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Homeschooling » My Top Choice Homeschool Beginning Readers

My Top Choice Homeschool Beginning Readers

July 28 By Kim Sorgius 18 Comments

28 Jul
beginning readers

I think seeing kids first learn to read those beginning readers is the one thing that keeps 1st grade teachers coming back year after year. Although those little 6 year olds start out so needy and full of energy, by the end of the year she has had the opportunity to watch the magic of learning to read. I know it was a blessing to me. While not all of my students would learn to read in their first grade year, the beauty of watching them grow is just indescribable.

beginning readers

As a homeschool mom, it thrills me that I not only get to be there when the door to all things written busts open wide, I get to actually TEACH them and guide them through the process. But don’t be fooled. Even for this veteran teacher, there is no magic formula to snap your fingers and make them readers. It’s plain old hard work. Different children may require different methods. AND the resources at home are certainly much different than in the classroom.

Perhaps my biggest challenge as a homeschool mom teaching reading was finding top choice homeschool beginning readers. Not everything in print these days is high quality reading, both in terms of excellent language and in terms of moral value. In fact, I find that leveled readers (those books with numbers on them) are some of the worst quality literature. They also are a cause for great confusion.

You’ve probably noticed. You can pick up two different “level 1” books and find that the reading difficulty varies greatly. I find that most of the books available in regular book stores suffer from this ambiguity. Plus, they often are filled with poor sentence structure and horrible story lines.

But take heart, it’s not a hopeless cause. There are plenty of high quality beginning readers out there. You just might have to dig a little deeper.

Top choice homeschool beginning readers for kindergarten and first grade. Wholesome and quality literature included!

My Top Choice Homeschool Beginning Readers

1. Pathway Readers

I have to start with my absolute favorite. I was first introduced to Pathway Readers about 7 years ago. They are a durable hardback, so excellent for families with multiple children. There are 3 readers for 1st grade: First Steps, Days Go By and More Days Go By. Each book contains a series of short stories. The stories contain the same characters each time and progress as the characters live out their everyday life. You won’t see goofy behavior, trouble-making, or disobedience as a theme. They tell the simple story of a boy and a girl who live on a farm. These readers just make me super happy. My girls have loved reading them and even gone back later to re-read just for fun. The text is simple, but high quality.

2. BJU Press Readers

Last year I was introduced to BJU Press readers and I honestly wish that I had found them sooner. BJU Press curriculum is rather vigorous academically, so I’ll start by mentioning the Kindergarten (K-5) Readers. These readers start from the very beginning with picture reading and work through basic sound and letter combinations. At the end of these books, the student is reading very well. The best part of these books is that there is a student part and a teacher part to read. This keeps the story going and it’s much more interesting for young readers that way. The 1st grade readers do start on a simple level, but they assume some basic sight word knowledge, as well as, decoding ability (sounding the words out).

beginning readers

When my 6 year old son went through these 1st grade readers, everyday he could not WAIT until it was time to read his story. I’ll be honest. Neither could I. The readers are full of interesting and engaging illustrations, as well as story line. You will also find stories about well-known missionaries and stories from the Bible. Nathan’s favorite story this year was about a missionary pilot who had trouble landing his plane in the jungle where he was going to deliver supplies to the villagers. It was exciting, full of all kinds of things I want him to learn about life and godliness, and he could READ every word!

3. God is Good Series

The God is Good Series by Rod and Staff Publishers was all over my house when I went digging for it. That just reminds me how much my kids love them. They have bright and colorful covers making them attractive to any young reader. The storyline is wholesome and simple, making them one of mom’s favorite. Most of the books are based on animals or nature. All focus on God’s love for us and His amazing creation.

God is Good series

There are 9 books in the series. I would think that these would be a good fit for the second half of first grade. They are short, but not as simple as the other readers we’ve mentioned so far. The 9 books do not get more difficult in progression. They seem to be pretty similar in level.

4. Say it Again Series

What’s not to love about beginning readers that specifically reinforce God’s truth? The Say it Again Series by Rod and Staff Publishers promises to do just that. There are 7 books in the series, all based on a passage/story in the Bible. The focus of the book is to provide practice for young readers. The text is fairly simple and full of sight words, as well as, simple words to decode.

5. Rookie Readers

As a classroom teacher, Rookie Readers were a part of every single day. They are simple and short little books. They are also easy to get your hands on. In our home, we own a few boxed sets: Level A, Level B, Level C. We also own many of the single books.

rookie reader book set

These books do not promise the same level of wholesome living that the above mentioned sets do, but I’ve not found anything offensive either. The best part is, you can get many of these books from the easy reader section of your library. Just ask the librarian to point you in the right direction!

6. Lakeshore Readers

The Lakeshore Readers have been in my collection since I first started homeschooling. There are several great sets available. These books most closely resemble what I used in the classroom to teach reading. They are short and simple with repetitive text and sight words. I have the Sight Word Set 1 and the Beginning Readers Set.

