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Reading curriculum?


Zinnia2
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I am not a new homeschooler, but I am finding myself second guessing myself with this decision.

I have a 2nd grader that has drug her feet about reading for a while, but now she has decided that she would like to do it.  We've worked through AAR Level 1 since August and just finished.  She picks it up quickly, can do one lesson a day, no problem.  If anything, AAR moves a little slow for her.  

Now that we're done, do I move to AAR 2?  Is there a better choice?  She is not reading fluently yet (as in, any book from the library), but she does a good job with any readers with controlled words, and she doesn't mind stumbling through the words she doesn't know in other books.  

My oldest went from this stage to chapter books seamlessly (almost felt like magic, and it happened within a couple of weeks), and my second and third are dyslexic and their own thing.  So I don't have experience with the next step.  

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I would stay the course. Level 2 is where I saw exponential improvement in fluency and level 3 is where they were able to start picking up almost any shorter chapter book and read with ease. We’ve always gone through level 4 and then the library is their oyster. I like to spend the time now and solidify—they really don’t need much, if any, phonics or reading instruction after that. 

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On 12/9/2020 at 12:30 PM, BetsyT said:

My oldest went from this stage to chapter books seamlessly (almost felt like magic, and it happened within a couple of weeks), and my second and third are dyslexic and their own thing.  So I don't have experience with the next step.  

I agree with others to go all the way through. I didn't use AAR because I had something I was more familiar with, but I do have a kid who has mild dyslexia but didn't need a special curriculum and one that was able to take off with not a lot of extra reading instruction. It's quite possible this particular kiddo has some dyslexia traits but not enough to really be diagnosed. That's how my mild dyslexic presented. 

You might also rule out vision issues, just in case. Some kids don't track well or have convergence issues. 

On 12/9/2020 at 12:30 PM, BetsyT said:

She is not reading fluently yet (as in, any book from the library), but she does a good job with any readers with controlled words, and she doesn't mind stumbling through the words she doesn't know in other books.

Allowing her to stumble through words she doesn't know could result in guessing down the road. I would keep going with AAR. 

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I used OPGTR with both of my kids and it was exceptional.  Both were reading on a 4th grade level by the end of the book at the end of 1st grade and neither has issues with reading.  It was easy, thorough, worked in review and got the job done.  We did use the cards for the games along with the book.  They also read books at the times recommended in the OPGTR printout I saved from a few years ago that progressed along with the lessons.  I have those lists of books on my blog if you are interested.

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  • 3 months later...
On 12/17/2020 at 4:09 AM, Classically Minded said:

I used OPGTR with both of my kids and it was exceptional.  Both were reading on a 4th grade level by the end of the book at the end of 1st grade and neither has issues with reading.  It was easy, thorough, worked in review and got the job done.  We did use the cards for the games along with the book.  They also read books at the times recommended in the OPGTR printout I saved from a few years ago that progressed along with the lessons.  I have those lists of books on my blog if you are interested.

I'd like that list of books please!

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I love AAR.  That doesn't mean my kids loved every lesson, but I'd keep going. The readers in AAR 2, 3, and 4 are fantastic and once she can start reading some of the longer stories, I think her confidence will really pick up.  That's what happened with mine.

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