Reading help and other ?'s

[sweetgrace]

We are almost half way through LHFHG. It's not really where I would like to be this time of the year but with continued sickness this winter this is where we are. That being said we are only 8 units from completing AAR1 for phonics instruction. While we started liking this program my son has come to dislike reading and it has been a battle just getting him to focus and read the stories and the fluency sheets take days to complete! He is still getting b and d mixed up as well. I'm thinking that maybe we need a change of pace and a different reading program. I have been looking at Sonlight's LA's program but also would be interested to hear of other suggestions of where to go from here?
Next is my almost 5yo. We have been doing LHTH slooooooowly. In fact we are only on letter F. He does not know all of his letter sounds yet but he is starting to blend words with the sounds he knows (or asks about) and has expressed his desire to start reading. Not sure what to do here. He will officially start K this upcoming fall.
I do not feel at this point that the older DS (who will be 7 and in 1st in the fall) is really ready for more history. He understands and comprehends the bible and Burgess stories just fine but still unsure weather or not he will be ready for Beyond. I'm feeling the same way about our 2nd DS (who will be 5.5 and in K in the fall). He actually follows along in his brothers' Burgess books and loves them but lacks comprehension in the LHFHG bible, devotions, and history. I'm seriously thinking of going with another curriculum for this upcoming year to give both boys some growing time. Then come back to HOD the year after. IDK, maybe both boys will surprise me in the next couple of months. Or maybe I have "the grass is greener" syndrome even though HOD is "almost" perfect for us.

[Jennymommy]

Hey Tawny, I did LHFHG two years in a row with one boy because he just was not at the level of comprehension that he needed to be for the next guide. He enjoyed repeating and reading the books again, though the Burgess books were not his favorites. I just used the first grade science and math the second time around. He gained maturity and confidence the second time around.

[Nealewill]

At these ages a lot changes throughout the year. My son did Beyond last year and I was so unsure if he would be able to do Bigger at the beginning of this year. Well, it went fine. He was completely ready! My oldest did Preparing last year and I was intimidated by the volume of reading that she would need to do with CTC this year. She did fine

What types of things concern you about moving on with your kids in level? I can't answer your question about the grass being greener but I am wondering what you drew you to AAR for reading? I used AAR for my middle child because he has auditory processing disorder but he didn't start it until last year. He couldn't read at all and was struggling, struggling, struggling. Well, my youngest is a natural reader and she actually taught herself to read on her own. In choosing AAR for him, was worried about my youngest missing out on phonics instructions because she read well but was self taught. I thought I would have her go through AAR with her brother. Uhm......bad idea She could read already and read well. She HATED doing AAR!!!! If your kids aren't dyslexic and they don't have special learning needs, I can see why it would be less than enjoyable. It is a good program but would have overkill for a child who picks up reading. Have you tried The Reading Lesson? The emerging readers are great too but your child probably hasn't learned how to read long vowels yet so you would want to try one of the HOD recommended reading programs. I think gaining some distance from that program might be healthy. I love it spoke to my son's heart because he needed the fluency sheets. Most people will learn a word and not have to sound it out after seeing between 2-5 times. But people that are dyslexic may need to see that word up to 500 times. That is why the fluency sheets seem like death to someone who doesn't need them. Doing a different reading program would add some more fun in your day for your son. And I wouldn't stress about your child in LHTH not knowing all the letters yet. All three of my kids could actually read long before they knew letter names. I am pretty sure my 8 year old still can't sing the alphabet song but that is part of his APD and I haven't pushed it at all. And he is to a point his reading a lot more now and reading fairly well. And flipflopping letters until 8 or 9 is very common. You should only worry if they do it consistently after they are 10 or so.

And I wouldn't stress about how far you are in the guide. If you are worried about your child moving on, it might be good that you aren't farther. If it makes you feel any better, this week each one of my kids hit the half way point through their guides. I calculated it out and we are target to still finish school mid May. I wouldn't stress about it.

[sweetgrace]

Hey Tawny, I did LHFHG two years in a row with one boy because he just was not at the level of comprehension that he needed to be for the next guide. He enjoyed repeating and reading the books again, though the Burgess books were not his favorites. I just used the first grade science and math the second time around. He gained maturity and confidence the second time around.

Thank you! I just may do that. If I do I will probably go for some different read alouds even though both boys do like the Burgess books

[psreit]

For the younger child, I would recommend just doing one of the reading programs that Carrie has scheduled in the Little Hearts guide. You could have the older child do it too. Maybe shorter reading lessons would be better for you 7 yo. Unless he has a learning disability, he shouldn't need more than that. My daughter needed special and longer instruction because of dyslexia, but for most, they can do something like the Reading Lesson and go straight to the ER books.

