Tidbits of Learning Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 We purchased Reading Eggs last year for a year's subscription. My k'er is shy of completing all of Reading Eggs by 25 lessons. They used to have monthly subscriptions and I had planned to utilize a $9 monthly to get us through those last 25 lessons after our subscription expired on Aug. 31. They have discontinued the monthly option. You now have to commit to a new 6 month or year subscription if you do not complete the program in your initial subscription. I did think they might be willing to work something out since my ds was so close to completing the program, but the bottom line of money was more important than my child completing his reading education through them. I did not want to pay for 1/2 a year when my ds was finishing 2-3 lessons a day of Reading Eggs. He would be through with the 25 lessons in less than a month and I would have been out that money. They would not work with me in any way to pay for anything less than a six month subscription. I just wanted to pass the word along to anyone who has a subscription coming to a close. They will not offer anything shorter than a new 6 months subscription no matter how close your child is to finishing the program. Apparently, their bottom line is more important than the educational gains and sense of accomplishment that a child would receive by completing their program. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momma2three Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 I think the stepping stone lessons is just a small part of their program now. They have the fantasy story lineup now, and the spelling curriculum, and I think there's a typing one. They also have the "older kid" section for kids who are already comfortably reading. My daughter is on the 11th map now, and when she's done with the 12th she's really excited to do more of the fantasy story section (can't remember what it's called, but it's kind of a reading comprehension course where there are stories about a fairy tale castle and its inhabitants and then the child is asked questions about the story to make sure they're actually understanding it.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stef03 Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 My son completed the lessons early last year but we renewed his membership for another year as he hadn't done any of the "side" lessons. The Storyland & Spelling sections are very good and it's been worth the renewal :) If they only offered the phonics lessons then I would say their 6mths minimum commitment for only a few lessons left is unfair but seeing as though they offer loads more I can understand why they won't budge on their policy. Don't forget you can also go through HSBC for a cheaper rate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boscopup Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 You can probably find a 4 week code to extend it, our if you've already used codes, make a new account and use a code or two to extend it. When making a new account, you can set him at the lesson he's supposed to be on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thebarefootamazon Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 Ooh, there are 4 week codes? We signed up for a free trial but it's only 14 days. My daughter is using it for the first time and she loves it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tidbits of Learning Posted September 4, 2012 Author Share Posted September 4, 2012 The thing is Reading Eggs is our side instruction. It was our only instruction last year. This year he is doing actual reading with school. He is really past phonics and I just wanted him to complete the program and have all the certificates saying he had completed phonics instruction. I emailed them explaining that we had no need for the extras and weren't planning to continue into Reading Eggspress and asked very nicely if we could just get a month for him to finish. They were adamant that we couldn't and that b/c they offered all the things we haven't used and do not need that we would be required to buy 6 months in order for him to finish the Reading Eggs. Frankly, I don't understand why they wouldn't want to take my money and get a good review of the program. Up until today, I spoke highly of the company at every turn and recommended Reading Eggs. My son is just now in kindergarten and all I needed was phonics instruction. It just seems to me that they are more interested in hooking you in to pay for more months of service than you may want or need for your goals. It is great for those that are looking for all the bells and whistles and to continue into Reading Eggspress, but a year ago when we bought our subscription there wasn't Reading Eggspress and Reading Eggs was for phonics instruction. I won't recommend Reading Eggs for phonics instruction unless someone knows that they can finish all the lessons in exactly one year or are willing to spend $50-$100 to extend their subscription for a handful of lessons. I just don't think that you should have to pay for 6 months when you just want to finish the phonics instruction which was what you purchased for in the first place. We just have no need for all the game style extras they have added. We just want to finish the phonics and activity sheets. I don't see what it would hurt the company to offer a subscriber who had paid for a year a one month subscription to complete the program. I wasn't asking for a free month. I just wanted to pay for the time we need to complete the program that I purchased not all the video game style extras they have added since my original purchase. They didn't seem concerned that my son really wants the certificate of completion. They just seemed concerned to get 6 months of my money when I will only need 1 month of their services. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sewingmama Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 I'm on your side with Reading Eggs customer service :glare: Our subscription expired Aug 31 as well. My DD finished all the lessons the day before. She had to do about 5 lessons a day for a week or two. There was no special certificate at the end -just the usual one and a screen that said "Great you are finished the maps - now you are ready for ....." It was kind of disappointing. My DS goes to Public Kindy. His class is trialling Reading Eggs. I was talking to his teacher about it and she was asking if they should commit to buying it. RE wanted them to pay $400 for the program but no one in the class (except my DS) can use anything other then the playroom - so that's all they use. I told her not to get it if all they can use is the playroom -it isn't worth it for the money. She told me she had the RE rep ringing her every couple of days trying to convince her to buy it. I told her to forget it and use something more at their ability level -like Starfall which is free. So RE lost a $400 because of bad word of mouth - I have no intention of recommending them to anyone. It annoys me that you can't do a monthly subscription, it annoys me that they revoked all those codes, it annoys me that they took their offer off HSBC because they didn't want to give such a big discount after they offered it and it annoys me that you have to pay for each individual child and not as a family. Yes they are in it for the money and while I'm not saying they shouldn't be - some of their practices have really cheesed me off and I won't be resubscribing with them despite the 5 emails a week they send me to offer me a new subscription and get 10% off each child :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tidbits of Learning Posted September 5, 2012 Author Share Posted September 5, 2012 I'm on your side with Reading Eggs customer service :glare: Our subscription expired Aug 31 as well. My DD finished all the lessons the day before. She had to do about 5 lessons a day for a week or two. There was no special certificate at the end -just the usual one and a screen that said "Great you are finished the maps - now you are ready for ....." It was kind of disappointing. My DS goes to Public Kindy. His class is trialling Reading Eggs. I was talking to his teacher about it and she was asking if they should commit to buying it. RE wanted them to pay $400 for the program but no one in the class (except my DS) can use anything other then the playroom - so that's all they use. I told her not to get it if all they can use is the playroom -it isn't worth it for the money. She told me she had the RE rep ringing her every couple of days trying to convince her to buy it. I told her to forget it and use something more at their ability level -like Starfall which is free. So RE lost a $400 because of bad word of mouth - I have no intention of recommending them to anyone. It annoys me that you can't do a monthly subscription, it annoys me that they revoked all those codes, it annoys me that they took their offer off HSBC because they didn't want to give such a big discount after they offered it and it annoys me that you have to pay for each individual child and not as a family. Yes they are in it for the money and while I'm not saying they shouldn't be - some of their practices have really cheesed me off and I won't be resubscribing with them despite the 5 emails a week they send me to offer me a new subscription and get 10% off each child :glare: Tell the teacher to look into Headsprout. My ds9's kindy class used it and it is great. I am not stressing finishing Reading Eggs if it is just a sales pitch at the end to get you to keep using them for Reading Eggspress. My ds9 did the Reading Eggspress a little last year with a trial and I would much rather him read chapter books from the library. The changing of the discount on HSBC turned me off last year too. They have done a lot this past year which just screams give me the money and bad customer service. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skeeterbug Posted September 5, 2012 Share Posted September 5, 2012 I'm on your side with Reading Eggs customer service :glare: :iagree:Our homeschool groups here have had a horrible time with them. They used to offer us a fabulous rate, but when it came time to renew they claimed they'd been mistaken and became very unpleasant to deal with. Definitely all about the money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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