Headsprout Reading Comprehension Review

I am writing this review because before I purchased it I had scoured the internet for a review but couldn't find one.
I tried this program on my son Ethan who would be in first grade if I sent him to public school.  He is homeschooled and an above average reader so I figured we would try the program which recommends the program for 3rd-5th grade.

Here are the Pro's
1.  My son enjoyed doing the program, we had no fights about doing it.  He continued his enthusiasm into the final episodes.
2.  The way the program is written is brilliant, the way they visualize finding the main point in the text makes a hard concept simple to understand.
3.  I think this is a great way to prepare for standardized testing, we won't be doing that for the next couple of years .
4.  If your child is having trouble with reading comprehension, get it!


Here are the Con's
1.  It is really expensive!!  I compare this program to Teaching Textbooks Math which costs a lot less but lasts a whole school year.
2.  It only took my son 3 weeks to complete the entire program.  I was hoping it would last around 6 months.
3.  The parent can't review the progress until 24 hours later, which I really didn't like.  I want to know if we need to stop and go over the lesson again or if he can proceed.
4.  There were really no instructions for a recommended way to use the program.  I didn't even realize they were sending me books and by the time we got the books we were on lesson 46 out of the 50 total.


Would I buy it again?  I am going to have to say that I wouldn't buy it again.  I think I could find a more economical way to teach the same concepts.  If they reduced the price to $75-100 I would totally tell everyone I know to get it.  So if you aren't concerned about the cost it is a great program.