What age could your child read 'The Gruffalo'

[libraryquery]

Just wondering as my children are a bit older now and I can't remember!

What age do you think a child would be when they could read the text of a book like 'The Gruffalo' by themselves? Not just repeat learned words and phrases, but read the text as if they didn't already know the story?

My 6 year old (Year 1) can.

Not sure if she would have got all the words right when she was 5, but would have got some of them.

Y1 age - 5-6. That’s when all the graphemes are taught that would be needed to read it eg the split digraph in snake.

Yes, I agree as DD1 is 6 and in Y1 and would now be able to read it independently.

One of my kids would only have been able to fully read it mid year 3. She really struggled with reading.
My son could do the majority of it now though and he's in reception.

It would be decodable to a child who had covered most of the Year 1 phonics content, but tbh it isn't a great choice of text for assessment as the metre and rhyme make it easier for the child to make plausible guesses of words they can't decode, and because its ubiquity means that there are very few children who would come to it as a brand new text to sight-read by the age of six. My child with SEND could do an incredibly convincing impression of 'reading' the text at about three but that was due to his echolalia.

Why do you ask?

Mine could read it at the end of reception, but she knew the story very well!

One of mine could read it at 3, one at 5-6 and one was 7. The 3 year old taught themselves (as did I)

Not until after they outgrew the story. It was one of the frustrations my DD with dyslexia had... being given books aimed at much younger children just because they were apparently the right level.

Not until after they outgrew the story
Well, that’s it, isn’t it? A child who can read isn’t going to want to read the Gruffalo…

Yes, it's a relatively difficult text designed to be read aloud by an adult or older sibling to a very young child - it doesn't fit neatly into a scale of reading ability for children to read to themselves.

@ThanksItHasPockets - asking as I overheard a conversation in a shop today in which a bookseller recommended it to a person looking for a book for their 4 (nearly 5) year old nephew to read independently and I thought that seemed a bit young for a story like this. My kids were good readers but would have struggled to read this fluently in reception from what I can remember.

Thanks @libraryquery, that makes sense. I would agree with you that it wasn't a great choice from the bookseller as it isn't a decodable text for most 4/5 year olds. However the chances are that virtually all children that age will be very familiar with the text from being read to and from the Magic Light adaptation so they would likely 'read' much of it from memory anyway.

It's a terrible suggestion for a gift for a 4 year old nephew because surely 99% of households with children have a copy by age 2 anyway? (Slight exaggeration I realise).

It's not a book designed to be read by a child.
DS2 "read" it out loud aged about 3. Actually, he had memorized it, and knew when the page turns were!

I have also recited it, from memory, in a very long airport queue to an inpatient pre schooler with a gruffalo trunki. Don't think my work colleagues really knew what to make of it. The intended audience was appreciative!

DS was reading similar at 5, my nephew is at 4 with help with the odd word.

Did you overhear the whole conversation? I've seen picture books recommended for children reading above their age because of the more difficult language used. Often first novels don't offer a challenge and books for older children do not have appropriate or relatable content.

Scholastic have it as age 3 to 7 and AR level 2.3.

https://shop.scholastic.co.uk/products/The-Gruffalo-9780333710937

My dd was about 4 when she could read that. Ds was around 6

Surely 3-7 is the recommended age to have the story read to them, not to read it themselves?

My son was 3-4 but had the story almost every night so pretty much new the words off pat.

Yes, it's the interest level. The AR level is the reading level. I'd consider it a good choice for a four or five year old who reads above their age, as they may not be able to relate to books for older children or have the life experiences to understand them. My nephew is four and reading books like this, including ones he doesn't know already.

My 3 children could all have read it before starting school. My DD was reading Heidi on the day she started school. Also they'd heard the story many times as will most children, so most children could guess at the words.

My sons knew the Gruffalo by heart when they were three years old. We all can recite most of it still, many years later. I wouldn’t say it is a book suitable for children who start to read… to many difficult words but the story is for toddlers. Maybe the bookseller didn’t mean “by themselves” but being read to by parents?

Bored of it by the time they could read it. Like someone else said, it's designed to be read by an adult. I'd say most of the books by Julia Donaldson would be the same. My daughter liked to read toddle waddle as an early reader but that's very basic.

I wouldn't say it's for toddlers. DS loved Julia Donaldson books from age 3 to 6, reading them himself from 5. There are The Gruffalo reading comprehension resources available online to use in reception and ks1 classes. Just because it is a popular book and many children know it by heart before school doesn't mean it is for toddlers.