The Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading Review

I found this book over summer accidentally through a google search. It intrigued me, so I bought it used on Amazon. This is my review of the book/program.

I used this book with my 9 year old struggling reader. We got through the entire book (231 lessons) in 10 weeks. This book would likely take 2 years to get through with a young student/new reader. Used as a remedial program you can work through as slow or as fast as you need.

Pros:

• Reasonably priced (especially if you use it over and over)
• Teaches phonics systematically
• There is no grade level, therefore older kids do not feel like they are "behind"
• Scripted (tells you exactly what to say and do)
• Doesn't require any prep work (open and go)
• Non-consumable

Cons:

• May be boring or overwhelming with both parent and student text on one page and no pictures 
• Doesn't go in depth into how to apply phonics rules when reading outside of this book
• A few times I found that sounds were taught differently than we say them (this is a dialect issue I'm sure-we are from California/Arizona)
• The "rules" associated with some words/phonograms aren't always explicitly explained-for example, it may say something like, "These words come from the French language so they have this sound..." and basically the student needs to memorize those words have that sound versus being able to apply the rule

Bottom Line: I recommend this book. I HIGHLY recommend this book to be used as a remedial phonics program for older/struggling kids. I think it can definitely work with younger kids, but may not be every young kids cup of tea. My 9 year old did not always love the lessons, and would sometimes get frustrated. However, she feels very accomplished and reading is now easier for her, which ultimately makes us both happy. It was extremely easy to use on my (the teacher's) end.

If you'd like to purchase this book yourself, I'd appreciate it if you'd use my affiliate link (which gives me a portion of the purchase price in Amazon credit). Thank you!