Summer Slump? Not with Lovevery’s Reading Skill Set. Here’s My Honest Review

The Reading Skill Set is broken out into three different sets: Part 1 focuses on Sounds to Reading; Part 2 on Word to Books; and Part 3 is centered on Advanced Rules to Chapter Books. Before you invest, it’s crucial that you note your child’s ability and truly take stock of where they’re at and the kit they’re most ready for. (For example, as my son enters second grade, he’s definitely more in the part three zone than part one, which is Lovevery’s assessment, but also my own.)

That said, there is wiggle room here. In my experience with the sets, my son has relished each one—part one and part two included—even as he gains proficiency. Here’s why: As he builds upon his skills, each set gives him the chance to practice what he’s learned. So, yes, he’s comfortable with syllables and vowels, but he continually reaches for the syllable race game and the follow the sound maze in part one. The Crossword puzzle builder in part two is another favorite, but also still a challenge. And part three includes a treasure trove of books—all designed to build on what he’s learned—that he loves to read and re-read again as his skills grow. The point is this: Yes, you want to tailor the set you select to your child’s ability, but it’s worth recognizing that the sets are appealing even when the knowledge they’re imparting has been grasped.

As I mentioned, there are three different sets to choose from, each costing $160 in price.

Part one is aimed at helping your child develop pre-k and kindergarten skills and comes with nine skill-based games and seven books. The focus with this set is on isolating sounds, learning letter sounds and first spelling and reading.

Part two targets kindergarten and first grade skills and comes with seven skill-based games and activities, plus 13 books, all aimed at teaching basic blending, comprehensive blending and storytelling. (The way this aligned and augmented what my child was learning in the classroom was impressive.)

Part three—designed for first and second graders—includes four skill-based games, plus a whopping 27 books. The skills that are put into practice here are learning vowel rules, learning about prefixes and suffixes and reading chapter books.

Also included with each set: Lovevery’s signature play guides, plus access to the brand’s online portal, which has even more offerings for parents eager to help guide their kids with increased support.

There was a moment when I tested Lovevery’s Play Kits many years ago where I discovered the Turtle Hatch game and it unlocked something inside me as a parent—a chance to witness my child’s rapidly developing skills, but also a true moment of joy as we played one of our first games with real rules together. It’s something I’ll always remember.

The reading kits provide the same type of experience between parent and child. I’ll admit that when they first arrived, I grimaced a bit—only because I couldn’t help but remember my own experience with reading kits as a kid. (A neighbor of ours was launching a business and we were volunteer testers, but it was primarily flashcard-based.) But then my son reached for the Syllable Race Game in the first set.

The rules make it so you have to break words into syllables in order to know the number of spaces you get to go as you race your dog around the track. (There’s a wood-on-wood tapping sound, too, which helps to reinforce the beat—and the skill.) We were having fun playing and counting out syllables to words like “elephant” when he drew what’s called a “See & Say” card, which required him to look around the room and count the syllables of an object of his own choosing. “Ankylosaurus,” he said referencing his favorite dinosaur stuffie. “That’s five, mom!” he said, thrilled he found a way to sail speedily around the board—then win. It was hilarious, but also fun. The mastery of syllables, a skillset he was subliminally picking up? That was the icing on the cake.

The same applies to sets two and three, which were more age-appropriate for his current reading level. The R-Vowel Frog Hop (from set 3) was another kid-pleaser. The goal is to build a path of lily pads to beat your opponent to the other side while learning how vowel sounds change when followed by the letter “r.” I was stunned to see how quickly my son became proficient, besting me in terms of quickness as he nailed more complex vowels. (These are just two of games we had positive experiences with—pretty much everything that comes included is a stand-out and something you’ll keep in regular rotation as kids build on their skills.)

It’s true: The Lovevery Reading Skill Set isn’t cheap, but for parents looking to extend their child’s literacy skills at home, the quality and comprehensiveness of these kits is unmatched. Back to my experience with my own son—it’s a cliché, but the best way in is to make learning fun. These kits are designed to do just that, but with a load of science and Montessori-backed wisdom behind them. TBH, they remind me of the play kits, which provide developmentally backed toys that take the pressure off playtime while helping parents feel more confident in their approach. Replace that same idea with literacy as the main goal and that’s what you get with the reading skill set.