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cheesehead mom
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| Posted: May 05 2009 at 5:02pm | IP Logged
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My ds will turn 8 in a few weeks and has still not progressed much past 3 letter words. I have used a variety of things with varying degrees of success--Little Angel Reader (red one), 100 Easy Lessons and just phonics cards. Life is very stressful with trying to sell our home, pregnancy and the like but I am wondering if there is any cheap fun resources I may turn to for him at this point...or just keep plugging away and wait for the lightbulb. He has been tested and OT and others did not see any issues.
Laura
mom to 6 and one little squirt making me supernauseated!
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12stars
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| Posted: May 05 2009 at 5:28pm | IP Logged
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Have you tried Star Fall.
That might excite him to read.
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Claudia in Southern California
Wife to George,
Mom to DD 14, DD 10, DD 7, DS 4, DS 2, 1 in heaven, and now due 5/11.
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Mary Chris
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Laura,
Starfall is good and fun. Study Dog used to be free but I think you have to pay now.
I also want to reassure you that your little guy will learn to read. Back in September my ds9 (was 8 at the time) could barely read three letter words. Today he is reading chapter books. We used Scaredy Cat Reading. It has lots of games.
You could wait until you sell your house and your not feeling so stressed. Boys sometimes bloom a bit later, but it will click for him.
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Blessings, Mary Chris Beardsley
mom to MacKenzie3/95, Carter 12/97 Ronan 3/00 and wife to Jim since 1/92
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jenk
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We finally had success with Progressive Phonics after trying many other programs. I'm not sure if it was just time for things to click for him though. The program is under $20 for all the downloaded books. I printed them but you could read them on the computer. The stories are VERY silly but they really appealed to my ds, then 7. The stories are also short and read by both parent and child. We added Explode the Code workbooks, which furthered his progress.
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Jen
with 2 boys, 14 and 8, and a girl expected 1/09
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cheesehead mom
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| Posted: May 05 2009 at 9:28pm | IP Logged
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I had forgot about Starfall, thanks for that suggestion...as well as the others! Will check back to see if there are any more. My oldest read at about 8 but with this ds it seems that we are just plodding along with so little progress....which is why I thought we would try something new.
Laura
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joann10
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Just to add a little more encouragement---a year ago we were at the very same place with ds-8 (I believe I even posted here for help).
Mark turned 9 in January and his reading has taken off--he certainly isn't ahead--but he is a very average third grade reader---the very thing I wanted for him.
We just plugged away---going back and concentrating on those three letters words, reading at the level he was at at the time, and he just finally "got it".
I hope you have the same experience--I know how frustrating and upsetting it is with a struggling reader, but when they "get it" it make it that much more special.
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Jody
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| Posted: May 06 2009 at 3:33pm | IP Logged
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Another little bit of encouragement--
My daughter had a very hard time learning her alphabet letters and learning to read. She was 9 and was sounding out the three letter words that she had just read a sentence before  .
I tried all types of extra reading practice, montessori type hands-on activities, typing helped with her alphabet letters and phonics tutor CD helped too. But suddenly about a month after her 9th b-day she took off and "got it"!
Now at 15 she reads wonderfully well and loves it! So hang in there. It will come!
Jody
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lilac hill
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| Posted: May 06 2009 at 3:46pm | IP Logged
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I have no advice, we seemed to try everything, finally did copywork of some Brambly Hedge books the girls were enamored with at that point and I read all her subject area stuff to her and she dictated back to me,I typed, printed and she illustrated and showed her Dad.
Was it that? the cumulative effect of all we did or was it just her time, but DD did start reading slowly , independantly at 9yo.
You are not alone and have my prayers of support.
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Viv
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Erin
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Laura
Just wanted to encourage you too. After 2 yrs of being stuck at a very basic level, ds9.6 is finally reading.
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Erin
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stellamaris
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My best advice to you is to STOP reading instruction for a few months. I know this sounds like heresy, but this is what worked for two of my children who were late readers. I kept on reading aloud every day, and also pointed out (occasionally) where the skill of reading was used in everyday life (e.g., recipes, comics, etc). After a few months, we tried again and, whether it was the break from the subject or just readiness, they both began to "get" reading. Unless there is an underlying learning problem, your ds will eventually read!
