Bob Books, Set 1: Beginning Readers by Bobby Lynn Maslen
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Book Reviews of Bob Books, Set 1: Beginning Readers
Book Review: "Mommy, Mommy, I Am Learning To READ!!!!!"
Summary: 5 Stars
My four year old daughter has wanted read on her own for a few months now. She knows all her letters and their sounds, a lot of sight words, has been printing letters and words, and loves being read to, which we do for at least 30 minutes every night. But she sees Mommy, Daddy, and big sister all reading their own books, and she wants to do it herself. And clearly, she is ready.
Enter the BOB BOOKS, SET 1: BEGINNING READERS. The BOB BOOKS are first readers, almost reminiscent of Dick and Jane, and See Spot Run. Set 1 is made up of 12 books, each containing a complete, very simple story using three letter words and just a handful of letters. The 8-page stories are accompanied by simple, yet detailed pen and ink drawings that clearly reflect the story. With one to two short sentences per page, the handwritten print is very clear and easy to read. As your child progresses through the series, previous sounds and concepts are reinforced, and new ones are slowly added, building up reading vocabulary and sight words. Punctuation is introduced, and it is really exciting to hear my wee one get the inflections just right when she sees a question mark or an exclamation point.
My child really loves the BOB BOOKS. Even though they are simple, she can find humor and fun in these little stories. She raced through the first four books on the very first night we read these, clearly signaling her readiness and willingness to begin reading. The next four books were a bit more challenging, but she patiently sounded out all the words until she could easily read those books, too. The final four in this series continue to build on previous lessons and add even more complexity.
My daughter is very proud of her accomplishments and has gained great confidence in her abilities. Every night we sit down to read, and she is very excited to read a few of the older BOB BOOKS, and then move on to some new ones. Reading books to mommy makes her feel so grown up, and it makes mommy very proud. We've also been able to add some more difficult books into the mix, like Hop on Pop and some of the Biscuit the Dog books. She can easily apply the skills she is mastering with the BOB BOOKS to these other books as well.
I MOST HIGHLY RECOMMEND the BOB BOOKS, SET 1: BEGINNING READERS for young ones who want to begin reading. There are 4 more sets in the BOB BOOKS series, and I will be buying them all. Clearly, this system works. I cannot tell you how thrilling it is to hear your child say, "Mommy, I am growing up! I can READ!"
Book Review: Great books for beginner readers
Summary: 5 Stars
These books are great books for beginner readers and I mean beginner readers. These books are not books to be read to your children and they are not books for children who know a great deal of sight words. If you've never helped a child to read then you have no idea how frustrating it can be for you and for them. For starters, when I child learns sight words the number of words they know in relation to the number of words in a sentence can be very low. For example, in many of the stage 1 books that you may buy at Walmart or Barnes and Noble, a true beginner may only know one or two words on a page. This can be very frustrating.
The Bob series concentrates on a specific sound or word family and limits the sentence length to four words. Why? So that there is repetition and a child can remember the words and ultimately read the book. Also, each story is only about 5 pages long so children don't get tired out.
I read some reviews where people said that the stories are not imagintative, involved, and their children got bored. Well yea if you are reading to them this is going to be the case. The stories aren't involved and are redundate. I can see where children may become bored if it is being read to them but for a child who is learning to read/gathering a wider amount of sight words the books can be challenging.
Oh and another reviewer commented that sentences like "Mat sat" are not good sentences and children don't need to learn names. However, this is not about learning names but rather for children to solidfy their knowledge in rhyming applications, sounds, and word families. For example, in school the teacher may say to a child who knows the words "mat", if you take away the "M" and add a "s" or a "sss" sound, what do have. In essence it is familiarizing the child with the fact that most words are made from smaller sight words. In this case, "at".
