The Curriculum Choice

Editor in Chief

Feb 112010

My last review I shared about my search for a grammar text that would finish our study of grammar. I found Our Mother Tongue, and I am pleased with the way it teaches grammar. But, it doesn’t include sentence mechanics. (There is an appendix for the topic, but I don’t find it adequate.) It doesn’t address topics such as where to put commas, semi-colons, and quotation marks; or how to correct sentence fragments and run-on sentences. I realized that I wanted something extra that would provide review for those English topics.

I decided to try Editor in Chief by The Critical Thinking Company. This turned out to be exactly what I was looking for. Each lesson consists of a short passage. The student must read through the passage, find the specified number of errors, and make the necessary corrections. (Sample page)

It has turned out to be a great fit for my almost 12 year old son. He’s at the age where he’s always finding mistakes anyway, so I’m finding this is a great way to put this (often annoying) tendency to good use. Good editing skills are vital to good writing, and I like the way this requires more thought than an assignment that simply instructs the student to put the commas in the correct place or to capitalize all the necessary words. In editing, the student has to find the mistake and figure out why it is wrong in order to correct it.

I would NOT recommend this product for a student that did not already have a good understanding of the concepts. As I mentioned in my previous review, my son was demonstrating that he did understand grammar and sentence mechanics. Editor in Chief provides a way to test if a student can apply his knowledge at a higher level, while reviewing important concepts. This would not be the way I would recommend learning new material. I think that a student should spend time initially in studying correctly written sentences.

The only negative about this product is the price. My son will complete both of the B level workbooks this year. At $17 each, that’s pretty expensive for a supplement. But I was encouraged to see my son enjoying his work for a change, and decided that it was worth the extra expense to us.

Written by Kristen, Neo-classical mom of 4. Kristen blogs at A Day in the Life.

Our Mother Tongue

Classical, High School, Junior High Language Arts, Language Arts 6 Responses »

Jan 282010

I really love the Rod & Staff English curriculum. It is wonderfully thorough, sequential, and it just makes sense to me. (I even reviewed it on The Curriculum Choice. ) I thought I would continue using it through the 8th grade.

But last year my son (currently 11 years old) asked me why he had to keep doing the same things in English every year. Over… and over… And I didn’t know. (I should mention that he completed grades 3-6 of the Rod & Staff English program.)

Here’s where I make a little confession. I’m a rule follower. I love a system where everything is neat and organized. Step 1, Step 2, etc. I love office supplies, new textbooks, well, books in general. And I never particularly minded “busy work” in school. Not over the top, but doing a page of something that I knew how to do never bothered me.

My son is not like that. He smells busy work a mile away. Practicing concepts he understands seems a waste of time to him. And he clearly understood the concepts. Some of my philosophy has been that he needs to get over it and practice anyway because he’s a kid and doesn’t know as much as he thinks he does. While that may be partially true, I realized that he really was spending a lot of time and learning very little new material in English. So I got to do something that is always fun for me. Curriculum research!

I was looking for a text that he could work through and then be finished. No more grammar study. Now, that’s something he can get excited over. I finally settled on a text called Our Mother Tongue by Nancy Wilson. In the introduction, the author poses the question “Why another grammar book?” The beginning of her answer describes exactly what I was looking for.

That is a good question. The world seems to be quite full of grammar books, but it is not easy to find a text today that covers all the bases, still emphasizes diagramming, is not laden with politically correct jargon, and embraces a Christian world view. I am certainly not claiming to have achieved all these things in this little book, but I have aimed for it. I wanted to produce a grammar book that could be used to teach junior-high students as well as high-school or college students and adults, a book that covered many of the aspects of English grammar succinctly; I also wanted a book that could assume the biblical view of language. At the same time I wanted to whet the appetite of the student to want to know more about the history of our language….

The book is divided into 6 units.

Unit One: The Eight Classes of Words

Unit Two: The Sentence

Unit Three: Special Properties of Nouns and pronouns

Unit Four: Special Properties of Verbs

Unit Five: Verbals

Unit Six: The Special Properties of Modifiers

The 6 units contain a total of 49 lessons. Each lesson has a several accompanying exercises, so we are spreading the lessons out. We will actually use this book for 2 school years, but it could be completed in less. The exercises are usually short, but require thought.

Our Mother Tongue is a very affordable. It retails for only $20, plus $5 for the answer key. In addition the book is not designed to be written in and is completely non-consumable. I love a book that I can reuse later on.

