Finding it hard to squeeze reading practice in for my reception child

[paepatto]

My DD is in reception. She's at after school club until almost 6 pm and we don't get home until 6- 6:30 pm, depending on the day. I used to just practice reading with at weekends, but she's started refusing it entirely pretty much.

I never really tried practicing during the week, but 6:30 seems so late.

Does anyone have any ideas / tricks advice on how to get her to enjoy practicing ? Ideally I would want her to practice reading every day, for 15 minutes or so. I'm sure it's doable, but she flat out refused at the weekend and also this evening..

Seriously, get over yourself. This is from a mum posting on Mumsnet for advice about how best to support her child. How is that "bowing out"? Get off your bloody high horse.

That isn't what OP said. I imagine she's doing other things with her child that doesn't involve trying to fight her to read a dull reading book.

Reading to your kids is even more important than reading with them imo. I would prioritise bedtime stories every day and read with them at the weekend. My kids are teenagers and very strong readers. We did bedtime stories until the were secondary age.

We clearly aren't on the same page (!) on this. But I really don't feel forcing a tired child to plough through 'seal on a wheel' type books, which focus on phonics rather than a story, will ever help a child love reading. They will learn to see it as a chore, an exercise.

Reading together, sharing stories together, picking out words, learning to decipher things through bedtime stories which follow a child's interest (at such a young age) has been, at least in my experience, better for fostering a love of independent reading.

Yes definitely a government issue, not a teacher issue. Hopefully the curriculum review will change things for the better.

With DC1 we used to find it annoying they would only change the books once a week; she'd do the ditty and the reading book and that was that in one evening. Boring to keep doing it. It's actually quite hard to find other fully decodable books for small ones when they are starting with reading that don't cost an arm and a leg (the library might have some). Maybe DD might like a trip to the library to choose some?

Oh- there's also Alphablocks of course! Don't knock it, it's brilliant.

I do the school reading book either just before bed time routine so she reads her book then i read one to her or as soon as we get home from school.

Relax and reduce the amount of time practising (maybe 5 rather than 15 mins to start with), but keep up reading-related things to your child to nurture a love of books that can maintain a love of reading in due course. Above all, prioritise time reading to her (bedtime stories and so on). Talk about what you're reading to encourage comprehension ('who is your favourite character in the story?', 'why do you think X did that?' and so on).

Model reading when you can (e.g. at weekends) so your child sees you reading, even if it's just five minutes. I don't mean reading aloud - it is good just for your children to see that you value reading.

Have other activities around the home which help to promote skills, e.g. magnetic letters and/or words on the fridge at her height. There are also some great story-related games, e.g. story cards ('Story Box' do some good ones), again to maintain the interest in stories that will underpin reading for pleasure.

All these things can maintain and develop other important aspects of reading so that when she's more ready, she will be more likely to come to find reading a pleasurable activity.

Ok ! Maybe 5 minutes is a start. I do sometimes incorporate her books into our bed time stories.

She's on those green books in rwi phonics.

My husband or I read her stories every night, she absolutely loves it and her comprehension is incredible. We just finished charlie and the chocolate factory and she absolutely loved it !

I'll also start trying in the morning.

She's actually not at after school club - I should have specified. She goes to crèche after school.

She's usually picked up at 5-5:15. But we don't get home until 6.

I've been doing this at bed time actuality ! I still think it's different to reading a sentence. But she doesn't mind doing this, so I could focus on that too.

What about printing off a recipe for making toast, cereals, actions for what she does in day to day life, get her to read them as she does them. That way it's incorporated into the day

Reading books is important but remember reading anything is better than nothing. So if cooking get her to read the recipe, out snd about get her to read signs or menus. Try and keep on top of it at weekends and see how much you can do in the week. She will get there.

Secondary teacher here. Please find the time to read to your child daily. We are seeing more and more 11 year olds arriving in year 7 with reading ages of 5 and it really sets them back. Parents need to make time.

We never bother with the ditty book, DD just recites them!

Does the after school provider not do reading with them? All of the ones local to us do as they realise that, if a child is with them until 5 or later, it's really difficult to read at home with them as they are just so tired. It was only ever a few pages but it was something.

Well, that's why I'm writing on here, isn't it. Because I was looking for tips and tricks as to how to get her to enjoy it, so we can do it together.

I am trying to make the time.

Also, she's not behind right now whatsoever. Last term we were happily reading together frequently. It's just the last couple of weeks. And I'm posting to avoid her being behind.

Can you get the creche to do it?
we did it in the mornings.
That said DS loved stories, did all the reading practice etc and was a top reader- and now at 14 won't read anything (and hasn't done for a couple of years)- so not sure it helps....

Practising reading takes barely any time at all.
It is very important that your child practises for five minutes at home every day.
I read once that practising reading in the morning exercises a different part of memory in the brain than reading at night does. Both long term and short term memory are important.

Since then I asked my children to read their reader in the morning, once they were completely ready for school, before leaving the house (sometimes in the car), and also after school, usually straight after having an after school snack.

Your after school club should be facilitating all the kids there to do 20 minurtes homework. That is not unreasonable.
You could suggest that.
What is unreasonable is for your very young and tired child to have to practise anything at all after six o'clock at night.

How are you travelling home? Are you walking or on a bus etc? Picking up another child? Is there any way you could add reading in? I appreciate she might be too tired, but even aiming for 1 page. We often read DS's book outside DD's school.

Yes it's hard isn't it. My dd is in year 1. She's up at 6.45 and we leave the house at 7.15, before breakfast, so no time there. Picked up at 5.30 but by the time I've been to nursery and got her brother it's 6... Then it's tea time etc. We read before bed. She reads her book to me and then I read a chapter to her.
It's the other homeworks I find hard to fit in.

We used to do it on car journeys

Perhaps I didn’t express myself well.

I read with my children daily. What I didn’t do was insist they did their ‘reading book’ practice. We would read for fun and always read together at bedtime. Books were a very important part of our lives.

The part I recommended dropping was forcing reluctant 4 year olds children to try and read. I wanted to keep the association of reading with positive experiences.

Did they start off with picture books and now onto books with very simple sentences? I used a programme called 'Jolly phonics' to help my kids learn phonics. I downloaded the app and they have songs on YouTube which basically goes through each sound. On the app you have the song for that particular sound, you can trace the letter, it asks you which words contain that sound etc. I used to pop on the YouTube song whilst cooking and we'd sing together or whilst they were eating breakfast (during covid times) I'd then look at one sound for a few days on the app and then cuddle up with their reading book. I also purchasesd the Biff and Chip books and they seemed to pique my kids attention as the characters are always on some sort of adventure. Now I listen to each kid read their school book for 10 mins each day with me reading one page and them the other ( older two are 7 and 8). At the weekends we read one book with all 3 of us taking turns to read a page. Sometimes their dad does this ao i can focus on the toddler. I read a book (usually Peppa Pig) to my 3 year old.

In short I think 5 minute practice is enough, I'd do it consistently wherever you can fit it in.

Play games when travelling around. Read car number plates,what letter does this roads start with.
What shop is this and read names of shop.etc.
Make it fun .it's still reading skills.
Go to library and chose books together to read.

Over breakfast at 6.30. Reckon even if we had physical time in the evenings he'd be too tired