I think teaching young ones to read is very frustrating and this week has really been no different. I have been working with my kindergartner in the book, How to Teach Your Child To Read In 100 Easy Lessons.
The first half of the book started off well. C. really enjoyed it. He looked forward to it and you could see his face light up as he read words and short stories. For so long I was thankful that I stuck with it, instead of going back to A Beka with which I used to teach D. how to read.
I do remember D. being slow at first. It was really quite painful. I guess I am just not that patient of a person and I struggled with teaching D. to read. I finally tried allowing her to read in her room at night by herself---as a "reward." It worked and within a short time, her reading took off.
I kept thinking the same would happen with C. I know he knows all his letters. For Pre-K last year, we worked through the Get Ready, Get Set, Go for the Phonics books. He loved them and did very well.
As we continued moving along, the slowness was getting worse. Worse, I tell ya! So I ordered Explode the Code book 1 to reinforce what he was learning. Problem is, Explode the Code 1 is really a review. He knows all of it, but review is good. The real problem began when C. had to go from reading words written the funky way to being written the normal way. If he read the word "JAKE" for example in the "Teach Your Child" book written their special way, the A would have a line over it - showing that it was a long "A" sound. Then the E would be written very small. He could read that. But then you show it to him written the normal way, "Jake" he couldn't do it.
I was really starting to get frustrated. On Tuesday, during cheerleading practice, my friend and I did what any moms would do while their daughters were practicing cheerleading and the other kids were home with dad---we went to Lifeway! Just to browse....shop....explore....- I love Lifeway (well, most of it anyway). On the drive there, I was telling her all about my frustrations with teaching C. to read. So she says, "Yeah, we gave up on that book. It is too complicated."
Then she went on to say that some of it near the end is written at a higher grade level (or at least she thought it was) and to put it up. Yes, put it up! It isn't working, so put it up! Why didn't I think of that!!!????
Sometimes I get so caught up in "teaching" that I forget to teach! I homeschool because when I see something not working, I can adjust it. I can re-work it. I can fix it. I can change. I am not stuck with a book provided by a school that if it doesn't work, oh well. I homeschool because I want what is absolute best for my children.
She was right. It was time to shelve the book and move on to something else. My friend mentioned that the "How to Teach" book doesn't really go over the phonics rules. Of course C. didn't know that A says its name if an E is at the end because he wasn't taught that rule of Phonics. He wasn't taught blends. He was taught to read with funky letters and lines over long vowels.
I started looking through new phonics programs. My friend suggested to simply get him some books and allow him to read. Dick and Jane books for example. I went through my books and pulled out some old A Beka K5 readers. He sat down and read them fine. He enjoyed finishing a book. He needed some help along the way but for the most part did really well. I remember how boring and dry I thought A Beka was when I did it with D. Now I have T. next to teach reading too and I might just go back to A Beka for her.
Our homeschool convention is in May. I would like to go and look and phonics programs. A Beka will be there so I can always order directly from them for T. And I know that IF I go with A Beka and T. doesn't do well with it, I can shelve it, sell it, eBay it....whatever......but I can change and make school work for us!
Yes, I do love Homeschooling. I just need to be reminded of it once in a while.
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