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Summary: Great for motivated AND struggling students
Review: This is a super book that uses a direct instruction approach. It can be used by parents or teachers. Although several people praise its use for bright students who are learning to read early, I have found success using this program with older students who are struggling later in the first or second grade.This program is easy to use and is easy to include in a nighttime homework routine. A reward system or some other type of outside motivation may be needed. However, be careful not to use this with students who are not ready. You don't want to put reading instruction in a poor light. I recommend this book to parents and teachers alike VERY frequently in my school psychology practice!
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Summary: Great book - but don't fall for the 100 "easy 20min" lesson
Review: I had to write this after reading the rave reviews from parents of 3 year olds who taught their kids to read in 12 min. a night in less than 3 months. Don't buy this book if that is what you expect. Don't get me wrong this is a GREAT book. I highly recommend it. But, it is NOT EASY (at least not for every child). My nearly 5 begged "Please, please teach me to read Mommy". After about 20 lessons of this book she begged "Please, please I don't want to read". So we put it aside for a few months. When she asked to start again we started over at lesson 1 and went more slowly. We reviewed the previous lesson, did a new lesson, read a "Bob Book",played letter bingo. Some days we didn't do a new lesson - we just read a "Bob book" or reviewed an old lesson. YOU HAVE TO GO AT YOUR KIDS PACE. TAKE YOUR CUES FROM YOUR CHILD. We're on lesson 94. I don't know if she reads at a 2nd grade level and I don't care. She is reading and excited about reading - and that's what it's all about.
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Summary: Used it 2 years ago. Great lasting results
Review: My daughter was teaching herself to read at 4, but she was becoming frustrated. A friend told me about the book. I felt goofy at first- unless you're used to the direct instruction method it's odd at first reading from a script. As the lessons became more complex I really appreciated the guidance from direct instruction. It was like having the author there to answer my questions. We never finished the book (we got to lesson 65ish) and in the middle of the book we lost a close family member and then moved to a different state. Well it's been two years and my daughter is 6 ( & in first grade) she reads books at a 3rd & 4th grade level. Needless to say, all her schoolwork is advanced, I credit the trememdous headstart this book gave her. I have recommended this book to more people than I can count - so far so good.
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Summary: AMAZING!
Review: In a word, AMAZING! We stumbled onto this title from a friend and embarked on teaching our 3 1/2 year-old how to read. We did a lesson each day (20 minutes or so each lesson) and reinforced the material for a few minutes before bed. The first few lessons were a little difficult because the child must stay motivated during the lesson. Once we got him in a routine, he looked forward to it. We made a chart with each lesson number in a box and each time he finished a lesson he put a sticker in the numbered box. Our son got very excited towards the end of the program, and wanted to read "real" books. Needless to say, we were very impressed. His enthusiasm for reading grows everyday. I never thought it would be this easy and fun to teach your child to read.
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Summary: Teach your preschooler to read well - It's easy and fun!
Review: This book first came out in 1983 (not 1986). My son was 4 1/2 years old and was soon reading at the third grade level. The book is fun and interesting for the parent and the child. It takes only 10 or 15 minutes a day. After we completed the book, I purchased 5 more copies to share with friends who were also parents of prospective readers. Now my niece wants to teach her son how to read. It's been 16 years and I had heard that the book was out of print. Fortunately, it's back in print!
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Summary: This is the best book available to teach your child to read
Review: This is the home version of the Reading Mastery curriculum published by SRA. We use it in our school kindergarden program. It is simply the best book to teach your child to read. But the program is not easy. You may need a reward program to maintain your child's motivation in the program. Use it, you'll be happy you did.
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Summary: Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons
Review: Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons is for real...it really happens. My child and I started doing the lessons together when he was 41/2 years old. We did 20-25 lessons and then took about a 6 month break. It is intense and only you can know when your child is in the right "stage" to learn. Actually, my child asked to finish the book and he was indeed reading fluently before he went to kindergarten. It focuses on phonics, but does include work recognition. The phonics component is great because the child does not feel stuck...he has tools to work through the word. I recommend it as a learning tool and a bonding time.
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Summary: It Really Helped
Review: I previously reviewed this book back in July when my 6 year old was at about lesson 30 and reading below grade level. Here is an update. Decoding words was always a problem. With the help of this book my child was able to learn the correct sounds of the letters and letter combinations. This was not emphasized in school. In August I started adding Level 1 begining readers to supplement the lessons. This was because the stories in the book were not holding my child's interest. We completed the book in September. I think the older the child is when starting this book the harder it will be to get through the stories in the later lessons. We used incentive charts (with periodic rewards) and children's readers (selected by my child) to help keep her focused. Now she is 7 and reading fluently on grade level.
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Summary: Mom of 4 Boys
Review: Great Book. The best sixteen dollars that you will ever spend. My oldest boys (twins) knew their letters and letter sound before starting Kindergarten, however they could not make the jump to actually reading. When they started 1st Grade they still were not really reading. I bought this book at the end of September and their reading skills have taken off! The lessons are silly, but fun. My boys enjoy their lessons and their confidence is soaring! We usually don't do the writing part of the lesson--so our lesson are usually less than 10 minutes. I review the lesson from the night before and then go on the the next lesson. I am also learning about phonetic progression and tips for reading comprehension. I have also started teaching my four year old to read (we do a lot of reviewing of past lessons) he loves it and loves using the same "reading lessons" that his older brothers are using. Buy this book, you will love it.
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Summary: It works!
Review: I have now purchased two copies of Teach Your Child .... The first I purchased 7 years ago to teach my daughter. The second I purchased a year ago to teach my now 4 1/2 year old boy. The negatives associated with the book are minimal - yes, there are a few typos and the lessons are rather bland. But on the whole the books is beautifully layed out, with easy progression and ample repetition. I cover 2 lessons a night with my boy. The first lesson is a review of last night's new lesson. The second lesson is the next lesson in sequence. We spend about 30 minutes reading. My boy is on lesson 70 now and he is quite excited about his new ability to read words! He sounds out words on billboards or on the back of the cereal box and seems to get a big kick out of the process. Reading is opening up a new world for him and I know he enjoys it. As for my daughter, she entered school knowing how to read because of this book. I don't think the teacher believed me when I said she could read but I figured the teacher would find out soon enough. She did and adapted appropriately. Yes, being ahead of the game may have lead to some slow days at school for my daughter, but I'd FAR RATHER her to be ahead than behind! And you should feel this way, too! Truly, I believe that teaching reading to your child is one of the best acts of love you can ever give. This book accomplishes everything I had hoped for. After the lessons are over, you still need to find some easy readers for your child. There are few books around that are just right, but be persistent. Spend another six months with your child with easy readers and you'll find that your child will take off on his or her own after that. The overall time it took me to teach my daughter using the book was about six months. I expect the same with my boy. With my daughter, we went through the 100 lessons and then went back again through 60-100 to reinforce the earlier work. I think you can (and probably must) modify the lessons to suit your situation. Good luck!
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