[sweetgrace]

At these ages a lot changes throughout the year. My son did Beyond last year and I was so unsure if he would be able to do Bigger at the beginning of this year. Well, it went fine. He was completely ready! My oldest did Preparing last year and I was intimidated by the volume of reading that she would need to do with CTC this year. She did fine

What types of things concern you about moving on with your kids in level? I can't answer your question about the grass being greener but I am wondering what you drew you to AAR for reading? I used AAR for my middle child because he has auditory processing disorder but he didn't start it until last year. He couldn't read at all and was struggling, struggling, struggling. Well, my youngest is a natural reader and she actually taught herself to read on her own. In choosing AAR for him, was worried about my youngest missing out on phonics instructions because she read well but was self taught. I thought I would have her go through AAR with her brother. Uhm......bad idea She could read already and read well. She HATED doing AAR!!!! If your kids aren't dyslexic and they don't have special learning needs, I can see why it would be less than enjoyable. It is a good program but would have overkill for a child who picks up reading. Have you tried The Reading Lesson? The emerging readers are great too but your child probably hasn't learned how to read long vowels yet so you would want to try one of the HOD recommended reading programs. I think gaining some distance from that program might be healthy. I love it spoke to my son's heart because he needed the fluency sheets. Most people will learn a word and not have to sound it out after seeing between 2-5 times. But people that are dyslexic may need to see that word up to 500 times. That is why the fluency sheets seem like death to someone who doesn't need them. Doing a different reading program would add some more fun in your day for your son. And I wouldn't stress about your child in LHTH not knowing all the letters yet. All three of my kids could actually read long before they knew letter names. I am pretty sure my 8 year old still can't sing the alphabet song but that is part of his APD and I haven't pushed it at all. And he is to a point his reading a lot more now and reading fairly well. And flipflopping letters until 8 or 9 is very common. You should only worry if they do it consistently after they are 10 or so.

And I wouldn't stress about how far you are in the guide. If you are worried about your child moving on, it might be good that you aren't farther. If it makes you feel any better, this week each one of my kids hit the half way point through their guides. I calculated it out and we are target to still finish school mid May. I wouldn't stress about it.

Oh phew! Yes that does make me feel better, lol. Thank you! I chose AAR because I had read so many rave reviews about it on various homeschool forums. It also appealed to me because my son is very hands on and I thought he would enjoy the letter tiles. He did. We had purchased AAR before we started LHFHG this last year so I didn't even look at HOD's choices. Can you believe I even bought AAR2 when we were actually enjoying the program still. My hubby is rolling his eyes at me for my foolish impulsiveness actually we are using AAR pre reading with DS2 along side LHTH and it is working out nicely. I have not looked at the Reading Lesson. I need something I can get DS1 reading the emerging readers and also be able to start at the beginning with DS2 when ready. You are right DS1 has not been taught long vowel sounds yet.
As for moving on to the next guide, I guess I should just wait a month or so before making a more permanent decision on when and what to move on to. Your right at these ages they grow by leaps and bounds. Thank you for your suggestions! It's really helpful

[sweetgrace]

For the younger child, I would recommend just doing one of the reading programs that Carrie has scheduled in the Little Hearts guide. You could have the older child do it too. Maybe shorter reading lessons would be better for you 7 yo. Unless he has a learning disability, he shouldn't need more than that. My daughter needed special and longer instruction because of dyslexia, but for most, they can do something like the Reading Lesson and go straight to the ER books.

Thank you! Did you use The Reading Lesson? Yes shorter reading lessons would be wonderful for both DS1 and myself! I cringe every time I bring out AAR. I can't believe we are almost through the entire first program and he still has a really hard time reading. He guesses and yawns and takes deep breaths. Or he defines or uses the word in a sentence that he just read. Every word! Its a struggle to get him to sound out out-loud each letter or letter team. He reads so much faster and more fluently when he does but it just doesn't happen unless I nag him

[psreit]

If he can read fluently, then he definitely could go with the Reading Lesson, if you think he still needs some reading instruction.If you decide to use it with the 5 yo, you may be able to start the 7yo later in the book, since he is already reading some. I tried K at home with my dd and we had all kinds of problems. So, we put her in a Christian school. She ended up having problems there. I knew she was having difficulties with writing. She was in OT and getting help with that. I brought her back home in 1st and started her in HOD, LHFHG. Everything was going great, except the Reading. We were using the Reading Lesson. But, the problems weren't because of that program. To make a long story short, I found out she had dyslexia, along with some other visual problems which since have been helped through surgery. But, it was two years of struggling and searching until we got some answers. So, needless to say, we didn't finish TRL in first. I tried other phonics programs, but that was not the answer. She needed some special instruction for her dyslexia, which we finally did use an OG method until I knew she was able to put the sounds together. Because we did not continue with the OG method, I thought I should still use a phonics program to help her learn the different digraphs and so on, but that was exactly why we stopped Barton. It began teaching spelling rule after spelling rule, and it was driving my dd crazy trying to remember them all. So, we have since stopped all phonics instruction and she is reading the ER books. She is 11 and still not reading much independently, but that is due to the dyslexia. But she enjoys reading real books.

