What to do after Alpha-Phonics?

[Medieval Mom]

My ds will finish Alpha-Phonics in 10 short lessons. He's currently reading Frog and Toad. I feel he needs more phonics instruction, however. Any suggestions? OPGTR? :confused:

[Alana in Canada]

Don't shoot me, but this is where we turned to SWR.

 

But you may not need it! Try looking over the Sonligt lists for beginning readers. These books are great for developing fluency as well:

 

Henry and Mudge books

Mr. Putter and Tabby pour the Tea (and others)

Caps for Sale

Little Bear (and others)

Madeline

Curious George

Amelia Bedelia

 

You may also want to try the Elson readers or the McGuffeys.

[ElizabethB]

OPG, PP or, my personal favorite and free:

 

Webster's Speller! (linked below)

 

You could also add in a phonetic spelling program if you decide to go with OPG or PP (or even if you go with Webster's Speller, it teaches mostly by pattern, not by spelling rules, at some point most children will need a rule based spelling program.)

[Medieval Mom]

Don't shoot me, but this is where we turned to SWR.

 

But you may not need it! Try looking over the Sonligt lists for beginning readers. These books are great for developing fluency as well:

 

Henry and Mudge books

Mr. Putter and Tabby pour the Tea (and others)

Caps for Sale

Little Bear (and others)

Madeline

Curious George

Amelia Bedelia

 

You may also want to try the Elson readers or the McGuffeys.

 

Thanks! We've read these books, and we're currently about half-way through McGuffey's First Reader. I'm glad to know someone else is using them! I was just thinking we might need more phonics instruction. I'll check out SWR. :)

[Medieval Mom]

OPG, PP or, my personal favorite and free:

 

Webster's Speller! (linked below)

 

You could also add in a phonetic spelling program if you decide to go with OPG or PP (or even if you go with Webster's Speller, it teaches mostly by pattern, not by spelling rules, at some point most children will need a rule based spelling program.)

 

Dear Elizabeth,

 

1. Do you personally use PP as written (doing the writing instruction), or just orally?

 

2. I have McGuffey's Eclectic Spelling Book. Do you think I could use this instead of Webster's?

 

3. If you use either McGuffey's or Webster's, what spelling program do you recommend? (I was planning on using McGuffey's...)

 

4. Which do you feel goes further with phonics: PP or OPG?

 

Thanks!:)

[ElizabethB]

 

1. Do you personally use PP as written (doing the writing instruction), or just orally?

 

2. I have McGuffey's Eclectic Spelling Book. Do you think I could use this instead of Webster's?

 

3. If you use either McGuffey's or Webster's, what spelling program do you recommend? (I was planning on using McGuffey's...)

 

4. Which do you feel goes further with phonics: PP or OPG?

 

Thanks!:)

 

I don't use PP as written (I don't use anything as written, but this is especially true of phonics programs, since I've been using a variety of them for 15 years!) I just use it for areas where my daughter needs a little more work, or areas where she needs to learn the spelling rules. We just practice reading and spelling words in the areas she doesn't have the sounds or spellings down pat.

 

You can use McGuffey's instead of Webster's, just follow my Webster instructions below, but use McGuffey instead.

 

I just did spelling with Webster's in K, but this year I added in a few of the rules from PP and rules I know from my phonics teaching. If you feel confident in your ability to make your own program, you could teach from "The ABC's and All Their Tricks" and PP, otherwise most people here seem to like AAS best for rule based programs, it has very detailed instructions.

 

PP and OPG teach to about the same level. I personally like PP better because it has less distractions on the page for me--I don't need detailed instructions after teaching it for so long. My friends who don't have a strong phonics background seem to like OPG for its detailed instructions.

[Alana in Canada]

If you have already read those books and are 1/2 way through McGuffey's 1st--I don't think you need SWR! SWR is a very large unwieldly cannon. It sounds as if you can use the gentler approach ElizabethB recommends. (In fact, it sounds quite appealing to me.)

[Medieval Mom]

Thanks for the advice! I just ordered PP through the library and am using McGuffey's Spelling with ds now. We play a "word game" where I type a hypenated word on the computer (in 100pt. font), and he reads it. He thinks it's great fun, and has only been stumped once or twice out of dozens of words. Maybe he needs less instruction than I thought! Hah! :lol: I think we'll keep playing this "game" for a while, and reinforce phonics through spelling next year in first (which we'll begin in July). I'll check out AAS. Thanks for all the suggestions!

[ElizabethB]

Here's some books already hyphenated for you!

 

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

[Gillian on Orcas Island]

Good advice so far, just wanted to add that we used - and really liked - the Dynamic Phonics Learning Book, from McRuffy Press, after Alphaphonics and/or Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons:

 

http://www.mcruffy.com/SupPhonics.htm#DynamicPhonics

 

It covers the same phonics lessons as their full grade-level programs, for grades K, 1 and 2...so it takes you further in phonics than those early primers. It's different from, and way less expensive than their grade level packages because it's just the phonics lessons without any associated readers, spelling lists, handwriting practice, etc. I think that Rainbow Resource has a good review of it, let' see,

 

http://www.rainbowresource.com/product/Dynamic+Phonics+Learning+Book/032705/1237947452-194667

 

Yep, and it's only $13.75 there!

[Linda...inOwasso]

The purpose of phonics is to teach reading; your son is reading so you don't need more phonics instruction.

 

I used Alpha-Phonics w/ my 4 year old dd and she read BOB books, Mr. Putter & Tabby, Poppleton, etc... along the way. Once she completed AP, I bought her the hard back set of 4 books "Pooh's Library" by A.A. Milne. She loved them. And so did I.

 

Of course, she stumbled now and then on a word and still does, but she loves to read and that's the goal. She's currently reading A Mouse Called Wolf by Dick King-Smith. Anything by Dick King-Smith is good.

 

My point is: don't extend phonics instruction because of his age. You've done an excellent job teaching him. Now kick back and enjoy listening to him read the good stuff. :)

[Medieval Mom]

The purpose of phonics is to teach reading; your son is reading so you don't need more phonics instruction.

 

I used Alpha-Phonics w/ my 4 year old dd and she read BOB books, Mr. Putter & Tabby, Poppleton, etc... along the way. Once she completed AP, I bought her the hard back set of 4 books "Pooh's Library" by A.A. Milne. She loved them. And so did I.

 

Of course, she stumbled now and then on a word and still does, but she loves to read and that's the goal. She's currently reading A Mouse Called Wolf by Dick King-Smith. Anything by Dick King-Smith is good.

 

My point is: don't extend phonics instruction because of his age. You've done an excellent job teaching him. Now kick back and enjoy listening to him read the good stuff. :)

 

Hah! You mean I'm THERE??? Yippee!!! :hurray:

 

I'll continue playing our "word game", as he calls it, until we tire of it, since he's having such a blast. I'm choosing words from PP and McGuffey, then typing them on a large font on the computer as he sits by my side. He reads the word, I erase it, and we continue. But so far everything I've printed on the computer for him to read, he's read just fine. I guess he knows more than I think he does!

 

Phew! Thanks for the advice! I'm new at this;)