Worrying year 1 parents evening feedback

[catsheepteacher]

We recently went to parents' evening for our eldest child, who is in year 1.

I'll probably sound a bit PFB here but I was expecting pretty positive feedback. Obviously I'm biased, but to me DD seems to be getting on really well:

• She loves reading and sails through the books she brings home with no issues.
• We go to the library regularly and she chooses "chapter books" (90+ pages) which she reads at home independently.
• She gets 12 spellings to learn every week (which seem pretty challenging to me - words like adorable, eighty and applause) and gets close to full marks in her tests.
• She does her maths homework in no time with very little support.

However, the feedback we got wasn't glowing at all. We were told that she is meeting the expected standard on reading (but not exceeding) but below expected standards in both maths and writing. Apparently she doesn't use finger spaces and full stops consistently in writing, and often needs help to come up with ideas for her stories. But more worryingly, in maths she's apparently on an "extra support table" as she needs help to understand the questions and work through them, and they are not sure if she is on track to meet the expected standard by the end of the year.

This was a total shock and I'm really disappointed that nobody has mentioned before that she needs extra support with maths. I'm also confused because it doesn't match up with what I see, which is a bright, able child (accepting that there's probably some PFB bias going on there).

I'm not sure what to do next. DH thinks I'm overreacting but I would like a second opinion to properly understand what the issue is so am considering getting a tutor who can assess her and give us more feedback on what exactly she is finding difficult. I'm also going to push for more regular catch ups with the school to keep track of her progress. The teacher mentioned several times that she lacks confidence and needs to build her resilience so I'm also wondering if I should sign her up for something which might help her develop her skills in this area e.g. a drama club.

Feeling that I've let my DD down by assuming she was sailing through with no issues. And really disappointed that her school don't seem to be seeing what I see

I think you need to accept what the teacher is telling you instead of being so defensive. She sees lots if children - she knows what she is talking about. Shes giving you constructive feedback to help her. It doesn't mean she won't catch up - but it doesn't help your DD if instead if listening you try to argue with what she is telling you. Others are right - its not about being able to read - its about understanding the text. Work on that. Also find some apps which make maths fun. My DD just couldn't get her times tables until we found an app. Now shes top of the class. Listen, take the feedback and find ways to help her

@SpringsSprung Not saying their is a right or wrong! Obviously others do it differently.

@SpringsSprung this makes sense because it’s a very small school. I’m thinking about schools with 3/ 4 form entry. This is my experience! I completely understand now.

@SpringsSprung of course there is a SEN register. Its a list of the children with SEN. My son is on one. It allows the school to focus on what the child needs. Do you think they just remember is all in their head??

If you are all think you are so good at teaching please feel free to apply for teacher training and fill the gaping hole left by thousands of highly educated and trained professionals who have worked exceptionally hard during their careers only to be screwed over by ofsted, the DfE and in the biggest sense by the tory government.

I'm sure you'd all do a great job

OP, I had a similar experience at Y1 parents evening- the comments didn't tally with what I saw at home. Her issue was that she didn't properly take in what she was reading and needed prompting on comprehension.

DD is now 15 and predicted 7-9 across the board in 11 GCSEs including an 8 in English Lit!

And if not, accept that actually the teachers know what they are doing, have communicated to the OP that there is an issue in attainment and that steps are being taken to address this, follow their guidance and work in partnership to do what's best for the child.

I would go back to the school and query why there seems to be such a disparity between how she is in your eyes / what she can do at home and how she is in their eyes/ her work at school.
She sounds advanced to me (my year 3 couldnt spell those words!). You can support her with capital letters and full stops etc but I’m not sure why any school would really hold that up as a measure of how well a child is doing when they are clearly capable in other areas. It’s about looking at the whole child isn’t it? I’m not sure they are doing that… just sticking to some tick box testing

A lot of children lack confidence at that age. Perhaps you could get her to write a short story and read it aloud to you. If she isn't leaving finger spaces or full stops in her writing, point it out and get her to correct them. Eventually she will get in the habit of using them.

@Sunnysideup999 because that is the guidance given my the DfE to tea hers against which to assess children.

It's not the teachers' choice of criteria. Most of us dispute it.

