Book??? - Woodland,CA

Practice, practice practice! Sit with your child as much as you can also get the rest of the family involved-you take turns with the grandparents/aunts and uncles/ siblings/ even at your ply dates with all the kids-take turns r4eading at the park and playing on the swings---all books will give you great ideas but again the best thing is to sit with the "kids" and read read read-and don't forget---have them read it to you!!!! They can take turns-yes you can help with pronouncing words and recognizing letters and even with the "picture-books" those help to form your child's imagination--very important while fighting all the tv and video things out there. Words are your best effort--reading and learning. Now go Have fun!!! And watch how excited your children will be when they see you with a book in your hands heading in their direction!!!!!!

I know that a lot of systems out there promise to teach your child to read. What they really do is teach your child to decode letters to form words. You can do that on your own by teaching the alphabet and the basic sounds and then add the blends. I used the Leap Frog videos to help with the basics. Then, read, read, read, read with your child. When my children were young we started picking out a word while we were reading that they would say to me. (i.e. any time 'George' appeared in the text in "Curious George", they would say the word.) This helped them to understand how to use a book and how to recognize words.

If you want to spend the money on a system to push reading earlier, be warned that in school they need to do more than just decode the words, they have to be able to retell a story and answer questions about what they read. So, reading to your child is the best way to teach them how to read. Also, repetition with the books you read will help your child recognize that the words you say match the symbols on the page.

You are your child's first and best teacher.

I would advice you to check it out from your library first and see if you like it, the method, the pace, the prep work...
I did check it out from the library myself and ended up not buying it because it's a very "english" way to teach and I'll try to teach my children French first. This book made me realize that different languages require different methods. (in English you learn with endings: cat, hat, rat, mat...but not possible in French for this purpose)
So, try it before buying it. If you don't like it, your librarian may be able to recommend similar methods/books.

You may want to try the website www.starfall.com first (because it's free!). My kids loved it, and my 3 year old learned to read watching her big brother use the site.
Best of luck!

I have not tried this book, but it did come highly recommended from a friend who homeschools all three of her children - her oldest girl learned at 4, the middle boy learned at 5 (he just wasn't interested until then and she didn't push it too much), and the youngest girl learned at 3 (at the same time middle boy was learning). Hope that helps with your decision.

if you sing the ABC song, now sound out every letter song and always read to your child.