Phonics & Spelling Curriculum Reviews

Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading

I have taught two kids how to read using this simple one-and-done guide. It really helped me to understand how words are formed and gave me the confidence to be able to present the material easily without having any background with teaching phonics. It is truly open-and-go. 

Pros:

• No teacher preparation required! Sit on the couch with your kid, open the book and read what it says. 
• Nothing else to buy-- just one (inexpensive) teacher's manual that you can use again and again.
• Assumes the child doesn't know anything at all about reading, so it starts from the very beginning and builds slowly with plenty of review.

Cons:

• Sometimes I felt like it was not enough. It may not work for kids that need a multi-sensory learning experience. There was nothing hands-on, no worksheets to "reinforce" what we had learned. Occasionally I would type one of the short "stories" out and add a few clip-art pictures and make it into a Power Point presentation to read on the tablet, just to change things up. I also found myself going online a lot and printing out games or other activities that go with it. This isn't really necessary, and I'm seeing that even more as I am working with a third child on phonics, but sometimes you might want something to mix things up a bit.

Logic of English Foundations 

So even though I did love The Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading, I didn't feel like it would work for my third born. She is not a natural reader and struggles blending letters together to make words. OPGTR assumes that once the child knows the sound of each letter, it is simple just for them to put them together to make words. I also felt she needed something a little more interactive and hands-on. So I thought I would try out Logic of English, through the recommendation of several other homeschool moms. 

Looking back on our experience with it, I really did enjoy the curriculum. I thought it was thorough, fun, and fairly easy to use. However, I don't know that it's all necessary. I think the beauty of OPGTR is that it's simple, as teaching phonics should be. There was so many different bells and whistles with LOE that it was almost too much. It took us a whole year to get through Level A (I think they recommend two levels per year) and my 3rd born is still not reading where a kindergartner should read. I don't blame this completely on the curriculum. I think we have some other issues to work through. I'm just still not sure that spending all that money on games and flashcards and all that comes with the program is actually a necessity.

Pros:

• Very hands-on, plenty of worksheets, easy readers & games to re-inforce what you've learned. It's colorful and fun and the worksheets are not overwhelming.
• Thorough: includes spelling, handwriting, and reading instruction (the upper levels also include grammar, although we only used Level A)
• Starts at the very beginning, teaching the child to "feel" how the letters sound in their throat and understanding how to blend them together to make new sounds & words.

Cons:

• Quite expensive, especially if you get all the "extras", the flashcards and the Game Cards, etc.
• I felt like it moved a little fast in some areas. They were learning to write each letter as they learned it's sound. I think those are two completely separate skills and not everyone can read at the same pace they write. There was a spelling list of 5 words in every lesson. I also feel that spelling is a separate skill than reading and we really didn't use the lists to actually learn how to spell-- it would have been too much. 
• They encourage only teaching the letter sounds, not the actual name of the letter-- at the end of kindergarten I realized my daughter didn't even know the names of any of the letters, because we had worked on the sounds so much! 

All About Spelling

All About Spelling is one curriculum we have stuck with through every level and I really love it. We have honestly never really used it to its fullest but I still see results, and it has taught ME the "why" behind many English spelling rules. 

Pros:

• It's easy to follow, not a lot of preparation required on the teacher's part
• It clearly explains the rules behind why things are spelled certain ways and reviews these rules throughout 
• It is hands-on-- if your child hates writing, you can just use the magnetic phonogram tiles to spell the words
• You can complete a lesson in 15 minutes or less. (We don't even do a lesson every day, although I think they do recommend that.)

Cons:

• The magnetic phonogram tiles, while they can be a good thing, can also get tedious, and they are a lot to keep up with, especially if you have toddlers in the house. My kids used them through maybe the first level or two and then they just use dry erase markers or paper to write out words. They do have an app with the phonogram tiles, now, too, I think! There are also a lot of cards to keep up with, which could be difficult with multiple student (but we honestly don't use those either!). 
• There are not a lot of independent worksheets or review activities. The teacher really has to be there through the whole lesson. 

2015-16 Curriculum Choices (2nd Grade & Kindergarten)

2nd Grade

Grammar: First Language Lessons 2

Spelling: All About Spelling 2

Handwriting: Writing With Prayer 2 (Cursive)

Math: Horizons Math 1B --> 2A

Home Ec: Lessons in Responsibility for Girls, Level 1




Kindergarten


























Reading: Abeka Letters & Sounds K5 w/ my own adaptation of Ordinary Parent's Guide to Reading

Handwriting: Letters and Numbers for Me (Handwriting Without Tears)

Math: Abeka Math K5




Together

Memory Work: Classical Conversations Foundations Community (Tues.)

