LVG Posted March 5, 2021 Share Posted March 5, 2021 My 8 year old DS is still on a K level in reading...well maybe not even a solid K. I would say he is still really a non reader. We use My Fathers World. For 1st grade we used their reading program, which worked well for my daughter. She struggled through 1st, but by the start of 2nd it all clicked and she is an excellent reader now as a 3rd grader. I thought the same pattern was occurring with DS, but at the start of 2nd this year things just never clicked. I started the year with 20 easy lessons to read program, and he made zero progress and hated it. After 6 weeks we changed it up and I started doing my own thing. I’ve watched some info and programs on YouTube using the Ortin Gillingham method, and have created my own thing from that info. We just started at the beginning of letter sounds, and are still on CVC words at this point. I’m just doing lots of games and repetition. We are also using Nessy (when it works), and I’m using where he is on there as a guide to what we are doing for lessons. I really need some basic CVC word book sets for him to read, or maybe even considering investing in another reading program. I’ve been hesitant to invest loads of money into something, worried that it may not work any better than what I’m already doing myself, but at this point I’m willing to try anything! What have you used that has worked well, or do you have any good book sets you would recommend that I can throw into our routine? His dad and grandfather also struggled in reading. His dad repeated 2nd grade because of his difficulty with reading. They did eventually read, and have very successful careers, so I’m not freaking out too bad. I taught special Ed...specifically kids with learning disabilities for 10 years before coming home to be with my own kids. I used SRA reading with them, but I don’t think you can just buy that as a homeschooler since they require training...plus it was pretty boring and dry from what I can remember. It did work well though, but again, I don’t think I can buy that. Just looking for encouragement from others who have had this struggle, and some suggestions to add to what we are doing, or suggestions on programs that really do work well. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lecka Posted March 5, 2021 Share Posted March 5, 2021 If you *wanted* to use SRA, you can check on eBay and you can check at McGraw Hill. I think it’s expensive unless you can find it used and then it can be hard to match editions. I don’t think there is a homeschool edition, but I think you could find it and use it! Check out Barton! https://bartonreading.com 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pen Posted March 5, 2021 Share Posted March 5, 2021 I used High Noon Reading program for my son with great success . I have posted about it many times before - probably easiest to find from an external site search like site:Welltrainedmind.com “High Noon” Pen On google, for example —maybe DuckDuck should bring up some past threads Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pen Posted March 5, 2021 Share Posted March 5, 2021 (edited) http://Www.HighNoonbooks.com reading intervention program plus Sound Out Chapter books (Plus extra options like spelling if you want) Edited March 5, 2021 by Pen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kanin Posted March 5, 2021 Share Posted March 5, 2021 For decodable books, Sound City Reading is an awesome website with free materials. I don't know who made it, or why she's not charging $$, but there are a ton of practice materials on there from CVC on up. I use the materials for reading + spelling practice (as supplements). I've never used her sequence to directly teach reading. I attached a couple examples below. Go to the "PDF files" section of the website. Sound City Reading stories.pdf Short Vowel Workbook.pdf 687670793_SoundCityReading-PracticeforBooks1-4.pdf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kanin Posted March 5, 2021 Share Posted March 5, 2021 If he's still struggling that much at age 8, I'd be assuming he has a phonemic awareness deficit. I'm attaching a video that explains what PA is, and why it's essential for reading. Basically, unless kids are skilled with phonemic awareness tasks (blending, adding, deleting, substituting sounds in words orally, not in print), they won't be able to use the phonics knowledge they're learning. If I were you, I'd read and watch as many videos I could about the role of phonemic awareness in reading. Then, spend a significant portion of your lessons on that, in addition to letter sounds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterPan Posted March 5, 2021 Share Posted March 5, 2021 https://portal.flyleafpublishing.com/instructional-resources/ Very nice free readers. Also I got all the Fountas & Pinnell (not OG obviously) readers through our local teacher college lending library. https://www.smartspeechtherapy.com/free-literacy-resources-for-parents-and-professionals/ Free resources, including links to the MA Rooney Foundation completely free OG program. Given his age, I would do the Barton screener https://bartonreading.com/students/#ss to make sure he is even ready to do OG and I would GET EVALS. There's zero benefit to waiting at this point, and it's really not clear what you're dealing with. You know this, but some kids unwrap and need more. IDA now says diagnose going into 1st, so it's high time. Hearing eval and screening for APD. Any history of speech issues? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirstenhill Posted March 5, 2021 Share Posted March 5, 2021 If you are on Facebook, this group has a lot of great posts with info on decodable books: https://www.facebook.com/groups/decodablebooks People have posted links to books that are always free or free temporarily, plus discussing sets available for purchase. I'll agree too that it makes sense to get an eval. It was so relieving for my youngest to know that there was a REASON why reading was so hard for him, and it made me feel better about spending more than our typical homeschool budget to pursue the instruction he needed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LVG Posted March 5, 2021 Author Share Posted March 5, 2021 Thank you all for your replies!! Very helpful! I will be looking into each of these! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LVG Posted March 5, 2021 Author Share Posted March 5, 2021 Peter Pan- no, he does not have speech issues. I do plan to look into having an eval done. He has a lot of attention issues that have gotten worse this year. Before this year it seemed to be only during reading lessons and read aloud, but now I’m seeing it across the board. I have some supplements and a few diet modifications I’m going to try and see if that helps, but yes I do know an eval is needed asap! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterPan Posted March 6, 2021 Share Posted March 6, 2021 (edited) 4 hours ago, LVG said: supplements There's very little that is evidence based for ADHD. L-tyrosine is a precursor to dopamine, so that can help. There are studies on it and doses necessary to make it comparable to Vyvanse. Not saying I advise that, haha, just saying there are studies on it. Have you ever checked for retained reflexes? They're the kind of subtle thing that affects behavior, making it uncomfortable to sit, to write, etc. You can look on youtube for tests. The system that was successful for my ds was from Pyramid of Potential but I'm not sure if it's still around, sigh. Primitive/neonatal reflexes integrate before vision, postural, etc. so there can be a bit of a cascade. Sometimes academic inattention is from undiagnosed developmental vision issues. It's just a piece to watch, especially if he does anything odd with his eyes like saying he has trouble focusing, leaning to a side, etc. You're saying it has gotten *worse* this year and I'm suggesting you could be seeing the effect of something else as well (reflexes, vision, whatever) that is becoming more apparent as demands increase. Edited March 6, 2021 by PeterPan 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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