heartofdakota.com

I tried doing a search for threads about this, but since the keywords were so common it wouldn't let me!

Anyway, I'm wondering about these two programs. My 3rd child will be starting Kindergarten in the spring, and right now we are using Explode the Code (he is finishing up the C primer and has already started Book 1). If he follows in the footsteps of his older siblings, then he will use R&S Phonics and Reading in 1st grade, and R&S Phonics in 2nd grade. (The ETC is just to fill in the gap since R&S doesn't have phonics for K). I do like R&S and feel like it is extremely thorough. The 2nd grade phonics is pretty challenging; dd has been writing pronunciations for words, dividing them into syllables, figuring out which syllable is accented, etc. My oldest ds is in the 1st grade Phonics and Reading, and while it WORKS, it's VERY time-consuming. We routinely spend about 2 hours on these subjects each day (it would be shorter but he is easily distracted!). While my 3rd child is not the wiggly distracted type like my oldest boy, it would be nice to find a different program for him that doesn't take so long but still is challenging enough.

How advanced are Reading Made Easy and The Reading Lesson? (And what are the pros/cons of each?) Are they just for getting the child reading, or do they cover the more challenging topics like R&S? My dd has been reading fluently for a couple of years now, but she is still challenged by her phonics lessons. I don't want to switch my 3rd child to something different if it's going to skip these topics. It would be nice to use a phonics program that we can start in K and not have to switch to something else in 1st, though the older two didn't mind doing that.

Hi!

I don't have a lot of advice since we've never used R&S Phonics or Reading Made Easy, but I am doing The Reading Lesson this year with my oldest and it's going great! I feel like he is progressing nicely and it is teaching him all he needs to know to become a fluent reader. At first I was little concerned because our lessons were only taking 10-15 mins. a day and it just didn't seem like enough! But it must be enough, because he's doing great. With that being said, we did use MFW K when he was 5 so he already knew all letter sounds and basic blending when he started TRL. I'm not sure if TRL or RME are as thorough as R & S, but I do know that TRL takes a child to a 2nd grade reading level by the end of the book. I would think it would be easy to supplement RME or TRL with ETC and that would be a very thorough phonics program.

Sharon,
Here are a couple of links to some good previous discussions on this topic that I had "bookmarked"

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=2503#p18592

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=3931#p29197

Carrie contributed to each of these threads with very helpful info

I'll also put in my .02 for TRL since my 6 yr old DS just finished it... we LOVED it! It was perfect for us. Very simple, short lessons at his own pace. 10-15 minutes a day - that does not include grammer, but he is reading beautifully. Now he is into the Emerging Readers list and he is just loving reading, he is so proud! (and of course I am too!) We'll get in to grammer thru dictation and copywork I believe. We'll be starting Beyond next week, we're finishing LHFHG this week.

You will see some great detailed descriptions through the above links that I think will answer your questions.

Blessings,
Victoria

I am not familiar with RME, but what I like about TRL is the fact that the reading is right there too. Each chapter starts with letter sounds and/or blends, etc and then goes into words, then two word phrases, then reading short sentences. It is very self-contained. There are key words identified at the end of each chapter and I make flashcards of those words, just to help strengthen his abilities. We are doing great, so much better then before we found TRL. I know that doesn't help you compare, but might give you an idea about one. I also found it was very good because my son was easily distracted by pictures, and TRL doesn not have a lot of pictures, just enough to make it friendly.

Just like everyone above me, I'm not familiar with the other programs but I chose TRL for my 6 year old dd who's doing LHFHG this year and we love it! I love how they have the words/pages set up, it is very simple without a lot of pictures and it's really open and go for me, which I found really important. I also love how I can decide how many pages to do with my kids, with my oldest I'm doing 4 a day but with my youngers I can shorten it.

When I was deciding to purchase one or the other I did check out the websites of both to see samples of the books and personally I thought TRL was a lot more simpler...with this being my first year homeschooling I wanted to go for the easiest for mommy but its truly been working out great for my daughter. She is reading so well and really is picking up reading in easy reading books. For me the websites were the best way to see what would work for my family.

Good luck!
Heather