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Reading Head Start is a reading program designed explicitly for children aged 12 months to 9 years to give them a head start on reading (hence the name) or to help them catch up to and even surpass their peers.
Where does Reading Head Start come from?
Reading Head Start is the brainchild of Sarah Shepard, an English teacher of 14 years, who is also a wife and mother of three.
Ms. Shepard says the impetus for her creation of the program was when her six-year-old son came home with a bad English grade, which, for her, was a nightmare, since she’s an English teacher.
This was sort of the crux that made her realize that it’s not the parent that is to blame or the child that is to blame or even the teacher, for that matter—it’s the way in which children are taught English that’s the problem, which can lead to issues like slow reading, not keeping up with peers academically, etc.
When she realized what the problem was, she decided to create her Reading Head Start method with a goal in mind to change up how reading is taught and focus on methods that yield quick results—and make your child feel like an achiever in the process.
Does Reading Head Start really work?
Well, it focuses on approaching learning to read from a logical angle by teaching the child what sound each letter makes and how letters can change the sound of a word when added or subtracted so that they learn the language organically.
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that today’s schools often leave out fundamentals such as giving a strong foundation in letters and sounds so that a child has tools in their arsenal that they can use when confronted with an unfamiliar word.
Reading Head Start works, but it’s because it follows common sense principles, such as teaching your child the sound value of a letter, so that the child can use their own logic when faced with unfamiliar words to read them correctly on the first try.
So, yes, it does teach children the foundations of the English language, helping them read, and especially for younger children, it will likely put them ahead of kids their own age, because they’ll be learning skills that are normally reserved for older children.
That’s not to say it doesn’t work on older kids. Since a lot of teachers skip reading and sound basics when it comes to teaching language, older children can sometimes be missing this main ingredient for reading success.
Once they get a handle on it, they can, most often, quite easily catch up to the grade level they’re supposed to be reading at.
In fact, it wouldn’t be out of the question that they read at a higher grade level than their current one simply because a smart kid who’s been giving it their all their whole lives will likely go above and beyond once they have the foundational education that they were previously lacking.
The Pros and Cons
The big pro regarding Reading Head Start is that children seem to like the program, so it means they’ll actually want to participate in it.
As any parent knows, it can be tough to get a child to do any academic-related thing on top of a day at school and the homework that brings with it.
So, your kid wanting to use Reading Head Start is, in and of itself, a huge pro. Your child may view it as a sort of educational game, which will make them want to be good at it—the “it” being reading.
Kids who struggle to read often hate reading, because reading reminds them of the hard time they’re having, so they avoid it. Getting a child who has struggled to read to want to read is a huge achievement on its own.
Interactive reading games are a big part of the system, which is a huge pro for kids—and the parents who want to keep them engaged.
But it’s not all fun and games; there are also workbooks, exercises and videos. But this may be a pro for the kid who likes to switch up their routine, or for kids who maybe learn in different ways.
For instance, audio learners have access to videos where they can hear sounds; visual learners have books and kinetic learners have workbooks. Interactive video games engage all three learner types.
And this makes it great for families with more than one kid and more than one learning style as a result. It can also help you figure out which learning style your kid leans toward so you can focus on that.
A practical pro is that after the free trial period, you’re billed monthly for the program. That means that once your child has the skills they need, you can move on.
Of course, the con with this payment method is obviously what happens if you forget to cancel when the program is no longer needed—you’ll obviously be billed again, since it’s a subscription.
Sarah Shepard, the program’s creator, promises your kid will be reading in just a few minutes after implementing her method. For parents who want quick results, this is definitely a pro.
But it’s also a pro for a child who feels down about their reading difficulty; fast results will give them the encouragement they need to keep learning and growing as a confident reader.
One of the cons of Reading Head Start is the claim that it can prevent and reverse dyslexia.
Dyslexia is a complicated condition, and while there are many tools to work around it or improve reading skills in children with dyslexia, a true dyslexia preventative would certainly be a first, so that may be a claim to take with a grain of salt.
That doesn’t mean the program doesn’t offer skills to help children with dyslexia, however.
First impression of Reading Head Start
I like the simple, straightforward approach Reading Head Start takes. It makes sense that children need to learn that sound value of letters to be able to read words they don’t know.
As adults, that’s often how we approach foreign words, so why wouldn’t it work the same for children? After all, they learn even better than us since their brains are growing, so they’ll better be able to exploit this invaluable too.
My kids really love the interactive games, but I love that it comes with workbooks as well, because I like to see what they’re doing.
What surprises me the most is that all three of them—ages 3, 7 and 9—seem to love the program, which frankly shocks me—but in a good way.
I like the fact that Reading Head Start uses a variety of methods to engage my kids, from books to interactive games and more.
My kids have a lot of energy and they don’t like to follow a routine. This system gets them to follow a reading routine without even knowing they’re doing it, because of the way the program switches it up.
The other upside of this is my younger daughter is a kinetic learner, so she learns great from the games. My son is a visual learner, so he’s better with the videos.
Meanwhile, my oldest is an audio learner so it really helps her to hear the sounds. With this program, all three of my kids get what they need.
What really surprises me is that the kids aren’t getting sick of the program after using it awhile. It’s not one of those things where they like it at first and then the novelty wears off, which was something my husband and I were concerned about.
My two older children especially (my youngest is too young to grasp this concept, for now, anyway) love the fact that they are building their skills.
Becoming better readers has really done a positive number on both of their confidence levels, particularly my son, who was very withdrawn due to feeling bad about his reading problems.
In this day and age where first graders are texting each other on their parents’ phones, a kid knows when their reading isn’t as advanced as their peers, so the confidence it brings him is just priceless.
