I recently bought us the Hooked On Phonics - Learn to Read Pre-K Edition. It arrived while we were on vacation and I actually got it for cheaper than what they have it for right now, but I did get it from their website. We started it yesterday and whereas some of the stuff is relatively easy at this point since she already knows her letters (upper & lower), sounds, and the alphabet song there are things she is gaining from it and I think she will learn quite a bit from this program. Right now the biggest gain comes from learning computer mouse skills when she plays the accompanying games. They do have a Little Tikes computer in her preschool classroom, as well as 2 at the public library that she likes to try to play. So, it will be good for her to gain soem computer mouse skills this summer.
Anyways, back to my review on HOP - Pre-K. The other thing she learned about yesterday that she really seemed to love is rhyming. She caught on to that really quickly and wanted to keep rhyming words all afternoon & evening as she played. The kit comes with three levels of workbooks and corresponding charts, stickers, 2 sets of two alphabet flashcards, 2 sets of picture flashcards, 2 cd-roms, and a storybook. We used some of the cards from the alphabet flashcards to play Memory, which I had not really ever done with her before. Once she figured it out she likes it. And we read the storybook, which is more interesting if youmake sure you ask lots of questions in regards to letter indentification rather than just reading it. All in all, so far I think this is a good program and will be fun for us to do this summer.
Isabel's friend, Rachael, gave her the game Hi-Ho-Cherry-O, as a present when we came to visit last week. We played it for the first time yesterday. It's easy to set up and directions are easy. No reading is involved for kids. It's a game that will help them learn counting, taking turns, & following rules. Isabel caught on really quickly that she needed certain numbers and would move the spinner to that number and I would have to tell her she has to spin it, that putting the spinner directly on that number w/o spinning was cheating. Plus there were a couple times she would get impatient and want to play my turn for me. So, I think this will be a good game. We have Don't Spill the Beans which we have played several times, but she thinks it's hilarious when the beans spill whether it be be me or her, and she grows impatient and wants to take more than one bean at a time. Guess it's a good thing she is getting into games and we can practice turn taking, patience, & rule following.
Currently, I am reading No, Why Kids of All Ages Need to Hear it and Ways Parents Can Say It. It was supposed to the part of a book-study group for ECFE this spring/summer, but they didn't get enough parents to sign up for it, so it didn't happen. But I checked the book out from the library and am about halfway through. It's pretty good and right now seems to be more of a reinforcer for me, but there have been a couple ideas I can take away from it. The book does a lot of foreshadowing on what like could be like if you aren't saying No to things when they are young and what will happen in those teenage years. The book does not think you need to be strict or say No all the time, but it does need to come out of your mouth and you need to follow through. Following through is the key. I like that the book also reflects on how the role of children have changed over the year in our society and how parents have caused that shift collectively, but unconsciously. So, I am interested in seeing how the book finishes during the last half.
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