OK, which phonics/reading program do I want?

[mo2]

Dd is 6, knows letter sounds and is beginning to blend CVC words. She is definitely wiggly, not a workbook type of gal. Short, to-the-point lessons work best for her. She can write well but not for long periods of time, as her "hand gets tired." It seems to be easier for her to build words than to break them down phonetically, if that makes sense. *I* need something that is fairly well laid out for me, as to what to do each day, but NOT scripted. Computer games, DVDs, CDs, etc., are not necessary and probably would not get used.

Did I just describe any program that you know of?

[chiguirre]

Take a look at Learning Language Arts Through Literature Blue, especially if you'd like to include picture books and fables in your learning. It emphasizes blending with card and dice games, flip books and word wheels. It's not scripted but it does have detailed daily instructions.

Here's the link to the publisher's site:

http://www.cspress.com/

[SandraDumas]

maybe Hooked on Phonics. It has CD's or cassette tapes, so I don't know if it fits your criteria. It is scripted, but you don't have to teach it and there's no writing. Lessons are certainly short and to the point. And it certainly works!

[BusyBee]

Happy Phonics. It was designed by a Homeschool Mom for her wiggly and energetic son who couldn't sit long enough for workbooks. It has lots of games and puzzles. You can also use it along with Explode the Code Primers. http://www.lovetolearn.net/catalog/category/detail/Phonics/10

[one l michele]

SWR, I also used this with my oldest. He has no patience for busy work or anything repetitive. The great thing is once you go through list I they are reading real books! Then they transition easily into spelling because they've learned the phonograms, how to decode, and think about words instead of memorizing whole words. SWR also takes the place of a phonics program. Oh, and it's non consumable taking the dc through all levels.

There is a bit of a learning curve for mom because it's not a scripted program and I don't care for how the manual is laid out, the actual Wise guide is easy to use. The folks here will help you get started if you decide on this path.

[Tutor]

My ds (whose hand gets "wiggly" when he writes for awhile) loved HOP. I've used it for three kiddos now and highly recommend it.

[Malenki]

We're using Phonics Pathways (PP) with our wiggly very auditory son who loathes busy work. He adores PP however. He detests ETC although we've done books 1 & 2 slowly over about 2 years.

With PP we read the list of words and/or sentences and he's done (5 minutes max). We do it twice a week right now; he needs time in between to let it simmer. The other three days he reads me from early readers.

Sometimes he clicks with the new thing and sometimes we just do the same page(s) over again. Sometimes we don't even read the words but have him write out 4 or 5 words from the list and we're done.

Very short to the point lessons with no scripting. He knows what to expect and I can pace it to fit where he's at. His reading is taking off, he isn't complaining about doing the PP, and it's easy for me to teach.

Our library had it so we tried it for a while first before I bought a copy.

[Suzanne in ABQ]

I second Phonics Pathways. I've used it successfully with both my kids -- one a wiggly, easily frustrated boy, and one a compliant, but perfectionistic girl. We used the clock, or glassy eyes, as the prompt to end the lesson. Frequently, especially from the middle of the book, the lessons are too long to do in one sitting. We'd stop when the clock reached our time limit, or when the child got glassy eyed (saturated), then, we'd pick it up the next day. At first, our lessons were only about 5 minutes a day, but we worked up to about 20 minutes, including our phonics readers. Trying to do more after the child was "full" was futile. We'd either split upthe lesson and do more the next day, or we'd try again in the afternoon.

[Alana in Canada]

SWR.

Super simple in practice. Yes, it's tough to get started but sooooooooo worth it!

My seven year old is making the leap from "Henry and Mudge" to Chapter books now that we are in List I--something my son found very very difficult. (And there are only so many "quality" books at the "Henry and Mudge" level.