Bible: AWANA

History: Story of the World 1: Ancient Times w/
             Usborne Internet-Linked Encyclopedia of World History

Science: various weather, Earth Science & Astronomy topics, Young Scientist Club Set 2 (Weather; 
             Volcanoes; Solids, Liquids & Gases)

Literature: Fables & Myths Lapbook

Why Classical Education?

What is Classical Education and why have I chosen that over other methods of learning? I really embraced the Classical style of education before I even really understood it completely. During seminary, my husband taught at a local Christian school that used the Classical method and he loved it-- he saw how it worked!

The only thing I really knew when I first started was that it was a method that really embraced great literature and studied all subjects as a whole, not taken out of context. Since then, I've done a lot of reading and research on the method (probably too much!) and have a much better understanding of what it really is. I am nowhere near an expert, and I really can't tell you from any kind of personal experience how it all works out. I just know I'm going to use it as a base for choosing my curriculum, and go from there. If I have to stray in order for my kids to get the best education, I will, but for right now, this is what I want to stick with.

The best place to get a quick overview online is: classical-homeschooling.org

From that website: "The word “trivium” comes from the Latin prefix “tri” meaning “three,” and the Latin root “via” meaning “way,” or “road.” The word literally means “the three-fold way or road.” The trivium refers to the three stages, or ways, of learning that coincide with a child’s cognitive development as he matures. We should begin an in-depth look at the trivium--the three stages of learning--by reminding ourselves that the trivium is not some arbitrary theory of teaching methodology or new fad of learning philosophy. Rather, the trivium was developed by long trial and error, through the observation of the ancients in the way children learn during the whole course of their instruction from young child to young adult. They realized that time after time, they followed three stages in the learning process. They simply pointed out what was obviously there; what God had designed: that there are three stages, which they named Grammar, Dialectic, and Rhetoric; and they progress in that order."

It goes on to say (in my own words) that the Trivium is composed of 3 phases: the Grammar Stage (grades 1-6), the Dialectic Stage (grades 7-9), and the Rhetoric Stage (grades 10-12). (I haven't even really thought too much past the grammar stage at this point, and don't know if we'll homeschool that long or not, but I can still try to explain those to the best of my ability!) In the Grammar Stage, students concentrate mainly on memorizing facts. Sure, they will learn them in context so they can understand them, but if you think about it, young kids are much better able to memorize things than we are as adults. So we focus on lists and rules and facts. Then in the Dialectic stage (sometimes referred to as Logic), instead of just facts, we start teaching more why and how-- essentially, we teach them how to argue using what they have learned. Pre-teens naturally tend to argue anyway, so why not take advantage of that phase and teach them how to do it academically? In the Rhetoric Stage, we then start to focus more on being able to regurgitate, or express what they are learning.

If you think about it, anyone learning something new goes through these three stages as well. "A baby learning his native language starts with vocabulary first (the grammar stage), advancing on to stringing that vocabulary together in meaningful ways (the dialectic stage), and ending with finally becoming proficient in completely expressing his thought in the common standard of language usage (the rhetoric stage.)"

Did you know that less than 50% of American high school students graduate as proficient readers, and less than 15% graduate as proficient mathematicians. (In fact, only 60% of high school seniors even graduated from high school in 2006!) In contrast, back in the days of one-room community schoolhouses, our country had proficient literacy rates of over 90%-- 1st graders were in the same room as 7th graders & children attended school only a few months out of the year. (This is from Leigh Bortins' book The Core.) Schools today have set their standards so much lower, that even if a student is getting A's, they still don't know half as much as students their age in the early 1900's. A lot more could be said-- but basically I have been made a believer that education works the way it has been done for thousands of years!

Here are some of the great books I've read:

Teaching the Trivium: Christian Homeschooling in a Classical Style (Bluedorn)

The Well-Trained Mind: A Guide to Classical Education at Home (Wise & Bauer)


The Core: Teaching Your Child the Foundations of Classical Education (Bortins)

Recovering the Lost Tools of Learning (Wilson)


The Case for Classical Christian Education (Wilson)


Helpful online articles:

Intro. to Classical Education

Ten Things to Do With Your Child Before Age 10

My next post will help understand what this whole method will look like in our homeschool.

