AIBU to write this in DD’s reading record?

[BikeRunSki]

I did not make DD read all of this book. In her words it is “Stupid, boring and poop”. She read the first and last chapters, and a few pages of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone instead.

I didn’t write this, but she asked me to. She’s 6/Y2 and the school reading scheme is seriously putting her off reading.

The OP wishes to tell us that her child is far in advance of the reading scheme although I dare say most of the offspring of the very literate Mumsnet website are too. That is fine. My kids were reading proper books when they were going through Biff and Chips and we all enjoyed the fun and jokes as they zipped through their reading homework at ninety miles an hour before tackling what they really wanted to read. I suggest not upsetting their child’s teacher with rudeness and, if the OP really wants to give her children the chance to reach their potential, pay for prep education.

The OP wishes to tell us that her child is far in advance of the reading scheme

I hat this attitude. If you dare mention that your child is doing something above average you are accused of boasting. Why should we downplay our children’s abilities? The OP just mentioned th ebook her child read instead, it could have been the Gruffalo. It was factual information, not a boast.

Why is it not OK on MN for a child to be having “problems” with schoolwork that is too easy? It’s only acceptable for a child on MN to be struggling - you get loads of support then.

I don’t think some people know what the word “boasting” actually means.

Actually, the OP never said the school book was too easy for her dd, just that her dd wasn't interested in it and found it 'stupid, boring and poop'. Maybe this was because the book was actually too challenging ?

You should be telling her to read it because it's part of her school work. Sometimes we have to do things that we don't enjoy. I had to read so many boring books for study. Are you not setting a bad example by letting her read what she wants?

I agree if there’s an odd book she really can’t get into she should change it. But I’d say that’s more when she’s bringing home more complicated books from school and it would be a large investment of her time on something she wasn’t enjoying.
I wouldn’t be supporting her saying basically ‘it’s boring and I’m too clever for this’ which has obviously been picked up from adults at home. If she is given work at school that she doesn’t find sufficiently hard do you want her to point blank refuse to do it and demand she have the extension work right now? Sometimes you have to do things that aren’t pushing you all the time. Sometimes it’s for consolidation. Sometimes it’s a new topic and teachers need to find out what the children know.
Simple understanding of the text when reading doesn’t mean you’re ready to move up and up the levels. There is understanding of context that only comes with life experience. Can your child understand subtext? Why the author has chosen to use a particular device? Can they make predictions based on their own experiences? Can they relate things happening in the book to real life? All this and much more is required for full comprehension and children gain nothing by being pushed to read ever more complicated books while they are still shaky on some of the more basic skills.
There are a few genuinely very advanced readers (and even they still benefit from age in terms of understanding the nuances of subjects like relationships and attraction etc that they have no experience of at age 6). The vast majority though are kids with good vocabularies and decoding skills, basic comprehension skills and very pushy parents who often hinder their development by demanding inappropriate reading. That is my experience from when I was teaching.

And actually it’s the comprehension that is the bulk of reading. I’ve had students who struggle with decoding but when read to can answer the most complicated questions about the story and are bursting with ideas, questions of their own and imaginative explanations. These are the better readers imo.

Raven that's bollocks. If I'd told DD that she'd have had another 2 years on a reading scheme that was holding her back.

I don't know what reading schemes people are talking about that go on so long and are so monotonous- good readers fly through most early schemes and run out of books long before they have a chance to get that bored. My school uses Oxford Reading Tree until around Y2 and then we switch to Oxford tree tops books which are written in lots of different styles and don't follow a particular formula or set of characters, containing fiction, non fiction, true stories and graphic novels- to ensure children gain experience of reading a variety of genres. They also supplement these books with school library books or books they choose themselves from home. If the school didn't follow a scheme some children would only read one type of book, or none at all. The scheme seems fairly well written to me- better than a lot of the children's free reading choices such as Horrid Henry, Rainbow Fairies and Beast Quest.

Frestabut the not-so-good readers are even more likely to get bored with the reading scheme, DS 7's only just getting books with stories and non-fiction. He's just read a book on CGI.

