Reading Progress

I somehow, a couple years ago, came across the book, The Well-Trained Mind, by Susan Wise-Bauer and Jessie Wise. I read the first few chapters and knew that I had found a guide to help me as I embarked on the homeschooling experience.

The Well-Trained Mind is a guide to classical education...and I'm so excited about classical education!

The 3rd edition of the book is now out (I want it!)...but I have the 1st edition now.

And, the 1st edition recommended Phonics Pathways as a starting point for preschool/kindergarten phonics and early reading.

I bought the book right away (about a year ago?), but I didn't think it would work with my boys....mostly because...I'm a cynic. :)

But, it turns out, I just needed to be patient and wait for beginning reading to be developmentally appropriate. And...Phonics Pathways is seemingly so for my 4-yr. old right now.

We started by learning all the vowels and short vowel sounds. We use this sheet daily to review and become more and more fluent.

This is a "vowel stick" provided by the book. The reason for this tool is so that the student has a reference to look toward if he suddenly forgets a letter or its sound. And...it works very well for my boy! It forces him to stop and think rather than just "guess".

This week was a big stepping stone. We started blending consonant sounds with the vowels we've become so familiar with. I tried this about 6-8 months ago, and it was a debacle. But...this week...easy breezy.

I'm so proud of my boy!

He's doing so well, I'm going to go out and buy him the first set of the Bob Books in the next couple days, because I think he's going to be ready for them soon!