Product Description

* Is your child halfway through first grade and still unable to read?

* Is your preschooler bored with coloring and ready for reading?

* Are you worried that your child will become lost in overcrowded classrooms?

* Did you know that early readers hold an advantage over their peers throughout school?

* Do you want to help your child read, but are afraid you'll do something wrong?

SRAs DISTAR® is the most successful beginning reading program available to schools across the country. Research has proven that children taught by the DISTAR® method outperform their peers who receive instruction from other programs. Now for the first time, this program has been adapted for parent and child to use at home. Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons is a complete, step-by-step program that shows patents simply and clearly how to teach their children to read.

Twenty minutes a day is all you need, and within 100 teaching days your child will be reading on a solid second-grade reading level. It's a sensible, easy-to-follow, and enjoyable way to help your child gain the essential skills of reading. Everything you need is here -- no paste, no scissors, no flash cards, no complicated directions -- just you and your child learning together. One hundred lessons, fully illustrated and color-coded for clarity, give your child the basic and more advanced skills needed to become a good reader.

Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons will bring you and your child closer together, while giving your child the reading skills needed now, for a better chance at tomorrow.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #477 in Books
• Published on: 1986-06-15
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 395 pages

About the Author
Siegfried Engelmann is a professor of education at the University of Oregon, and has written many books on teaching, including Give Your Child a Superior Mind. He is the originator of Direct Instruction, the most successful approach to teaching, and he has developed more than thirty direct instruction programs. He has provided teaching demonstrations with a wide range of children -- consistently showing that they could learn much more than had been achieved with traditional teaching.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Chapter 1

LESSON 1

TASK 1 SOUNDS INTRODUCTION

1. (Point to m)I'm going to touch under this sound and say the sound. (Touch first ball of arrow. Move quickly to second ball. Hold two seconds.) mmmmmm. (Release point.)

2. Your turn to say the sound when I touch under it. (Touch first ball.)Get ready. (Move quickly to second ball. Hold.) "mmmmmm."

(To correct child saying a wrong sound or not responding:) The sound is mmmmmm. (Repeat step 2.)

3. (Touch first ball.)Again. Get ready. (Move quickly to second ball. Hold.) "mmmmmm." (Repeat three more times.)

4. (Point to s.)I'm going to touch under this sound and say the sound. (Touch first ball of arrow. Move quickly to second ball. Hold.) ssssss. (Release point.)

5. Your turn to say the sound when I touch under it. (Touch first ball.)Get ready. (Move quickly to second ball. Hold.) "ssssss."

(To correct child saying a wrong sound or not responding:) The sound is ssssss. (Repeat step 5.)

6. (Touch first ball.)Again. Get ready. (Move quickly to second ball. Hold.) "ssssss." (Repeat three more times.)

TASK 2 SAY IT FAST

1. Let's play say-it-fast. My turn: motor (pause) boat. (Pause.) Say it fast. motorboat.

2. Your turn. Wait until I tell you to say it fast. motor (pause) boat. (Pause.) Say it fast. "motorboat." (Repeat step 2 until firm.)

(To correct child saying word slowly -- for example, "motor [pause] boat":) You didn't say it fast. Here's saying it fast: motorboat. Say that. "motorboat." Now let's do that part again. (Repeat step 2.)

3. New word. Listen: ice (pause) cream. (Pause.) Say it fast. "icecream."

4. New word. Listen: sis (pause) ter. (Pause.) Say it fast. "sister."

5. New word. Listen: ham (pause) burger. (Pause.) Say it fast. "hamburger."

6. New word. Listen: mmmeee. (Pause.)Say it fast. "me."

7. New word. Listen: iiifff. (Pause.)Say it fast. "if."

8. (Repeat any words child had trouble with.)

TASK 3 SAY THE SOUNDS

1. I'm going to say some words slowly, without stopping. Then you'll say them with me.

2. First I'll say am slowly. Listen: aaammm. Now I'll say me slowly. Listen: mmmeee. Now I'll say in slowly. Listen: iiinnn. Now I'll say she slowly. Listen: shshsheee.

3. Now it's your turn to say the words slowly with me. Take a deep breath and we'Il say aaammm. Get ready. "aaammm."

(To correct if child stops between sounds -- for example, "aaa [pause] mmm":) Don't stop. Listen. (Don't pause between sounds a and m as you say aaammm.) Take a deep breath and we'll say aaammm. Get ready. "aaammm." (Repeat until child responds with you.)

4. Now we'll say iiinnn. Get ready. "iiinnn." Now we'll say ooonnn. Get ready. "ooonnn."

5. Your turn to say words slowly by yourself. Say aaammm. Get ready. "aaammm." Say iiifff. Get ready. "iiifff." Say mmmeee. Get ready. "mmmeee." Good saying the words slowly.

TASK 4 SOUNDS REVIEW

1. Let's do the sounds again. See if you remember them. (Touch first ball for m,) Get ready. (Quickly move to second ball. Hold.) "mmmmmm."

2. (Touch first ball for s.) Get ready. (Quickly move to second ball. Hold.) "ssssss."

TASK 5 SAY IT FAST

1. Let's play say-it-fast again. Listen: motor (pause) cycle. Say it fast. "motorcycle."

2. mmmeee. (Pause.) Say it fast. "me." iiifff. (Pause.) Say it fast. "if." shshsheee. (Pause.) Say it fast. "she."

