Help w/curriculum particulary phonics

[Livingfate]

I have a 5,4, and 2 yr old. I have ordered:

 

Mathusee

Peterson directed handwriting

LHFHG

 

My dd who is 5 is really stubborn when it comes to schooling. She gets bored very easy. I still need to pick a phonics program which I'm really struggling with. I want something I can use with my 4 yr old as well which is way I have LHFHG. My dd knows her letters upper and lower case, and knows the sounds they make. My son almost all that. But thats as far as they know right now. My son is a VERY active little boy, and attention span can be an issue. My dd gets fustrated and bored easily.

 

Can someone provide me with more info or links on the whole spalding/orton-gillingham pro/con thing as well.

 

Do I need to incorporate anything else as well? We do cooking, nature walks, zoos, gocery shopping etc..as well

 

Thanks :)

[Karen sn]

What is LHFHG?

So many times people on here post all these letters and I am SOOOOO lost.

[Aurelia]

We use and like ABeCeDarian - it doesn't have nearly as much repetition as Explode the Code (something that drove my daughter to tears), but covers reading by sound - like in one unit all the sounds of "or" are covered - ore, or, our, etc. This has been very good at teaching Ariel blending and segmenting, so she can sound out unfamiliar words with minimal difficulty.

 

You might also look at All About Spelling. It teaches all the sounds for each letter, like the letter A says "a," "ay" and "ah." It also doesn't require a lot of writing, you use letter tiles and flash cards for teaching and review.

[Livingfate]

What is LHFHG?

So many times people on here post all these letters and I am SOOOOO lost.

 

Little hearts for his glory

[Ellie]

Here's the link for Spalding Education International.

[muffinmom]

We love McRuffy's, though I have only used the 1st grade book, not K. For K I used Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons.

 

http://www.mcruffy.com/KP.htm

[Hen]

have you looked at Headsprout phonics? It is online, but it will keep your kid's interest. I was teaching 3 kids to read this year, and doing individual phonics lessons from a book was getting to be too much for me, and the kids were bored, I was bored. We are around lessons 54 for two kids and lesson 43 for the other...they are coming along beautifully. I just started adding in All about spelling, which also had phonics. You can try free lessons over at headsprouts. I tried one myself, and then watched 2 of my kids push eachother out of the way to have a turn, I was sold.

[dcjlkplus3]

I really have liked using Ordinary Parents Guide to Teaching Reading. The lessons are short and to the point. Once they know the sounds, they start reading actual sentences and can read Bob Books by lesson 30 or so (the first 26 lessons are letters and their sounds. It took us two years (kindergarten and 1st grade) to go through it with my 1st daughter, and just started in Sept with my 2nd.

I also really looked at Phonics Pathways. I liked it and would have gotten it if OPGTR hadn't come out.

I was able to check them both out from library to see what worked before I bought OPGTR.

[The Governess]

We used Hooked on Phonics and dd4 loved it. The lessons are fairly short and after almost every one there is a new book that they can read all by themselves. This, along with the progress charts that come with the program, really motivated dd to learn to read. If your dd knows all her letter sounds then she would be ready to start the program. There is no writing involved so the curriculum would be reusable for all your kids.

 

I hope you find something that works for you!!

[Amber in AUS]

We are using a multi pronged approach -

 

100 EZ lessons which if they bore quickly might not suit although in saying that my DD bores easily but she will do this because she can see she is learning to read so is driven to continue IYKWIM.

 

Explode the Code this one does bore my DD but it is solid so we now colour the pics, use letter tiles on the fridge to 'write' words and generally try to mix it up and make it a little more fun.

 

Webster's Speller this is excellent and has really built on the foundation from 100EZ. We do this on the white board to keep it fun and engaging. DD never complains about this.

 

HTH

[hsingscrapper]

I really have liked using Ordinary Parents Guide to Teaching Reading. The lessons are short and to the point. Once they know the sounds, they start reading actual sentences and can read Bob Books by lesson 30 or so (the first 26 lessons are letters and their sounds. It took us two years (kindergarten and 1st grade) to go through it with my 1st daughter, and just started in Sept with my 2nd.

I also really looked at Phonics Pathways. I liked it and would have gotten it if OPGTR hadn't come out.

I was able to check them both out from library to see what worked before I bought OPGTR.

 

:iagree: I'll second that. My youngest is only 5. We started a year ago last month and he can already read at almost a 2nd grade level.

[Jen the RD]

Ellie posted the Spalding site, but I thought I'd recommend checking your library for the Writing Road to Reading (5th ed) by Romalda Spalding. This book thoroughly explains all the research and how to implement the program. It is an excellent program.

