Yr4 problems with spelling/writing, can any primary teachers advise please?

[ilovewelshrarebit123]

My DD is in YR4, she's 8 and a late August child.

She was a late walker, mover etc but her vocabulary was excellent from about 18 months. She never stops talking, is popular and a happy little girl.

But she's struggling at school. She takes forever to complete written work and homework is painful. She goes to a Welsh speaking school and they do a mix of Welsh and English classes. She's fluent in both languages.

Since YR2 teachers have said she has ability but day dreams and is a slow worker. This has just been identified again in YR4, she said she can't spell and finds it difficult to form sentences.

Teacher agrees and said there may be something 'underlying' but wants to wait until Christmas and will look into it again.

She has lovely neat writing, but gets p, d and j's the wrong way round a lot of the time. I think her reading is ok and she reads in both languages.

I've researched dyslexia and a lot of the feelings she describes fit, along with the problems writing. She finds it difficult to copy words and often makes spelling mistakes even when copying. She can't look at a word and copy it all, she has to do it letter by letter and is a very slow writer.

I wasn't great a school, I remember the panic inside when it came to arithmetic. I'd be sick to my stomach panicking if they chose me to work one out and she says the same when asked to write.

I feel for her and just want to find out what's going on. Can I insist on the 'test' the teacher mentioned. I can't bear the thought that we'll be in YR5 and it's the same.

Thanks

[Ferguson]

Virtually ALL children at some time will confuse b, d, p, q, and maybe g and j, so don't worry too much about that. Also, in 'adult' books letters 'a' and 'g' may be more ornate than in early reading books, which confuses just a few children for a while.

Reading and writing in TWO languages presumably does add some extra difficulties for a child, so maybe allowance has to be made for that.

This book may be worth investing in:

An inexpensive and easy to use book, that can encourage children with reading, spelling and writing, and really help them to understand Phonics, is reviewed in the MN Book Reviews section. Just search ‘Phonics’ and my name.

MATHS:

If she is having difficulties in number work, I can provide a guide to Numeracy, though it is really for younger children; but if her basic number concepts are 'wobbly' it may help.

[maizieD]

Forgive me if I'm wrong but I understand that Welsh schools don't have quite the focus on phonics that English schools now have. Many children are OK with reading because they have the word in front of them to work from but spelling is a 'recall' activity which is much more difficult. Ferguson has recommended his favourite book () but it might not mean much if she hasn't been taught how to use phonics for spelling.

Can you say how she 'learns' new spellings?