ChristusG Posted June 12, 2014 Share Posted June 12, 2014 DD10 really struggled with reading starting out. She wasn't really a fluent reader until early 3rd grade. Now, she's reading great, on grade level, and comprehends well.....but it's like pulling teeth to get her to read. If I hand her a comic book or the newest My Little Pony chapter book, she's great. But I'd like her to branch out into other things. I've tried letting her choose books (she'll choose picture books....nothing wrong with those, but I'd like her to read longer books too). I've tried assigning books I think she'd like (Little House On The Prairie, etc) and having her read a chapter or two per day. She hates it. I'm thinking of finding an actual reading curriculum, with engaging stories, with some sort of comprehension quiz or questions at the end. She's a very concrete, open and go, no frills type of homeschooler. She likes to know her work ahead of time, do it, check it off, and be done with it. She likes workbooks, etc. Is there a 5th grade reading program like this? Or even 4th grade. I just want her reading things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrettW Posted June 12, 2014 Share Posted June 12, 2014 Your daughter sounds exactly like my son, 10. He's a reluctant reader and only really enjoys the Wimpy Kid books. That's all. Every other book is like pulling teeth. BUT... he actually enjoys our reading program McRuffy Language Arts. It's our favorite part of the day. The program also includes spelling, writing, grammar, etc...but what we like best are the reading stories. They're very entertaining and we love the characters the author has created! The program has the child read one chapter per day and there are comprehension questions after each chapter of each story. Very open and go! Technically it's a 4th grade program. But I think it should be more 4/5 level. It's great. When I send him upstairs to read the day's chapter, he never complains. And that's saying something!! :laugh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IfIOnly Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 With my late bloomer, I made a list of good literature by grades/ages (Verita press for one has good suggestions) and watched him cycle through even though he was much older than the age recommendations. First, I didn't want him to miss out just because he wasn't fluent at the time. I never told him this plan. I never made him read anything, but he did! I got well over 100 picture books and he read them all. Then I introduced (simply by bringing them home from the library!) the Billy and Blaze series followed by Nate the Great, Boxcar Children, Encyclopedia Brown, etc. So he got to read the easier stuff and build confidence. Then I brought home chapter books like Stuart Little and Story of the Treasure Seekers series. Finally, we're going to introduce lit. guides this summer to help keep him accountable for those longer chapter books. I'm hoping that as he tackles a few thought that he'll take off. I think introducing the Narnia series to him at the right time will be great for this, as well. Fingers crossed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murrayshire Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 Have you looked at Mosdos Press? I will be using it for my rising 6th and 3rd grader along with our book basket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IfIOnly Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 Oh, and one thing I do with each of my kids is have them read their grammar (and other curriculum) lectures and instructions out loud to me. I really think having them read out loud with me thus growing in their vocabulary and reading ability has encouraged them to tackle books on their own. Plus, I really think it helps curb assignment mistakes and our school hours! I know my late bloomer would not have done well with just phonics and me leaving him alone after that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluedarling Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 dd13 is not what I'd call an avid reader. She rarely reads for fun, but she is finally tackling longer books. Expecting it at 10yo may be a bit of a stretch? At that age my dd would only read dog books (nonfiction), and only in very small doses. I say just keep reading aloud and getting her books she doesn't mind reading for now. (Like new foods just keep making longer books available, and giving her tastes (read alouds!)) All 3 of my older kids took off in reading around age 12. My dd has really enjoyed the Gail Carson Levine books like Fairest and Ella Enchanted (but she's reading those at 13, not 10.) We tried a reading textbook last year. She did OK, but quickly became bored with it...it wouldn't be my first recommendation. My dd prefers just get 'er done, too. Next year I'm getting her a workbook on non-fiction reading (she's having trouble comprehending textbooks), but otherwise I'm not planning to teach reading. This year she did Beyond the Book Report, and mostly selected her own titles (though I made some suggestions tied to her history....she's really enjoying Crispin right now!) Anyway, from my perspective you're in the transition phase from learning to read to reading, which is really just a matter of practice....and practice on picture books and easy readers is still practice! Her desire to tackle longer books will come! Her friends might start to suggest she read something! Or...my dd really wanted to watch the Harry Potter movie (when she turned 12), but she had to read the book first.....she read them all multiple times. Those things motivated her to try longer books! (at 12-13yo...not at 10, though.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristusG Posted June 13, 2014 Author Share Posted June 13, 2014 Brett, funny that you mention McRuffy....I've been looking at that curriculum for a few months now! I just wish I could physically hold it and look through it. The price is sort of steep so I'm hesitant to purchase it and not like it. Is it pretty much open and go? Is it teacher intensive or can it be done without me hovering? I like that it includes reading, spelling, and LA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reefgazer Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 What about choosing a longer, higher-quality book (like Little House) and start out reading a few pages to her? Then at a natural break, switch over to her reading to you, and then switch back, etc... You can silently but regularly and gradually increase the length of her reading passages. DD10 really struggled with reading starting out. She wasn't really a fluent reader until early 3rd grade. Now, she's reading great, on