Customer Reviews

Learn to Read Pre-K Complete - Amazon Exclusive Edition

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

As a mom and former homeschooler, I highly recommend Hooked on Phonics to all parents, whether you are homeschooling or not. It's easy-to-use, fun for the kids and their parents; and, most important of all, it's effective.

It's effective because it's based on phonics. The Pre-K program teaches letter and sound recognition, as well as an introduction to blending. The instructions are so simple that anyone can do it.

I especially like how all the senses are utilized, making it effective for children with all learning styles.

The kit comes with a workbook that provides step-by-step instructions, a DVD, reading books, stickers for rewards, flash cards and access to additional online materials.

Some of the activities:

1. Sing the Alphabet song and songs for each letter. Some of these are really cute, some just ok.

2. Watch how a letter is formed and then trace the shape of the letter in the workbook.

3. Color the letter.

4. Say the name of the picture beginning with the letter.

5. Three hands-on activities to reinforce the letter such as making the letter P out of ten pieces of popcorn and then eating it up.

6. Review lessons in the workbook include matching rhyming words, matching sounds with images, flash card activities, and circling the letters. The flash cards are printed on quality paper and should hold up well for all of your children.

7. After your child has completed the lesson, he earns a star sticker for his workbook page.

The online activities include: More songs (some more interesting than others) that reinforce learning, worksheets (only one in which the child circles the correct picture), and a board-game-like record of your child's progress. You will want to supplement with more worksheets, but these can be found free online. Do a search for "phonics and worksheets."

The DVD contains songs to review the letters and sounds learned. This is a contemporary version of the alphabet song, as well as other songs for each letter of the alphabet. The animations are colorful and fun. I especially like how blending was explained on the DVD by moving the letters closer together as the sounds were spoken.

After you complete all the lessons, there are books to read to and with your child. For example: In "The Letter Hunt," your child can read the letters he has learned while you read the rest of the story. These books are excellent review and will increase fluency. Some of the illustrations were better than the others, but all were satisfactory.

There is an extra CD in the Amazon pack called, Fun in Motion. It includes animated videos that teach about trucks, cars, trains, planes and boats. Fun stories, cute animations, interesting sound effects will keep your preschooler interested.

The only reason this product may not work is your child's reading readiness, which is different for every child. I suggest that you try it; but, if your child gets frustrated, stop and pick it up again later. When he or she is ready, this is an extremely effective tool.

Your best buy is to buy the entire PreK-2nd grade set; however, if you can't afford that, the ability to buy one set at a time makes it easy to purchase as you need them.

After several weeks of trying to get my children engaged enough to write a review, I realized the lack of engagement is a review in itself. The books are fun, but not their favorite. The flash cards and DVDs only hold their attention for a few seconds. The worksheets are the best part. They are very similar to what my daughter brings home from school, and working hand over hand, she actually gets through one before losing interest.

If your children are more the studious type (one of my nieces comes to mind), this system might be ideal for them, or in a more classroom-like setting. If they're the kind that never want to sit still, I find something like the Leap Frog - Letter Factory videos to be much better suited.

Just got this for my 3 1/2 year old and he is loving every bit of it.

He already knew the alphabet and can count to 20, but still has trouble with the phonics of certain letters. When he started opening books and "reading" based off what he's heard been read to him and the pictures, we knew it was time to get him reading - he wants to read! I ordered about a dozen "learn to read" books like Oliver (I Can Read Book 1) and I See, You Saw (My First I Can Read), but this package incorporates the "how-to" learn and makes it fun. Together with the stand-alone books, I think reading will be as fun as learning the alphabet was (lots of smiles...and lots of repeating with the smiles.)

The DVD includes bright-colored animation and easy-to-sing-along songs that allow to sing along - while making the phonetic sounds. One of the "extras" is the alphabet; saying it, making the sound of the letter, and then a word with the letter. The first time my child watched it, he was repeating all the sounds that were on the video.

The flashcards were also fun, but perhaps a bit easy. (We've used a lot of flashcards.) Same goes for the workbook, but we've gone through so many workbooks (he loves them) that it's somewhat expected. Other workbooks, such as Brain Quest Workbook: Pre-K provide more activities, but they aren't nearly as integrated with a "lesson" as this kit provides (flashcards, books, DVD.)

Overall, this feels like a very high quality reading/phonics kit for Pre-K. It's my first experience with "Hooked on Phonics," but with how my child has responded thus far, it seems like his next step - reading - is going to be a very fun journey for him. After going through the first 2 lessons of "Level 1," along with the Extras and having my child say "watch that one again" (and proceeding to watch them over and over, all interactively), you can't go wrong with this kit.

One thing that wasn't quite clear when ordering (maybe I skipped something), but there are a few "age levels" (this one being Pre-K), and with each of those, there is a Level 1 and Level 2. This package contains *both* Level 1 and Level 2.

I admit, I didn't think I would like this program. I know I was absolutely unimpressed with HOP K-2 Deluxe. But I have to say I think this program is great. It's very interactive, and gives parents ideas on how to help children learn the letters of the alphabet using fun crafts and activities. The workbook is minimal (I also recommend Brain Quest Workbook: Pre-K to supplement this) but it expects only as much as is realistic for this age range. I actually really like the flashcards, especially how some of the pictures involve rhyming things, so my child can practice matching the rhyming pictures. The stickers, of course, are a big hit.