A nice extra is the addition of historical notes on the English language. These are found in most of the lessons and are located on the side of the page, separate from the grammar portion of the text. I find these to be very interesting facts that I have never learned.

The only complaint that I have about this book is that the answer key is not as complete as I would like. There are many exercises that do not have answers included. These are usually the ones in which the answers may vary, but some example correct answers would have been helpful.

I would recommend this for the junior high or high school level for a student that doesn’t need a lot of repetition. It can be used first for grammar instruction and later for a grammar reference.

Written by Kristen, Well-Trained Classical mom of 4. Kristen blogs at A Day in the Life.

Homeschooling for the Rest of Us – A Review

Encouragement, New to Homeschooling No Responses »

Jan 142010

Do you sometimes read homeschool blogs and feel discouraged about your own homeschool?

Does a homeschool book fair leave you feeling overwhelmed with all the possibilities?

Do you sometimes think that you aren’t organized enough, creative enough, smart enough, or anything enough to homeschool?

If so, you are not alone.

I think that all homeschoolers sometimes feel incapable of meeting the challenges of homeschooling. And unfortunately we all play the comparison game at one time or another. But we need to keep in mind that we are unique, our children are unique, and our homeschools are unique.

I just finished reading Homeschooling for the Rest of Us by Sonya Haskins. The easy-to-read book is written to provide encouragment to homeschoolers who are feeling like they aren’t measuring up to those perfect homeschools. Written by an imperfect homeschool mom of five and homeschool consultant, the book offers sound advice on a wide variety of homeschool topics including developing positive relationships, socialization, establishing routines (or not), budgeting, and special needs children. Sonya Haskins calls herself a relaxed homeschooler, and while that is evident in some of the advice, this is not a book about different homeschool methods. I think the book would be useful for homeschoolers of any style. It is an especially good book for both new homeschoolers and those who are needing encouragement to continue homeschooling.

I received a free copy of this book in order to provide my honest review.

Written by Kristen – Classical Homeschool Mom of 4, Kristen blogs about her own imperfect homeschool at A Day in the Life.

Word Games

Hands On, Language Arts, Uncategorized, Unschooling 2 Responses »

Dec 172009

photo by allyrose18

After my recent post on thinking games, I felt that this post on word games would be appropriate since our family enjoys several word games that are both fun and educational. One challenge about playing word games with the whole family is that it is necessary for children to be able to read, unless, of course, they are playing an introductory child’s word game (which are usually not that fun for the older members of the family). We typically relax the rules of the more advanced word games that we play in order to level the playing field. We often assist the children in finding and/or spelling words.

The great thing about playing word games is that children get spelling practice and an introduction to new vocabulary words within a fun, game-playing context. As an older player uses a word unfamiliar to some of the others playing, the meaning can be discussed, the spelling clearly seen, and new knowledge is gained by all. It seems that we are more likely to remember things that we have learned within the context of having fun.

A final educational benefit that word games provide for children is practice using the dictionary. Not many people find it particularly fun to look up words in the dictionary as part of an assignment. But when kids are trying to score points in a game, looking up words becomes much more motivating. In addition, the children are usually seeking these words secretively (so they don’t give parents an advantage in the game). In other words, they are motivated to act and learn independently (which is sometimes a struggle during the school day for some members of our family). So find a word game and gather your family together for a fun and educational experience.

If you don’t already have a favorite word game, here are a few suggestions from our list of family favorites.

Bananagrams:

This game consists of letter tiles, packaged in a zippered banana pouch. There is no board, so this game is very portable. Each player draws tiles and makes words using only their own tiles. They join other words like a crossword puzzle. My favorite part is that everyone plays at once. It is fast-paced and no one has to wait for someone to take a turn. Call me impatient, but it does get boring waiting too long for the other players to take their turns in certain games.

Boggle:

This is another compact game where all the players play at the same time. The game consist of letter cubes and a small case to hold the cubes and shake them. For each round the case is shaken and the 25 cubes allowed to rest in the bottom of the case. Players then look for words by connecting the letters. After the set time has passed, players take turns calling out the words that they have found. You only get points for those words that no one else has found, so it is good to write down unusual words. There are points awarded for each unique word with longer words scoring more points.

