kindergartener can read

Both of my children taught themselves to read.  My DD was 3, my DS started sight words at 2, but really wasn’t reading fluently until he was 4.  No lessons from me, just read aloud to them, they noticed the written word.

For my DD, being my first, I was really unsure as to what to do, I thought I HAD to do phonics.  I counseled w/ a wonderful homeschooling mom who as a part of her ministry, helped other homeschooling moms (she specialized in gifted and struggling learners).  She has 7 children, homeschooled them all the way through, and had already graduated a few.  Her advice to me was to not bog my DD down w/ phonics, most children when they learn to read by sight at such an early age are intuitive w/ reading, and forcing them through a phonics program usually is boring, they know it already, and it kills their love of reading.  (sidenote:  we have to remember phonics has many ‘if/and/or but’ rules, so its not like its the end all)

She said if I “really” felt like I had to get phonics in her, get a cheap book like Spectrum Phonics, $8, and try that w/ her.  So, newbie me, I bought the workbook, my DD hated it, it was so boring, she already knew all of that.  So we dropped that right away.

You will have to play it by ear, but what I’ve done, is just casually mention rules when reading or when they dabble w/ spelling.  I’ve shown them how to blend.  Its informal, they get it.  No shampoo, rinse, repeat, repeat, repeat…  (drives all of us nuts, so I don’t do that).

My DS who is now 6 is a great little reader.  I have skipped the Spectrum Phonics workbook w/ him.  Learned my lesson.  😛

I still can’t tell you what a digraph or a dipthong is, and I was always years ahead in my reading.  My 9 yr old DD, same way.  Reading at a middle school level and can’t tell you what one is either. 

Maybe its because of the bent of my children, but I tend to show them and model for them, we don’t do a lot of worksheets or “programs.”  I prefer real life learning, it just seems to stick so much better.  If you feel your child will benefit from phonics, then do it, but I certainly wouldn’t allow yourself to feel like a bad mom if it doesn’t work for your DS.

Ultimately, what does your DS need?  Not what society tells you he needs, but what doe HE need?  Let that direct you, not some course of study created for no one in particular in mind.  Try the simple reader books, see how he does.  If he’s a sight reader (all of us eventually learn to read by sight, otherwise we’d be sounding out every single word and it would be horrendous trying to read anything!), he’ll pick up on you reading w/ him fairly quickly.  If he needs more instruction, give it to him, but if he doesn’t, I do not vote forcing it upon him. To me reading is too important of a skill to make a child hate it.

Blessings,

Ginnie