@Sunnysideup999

I would go back to the school and query why there seems to be such a disparity between how she is in your eyes / what she can do at home and how she is in their eyes/ her work at school. She sounds advanced to me (my year 3 couldnt spell those words!). You can support her with capital letters and full stops etc but I’m not sure why any school would really hold that up as a measure of how well a child is doing when they are clearly capable in other areas. It’s about looking at the whole child isn’t it? I’m not sure they are doing that… just sticking to some tick box testing

They hold that up as a measure because that is one of the year one standards that is measured…

This thread is a real eye opener as to how little some parents know about the National Curriculum!

It’s here if anyone is interested:

assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/381344/Master_final_national_curriculum_28_Nov.pdf

Most teachers really won't mind you getting back in touch to find out more details or ask more questions. Might be worth speaking to the teacher and chatting through things. It could be that they've mis-remembered the wrong child or that your daughter isn't hitting the specific criteria they need evidence of. Once you know what the specific issues are, then you can talk to school (or ask on here!!!) about how best to work on them in a fun way at home.

Absolutely @PurpleFlower1983 it is just astonishing. How do parents expect their children to make progress if they refuse to even acknowledge what the teacher is trying to do? With extremely limited resources, additional adults being taken for cover regularly, children with limited language skills and development, with low working memory and concentration due to overeliance on technology. I could go on.

If you are an ignorant parent for God's sake read up on what your child should he doing. Support them by reading daily, engage them in meaningful conversations, give opportunities for developing fine and gross motor skills, follow school guidance on developing their key skills in maths, reading and writing.

@catsheepteacher

Maths is trickier - you say she does her homework quickly and independently. Are you checking it afterwards and supporting her around any mistakes? If she is rushing and getting it all wrong that will do her no good.

She makes hardly any mistakes at all. Seriously! We check it afterwards and help her if there is anything wrong but most of the time she finds it easy. I'm just not seeing what they're seeing and finding it hard to understand.

Is she being given differentiated maths sheets that suit the level she's comfortable with though rather than the expected standard. Sounds like teachers just reading from a tick sheet tbh

@catsheepteacher differentiated maths sheets aren't necessarily what teachers should be giving children if they are following the mastery maths approach

Firstly, I understand how much of a shock that must be.

I think part of it may be that things like full stops/capital letters may seem a little thing, but actually, if I remember rightly, they can't get higher than a certain level if they don't use them consistently. So she may actually be writing lovely stories with lots of meaning, but the teacher can't grade her higher than a particular mark unless she uses full stops and capital letters.
I remember getting a similar remark about dd2, who knew how to use them, but if she was in the full flush of a wonderful story would forget them.

Secondly, I suspect comprehension is a problem, from the comment about maths.
She may be racing through books without actually taking much of the story in. That sounds a bit weird, but one of dh's siblings apparently approached reading like a decoding exercise. So he'd work out every single word correctly, but not have a clue how to match the word to the meaning.
What I'd do is go back a few levels in reading. Perhaps some basic fact books. And spend time letting her read them and then you become "detectives". What was the weather like? They put on coats so it must be cold. Was it raining? No, they left their umbrella behind. That sort of thing.
Start with obvious questions. What was his name? What colour was his coat?
Then move on to ones that they have to use the information to make assumptions.

You can also do quizzes or treasure hunts:
"Find me a leaf with a point. Put the leaf on the door mat. Put two stones on top of it."
Treasure hunts: "Go to the door and look at the handle." (on the door handle have the next clue and don't forget to have a treat at the end!)

Maths, you can make little puzzles for her. eg buy a tube of smarties. Write down questions:
How many orange smarties?
Are there more brown or blue smarties?
Eat some of every colour until you have the same number of each colour.

There may be a lack of confidence in maths. So she does read and understand, but likes to look at an adult and know they understand before committing pen to paper. So they know it perfectly well, but need the adult to say "that's right, now do it."

You could get a tutor, but you do need to be careful. Some tutors are brilliant. Some are more going to tell you what they think you want to hear. "She's doing so well, she's the best of my infants..."

You can do it yourself at this age, and all they'll think is that they're playing fun games with mum. If you get a tutor then it becomes more obvious. Just go for making it fun. Cooking with recipes, shopping lists, tell a story where you write one sentence each in turn etc.

Do you happen to know what colour band she is on for reading? (However they may not use that in your child's school)

Never heard of a school not having an SEND register. That's weird. What if the SENCO (who has it all in their head) gets hit by a bus tomorrow? No good having info on children's files if no one knows which files to look in.

