New way books

[Oodlefoodle]

Dd 4.11 just been started on blue new way parallel. I can't seem to find ouT much about these books. Does anyone have any experience of them?

They are a rather ancient scheme originally called Gay Way but rebranded my son hated them with a vengeance. Blue is a good level for a reception child.

They seem a good length with lots of made up names - may be good for phonics practice I suppose.

They're awful, dreary stories that go on for ever.

Oh dear I thought the length was good dd read Pol and PAx in 10 mins but the story was a bit strange. I thought it was a return to phonics after ORT. Dd went up to ORT 8 but these look easier.

Gay Way became New Way. Fat Pig became Pat Pig. I can remember them being part of the home reading sets when DCs were at school.

Yes I clearly remember my 4 year old announcing angrily "I hate the fat pig!"

Oh god, my DD (and has struggled with learning to read) who's only now in Yr 2 (so not that long ago) had bloomin' Fat Pig books for aaaages at the start of Yr 1 as the school said she neeeded sound phonics grounding. I don't know why they didn't have more up to date books. I'm sure it was the over repetitive (and tediously dull) nature of these books that actually compunded difficulties for her eg that 'a' can only make a short vowel sound was so thoroughly drummed in to her that when she met a word with a long 'a' vowel she couldn't take that on board.

I think the teaching of phonics would make more sense if the children were told "Here is the letter A, usually it makes an 'a' sound, but there are other sounds it can make too although we're going to talk about those later". It's this last bit that doesn't seem to happen, so children feel the posts are constantly being moved as they are taught 'new rules'.

Interestingly I was doing just that with a year 1 group on MOnday betterwhenthesunshines ... with April and apron and Amy and David ...