Quiddler:

This great card game is from the makers of The Set Game. Each card has a letter or a blend of letters on it. For the first hand, each player is dealt 3 cards. Each subsequent hand the number of cards is increased by one, until the last hand where each player is dealt ten cards. Each player tries to use all their cards to spell one or more words. Each turn they must draw one card and discard one card. After the first player is able to use all their cards, all the other players get one more turn and must make whatever words they can from the letters in their hand. The points from unused cards are deducted from their scores. This game lasts longer than the other ones, but it provides more opportunity to help the children find words.

As we homeschool our children, let’s not forget about the natural opportunities that arise for educating our children within our everyday activities.

Written by Kristen, Relaxed Classical Homeschool Mom of 4. Kristen blogs at A Day in the Life.

Thinking Games

Hands On, Mathematics 1 Response »

Dec 032009

My family loves games. Over the years, we have acquired a fairly large collection. But even with our large collection, we usually receive at least one new game for Christmas.

But all games are not created equal. There are games that are completely based on luck, completely based on skill, and all combinations in between. I especially like games that require strategy and thinking. But not too much thinking. I personally don’t really like games where one false move and there’s no chance at winning remaining. Nor do I like games that take a really long time to play.

Here are some of my personal favorite logical thinking and visual-spatial games. These are also kid-approved games. I have attempted to include games that are played with different numbers of players and can be played over and over again without playing the same game twice.

SET - The object of this “simple” card game is to recognize patterns. Each card has 4 features: color, number, symbol, and shading. There are 3 possible options for each feature. Players must form a Set of three cards.

A ‘Set’ consists of three cards in which each feature is EITHER the same on each card OR is different on each card. That is to say, any feature in the ‘Set’ of three cards is either common to all three cards or is different on each card.

The rules are simple enough for children to understand (though when reading the instructions it does not seem like it!) , but the game is challenging enough for adults to enjoy. It can be played with 1 to 20 people according to the makers of SET, but I think with 20 it would be too difficult for everyone to see the cards. You can visit the SET game website to see pictures of the cards, read the rules, and even play a daily on-line game of SET for free.

Pentago – This game is for 2 players. It consists of black and white marbles and the playing board. The players take turns placing marbles on the board with the object being to get five marbles in a row. The extra twist is that each quarter of the board can be twisted a quarter turn after each move. Pentago requires the player to plan ahead and develop strategy, yet once again its concept is simple enough for a child to play.

Blokus – There are several variations of this game available. The original version works best for 4 people. Each person has 21 tiles, made up of all the possible shape combinations of 1 square, 2 squares, 3 squares, 4 squares, 5 squares, and 6 squares. Each player takes a turn placing one of his pieces on the board. Each subsequent piece must touch diagonally to one of the same color pieces. This game requires the player to plan ahead and is great for developing spatial relations. You can visit the website and play an on-line version for free to see it before you buy it.

Rush Hour – This unique logic game for 1 player is comprised of different colored and sized vehicles on a square grid. Included are cards that show the initial set-up for the vehicles. The goal is to move all the other vehicles out of the way in order to free a specific car. The puzzles range from beginner to expert, so there are enough to challenge a child for a long time. This game also has an on-line version you can try out.

I’d love to hear your comments on any of these games or other recommendations for games of this type.

Written by Kristen, Relaxed Classical Homeschool Mom of 4. Kristen blogs at A Day in the Life.

The Well-Educated Mind

Classical, High School, Literature 3 Responses »

Nov 192009

The Well-Educated Mind: A Guide to the Classical Education You Never Had

By Susan Wise Bauer

I have a small confession to make. One of the reasons I homeschool is pretty selfish. I want to homeschool because it gives me the opportunity to learn so many things that I didn’t learn in my own years of formal education. Although I have always loved to read, I didn’t study many of the classics. I love history now, but learned very little about history in my school days. Foreign language? Let’s not even go there.

Trying to give my children a classical education without having one myself is both exciting and scary. So far, I’ve done a lot of learning alongside my kids. But that’s going to be harder to do as my children get older. That’s one of the reasons that a few years ago I purchased a copy of The Well-Educated Mind by Susan Wise Bauer. The sub-title is A Guide to the Classical Education You Never Had. That’s exactly what I need.

The book begins with an apology for reading and how the practice of reading helps you to train your mind. Bauer urges a set-time for reading. She then details how to read a book and keep a journal, as well as writing short chapter summaries. These recommendations are very detailed and specific.

