Tell Me About Phonics and Reading Pathways

[mathmarm]

If you used these two books, can you please tell me about HOW you used them? Do you read from the book or do you copy the words down on a paper or whiteboard?

 

How long does a session take?

When can you begin using Reading Pathways? If you completed Phonics Pathways with a student, how were they reading afterward?

[desertflower]

I used PP in many different ways. When he was 4 generally about 5 mins a lesson.  When he was 5 lessons took about 10 mins. 

 

1.  Put the words up on a whiteboard in different colors.

2.  Had he read from the book.  He had to run around or do jumping jacks after saying each word.

3.  Used a couple of games from AAR for the words in PP.

 

I started when he was 4, so we didn't do lessons everyday.  He is now 6 1/2. 

 

We started RP a little late, but you can start it once he/she knows how to blend 3 letters words. I think if he/she doesn't blend well, then I'd wait until he/she is done with all the practices of blending 3 letter words which is around page 50 I think. 

 

I like both.  We haven't finished the books.  We are just reading books now like Nate the Great.  I'm teaching him the rest of the rules as we read together.

 

I will say that I wasn't rigorous in schooling him when he was 4 and 5 yo.  Things are starting to pick up now though. 

 

I hope this help.  I really like this program.  I think it's very thorough. 

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

We worked right from the book and occasionally from a whiteboard to mix things up. We generally spent five "good" minutes (concentrated working time) on PP, the read two pages in a Frog and Toad (once the kid was ready for that). Once reading was really clicking, we dropped PP (maybe 2/3 through it) and switched to McGuffey readers.

 

We used RP a little bit, but preferred real books ultimately.

[mathmarm]

Is Phonics Pathways comparable to OPGtTR?

By the scope and sequence, what type of words will a student be reading when they are done? At what point in Phonics Pathways are you to begin Reading Pathways?

 

How many lessons are in the books? I can't seem to find any mentions or reviews of this series on Home school blogs or in the archives?

 

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

The book is different from OPGTR because:

- It is not scripted

- It does not have lessons

 

It is pages and pages of words, phrases, and sentences, organised by concept from easy to hard.  So the first dozen pages might be just learning letter sounds, then the next dozen pages are working with short vowels, so maybe 2 pages of short a, then two pages of short i (with some review of short a) and so on.  Any major concept does have review pages as you go.  Then moves on to initial and end consonant blends, etc, etc.  You simply open the book, and start pointing to words for your kid to read, and move through it in order.  

 

There is a very small intro at the beginning to talk about how to teach reading, how to teach blending, etc.  There is a "train" game that can be photocopied and cut out for those that need some work on blending sounds early on, but mostly, it's just you, the book, and your kid.  

 

So, the sequence is probably close to identical- most reading programs have almost exactly the same sequence, but you have to be comfortable knowing when to end a lesson, when to move to the next concept, etc.  And also when to add in a "real" book.  PP is full of silly sentences about a pig named Gus, but it doesn't have any sort of overarching story line or anything.  

 

I think it goes to third grade reading level if you complete the book, but I can't quite remember.  We never made it to the last third of the book, because both my big kids just took off with reading at around the 2/3rds point, roughly a second grade reading level.  

 

I consider it to be very open-and-go, but it is not scripted at all.  

 

 

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

As for when to start RP, it just depends.   :)  RP corresponds closely to the concepts in PP, so there are "pyramids" that contain only short A (or E, I, etc), pyramids that contain a mix of all short vowels, pyramids that add in initial consonant blends, etc.  It can be used from very early on as a way to increase comfort with reading and increase speed.  

 

Ok, I just pulled the book off the shelf.  Here are some sentences from the last pages of the Phonics Pathways book:

 

"His expression at that moment was unprintable."

"A strong foundation is indispensable to a house."

"Gus thinks he's going on a formidable mission."

"He seems to have a hopeless addition to worthless television programs" (with hyphens separating syllables in this one)

 

Oh wait!  On pg. 7 there is a little chart showing the book brings you to a 3-4th grade reading level if completed.  And the book can also be used as a speller, and they explain how to do so.  

 

HTH!

 

 

 

[ScoutTN]

I used PP sitting on the sofa. 5-10 minutes at first, maybe 10-15 toward the end for Ds, because he was older.

We did not do any writing with it. All orally.

We did play a few of the blending games in the very beginning.

 

We picked up RP partway through. Dd didn't need RP much at all but Ds did and enjoyed it. He had a tendency to guess so I supplemented with additional nonsense words pages. We also used Bob books alongside PP, as kids' skills progressed and quickly moved to Frog and Toad type books.

 

I can't comparet to OPGTR, because I haven't seen or used it.

 

I like PP because: It is simple to use. It is inexpensive and non consumable. The print is large. I am very comfortable teaching reading and don't need something scripted. It worked well for my natural reader and for my wiggly boy who would rather be building with Legos or playing outside.

[Maplecat]

I used OPGTR with my first son and am using Phonics Pathways with my second. The font size in OPGTR was small and my son often got overwhelmed with how it looked on the page. My son also had a hard time with the uppercase "i" looking exactly like a lowercase "L."

 

Phonics Parhways is easy to use, the font is large and not confusing, and we do a page a day. There is enough white space on the page that it doesn't look crowded. The pacing is working well for us and I'm seeing smooth progress. We just started Reading Pathways for first grade and it is reinforcing concepts he has already learned. Two pages a day in that book seems to be just enough.

[desertflower]

The lessons are not numbered.  You just go through the book teaching the concepts.  Once a concept is learned, you move on to the next one.  There are 241 pages and roughly 41 topics. 

[Mommy to monkeys]

I used PP to teach my 3rd dc how to read. We did about 5-10 minutes a day in the book. We used some of the games as they came up. When he had trouble with a particular page, we'd review it again. If he still had trouble with it the next day, we'd break from it for a couple of days and do explode the code and BOB books for a change of pace.