Free Fun Early Reading Materials (phonics & sight)

Just came across this site, and I thought I’d share it: Primarily Reading, by retired teacher Gloria Lapin.

As a FREE alternative to Bob Books and other primary readers, I like the fact that the site offers both phonics-based and (Dolch) sight word-based easy readers available for download in both PDF and my new favourite, ePub format for your eReader!!! (like my Kobo)

No waiting for books to arrive, just download and go…. and it’s FREE. There are a few super-cheap ebooks for sale on the site as well, as well as links to other items for sale.

These look like a perfect easy read for Naomi Rivka – as well, possibly, as a decent beginning-read for Gavriel Zev. The site also has games, activities and suggestions for beginning readers.

If you’re looking for something a little more comprehensive (beginner to advanced), and still free, you could also try Progressive Phonics – but those materials aren’t available in ePub yet; only PDF for the time being.

(You must register to download from the site, but registration is free, and I don’t think they sell anything at the Progressive Phonics site.)

Finally, to turn this into a REALLY comprehensive round-up, it’s worth mentioning Starfall, if you don’t know about it already. They have free printable PDF versions of their online books, but don’t seem to be moving towards eBook versions to save on paper anytime soon.

We have only used the beginner Starfall levels so far, but they do advance quite far, into “comic books,” though they are online-only at this point. In addition to reading (like Progressive Phonics), Starfall also offers a free printable handwriting program.

There’s also a Starfall Store if you want to purchase “real” versions of the books and materials. Last time I went on the site, I discovered a brand-new “More Starfall” section offering math and other kindergarten-type resources, however, most of these are for paid members only.

I plan to continue using Starfall this year for occasional online fun n’ games for both kids, while hopefully making some use of the Primarily Reading resources now that I have discovered they’re out there.

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