A Game for Learning How to Read - A New TOS Review!!

Do you have an early reader who could use some extra practice?  Well, we've had the opportunity to review a new product called The Reading Game.  This game is from the creators of Worldy Wise.  They designed this for ages four and up and you will need two players - one is the student and the other is the 'tutor.'

The Product:
This product is a card game that contains 6 card sets with corresponding books to help hardwire words into the students brain.  After the first game there will be 30 words that the child has memorized in this way.  The corresponding book will tell a story that uses only those first 30 words that have been hardwired in.  At the end of the entire game there will have been a total of 180 words retained by the student and added into their vocabulary.  The game retails for $24.95, which is a minimal investment for a tool to help your student continue on their path of learning how to read.

The words chosen for The Reading Game come from the list of words that are the most common in the English language.  That means that these words will be used again and again.  Each story uses just 30 words.  Then they are broken down into sets of five words, meaning there are 5 sets for each card game and story.  After the first two sets have been completed the child will read a series of two test sentences which use only the words that were learned.  If the student is proficient in the reading of the sentences they can move on to the next set in the game.  If not, they can do some more review of the previous sets.

Here's a video of their first test student after she had been working on game 1 for a week.


Our Experience:
We started this game and for us it took quite a few times before Audrie was able to recognize the words when just looking at them.  She is just in the beginning stages of reading so I wasn't sure if she'd like this program or not.  We started with the first set of 10 cards, 2 of each word.  It took several times through for her to get all 5 of the words in set 1 correct. The second set was much harder for her, because those words had a few that she hadn't been taught the rules on how to sound them out; words like 'stay' and 'this'.  Once I explained the sound rules it was easier for her to continue.

We haven't been able to move much further from this set because she doesn't seem to remember them when we go back and do the game on another day.  I'm not sure why, but we'll keep trying ... at least for a while.  Audrie has been my 'struggling' reader and it took a while for her to start reading.  But once she starts it seems she then gets into it and then all the learning we have been doing comes flooding in making her progress quickly.  I expect that is what will happen with this game and the words used.

One other thing that I really thought was nice was that the "tutor" could be an older student.  So The Reading Game could be played with Arianna being the "tutor" and Audrie being the "student."  This makes it a perfect activity to be done so that mom can get some housework done or put a little one down for a nap or even help a toddler with their 'school'.

My Thoughts:
I am not a big fan of memorization of words that can be phonetically sounded out.  However, I do know others who work quite well with this type of learning style.  It doesn't seem that Audrie has taken to this program, but only time will tell.

The cards and books are wonderfully crafted.  I especially like that the book you get to read after the first game is complete - the skunk set - ONLY uses words that had been discussed in the games.  That is a plus in my book.  Some other programs use additional words which make it hard for the new learner to feel proud of their accomplishments when they end up making more mistakes.  The Reading Game has almost instant reward for their accomplishments in reading the words.

I hope you take some time to see what other Crew members thought about their program.  Please feel free to contact them via email and ask them any questions you may have.

*** I am a member of The Old Schoolhouse 2011-2012 Crew and receive free products and services in exchange for a thorough and honest review. Though I am compensated with free products, I am not compensated in the form of money for any of my reviews. My reviews will always reflect my honest opinions, findings, beliefs and experiences with the products and services that I receive.***