Explode the Code Review

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This is another subject that I saw my siblings go through before I chose it for my own homeschooling year. While initially an easy choice, these have been workbooks that I've had a hard time getting used to. I've even considered changing to something else after the first few weeks, but I told myself to just get through the first book, and I'm so glad I did! If you've been considering using Explode the Code for your own little one, you can check out my pros and cons list of this phonics program.

Pros: 
First off, the Primer Books (Get Ready for the Code) were amazing! Because my son was already quite familiar with the alphabet, he sped through the primer book I found for him, and really enjoyed the simple graphics, and fun pre-reading activities.

For the other books, I like how there are very frequently reviewing lessons to go over everything that has been taught.

I love all the silly sentences that get to be read at the end of each lesson (this is Book 1). My son is really bad at trying to guess what the sentence will be based on the illustration, so the crazy sentences help me know that he is actually sounding them out.

The books seem to go at a really good pace. This is good since my son struggled in the beginning. He is going over all the concepts he had a hard time picking up, and each book is thorough with the concepts they teach.

Cons:
While the illustrations are cute and simple, after seeing the beautiful colored illustrations of A Reason for Handwriting it's hard not to compare the two. The black and white drawings are fun, but sometimes they can be a little hard to guess what they are. (which is actually good for sounding out the sentences and not guessing what comes next)

My personal opinion is that there is a lot of writing back to back. We do three pages per day, and it seems they put a lot of handwriting together. For a beginner writer, this can be a struggle. For a little boy who wants to get everything right, or takes a long time writing certain letters, this can make the lesson drag on. As he learns handwriting, and understands the concepts, this is getting easier and easier.

My son would get frustrated when he couldn't understand the concept or sound out the words. He had such a hard time in the beginning, and while they DO repeat concepts over and over again, this didn't make the first few lessons any easier.

Closing remarks and tips:
Overall, I would say I have enjoyed these books, and as my son grasps the concepts I enjoy it more (and so does he)! This past week he asked to keep going past the amount of pages I assigned to him!
Something I would recommend doing is set a limit for each day, so your child doesn't get too frustrated or over tired. My mom would set a timer, for us we do 3 pages a day. Do whatever works for you and your child!

Have you used Explode the Code? What do you think?