My Little Man has just turned four years old and so he is now in his pre-school year. He attends nursery for two days a week and then on our three days together we like to mix up imaginary play, trips out and about with short bursts or phonics and numeracy work. I like to do this with him as I want him to be comfortable with his letter and number recognition when he starts school next year, to enable him to concentrate on adjusting to the social side of school and being away from me for five days a week.
Now my son really has to be in the mood to ‘learn’. Yes, I know pretty much everything he does and all play is learning, but what I mean here is anything related to reading and writing. Sometimes he is keen to have a go, at other times he just wants to be Batman. Not that I can blame him, who wouldn’t want to be Batman? So I do not force it, but allow him to lead what we do in these short bursts and more often than not, he wants to use his Reading Eggs and Mathseeds programmes.
Reading Eggs makes learning to read interesting and engaging for kids, with great online reading games and activities. And it really works! Children love the games, songs, golden eggs and other rewards which, along with feeling proud of their reading, really motivate children to keep exploring and learning.
Little Man is very interested in technology. He likes watching movies, playing CBeebies apps on his sister’s Kindle, or being on the PC. Where his sister has always favoured books and putting pen to paper, my boy is all about gadgets and screens. This is why Reading Eggs works so well for us, as he sees it as a real treat and asks to do it pretty much every day that it’s just the two of us.
His concentration span on this tends to be around twenty to thirty minutes, which I think is really good. He can navigate his way around most of it alone, I just set it up for him and get him started each time. This means I can sometimes use this time to get a few jobs done whilst he’s happily occupied, and at other times, I like to sit with him and see how he’s doing. For those times when I am not around, there is a handy progress report that I can review within the programme and I also receive emails when certain levels are reached.
Little Man definitely favours Mathseeds and his number and shape recognition has really come on in the past few weeks. He normally spends about two thirds of his time on this and then I suggest he moves to Reading Eggs for the remainder of the time. It operates in the same way as Mathseeds, but I know Little Man is more comfortable with his numbers, counting, colours and shapes than he is with letters, which is why he leans towards Mathseeds. But the more time I see him using Reading Eggs, the more progress he is making and I am starting to see his confidence sneak up in this area now.
I used these programmes with Boo and now Little Man is getting lots from them, too. I am working with Reading Eggs this year, but I used them long before I worked with them, as I am a big fan. I know they’re going to support me in getting my son ready this year and in a way that he really enjoys learning.
Reading Eggs are currently offering a 5 week free trial, so if you have a little one, perhaps give it a go like this and see what you think. I’d love to hear how you get on if you decide to try it.
And for one of my lucky readers, I also have a 12 months subscription to Reading Eggs up for grabs. To be in with the chance of winning it, enter using the rafflecopter below. The competition is open to UK entrants only and closes at 12am 14th October 2016. Good luck!
What do you like about Reading Eggs?
Disclosure: We are Reading Eggs ambassadors
I love the style of learning reading eggs uses. The way that it turns everything into a game is almost duping kids into learning, when they think they’re just having fun! Clever 🙂
It makes learning fun for children
I love how it makes learning fun, which is how it should be!
I like the fact that it’s fun. My children love the games room.
I like that children can work through the levels at their own pace.
I like that it makes learning fun for kids.
I like how it encourages a good progression of skills.
It would make learning more fun for my daughter xx
it looks fun 🙂
I love the fact that the app is a fun way to get children to read. My daughter is 5 and has sensory and concentration problems. They are currently testing her as they suspect she is on the autism spectrum. My daughter like most enjoys using the computer and the tablet to play, using play to learn this way is a great way to get kids to read and enjoy it.
I like how it is simple to use and makes learning fun for children.
I like the fact all lessons can be revisited and also the bonus material to follow on from the lessons
My son loves to learn, especially when it involves the alphabet and numbers so this might be right up his street
easy for all ages to understand x
I like that the kids can go through at their own pace so no pressure
its fun for children
love how they make learning fun, my girls would love this
The eyecatching, fun games!
