| 9/8/04 Dear McRuffy Press, I wanted to write
to request a catalog or more information about the products you have available.
But first I wanted to tell you how happy I am with the products I am currently
using. First, a little background. I taught my oldest daughter to read
by writing a few letters on a piece of paper and telling her the sound they make.
We would do simple things like sound out road signs or arrange magnetic letters
on the fridge. She just seemed to “get it” on her own. She read very well at the
age of 4 and I thought all my children would be so easy. Then along came her brother,who
is very intelligent. He, however, didn’t “get it” at all. This is the child who
can quote his favorite movie line for line, memorize lengthy bible verses for
summer bible school and figured out the tip for the waitress at his 5th birthday
dinner. But at the age of 6, was absolutely unable to tell me what the letter
M sounded like. I was desperate, everyone said “Boys take longer, relax!” OK,
but he was frustrated and embarrassed. Now, I am a simple person, I prefer
blank pieces of paper and a classic story book. That’s all it should take, in
my opinion. While at a friend’s house one day my son was looking at a Saxon
phonics kit. His eyes lit up and he begged to start reading with this wonderful
kit. I cringed and thought wow! That’s a lot of bells and whistles! I hate bells
and whistles but if it helps him to read we should consider it. Then I found out
the price. And once again I cringed, I was not ready to spend such an enormous
amount of money on something that should be so simple! One day as I was preparing
my homeschool order with Rainbow Resources, I read a description for your product.
I thought it sounded good for the price and hey it was worth the try. I want you
to know what I think now that we are just 3 weeks into the program- WOW! I LOVE
IT! My son LOVES IT! The [McRuffy Press] K[indergarten] phonics program
has met both of our expecations. I love the simple lines and basic building blocks.
There are enough bells and whistles to keep my son’s attention. His confidence
is on the rise and he now tries to decode things outside of school time. Before
he avoided the subject of reading like the plague!! Now he is sure of himself
enough to guess at words he sees in pulbic and is showing interest in decoding
words. This never happened before! Tears and frustration have been replaced
by excitement and curiosity. Embarrassment has changed to confidence. I can’t
believe how such a simple thing can affect someone so much. We are excited
and relieved to have found your product. When people ask me whiat I use, and I
tell them, they say they’ve never heard of it. That’s a shame. To waste so much
money on so many phonics programs, when your product is so wonderful! My
4 year old daughter is chomping at the bit to start the program ASAP. (I’m trying
to give her big brother a head start.) I don’t know how long I can hold her back
though, the otherday she “borrowed” his handwriting book and was filling in the
spaces all by her lonesome behind the couch. Thank you! Thank you! I am
so happy I took a chance on your company. The smile on my son’s face everyday
as he gets a sticker for a job well done is such a blessing. Thank you!
Sincerely, BJW | 
