My 2 yo has done YBCR and some of LR. She’s almost 2.5 now so is the window closing for LR? I have been on hiatus, esp after having some problems with LR closing all the time and keeping her attention and did the Leap Frog and now some basic phonics dvd. She knows all her letter sounds for months now and really seems to be ready for the next step (we’re sick of hearing the letter sounds around the house, lol). She really likes the sounds so I thought it would be good to start somewhat formal phonics with her.
We do magnetic letters and will continue with LR when she can sit long enough, Leap Frog vids but she seems to need a lot of stimulation and activity right now. So any other suggestions for videos, CD’s, youtube vids online that would help? I just see a window open right now to teaching her synthetic phonics since she loves the sounds and feel like I’m wasting her potential by not going the next step.
I had HOP but the one I have is letter names and sounds and she already knows those. Anyone know about HOP KG or 1st grade? I like some of their videos on youtube that show the different rhyming words like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GayEiWqQNFo I also am looking for a systematic methodology on teaching phonics where I can possibly make my own materials or use some of the powerpoint flashes on here.
The window never closes for LR - Little Math can possibly only be used for children less than 30 months of age, but LR can be used by anyone (adults included) You may need to adjust your usage of LR though - you could use it to tell stories or even to teach phonics or use it for phrases or couplets - whatever suits your child.
As for a phonics programme - I am at the same stage with my daughter - she has known all the alphabet sounds since 18 months of age. I have showed her how to sound out short words and she has even tried to sound out long words. There are a number of programmes you can use:
Hooked on Phonics
Leapfrog DVDs
The Ordinary Parents guide to teaching reading
Teach your child to read in 100 easy lessons
Jolly Phonics
ABC Reading Eggs
Starfall teaches phonics too
If you are going to use one of these programmes then pick one and proceed - it may not be the right one for your child and then you would need to try a different method or give it up for now and try again when the child is a bit older.
I have only listed some of the options - there are many many more.
As for sitting still long enough - try to work around this. I am doing a phonics programme with my daughter where there is a lot of movement - so once we learnt the letter “F” we would do an action like “fake flying” or “fax a form” or “flop like a frog” anything to keep her interest and also let her move.
As you move into blanding you will need more games and also to intersperse things with physical activity. Try getting her toi dance to some of the songs or give her something to do like playing with bricks or even doing a puzzle while she listens - children are great at multitasking and you may think nothing is going in, but it is.
I think the key is to choose a sytematic phonics program and stick to it. At about that age we tried “Teach your child to read in 100 easy lessons” and the “say it fast” stuff and the unusual way they wrote the phenomes didn’t work for my son. So we started “the ordinary parents guide to teaching reading” and it’s worked great. We skipped the first half of the book that teaches letters and their sounds and started at the phonics section. The lessons are short and it covers all of the phincs rules sytematically. We also supplemented with reading eggs for variety and easy readers. I’m not saying this method is best but what I think is important is to chooe a method that will cover everything and stick to it and you’ll see results.