That’s what parents evening is for. Your DD needs extra support, but that’s not a problem - she’s getting the support she needs. You just need to focus on good times, manners, reading, and good routines at home.

In regard to your surprise, I teach year 6, and tell parents - for the first time in their lives - that their children are below expected standard. I am shocked they’ve not been told in year r-5. So, I think it’s great that she’s been identified early, and is already receiving interventions in 1:1 with the class teacher. Sounds like a fab, proactive school with high standards, to me!

This thread is a real eye opener as to how little some parents know about the National Curriculum!

If you are an ignorant parent for God's sake read up on what your child should he doing. Support them by reading daily, engage them in meaningful conversations, give opportunities for developing fine and gross motor skills, follow school guidance on developing their key skills in maths, reading and writing.

Some, in fact many parents are incredibly busy, tired and rushed off their feet. That's a 250-page, confusingly written document (I know because I often have to use it for work). Some parents have been around the block and had kids in school for years and know that what teachers profess to be of utmost importance this term will have done a 180 next time you look.

And FWIW i have met plenty of teachers who don't know what they're doing, who teach factually incorrect stuff by the bucketload, who humiliate kids by doing things like tearing up work in front of them (and this is not my kids, but my kids have been upset by seeing it), and/or who can't spell, punctuate or write even basic English properly. Not all of them, I have encountered many great ones too but it is absolutely not true that all teachers automatically know best about your child's education and what they need.

Some parents develop a degree of cynicism about teachers and the whole education system, with good reason. It is appallingly rude to say things like "ignorant parent". So rude and shows that you don't actually have any empathy for parents who may not understand or be able to read things like the National Curriculum for good reasons.

So much better the school have picked up her problems and are working on them. Lots of dc get missed. Even now. So great they're on it. Be pleased.

Yes this comes up on here a lot.

I'm not a teacher (disclaimer) but I believe that comprehension has a high importance in their assessments. Story telling is part of the curriculum.
From what you've said comprehension is a weakness. I'm in no way saying your dd has SEN needs and she's only 5/6 but it can be a sign of delays.
Being really advanced in reading but not comprehending it properly is actually a flag for ASC. But that's a huge jump here.
Also equally possible to be great at English and struggling jn maths. Not everyone is an all rounder. Why does it matter?
Its a huge shock to find out your dc is struggling. I was shocked when it happened to me and in my dc it wasn't even that surprising (I got quite uppity about SEN register...later on I was begging for support!)
Much better to focus on the joy of learning and finding things out. Having an enquiring mind.
The other things come eventually even to the most struggling dc. I have older ones of mixed ability. I wish I'd not worried so much. One of mine couldn't even hold a pen in Y1. He now computer programmes. She'll get there.

@MoonOnASpoon if you have children and choose not to educate yourself on how to support your child whilst at school, yes you are ignorant. It's not rocket science. Full time teachers are incredibly busy, working 60 hour weeks and still find time to read with their children.

If parents don't understand the national curriculum they need to ask. Most schools have curriculum overviews that they send home; meetings explaining the curriculum; weekly newsletters stating the objectives that have been covered and how to support learning.

Listen to the teacher. Trust them and respect them as a professional. Your child will then make progress.

And @MoonOnASpoon you are the rudest poster on this thread so far. Gold star for you ⭐

It sounds more like you just aren't familiar with what children should be able to do (academically) by this stage in Year 1.

Yes, your dd does sound like she's behind but if you put in the right support at home and they're doing the right things at school, she'll catch up.

Reading - Focus on comprehension. Does she understand the story? Make inferences? Talk about characters feelings and why they might be doing something?
If you use colour book banded books (Oxford reading tree etc.) She should be on at least green by this stage of year 1 and reading at 90% fluency i.e. reading 9 out of 10 words automatically and only needing to sound out 1 in 10 words.

Writing - Does she know where to use finger spaces? Does she know the difference between letters/words/sentences? By end of year 1 they also need ! and ? so it does sound like there's a lot of work to do with writing.

Maths - what kind of worksheets do you get for homework? The expectations are quite a big jump from eyfs to year 1. Words problems for addition, subtraction, multiplication and division included! Comfortable with numbers up to 100. Telling time, money, reading scales for measurement, 3d shapes, direction...

And on top of all of this, learning how to actually work independently, at a table!