I found the Basal Readers to be a mediocre resource. It had some good ideas and stories, and seemed to be laid out well. It also had some disadvantages. I found it to be somewhat difficult to navigate through the teacher's edition, however the student edition seemed fairly straightforward. Another disadvantage was that they are expensive! There are a lot of cheaper resources out there. With that being said, I would probably use the Basal Readers if a school district had them, but I would not use every part of them. I would still want to incorporate my own ideas and activities into my lessons.
I REALLY enjoyed the homograph and homonym riddles. Whenever I solved one that I found difficult, I had a great sense of achievement. I know it is rather silly, because I didn't really "achieve" that much with these riddles, but nevertheless it was fun. I think activities like these might be great for some kids, but frustrating for others. I think having some easy ones mixed in may help alleviate this problem for kids that struggle with these riddles.
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I also thought that Basal Readers were only a mediocre resource. It might be useful if the school district you are working has already purchased them since they tend to be expensive. I thought it would be helpful for beginning teachers to plan lessons and get ideas. Overall though, I thought the stories tended to be a bit boring and more interesting resources are available. If my school had Basal Readers I might use them from time to time, but I would also incorporate my own ideas and add additional stories with similar themes. I also worry about giving children "textbooks" too early and the Basal reader student edition appears to be a textbook of sorts. Since I'm a Child Development major, I just wouldn't feel comfortable giving out textbooks to such young children. I feel this creates an atmosphere of work, mandatory reading, and stress. In the early years I feel it is important to foster motivation, interest, and excitement when reading and I'm not sure this resource would meet those goals.
I have will have to use the Basal reading program in my internship classroom next year, so I think I will get a little more work with it then. It is hard to gage whether I like it or not now when I haven't worked with it much yet. I do agree with you that it does have its benefits and downfalls, and that it is really expensive. I also thought that it is useful to use the Basal reading program if your district uses them but it is also important to use your own creativity and lessons tailored to your students needs.
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