NOT impressed with Italic. I think it took my son backwards not forwards, but then we ran out of time to fix it...or so I was told...by my same advisors :banghead:

 

Handwriting/Spelling/Punctuation were my big fail with the younger son. I needed to stop with the calculus and Greek accents and review kindergarten writing skills, but I didn't understand that, with all the panic everyone was filling me with about what he "deserved". Fear and pride make common sense difficult. I started accomodating instead or remediating, and it least for HIM that turned out to be a big mistake.

[kalanamak]

 

Whether someone is just using Alpha-Phonics/HTT as a standalone or as part of a collection of resources, why I don't hear more about it?

 

Its old, non-flashy, and no one is promoting it. I found them at Goodwill when I first started hs. I didn't have the confidence to use Alpha-Phonics. Now I would.

[laughing lioness]

WP- word processing. I don't know WHY my kids can't read cursive. I think Hunter is on the right track. And I totally agree that the connected words were/are confusing! I thought it was a great cause that's how I actually write....

[Hunter]

Yuh, word processing :tongue_smilie: I panicked. He was supposed to be writing essays and research reports. I just accommodated him, instead of finding out how to remediate. I just stuck him on the computer, like everyone else in my situation was doing.

 

There is a lot of talk LATELY on THIS k-8 subforum, about serious remediation of phonics and handwriting for older students, but this is new and doesn't even carry over to the other subforums. And back in the 90s when some of us were making these choices...there was no Ellie talking about Spalding, and some of us were not who we are yet, and the younger moms weren't even homeschooling yet and...we just didn't have the info we NEEDED.

 

Italic is a sharp hand, and an appropriate choice for NON struggling students. The fact that it is easier to READ is one of the exact reasons struggling students should NOT use it, in my opinion.

 

I've been messing with the Phonics Made Plain poster and phonogram flashcards, along with Don Potter's notes. I'm going to have to tweak a few things but I have little doubt I can mix these. Phonics Made Plain has no word list and is just phonograms and a poster of spelling rules placed after the groups of phonograms they apply to. It's MEANT to be used along with ANY reader or other program.

 

It's amazing how advertisement has so much to do with what people use for curricula :001_huh: My priority has always been efficiency. I adore minimalism and efficiency. But others...the bigger the price tag and bigger the box, the better they like it. :tongue_smilie:

 

I'm still reading through the math. It's interesting even before I get to the lessons. I'm really glad I discovered this. Even if I don't fully use it for long, I know I've grown so much as a teacher by reading though all this.

[stripe]

It's amazing how advertisement has so much to do with what people use for curricula :001_huh: My priority has always been efficiency. I adore minimalism and efficiency. But others...the bigger the price tag and bigger the box, the better they like it. :tongue_smilie:

 

Isn't that true for other things, too?

[Hunter]

Laughing Lioness, was it you asking about math copywork not too long ago? Did you use HTT for copywork?

[Hunter]

This MIGHT be the the thread I am thinking of. Definately not Laughing Lioness. :D

 

http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/showthread.php?t=348532&highlight=math+copywork

 

I am sick to death of sheet after sheet after sheet of inky smelling primary math. I feel like I've been personally deforesting an entire country and clouding the world with ink fumes :tongue_smilie: I was almost relieved when the printer broke.

[stripe]

Oh, come on, we even still had a ditto machine doohickey when I was in school, the kind the teacher would crank, with that purple ink and the chemical odor my classmates would sniff.

[laughing lioness]

Laughing Lioness, was it you asking about math copywork not too long ago? Did you use HTT for copywork?

 

Not me. We've used WWE and MP copywork books. Love both.

We started with AlphaPhonices back in 91'- pre-forum ; ). It used to be the phonics program SL used.

[Medieval Mom]

I used Alpha-Phonics with good results for ds#1. (I had a $100 budget back then. As I recall, I purchased Alpha-Phonics, the later set of McGuffey readers, handwriting paper, and a math program.)

 

I am, however, seriously considering using Leonard's North American Spelling Book with ds#2.

Edited August 19, 2012 by Medieval Mom

[Hunter]

As the printer got closer to dying, the stinkier it became. But even beyond that, I just got...I don't know...nostalgic for the simpler times. I remember printers were rolls of paper with holes along the sides of the paper. We didn't print and we certainly didn't scan. There were lucky people with home businesses and photocopy machines, but the rest of us didn't photocopy more than 2 or 3 sheets a week, and it took feeding dimes into a public machine.

