Difference between Reception & year one

[Itscurtainsforyou]

My child has just started year 1. At the end of reception his report gave him something in the region of 12 "exceeding expectations" and the rest were "meeting expectations". So we thought he was doing well.

Just had parents evening and been told that he's "trying his best" but teacher was very non-committal about how well he was doing. He's only achieved a couple of items on the (huge) maths competency list and they said he might have to move a group for literacy if he didn't improve.

We came away feeling a bit flat. Is there such a difference between reception and year one that he can go from doing very well to (apparently) struggling? Of course we are doing all we can to support him, but at the same time don't want to spend lots of time doing work at home when he could be out playing etc.

[Loulou2kent]

Are you in England? If so I know that Reception use the EYFS framework. It's what they use for under 5 outcomes.

The difference being that under 5's vary dramatically in their abilities. The under 5 ranges are a lot wider. For example a baby walking at 23 months & 12 months would both be put in the same bracket because they're both meeting the expectation by the age of 2. So they're both hitting their milestones but they're given longer to hit them because it's not that uncommon for some babies not to learn to walk until their almost 2.

I'm sorry that the example is about babies. I've just woken up & it's an easy one to use. But basically there's more time given for children to reach their outcomes.

I'm not sure what year 1 use. Hopefully a teacher may be able to explain but I just thought I'd let you know what reception & nursery use.

Fwiw I just had my sons parents evening & felt the same. Key stage 1 are being more specific in areas such as English & maths so it's more in depth.

In reception they can meet expectations for recognising numbers & beginning to write & use numbers etc. Where as in year 1 I guess you have to know what to do with the numbers!

Hopefully someone else comes along that knows & understands way more! And hopefully I'm not completely off the mark!

[Itscurtainsforyou]

Thanks - that's helpful.

There are areas that we know he can improve on (letter/number formation), but he races ahead with reading/maths and we struggle to equate this with the non-committal report on his progress.

I want to encourage him without him getting fed up with being made to do more and more outside school.

[ReallyTired]

The style of learning in reception is very different to year 1. In reception it's play based and the ablity to write down information is less important. Year 1 is proper school and children have to be more independent and get on with work. They also have to write down their answers.

In reception age makes a huge difference to achievement. As children get older intelligence and hard work dictates how well they do at school. Maybe the op son is not working hard enough.

[Ginmummy1]

It is a big jump, and yes, they’re assessed on a different set of criteria. However, with so many ‘exceeding’ ratings in Reception and your impression that your son is doing so well with reading and maths in particular, it seems a bit surprising that the Y1 teacher was not as positive as you expected.

It could be that the teacher is the cautious, slightly negative type (although if that is rubbing off on Y1 kids it might be a cause for concern!). Equally, the Reception teacher might have been overly gushing and generous. I’m sure there are systems in place to reduce the risk of one teacher being generous and the next being harsh, but surely it happens to some extent. You might just be suffering this!

Equally, ReallyTired may well have a point, in that your son needs to be able to express his literacy and maths skills on paper, and perhaps he just needs his written communication to improve, in order that he can demonstrate his ability.

Maybe the reason he might have to move down a group is because other slow starters have suddenly caught up, whereas he is consolidating?

I would not panic and introduce lots of additional work at home, as it sounds like he is still doing pretty well.

[Itscurtainsforyou]

Thanks
I think I'm going to ask for another chat. It turns out that he has English & maths with a different teacher, so perhaps we need to speak with her too.

At the risk of being one of "those" parents, he really is quite bright (the teacher seemed quite surprised about a particular instance when he was talking about something in detail, as if she didn't usually see that side to him). But I think a pp is right that if he can't express this by writing it down (as opposed to talking about it) this may be holding him back.

[Enidblyton1]

Yep, a big difference between Reception and Y1. We've just had the opposite conversation at Y1 parents evening. My DD started the year a bit 'behind' where they wanted her to be and is now gaining confidence and ability at an exponential rate.
Don't panic at all. As pp said, it might just be that Reception teacher was a bit overly gushing, while the Y1 teacher is a bit more serious. I wouldn't change anything at all. Just continue to praise and encourage your DC. He may still be getting used to the new routines of Y1.

[BroomstickOfLove]

DS is Y2 and left Reception exceeding in everything, and finished Y2 meeting expectations in everything. I was a bit upset at first, especially as we were told that he was doing really well. The thing is that he actually doing well if you look at the big picture, but his weaknesses are in areas such as spelling which are holding him back in the current curriculum.