Sunshyne Posted January 2, 2009 Share Posted January 2, 2009 I previously homeschooled my oldest son, but he has been in school for the past year and a half. My youngest started regular kindergarten last year, and has never really done homeschool. However, his first grade teacher is so far below any standard, that we have decided to bring him home for the rest of the year. Cayden is reading beginner books. He can get through Green Eggs and Ham, and most of the time will catch silent e words and dipthongs. I admit to having trouble with my oldest when it came to reading. I think some of it is attributed to my profound hearing loss. But, I certainly don't want to slow Cayden down, and in fact would like to give him a good push in reading because he's almost *there*. What would be the best way to go about this? Just reading together? A very specific phonetic approach? I do own Phonics Pathways, but am not sure exactly how to incorporate this on a day to day basis... Any feedback or suggestions you have would be greatly appreciated! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaxMom Posted January 2, 2009 Share Posted January 2, 2009 In my experience - and I know others' differ - once the kids are already reading the beginner level books, a stand-alone phonics program is superfluous. In my house, pushing it only serves to make the kids mad. Reading together, and independently, seems to be a much better plan, at least for us, particularly adding more challenging books to read together, with me giving help with unfamiliar pronunciations. If you have trouble catching phonetic errors, can your husband read with him a bit, too, just to make sure? Story time and homeschool book clubs at the library have been great for us in challenging the kids, but I suspect that has a lot to do with the individual librarian leading the pack. Welcome back to homeschooling! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcconnellboys Posted January 2, 2009 Share Posted January 2, 2009 We just read a page of PP per day, then read a graded reader of some sort. I started with Bob books and after going through all those series moved into other series that my library carried. Yes, I think that some exposure to phonics, plus just lots of practice, is all it takes for many children. Good luck on your journey, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunshyne Posted January 2, 2009 Author Share Posted January 2, 2009 Thanks for the affirmation. I really was thinking along these lines myself, but just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing something. :P His dad will be helping with reading, and we'll do a little PP on the side. I think it'll fill in any gaps we may have missed or he hasn't caught along the way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chiguirre Posted January 3, 2009 Share Posted January 3, 2009 You could also use spelling as a check to make sure he's learning his phonics. Spelling Workout doesn't take much time or you could do Explode the Code which is a phonics workbook program, but includes some spelling. You wouldn't need to spend more than 5-10 minutes a day with either of these options. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudoMom Posted January 3, 2009 Share Posted January 3, 2009 You could also use spelling as a check to make sure he's learning his phonics. Spelling Workout doesn't take much time or you could do Explode the Code which is a phonics workbook program, but includes some spelling. You wouldn't need to spend more than 5-10 minutes a day with either of these options. I was going to suggest Explode the Code. You ds can do it without having to read it aloud, and you can easily tell if he read everything correctly by his answers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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