 

Students wrote more then. Maybe not in the schools so much, but homeschoolers wrote more on real paper, instead of filling in worksheets. Homeschooling was certainly more green back then. The entire family shared one clunky desktop in the corner.

 

I don't know, I just feel loaded down lately with promising sounding curricula that is no better, and probably worse, despite being shiny, expensive and bulky.

 

As I keep saying lately, Adam had his weeds and we have our poorly written curricula. The new stuff after I've tried it just seems even weedier. I might as well go back to the old stuff. It smells better at least :lol:

 

I'd really like to learn to use more recitation and copywork for math. I've been reading through the African Waldorf pdfs and Professor B. HTT looks more promising than the Righstart purple book and games, for efficiency and organization. I'm still reading with crossed fingers.

 

Maybe it's temporary, but I'm having an aversion to piles of print outs, lately.

[Medieval Mom]

...

 

I don't know, I just feel loaded down lately with promising sounding curricula that is no better, and probably worse, despite being shiny, expensive and bulky.

 

 

 

I'm feeling the same way.

[Hunter]

I used Alpha-Phonics with good results for ds#1. (I had a $100 budget back then. As I recall, I purchased Alpha-Phonics, the later set of McGuffey readers, handwriting paper, and a math program.)

 

I am, however, seriously considering using Leonard's North American Spelling Book with ds#2.

 

That is a NICE vintage book! It uses the same pronunciation system as the McGuffey's. It is VERY like HTT/Alpha-Phonics. Thanks for the link!

 

The $100.00 homeschool budget :-) How many of us had one of those? The funny thing is...that it seemed easier :-0 NOT high-school. That was awful and scary and just...I don't know what on a budget. But the early years felt so doable on $100.00 :-)

Edited August 19, 2012 by Hunter

[Medieval Mom]

That is a NICE vintage book! It uses the same pronunciation system as the McGuffey's. It is VERY like HTT/Alpha-Phonics. Thanks for the link!

 

You're welcome. I spend FAR too much time looking at vintage books. This one is one of my favorites, as it has a syllabary, but includes some syllables NOT in Webster's, has simple reading lessons (like the 1908 Webster's), has a pronunciation system like McGuffey's (which we love and use), and... the kicker... the "Writing" alphabet script is just like my own (and now ds's) handwriting, except for the capital S. :) Oh, oh! and c's and g's are nicely marked for when they are "soft", right in the syllabary!!! Okay, I'm really geeky about these things. :lol:

[Hunter]

You're welcome. I spend FAR too much time looking at vintage books. This one is one of my favorites, as it has a syllabary, but includes some syllables NOT in Webster's, has simple reading lessons (like the 1908 Webster's), has a pronunciation system like McGuffey's (which we love and use), and... the kicker... the "Writing" alphabet script is just like my own (and now ds's) handwriting, except for the capital S. :) Oh, oh! and c's and g's are nicely marked for when they are "soft", right in the syllabary!!! Okay, I'm really geeky about these things. :lol:

 

Now if someone would just reprint a Worcester's or old Merriam-Webster dictionary! If you are geeky about the vintage books, well...I'm downright insane. All I can say, is that it must have been nice to be a teacher in the days of the Eclectic Series and the Worcester Dictionary.

[Medieval Mom]

Now if someone would just reprint a Worcester's or old Merriam-Webster dictionary! If you are geeky about the vintage books, well...I'm downright insane. All I can say, is that it must have been nice to be a teacher in the days of the Eclectic Series and the Worcester Dictionary.

 

How about this dictionary? :) I haven't seen it myself...

[Hunter]

How about this dictionary? :) I haven't seen it myself...

 

No pronunciations. They skipped them :-0

 

I actually have a big dictionary from the late 1800s with the pronunciation system, but it's fragile, and a few pages have smeared printing. It's a good occasional reference book, but not useful for everyday. And also I can't get copies for my students.

[Hunter]

I used Alpha-Phonics with good results for ds#1. (I had a $100 budget back then. As I recall, I purchased Alpha-Phonics, the later set of McGuffey readers, handwriting paper, and a math program.)

 

I am, however, seriously considering using Leonard's North American Spelling Book with ds#2.

