I learned to read from ”100 Easy Lessons” shortly after its publication, completing about 80 lessons before starting kindergarten. I never ended up finishing al

I learned to read from ”100 Easy Lessons” shortly after its publication, completing about 80 lessons before starting kindergarten. I never ended up finishing all 100, however, so perhaps there are some phonemes I have yet to learn. One key element that the article misses is that a direct instruction approach to phonics means that the learner is not just learning to say phonemes fast and winding up with words, but is learning what it feels like to construct new knowledge from smaller bits. As a four year old, this meta-lesson was known to me only as the incredible sense of joy and accomplishment in seeing my parent’s face light up after successfully sounding out a difficult word. To be able to read a word without anyone telling you the answer first is something truly formative for a budding intellect. I believe there is no way to progress through “100 Easy Lessons” without also learning to some degree that one can tackle the unknown.