The bulk of the book is devoted to what to read. Literature is divided up into 5 categories: the novel, the autobiography, the tales of historians, drama, and poetry. In each section, Bauer details how to read each type of literature. This is followed by lists of recommended works that include summaries of each book. Each list is in chronological order by the approximate date written, since the “discussion’ should be read from beginning to end.

My husband and I are reading through the classics using The Well-Educated Mind as our guide. As I’ve looked back over the book, I have noticed that we haven’t been going through all the steps as detailed. However, just using Bauer’s list to select reading has been invaluable to us. I do intend to begin studying the books more thoroughly. I highly recommend this book as a resource for an adult or high school student who wants to learn how to read and analyze the Great books.

Written by Kristen, a relaxed classical homeschool mom of 4. Kristen blogs at A Day in the Life.

Moody Science Classics

Bible, Science 2 Responses »

Nov 052009

One of the goals my husband and I set when we first had children was to surround them with learning opportunities. We want them to love learning. And we don’t want learning to be something that just happens during “school”. Several years ago we saw an incredible special on the entire collection of Moody Science DVDs, and we knew immediately that we’d found something that we would like to own. We have not been disappointed.

Moody Classics, 19 DVDs

Each DVD is 28 minutes long, and there are 19 videos in the set. (They are also available separately.) There are a wide variety of science topics covered including many animals, plants, human anatomy and physics. Several of the videos weave in history lessons as well. All the videos end with a discussion relating the topic to a Biblical theme.

Though these are science videos, they are very unlike their modern counter-parts. Notably absent is the cool, science-geek character found in most of today’s videos. The videos don’t jump between segments with wild graphics and pop music. Each episode contains a variety of information that may not seem related at first, but the relationship between the topics is made clear by the end. They always include interesting laboratory demonstrations. Though I wouldn’t describe the videos as “exciting”, they are all very interesting. Amazing things about each topic are demonstrated and explained. They are also not strictly for children and never talk down to the watcher. My husband and I enjoy watching them and have learned something from every episode. (We’ve both got science backgrounds and my husband teaches chemistry.)

For example, we most recently watched Signposts Aloft. It was about using instruments in airplane flight. It showed how pilots could fly without instruments in good weather, but in poor weather the sense of sight is useless, and they cannot rely on their sense of direction. They did a very interesting demonstration where a blindfolded man was spun around. He reported what direction he was spinning. At the beginning he felt he was spinning in the right direction, but then he felt he had stopped and was beginning to turn in the other direction. However, it was obviously false. This false sensation was explained using a model of the inner ear. (We duplicated this experiment at home. You can watch it at A Day in the Life – Fooling the Senses.) They also visited the site of an airplane crash in World War II. The pilot had flown past his base and crashed in the Libyan dessert all because he didn’t trust his instruments. The importance of having “faith” in the instruments was stressed and reinforced in a short interview with a very young John Glenn. Finally, the point was made that faith and science are not mutually exclusive pursuits. Further, we need to have faith in the Bible, because sometimes life is like flying without visibility, and the Bible provides us with the right direction.

Over the years I have used these videos in several ways. Occasionally I have pulled one out that relates to our current science study. Sometimes I have had the children watch one for a science lesson when I was sick, or had something I needed to do. Mostly though, they’ve served as family entertainment. They really are that good.

Written by Kristen – Relaxed Classical Mom of 4. She blogs at A Day in the Life.

Finding Support

Encouragement, New to Homeschooling 2 Responses »

Oct 222009

If you are just beginning to homeschool, you need to make it a priority to find outside support. There will be times when you will have questions or concerns that an experienced homeschooler can help you answer. Other times, you will need a listening ear or a shoulder to cry on. Be very careful sharing your struggles with friends and relatives who aren’t supportive of homeschooling. Even those who are well-meaning can hear your problems and use that as ammunition to encourage you to quit.

It’s great to have friends that are going through the same stages of homeschooling as you are. You can swap stories, compare curriculum choices, and fellowship. They can provide daily support and also times of fun for you and children together. But, it is an even greater blessing to find someone who has graduated at least one of her children. I am blessed to know a lady in my church who was among the pioneer homeschoolers in our state. Recently, I was able to speak to her specifically about some discipline problems in my home, and she was able to encourage me. One very specific way was to point to her oldest son and say that he used to act in a similar way! I can’t begin to express how happy that made me. This son is grown with 6 young children of his own. To know that he hadn’t been a “perfect” child made me feel like a weight had been lifted off of me. I was reminded that my hope should be in the Lord, not in my various methods.

