Guest Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 Are these good beginning (4yr. old) read alouds? (No one throw tomatoes at me...this is a new stage for us! :)) I did a search and can't figure out if you think they're twaddle or not. :001_huh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melinda Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 I dunno, but my kids love them. Reading them has directed their interest toward things like knights and ancient Egypt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmoira Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 I personally wouldn't use them as read alouds; the vocabulary and sentence structure are too simple. However, I think they're a good choice for beginning readers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudoMom Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 I personally wouldn't use them as read alouds; the vocabulary and sentence structure are too simple. However, I think they're a good choice for beginning readers. What she said. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CKaye Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 My ds started reading Magic Tree House books in first grade and then I encouraged him read the Wizard of Oz when I thought he was ready. He realized the difference in the books on his own. Also in the SOTW Activity book SWB reccomends reading Magic Tree House #16 "Hour of the Olympics". I did like that each book was based on something from history. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom2boys Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 I read the first couple of books aloud to my boys as first graders, which got them interested in reading the series on their own (my goal). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen in PA Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 I read a few of them aloud to dd, which set her up to read the others on her own. I am not sure there is any harm in reading them aloud, but they are HARD to read because of the short, choppy sentences. Essentially, the very writing that makes them easy for emergent readers makes them almost intolerable when you try to read them aloud. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 JMO -- Our boys read Magic Tree House on their own, as a gentle step into independent reading. I wouldn't call them "twaddle" -- rather, I consider them "snack food" books -- fine in small amounts, just make sure they're also reading nourishing good books, too. For read alouds, I'd recommend saving the Magic Tree House books for kids to enjoy later on their own, and focus on all the wonderful children's picture books and children's literature out there. Some ideas for great books to read aloud: - 1000 Good Books list: http://www.classical-homeschooling.org/celoop/1000-primary.html - Sonlight PreK-3/4 book list: http://www.sonlight.com/read-alouds-p-3-4.html - Sonlight PreK-4/5 book list: http://www.sonlight.com/read-alouds-p-4-5.html - Sonlight Kinder book list: http://www.sonlight.com/read-alouds-k.html - Ambleside Online Kinder book list: http://amblesideonline.org/00.shtml Enjoy your reading journey together! Warmest regards, Lori D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tajott Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 they aren't bad, just not very interesting. I hated reading these aloud...snore... They are wonderful as first steps in chapter books, and for older kids as an introduction to an new history subject. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Haiku Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 Absolutely they are twaddle. Formulaic, not great literature by any stretch of the imagination, and fairly poor sentence construction (especially in the first few). However! They are also fabulously entertaining for little kids, and they served as a springboard for countless explorations of topics for my kids. Half the reason my kids love science and history is because of MTH books, in my opinion. I am generally not a fan of twaddle, but I think the MTH are priceless for their ability to give little kids a window into so many fantastic topics. My kids still remember things they learned from MTH three years ago. When we encounter something in our history studies that the kids read about in MTH, they are beside themselves with excitement. I give them a hearty and enthusiastic thumbs up! :D Tara Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karen in CO Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 What she said. Yep - what they said They are perfect beginning chapter books. My dh read them to my older dd for a while when she was younger. However we soon discivered that they are much better saved for beginning readers. It won't hurt your children to read them to them either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rafiki Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lulubelle Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 I really like them. We listened to them all in the car - I bought them all on cd. Mostly over a year ago and my kids would listen to them over and over and pick the one's they liked most to hear. They were 3 1/2 and 5 at the time. I didn't care about sentence structure, I just wanted them to listen to something fun and interesting. My kids now know a lot about history due to them. I think historical fiction is great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmoira Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 They are perfect beginning chapter books. We're finding their repetitive language and predictable sentence structure also make them good foreign language readers. One day a week, DD the Elder and I work through a few paragraphs of MTH en español. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melenie Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 Absolutely they are twaddle. Formulaic, not great literature by any stretch of the imagination, and fairly poor sentence construction (especially in the first few). However! They are also fabulously entertaining for little kids, and they served as a springboard for countless explorations of topics for my kids. Half the reason my kids love science and history is because of MTH books, in my opinion. I am generally not a fan of twaddle, but I think the MTH are priceless for their ability to give little kids a window into so many fantastic topics. My kids still remember things they learned from MTH three years ago. When we encounter something in our history studies that the kids read about in MTH, they are beside themselves with excitement. I give them a hearty and enthusiastic thumbs up! :D Tara :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katemary63 Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 I personally wouldn't use them as read alouds; the vocabulary and sentence structure are too simple. However, I think they're a good choice for beginning readers. :iagree::iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tree House Academy Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 I think if your 4 y/o can get interested in them, they are great read-alouds. Just make sure you know the oreder of them and don't read out of the 6 book sequence for each set. Otherwise, I can see a younger child getting really confused. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jesiwins Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 I agree that yes, they are twaddle, but my kids love them!! I do not count them as our read alouds that *I* want u sto read but we read them in addition. I usually have my mom or husband read them so I don't have to, I know a cop out, but really they don't know any better. Also, I will say that I have been enjoying using the MTH Research Guides to augment our science work. For instance right now we are going to start studying the polar regions next week and I have the reserch guides for Polar bears and Emperor Penguins. We'll pick and choose a few chapters in each to read. I like them for clear presentation of non fiction writing with out relying on fullcolor illustrations. They are not a spine by any means, but a very nice addition in my opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In the Rain Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 I agree with those who suggest saving them for a young reader. I would read them aloud only to spark interest for my daughter to finish the book. Kids love to immerse themselves in that type of series when they really take off with their reading. IMHO, your 4yo would probably enjoy hearing them, but there are probably other books that you would find more entertaining to read aloud. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lionfamily1999 Posted February 28, 2009 Share Posted February 28, 2009 Ds enjoys them well enough and it gives him something for his free reading that usually goes along with what we're doing in history. They actually have pretty good 'field guides' too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricaB Posted February 28, 2009 Share Posted February 28, 2009 My son really enjoys the audio Magic Tree House books and has been getting them since he was 4 1/2. I also started the Secrets of Droon series that he loves. I read one book a week and he can't wait for the next one. They are similar to Magic Tree House, but perhaps more interesting and not as complicated. Erica Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hitech Posted February 28, 2009 Share Posted February 28, 2009 I've always heard that theses are not quality reading. Suzanne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reya Posted February 28, 2009 Share Posted February 28, 2009 Are these good beginning (4yr. old) read alouds? (No one throw tomatoes at me...this is a new stage for us! :)) I did a search and can't figure out if you think they're twaddle or not. :001_huh: Good for beginning readers because they're so easy and "topical." TOTAL twaddle, with appalling writing and research, both. Very dumbed-down language, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest sarathan Posted February 28, 2009 Share Posted February 28, 2009 I personally wouldn't use them as read alouds; the vocabulary and sentence structure are too simple. However, I think they're a good choice for beginning readers. I agree! I'm reading these aloud right now to my oldest ds and they are sooo annoying to read aloud. But he loves them so I just grin and bear it. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissel Posted February 28, 2009 Share Posted February 28, 2009 I read the first couple of books aloud to my boys as first graders, which got them interested in reading the series on their own (my goal). ITA. I read a few of them aloud to dd, which set her up to read the others on her own. I am not sure there is any harm in reading them aloud, but they are HARD to read because of the short, choppy sentences. Essentially, the very writing that makes them easy for emergent readers makes them almost intolerable when you try to read them aloud. And ITA. We're finding their repetitive language and predictable sentence structure also make them good foreign language readers. One day a week, DD the Elder and I work through a few paragraphs of MTH en español. And WHAT a great idea! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmoira Posted February 28, 2009 Share Posted February 28, 2009 We're finding their repetitive language and predictable sentence structure also make them good foreign language readers. One day a week, DD the Elder and I work through a few paragraphs of MTH en español. And WHAT a great idea! As soon as preterite tense (simple past) tense has been covered, MTH awaits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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