Curriculum

BOB Books Review: Great Beginner Readers For Teaching Reading!

What are BOB books like?

When I began to teach my daughter how to read, I looked for a solid phonics reader set that would carry my daughter through all the different stages of learning to read.

I wanted beginner reader books that were short, sweet, fun, and engaging. I also wanted a resource that would teach phonics in a logical, simple order.

BOB books ticked all those boxes for us.

From sounding out her first words to reading long complex sentences with difficult phonics rules, these books have given my daughter an excellent foundation for reading. These books are definitely a valuable resource on our homeschool shelves.

Bob Books are often discounted on Amazon here – they seem to have most of them on offer as well!

BOB Books Review

What are BOB books?

BOB books are short beginner readers you can use to help your child learn to read. They are phonics-based which gives your child a fantastic foundation for learning to read. Your child will learn how to decode words and sound them out phonetically.

When they encounter a word they haven’t read before, they can sound it out, put the sounds together, and then say the word!

There is a range of BOB book box sets available, each with around 12 small books inside.

Each set focuses on a different topic, such as:

  • long vowels
  • word families
  • rhyming words
  • and others

Set 1 through set 5 gradually introduces new sounds, sight words, and phonics rules to your child so they can continue to progress with their reading skills.

As your child reads a book to you each day, you will be able to see the steady progress they are making. The books are nice and short (especially at the beginning!) so that your child can proudly say “I finished the whole book.” They will become more and more confident as they finish each book, and as they master each new sound, sight word, or phonics rule.

BOB Books Set

The books have funny, cute stories, with adorable illustrations.

The pictures are interesting enough to hold your child’s attention, while not too colorful or overwhelming that they distract your child from actually reading the book!

At the start of each book is a sounds dictionary that lists the sounds that are used in that book. It is great to go over the sounds with your child to practice them before they begin to read the book. These books use consistent letter sounds so that your child will not get confused, such as with long and short vowel sounds, and so on.

I used 6 BOB book sets while teaching my child to read (the sets are pictured above). I could not have been happier with my child’s progress and confidence in reading while using these books. She was always excited to read to me her BOB book for the day.

BOB Books Range

BOB books range from pre-reading skills (such as recognizing shapes and patterns) to learning the sounds of the alphabet, to sounding out first words, to reading sentences with sight words, to reading long complex sentences with tricky phonics rules.

Here is a list of the available BOB book box sets:

  • Set 1: Beginning Readers
  • Set 2: Advancing Beginners
  • Set 3: Word Families
  • Set 4: Complex Words
  • Set 5: Long Vowels
  • Pre-reading Skills
  • Alphabet
  • First Stories
  • More Beginning Readers
  • Rhyming Words
  • Animal Stories
  • Kindergarten Sight Words
  • First Grade Sight Words

Also available are workbooks, a beginning reading game, and online apps.

Kindergarten Sight Words

The Kindergarten Sight Words box set comes with some cute flashcards that we loved using!

The sight word is on one side, while the other side has an illustration with a sentence that includes the use of that particular sight word. Some box sets include fun little activity books inside.

Although it isn’t necessary, I recommend using letter flashcards to teach your child all the letter sounds (not letter names) before you begin with BOB books. Go through the flashcards once per day, and in a couple of months, your child will have memorized all of the sounds.

When you begin to use BOB books or a reading curriculum, your child will be able to progress much quicker having memorized all of the sounds before starting.

You can also use these word family flash cards to help your child learn to blend sounds together, and these sight word flash cards that your child will need to memorize.

Other Reading Resources

We used BOB books alongside our main reading curriculum, Teach Your Child To Read In 100 Easy Lessons.

I absolutely love the method this book teaches. Together, they make a great combination.

Have you tried BOB books or what other beginner reader set have you tried? Leave a comment down below.

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