grade level, and comprehends well.....but it's like pulling teeth to get her to read. If I hand her a comic book or the newest My Little Pony chapter book, she's great. But I'd like her to branch out into other things. I've tried letting her choose books (she'll choose picture books....nothing wrong with those, but I'd like her to read longer books too). I've tried assigning books I think she'd like (Little House On The Prairie, etc) and having her read a chapter or two per day. She hates it. I'm thinking of finding an actual reading curriculum, with engaging stories, with some sort of comprehension quiz or questions at the end. She's a very concrete, open and go, no frills type of homeschooler. She likes to know her work ahead of time, do it, check it off, and be done with it. She likes workbooks, etc. Is there a 5th grade reading program like this? Or even 4th grade. I just want her reading things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrettW Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 McRuffy LA is very much open and go. There is almost no prep time. That being said, it is teacher intensive in that you follow the teacher guide and ask questions, give brief explanations of topics and assign the corresponding exercises, reading chapter, etc...Be aware that it is quite scripted. Some people do not like scripted curriculum, but I have no problem with it. For me, this makes it super easy to implement. Also, because of it's scripted nature, it's not the kind of program that the child does completely on his/her own. The program for 4th grade comes with: 2 teacher guides* 3 large, spiral bound reading books with many stories in each ** a spiral language book (language/grammar related workpages) a spiral spelling book (all spelling related workpages) a spiral reading and writing book test and quizzes (*except for the teachers guide, all the books are printed in color and are visually pleasing) (** The reading stories are the best part of the program. They are cute and have just the right amount of silliness to keep the child's interest) It is a bit pricey, but it is, in my opinion, worth it. You get a lot for your money. We love it and it gets done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amazzie Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 You could try CLE Reading. It's no frills and she can do the light units by herself. There are 5 light units (workbooks) to go along with the reader for fourth grade and up and it's meant to be a half year course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sixpence1978 Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 I am looking at k12 literature for next year. You can get the readers at cbd for a decent price. Then you would have to search amazon and ebay for copies of the worksheets and teacher's books. My DD does read in her free time, but she too loves short and sweet lessons for homeschool. Get in, get out, get it done...unless it's art. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alisoncooks Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 I am looking at k12 literature for next year. You can get the readers at cbd for a decent price. Then you would have to search amazon and ebay for copies of the worksheets and teacher's books. My DD does read in her free time, but she too loves short and sweet lessons for homeschool. Get in, get out, get it done...unless it's art. I have these for sale on the Classifieds (grades 3-5). I think they look really, really good. I had high hopes that we'd do Grade 3 this year (mostly fables, Greek legends, poetry, short stories) and I liked the looks of it so much that I went ahead and acquired some of grade 4 and all of grade 5. :o (However, it turns out that DD's reading is progressing more slowly than I thought... we won't be ready for it for some time...ah, the dangers of buying ahead...) The teacher's guides are incredibly THICK and full of vocabulary, comprehension, literary elements, etc. I am quite impressed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In2why Posted June 13, 2014 Share Posted June 13, 2014 This is a workbook that they used with my son in public school and the only thing I liked enough to keep. They are a bit pricey but they work so to me it was worth it. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1425802893/ref=oh_details_o03_s01_i01?ie=UTF8&psc=1 They have other grade levels and it really increased his.fluency and reading ability. Each of the exercises focuses on some aspect of fluency. Stopping at punctuation, reading and recognizing tone, that sort of thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue G in PA Posted July 20, 2014 Share Posted July 20, 2014 In2why, this book looks like exactly what I have been looking for to help my rising 6th grader. His reading skills are lagging behind though he has made significant improvement. He did a program last year called Read Live! online and it looks very similar to this book except it was online. Learning vocabulary, chunking and then reading for fluency and speed. This has the added benefit of expression as well. Why am I so put of by the fact that it was used in a public school? LOL. Isn't that crazy? I really would like to try it for my son, along with him reading "normal" books and perhaps even CLE Reading. I am very intrigued. The price doesn't seem so bad. I've paid more for grammar books and math curriculum. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner Posted July 20, 2014 Share Posted July 20, 2014 I really like K12 lit. The stories are engaging, but not difficult to read. I use it for reading and narration practice with my younger DS. You can get student pages to go along with them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In2why Posted August 28, 2014 Share Posted August 28, 2014 In2why, this book looks like exactly what I have been looking for to help my rising 6th grader. His reading skills are lagging behind though he has made significant improvement. He did a program last year called Read Live! online and it looks very similar to this book except it was online. Learning vocabulary, chunking and then reading for fluency and speed. This has the added benefit of expression as well. Why am I so put of by the fact that it was used in a public school? LOL. Isn't that crazy? I really would like to try it for my son, along with him reading "normal" books and perhaps even CLE Reading. I am very intrigued. The price doesn't seem so bad. I've paid more for grammar books and math curriculum. ;) I had the same reaction, but it really works well. Hope it works for others as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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