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Join our Primary Education forum to discuss starting school and helping your child get the most out of it.

Join our Primary Education forum to discuss starting school and helping your child get the most out of it.

Primary education

Should I teach my DD to read or not?

15 replies

spottypancake · 11/10/2011 21:57

DD will start reception in Sept 2012. I don't know whether I should teach her to read, starting now.

I do have an older child (Y1) and I did not teach him to read before he started school and he didn't know any sounds when he started school. He currently reads ORT level 3. Reading threads on MN, his reading ability at this age and year group seems very behind. Most people on this site posting a reading level of a Y1 child are saying gold (stage 9) or even higher. However, looking at this ORT document www.oup.com/oxed/pdf/ORTReadingAges.pdf, it would seem that he is exactly on target - in Year 1, Term 1, they suggest level 3.

Is everyone on here teaching children to read before school? Is this what I should do for my DD?

Thanks for any help.

OP posts:

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iggly2 · 11/10/2011 22:05

Spend lots of time each evening reading to your child 3 or 4 child books that are repetative and maybe rhyme. Point to each word as read maybe some that are truely phonetic pick to sound out (eg C-A-T). Mainly just try to emphasize that reading is enjoyable and fun and if she can learn that one group of letters equates to one word and understands very basic phonics she will make the jump in her own time. Repetition in the text willl help if your child likes full word recognition.

JeanBodel · 11/10/2011 22:06

First of all, do not believe everything you read on this site. People only post if their child is exceptional, either above or below what's expected. No one is posting that their child is average and they need some advice about it.

Second, I can only offer you my philosophy, which is: teach your child to read if she is ready. Is she clamouring for you to teach her? Does she bring you books and ask you to help her read them? If yes, or if there are other signs that she is ready, then go ahead.

If you are only asking because you are worried about keeping up with the G & T section, then abandon the idea. I don't think it does children any good to be forced into learning to read before they are ready. Let her learn with her peers like (almost) everyone else.

No, we do not all teach our children to read before they start school. Only those who have, are the ones posting about it. Those who haven't are the invisible majority.

iggly2 · 11/10/2011 22:13

My sister did not read before 7 (not a word).......guess which of us got to Oxbridge. There is no race, she now reads everything. ENJOYMENT MATTERS MOST.

MaggieW · 11/10/2011 22:18

No, let the professionals do it, and don't measure your DS1 against what others say - otherwise you'll end up frazzled! Make sure they both have a wide range of picture, non-fiction and fictional books to look at/read. Look at signs/posters etc when you're out to see if DS1 can work out some words etc, but make it fun and keep it light. Keep reading to them and discuss what's happened in the stories, the characters, the cover of the book and what clues that's giving them etc. They'll both be fine as you sound a very proactive and supportive Mum.

spottypancake · 11/10/2011 22:19

The reason I am asking is that I want both my children to be able to understand what is going on in class and participate fully. I am trying to avoid them being really behind and not enjoying school and threads on MN do give the impression that my DS is behind. I worried that I had made mistakes with him and didn't want to make the same mistakes with my DD.

OP posts:

JeanBodel · 11/10/2011 22:21

Have you talked to a class teacher about this?

My son is in reception. They are teaching them to read on the understanding that no one in the class has ever seen a book. The first weeks seem to involve teaching the children how to hold a book, how to treat a book, how script goes from left to right in England...

Unless your daughter is enrolled in some sort of selective hot house for four year olds, I cannot imagine that she will be behind the rest of the class.

spottypancake · 11/10/2011 22:21

Thanks for the replies .

I worry myself half to death about the kids!

OP posts:

ZZZenAgain · 11/10/2011 22:23

I wouldn't bother teaching her to read beforehand. She will probably enjoy learning with the class and then when she does start, the thing is, as you know, to encourage her and keep reading to her as well as listening to her efforts.

sunnyday123 · 11/10/2011 22:33

no i wouldnt bother - dd1 is 6 and in y1 and on ort stage 5 which is the highest group in her class so ort9 seems mad! Although there is a big difference between reading a stage and understanding.

I did nothing with DD1 before school (just the alphabet and even them not phonically!) and teacher was glad! Now she is in the top reading set as she learnt when she was ready and from scratch. In DD class phonics were literally thrown at them from day 1 as new and if they've covered it already they could lose interest and dislike school at a time you need them to settle? School also teaches it through play which most parents would find difficult.

DD2 also starts 2012 and is already 4 and i am not planning on doing anything with her either! Nows the time for fun and enjoying their last year before school starts - plenty of time for formal teaching- i'd just concentrate on enjoying stories. I read to DD1 every night til she started school and it becomes so difficult now as she to read to me every night and we both miss having those bedtime stories!

rookery · 11/10/2011 22:33

I tried to teach DS1 to read before school because my mum taught me to read before going to school and for all the wrong reasons (wanted my ds1 to be recognised as genius, etc). I bought all the jolly phonics books but he just wasn't at all interested so I reluctantly stopped and left it to the teachers (who know what they're doing).

DS2, totally different story: after his big brother, I had no intention of teaching ds2 to read, but he used to pick up the phonics books and bring them to me, sit on my lap and ask for help to read them. I used to find him reading them to himself. He could read before school but he was in a tiny minority and still (rightly) had to go through exactly the same phonics programme as all the other children in his class.

I'm sure your son is doing just fine and it sounds as if you're a very thoughtful mum :)

simpson · 11/10/2011 22:34

My DD is also due to start reception in sept 2012 and am starting to teach her to read/write at her pace because she wants to iyswim.

Not really planning on doing much except maybe getting her to recognise the alphabet by sight and recognise some key words and to write her name.

She is desperate to do "homework" like her older brother (yr2)

yellowsubmarine41 · 11/10/2011 22:48

Something worth saying is that some children ie my dd would rather be taught by someone other than their parent/carer .

She's always written in capital letters and refused any suggestions from me that there might be an easier way. A month of reception and she can form lower case letters beautifully and is a bit disdainful of anyone who prints without doing 'flicks' at the end of each letter.

blackeyedsusan · 11/10/2011 23:43

before she can read, she needs to know that a book starts at the front, you turn one page at a time, you read from left to right and top to bottom. she also needs to know that those black squiggly bits are what tells the story.

read a variety of books to her, pointing to the words as you go. you could hunt for the letters in her name when you are out and about. sing lots of nursery rhymes and songs. talk to her and increase her vocabulary. when she does start to read that will be very helpful. get an alphabet poster. look for the first letter of her name, then family members. you don't need to sit her down and teach her the letters, just try and catch her interest and follow her lead.

dd used to demand "name" to get us to write her name at an early age, and could distinguish her name/mummy/daddy but still couldn't write her name properly til half way through reception. ds likes letters and demands to be told what they all are. he has known most of them on and off since 2 1/2 but he has no interest in doing anything with those letters. i think he just liked the brightly coloured letters on dd's phonics book. they all learn at their own pace and to their own interests. all you can do is provide the right environment and opportunities to learn if they are ready.

IndigoBell · 12/10/2011 06:23

Your Y1 child is not behind.

Don't teach your younger child to read.

PontyMython · 12/10/2011 07:00

No. Unless your child is begging you to teach them, it's wrong IMO.

I was a very early reader and I'd always imagined I'd teach my DD early, she's fairly bright (I think so anyway) but we just didn't get round to it apart from doing a few letter sounds, I-spy and jolly phonics songs. She just started reception and is one of the youngest, but she's doing fine - coming home all excited about the letter they've been doing that day, sounding out a few simple words. She's so proud of herself :)

I really wouldn't worry about it - there is a lot more to education than learning to read :)

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