If you’re like me, you probably learned your alphabet by singing along with Elmo. You may even have struggled with that Q to W section that always caused me problems. But if the ABCs are usually considered the first step towards deciphering books… how can you teach kids to read without memorizing an overwhelming 26 letters and their different sounds?
Kindergarten teachers are likely relying on Grade 1 teachers to show kids how to read and write, while Grade 1 teachers would typically expect their students to know how to hold a pencil, form letters, and read words off a worksheet by the time they walk through the classroom door. If this is true, then when are the children learning these basic skills that will be invaluable in their academic journey?
Cathy Jackson, a teacher for over three decades, realized that her students needed better tools to help them learn and grow. Over many years, she developed a reading program that focuses on building a strong foundation for kids’ futures through literacy skills. Children begin with a few letters and their sounds, using them to read a simple, fun story. The program reinforces reading abilities by accompanying each story with activities that practice recognizing letter sounds and sight words. Best Reading! Phonics of Short Vowels is the first of two installments in the Phonics series that aims to develop children’s reading proficiency, word recognition, and vocabulary, ensuring that all young readers are successful in the early days of their learning career.
Learning through phonics helps children recognize and decode the sounds of the letters in the words they read. In fact, phonics reading is essential to improve spelling, comprehension, and reading fluency—not only speed but also accuracy. This set, comprising fun short stories, instructional guides, and educational activities, will foster a passion for learning and reading in students aged 4-6.
Instead of learning A, B, C… kids will discover how to read C-A-T by sounding out the letters. Familiarizing children with just a few letters at a time and showing them how these can form different words leads to more immediate results and, consequently, higher motivation to continue learning. With only 15 minutes per day of instruction, kids will practice and remember all the sounds they need to read Jackson’s little books, each increasing in complexity as the children progress. By the time your kids finish the program, they’ll be reading at Grade 2 level.
We all want to give our children the best education possible. With the phonics approach, kids will notice their improvements after the first few lessons and quickly gain self-confidence. No more shame over falling behind. No more stress over trying to memorize too much, too soon. Just kids being kids, applying their newfound knowledge of sounds to the letters they’ll easily recognize. With Best Reading! Phonics, kids will have the capacity to decode any word, from P-I-G to C-O-U-N-T-E-R-I-N-T-U-I-T-I-V-E.
Jackson has dedicated her career to helping children learn to read. Her program has already proven successful in several Ontario schools. It’s time for your kids to follow in the footsteps of so many others and become independent, confident, and competent readers. There’s no better way to learn to read! Order a set today to share the wonderful world of books with your children.
