Steck-Vaughn Phonics - Grade 2

by April
(Middle Tennessee)

For years, I have searched for a phonics program that I really LOVED. Finally I think I hit on it! Steck Vaughn Phonics really hit a home run at my house! My second grader has struggled with learning to read. While I've never encountered such a difficulty before, I knew that a firm foundation in phonics was key to her acquiring this skill.

These workbooks took us back the the very beginning of the alphabet. We worked on each letter's sounds, and then the vowels, followed by various blends. By Christmas she was reading much better than she was at the beginning of the year. It might have been just maturity, but I think the program helped her review the basics, so the decoding process was easier.

The teacher's manual included all the answers to the pages (I hardly ever used the manual for grading purposes) and many suggestions for rounding out the program with enrichment activities. You could get away with not purchasing the manual, if money is an issue at your house, but you would want to add in some activities to make phonics learning more fun.

This program is NOT a super advanced program, like A Beka or Bob Jones. But for my struggling learner, it was perfect. The pages are super colorful, and loaded with fun graphics, photos and illustrations. At the end of each unit, there is a tear out booklet the child can staple together to make a book to read.

The program was simple enough that my daughter did not feel that she was a failure each day. If you have a child with a reading difficulty, I would definitely recommend this series of books. I am planning on using the Kindergarten level for my 5 year old next year, and the grade 3 level for my 8 year old.