Saxon Phonics K and OPGTR users...Review desired

[training5]

Hello. Let's try posting again, shall we?...

What did you like? Not like? What did you consider its strengths? weaknesses? How much prep and teaching time are involved? How much writing? My 3rd little guy is 3 and a half, speech delayed, VERY good fine motor skills and ready for more than starfall.com. Which might work best for a younger child? Help me decide, please!

[Tonia]

I don't know anything about Saxon but we really like OPG. We started when dd was 3 yo. She was sounding out words like cat and dad, so I figured it was time to give it a go. We skipped the first 20 some lessons because she already knew her letter sounds.

I think it is a great stand-alone program but I really love it combined with ETC and some hands on games. DD loves games, so we make up a lot of games with words and play them all the time.

Strengths -

1. scripted (though this can be a weakness for others!) I don't generally read it out loud to dd, but I skim it to see if there is anything I can add.
2. Love the two review and one new concept - really reinforces the learning.
3. thorough program - I believe a child is reading on a fourth grade level when they complete the book (I'm not positive on this though)
4. with the add-ons - magnetic board and letters, flashcards, it adds some other elements that can help reinforce the learning.

Weaknesses -
1. The script for the child can be too small - my dd sometimes struggles with too much on the page. But there are ways around something like that - cover the page up, type it in a larger font on the computer, write the words on a white board and let them cross them off after they read them (dd's favorite way to do a reading lesson)

Prep time is minimal - just grab the book and do the next thing. Teaching time for young ones is very short - we do maybe 10 to 15 minutes for a lesson. BUT we play games as well, on top of that time, to reinforce the learning. Plus dd loves her workbooks so we are using ETC to go with it.

Does your son know his letter sounds? He doesn't need to with this program, as the first 27 lessons covers that. I think it is a great program - you could get it and if he is too young for it yet, just put it away until he is a little older.

Or, if you aren't ready to commit to a program, there are many activities that you can do just to reinforce letter sounds, etc. He is still very young, so that might be the best route to take.

HTH!

[training5]

He knows most of them from playing with starfall .com. So does my 2yr. old! But he still doesn't know the letter names automatically. Will OPG help with that or does he need to know that first? Does he need to know letter formation as well? Thank you.

[Tonia]

He knows most of them from playing with starfall .com. So does my 2yr. old! But he still doesn't know the letter names automatically. Will OPG help with that or does he need to know that first? Does he need to know letter formation as well? Thank you.

Yes, OPG starts with teaching the letters and their sounds, one at a time. I would suggest, when/if you are ready to order, to get the CD too - it will reinforce the letter sounds. DD is past that point but she still likes to listen to it.

There is no writing involved, which was good for dd when we started, because she wouldn't have been able to do any of that.

I would take it very slow (we only did a lesson a week, at first). If he has difficulty with the material, just put it away for awhile and play some games and read to him. Or skip the program for now and start when he is four. Learning letter sounds and formation is something you can do on your own without a program.

[Kiva, SouthernGirlMusings]

We don't use Saxon but we absolutely love OPG. We ordered the complete package with the magnetic boards, cd, letters, and flash cards when dd was about 4 and now both kids love it. They ask to take the magnetic boards on road trips so that they can practice spelling words and making sentences. Very little if any prep is required unless you count separating the perforated flash cards. :)

We use it as a standalone program and use other books to reinforce it. Most libraries carry it so you can check it out and see if you like the format/set-up before buying. It provides a great phonetic foundation to the point that my parents have even commented on how well our daughter is able to break down words.

The fact that it is black and white, in terms of color, was key for us with our daughter as she gets distracted with other stuff being on a page. Hope that helps!

[Susie in CA]

OPG was wonderful. Both my boys learned to read with it and both read extremely well. They truly can read any book at any level now. I do think it was boring but that made it very efficient. That's really what we needed. We did not use anything else to supplement. I just had the boys read real books as they were able.

Saxon K is a great program. For the record we did not like Saxon 1 - 3. K, however, was fun. Still knowing what I know now I would propably just get Tangram puzzles, Patternblocks, and Unit Blocks and build away. I would make extra activies from books like Gobble Up Math and Family Math and call that my program. You'd pretty much get the same result and it is a lot less formal. Overall, though, we liked Saxon K.

