Comment from Reception child's teacher

[secondtimelucky87]

My child started Reception in September. The school's policy is that we read their phonics books every day. Absolutely fine with that - I have been teaching English for 13 years and need no convincing. We are expected to write in the reading record to say we have read the books. I have done so every single day apart from last night because (despite doing the reading as always), I was pretty exhausted after a long day's work and all the various things that need to be done before bedtime. We have a WhatsApp group for my child's class to ask questions/receive reminders for the week. Today however, I received a direct message telling me off for not reading/recording we had done the reading. AIBU to have been slightly taken aback by this? No issue with the teacher herself - I am sure she's merely carrying out school policy but surely it's a bit much after 1 missed comment? I could understand if we'd skipped a whole week!

The context is that organisation has been fairly chaotic. Her reading books aren't changed for weeks at a time. My child is very bright, reading her books fluently and clearly bored of reading the same 2 phonics books daily but we do so anyway. Similarly, they are given quite time-consuming homework but at most, all we've ever received by way of acknowledgement is one tick and the last 3, not even that. Surely a little glittery sticker and a couple of words would make a 4 year old feel valued after working so hard on it when they're exhausted! Would be interested to hear from other EYFS teachers and parents with kids of this age. Thank you and please be kind as I don't really know what's normal. She's my only child so I'm new to this. I sent a polite reply clarifying I had in fact done the reading as always but just forgot to comment!

The people trained to deliver the phonics programme...

I'm a private school near me, reception kids are given 10 spellings a week and maths homework.... Utter madness!!

I really wouldn’t be able to cope with this. At reception age??? This kind of policing is bonkers. My DD starts next year, I hope to god it’s not like this everywhere

It's not.

Maybe say something like "Thanks for the message. Just to confirm that DD read last night, apologies for missed reading log. Given that she has had this book for x period of time and has read it through a number of times confidently there isn't much left to comment on. Please could she swap her book in order to keep her interested?"

Edited confidentially to confidently 😂

We miss full weeks of reading recording all the time. We’re a very busy family and homework is non-compulsory in primary school. If anyone spoke to me like I’d tell them where to go.

What does "told me off" mean in this context? I find it a strange phrase when used by adults about other adults.

We don't do homework, school is enough when they're little I think. I write in the record what we've read at home a few times a week but we don't read their reading books, they are too boring. I want my kids to love reading not see it as a punishment. I've never had it mentioned ever. I'm really surprised the teacher would do this. It's counterproductive anyway, surely these sorts of comments just irritate parents.

Buy a rubber stamp and just stamp the box saying completed i did that one year when dd had the same book over and over and OVER again they said that wasn't in the spirit of the homework so I wrote in "has had this book so long she no longer needs the words to retell the story" .....just use the stamp the following teacher was way better had reading scheme books and free choice books so if they hadnt had a book change they could help themselves to any free read book at their level while they waited

I would raise directly with the teacher that she may need to move up to the next reading level if you think that's right.

Most state schools now teach to a "whole class" reading level beyond which they won't let children have harder books, in ks1 at least. Typically its matched to a reading scheme & ignores individual needs/progress. Usually its set such that a child stays on reading levels until y3. In our school its broadly 3-4 reading levels a year. I used to complain about it and gave up, Ofsted clearly prefer this as a means of levelling out so schools are no longer required to cater to more able readers. There's a big focus at the moment on reducing the attainment gap by basically avoiding allowing more able learners to get ahead.

As a result i just ignore what school send home (my DC is reading chapter books fluently).

I'd have just replied. Sorry, read as usual. Forgot to update record. Because life is so much easier when you go for the most straightforward and simple response, rather than having to think up ways to let people know they've irritated you.
Any issues I had with their end I'd raise if I thought necessary.

They will be trying to encourage fluency by reading a familiar text

It really annoys me that schools still do this. Its a hangover from memory based whole word recognition reading strategies. All the happens when children read the same text repetitively is they memorise it & actually get less blending practise. They often develop bad habits like skipping a word here and there or substituting words, because they are reciting from memory not looking at whats on the page.

In phonics fluency does not develop from memorising or recognising whole words. The child attains automaticity from reading widely, unfamiliar texts that require them to practise blending constantly to a point where it starts to happen very very fast and they do it in their head rather than out loud.

Gosh, I could never get DD to read much in reception, she found school tiring and was never really up for it. Her teacher said don’t worry about it! I guess schools have different approaches.

Fluency does develop from re-reading texts. This may partly be due to developing whole word recognition, which is not the devil, as we do not end up reading using phonics alone. Taht is waht alwols msot poelpe to raed stenneecs lkie tihs. It is also partly due to picking up on rhythm and understanding the punctuation.

