Hi Alice,
From Charlotte’s Home Education, p. 217 on Tommy’s First Lesson:
…he is to know those nine words so well that he will be able to read them wherever they may occur henceforth and for evermore.
…Whoso learns [the poem] as it should be learned will know at least one hundred words — not a bad stock-in-trade for a beginner — all of them good useful words that we want every day.
It’s when our child has a stock of words they are ready to “attack new words with familiar combinations.”
and p. 226 when Charlotte discusses Reading for Older Children:
The child who has been taught to read with care and deliberation until he has mastered the words of a limited vocabulary, usually does the rest for himself.
I hope those quotes help somewhat. It is seemingly slow going over here with our youngest but by being careful to stop the lesson while it is still enjoyable makes him look forward to his next lesson.
Best,
Richele
