“What does this say, Momma?”
“What does that say?”
These are questions I get constantly, every day from my four year old. She’s been asking these questions for years.

She comes by this honestly. I have a very vivid memory from before I went to Kindergarten of looking at a piece of paper on the kitchen table and wanting so badly to be able to read it. It didn’t take long, and I was put in the Early Reader category.

My daughter has that same thirst.

Knowing that my daughter is like me and wanting to foster her reading skills, I was excited to try out the Hooked on Phonics® program.

Hooked on Phonics® wasn’t created until 1987, but when I learned to read, I was taught using the same phonetic principals, so I knew it worked. “It worked for me!” as they used to say in that popular commercial.

“Sound it out,” my mother would say if I got stuck on a word. “Sound it out,” the teacher would say. Once I learned the rules (and there are a lot of them in the English language), there wasn’t a word around that I couldn’t read.

It was a magical feeling, and one I don’t take for granted.

Disclaimer Mumbo Jumbo: Hooked on Phonics® provided me with a free copy of the Learn to Read Program (Pre-K Levels 1 & 2 for Ages 3 to 4), and I am not affiliated with the company. I agreed to do an honest review of the product without receiving any additional monetary compensation.  (Photo credits: Hooked on Phonics®.)

When the Learn to Read Program arrived, I didn’t have to ask Claire twice if she wanted to try it. She couldn’t wait! The songs are catchy; the graphics are appealing, and she loved working through the workbook. When you successfully complete a page, you get to choose a star sticker to put on the corner. Well, here’s a little secret: My daughter will do pretty much anything to get a sticker. While I thought some of the units bordered on the “almost too long” side, she wanted to power-through without taking a break. Behold the power of the sticker.

I like the way the workbook, flashcards, books, and DVD all play off each other. There is something there for all different types of learners, whether it be doing, seeing or hearing.

She was already trying to sound out words before we got the program, which is one reason I wanted to try it. I believe in catching kids in their teachable moments, and this was one of them.

This program did not disappoint, because after it arrived there was just no stopping her.

Recently, at a restaurant, she sounded out the word “Kitchen,” and was so proud of herself. Will your children be sounding out complex words after just the first program? Maybe, maybe not. Your results may vary. (We’d talked about the fact that the CH makes the Chuh sound, which isn’t in the level we have.) The truth of the matter is I can’t say enough good things about this great program.

In fact, the only complaint I have isn’t really with the program…it’s more with the fact that Phonics isn’t spelled with an F.

If you’d like to purchase the Learn to Read Program from Hooked on Phonics®, use the coupon code “SAVE40” for 40% off! But get this… You can WIN a free Hooked on Phonics® Learn to Read Program! Click here for a chance to win a copy of your choice: Pre-K, Kindergarten, First Grade, or Second Grade. Contest ends April 10, 2010, so enter today!