An Acorn in My Hand

This book has lived up to all the hype I have read. It has given me a simple roadmap for teaching my preschooler how to read. Though it is phonics based it is not intimidating in the least! It is presented in the simplest form that makes teaching to read a breeze. We tried a reading curriculum that my son enjoyed but just always felt so complicated for me as the teacher with all the materials and preparation. But this book has been a breath of fresh air for me and I actually feel excited to teach and my son is enjoying it just as much. We use it alongside alphabet flashcards and unifix letter cubes for some fun hands on learning. I love this book and am so thankful to have found a method that is stress free. I would recommend it to any homeschooling parent or anyone wanting to help their child struggling at school. This approach gives children an excellent foundation for reading.

The author of this book taught at St. Thomas Episcopal in Houston, Texas where I was educated. Her curriculum was so effective that I consistently scored in the 99th percentile for reading comprehension on all standardized tests, including the SAT and the GRE. I sent my daughter to the same school, with the same good results. They are still using Mrs. Bouldin's technique's.

Taught my 2 homeschooled children how to read with this book and learned a lot for myself in the meantime. Short, and to-the-point. Most highly recommended!

I taught first grade for four years and second grade for one year, and I was always searching for good materials to help teach reading with phonics. Unfortunately, I did not know about this book until I began to prepare to home-school my children. This is a wonderful resource that will help anyone learn to teach phonics correctly.

Used this book, not only to teach my own 2 children how to read and write, but taught myself a lot of phonics that I apply myself. It's hard to believe she can teach so much to first graders, but it's true. Not only is there a lot of content, but she presents it so logically, my children would "see" it right away. When children can read well at an early age, nothing can stop them. They teach themselves by being able to read what they are truly interested in. My son was reading high school science in 2nd-3rd grade. My daughter had her bachelor's degree at age 18. This is a "must have" book for the homeschooler (or any student) of just about any age.

A strong phonetic approach to teaching children reading and spelling. All children taught this way are sucessful!! Even right-brained children benefit from a logical step-by-step approach to phonics and the repetition constantly reinforces and encourages. Positive and thorough, the author is truly a remarkable example for all first grade teachers. Should be a prerequisite to teaching elementary age children. A classic.