I've been working with Chloe on phonics for as long as I can remember! When she was 2 1/2 we used the amazing supremely awesome dvd Letter Factory to help teach and reinforce her letter sounds. During her 3rd and 4th year I added onto that with a simple Hooked on Phonics set given to me by a friend.
So, launching into kindergarten this year I thought all the magic pieces would fall into place. We'd already covered lots of ground and coming into kindergarten Chloe had already read many books on her own.
The trouble was motivation. Getting Chloe to read was like pulling teeth! Torture, sheer torture it was. It was almost as bad as potty-training. Almost. I'd painstakingly sound out words with her one letter at a time and continually help her refocus. All the while she'd squirm, whine and sometimes give up in tears.
So we took a big break from phonics this past summer. We'd play rhyming games, use a small blackboard or make up silly sentences but I stopped forcing her to read from a printed page.
To start with this year I wanted to build Chloe's confidence in reading and make reading a fun rewarding experience. Now I literally reward her and it's working beautifully!
I admit it. It's bribery plain and simple. But it's working! Who cares if my girl gets a few pieces of candy or cheap toys in the process? Even traditional schools use bribery as a motivational tool so I'm not feeling too guilty about it.
I printed up a basic reading chart and using Chloe's prime motivators of candy and girly-girl toys we went to work. For every 5 books she reads, she gets to choose a bag of candy. Every 10 books nets her a choice from the prize jar. And when she fills up the entire reading chart we'll do an extra fun family activity together (swimming at a local indoor water park).Check OUT how many books this girl has read!
How do you use bribery to motivate your littles? Or how do you use bribery on yourself? I often treat myself with special food (usually involving cheese or chocolate) to help accomplish undesirable tasks.
2 comments:
I try to bribe myself, too. So glad to know I'm not alone! Usually I'm trying to bribe myself to get in better shape so the cheese & chocolate pay offs would be counterproductive. I try to tell myself I can get new nail polish or a pedicure if it's something big.
I suppose that means I'll continue to be a briber when we have kids :-) I say if it works, it works!
Way to go, Chloe!!! I think I am totally going to copy that idea for Sam. :) I am seriously impressed by your creativity and great homeschooling ideas!! I haven't been doing well so far this year with adding in extra stuff, so you have definitely inspired me! Sam was the same way in Kindergarten regarding reading--it was like pulling teeth to get him to do it. The whole year was so frustrating. We ended up taking the summer off, and when we started back into his reading lessons, something "clicked" and he is doing great! I'm very happy about that. :)
Have you checked into Pizza Hut's Book It program? I was thinking about using that for some motivation too. The kid can earn a free personal pizza every month for meeting their reading goals. We can't really afford to take the whole family to Pizza Hut once a month, but it might be a fun treat once or twice a year . . .
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