Many have said, and I am a believer in this, that reading fluency.(and spelling) improves by reading and writing. Even with the dyslexia, I can see that with my dd. Yes, rules are good to know, but there are so many exceptions, my dd would not be able to remember them all. So, yes, I believe TRL would be a good fit for your boys if there are no learning issues. If I would have known about my dd's problems earlier, I would have tried to stick with that. It is a good program, and your son would probably enjoy getting 'reading' done quicker. Maybe you could use incentive by telling him that after he does the Reading Lesson, he can read an easy book (if you feel he could handle that) But, if he is reading fairly well, you may not want to spend a lot of time in TRL and get him in the ER books. That is why I said to start him later in the book, wherever you think he fits, so he is not spending another whole year doing a reading program. HTH

[Nealewill]

All About Learning has a 1 year money back guarantee. As long as you purchased it within a year, you can return it and get your money back. Just call them and see what they say.

[my3sons]

Such a great discussion here! In reading your post, I think the dark cloud is the phonics. I have been known to see a dark cloud and assume the entire day is a thunderstorm, so I am saying this in thinking of myself - I think you and your dc are doing very well, and phonics is the dark cloud that needs to be whisked away for sunnier days to come! I would make a switch in phonics, and The Reading Lesson sounds like a good switch. I think you will enjoy it with both of your dc, and your oldest will clip along completing it quite quickly, while your youngest will not start it until finishing LHTH. Making this one change should have a big impact on your day! Add some earning of stickers or treats or whatever to the reading program, and your ds will be loving his phonics in no time!

For your youngest, letter retention will be helped by doing LHTH each day consistently. Dc can tend to forget otherwise, and at 5 yo, he is raring and ready to go, it sounds like! Watching the Leap Frog DVDs (which are available many place inexpensively) is another easy way to help teach the letters and sounds. For your LHFHG ds, he sounds like he is doing just fine! He understands what you are reading, and he is just hitting a bump in the road for phonics, which is happily and easily fixed by starting TRL.

It sounds like you are feeling 'behind' because of a fall start looming ahead. Please give yourself and your dc some grace in the timing of the start of the next guides!!! I think you are doing just fine and your dc are too! If you remove the trappings of starting a new guide in the fall, and instead move steadily forward doing a lesson a day in LHTH with your younger ds, and a lesson a day in LHFHG with a switch to TRL in phonics, your dc will be solidly ready for their next guides whenever they each finish their current guides. When your 5.5 yo finishes LHTH, you can always reassess, but I would guess starting LHFHG half-speed for several months would ease him into it beautifully.

One of the great blessings of homeschooling is moving forward at a pace that works best for dc and for the family, and start times can vary. Right now, my oldest ds is in Unit 16 of WH High School, my middle ds is in about Unit 22 of RTR, and my youngest ds is in Unit 1 half-speed of BHFHG. I couldn't have always done this, nor been comfortable with everyone not starting their guides in Sept. and finishing them in May. But, 12 years into homeschooling, I have seen that forward movement with a pacing that fits each of our dc and our current family life needs is best for everyone. They do awesome on their standardized testing, and we are not stressed with our pacing by meeting self-enforced deadlines we need not meet homeschooling. What are your thoughts though?

In Christ,
Julie

[sweetgrace]

If he can read fluently, then he definitely could go with the Reading Lesson, if you think he still needs some reading instruction.If you decide to use it with the 5 yo, you may be able to start the 7yo later in the book, since he is already reading some. I tried K at home with my dd and we had all kinds of problems. So, we put her in a Christian school. She ended up having problems there. I knew she was having difficulties with writing. She was in OT and getting help with that. I brought her back home in 1st and started her in HOD, LHFHG. Everything was going great, except the Reading. We were using the Reading Lesson. But, the problems weren't because of that program. To make a long story short, I found out she had dyslexia, along with some other visual problems which since have been helped through surgery. But, it was two years of struggling and searching until we got some answers. So, needless to say, we didn't finish TRL in first. I tried other phonics programs, but that was not the answer. She needed some special instruction for her dyslexia, which we finally did use an OG method until I knew she was able to put the sounds together. Because we did not continue with the OG method, I thought I should still use a phonics program to help her learn the different digraphs and so on, but that was exactly why we stopped Barton. It began teaching spelling rule after spelling rule, and it was driving my dd crazy trying to remember them all. So, we have since stopped all phonics instruction and she is reading the ER books. She is 11 and still not reading much independently, but that is due to the dyslexia. But she enjoys reading real books.

Many have said, and I am a believer in this, that reading fluency.(and spelling) improves by reading and writing. Even with the dyslexia, I can see that with my dd. Yes, rules are good to know, but there are so many exceptions, my dd would not be able to remember them all. So, yes, I believe TRL would be a good fit for your boys if there are no learning issues. If I would have known about my dd's problems earlier, I would have tried to stick with that. It is a good program, and your son would probably enjoy getting 'reading' done quicker. Maybe you could use incentive by telling him that after he does the Reading Lesson, he can read an easy book (if you feel he could handle that) But, if he is reading fairly well, you may not want to spend a lot of time in TRL and get him in the ER books. That is why I said to start him later in the book, wherever you think he fits, so he is not spending another whole year doing a reading program. HTH

Yes helps a lot! Thank you very much! I don't think he is far from reading the ER's. I took a look at TRL and, wow! It is way different than AAR. I like the looks of it!

[sweetgrace]

All About Learning has a 1 year money back guarantee. As long as you purchased it within a year, you can return it and get your money back. Just call them and see what they say.

I didn't know about this. Thank you very much for bringing this to my attention! I'll check it out.

[sweetgrace]

Such a great discussion here! In reading your post, I think the dark cloud is the phonics. I have been known to see a dark cloud and assume the entire day is a thunderstorm, so I am saying this in thinking of myself - I think you and your dc are doing very well, and phonics is the dark cloud that needs to be whisked away for sunnier days to come! I would make a switch in phonics, and The Reading Lesson sounds like a good switch. I think you will enjoy it with both of your dc, and your oldest will clip along completing it quite quickly, while your youngest will not start it until finishing LHTH. Making this one change should have a big impact on your day! Add some earning of stickers or treats or whatever to the reading program, and your ds will be loving his phonics in no time!

For your youngest, letter retention will be helped by doing LHTH each day consistently. Dc can tend to forget otherwise, and at 5 yo, he is raring and ready to go, it sounds like! Watching the Leap Frog DVDs (which are available many place inexpensively) is another easy way to help teach the letters and sounds. For your LHFHG ds, he sounds like he is doing just fine! He understands what you are reading, and he is just hitting a bump in the road for phonics, which is happily and easily fixed by starting TRL.

It sounds like you are feeling 'behind' because of a fall start looming ahead. Please give yourself and your dc some grace in the timing of the start of the next guides!!! I think you are doing just fine and your dc are too! If you remove the trappings of starting a new guide in the fall, and instead move steadily forward doing a lesson a day in LHTH with your younger ds, and a lesson a day in LHFHG with a switch to TRL in phonics, your dc will be solidly ready for their next guides whenever they each finish their current guides. When your 5.5 yo finishes LHTH, you can always reassess, but I would guess starting LHFHG half-speed for several months would ease him into it beautifully.

One of the great blessings of homeschooling is moving forward at a pace that works best for dc and for the family, and start times can vary. Right now, my oldest ds is in Unit 16 of WH High School, my middle ds is in about Unit 22 of RTR, and my youngest ds is in Unit 1 half-speed of BHFHG. I couldn't have always done this, nor been comfortable with everyone not starting their guides in Sept. and finishing them in May. But, 12 years into homeschooling, I have seen that forward movement with a pacing that fits each of our dc and our current family life needs is best for everyone. They do awesome on their standardized testing, and we are not stressed with our pacing by meeting self-enforced deadlines we need not meet homeschooling. What are your thoughts though?

In Christ,
Julie

Exactly! I am feeling the pressure of fall. This is the time of year I start thinking and purchasing for the next school year. I like to have everything several months ahead so I can get a good understanding of what I'm teaching. It's interesting that you brought up the idea of having the children in different units in their guides. I was just contemplating this over the weekend. Actually I really like the idea of starting/finishing at different times and working at the child's pace. I think it would feel less overwhelming.

Something else that is frustrating to me is trying to put a guides space I between the boys as recommended by some mamas on here. This upcoming year we will be using LHFHG and BLHFHG. No big deal, I'm told, but the following year(or was it the year after?) is the one that the mamas caution running back to back guides. I'm not sure how this can be avoided with children who are 18m apart and sticking with each individual child's level.

As far as this year is concerned, I think we'll just keep plugging along in our guides with the addition of TRL. Thank you for your kind words of encouragement.

Thank you ladies for all you suggestions and terrific help!

[sweetgrace]

Is TRL consumable?

[MomtoJGJE]

If they are properly placed it is not difficult to run back to back guides....