Poor memory with reading

[clare40]

My ds (yr 1) is struggling with learning to read. We have been working on his high frequency words, but he really doesn't seen to remember them even when we have looked at the same word 30 seconds ago!!! Does this indicate there is a more serious problem? Dyslexia? Or can anyone recommend some ways to help him?

Thank you!

[mrz]

Can he build them using phonics?

[clare40]

Yes, if it's phonetically correct, for example he could do "look", but not "are".

[mrz]

They are both "phonetically correct" but I'm assuming he hasn't been taught yet. The high frequency words don't need to be memorised. Some have "tricky" parts that your son might not know yet but he should learn the tricky parts in Y1. If he's struggling to read one of these words get him to sound out the part he knows and point out the tricky bit.

[startlife]

My ds was very similar and I wondered if he had dyslexia as he would forget a word after turning the page however a year later his progress has been excellent and he is now above average with reading. I was really worried at one stage but do remember it's still early days. Ds started to improve around March of Year 1 and he's caught up quickly.

[Inneedofbrandy]

Iv'e been worried with my ds (yr 1 ) to. Exactly same problem, with silly word like on. He sounds it out, gets it, then change page and he forgets it. I just make him sound it out all over again. He remembers the book after reading it twice but not actual reading.

My dd is a "natural" reader and could read so much better at this age. He's still on bloody the mice had this the mice had that repetitive books.

[Mashabell]

Are is phonetically not correct. It has a surplus ending.
Compare: car, far, start, part, start.... 'Are' is one of the two main unpredictable spellings for the /air/ sound (fair/fare, stairs/stares).

Too much practice with phonically simple books can get very tedious for parents and children. It is therefore sometimes better to use simple stories instead too, letting children decode as much as they can, but helping them out with tricky words and concentrating on reading for pleasure. What counts is going over words again and again, until children can recognise all common English words by sight, instantly, as we do as adults. Some children get there with very little phonics.

Phonics is good to start with, but many children get the idea that the squiggles on the page can be turned into words quite quickly. The fact that many English letters and letter strings (graphemes) have more than one pronunciation means that real phonics can only a part of learning to read (although SP advocates call the deciphering of tricky words phonics too, and have left everyone confused).

Eight graphemes are particularly variable:

: (on - only, once, won, woman, women
go - to)
: (shout -should, touch, soul, soup)
: (home - come, move)
: (food -good, flood)
: (road - broad)

: (treat - great, threat, theatre, create
(ear: ear ? early, heart, bear)

surplus endings
which do not lengthen vowels
(have, delicate, engine -
cf. gave, dedicate, divine)
omitted doubled consonants (camel)
which make short vowels look long
(camel - cf. came, same - hammer, stammer)

Quite a few others are tricky in quite a few words too:

a: and ? apron, any, father
a-e: to deliberate ? a deliberate act
ai: wait ? said, plait
al: always ? algebra
-all: tall - shall
are: care - are
au: autumn - laugh, mauve
-ate: to deliberate - a deliberate act
ay: stays - says

cc: success - soccer
ce: centre - celtic
ch: chop ?chorus, choir, chute
cqu: acquire - lacquer 19

e: end ? English
-e: he - the
-ee: tree - matinee
e-e: even ? seven, fete
ei: veil - ceiling, eider, their, leisure
eigh: weight - height
eo: people - leopard, leotard
ere: here ? there, were
-et: tablet - chalet
eau: beauty ? beau

• ew: few - sew
  
• ey: they - monkey
  

ge: gem - get
gi: ginger - girl
gy: gym ? gynaecologist
ho: house - hour
i: wind ? wind down ski hi-fi

• ine: define ?engine, machine
  

ie: field - friend, sieve
imb: limb ? climb
ign: signature - sign
mn: amnesia - mnemonic

-oes: toes ? does, shoes
-oll: roll - doll
omb: tombola - bomb, comb, tomb
-ot: despot - depot
ough: bough - rough, through, trough, though
ought: bought - drought
oul: should - shoulder, mould
our: sour - four, journey
ow: how - low

qu: queen ? bouquet
s: sun ? sure
sc: scent - luscious, molusc
-se: rose - dose
ss: possible - possession
th: this - thing
-ture: picture - mature
u: cup ? push
ui: build ? fruit, ruin
wa: was ? wag
wh: what - who
wo: won - woman, women, womb
wor: word ? worn
x: box - xylophone, anxious

• y-: type - typical
  
• -y: daddy - apply
  

z: zip ? azure

[allchildrenreading]

It's called 'sorting', Masha. With a well-designed scheme and well trained teachers, the complexities of English spelling are handled rationally - and in a child-friendly way.