Mini-rant: school's reading workshop for parents.

[piraterose]

Ok - I know I expected way too much so I was bound to be disappointed. I had this grandoise idea that they would break us into grade levels and we would get to go over the strategies for reading that particular level, while the kids did their own reading workshop.

Well...

1) all the kids did was color while a few select older kids got to rehease/put on a skit for the adults. Totally not worth dragging my daughter to an hour before bedtime.

2) All the prarents were in the same workshop (pk-5) So nothing specific to grade level.

3) IT WAS ALL ABOUT WHOLE LANGUAGE! Not one word about phonics! In fact we were encourgage to DO sight word flash cards (with pictures if needed) and were encouraged NOT to have to children sound out words - but to supply the words to them if they get tripped up as to not slow down their reading momentum.

UGH! Sigh.... I only opened my mouth once to question about phonics and about how all these sight words are totally messing up my daughter's early success with decoding new words - now she just guesses words she doesn't have memorize.

Waste of time - she got a couple of free books.

[Alana in Canada]

Sorry it was such a discouraging experience.

Are they advocating invented spelling too?

[scrapbookbuzz]

I'm amazed that ...well, no I'm not. Personally, I believe in a combined approach. Everyone needs phonics. Sorry they wasted your time!

[MBM]

Ugh. Forget their lame-o advice. Teach phonics anyway. Be a rebel.

[Persephone]

What a shame. I thought schools in Florida were ahead of many other states on this issue. I clearly was wrong.
Whole language in our school district is masked by the term "balanced literacy," and its failure with my dd is why I started afterschooling. In a mere 6 weeks with my using phonics (Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons), my ds learned far more than in 8 months of balanced literacy. Plus, she learned all the sight words she had utterly failed to learn with the school's flash card approach. Engelmann's method for teaching them is nothing short of brilliant.

[Shay]

What a shame. I thought schools in Florida were ahead of many other states on this issue. I clearly was wrong.
Whole language in our school district is masked by the term "balanced literacy," and its failure with my dd is why I started afterschooling. In a mere 6 weeks with my using phonics (Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons), my ds learned far more than in 8 months of balanced literacy. Plus, she learned all the sight words she had utterly failed to learn with the school's flash card approach. Engelmann's method for teaching them is nothing short of brilliant.

:iagree::iagree::iagree:

[WendyK]

yuck!