 

One thing about your 5yo. If she's "stubborn" about "school", she may not be ready to actually begin "school". Fun reading aloud, coloring, crafts, informal math are all ways to prepare for more "school related" subjects and make it more fun and appealing until she's a little more settled. Just a thought....

 

Jennifer

[ElizabethB]

Whatever you decide to use, I'd try working from a white board. We did that with Webster's Speller, my daughter really enjoyed working from the white board a lot more than from a book. We never worked more than 10 minutes a day, but that got her reading out of the KJV Bible by the end of the year.

 

My 3 (then 2) year old got his own white board, too, he loved drawing on it. That was a bad plan for the couch, but it's old anyway, and it made school go better.

 

Webster's Speller is actually a good choice for a 4 year old, it's easier for them to learn to blend with 2 letters than with 3.

 

Here's a fun game you can play with them once they start to get the hang of blending letters together:

 

http://www.thephonicspage.org/On%20Phonics/concentrationgam.html

 

Also, here's my generic advice for teaching a beginner to read:

 

http://www.thephonicspage.org/On%20Reading/newstudents.html

[ChildofGrace]

Hope you don't mind if I throw the idea of Alphabet Island into the mix, as well.:001_smile:

 

It is a little pricey to start, but the TM (which is the bulk of the cost) is reusable and one would only need to purchase an inexpensive workbook for additional children. The initial lessons introduce the "characters" of Alphabet Island, so you could probably move very quickly through those. I've used A.I. with all six of my dc, and all said they loved it. It utilizes songs, poems and games, so many children really enjoy the lessons. Plus, it includes activities for varied types of learners, (kinetic/audio/visual) so one can easily eliminate anything that doesn't particularly meet your needs.

 

Just thought maybe another option might be nice.

[Lisa Kjeld...in CA]

I love TATRAS which you can find at http://www.verticalphonics.com I've used this with preschoolers and they do very well! The author could not be more helpful in answering questions personally.

 

There's a lot of helpful information on his website that compares various phonics methods that might be helpful to read as you make your decision. It sounds like you're off to a great start!

 

Joy!

Lisa

[Lovedtodeath]

My choice for phonics is in my signature. AAS is OG based, but it is for spelling. This is the original OG reading program. It includes handwriting as well from what I can tell.

 

I have used Accelerated Achievement, My Father's World, Abeka, Ordinary Parent's Guide.

 

If you want an inexpensive route, you can get the Accelerated Achievement Demo disk for $3 at hs-treasures.com (i may have that link a little off). It has everything you need for teaching reading. It is just as good as anything else I have tried, and it is mostly playing games, so your DD would probably like it.

[Livingfate]

My choice for phonics is in my signature. AAS is OG based, but it is for spelling. This is the original OG reading program. It includes handwriting as well from what I can tell.

 

 

AAG is the original reading program?

[Livingfate]

Thankyou for all the replies. Yesterday was my first day here on the forum and I learned a ton! You guys are great. I have a 2 yr old in the mix as well that will sit in and absorb what we do as well but he's to young so I don't do anything formal with him.

 

I will look into all the suggestions, thankyou. I though math was hard! I never knew there were so many different methods and ways to teach LA.:confused: I just want to get it right from the start and not mess things up. I don't have the support for HS'ing. My dh is fine with it I guess, but no one else supports my decision to HS which makes it even more important that we suceed.

[hsingscrapper]

I just want to get it right from the start and not mess things up. I don't have the support for HS'ing. My dh is fine with it I guess, but no one else supports my decision to HS which makes it even more important that we suceed.

 

Don't worry so much about it. Our families weren't exactly on board either. Week after week at Sunday dinner, there were suggestions to give public school "one more chance" from his side of the family. My mom screamed in my ear on the phone at first. You stick with it. Try not to discuss frustrations with your extended family at first. If they're not on board, they may jump to conclusions that it isn't working. We're here to help you through them. By all means, share your successes with them. Keep it positive and they'll eventually hop on board. Until then, we're all here for you!

[Lovedtodeath]

AAG is the original reading program?

 

Orton-Gillingham is the original Multi-Sensory phonics program. WRTR, SWR, The Phonics Road, AAS, and other highly recommended programs (Alpha-phonics is another good one) all branched out from there some way or another, and some of them had add-ons that I personally feel just confuse things for teacher and student.

