Product Description

“Valerie Bendt’s latest book, Reading Made Easy is just that – an easy to follow reading manual that requires no advanced preparation on the part of the parent. She has created her own symbols to designate the varying phonetic sounds, such as for the short and long vowels and silent letters. She also includes original stories and poems to use as readers as the child progresses through the manual.

In an effort to make learning to read more fun and interesting for the child, some of the lessons incorporate simple games, such as Sight Word Bingo and Sight Word Worms, for which patterns are provided. Sight words are introduced at an earlier level than in other reading programs, allowing the child to read more interesting passages. Introduction to the use of capital letters, periods, commas, questions marks, quotation marks, and exclamation marks are also slipped into the material with ease. Without placing a heavy emphasis on grammar, the child is introduced to more advanced concepts in a very natural and easy fashion.

Valerie has a true love of reading and realizes the pleasure books can offer. She enthusiastically shares this passion with others. Valerie motivates the child to see the true joy of reading by quickly gaining an understanding of the written word. To further assist the child’s comprehension, the child is shown a simple drawing that relates to the story. She encourages the child to draw his own pictures and to write sentences about his picture. Gradually, she encourages the child to write his own stories (by dictating them to his parent) and to practice his reading using these stories.

Reading Made Easy concludes with Mrs. Bendt’s, twelve-chapter short story, “Gideon’s Gift.” This heartfelt story emphasizes the joy of reading and writing while stressing the significance of giving God the glory in all situations and finding our God given gifts. Each chapter’s suspenseful conclusion urges the child on to the next lesson. This beautifully written account exposes the child to vocabulary not normally used in today’s books for children.”

Cathy Pierce – Children’s Librarian

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1137982 in Books
• Published on: 2001-06-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 512 pages

Review
She uses a gentle, non-intimidating approach, building skills and confidence quickly.” -- Cindy Clark, Seward, Alaska

“Reading Made Easy combines the best of sound phonics mechanics with a contagious love of reading. -- Jane Claire Lambert - Author of Before Five in a Row and Five in a Row.

About the Author
Valerie and her husband, Bruce, have homeschooled their six children all of their school lives. Valerie has written the following books of interest to homeschoolers: How to Create Your Own Unit Study, The Unit Study Idea Book, Success with Unit Studies, For the Love of Reading, Creating Books with Children, The Frances Study Guide, Successful Puppet Making, Reading Made Easy, and Making the Most of the Preschool Years. Valerie and Bruce’s three oldest children have graduated from homeschooling, and they continue to homeschool their other children. The family resides in Tampa, Florida.

Customer Reviews

We absolutely loved it!!
I bought this book when my son was almost 4. --- 9 months later he is reading on a 1st/ 2nd grade level! This book was so simple to use and understand. Lessons are short(20 min. ). In a typical lesson you first practice reading words with a new blend, then learn a new sight word, then the child reads you a story, then he answers reading comprehension questions, then he would practice writing an excerpt of the story. If you go on her website you can view sample pages and other peoples testimonies. www.valeriebendt.com

THE BOOK for teaching your child to read!!
Valerie covers it all. It's written out step by step, and it requires little additional material, which you make yourself - cheap! And it's fun! Even 3-4 yr olds can learn to read if you follow this book. She also suggests modifications for students who have trouble with the material. I wish I'd found it when my oldest was 4. She fell in love with a book I was reading to her & demanded I teach her to read that very night!
It's great for older kids too - my daughter enjoyed the little stories.
Interestingly, this book also follows the progression of sounds presented in 'The Phonics Game' (NOT Hooked on Phonics - this is WAY better!). The Phonics Game has all the spelling and sound rules not presented in "Reading Made Easy", so older children can learn how to spell and how to decipher a word using rules that apply to about 98 out of every 100 words. 'The Phonics Game' and 'Reading Made Easy' work very well together, even though they were created by different people. So, start with "Reading Made Easy", and when your child is about 6 or 7, switch to or add "The Phonics Game". We found the Game first, and it is supposed to teach your child to read, but we hit a few stumbling blocks. "Reading Made Easy" got us over them and now my child reads great! I'm using "The Phonics Game" to reinforce spelling and pronounciation rules we learned. I recommend both!

THANK YOU VALERIE BENDT
What an enormous blessing this book has been for us! Teaching my son to read could not be more painless. He loves his reading lessons and never balks at doing them even on weekends. If you are considering "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons" I urge you to consider this instead. It is a delight to use, has fun illustrations, copywork, and stories, and it works! V. Bendt suggests going from RME to Learning Language Arts Through Literature ("LLATL" - Common Sense Press) Red Book after this (second grade level) which is what we are planning to do. Don't let the price throw you off either - phonics programs can be very spendy - this is cheap in comparison and oh so simple to use!