Maslen’s Bob Books Set 1 – Beginning Readers are unlike many programs as there is little to no direction for the parent. However, they go back to the 1950s style of teaching and are carefully crafted to introduce the sounds in a systematic way with the very first book requiring that the child only know the sounds for M, A, S, and T and one sight word (on). After the first book, the remainder of the first set of 12 books will introduce the new reader to the rest of the alphabet and short-vowel sounds. Additionally this same set carefully reviews everything learned and introduces a few common sight words. As your child advances, the series continues with a second set of 12 books that reinforce previously learned material by adding more text per page and introducing new concepts. However, it is important to note that some parents were disappointed to find that the progression slowed after their child finished the first set of books (despite the continuity found in later volumes). With later volumes the difficulty increases, especially when you begin the third set, which has 10 books and introduces still more text and some compound words. Then By the fourth set of 4 books, your child is ready for the blending words and longer compound words that are introduced so that by the final set of 4 books your child is able to read longer stories and handle the concept of long vowels. One of the advantages to these books is that a child must be able to read, from cover to cover, one book before progressing to the next one giving them a real incentive to master each one.

While overall, I found these books to be exemplary, confidence building works, a few things might be improved on, such as the words being handwritten which creates spacing and letter shape variations that some young readers find difficult. Additionally, the wonderful illustrations in the book can create difficulty for children who become engrossed in them instead of the text so for those children I would recommend McGuffey’s Eclectic Readers

For most children, however, I think these books are perfect for teaching them to read since they make it possible for them to sound-out the words and each book only introduces only one or two words or simple phrases that tell a story in the end. Additionally I liked them because they used words that were easy for children to learn and remember, they were short allowing success to come quickly, and they are fun for children to read. Bob books will definitely provide a head start for any child entering kindergarten.  

Tags: bob books, beginning readers, bobby lynn maslen, john r. maslen, childrens literature, learn to read, reading confidence