However, you are correct that fluency is different to phonics. Re-reading books develops phonics less well. And it's best if the books that children re-read are really motivating. When I was teaching classes, I would always ensure they had at least one "reading for pleasure" book as well as their phonics scheme books, at any one time. Both are meaningful, for different reasons.

When DD1 was in reception she took to reading really quickly (and words in general - she's never shut up since!) and school were very rigid in their expectations - we will only change books 1x a week, you MUST read the book twice, you can only get the two book bands that are in our classroom... and DD had blitzed through them, with good decoding and good understanding - so I took the line with school that, yep we will slog through your books twice but then we'll read more interesting stuff and I'll bung that in the reading record. Eventually they got the message and started letting her go into the Y1/2 area to get books at the right level - but that reception setup was very much letting her coast once she'd evidenced all the early learning goals (as it was then) and we subsequently moved her schools.

Next school I was in a lot hearing readers (I am a primary trained teacher who just left the classroom and later career changed when my own kids came along), and I knew the class teacher had DD really low on the list of kids to prioritise hearing readers (as a very good reader, supported at home - she was one you listened to if you'd really banged through the entire list and were having a good week) so I would occasionally just mention that could the class teacher have a listen at some point and see if she needed moving up when she hit the points she did do - because I wasn't a pisstaker parent deluded about how my kid was amazing - I was pretty much right on the judgement - DD was one of those kids who finished the reading scheme and was free reading fairly early (she's still a bookworm now to be fair).

By the time they got up into juniors I did nothing more than tick the page numbers they'd written as having read in the diaries - you run out of comments after years of doing the damned things and we progressed to a tick and occasional outbreaks of smiley faces. School weren't concerned cos they knew we did the reading at home.

We have a WhatsApp group for my child's class to ask questions/receive reminders for the week. Today however, I received a direct message telling me off for not reading/recording we had done the reading.

The class teacher sent you a private WhatsApp to tell you off for not recording/reading once? I am honestly staggered.

Does it say in any of the home school agreements that you are contractually obliged to do this?!

I would be pissed off at this and would go in and have a chat and I'm a teacher with three kids who have all been through (obviously many years of!) school and have never complained about anything!

the class teacher sounds very rigid! Still grateful for my reception teacher freeing me from Biff and Chip when it turned out I could read.

OP I wonder if being a teacher you’re even more upset at the idea that you’ve broken the “rules”. Time for a nice hot cup of Fuck It and forget about it.

I've forgot to record loads of times with my DC in reception. I stopped recording all together for my older DC, who was in another school, once they got to year 1 because he was a fluent reader and was bored stiff by the books sent home so he read books of his choosing from home or the library. I've never had any telling offs from either school. It got mentioned at parents evening for the eldest when I'd completely stopped but when I told him the reason he said it was fine.
I'd be a annoyed if a teacher tried telling me off, I don't need to evidence the activities I do with my child.

I agree - I am also a qualified teacher (17 years and counting) with 2 small children (also one in lower primary) - so the OP and I have a lot in common - and this blew my mind as well. I have mostly taught secondary but also primary and there’s no way I would get involved in a collective WhatsApp group with the parents. Absolutely barking mad.

@secondtimelucky87 I’d be setting up my own sticker chart at home and giving my 4yo stickers myself for doing it if there’s no acknowledgement otherwise.

As a single parent who solely does the reading journals, it pains me writing a comment each time. Amazing reading! Great job! Well done! 😭 Might get some stickers just to put there lol

That's shocking!!! Apparently I had a reading age of 13 in infant school ( age 6 current year 2) had been through the available reading books up to year 6as well

If the school had tried to insist I read Peter and Jane then my parents would've gone ape

Fortunately school didn't try and control tge parents then

They keep the same book for a week so they learn the phonics and letters etc so there is a reason for that - however I would’ve been really upset if I would’ve received a message to ask about a days missing comment in my daughters reading record…… don’t worry though. 🙌🏼 you did the reading and that’s the main thing.

sounds like your child is doing amazing! Well done mama x

The homework is daily reading. Then every week they are given a letter, they write two rows of the letter, then she has to draw pictures of objects starting with that letter and label them. E.g. today she drew pictures of a dog and her dad and wrote those words. The scheme is Little Wandle. Yes they've sent a past book home tonight and she did say it was to keep building confidence which I suppose makes sense. I just hope they're changed soon as there's only so many times she wants to read about these pots and pans 😂

Getting bright children to reread phonics books they aren't struggling with and are bored by doesn't feel like a great path. The best thing at this age is surely to enjoy reading together daily and fostering a love of stories.

I'd ditch the reading and the homework in favour of reading books you think your daughter would like, or that you would enjoy reading with her. She's doing phonics in school anyway.