Why Homeschooling?

I can't really remember a time when I didn't consider homeschooling my kids. Though my husband and I both had good experiences in public school, and though neither of us would ever look down on anyone for sending their kids to public school, we really don't like the direction that schools seem to be going these days. To me, it seems like most of the time in school is spent on the slower learners (makes sense, considering the classes often have 25 or more kids in them, so someone's bound to be overlooked). Out of 8 hours in a school day, many of those are spent waiting for others to understand the concepts, walking from classroom to classroom, or doing other "activities" that aren't always catered to each individual child's learning technique. Ideally, I would love to be able to send our kids to a private Christian school. Right now, we financially cannot afford that option, and there are not a lot of good ones around here!

I have always been committed to staying home with my kids. A lot of it is financial-- I'm not sure how we could afford to send 2 to daycare right now, but the other part of it is that I'm not sure I want someone else teaching my kids. I want them to learn the things that are important to our family. I want them to have individual attention they couldn't get in a school setting, so they can flourish and grow into well-rounded individuals. Now, eventually, when they're older, we will re-evaluate all this and decide whether to continue homeschooling or do something else, but right now these are my opinions, and I am so excited to start teaching my kids.

I know there will be many challenges-- especially when there are 2 to homeschool (or 1 homeschooling and the other toddling around creating havoc!), and especially when I have absolutely no teaching skills whatsoever, but we are relying on our God to help us through this daunting task-- nothing is too big for Him and He knows exactly what our kids need. So I want to document our journey along the way-- maybe eventually I can help others interested in homeschooling, maybe I can just look back on this 10 years from now and see how naive I was... Either way, it should be an exciting journey!

Here is another great article I found on why the author chose to homeschool-- I wholeheartedly agree with her reasons!

Goals for end of Year 3

Before even choosing any kind of curriculum or setting up any kind of basic plan for teaching, there are two important tasks to complete. #1 is to set a list of goals that you want accomplished for the year. (#2 is to figure out what learning style works best for your child-- whether they learn visually, audibly, etc. I haven't really worked on that much, yet, but that will be an ongoing process since mine are still so young!)

So, I wrote these goals with L in mind, but I'm hoping they can be easily adapted for A-- or any other kid for that matter-- when he is 3. Since "school" at this age really won't be as formal as it will be in the future, the goals really incorporate more "life" skills than academic skills. I'm hoping I'm not setting my standards too high with these, especially since I really haven't been around a lot of 3-year-olds, but I did get most off of websites created by people who have actually had 3-year-olds, and L is well on her way to many of these already, so I don't think I am being too lofty.

- Recognize and know the sounds of all letters A-Z

- Recognize the numbers and be able to count from 1-15

- Recognize & be able to form the letters of her/his own first name

- Know her/his full name, as well as the full name of her/his mother & father

- Be able to tell how old she/he is, and compare that to the age of others

- Be able to properly use scissors to cut various shapes

- Be able to properly control a paintbrush to create pictures

- String 4 or more beads

- Understand basic "opposite" concepts, such as over/under, in/out, up/down, etc.

- Recognize & name basic shapes and colors of objects (Leah can already do this for the most part!)

- Be able to re-tell in her/his own words a short story or poem she has just heard

- Recite the days of the week and months of the year

- Be able to correctly use pronouns & tense (I, he, him, her, it, etc.)

- Be able to express thoughts & emotions in a constructive manner

- Be able to sit still and focus his/her attention on something (other than TV) for more than 5 minutes

- Understand the difference between a want and a need and begin to understand the concept of money

- Be completely toilet-trained

- Be able to fully dress on her/his own, including shoes (velcro) & socks.

- Be able to brush teeth and wash hands independently.

- Understand household responsibility & be able to perform several household chores (making his/her own bed, cleaning up her toys, helping put away laundry, and setting the table for meals).

- Know 2-3 Bible verses from memory

- Know 5-6 hymns from memory (we already know 3)

- Know 1 or 2 nursery rhymes from memory (If you read the post on Classical Education, you will see that memorization is a huge part of the Grammar Stage-- ages 5 up to about 10. This is the key age to be able to memorize facts, even if they don't completely understand them-- our brains are wired to be able to remember things when we are younger. I believe this is completely reasonable to expect and will expect even more in K-4 and K-5!)