Working Phonics

If you are looking for a very basic phonics program, without all of the bells and whistles, this program just might be it. I was disappointed to find it did not cover blending of letter sounds (I'm a stickler for that skill), but it did cover basic phonics skills rather well. Do not expect dancing lions, great sounds, or great graphics here. This is old-fashioned with regards to its graphical technology.

There are some children who have definite visual perception problems. These kids often need a less cluttered feel in their reading programs. Their attention needs to be completely fixed on the task at hand. Many of today's upbeat, and more entertaining

phonics programs, may contain too much in the way of visual and auditory distraction for these children. Working Phonics has a black screen, which allows a young child to visually isolate the objects on the screen. We found very little eyestrain here when compared to other older graphical programs with weird colors and grainy graphics. The graphics here are clear and easy to look at. They are just ridiculously simple. Sounds consist of beeps and slide whistles for correct answers. The person reading the instructions has a clear voice, and does not have the 'recorded in the bathroom' sound I hate.

Children with visual perception problems will be helped by the neat and clean graphical look, but will be challenged by the 'pick the right word' activities. These are good activities for these children, however. Just be aware that they are going to pick the one weak spot your child may have and help them work through it. Watch for signs of frustration if this is a serious problem in your household.

The screens contain activities that you would find in most standard phonics workbooks. For that reason, there is nothing terribly innovative here. There is simply reinforcement practice on items your child may need extra help with. Skills covered include:

Sight Words

Short Vowels

Long Vowels

Phonics Clues (fill-in-the-blank sentences)

Vowel Review

Beginning Consonants

Beginning Consonant Blends and Diagraphs

Ending Consonants

Ending Consonants and Blends

Each of these sections contains multiple skill areas, and each skill is practice upwards of a dozen times. If your child does not get the correct answer after three tries, the right answer is shown, and he or she is moved on to the next question. There is a lot of practice here distinguishing between two similar words such as, ate and are, or go and so. This is an important practice activity for children with learning difficulties.

I would not recommend this program to most families. You may also wonder why I would recommend this one, and not a program like the Muppets Kindergarten Deluxe. The reason is that this program fits the needs of a particular group of children. Those same children who have visual perception and reading problems, would not find the same simple layout and visual emphasis found here in the Muppets program. The Muppets program is just old-fashioned. This one is old-fashioned with a purpose.

Most children will find the workbook style screens and low-tech feel quite dull. Children who need that added practice and need simplicity, will get some benefit from the phonics practice found here. Just don't go into this one expecting something akin to the Reading Journey program!

Grading for Working Phonics

Educational Value: 3

Entertainment Value: 2 1/2

Replay Value: 2 1/2

Ages: any needing phonics reinforcement

Available from Curriculum Associates at www.curriculumassociates.com on a Windows/MAC hybrid CDROM.