So maybe you’re saying, “Thanks for the touching story, but I don’t know anybody else who homeschools. What about me? What should I do?

Seek to meet other homeschoolers:

1. Locally
A good first place to look is at your church. If your church is large, it may even have its own support group. Ask around in your Sunday School class. Ask your children’s Sunday School teachers if they know of any homeschoolers. Call the church or ask the pastor. (Obviously, how to find homeschoolers at church is dependent on the size of the church. At a small church, you would probably already know who was homeschooling, if anyone.)

Ask your friends. Often after you tell people that you’re going to homeschool, they will mention that they know someone else who is homeschooling (unfortunately, it’s not always meant to complimentary). Rather than just nod, you can ask them who it is and whether they could introduce you.

Ask at various places that homeschoolers typically frequent. Ask your librarian if they have any programs for homeschoolers, or call a nearby science museum or YMCA. If they have special homeschooling programs, you can meet homeschoolers there by attending those events.

2. On-line
There are two different ways to use the internet to find homeschoolers.

First, it can aid you in your search for local homeschool groups. Try finding homeschool organizations for your state. They should be able to put you in touch with someone in your region. HSLDA is a good place to start, though you are more likely to find a state group than a local one at this site.

You can also find other homeschoolers on-line. There are numerous blogs that focus on homeschooling. (Like The Curriculum Choice of course!) Each of the writers here also has a personal homeschooling blog. You can “meet” other homeschoolers on message boards or Yahoo groups. Check out Our Lifestyle of Learning. It’s a great and friendly group where you can ask questions. There are many on-line groups that discuss specific curriculum or general homeschool styles.

Though on-line support isn’t an exact substitute for local fellowship, it is amazing how wonderful friendships can develop with people you’ve never even seen in person. Sometimes, you can’t find a local person that you really connect with, but you can on-line. Of course the usual on-line warnings apply. Don’t divulge personal information where anyone could access it. It is also very easy to lose track of time on the computer, so be on your guard.

Finally, if you are a veteran homeschooler, seek to help others. Be accepting of new people at homeschool events. It’s wonderful to see our friends, but when we visit with our friends to the exclusion of others we may be giving a bad impression of homeschool families. I’ve seen way too many posts on-line about unfriendly homeschool groups!

Written by Kristen, relaxed Classical mom of 4. You can find her blogging at A Day in the Life.

Latin for Children vs. Latina Christiana

Classical, Foreign Language 11 Responses »

Oct 082009

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bg/ / CC BY-NC 2.0

We began studying Latin four years ago when my oldest child was in the second grade. I read everything I could find on the different Latin curricula that were available and finally decided on Latin for Children for him. He completed the 3 books in 4 school years and this year he has started
Latin Alive, which is a Latin program for middle school students, also published by Classical Academic Press.

Since I was pleased with Latin for Children for my son, I had my daughter start with the program at the beginning of last school year. Later on in the year I received Latina Christiana I from Memoria Press to review. My daughter seemed the obvious choice to try out the program since she wasn’t too far along in Latin for Children. She also didn’t seem to be retaining the information very well, so I figured a little review would be beneficial. As she used Latina Christiana, I noticed that there were some things about the program that made it a better choice for her. So this year she is continuing to use Latina Christiana instead of Latin for Children.

I was reminded of a few things in this process. First, my children are all different and what may work best for one of them may not be the best choice for all of them. Second, I need to look at products with each of the children who will be using the product in mind, not just my oldest child, and not just what I like. Finally, I can’t spend a lot of money on a product and always justify it by saying I’ll use it with all 4 of my children. That may not work.

I think that BOTH Latin for Children and Latina Christiana are excellent Latin programs with many similarities. Both are designed to be used with students as young as about the third grade. They both teach Latin from a parts-to-whole method. Both include Latin grammar and vocabulary as well as derivative studies. Latin for Children does include more vocabulary and grammar, but that is reasonable since it has one more text than Latina Christiana. An optional video is available for either product as well as audio cd’s. However, there are some key differences which I have outlined below.