Susie

[Tonia]

Just in case you want some things to do for fun - Here are some activities dd and I did before we started a reading program:

Pre-Reading Activities

1. Read, Read, Read, Read, Read to your child. And then read some more. :0) Picture books, poetry, whatever strikes your fancy.
2. Talk about the parts of a book – front and back, title, author, illustrator, read from left to right.
3. Play rhyming games and read rhyming poetry and nursery rhymes. Ask “What word rhymes with pan?”
4. Play alphabet games: “B says /b/ as in b. . . b. . . ball”, while rolling a ball, etc. Ask “How many words can you think of that start with the /b/ sound? Read alphabet books.
5. Sound Search - once a child knows the consonant letter sounds; after he knows the consonants very well, do the vowel sounds (separately at first and then combine them).
a. Materials: pen, index cards
b. Set up: Write the letters on index cards
c. Instructions: Lay the cards (a few at a time) on the table and say a letter sound. Tell the child to pick out the appropriate card. If he gets it right, he gets the card. Continue until he holds all the cards.
6. Alphabet book
a. Materials: construction paper, marker, stapler, old magazines or books, scissors
b. Set up: Write each letter of the alphabet on a separate sheet of paper. Staple them all together, like a book.
c. Instructions: As you teach each new letter sound, let your child find pictures in old magazines (or cheap children’s books from a thrift store) that have that sound. Help him to cut them out and glue them in his book.
7. Write upper and lowercase letters on index cards and have your child practice tracing them with his finger. Other ideas: fill a heavy-duty Ziploc freezer bag with hair gel, seal tightly, and lay bag on a flat surface. Have the child use his finger to make letters on the surface of the bag.
8. Upper and Lowercase letter recognition game
a. Materials: index cards, scissors, and a pen
b. Set up: For each letter of the alphabet – write the upper and lower case letters on an index card with at least an inch of space in between them. Cut the card into two “puzzle” pieces. Do this with all the letters of the alphabet.
c. Instructions: Show the child how to match the upper and lower case puzzle pieces.
9. Play blending games: Start with a three letter world (CVC) and say it one sound at a time in a segmented fashion “r . . e. . d”. Have your child try to guess the word. If they have difficulty with this, say the words a bit faster, until they are able to guess the word.
10. Word Building game - when your child knows his letter sounds, he is ready for this game.
a. Materials: a magnet board and magnet letters
b. Set up: Put three letters on the board in random order (c, a, t).
c. Instructions: Ask the child, “What is the first sound you hear in cat?” saying the word slowly. Help her to listen for each sound and spell out the word. Do this with other short vowel, CVC words.
11. Practice writing letters on paper, a chalk board, a marker board, with a magna doodle, etc.
12. Letter search
a. Materials: paper, marker, pencil or crayon
b. Set up: At the top of a piece of paper write a specific letter (using the marker). Beneath that write about 10-15 letters with wide spaces in between, including the letter from the top at least 6 times.
c. Objective: Tell the child to look for all the letters that are the same as the letter at the top and circle them with a pencil or crayon.

[Marie in Oh]

I am on Child #4 with it. She is 4 and we are doing K. We usually do Saxon K the fall they are 4 and Saxon 1 for Kindergarten. That is all the Phonics instruction we do. They are reading late 2nd early 3rd grade level by the time they are done with Saxon 1. I love it, but I don't use it scripted. We do the letter cards, the picture cards, the alphabet exercises, and the worksheet. I don't do all of it. It seems too much. But it is a very solid program. I haven't seen OPG, but I am sure it is fine. I think there are lots of good programs and if one doesn't work another will. Just give it a few months and if nothing clicks, put it down and try again. A few times of this with no click might mean a curriculum change. That is what heppened with us and PP. I agree with the pre-reading and reading readiness stuff with your preschooler. That is good info.

[training5]

Thank you all for your insight. I am thinking OGR for simplicity sake. AND thank you Ms. Spider, for the reading readiness activity list. WOW!

[Tonia]

You are very welcome! ;0)