Do they expect them to read the full book?

My dd is almost 8 and has just started year 3 but all the way through they have been happy with a page or 2.

They always said to me it's not about how much she reads (short attention span and although a good reader doesn't enjoy reading) it's the quality of her reading that counts

Not if it's a chapter book hannah. DS hasn't started on those yet, but I also have DD in year 6 and she'd read until I told her she'd be late for bed! 😂

hannah- school probably mean a page or two a night - rather than a page or two from each book you get. Why would you only read a page from a story book? Isn't the whole point that your child wants to find out what happens next in the story and how it all ends- that's the point of reading! Of course with non-fiction you might be able to dip in and out but not with a story.

What are these deadly boring reading schemes? What do your children want to read? Why can't they read that?

Philomena What has your DS been reading for the last 3 years then?

He's still on the short books, he's having trouble reading. As I said, the other day he read a book on CGI.

teachers loathe parents like you

This one:

I do think some people think their children are incredibly advanced and have been underestimated because they're capable of reading books more advanced than they bring home from school. In reality this is the case for almost anyone. It takes about 5 minutes to whizz through an orange band book if the child reads fluently. Then they can read whichever book they choose after that. This is what almost everyone I know does - we can't all have genius kids! Giving the child the impression they're far too clever for school work is a really bad idea!

Hundreds Totally. If a child really is that advanced in the comprehension side of things as well as in their fluency , the teacher will know!
Funny thing is that most chn whose parents claim their child is way ahead, just aren't. They sit down to a maths test and ask you to read the questions, for example. They struggle to read the class prayer without help. there is nothing to be gained from holding a child back for no good reason.

I also find many parents think that reading should be challenging, and if a child reads a book with fluency it must be too easy. We always go by the rule that children should be able to read at lest 90% of the words in book without needing help or stumbling over them. If a child needs to decode too many words or needs support to read them then they loose the ability to comprehend what they are reading. Who on earth enjoys books that they can't read fluently? Not me!

We use Accellerated Reader, so we know exactly how much is being taken in and understood. It’s a cracking tool to go alongside regular reading and chatting about books.

My DD read Harry Potter in year 2 as well, though it took her about a year to get through them all. I wanted to stop her after book 3 but she insisted on ploughing through. She's still obsessed, and I agree that there were things she didn't understand - but she re read them at about age 10 and got some of the nuance better. I can imagine her reading them again in a couple of years - that's the beauty of books you love!

The 90% rule for deciding was a fad that's over a decade out if date. It's not a great way to chose books or decide on a level.

bpookd should be matched to the decoding level of the child and adjusting the comprehension questions to match the level of the child. As a rough guide maybe 5-10% of the words should be new vocabulary, but that's focuses on meaning rather than ability to decode the word.

Fluency and overt blending doesn't always affect comprehension enough for the 90% rule to be reliable.

The only way to read a word you have never heard of before is to decode it- so same difference really. It would be very difficult to choose books based on new vocabulary for a child as it is difficult to know their level of retained language so outward decoding is a good indicator. It might be useful for children who have difficulty with reading- such as dyslexic tendencies to bear in mind their vocal level, but for the average child outward decoding is a good indicator the appropriate level.

Some children might be comprehending what they read above their decoding level, but not many. In fact, I more often come across children whose ability to read a book fluently is far in advance of their ability to comprehend the text. I am currently working with one little boy who can read fluently and on a superficial level even his use of intonation to suggest understanding is good, but when you listen really closely to him read there are give-aways in his expression of the text which shows lack of basic understanding and when questioned he can't even give basic answers correctly.

The only way to read a word you have never heard of before is to decode it You can recognise it by sight, have a good idea what it means based on context, with the meaning clarified each time you come across the word. Reading is understanding, I don't think you need to know how to say all the words.

I think you need to encourage your daughter to read books which will extend her vocabulary and understanding of language.

Poop? Really?

It's perfectly acceptable for a 6yo to say poop.