I love how they make learning fun and interactive for kids.
i like that it makes it fun for kids
SOUNDS LIKE A GOOD IDEA
I’d never heard of this before, my little man is only 2.5, but is already a whizz with his numbers and alphabet (*proud mummy here*). He absolutely loves learning and soaks up knowledge like a sponge. Something like this would be great to aid him in his learning journey.
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It looks like there is lots to keep the kids busy and how it tracks progress
it makes learning fun
I like that it grows with your child and looks fun to use.
Its interactive and engaging for the children
I love that it’s fun too. My little one who is 3 adores using technology and this would make it seem like a game rather than learning. What a fantastic competition.
This sounds like a fun way of learning!
It looks like it would really help my daughter who is really struggling with reading, so would love to give this a go
My 4yo has just taught himself to read. Reading Eggs would help him practice his newly acquired skill.
Appeal to children that do not enjoy reading as it is a fun way of doing it
It makes children feel like they’re playing rather than learning
Kids can progress at their own pace
I love how it makes learning look like so much fun, definitely something I’d like to try with my two
It is learning, but in a fun way so they don’t realise.
I love how it makes learning fun.
It is a fun way of learning fir the children
We haven’t used reading eggs yet! This sounds perfect – something that will make reading fun 🙂
I think reading is such an important skill and I want to make sure my daughter enjoys reading rather than sees it as a chore. It looks like reading eggs want children to enjoy it so much too!
Love that children can work at their own pace & that it makes it fun
I really like the fact that they are computer based and similar to the fun apps my little boy is already used to playing so I think he would pick it up quite quickly and just see it as learning fun not a school ‘homework’ project.
I love the educational aspect of the app, there is plenty to learn through the app. This would help my son quite a lot with his phonics
That it’s an encouraging way to get children to read, because they don’t see it as a boring activity
i like that it makes learning fun for children
It makes learning fun for children so they will want to do it xxx
The variety and versatility, good learning through play.
It is a different way of learning to read.
This is new to me but sounds amazing, my 3 year old grandson loves books so much and this would make learning to read fun 🙂
fab. would love this
it would helps my child learn reading.
my children hate anything boring or traditional but put it on an app they love it
Its looks interactive and fun to keep kids interested
it knows the level they are working at
It makes learning fun
It makes learning fun
It looks like a fun way to learn. My son would love this
Love the way it makes learning fun and interactive. My daughter is so ready for this!
We used the free trial and I thought it was very effective with my 3 year old. The repetition drilled the phonics for him
It is a great way of encouraging my daughter to read.
That its learning but in a fun way, my son would enjoy it.
Variety of tasks for the kids to get involved in and a progress report is sent to parents
It makes learning fun
I like how easy it looks to follow
It’s a fun way of learning for children
Would love to win this
It looks so fun, making children learn new things easily
I think it’s a great programme for kids.
I love the fact that it can be done online. My 3 year old great-niece is really keen to learn anything and everything but in particular she loves going online to do things. It will encourage her and still be fun.
I’ve never used it but by your blog post I can say that I will really enjoy the reward system 🙂
I know my grandchildren would enjoy how it is presented.
This looks like a great tool for learning to read
The games and unhatching a new egg are definitely going to keep my daughter interested. I love that each level offers different selections of activities.
It’s a great way to learn to read but it’s lots of fun too would def recommend
Fun way to learn 🙂
That it’s fun so kids enjoy it!
I LOVE HOW ITS LEARNING BUT LOTS OF FUN
my son is extremely tech orientated and i think this would help make it fun to learn – plus as it;s on a computer he will automatically have more interest!
Reading eggs cater for such a wide age range – so useful for families.
I love that it makes reading fun
It looks really good fun!
How it makes learning fun at home, working at their own pace.
I love reading eggs as I want to help my son as much as I can with his education this would be a great start
Reading eggs are fun and help children learn
the structure of the exercises and the figures are very friendly