Dd4 getting work wrong at school

I agree

And setting kids age 4 as well.
Is this the UK it all sounds far too much for a 4 year old.

Move her! If they are really doing spelling tests for 4 year olds, have behavioural issues and the worst SATs results in the area why is it even a question? A 4 year old will make new friends

@RamblingFar I fully agree that if you can't hear the sounds, you can't use that to spell them, and I'm surprised anyone would disagree with that. But the approaches you re talking about do involve phonics, surely, but in a less direct way, because you have to work out the code for yourself. Many children can work out the code for themselves, and then use that phonics knowledge to read new words, which is how whole word instruction produced many good readers. But many children also can't, and they need to be taught it explicitly, which is why phonics is now the method of choice, I think? It must be difficult to be a hearing impaired child who isn't able to work out the code.

Dear God what am I reading.. she is four!!!! This is completely mad. Def not in keeping with eyfs ethos and no phonics scheme should be testing reception on spellings in a formal way like this. She is under far too much pressure for a young child..definitely speak to the HT.

Ds had bad glue ear. After one of his grommet operations he came out of school really excited to tell me that did I know sh and ch were different sounds. He'd honestly not heard the difference before.

I would honestly question the school about spelling tests in foundation stage. It really isn't age appropriate. I'm wondering if OP's DD's school is private, as this would be very unusual at a state school.

What are we doing to our 4 year olds to be putting them in sets for phonics?! The teacher is probably under pressure if you're in England because of the phonics tests in year 1. The teacher shouldn't be telling the children she is sad about their results or that she thinks they aren't practising enough.
I suspect your daughter isn't able to hear the sounds as well at school because she's not sitting opposite her teacher and so can't lip read to compensate for her glue ear hearing problems. The school environment is also noisier than at home. It may also be because the teacher isn't emphasising sounds like you are. Or they have a different accent! All sorts of possibilities. I'd put my money on seating position not being good for lip reading though.

The school sounds really odd. I was a reception teacher and still do occasional supply in reception. It's not normal to have spelling tests in reception. Some schools with overly 'ambitious' (aka clueless) head teachers may have introduced it but it's developmentally inappropriate so I would either a) ignore them entirely and encourage my child not to worry about them b) move school.

This is also absolutely normal with regards to the level of spelling they are expecting. Worth looking up the reception phonics expectations. It is unusual though to give these words as a spelling list to be tested on

Keep on at the doctors. She might just need grommets, or further hearing assessment to check it is glue ear and that she isn't hearing impaired and needing aids.

I'd also speak to the SENCO and make them aware she's having difficulties hearing in class. There will be special arrangements further up the school if she still can't hear the sounds by then. For exams she would so any spelling/oral/listening tests 1:1 facing the teacher so she could lipread, or have other access arrangements.

You could also ask the teacher to put the word in a sentence, like they would do further up the school.

Example - write black, black. The cat was black and white.

That way she will eventually be able to work out the word is black, and not back or pack, and therefore hopefully she can learn to say it to herself in her head and break it down into all the sounds she would have to say. That only works if she can definitely say all the sounds in the word and she knows the word though.

I'm hearing impaired and luckily we did whole word flashcards when I was at school. I never would have learnt through phonics as I simply can't hear the phonemes well enough. Until I learnt to read my speech was far worse as I couldn't hear or say the sounds I was missing. I guess I worked out the phonics code myself to learn to turn written words into good clear speech.

I teach now myself and I've learnt to say and lipread all the phonemes. I can teach phonics fine now. I still can't hear all the phonemes though.

I'd keep reading with her as much as possible at home. Also turning captions on if she's watching anything on a screen. The sooner she is confidently reading and writing, the less time she'll hopefully be in phonics sets before moving into writing/English sets in year 1 or 2.

Phonics works for most children. However, if she can't hear the sounds in words, she isn't going to be able to use phonics to write them (though I often find myself having arguments with other staff about that point!).

She's 4 for God's sake!! Leave her be, let her drift, let her be a child.

This sounds like a bad school. Not only are they pushing the children too young but they are putting them in the wrong groups, as your DD clearly is.

Your job in this situation is to provide some balance in her life and make no comments whatsoever on school work - read to her, play with her, jump in puddles with her - absolutely anything but reinforce this factory farming approach to education.

As others have said, your 4 year old should not be feeling this pressure. Definitely raise it.

Can you speak to the head teacher- in terms of seeing the curriculum and a list of words the school expects her to learn and see if it tallies with what she is being taught. - this spelling list seems nuts and I’m a teacher! Train- at four?! And two spelling tests a week- that would put me off learning for life if I was that age.

She can't hear at school bless her. Probably all the background noise. Glue ear is miserable. I had it for years, grommets, the works. Hopefully once it clears up, she'll be fine.

Get her grommets for the glue ear
Even if you need to pay private

Are you confusing spelling with phonetic writing? DS' school has sets for phonics, it's actually really good because they're not numbered they are small groups with 1 teacher/TA and children move easily between them (4 form intake so it's mixed across the year group between classes just based on ability) , it means children get work pitched exactly at their level and support targeted where they need it. DH is on purple for RWI, which seems to be the higher level for reception at this stage and is writing creative sentences, but his spelling is largely phonetic and we've been told not to correct it at this stage.

I have seen this as a teacher.

Is this a private school?

Its far more intensive than the approach in my 4 year olds very high attaining state school.

Is she going to have grommets? My DS had grommets and the change in his ability to spell was almost instant once he knew how words actually sounded.

Good god, she’s four. Tell the school that she won’t be doing homework, as it’s impacting her wellbeing. Jeez, the state of the government, forcing through policies that force teachers to put kids through this.

Who was that directed at? Not very helpful.

She’s four years old. Get a fucking grip.

Not quite sure I follow? I don't think it's right that the 4 year old with glue ear is being pressured at all. I've just pointed out that these are normal words to be asking reception to spell at this time of year, because our curriculum expectations are madly high. But it doesn't matter at all that she can't, especially given her glue ear. She's doing really well by the sounds of it! And yes, as a teacher you have a million and one things happening at once, and are talking a lot, while listening out etc.. Sometimes, especially if you are not very reflective, you may need someone to point out that the words you are using are not helpful.