	Latin for Children	Latina Christiana
# texts in series	3 (A,B,C)	2 (I, II)
Pronunciation	Classical (but has an Ecclesiastical option)	Ecclesiastical
Student Text	Instruction is in the Student text	No instruction in the Student text
Teacher’s Guide	Answer Key	All Latin instruction is in Teacher’s Guide as well as teaching tips, quizzes, tests, and answers to all the exercises.
Video	Lessons include children and some humor. Some variety in filming locations. Lessons are fairly short.	Lessons include instructor only. They are thorough and include drill and practice within the lesson. Lessons are longer and are in front of a white board only.
Roman culture included?	Very little	Scheduled to use with Famous Men of Rome, however Famous Men of Rome is not included.
Variety	Pages are printed with Roman themed graphics. Variation in types of exercises from chapter to chapter.	Plain pages. Predictable format for exercises and quizzes.
Prayers included?	No	Yes

My daughter, who has always been somewhat of a no-nonsense kind of girl, really appreciates Latina Christiana. She needs more drill and practice, and the expectations are very clear. The instruction in the text in Latin for Children was confusing to her and didn’t help her to understand the material at all.

My son, on the other hand, would not have lasted a week in Latina Christiana. He needed the somewhat goofy humor in the Latin for Children videos as well as the variety in the text. He is much more able to read and understand a concept, so having the instruction in the text was great for him. And memorizing Latin prayers? There is no way that he would enjoy that.

If you are looking for an elementary Latin curriculum I recommend either Latin for Children or Latina Christiana I. They are both quality programs backed by companies that are continually revising and writing new curricula. Samples are available at both websites to help you compare further and decide which one is more suited to your child.

Written by Kristen, Classical mom of 4. Kristen’s homeschool blog is A Day in the Life.

Happy Phonics

Phonics 1 Response »

Sep 242009

I used to think that teaching children to read was easy. Well, I thought that after my oldest learned to read. We used a very simple phonics text, I told him how to blend the letter sounds to make words, he did it, and that was all there was to it. Then it was just a matter of learning a few extra sounds. All this happened BEFORE kindergarten.

Enter second child. Well, maybe it’s not as easy as I thought. She was a little bit tougher. She WANTED to learn but just didn’t seem to get how to blend those sounds together. Until she just got it. She didn’t take off quite as quickly as my oldest had after that, so I got some extra workbooks to reinforce the phonics that she was learning in another simple phonics book.

That must be what people mean when they talk about it being difficult to teach a child to read, or so I thought. Until….

I tried to teach my younger son to read. I was relaxed. I knew from teaching my daughter to read that there seemed to be a time when blending sounds just clicks. My plan was to keep trying until he finally got it. But he wasn’t getting it. This is my wiggly boy. He was not particularly interested in learning to read either. I didn’t want to push, but I couldn’t even get him to look at the page of either of the two phonics texts I used with my older two children. I began to get concerned when he couldn’t consistently read “cat’ at the end of kindergarten. I probably shouldn’t have worried, but I did.

I then began a search for a more “fun” phonics program. I thought maybe he needed all the bells and whistles. But none of the expensive flashy phonics programs seemed like they were worth the price tag to me. I also tend to be drawn to curricula that is more simple. It was in my search for something fun, that I found a program that was both fun and simple without a huge expense. I found Happy Phonics.

When you purchase Happy Phonics, you are purchasing a small user guide and a thick stack of games and flash cards printed on brightly colored card stock. The games start with simple letter recognition and letter sounds and progress through advanced phonics. After cutting (and cutting!) out the first few games, I was eager to try them with my son. His response was good. I’m not going to exaggerate and say that he was begging to play the games, but those games were the first things that got him to actually focus on the words.

Blending letters to make words finally clicked with him while playing a game consisting of a little house with a chimney. In the window of the house the last two letters of a word show through. Next to the window a column of beginning letters is advanced up and out the chimney of the house. I could never get him to read through lists of words in word families until I started using that house game.

This program is not magic. In fact, he might would have been able to read just as soon using the other programs. But the other programs were torture to him (and me). He finally was able to pay attention when I started using Happy Phonics.

One year later he can read phonics books. I’m still using Happy Phonics alongside other phonics readers and workbooks. He enjoys the games and is willing to practice his reading for much longer when he’s playing than when he’s reading columns of words in a book. I am so thankful that I found Happy Phonics. It is certainly not the phonics program that I would recommend to everyone, but it has been extremely beneficial for my wiggly son.

Happy Phonics can be purchased from Love to Learn.

Written by Kristen, classical homeschool mom of 4. You can read her blog at A Day in the Life.

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