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I've been working with Caroline this summer on learning to read. She has most of her letter sounds down, and definitely can identify all uppercase letters, but she still sometimes has some trouble distinguishing among lowercase and b and p and g and d. Although, if I cue her with a "that's a B" she can sound out short vowel sound words. We've been using the Kindergarten Level 1 Hooked on Phonics program. It's been going slow. Slow and steady. I'm happy with her progress, but sometimes it is tough to get her to sit down and work through a whole page of words.
I thought it would be nice to try out some new learning to read materials, just to see if there was a system better suited to Caroline. Caroline is quite the singer and dancer, so Rock n Learn Phonics on DVD seemed right up her alley.
The Rock N Learn Volume 1 DVD features 28 lessons, starting with short vowel sounds and beginning consonants with vowels. It progresses through blending consonants (e.g, sh), three letter blends, word families, silent e, consonant digraphs, read along sentences, and read along stories. Volume 2 DVD continues with long vowels, vowel combinations, syllables, ending sounds, silent consonants, rule breakers, and more read-along sentences and read-along stories. This program covers a huge amount of phonetic material.
So far we've watched the first 10 tracks several times. The animation, music and characters are really catchy, and I've caught Caroline singing the short vowel song a few times. A-E-I-O-U! Each individual lesson covers quite a bit of material, so it will be a while before we're ready for the later lessons on this DVD. Abby, who is an established reader, would still benefit from the later lessons on Volume 2.
Scattered among the songs on both DVDs are interactive portions to allow the kids to practice their skills. For example, a word will appear on the screen, and there is a pause for the young person watching to try to read it. Then the answer is provided. Unfortunately, the pause isn't long enough for Caroline. Even though she's been sounding out words all summer, she not fast enough for this DVD. Even though she's happy to watch the songs, she isn't participating as fully as the intended by this program.
With that said, the age range for this program is listed as Age 6 and up, and Caroline is only 5 1/2. I bet in 6 months this program will be exactly the right level of difficulty for her. In the meantime, she can watch the catchy vowel song and some of the other early tracks and reinforce all those consonant sounds.
One other thing I really love about this DVD is that they have close-ups of someone's mouth when sounding things out. As a veteran of speech therapy, I know that kids in Kindergarten are still developing portions of their speech (like r's and f's and l's). So, watching the mouth reinforces correct tongue placement and sound pronounciation and they don't even realize it!
Summary: We will continue with the Hooked on Phonics for reading instruction and practice because it is better paced for Caroline, but we are definitely going to supplement her reading with this set of DVDs because this program is catchy and fun. This program is simultaneously entertaining and educational.
Rock 'N Learn Phonics is offering a lucky Modern Mommies reader Rock ‘N Learn’s Phonics DVDs (volumes 1 and 2)!! Perfect for the start of the school year! Here's how to enter:
1. Contest ends Friday, September 10.
2. Entry #1: Leave a comment just saying you want to win.
3. Entry #2: Leave a SEPARATE comment telling me what little one you'll be sharing your DVDs with.
4. Entry #3: Leave another comment telling me in what way you promoted this contest (i.e., posting about it on your blog or Facebook, Tweeting about it, emailing friends, and/or subscribe to my feed by email or in a reader).
5. Winners will be selected by Random.org, announced back here on this post, and notified via email with further instructions.
Final Note: Abby has thoroughly, and I do mean thoroughly, reviewed the list of other Rock N Learn products and is literally begging me to buy the Solar System DVD.
Cecila also writes on her personal blog, Searching for CC.
Disclaimer: I was provided a free copy of Volumes 1 and 2 of this Rock n Learn Phonics in order to write a review on my blog. All opinions are my own.
for them to try out and review. My husband just got a Nook - which they are NOT allowed to touch. And now they have their own e-Reader, designed specifically for kids aged 3 - 7 years old! 
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and 
. But that game is super complicated (in my opinion) and is not something that the whole family can participate in. So Academy of Champions: Soccer was a hit with our kids. They were so excited to be able to play soccer with Daddy! They loved the cartoon-y graphics and liked the drills, where you practice shooting and goalkeeping and such. The simple dribble, pass, and shoot action made it easy even for younger players to play. This is great for families with younger children who aren't quite ready for the complicated, more 'realistic' sports games.
before, but this was 1000 times better. Players don't just ride down a hill around doing tricks - the game is so much more. The levels/locations are amazing. This takes the genre to the next level - especially with the addition of the balance board! Any snowboarding fan would love this - I'm passing this on to my sister, who is an actual snowboarder, to see how she thinks! (Update: she thinks its AWESOME!)
