AAR -vs- LOE Foundations for an active little boy

[AimeeM]

Nico is progressing with Phonics Pathways, but we both hate it.

 

He's an active little boy (4.5) who hates coloring, etc. If you've used either with your similarly geared/aged kiddo, which did you use and how well did it work (and how did the kiddo like it)? Extra points if you used it after ditching an effective but boring program prior :P

[lorisuewho]

Well, I have used Phonics Pathways and liked it well enough. I still recommend it. But with my third child I am using LOE Foundations. We are finishing up B now and ready to start C.

 

LOE has LOTS of movement in it. There are games, hide and seek games, running activities, jumping activities and the like. There is also paper and pencil work. There is matching. There is reading, lots of reading. There are also tons of suggestions of extra practice for children who don't like to sit still. If your child likes to move, this is the program for you.

[Teneo]

Nico is progressing with Phonics Pathways, but we both hate it.

 

He's an active little boy (4.5) who hates coloring, etc. If you've used either with your similarly geared/aged kiddo, which did you use and how well did it work (and how did the kiddo like it)? Extra points if you used it after ditching an effective but boring program prior :P

 

I was planning on WRTR since I'm used to teaching it. The plan was to use it starting at 5/6. Then DS started trying to read at 4 so I pulled out OPG until he had the fine motor necessary for WRTR. Well, DS hated OPG. I tried the sample and ordered AAR. Then I saw all the posts on this forum about LOE and bought the teacher guide. We're still using the AAR readers because they are beautiful and interesting but sticking with LOE from now on.

 

LOE definitely. AAR uses a lot of craft type activities and the tiles, which are fun, true. But in LOE my son gets to play ( or think he's playing). It's had us do hopscotch, scavenger hunts, basketball, and other fun activities. It really engages him. He loves it. I like it better than other programs I've had experience using. Another favorite activity is anything requiring exploring how sounds are made (voiced/unvoiced/nasal, vowels singable/consonants not etc).

 

Even writing. You "write" in the air. Trace sandpaper letters. Write in sand. On white boards. Only if your child has the fine motor skills are you required to use paper. The directions for writing are memorable too especially when said as a chant.

[specialkmom]

I haven't used AAR, but I am using LOE foundations. I used Phonics Pathways and Abeka handbook for reading before with my older ds and my younger ds. Worked great for my older ds, but my younger ds struggled. I switched my younger ds to LOE a couple months ago. We started back with A and we're almost done with B. It has changed his attitude and helped him immensely in learning to read and write. This program had to be made with super active boys in mind. The games are fun and the activities varied. It's a little pricey, but I'm so glad we switched to it.

[Guest cphknitter]

I haven't used AAR, but I am using Foundations A with my active ds4. We are halfway through A and both of us are enjoying ourselves and learning. We started out with OPGTR, which was working, but he was never excited about reading.  Now he insists on "Dragon Time" every day and is retaining the lessons.  He benefits from being encouraged to move actively, use silly voices, do treasure hunts (and send me on them), etc. 

 

A bonus for us is that dd2.5 also enjoys participating. Of course, I will repeat Foundations A with her later, but in the meantime she is having fun participating as she chooses.  Something to consider as your DS1 gets a bit older.

[prissygirls]

LOE has my son loving his reading lessons. The games really make it.

[Soror]

I haven't used AAR but LoE is definitely geared toward the active kid, actually it has activities for all types of kids it has writing as well but that can be easily tweaked.  It is an awesome program for mom and student.

[AimeeM]

LOE it is!

Next question - do I start with A? He's blending CVC words.

[lorisuewho]

LOE it is!

Next question - do I start with A? He's blending CVC words.

How well can he form the letters? Does he know all the sounds for each phonogram well? Can he spell a CVC word easily? If so, then I would start with B.

[Soror]

Level A teaches all the sounds for the first 26 letter single phonograms.  You could teach him that before starting level B using the Doodling Dragons App or book if you wanted.  Personally, I think LOE is very fun and I think starting w/ A would be my preference, especially with such a young learner.  Also, Level A really works hard on phonemic awareness, which I think can be overlooked.

[mrsduenes06]

I don't have an opinion on either program that was mentioned, but I do have an "active little boy" and wanted to throw in my two cents.  I'm wondering if some of the issues you are having are not of finding the right curriculum, but of timing and development. 

 

Your son is 4 and a 1/2?  My son hated coloring at that age too, which is why I chose a fast, simple (some would call "boring") program over a long program with lots of activities.  I did Alpha-Phonics for about 5 minutes a day, a few days a week, and that was it.  I didn't really work on handwriting then either - he just wasn't ready for it.  He also didn't like cutting with scissors.

 

Fast-forward to him now at 6 years old.  He's still active, but is reading well, working on writing his own book on Pompeii, and LOVES to cut and color for an hour at a time.  I can't print off enough coloring pages a day to keep him satisfied.  Very little of it had to do with the curriculum, I think - there was just a time when he was ready to start doing those things, and I didn't push it. 

[AimeeM]

How well can he form the letters? Does he know all the sounds for each phonogram well? Can he spell a CVC word easily? If so, then I would start with B.

 

He isn't writing well yet, and that's my hesitation. We're using HWT for writing, but it's going slowly.

Yes, he knows his phonogram sounds, very, very well and without hesitation. He is sounding out CVC words and *can* spell them as I sound them out, but not by memory.

When I look on the LOE site, it looks like he knows *most* of what is in A, but because he doesn't know it *all*, I worry about starting with B. I wonder if I should get him concrete on the CVC, more fluidly, and then just order B - I'd hate to sink that much money into A when he's solid on *most* of it.

 

[AimeeM]

I don't have an opinion on either program that was mentioned, but I do have an "active little boy" and wanted to throw in my two cents.  I'm wondering if some of the issues you are having are not of finding the right curriculum, but of timing and development. 

 

Your son is 4 and a 1/2?  My son hated coloring at that age too, which is why I chose a fast, simple (some would call "boring") program over a long program with lots of activities.  I did Alpha-Phonics for about 5 minutes a day, a few days a week, and that was it.  I didn't really work on handwriting then either - he just wasn't ready for it.  He also didn't like cutting with scissors.

 

Fast-forward to him now at 6 years old.  He's still active, but is reading well, working on writing his own book on Pompeii, and LOVES to cut and color for an hour at a time.  I can't print off enough coloring pages a day to keep him satisfied.  Very little of it had to do with the curriculum, I think - there was just a time when he was ready to start doing those things, and I didn't push it. 

 

Well, he loves the games and things that I do with him, and wants to learn to ready - I just do not have an ounce of creativity and want someone ELSE to lay out the games for me. Lol.

Phonics Pathways is simple, effective, and no fluff. It doesn't take long at all - but he dreads every minute of it and that isn't something I want to see.