The Reading Lesson

[Bijou]

Hello all!
I am new to this board but have already posted a few questions, the first few of many to come I'm sure. I am looking at doing BHFHG w ds this fall. As I have been reading through this site and reading things over and over again, I have decided maybe to start dd with the 1st gradeish program here, I can't remember the name right now. My question is this, how far into phonics does TRL go? I read thru the first two lessons on-line and she has already learned all of what is in those lessons and then some. I don't want to repeat things when we should be moving forward with her reading. Can anyone tell me where she might be phonics-wise at the end of TRL? That will help greatly with my decision as far as curriculum for her next year. While the 1st grade curriculum we used for ds worked great for him, I think she may be bored with it. OVerall, I believe we need a change. I never thought I'd say that! After seeing what I have on this sight over the last couple days I am very encouraged that this may just be a great fit for our family. I wish I had known about it 3 years ago when we started ds in kindergarten as he is the one that REALLY needs a very strong foundation in everything. Oh well, you live and learn and move on! Thank you for listening to my rambling!

Oops! I lied, I have one more question! Is the spelling with these programs strong and easy for dc and mom to understand? The spelling we've used this year has been great, Spelling for Sound and Structure. I am a stickler on good spelling and grammar and I wouldn't want to lose ground if we switch spelling this coming fall. Thanks again!

Jodi

[Motherjoy]

I believe that upon finishing TRL, the student is reading at a second grade level.

There is no spelling in Little Hearts, as the students are focusing on learning to read. Spelling lessons begin in Beyond, but its not an extra book, just word lists and tips for teaching each week. We do not teach spelling until the child is reading well, as to try to teach them together can often be confusing. This works for us, but may not work for everyone.

[Bijou]

I should have been more specific with my spelling question. I was referring to my ds who will be 3rd grade this fall. Sorry!

Thanks,
Jodi

[Tabitha]

My 7 1/2 yo just finished TRL at the end of last year. My 10yo used this as well, back in her younger days!

Even though your child knows the phonics in the first lessons, and more, I think you will find this book will still be very beneficial to you. There is a lot in there, and the beginning lessons are much lighter than what it ends with from a child's reading ability standpoint. You may find that at first she soars through the lessons either doing them quickly or doing more in a sitting. It may stay that way, or after a bit she may slow down to a normal pace. At the end, you can expect your child to go into the Emerging Readers with no issues. My dd is now reading The Beginners Bible that comes with BLHFHG with no issues, and moving at a fast pace.

We also used the Rod & Staff spelling for quite a few years. If you like it, there is no harm staying with that if that is what you desire to do. The spelling is easy to teach in HOD. If you are looking at using Bigger for your son, I believe that guide has a few levels of spelling lists to choose from, or going right into dictation. The spelling does not include any phonics info like the R & S spelling does. In the dictaction, they must copy it correctly including all proper punctuation. Grammar comes through the English lessons.

We stopped the R & S spelling, even though we liked it. It was a bit too much for my girls to have grammar in with their spelling on top of it already in their English. Reinforcement is good, no doubt, but too much of a good thing on some days wore this mommy down (girls moaning over doing too much, etc). After a bit I realized, too, that I felt better fully utilizing the HOD guides as they were and using the spelling provided in the guide vs. paying more for something else on top of it.

[Bijou]

Thank you for the input! Is Rod & Staff on this site? I couldn't find it anywhere, maybe I missed it. Would like to see a sample.

Thanks,
Jodi

[Tabitha]

HOD sells the R & S English, but I don't believe there are sample pages to look at. They don't sell the spelling (Spelling by Sound and Structure). I was unsure which subject you were asking about.

If you look at the Bigger Hearts package, you'll see the English by the math. It's called Preparing to Build (for that grade). Each grade has a different title.

[moedertje]

HOD has 2 spellings list and as mentioned before they are in the Beyond and Bigger manual. Your third grader may be ready for dictation. Dictation levels start in the Bigger manual.

Here is a link, scroll down to "Carrie" her post to read up on her wisdom on the use of dictation and how it is implemented.

viewtopic.php?p=85870#p85870

In this next thread Julie, Carrie's sister gives her wisdom on dictation, scroll down to "my3sons"

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=5645&p=41357#p41357


Here are 2 more threads thatmight help you understand spelling vs dictation:

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=10388
viewtopic.php?f=6&t=5661

Success and be blessed as you figure out what will work best for your kiddos!