Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons Question

[ballardlm]

Can anyone tell me around what lesson is considered "1st grade" reading level? Thanks!

[ReadingMama1214]

I haven't used 100EZ but I believe it goes to a second grade level overall. I tend to think of silent e and alternate spellings of vowel sounds (ay, ai, oa, etc) as first grade.

[mom2bee]

Can anyone tell me around what lesson is considered "1st grade" reading level? Thanks!

100 EZ doesn't follow the standard (and not super efficient) sequence of

1-syllable short vowels, (sight words introduced without a strong pattern)

1-syllable silent e-words

2-syllable short vowels, (sight words sprinkled in to maintain readable sentences/stories)

1-2-syllable contractions/compound words. Which is kind of what K-2 reading levels are "based on".

 

AFAIK, K-2 reading levels are kinda based on 3 things: phonics exposure, sight word vocabulary and fluency (the speed at which you can recall and apply both your sight words and phonics),

 

So answering your question in a 1 or 2 sentence manner is kind of meaningless. I'm sorry to be long winded, but I like to think of 100 EZ is a functional phonics program (with uneven pacing). Based on what it is and how it teaches, I think that completing the 100 lesson program and how you complete the program determines what level you are at.

 

The first 50 lessons builds the foundation in phonemic awareness, blending and symbol-sound relationships that I'd think that stopping there a student has had a firm K-foundation in reading. However, that is also the point where, in my opinion, you SHOULD have the child begin buddy reading from other materials with your support. Even just having children read the word or two that they know in a sentence as you read to them.

 

so 1-50 = K, but 1-50 + daily buddy reading practice from real books gives your child a STRONGER end to "normal" K.

I think that completing the program with buddy reading and some thoughtful scaffolding for leading into lessons 70-87, is what puts a child through to the 2nd grade reading level.

 

The reason why I say 100 EZ has uneven pacingand that you need to apply thoughtful scaffolding leading into lessons 70-87 is because  In 100EZ, the special orthography is dropped in lesson 75 and ALL of the capitals are introduced in lesson 81. That's a span of 6 lessons.

 

If children have done 90% or more of there reading in the 100 EZ program, than that can be a BIG jump to some.

 

So buddy reading words in normal books, spelling dictation with letter magnets or as tying in the reading/writing connection can really help ease the transition.

 

If you're child doesn't know the upper case letters then letter flashcards (1 set of upper case, 1 set of lower case) and begin introducing the upper case letters now. You can introduce 1 or 2 letters at a time, play memory match with them. Write them, practice them in reading, and whatnot. Then when you get to lesson 81, it's not 26 new to them symbols to be internalized without any extra help.

 

This isn't a problem for some children, but it is for others. Some kids will be over whelmed entirely just because there are so many symbols (even though many of them are visually similar) and they'll feel like they need to know them ALL. But that's just my opinion. People have used and loved the program for 40 something years, but I think that 100EZ kinda introduces them quickly and a child who is already familiar with the upper case letters has an easier time with it at that point, than a child who has never heard of them.

 

I think completing JUST 100EZ with no outside reading and not working daily, (depending on how well it worked for your child) could leave them anywhere from early K to 2nd grade reading.

 

But I think that using the program dutifully (almost daily), and completing it all (repeating and doubling back where needed) will leave at any where from the END of K to END of 1st grade. (again, depending on how well it worked for your child).

 

But I think that using the program dutifully (almost daily), buddy reading, supplementing letter/digraphs sounds so that they're all covered and completing the first 50 lessons (repeating/doubling back where needed) will leave you at the END of 1st level. This child will be able to use the phonemic and phonological foundation that they have and their sound/symbol knowledge to tackle any 1 and many 2 syllable words.

 

Obviously, completing the ENTIRE 100 EZ, dutifully (almost daily), buddy reading, scaffolding/preteaching upper case so that they're all pre-exposed by the time you get to lesson 70-87 and buddy reading will leave you at some where between END of 1st and END of 2nd grade level, just depending on how your child took to the program.

 

I like 100 EZ a lot because it is thorough, explicit phonics. A child who learns the fundamental sound-skills it teaches such as blending, rhyming, phonemic awareness, etc, will be ready to soar when they are given more sound-symbols to work with.

 

They know how to blend/decode, so all they need are sound-symbol associations.

[knitgrl]

EZ got the job done at our house, and I had dd read easy readers from the library in conjunction with doing the lessons (almost daily) and she ended up with the ability to read at a late 2nd grade - early 3rd grade level, but her comfort level was with Henry and Mudge books. My daughter learned to read with this program in K, but I didn't like it because I had no clue what to do formally with her after that, so I just let her read and tried to nudge her towards slightly more difficult books. I will be using something else with her siblings.

[WistfulRidge]

100EZ has been a miracle worker for Mr. Engineer but​ we've been working on letter recognition and phonics through other programs for almost 1.5 years. He had all the tools/pieces of reading but he could not, for the life of him, figure out how to string sounds together and 100EZ is what finally got that to click for him. We've finished up the first 20 lessons and the amount of reading growth and confidence I've seen from him in the past 2 months is nothing short of amazing. So from me the program gets a big two thumbs up. I do plan on supplementing it with readers once he's got a better grip on his confidence - which is something I would do anyway, regardless of the spine program used to teach reading.

[RootAnn]

 

 

 

I quoted this, but pulled all the content out. The whole thing was excellent and I agree with 98% of it. All my kids have used 100EZ, but only three have finished the whole thing. All of them had to double-back several times and some had supplemental reading and/or supplemental letter exposure. (The last two watched Leap Frog Letter Factory over & over again.) 

 

Only one was ready to take off in reading when she finished. The others all required lots more practice. I'm not sure any of them was at a fluent 2nd grade level, but one was probably close. I know of others who used it whose kids took off (@ 2nd grade fluency level) at right before or after the lesson where the markings go away.

 

I agree that there is no one point where "1st grade" level is reached. It depends so much on the kid, how you use the program, and any supplementing you are doing.