 

Sensational Strategies for Teaching Beginning Readers™

Orton-Gillingham, the original Multi-sensory phonics program

 

It is important that you get a phonics program that does not rely on whole word, and does not use strategies that confuse the left to right progression (like ending blends). There has been some talk recently of some that have given trouble, so be sure to do a search on your choice, or let us know what it is so that we can tell you if we have had any trouble with it.

Edited February 13, 2009 by Lovedtodeath

[Jumping In Puddles]

I really like ABeCeDarian too. It has been very effective for my 5 year old (who hated, and would cry when I brought out OPGTR!)

 

He can actually spell too and I'm not doing a separate spelling program. Just yesterday he wrote me a note that said "I hate Laurens Puzul" It was the hate that I was a little surprised at... (not happy about the sentiment though!) we haven't covered the uh sound yet, so he has no idea how to spell that!

 

(another note was "I wnt lunch and dzrt please") I had no idea he could spell lunch or please!

[Livingfate]

Ugh my head has been spinning since yesterday! After all this reading and research, I have now learned that LA apparently is a weak point of mine. I am bilingual as well. I was taught Portuguese as my first language and didn't really know any english until mid 1st grade.

 

I was taught LA more on sight vs the vertical method and I defiently do not want to go that route w/my dc. I am not a strong speller, and I hated speaking and reading out loud. I was in speech services throughout grade school. My ds who is 4 has been stuttering since last oct ish since we moved. My dd could bear to speak a bit more clearly. So speech in itself is something that I want to work on, since its a weak point of mine I like how I believe its spalding that has the underlining, numbering etc of the words. I have ordered Peterson directed handwriting so I really don't want a program really heavy on writing since I have a seperate one. I looked over Phonics Road- I like how it comes with the DVD that pretty much walks you through things since I do tend to mispronounce things I think I DVD would help alot on that aspect...ugh....

[momofabcd]

I'm going to go against all the rave reviews of Headsprout. I used it with my first two dc before I knew much about true phonics vs phoney phonics programs that use whole words. The first 40 lessons are very good at teaching blending, and dc catch on to blending with ease which is the biggest hurdle to overcome when learning how to read. However, the last 40 lesssons rely heavily on word memorization (whole word). Neither of my dc were reading at a 2nd grade level when they were done with the lessons. I went on to teach MFW 1st grade to my dd, who is now a good reader. But my ds went on to use BJU materials in a christian school, which also teaches a lot of sight words. I am having to remediate him now. I'm using Webster's Speller, ElizabethB's online lessons and AAS and it's working wonderfully.

Whatever you choose, choose a program that does not teach any/a lot of sight words. The orton/gillingham based methods are top notch imo.

Deena

[ElizabethB]

Thankyou for all the replies. Yesterday was my first day here on the forum and I learned a ton! You guys are great. I have a 2 yr old in the mix as well that will sit in and absorb what we do as well but he's to young so I don't do anything formal with him.

 

I will look into all the suggestions, thankyou. I though math was hard! I never knew there were so many different methods and ways to teach LA.:confused: I just want to get it right from the start and not mess things up. I don't have the support for HS'ing. My dh is fine with it I guess, but no one else supports my decision to HS which makes it even more important that we suceed.

 

My mom was a bit skeptical about the whole homeschooling thing, after working through Webster's Speller my daughter could read amazingly well in K, my mom started warming up to the whole homeschooling thing and bragging that her granddaugter could read War and Peace.

 

(She could probably sound most of it out, but she would get bored after 1 sentence. I confess I tried to read it and didn't get much further than that, myself, and I love to read and have read many long and challenging books, I just couldn't get into this one.

[FO4UR]

Thankyou for all the replies. Yesterday was my first day here on the forum and I learned a ton! You guys are great. I have a 2 yr old in the mix as well that will sit in and absorb what we do as well but he's to young so I don't do anything formal with him.

 

I will look into all the suggestions, thankyou. I though math was hard! I never knew there were so many different methods and ways to teach LA.:confused: I just want to get it right from the start and not mess things up. I don't have the support for HS'ing. My dh is fine with it I guess, but no one else supports my decision to HS which makes it even more important that we suceed.

 

My dc are 6, 3, and 2 -I totally understand the juggling toddlers in the mix:tongue_smilie:

 

Don't let other's thoughts about your decision to HS have ANY influence on your methods/schedule/curriculum;)

 

As long as you consistantly teach little-by-little daily, using a good phonics program, your dc will read. Go to your library and see if they have Writing Road to Reading, Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading, Phonics Pathways. My library carries these. Actually sitting down and trying a few lessons will give you a good idea on what will/won't work for you.