Anyone use reading chest???

[simpson]

Hi

DD (4 - due to start reception in sept) is absolutely loving learning to read and seems to be flying with it.

I have just counted how many books she has read in the Easter holidays and she has read 19!!!

(This is all lead by her btw, not me making her read them).

We have pretty much exhausted the library until she is a bit more fluent and I am reluctant to buy more books as once she has read them two or three times she knows them off by heart so is not "reading" them iyswim.

Does anyone use reading chest and is it worth the money? How does it work?

Thanks

www.oxfordowl.co.uk

www.mumsnet.com/learning/ebooks

yes. I use it. I find it worth the money. I have the gold membership and it saves me buying books. The school use look-and-say books but I didn't want my children to be exposed to those teaching methods before they had a thorough grounding in phonics. With DS2 who is in reception at the moment, we started in the Feb before reception and he worked his way through the phonics books in the first four colours, and could read very nicely by the time he started, and wasn't at all phased by the school reading scheme as he could decode the words in it.

It works the way it says on the website. They send you books and a pre-paid return envelope. You put them in the postbox. Two days later another envelope full of books pops through the letterbox.

Yes. We found it helpful in deciding which reading schemes to buy.

New books are posted back very quickly (same day I think), and service is quite good.

We do - £9.95 a month, get 4 books sent to you a month and 2 swaps I think. You have to tell them when you need to change levels - can set the type of books you get (we have all types as DS1 loves reading stories and science and history and geography) - if you want to move up a level, just change the level on the system. I think they're great and DS1 loves getting post just for him and rips through the books!

We're on the basic package too and DD loves the reward chart and certficates for changing Bands.

We also use oxford owl - Sometimes she reads them, sometimes she just listens.

For volume and variety reading chest works for us, 6 new books a month for £10 and keeps the school happy as she is not reading only one scheme.

I found out about Reading Chest through MN and have found it great for my daughter who finished reception only able to read basic cvc words and who was reluctant to read.
Her school then decided not to issue readung scheme books to take home any more which I reallt hated the idea of as wanted to support her in learning to read and the library hardly had any books aimed at very early readers.
6 months on and my daughter is much happier reading and she is now at a level I would have expected her to be at. Have found R.C great for its variety of books and also how easy it is to use and works really well for us.
I share a gold package with a mum friend from school as you can have up to 3 children on a list on different levels. So only £8 a month that way

Thanks for all the replies

Mrz - the free websites looks fab thanks, especially as i am getting an Ipad2 for my birthday next week

I bumped into a friend of mine today whose DD is is my DD's nursery class and her DD is a keen reader too, so we are going to pool our books together and swap which will help, but I do think that reading chest will be good for the summer holidays

Am considering getting the silver/gold package, then DS (6 - yr2) can benefit too!!!