 

I spent some time comparing both programs today. I vastly prefer HTT. Early sentence writing is a priority here. Leonard is awkward and faster, without the smoothness and handholding of HTT. I want to be able to systematically introduce grammar topics during copywork, dictation and sentence compositions. I don't want to EVER require ANYTHING from my students that was not directly taught. They have experienced so much failure because they were expected to do things they were never taught to do. Many students infer things and learn them outside of school, that they can apply to school assignments. I cannot count on that for my students. HTT is smooth. There are few or no gaps. Grammar lessons can effortlessly be introduced in HTT lesson 2.

Edited August 19, 2012 by Hunter

[Medieval Mom]

No pronunciations. They skipped them :-0

 

I actually have a big dictionary from the late 1800s with the pronunciation system, but it's fragile, and a few pages have smeared printing. It's a good occasional reference book, but not useful for everyday. And also I can't get copies for my students.

 

:blink: No pronunciations? Wow. :blink:

[Hunter]

:blink: No pronunciations? Wow. :blink:

 

They claimed they were outdated :confused: Umm...except for the "a" with one dot over it usually being turned into a short "a", and the ending short "i" being turned into a long "e", it's all the same. They were just taking the easy way out :thumbdown:

 

But honestly we ARE in the minority, who teach dictionary respellings :lol:

[Medieval Mom]

I spent some time comparing both programs today. I vastly prefer HTT. Early sentence writing is a priority here. Leonard is awkward and faster, without the smoothness and handholding of HTT. I want to be able to systematically introduce grammar topics during copywork, dictation and sentence compositions. I don't want to EVER require ANYTHING from my students that was not directly taught. They have experienced so much failure because they were expected to do things they were never taught to do. Many students infer things and learn them outside of school, that they can apply to school assignments. I cannot count on that for my students. HTT is smooth. There are few or no gaps. Grammar lessons can effortlessly be introduced in HTT lesson 2.

 

Yes, that makes sense. In your case, I'd definitely prefer HTT. I'm teaching a very different student here, namely, a 3 (almost 4) y.o. boy. Grammar would be overkill at this point. :D

 

Since we have plenty of time, my goal is to have ds learn the 2-letter syllables and words in Leonard's syllabary/speller by the time he's 5. At that point, I'll decide whether to proceed with the speller, Alpha-Phonics, McGuffey's, Word Mastery, or something else. :)

 

By the bye, Hunter, I remember you writing in another thread that you liked McGuffey's, based on what you discovered about their word list. What did you mean by that? Did you mean that all the new words ever introduced at are the beginning of the lesson? Or was the word list itself based on some source or system not mentioned in the text itself? I've been curious about this! :bigear:

 

We've gone back and forth using McGuffey as a main part of our program. Now in fourth, we're using the Fourth Reader for vocab. (writing the words with diacritical marks once, without them twice-- then writing the words in sentences), elocution (oral reading and drill), composition, etc. and loving it.

 

Well, that's way off topic.... Sorry! :auto:

[Hunter]

I'm still studying the HTT math. I love the math! :thumbup:

[Hunter]

Yes, that makes sense. In your case, I'd definitely prefer HTT. I'm teaching a very different student here, namely, a 3 (almost 4) y.o. boy. Grammar would be overkill at this point. :D

 

Since we have plenty of time, my goal is to have ds learn the 2-letter syllables and words in Leonard's syllabary/speller by the time he's 5. At that point, I'll decide whether to proceed with the speller, Alpha-Phonics, McGuffey's, Word Mastery, or something else. :)

 

By the bye, Hunter, I remember you writing in another thread that you liked McGuffey's, based on what you discovered about their word list. What did you mean by that? Did you mean that all the new words ever introduced at are the beginning of the lesson? Or was the word list itself based on some source or system not mentioned in the text itself? I've been curious about this! :bigear:

 

We've gone back and forth using McGuffey as a main part of our program. Now in fourth, we're using the Fourth Reader for vocab. (writing the words with diacritical marks once, without them twice-- then writing the words in sentences), elocution (oral reading and drill), composition, etc. and loving it.

 

Well, that's way off topic.... Sorry! :auto:

 

I don't think it's off topic. There is much that is similar in the way I use these curricula. Yes, there is a actual original McGuffey's word list, but as of right now only Dollar Homeschool sells it on their CD version, and you have to buy the whole set to get it.

 

As far as I can tell, the readers NEVER include a word in the stories that is not directly taught in the lessons. If you systematically work through the series, the student will never encounter a surprise word that they have not been taught. If you are doing cursive first, it's important to introduce each word in cursive, if you want to assign copywork. HTT is the first curricula that I like better for introducing cursive first.