Book Review: My son couldn't read
Summary: 5 Stars
My son went to Pre-K and Kindergarten at public school. When Kindergarten was over he still did not know all of his letters and the corresponding sound that they make. He would say that he was stupid because his brain could not hold things in his head. The teachers were telling me that he could not move forward and learn to spell words or read until he knew his letters. I tried a couple of different approaches but they simply didn't work with him. A homeschooling friend recommended these books. I thought i could use them to teach him his letters and sounds, and then we would work on reading. (At the beginning of each book it shows the 1 to 4 new letters it teaches in that book. That book only uses the letters it is teaching or ones previously taught, in addition to sight words, to create the words and story for the kids to read.) My son did not want to read the books himself when i first got them. I could tell he was frustrated with the very idea of reading. I told him I would read them to him. He liked that. As i started reading he started to parrot me. He was soon sounding out words that he could not name the letters of. Then, with reviewing the letters and sounds on the first page, he learned his letters and their sounds.
I used these books and Phonics Pathways by Dolores G. Hiskes to teach him reading skills. He is now reading. But the most important thing to me is that he is enjoying it and has confidence. I have seen children struggle to learn to read over the years. In my experience, with love and support and tutoring, they eventually learn to read. But they often think they are stupid or avoid it like a disease. My son now knows that he can succeed and enjoys the process. It doesn't get much better than that.
Book Review: Priceless and a sense of accomplishment for the child.
Summary: 5 Stars
When using the Bob Books, I found if used in conjunction with a phonics program, it just reinforced what I was trying to teach. We homeschool so it was vital to find something that not only encouraged my child at the stage of very early reading but was also simple. I have an accelerated learner.
She started her first few Bob Books when she was just 3 yrs old... I know many of you may think that is too young, but she was writing her own name before she turned 3 and adding & subtracting a year later.
Anyway back to the Bob Books, we originally started them and then she got hung up on one and didn't want to move on, I put the books away... Fast Forward a year later... when she was 4... we started using the phonics program called "Explode The Code" she quickly progressed and I pulled the Bob Books back out and started a reading tree, so that for every book she would read by herself, she would earn a leaf on her 'reading tree' and we put the date she read it. (This included the Bob Books) With the Bob Books we quickly mastered what was needed in addition to the Explode The Code workbooks and let me tell you.. She has EXPLODED with her ability to read.
The 2 working in conjunction the Bob Books and the Explode the Code set the stage for her ability to be strengthened as well as confidence and she is reading on a 2nd grade level and most of her peers are only starting Kindergarten this school year 2008-2009. I kinda let her learn at her pace and that is one of the many advantages of Homeschooling... we now don't have to wait for everyone to catch up... we can keep on going. :)
These are only some suggestions that have worked for our family.
Remember to do what is best for you and your family.
Book Review: Quick help for special needs children!
Summary: 5 Stars
My son is 3 and in the autism spectrum--so he memorizes...EVERYTHING. He doesn't use his brain to figure anything out: it's either pulled from memory, or he tunes out.
When he started memorizing the shapes of letters and the words they equate to (essentially sight-reading), I panicked. I understand the value in sight-reading, but for us it was another "domain" added to the vicious memorization issue. I felt like I needed to teach him phonetic reading--and fast.
Enter the "Bob books". HALLELUJAH! My son had known the sounds associated with letters for over a year. The Bob books were SO SIMPLE that he was able to master them quickly and shot through the first set so fast that I had to express order sets 2 and 3. Two months later, he read the word "restaurant" and "bakery" to me. He is regularly using his brain to figure out new words... it's WONDERFUL!
Two weeks ago, I became foster mom to a selective mute 8yo girl who was fooling people about her reading ability--partially because she didn't speak, so nobody could truly judge it. Well, she can't read. She has limited sight words if anything at all. I had to start her on book 1 of set 1 of the Bob books and she's just barely getting by--but the accomplishment has her on the edge of her seat looking for the next book. She's gaining confidence by the day as we work through them.
I love these books. I tell everyone I know about them! The progression is wonderful. The length of the books is perfect for beginning readers or struggling readers or children with attention problems--who need small steps and some sense of accomplishment to move forward. These books are worth every dime I paid for them.