[shelbydog]

Hi! My SIL recommended Hooked on Phonics for our 4 yr old. He knows his letters but not great on the sounds they make yet...and has a very keen interested in reading and books. He has the little pre-k "starter" reading books and is starting to fill in words when I read but it could be from memorization Anyway, the whole HOP program is $250 - eek. So I found some "parts" on Ebay for much cheaper. Does anyone know which books/sections would be the best to get for him? Any recommendations or success stories? Thanks!!

[aniles]

My mom is a 1st grade teacher and she teaches a special phonics program (not HOP, but same idea). Her kids at the end of the year can read ANYTHING that is put in front of them - they might not know what it means, but they can read it. I don't know why they don't teach this way in more places. I can't remember the name of the program (Core education or something like that) but it is national. Just a little success story about phonics - I think it is a fantastic way to learn to read. Good luck!!

As a note - HOP might work as a program where each lesson builds on the last one, so it might be hard to buy just a few, but I"m not sure. Good luck!

[jules17]

My mom has her Ph.D. in Literacy, specifically children's literacy (she has worked with helping kids learn phonics, to read, etc. for 40 years).

If you want, I can ask her what she recommends.

Julie

[CashCrew]

We've used HOP and The Phonics Game and HOP was our favorite. The kids loved it. Another thing that REALLY worked wonders for us is Explode the Code and it's only $6-7/book. You can start wherever your child needs. There are some "pre-code" books and some "post-code" books as well. The pre-code books are phonics. Then levels 1-8 (I think there are 8) are reading. They also have 1/2 books in between in case a child needs extra help with certain sounds before moving up. My oldest son went from only knowing the phonetics to reading full sentences in 20 minutes, literally. Another thing that is really good for some children is Sing, Spell, Read, and Write. It teaches them in a rhyming, singing way. The makers of this also have a math program that's about the same.

[shelbydog]

Thanks everyone - Julie, that would be great! The Explode the Code is wayyyyy cheaper than HOP so I might start with some of those.

[CashCrew]

The pictures in Explode the Code are AWFUL. My 3 yr old could draw them better. But it's really good for the price. Good luck!

[jules17]

I emailed your questions to my mom - we will be out most of today, but I will let you know what she says (she is really good about checking e-mail). Good luck, Julie

[mommytoEli]

As a former Kindergarten teacher, I have to say that anything leap frog is amazing! My 3 year old knows all of his letters and sounds...he learned them in about 2 weeks after watching a LF video on letters...they also have a word one and numbers....plus books, cds, dolls, and flashcards that match. It is very inexpensive and much more fun than hooked on phonics.

[shelbydog]

That's great about Leapfrog and I know plenty of kids who also love their stuff, but unfortunately my son has zero interest in it. We have the videos and the toys. He could care less. I was looking more for something I can do with him that also involves reading, like a project, or 1/2 hour of "school" time here at home. Thank you though! I wish he liked Leapfrog stuff - sounds like it worked great for your little one!

[jules17]

Here is what my mom replied.

"Hooked on Phonics" is a rote program of drill, drill, drill. You can do the same things with sounds around the house, in the grocery store, etc by repeating the sound to the child. Or you can drill with flash cards at the kitchen table when the child seems ready to learn the sounds. This is accomplished at a higher maturation level than identication of letters. If you should buy the "Hooked on Phonics" set a way to repeat and review, I would recommend the basic consonants such as b, d, s, t, h, m, etc. Avoid vowels at age 4--it is a hard concept for 6 year olds. Hope this helps--we want happy readers.

Please don't hesitate to ask if you have any other questions - she LOVES to help people!

Julie

[lisam00]

My niece was having difficulty in K and 1st grade and was part of a specialized class to help her. Her teacher used The Phonics Game. My niece (and the other kids) loved it. I bought it for her to use at home and we were truly amazed at the progress she made in such a short time period. She is now 11 years old. She is a big fan of reading and reads very, very well. I managed to find it used on ebay for much less money.

God bless,
Lisa

[jules17]

I was also going to add that I talked to my mom tonight and she stressed, more than anything, keeping it fun! She said she has seen so many kids dig in their heels when it becomes "school" or "work" - guess it depends on the kiddo.

She said she doesn't "push" HOP because it is ridiculously expensive and pretty basic, really, BUT she said "it has helped many children and I am all for that."

Hope this is helpful to you. Julie

[kerrib]

I hope I am not out of line but I noticed you said your son had trouble with the sounds. I have a niece and nephew (different siblings) who have both needed to see speech therapists at very young ages because they had trouble enunciating (three in both cases). You didn't mention there being any kind of speech problem, but if you haven't had your son evaluated, it might be worth to check. It's nothing that can't be fixed, so I don't mean to alarm you. Again, I hope I didn't offend you by mentioning it, but I thought it might be worthwhile to bring up.

[huganangel]

as a third grade teacher, I see many kids come into my class having been reading since they were 4 or 5. However, they cannot skip, cut with a regular pair of scissors, tell a good joke, etc. Then, in third grade, when things REALLY get meaty, they tend to level out with the other kids yet they still don't have those social/kid skills. What I mean is, kids who normally would be good readers become so and those who are average, regardless of when they began, show themselves to be average. I'm not saying to avoid encouraging your child to be interested in words, sounds, and books, but I am saying that there are many other skills that are best learned at a young age and learning to read early is not the best indicator of future success. Sure, fill your child's world with books, language, etc. but don't forget those "other" childhood skills that will allow him to be physically confident and emotionally and socially self-assured. As for the ability to say certain sounds, there are many kids who make substitutions up to the age of 7. That is considered normal. I, as a teacher, would not put that kind of money into HOP. It's a fine program but there are MANY other things a kid should focus on when they are this young. An enriching environment is great but don't break the bank for it - you won't get enough in return and your child might end up losing out because you feel so obligated to use it. I say this as a teacher and as a student who did not prove to be a great reader until about third grade. This average reader in first grade ended up graduating at the top of my university class of almost 5000. JMHO.

[csw]

There is a great DVD by Leap Frog that has all the sounds the letters make/phonics and she loves it..

Whats interesting is where Ana will attend preschool in the fall (Montessori) they teach them the sounds the letters make, not the name of the letters..they bypass the whole 'ABC' thing..and just go right to the phonics..