 

Now I'll be able to let the students move ahead in McGuffey's quicker, as I was having to hold them back for cursive mastery. Now I will only require mediocre level of penmanship of McGuffey's vocabulary, as I'll be able to move along behind with HTT for the mastery. I am a huge fan of the McGuffey's. I'm going to be using them slightly differently now, but no less.

 

Do you know that CBD sells audio of the McGuffey's? I grew up very isolated and lost myself in books, but I have never had the chance to properly learn to say what I am able to write and read. Also my seizures make me lose my speech sometimes. The McGuffey's audio and good KJV audio are mainstays of my curricula.

 

Where I found the 2 letter word lessons of Leonard awkward, I can see the benefits of using it with a 3 year old! I'll bet he finds the 2 letter word sentences amusing. And the pronunciations match the McGuffey's. The pdf isn't showing up well at all on my Kindle, and I have no printer. I cannot see the pronunciation marks well at all, though :tongue_smilie:

[Medieval Mom]

We JUST began last week. My ds finds it very amusing, esp. fa fe fi fo fu fy, which we call speaking like giants and do in a deep voice. You know, as in "Fe fi fo fum, I smell the blood of an Englishman!" Ds likes to do ca ce ci co cu cy in a mousey voice. I have no idea why that is, but I just go with it. ;)

 

All that to say that we haven't got to the sentences yet. :)

 

Good to know about the audio! I'm very blessed that I grew up with a father that was INSISTENT upon drilling us in good, old-school pronunciation. In fact, whenever he visits, he still likes to discuss (or quiz me) on pronunciation, arithmetic , grammar, etymology, poetic forms, Latin references in modern poetry, etc. :D You've got to love a dad like that. :)

 

Speaking of Dad and dictionaries... He recently gave me his mother's Webster's Dictionary from 1942. It is wonderful, and, best of all, well-loved (worn). I never knew her; but now I feel like I have a little piece of her. Maybe she, too, looked up this particular word. Sigh. BTW, it *does* have pronunciations. :)

 

I'm so sorry you suffer from seizures. :grouphug:

Edited August 20, 2012 by Medieval Mom

[Hunter]

We JUST began last week. My ds finds it very amusing, esp. fa fe fi fo fu fy, which we call speaking like giants and do in a deep voice. You know, as in "Fe fi fo fum, I smell the blood of an Englishman!" Ds likes to do ca ce ci co cu cy in a mousey voice. I have no idea why that is, but I just go with it. ;)

 

All that to say that we haven't got to the sentences yet. :)

 

Good to know about the audio! I'm very blessed that I grew up with a father that was INSISTENT upon drilling us in good, old-school pronunciation. In fact, whenever he visits, he still likes to discuss (or quiz me) on pronunciation, arithmetic , grammar, etymology, poetic forms, Latin references in modern poetry, etc. :D You've got to love a dad like that. :)

 

Speaking of Dad and dictionaries... He recently gave me his mother's Webster's Dictionary from 1942. It is wonderful, and, best of all, well-loved (worn). I never knew her; but now I feel like I have a little piece of her. Maybe she, too, looked up this particular word. Sigh. BTW, it *does* have pronunciations. :)

 

I'm so sorry you suffer from seizures. :grouphug:

 

That's all so cute!!!

 

You are so lucky to have your Dad!

 

I have excellent pronunciation for easy words. My ESL students love it. My early childhood was VERY different from my later childhood. Crazy different. I just didn't have the opportunity to HEAR advanced words. And no one taught me how to read a dictionary, as they were not teaching me much of ANYTHING. UGH! I have always self-soothed by studying though. I'm a bit autistic that way, so I taught myself, what I had access to teach myself. I'm kinda weirdly spotty now in what I can and cannot do.

 

And then to top it all off I seize when I get nervous, and I now am frying my brain, leaving new holes. Weird holes. I had to relearn what a castle was :lol: Life is funny though. Nature abhors a vacuum, so for every loss there is a gain. When it's all said and done, the medical community has declared me "severely disabled" "unlikely to recover" and ineligible for rehabilitation services, so...they they just tell me to go play. If I try to assert my right to be rehabilitated, I get nervous, and seize, and kind of prove them right, so that doesn't accomplish much.

 

So I get to study and tutor and chat all day. There ARE perks to that. For me and my students. I'm not complaining or happy about it. It just IS. But thanks for the :grouphug: