At what age did your kids start reading? My dd5 is doing 100 easy lessons and sight words. Is that enough? Any suggestions on other things that we could do?
Sure. . .she's only 5. I assume you're reading to her. . .but that's the only thing I'd add at that age. I've had one child who was reading at 6, one who read at 3 1/2, a 2 1/2 yo who reads very simple things and most beginning sight words and a 4yo (almost 5) and a 2 1/2 yo who still turn a book upside down to look at it. ;-)
My 5 1/2 yo is doing some sight words. That's it. I subscribe to Dr. Dobson's attitude of ''better late than early". I let ds set the pace for reading 100%.
I have had very early readers, but we are very big on reading here. We would read several books a day to them, from the very beginning. Just my way of hoping they too would become readers....and to my luck they have
My dd11 read well at 3. My youngest dd is 5 and is only putting together small words like cat or dog and reading very few sight words.
Oldest: 4 Middle: 7 1/2 Youngest: 6 Mine varied widely. We read a LOT to them too. I encouraged but did not push. When my middle one was 6, I had more than one person tell me I should be making him read, and hurry! I asked why. They just felt like he would be WAY behind if he wasn't reading by then! My dh and I felt he would catch on when he was ready. Plus we'd read Raymond Moore's books that talk about allowing the child to go at their rate, and that boys often read later than girls, some not even until 9 or 10, etc., so we weren't concerned. Sure enough, when he started reading he went from 0 to 60 in a very short length of time! If your 5yo is enjoying the lessons, then do them, and encourage them, and read to them a lot, so they see how great it is to understand letters and words! But just don't PUSH to MAKE them read, though it's hard not to sometimes! But if you do, you could squash their love of it. Within a month of starting to read, my middle child was tested for reading level, and was at the 6th grade level! When they're ready they WILL read! If it's kept fun and exciting and they realize all the benefits, they'll pick it up and go with it! Just don't worry if it's later than some other kid. Within a short time, the later readers will be at or past the early readers levels, often times!
ds11 was 6 (now reads well past grade level) dd9 was 7 (Due to visual perception problems, she is still a struggling reader, but she is able to read probably about a year behind level.) dd6 is just beginning to really get it (more than just sight words & sounding out) dd4-?? can recognize family members names I have never pushed reading other than reading to my kids (and the basic schoolwork). At some point, it will click.
My daughter started reading at age 5, but my son is 6 1/2 and while he is improving, he's still on three letter words with short vowel sounds. I was beginning to suspect he was dyslexic. However, after researching it, I concluded that he is just a late bloomer when it comes to reading. (My husband didn't really take off with reading until 4th grade, and he was a voracious reader through MS and HS and still is.) My research did lead me to believe that "pushing" a child to read before he/she is ready is detrimental. By pushing, I mean pressuring and expressing disappointment at slower than expected progress. I think that 100 Easy Lessons is good, because there is no pressure. The child gets to cuddle up with you, go at her own pace and repeat a section as needed without feeling like she's falling behind. If you want reinforcement, starfall.com is a good place to go. I believe that it has been recommended in these forums before, but I just checked it out this past week. Lot's of good features and phonetic books. My son loved it.
My oldest read at 5, and now my middle son who is 5 yrs old is reading too. He is still at the sounding out the words part though, and sometimes those long vowel words get him all mixed up. He'll get there though. If he gets frustrated we put the book down and try again the next day. I'm not too worried about it at this point. I'm am just trying to get him to enjoy reading and being read to. Thats my main focus right now.
My oldest and middle both read around 5 1/2 ish. For both of them it was a "lightbulb moment". My eldest I TRIED everything...pushed, pulled, etc....then one day (after WAY backing off) she got it! With my middle, he came to ME reading one day. I'm not really sure how he did it (aside from starfall). BUT...each kid is different! I would say YES...read read read TO them...develop the love for just cracking a book to look at the picture and imagining what happens! My youngest (almost 3) doesn't read, and can barely recognize all of the letters - she can some, others, nope! BUT...she'll look at pictures and pretend what the words are! SO CUTE! Don't push, that would be my biggest advice. It WILL happen...
Rachael was an early reader. I wasn't sure what to do with her, so I took her to a kindergarten teacher I knew. She suggested I have her read "Charlotte's Web", which I did. She was Kindergarten at the time. My other two were more "normal". They were reading independently easy readers at age 6.
It's hard to accept that they'll just get it. I keep trying to tell myself that it's okay. Sometimes I find I get frustrated and then I feel bad for kind of fussing at her when she isn't quite getting it. A woman in my homeschool group said that she had a complete meltdown in her house over phonics and had to put everything down for a good 3 months and she said one day she walked in on her son reading a book. She said it just happened. So I believe it. It's just hard. But I'm trying. It's like you want them to be the best they can be and sometimes you forget that their pace is their own, not yours.
All started reading between 4 and 5 - with chapter books at between 5-6. Except my ds, we discovered he had an eye disorder when he was five and he has to wear glasses to correct it, so while he COULD read chapter books by age six, he was not comfortable with it until he was 8.
Those are very honest and true statements! It IS hard not to push, because you DO want them to be the best they can be! So now that you honestly realize that, it will easier to work on allowing your child to learn to read at her pace. So it's a good thing to know it's hard and that you want to push her to read. Just talk yourself out of it! My middle child was one I was worried about! It was sooo hard not to be concerned or want to push him because his brother had caught on early, so I thought he must be way behind! He wasn't. He was learning at his own rate, and with him it was true. It was honestly almost literally one day he couldn't read and the next he could! Not quite, but it WAS literally a week of HUGE change! So hang in there, it WILL happen!
My Dh read when he was 3. My teacher wanted to flunk me in 2nd grade because I was not reading. My my got a tutor and I eventually learned to read. I read fine now. My dd read at about 8 1/2 and she's going to be ten and reading at about a 7th grade level. My ds was 8 in November and just started reading chapter books. He's reading at about a 3.5 grade level. My ds is 6 and just now starting to get cvc words....get the picture. Dh just said today when we were talking with a friend, Yeah, I should have checked the credentials a little closer to know how smart my kids were going to be before I committed. He was joking, but he is smarter than me book wise. Everyone has their own talents. I can balance a check book, but don't ask me to do long algebra problems. Kristine
My 6 year old isn't reading yet. I truly believe in the idea of better late than early. I was great with that when we made the decision to wait until he was 6 for kindergarten. Now that we are homeschooling kindergarten and he knows all the letter sounds, but when it comes to sounding out words he just doesn't get it, or doesn't want to get it, I am having a harder time being patient. He is so close to getting it, but he is resisting so I am making sure I don't push too hard. I know he will get it when he ios ready, but it is hard to be patient sometimes, LOL. I just make sure I read to him tons, we always have, and talk often about the sounds and how they go together. Of course, I can tell you a few stories to give you an insight into this kid He didn't walk until 15 months and then one day he stood up in the middle of the room and walked across the room without falling down. he refused to potty train until he was 4 and suddenly it clicked and he did awesome. I guess he just doesn't try something until he is ready, but when he is ready he does it well.
Hmm you could add in some fun computer play if you allow computer time. http://www.literactive.com/ is one my kids are having a blast on & of course there is starfall.com My 7 yo is doing 100 easy lessons at the moment, I don't do anything formal with my 5 year old yet.
Have you ever read Better Late than Early? It is a good read and produces some pretty convincing arguments as to why it helps the reading process to wait until they're older. It's kind of interesting bc we definitely tend to go towards this philosophy. I read out loud to my kids all the time but don't even consider introducing them to anything at all until age 6 (compulsory age. . .I'd actually wait if I could) and yet I still have some kids who read early. I tend to look at reading as a developmental process. . .
I've a friend whose daughter didn't read until she was nine, but then "caught up" with all those "early" readers in no time, reading "Lord of the Rings" at age 12. Reading, just like everything else, will occur in its own time, when the child is ready. To push too hard before the child is ready can cause really negative attitudes toward something that should be quite enjoyable.
