BellaOnline Forums Education Homeschooling Does Hooked on Phonics Learn to Read really work?

Has anyone homeschooler ever used the Hooked on Phonics Learn to Read program and had success with it? Even though children are not required to learn to read until age 8, I thought I'd get it for my five-year-old who already has a great grasp on the alphabet, a couple of vowel sounds and most consanant sounds. She's tired of me reading to her and wants to read to herself. For now she memorizes the contents of her favorite books and reads them back to me. I've read that Hooked on Phonics is expensive -- $60! Is it worth it? Is it good for a variety of learners -- auditory, kinetic, special needs children, etc.?

I bout it on sale for my son when he gets older. He found it a couple of months ago and picked up on it right away.

That's great about your son! How old is he?
It's encouraging to hear that Hooked on Phonics worked for him.

He just turned four.

You can get the basic "Hooked On" programs for either PreK or Kinder for under $50 if you go direct to the source.

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All four of my kids learned to read without any formal program. I don't know much about HOP, but I have heard quite a few homeschoolers have been happy with a learn to read book called 100 Easy Lessons. It has a scripted lesson and appears quite dry, but apparently it has worked for a lot of families.

Unfortunately a person can't say it will or won't work because it's different for each child.

That said I have used it, I purchased it at Big Lots for $40 (it used to be MUCH more expensive in the $200 range for the whole program). It was a waste of my money, just as were all the other phonics programs I purchased.

My oldest child didn't "get" phonics until well after she learned to read using other methods, she was 8 when she learned to read and almost 10 before she understood phonics well enough to begin sounding words out. What this means is we wasted 3 years of her life teaching her how to read in a way that didn't mesh with her natural abilities and learning style. That's not a good way for a person to begin homeschooling

While she got a late start she can now read anything she wants without problem and thankfully no lasting scarring from all my goofs with the phonics programs and tears they produced.

Meg

That was our experience with the sight based reading programs. The DS just couldn't hack it. Even the blended programs, which were predominantly sight based but did include some phonics, were an issue. Pure phonics is working for him. Thankfully!

I'm not a parent or a teacher, but I'm going to chime in here because I've had a bit of experience with HOP. I learned to read early and easily, without a lot of help. But my brother, seven years my junior, had a lot of trouble. In retrospect, his greatest problem was probably parents who assumed both kids would learn at the same pace and pushed him too much and too hard. It was a multi-year struggle to get that kid reading.

One of the things my parents tried was Hooked on Phonics. It did absolutely no good for him. He was bored and frustrated through every teaching session. He eventually learned to read from his teachers, but has never really enjoyed it. He was simply too pressured and stressed out at a young age with learning to do so.

Based on my experiences watching my little brother's struggles, I implore you to let your kids take their time. That little boy is almost 20 now, and still only reads what he must. Countless literary worlds have closed off to him because he learned young that reading isn't fun. (The wrestling match of him vs. HOP played a part in that, but I assume HOP would be a boon for other children, so I don't advocate against it.) I encourage you all to let them find their learning style and to do so at an easy pace.

Sorry to ramble and rant, but when I saw a Hooked on Phonics thread on the right side of my screen, it brought back all those unpleasant memories of my brother's childhood.

Marie Rippel - the Reading Editor - has some great tips on promoting reading.

See her article at http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art39587.asp.