[Valpal1]

Well I don’t know which phonics you are using, but it requires much less drill than any sight method since there are 70 phonograms and 30 spelling rules. Pretty much anyone can memorize 100 facts better and faster than thousands of words by sight.

You don’t need expensive textbooks or workbooks either. People forget that millions are spent in every school district on these, which is another prime motivator in persisting with whole word methods. It’s always about the moolah.

[Oberon]

Before the invention of the publik skool, millions of children were taught to read in the home using nothing more than the family bible. By Laura Ingalls Wilder's day, they were using the standard slate and chalk for schoolwork, and some highly effective (but inexpensive) basic primers.

It was a system that worked not because of the texts, but because the method was effective and the people involved were motivated.