Do you know of any resources (books, steps, etc.) to teach my 4 1/2 year old to read?

Question

Tried and True books, dvd's, etc.????

Answer 1

You need to teach them phonics. Start with short vowels, then the consonants. Next, teach them short vowel words and the long vowels sounds. Finally, teach them two vowel words and special sounds, such as 'ch', 'sh', and 'ck'. Good luck! Teaching them to sound out words is the best method because they will be able to figure our words for themselves once they learn all the sounds of the letters. Use flash cards for practice....trust me, it works!

Answer 2

Leap Frog has some great movies.  Try the Letter Factory and the Word Factory they are fun and educational at the same time!

Answer 3

try atozteacherstuff.com and go to store...they have great resources for great prices for a pdf d/load

Answer 4

Scholastic books makes a series of books that each book focuses on a specific sound like the phonics method. They come in cool characters like Dora and Clifford to help promote learning by using characters kids like. To get these series you can contact any local elementary or preschool and see if they order from Scholastic books. I think each series of 12 books(48 in total series) is like $12-20

Answer 5

We have experience with two main methods... Hooked on Phonics & the Leap Frog DVDs (Letter Factory, Talking Word Factory, Code Word Factory, and Talking Storybook Factory).  The Leap Frog DVDs are excellent, although generally I think the early ones are better.  If your child isn't yet familiar with the letter sounds, I'd definitely start with the LF-Letter Factory & Talking Word Factory.  We started our kids on these young (under 2), and both enjoyed them and quickly learned the letter sounds.  The reviews on Amazon are stellar, some perhaps ridiculously so, but they are great (even for kids that don't know the characters yet... we've never had a Leap Pad).

Hooked on Phonics I'm still not really sure about.  The whole "program" was too much for us, honestly.  We tried it for a while, but modified it to suit us... basically we ended up using the books that came with it because they are phonetic and start very simple, so the child can use what they learn quickly and gain confidence.  The workbook we didn't care much for, but the sight-word flashcards were helpful.  A computer game comes with level 1, and that was a hit with my kids.  The later levels (2-5) I didn't see much point in - just get books at the library to practice with.  

Many libraries actually carry both the Leap Frog DVDs and the HOP sets, so check them out for yourself before you spend the money if you like!

Answer 6

Go to a bookstore or Amazon and get "THe Bob Books".  Kids love them.  My mom's group swears by them.  Series of books, first book, child learns 5 letter sounds and the word "on" and using those can read the entire book with cool characters. Next book in the series adds 2 more letter sounds and another "sight word" and then the child can read that whole book.  My three year old loves it and is doing great with it!!!

Answer 7

I really like the a-z series.  The 'a' books are extrememly simple and can be memorized/read with ease.  They build on from there up to third grade reading level.  The cost is high, but you print your own books, so their is not much cost there.  Plus, they have some worksheets to work on specific skills that go with each book (actually, I think those start at level c or d).

Our library has hooked on phonics.  my sister used that before her daughter went to kindy.  It worked great for them.

best of luck!

Answer 8

I sure do!   :)

http://www.visionforum.com

http://www.nogreaterjoy.org

Vision Forum has a book for you too!  Safely Home, by Tom Eldredge.

Answer 9

These websites have worked well for my children.  I give 5 stars to hooked on phonics (software version) and starfall.com.  Here are links.

Reading is Fundamental is a good website also.

There are things you can do at home that will peek your child's interest in reading.  Read aloud to him/her everyday.  Have him/her point to words as you read.  Make postcards that need to be stuck on things around the house, like chair, bed, door.  Play games with rhyming words and clue words.  Then make a big deal when he/she begins to recognize words and identify beginning and ending sounds with the word.  Make posters using pictures of the season or their favorite sport, or their birthday and put the words with the pictures.  Then have them teach the poster to others.  (Grandparents get a kick out of that.)  It can be so much fun to teach them beginning reading skills and to watch those skills grow.  Then all of a sudden, they will begin to recognize words in their environment and spell words without your prompting.  Make it fun and keep it light.

Answer 10

Here's a good booklet for you to read:

*** Proven ideas from research for parents

http://www.nifl.gov/partnershipforreadin...

It says:

"The road to becoming a reader begins the day a child is born and continues through the end of third grade. At that point, a child must read with ease and understanding to take advantage of the learning opportunities in fourth grade and beyond—in school and in life.

Learning to read and write starts at home, long before children go to school. Very early, children begin to learn about the sounds of spoken language when they hear their family members talking, laughing, and singing, and when they

respond to all of the sounds that fill their world. They begin to understand written language when they hear adults read stories to them and see adults reading newspapers, magazines, and books for themselves.

Mothers, fathers, grandparents, and caregivers, this booklet is for you. Your role in setting your child on the road to becoming a successful reader and writer does not end when she* begins kindergarten."

There's also another one which is really a very helpful information.  Its title is:

"Teaching Reading Is Rocket Science"

Read it from this website:

http://www.aft.org/pubs-reports/download...

Now for basic reading books...  Buy books that have dolch sight words.  For example:

*** Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss contains 87% Dolch sight words

*** A Fly Went By! by Mike McClintock has 83% Dolch sight words

*** I Want to Be Somebody New! by Robert Lopshire has 82% Dolch sight words

Other books that contain Dolch sight words are:

*** Go, Dog. Go! by P.D. Eastman and Are You My Mother? by P.D. Eastman both have 78% Dolch sight words

*** The Cat in the Hat Comes Back by Dr. Seuss - 81%

*** The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss - 78%

*** One fish two fish red fish blue fish by Dr. Seuss - 75%

Visit this website to see the complete list of Dolch sight words:  

http://www.learningbooks.net/whydolchwor...

You can create your own set of flashcards!

Good luck!

Answer 11

www.starfall.com

Answer 12

I would start by making flashcards of the words on the Dolch list (most frequently used words in children literature) and then start constructing sentences and making books together using the words. Here's a link:

http://www.theschoolbell.com/Links/Dolch...

Answer 13

I highly recommend the book "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons!" I had a 4 year old reading and sent him to school this year and he is excelling! His Mom and I (I was the daycare provider) got to the place we were doing 2 lessons a day because he loved it so much.

You probably can check it out at your local library.

Good luck!