As a crew member, I get the opportunity to apply to review the curriculums that appeal to me; what I think might be a good fit for our family. I have to apply, letting the crew leaders know why I think that they should pick our family to review each product, and then if we are chosen, the books are sent to my sister back home. After they arrive there, she usually calls me to let me know that she got them, and we work out a place for her to forward them - sometimes it's an RV park that we will be staying at, sometimes it's General Delivery to a Post Office in a little town that we will be driving through in a week or so. She is a dear to box up and forward all these extra books to us (in addition to our mail), and I wouldn't be able to review while on the road without my 'Mail Lady'!!! Or without the long review times that TOS has - which is pretty unique! Without the 6 wk - 2 mo review times, I wouldn't have the ability to review items - it is often 3 weeks by the time my sis gets the books, we work out a feasible mail pick up site, and the box arrives from home.
Anyway, it's been a fun experience, one that I am thankful to have despite the mail-forwarding challenges of being on the road!
Recently, we got a new reading curriculum to try out. And I LOVE it!!!
All About Reading is fabulous. I wasn't sure about it when I was checking it out online, but Emma is a beginning reader, so thought it would be perfect practice for her.
I love this curriculum! I have been homeschooling for 17 years (WOW!!!(shock!)), and this curriculum uses so many of the same activities that I have been using to teach my littles to read all along! ~Only much more professional, and a lot less mom/teacher labor!
We recieved the Level 1 kit which contains:
*Teacher Manual -
*Student Packet - includes 'flash cards' and student activity book
*3 quality hardcover beginning reading books:
--Run Bug Run
--The Runt Pig
--Cobweb the Cat
We also recieved the Deluxe Reading Interactive Kit:
*Letter Tiles (with optional magnets)
*Basic Phonograms CD-Rom
*Reading Divider Cards
*Reading Review Box
*Tote Bag
*Star sticker for the student's progress chart
I love that this program gets the kids reading quickly! They don't have to know all the letter sounds before having the accomplishment of 'reading' a book.and the thing that I love the very most about this program are the readers themselves! And actually for a couple of reasons. The first probably isn't a legit reason to love the entire program, but I love that the books are quality hardcovers!!! I have a fetish for hardcover books - I think that if a book is worth buying, it's worth buying hc. even for kids. While that wouldn't be enough to get me to purchase the program, the following would: I love that the books are TRUE beginning readers.
(warning: rabbit-trail to follow: I have this extreem dislike of most 'beginning readers' because they are not true beginning readers. They tend to be full of difficult words - words that are exceptions, words that contain blends before the child has even learned them, books that contain hard sounds before a child had learned the rules for vowel sounds... for those reasons I refuse to ever buy 'beginning readers' from somewhere like Wallyworld because they are not real beginning readers...)
These books are TRUE beginning readers that your child (or mine ;) can read for themselves without a lot of mom/teacher needing to jump in to help them with this or that word exception. Information builds on previous lessons, and there is constant review since the kids are reading right away.
The teacher's manual is very self-explanitory, and does all the work for you (there is a small amount of prep work with cards and tiles, but that is at a kid's ability level - delegated it out here ! ;) Everything is spelled out, easy to follow, and all materials are included. There are no gaps in the curriculum, so you are not picking up the next reading book only to realize that you had to teach them t+h=th before they could read half the words in the book...
I love that the only part of the kit that is consumable is the student activity book, and additional booklets can be purchased individually for $16.95 should you need more than the 1 included in the kit. This is a program that can be used with multiple kids at one time; just order one kit and extra activity books.
There are several different parts to the All About Reading Curriculum, and they cater to different learning styles. The CD-Rom is great for auditory learners as you load it into your computer/laptop, and the kids can click on letters and letter combinations to hear the sounds that letter(s) makes. The tiles (optionally magnetic) are great for sensory learners as the kids manipulate them to spell simple words or just practice matching sounds and letters. With flash cards for visual learners, and a student book that includes activities for all kinds of learners, the kids really retain what they are learning because they are getting the information through so many senses. The company, All About Learning Press, also offers spelling programs that coorelate with the reading programs - the reading texts work for both so you don't have to buy extra books!
All About Reading Level 1 is geared towards beginning readers. Teaching letter sounds, and containing simple words, it gets the student reading quickly to retain interest and build excitement for their accomplishments. We have been impressed with the ease of having a reading program so well laid out, and of such high quality.
The basic Level 1 kit is currently on sale for $99.95, with the add-ons being $24.95 for a basic kit or $48.95 for a deluxe interactive kit.
Would I purchase this program? Now that I have seen it in person, the answer is a resounding YES! It is worth the money soley for the amount of teacher work it has saved me, yet it provides all sorts of fun, well-laid out activities for Emma and Savanna. The quality qualifies it as an investment that will be used for multiple kids, and the fun factor ensures that it will be a curriculum that gets completed. I wish All About Reading would have been around when I first started homeschooling!
If you are interested in learning more about whether All About Reading (or All About Spelling) might be a good fit for your family, you can check out the following links:
All About Learning Press website
other TOS reviews of All About Reading
*Disclaimer: I received the All About Reading Level 1 kit and the Deluxe Reading Interactive Kit free in exchange for my honest review of the product. All opinions are entirely my own, and based on our families experiences with the product. :)
We'll be here waiting.
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