CLOSED:'Hooked on Phonics' Review and Giveaway

When Bunny girl was just learning the alphabet I made the mistake of teaching her the alphabet as we sing it and not as phonics. This is something I regret not doing at an early age, thus when I tried teaching her alphabet sounds, it was hard for her to understand why a letter had different sounds. Needless to say 'phonics' began to feature as a dreaded topic in my mind and in practice for her.......well, that was till we were sent a complete PreK set from Hooked on Phonics and honestly...now we ARE hooked on phonics!! (That's right..Bunny girl too!)

The Hooked on Phonics PreK set includes:

• 6 Original Storybooks written to promote the skills your child learns in the program, including 2 books by the award-winning children’s book author and illustrator, David McPhail
• 2 Workbooks that will guide you and your child through all of the lessons and many fun activities
• 2 DVDs filled with music videos and fun introductions to each lesson, where letters come to life
• 2 Quick Start Guides
• 2 Sets of Stickers to proudly display in the workbooks and celebrate reading success!
• 4 Sets of Letters and Picture Flashcards designed to reinforce letter names and letter sounds

We're still on Workbook 1 and I have to confess we've never enjoyed doing phonics as much. (The set lies on our coffee table in the living room and Bunny girl asks to do a new phonic segment each day!) After each letter, we go to the dvd and watch the interactive video made for that letter and then get back to our workbook to do the activity specified. This not only helps the child understand the concept with visuals but also put into practice what he/she has just watched and learned.

Thanks to working with the set, I've also discovered Bunny girl is really good at rhyming words, for her age. I think her little mind is now filled with little rhyming possibilities as she pops out words she's discovered that rhyme when she's playing with her toys, while I'm driving her to school in the car, taking a walk or even having a bath. She's our little Rhyming Rita!

I totally recommend Hooked on Phonics for any parent who wants to teach their preschooler to read the fun, engaging way.

Hooked on Phonics began in the year 1987 when a father noticed his son was having problems with grasping the fundamentals of reading. He slowly introduced phonics to understand letter sounds and soon he had an avid reader on his hands! The Hooked on Phonics has programs that help with Reading, Math, Spelling, Early concepts and Language. The sets cater to 7 age groups-

• Babies: upto 18 months in age
• Toddlers: 18-36 months
• Pre-K: 3-4 years
• Kindergarten: 5-6 years
• 1st grade: 6-7 years
• 2nd grade: 7-8 years
• 3rd grade and up: 8 years plus.
  

(You can view 3 minute demos for each grade, when you visit this link.)


Buy it:

You can buy a complete Pre-K to Second grade Learn to Read Hooked on Phonics set for a discounted price of 199.95 US$ (Original price: 299.95 US$). This will be shipped free to any location in the US. (All orders over 130US$ are eligible for free shipping.)
PLUS
**All my readers can avail of a unique blog discount of 25% off, using the code HOP25. (You can buy individual sets or this set for a great price using this discount code.)**


Win it:

One reader will win a Hooked on Phonics set. (You can choose the grade of choice: Pre-K, Kindergarten, 1st Grade or 2nd Grade)


Here's how you can win it:

1. Mandatory entry (without this, all other entries will be disqualified)-

Tell me which Hooked on Phonics set you would love to win. (Please specify the grade choice)

Additional entries:

-2. Follow Hooked on Phonics blog

-3. Follow Hooked on Phonics on Twitter.

-4. Fan Hooked on Phonics on Facebook.

-5. Subscribe to my blog (remember you need to activate the subscription if you subscribe via email) or Follow my blog & leave a comment stating that you subscribe or follow.

- 6. Blog about this giveaway (leave a comment with a link to your blog post)

- 7. Tweet about this giveaway and add the hashtag #ebmr at the end.

RT @ebmommy Win a Hooked on Phonics set http://bit.ly/1ZPVsN #ebmr

- 8. Add the link to this giveaway on a Mr Linky on a blog giveaway site, forum, carnival. (leave a comment with the link)

-9. Snag my Blog button (the cute little bunny on the right!) and leave a comment with the link


This giveaway is open to US residents, 18 years and above.

1 winner will be chosen with the random.org generator on November 7, 2009 at 10 pm Central time, so enter before that. The winners names will be posted thereafter. Please note if any winner does not get back to me 48 hours after his/her name has been posted, I will pick a new winner.

** EBMR Disclaimer: I have received a free product for review purposes only. This review has not been monetarily compensated and is based on the views and opinions of my family and/or self. Please note that the opinions reflected in this post have not been influenced by the sponsor in any way.**