Additional resources —>

If you’ve got older students, you might like to know how to make your own homeschool reading curriculum. Click here to find out how.

So how about you. What are your favorite beginning readers?

kim sorgius
Kim Sorgius

Through practical tools & Bible-based resources, Kim Sorgius is dedicated to helping your family GROW in faith so you can be Not Consumed by life’s struggles. Author of popular kid’s devotional Bible studies and practical homeschooling tools, Kim has a master’s degree in education and curriculum design coupled with over 2 decades of experience working with kids and teens. Above all, her most treasured job is mother and homeschool teacher of four amazing kiddos.

Comments

  1. Caroline @ The Modest Mom says

    July 28 at 9:38 am

    I just pinned this list, there are some great ideas here!

    Reply
    • Kim Sorgius says

      July 28 at 10:19 am

      Thanks, friend!

      Reply
  2. Thaleia from Something2Offer says

    July 29 at 8:10 am

    What about ideas to teach reading for a very smart 4 year old? Did you use BOB books or something else? I would love some suggestion as we are wanting to purchase some beginner reader books for our son.

    Reply
    • Kim Sorgius says

      July 29 at 9:52 am

      Hi Thaleia,
      The Rookie Readers, Lakeshore Readers and BJU Press K-5 readers would work for your little guy. All 3 of those start from the very beginning. I do have some BOB books. They are ok. Honestly, not my favorite. However, many moms find that they are very successful. Have you considered doing Before 5 in a Row with you little guy? That is what I did with my 4 year old who wanted to learn to read. It’s not readers. You read great literature together and talk about the books with extension activities. We just loved that time together!

      Reply
  3. Denise says

    August 20 at 12:25 pm

    We love American Language Series K readers! I have heard many great things about the Pathway readers, and am planning to using them once we complete the American Language Series books.

    Reply
  4. Lucy Jennings says

    September 17 at 9:24 pm

    I just pinned this post, and thank you for such insightful comments on the early reader books and publishers you list.

    I agree with you, the readers that accompany the reading series I use in my classroom are often hard to understand, sometimes I can barely figure out the storyline!

    Reply
  5. elizabeth says

    October 11 at 3:43 pm

    Thank you so much for this! I am really not sure how to start reading with my kiddos. I am very excited to look more into everything you have mentioned! Like you, I like the idea of the stories just being good old stories for kids…not filled with garbage! I read some reviews on pathway and they were really good! Hoping to buy soon!

    Reply
  6. heather says

    December 29 at 12:41 am

    This is our first year of home school and I just love the pathway readers and workbooks. My daughter really loves reading about Rachel & Peter and the stories relate to our lives in many ways so it keeps her really interested. The workbooks are really fun too, keeps her engaged and really pushes towards independent study and reading.
    I am going to check out the God is Good series and BJU press readers that you suggested, I’ve got a little one starting kindergarten & it would be fun to have some new reading material.

    Reply
    • Kim Sorgius says

      December 30 at 10:18 pm

      Yay! Hope you are having a wonderful first year. It’s such a blessing!

      Reply
  7. Beth says

    January 15 at 10:59 am

    That is a great list — We like Biscuit and Dick and Jane.

    Reply
  8. Anna Joy says

    March 11 at 8:25 am

    Thank you for this great list. It is really hard to find great beginning readers. And, like you mentioned, I have picked up “Level One” readers and am completely confused as to why they think that it is level one. Maybe the kids are supposed to just learn the difficult sight words instead of learning phonics and sounding the words out themselves? This seems to be especially true for readers with “boy” appeal that are all based on cartoons, etc. Anyway, thank you so much for this great list. I am pinning.

    Reply
    • Kim Sorgius says

      March 23 at 10:06 pm

      Yes, there are many beginning readers that focus on “sight words” instead of phonics. There are many people who stand by that as the primary approach to teaching reading actually!

      Reply
  9. Jane Miller says

    April 11 at 9:35 pm

    I encourage everyone to check out Usborne books very first readers and phonics readers. They are beautifully illustrated, cute stories and allow for plenty of practice. very step by step.

    Reply
  10. Lea says

    March 14 at 9:08 pm

    Hey Kim, is there a typo? The God is Good series by Rod and staff has a number 4 in the picture but is listed as number 3…
    And the say it again books (listed as #4, but I think photo is #3) aren’t Rod and Staff also are they?

    Reply
    • Suzanne says

      March 25 at 10:12 pm

      The God is Good series is photo 4. Photo 3 is listed in the post as Grade 1 of BJU press. The Say it Again books are not picture in the photos by are published by Rod and Staff and can be found by clicking the link 🙂

      Reply
  11. Marletta Swarts says

    June 9 at 3:36 pm

    Hi

    Any e-reader options for us living far from everything that you can recommend?

    Have a blessed week.
    Marletta
    (info@weltevredeguestfarm.com)

    Reply

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