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Caroline
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cheesehead mom
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| Posted: May 07 2009 at 8:58am | IP Logged
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Thanks so much ladies for all of the encouragement--it means so much to me especially admist the craziness of life right now (moving, hubby starting new job 3 hours away and pregnancy). My ds loved Starfall this week and I really needed the break from teaching him reading to focus on the other kids. I am especially encouraged to hear from other moms who have taught a few readers and still have the same struggles I do! I am needing to pack up some more stuff to make our home more show ready so I may just pack up the phonics books to give myself (and my ds) permission to take a break.
Laura
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Mary Chris
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| Posted: May 07 2009 at 10:45am | IP Logged
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I am so glad that Caroline had the courage to say what I wanted to say!!
I would also encourage you to check out books on tape/CD's for him to listen to.
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Blessings, Mary Chris Beardsley
mom to MacKenzie3/95, Carter 12/97 Ronan 3/00 and wife to Jim since 1/92
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Cay Gibson
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| Posted: May 07 2009 at 11:18am | IP Logged
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I also noticed that when I stepped back from reading instructions then returned to them...sometimes weeks larger..., my child seemed to have learned so much (or remembered so much) more than when we did day-to-day constant reading instructions.
Annie has finally moved on from Dick and Jane and Dr. Seuss to the Bobbsey Twins and Henry and Mudge.
Slow and steady...
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Cay Gibson
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Cay Gibson
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| Posted: May 07 2009 at 11:21am | IP Logged
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I forgot to add...I don't know what it is about the "Explode the Code" workbooks but they seem to work.
I didn't start w/ them for Annie as I did w/ Chelsea and it is taking Annie longer to get the hang of reading. I began using "Explode the Code" and she is taking great bounds in her reading.
I, personally, don't like the little pictures in Explode the Code and even find some of it confusing. But it seems to work.
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Cay Gibson
"There are 49 states, then there is Louisiana." ~ Chef Emeril
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Tonya
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Out of my six children, 3 of them have been very delayed in reading. My thirteen year old didn't read well until he was 9 or 10 and now he reads everything under the sun. He reads difficult books, magazines, The Wall Street Journal, etc., etc.. One of my twins didn't start reading until 8 and the other one was 9. I think one of the biggest advantages of our homeschooling is that they were not labeled in school. They have caught up and surpassed their peers. I also agree with taking some time off. We have always taken the summers off. When we start again in the fall, they seem a little behind but then they seem to take off. I wonder how many little kindergarten and first grade boys learn to dislike reading because they are just not ready to read yet.
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Jody
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Tonya wrote:
| I wonder how many little kindergarten and first grade boys learn to dislike reading because they are just not ready to read yet. |
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Good point tonya!
Jody
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JodieLyn
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My oldest could not get phonics.. she wanted to read so much but phonics totally stressed her out and as soon as she got stressed all learning stopped.
We went to sight words on flash cards. There's many sight words (you can search for the dolch words) that don't obey phonics rules and you'll have to learn anyway.
Hold up the card, she tries to read it, gets ONE chance to sound it out, then I say it, she says it while looking at the word and the word goes to the bottom of the pile to be tried again later. If she reads the word either right away or by sounding it out without much struggle.. she holds the card. If you use only a small pile of cards at a time you can do this until the child is holding all of the cards. Then you pull the easy words and add in some new words.
The great this about this approach was that we were able to reverse the stress that trying to read was giving. The second she started to get frustrated. We just stopped. At first that might have been a minute or less. But in a fairly short time we could do a much longer session. Just come back to it through out the day so that all the mini sessions add up 
She went from not being able to read at the end of 3rd grade to reading at grade level at the end of 4th grade. Now I have to take away her books and/or light bulbs so that she'll get some sleep 
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Tina P.
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| Posted: May 19 2009 at 1:46am | IP Logged
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stellamaris wrote:
| My best advice to you is to STOP reading instruction for a few months. |
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This worked for us as well. However, instead of restarting lessons, I let him choose a little chapter book on an interesting historical character and told him that his dad would *love* it if he read the story aloud to him mornings before work. He read the whole thing. And then some more. Now he won't stop. He's deep into the Redwall series that my oldest son, who learned to read when he was 5 or 6, didn't want to finish the first book of.
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Tina, wife to one and mom to 9 + 3 in heaven
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4Real Forums : Language Arts Come Alive
Topic: 8 year old non-reader