I didn't think the online portion was as cool as it could have been, but as a "bonus" it was fine. For some reason I couldn't seem to access the "rhyming review" link, but hopefully that kind of problem won't be ongoing. I also would have liked a beefier parents' manual, instead of having to be reliant on the suggestions of the workbook. If it had a lesson guide that said exactly what to do for each lesson that integrated all the components of the program, I would like it even more. The program does have many components and it's up to the parent to remember to use them all to finish a lesson.

This program seems to do a really good job of preparing kids to read, although it doesn't actually teach them to read. I'm glad to have it, an I think it is not a bad value for the money.

I know this might not be typical, but I ordered this program for my daughter who had just turned 3. We were doing homeschooling preschool and I ordered Hooked on Phonics at my sister's recommendation who has taught each of her 3 kids to read using this program. The DVDs were so fun! We would put it on and dance around to the songs in our living room. In addition to my 3 year old loving it! My then 13 month old son seemed captivated. We continued to watch the DVDs at home and on our car trips. It was all the two of them wanted to watch! In no time, my son was pointing out letters everywhere. At his 15 month appointment the doctor asked if he was talking I told her not only was he saying words he knew his alphabet! She didn't believe it...so she started pointing out letters for him and he told her every one, except for "W" because it was too hard to say, so instead he made the sound for "W". I told her we had not done any teaching for him, he just watched the HOP DVDs with his sister. He is now 17 months and can point out Upper and Lowercase letters (out of order) and tell you the sound they make. I am amazed!

My daughter just started the Kindergarten pack (she just turned 3.5 so it took us just 4 months before she was ready for the Kindergarten) and she has already read her first book after learning her "at", "an" and "ap" words. She understands how to sound out the letters. I owe this all to Hooked on Phonics! Excellent program and for us we have had excellent results! I highly recommend buying the Pre-K through 2nd grade pack, but we have bought them separately. It is cheaper to get them together though. HINT: search online for coupon codes for Hooked on Phonics

As a homeschooling parent, an adult educator, and a computer person, my standards for pre-reading software are pretty high. Hooked on Phonics is an enduringly popular system for a reason, though, and this package met all my expectations.

Fellow educators who are fans of Howard Gardner will love the variety of approaches to the core material here. There are videos to watch, songs to sing, letters to color, letters to make (and eat!), books to read, and games to play. With every sense and every aspect of intellect involved, a child can't help but be fascinated and enthusiastic.

Parents will just be happy their child wants to learn and apply the foundation skills that will open many future doors. I've heard many times that if your funds are limited, invest in preschool and college will pay for itself--and I've seen thatadvice work out more than once. An excited learner and prepared young student is ready to succeed all the way through school and beyond. Hooked on Phonics Preschool is a great beginning for that attitude.

This package contains both Level 1 and Level 2 of the Hooked on Phonics Preschool program, which emphasizes letter recognition and application (knowing the names and sounds associated with letters and letter combinations). I'd definitely recommend continuing with later software packages as your child matures into them.

When is a child ready for this package? Basically, if your toddler/preschooler is interested in the words as you read out loud and trace your finger along the text, if s/he pretends to read books independently or starts to pay attention to letters on signs, s/he's ready for this program. Use the package as a productive playtime to supplement shared reading and your public library's free events, and you'll be ready for the next step sooner than you think!

I have used Hooked on Phonics for all three of my children, starting with when my oldest was 3 back in 2003. The Preschool level did not exist back then, so I am just starting to use this level. It is working better than any other books. It is the whole combination of the system that works better than anything else. The workbooks combined with the cards and the books is great. Simple, but affective. Because it is so simple, some may feel that it is not worth the money, but it is. The only item that may not be expected is that the writing of lowercase letters is not included in this level. Just the writing of the uppercase letters. Pre-K level 2 focuses a lot on letter sounds and matching lowercase to the same uppercase letter.

One of the books called "The Party" had 1/2 of the pages out of order and 1/2 upside down. Unreadable. Hooked-on-phonics and the manufacturer wouldn't replace it unless I had ordered from them directly even though it's a production issue. It wasn't worth the money to send back to Amazon for a replacement.

Just couldn't get it to install correctly either in OS X and Windows 7. In Windows 7, setup hung. In OS X, flash keeps crashing. Horrible.

I bought this product to teach my three year old to read in English (we live abroad so at school he speaks French).
As a teacher I'm sorry to say that most of the items included in this pack will be useless and that buying this was a waste of money. Recent studies have shown that it is unnecessarily confusing to teach children the alphabet before starting them off in the world of literacy. In fact, the whole British school system teaches them the 44 phonemes of the English language to start off, then they learn the actual names of the letters later on. Additionally, i felt there were too few exercises and that the exercises mix elements of different levels without any wanring whatsoever(1st letter of the alphabet, Level 1 has exercises using lowercase 'a'or different letters of the alphabet when you're still on the first lesson for example). The story books provided mix letters and words of varying degrees of difficulty and I've found more attractive and helpful books on the market. Last but not least, I know that some other reading methods also say to start with capital letters, but most of my story books (and those i've seen in shops) are written in lowercase and uppercase, but which means that there are far more lowercase letters and only the occasional capital letter (as they are often the same, i've been told children won't question this too much). I know my son, who loves being read to and even pouring through storybooks on his own, is primarily motivated by the fact that soon he will be able to decipher his favourite books on his own. The HOP method of learning capital letters first would therefore waste a lot of time and precious motivation.
I would reccommend you not waste your money with this and consider another method. I'm going to primarily use Ruth Miskin's 'Read, Write, Inc.'