TASK 6 SOUNDS WRITING

(Note: Refer to each symbol by its sound, not by its letter name. Make horizontal rules on paper or a chalkboard about two inches apart. Separate writing spaces by spaces about one inch apart. Optionally, divide writing spaces in half with a dotted line:-----.)

1. See chart on page 24 for steps in writing m and s.) You're going to write the sounds that I write. You're going to write a sound on each line. I'll show you how to make each sound. Then you'll write each sound. Here's the first sound you're going to write.

2. Here's how you make mmm. Watch. (Make m at the beginning of first line. Start with a vertical line:

Then add the humps:

(Point to m.) What sound? "mmm." First you're going to trace the mmm that I made. Then you're going to make more of them on the line.

3. (Help child trace sound two or three times. Child is then to make three to five m's on top line. Help child if necessary. For each acceptable letter child makes, say:) Good writing mmm.

4. Here's how to make sss. Watch. (Make s at beginning of second line. Point to s.) What sound? "sss."

5. First you're going to trace the sss that I made. Then you're going to make more of them on the line. (Help child trace sound two or three times. Child is then to make three to five s's on second line. Help child if necessary. For each acceptable letter child makes, say:) Good writing sss.

LESSON 2

TASK 1 SOUNDS REVIEW

1. (Point to m.) I'm going to touch under this sound and say the sound. (Touch first ball of arrow. Move quickly to second ball. Hold two seconds.) mmmmmm. (Release point.)

2. Your turn to say the sound when I touch under it. (Touch first ball.) Get ready. (Move quickly to second ball. Hold.) "mmmmmm."

(To correct child saying a wrong sound or not responding:) The sound is mmmmmm. (Repeat step 2.)

3. (Touch first ball.) Again. Get ready. (Move quickly to second ball. Hold.) "mmmmmm." (Repeat three more times.)

Copyright © 1983 by Siegfried Engelmann

Customer Reviews

helped create two super readers
I just purchased a new copy of this to use with my third child. I used this book with my older two kids and really enjoyed it. I started when they were pretty young--about four, so we went a little slower. Sometimes I would break up a lesson over two or three days. I know a lot of parents worry that if they push their kids to read with formal lessons like this, their kids will consider reading a chore and hate it. That hasn't been the case with my kids. They absolutely love to read, and they are really good at it. Both of my older kids were reading at about a third-grade level when they started kindergarten. It is truly amazing to see their minds open up to the world of books.
Why should teachers have all the fun?

WONDERFUL!! I'd actually like to call it PERFECT!!
I used this book 4 years ago with my now 8 year old, and he's always been at least a couple years ahead in his reading level. I am now doing homeschooling with my 5 year old niece, and almost 5 year old son using this book again to teach the reading fundamentals, and they are both "getting it" so easily.

This book truly makes it SO EASY for anyone to teach a child to read--the teaching scripts give you everything (I mean absolutely EVERYTHING) you need to say. And seriously, if your child is ready to learn, this book will help teach them! The funny thing is, my 2 1/2 year old nephew had been interested in learning since everyone else is doing it (the older kids), and after I do the lessons with the older kids, he'll sit down next to me and say "now it's my turn". :) Although we are going at a MUCH slower pace with him (going over a lesson 2-3 separate times), he is getting it as well!

You really can't go wrong with this book.

The Best Return on My Investment in My Child's Future.
Having a four year old boy who was completely disinterested in learning his letters at day care, let alone learning to read, led me to read up a bit on educating boys. "Boys and Girls Learn Differently", a terrific book on its own, informed me that boys tend to be two years ahead in math and sciences, but two years BEHIND in reading. "Learn Differently" taught me that this disparity often had profound effects upon a boy's education, often resulting in their giving up, thinking they were dumb, and rejecting reading altogether. As an avid reader, and a person who only succeeded because of a love of reading, I wasn't going to allow this to occur to my child. I purchased "100 easy lessons" based upon reviews posted on Amazon, and I can honestly say that it was one of the best investments of my life.
My little lazy reader resisted learning the sounds at first. So I dressed it up in a "treasure hunt." I would write the letters featured in a lesson on a piece of paper, place them around the room and have him "find" the correct sounds to match up to the letter. Then, very quickly, we progressed to treasure hunts for words (I completely admit to bribery - 3 successful hunts resulted in a pack of Pokemon cards, his love at the time). Within a matter of 2 months (and several breaks between consistent lessons), my son learned to read far, far more advanced than most of his class mates. I continued the lessons, and dressed them up in "treasure hunts" on and off over the next 6 months. By this time, he was beyond confident about reading - his reward for his hunts was now the Level 2 and 3 "I can read" books that you can buy at any book store (he never caught on to the irony that his reward for completing his reading was to get a book....)
Flash forward to three years later. My son has just been invited into the "gifted" program at school. That "100 easy lessons" (and the time investment of myself and my husband) were a big reason for this is beyond question. The confidence he gained from being one of the top readers in his class has also led to a "swagger" about his school work. Even better -- his brother, 3 years behind him, just started 1st grade. Desperately yearning to be just like his older brother, he has thrown himself into the reading lessons and "treasure hunts" with a focus I've never seen. On day 7 of first grade, he is at lesson 65 in the book. And he, unlike his older brother, LOVES the lessons, can't wait to show off how well he reads. I have no doubt he too will eventually earn an invitation into the gifted program. And their 2 year old brother can't wait to join them.
In short, if you want to realize the most unbelievable return on your investment in your child's education and future, buy this book.