Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Education

Join the discussion on our Education forum.

Original poster

How advanced should my 5 YO's reading be?

16 replies

604chic · 03/12/2004 12:04

Hi there everyone, hope all are well in this festive season.

I am a stepmum and only get to see my step daughter for short spells at a time. She started school in Sept 2003 and excels in artwork etc, but not sure how much her mum encourages her academically.

I am a bit concerned about her reading skills, but do I need to be? What kind of level should I expect at this stage, for instance, should I expect her to read the following kinds of words?

dog
cat
shop
in
out
the

Any advice would be very much appreciated.

OP posts:
KateandtheElves · 03/12/2004 12:07

I think it's still early to be reading, although of course some 5 year olds can.

Mine knows quite a few words by sight (dog, cat, in and the on your list), and she can sometimes sound out simple constanant-vowel-constanant words, but she certainly isn't "reading" yet.

Original poster
604chic · 03/12/2004 12:10

thanks for that, she only really recognises words with pictures and struggles recognising letters in the alphabet, but her school is teaching her joined up writing. Surely the basics should come first, or do I have the wrong expectations here?

OP posts:
DingleAlltheWay · 03/12/2004 12:14

Hi 604chic! I have a ds who was 5 in late Aug, he started reception in Jan and is now the youngest in Y1. I have found that his reading has come on in leaps and bounds and hopefully my worry about him being the youngest has all been in vain. He would be able to recognise the words you have given as an example. He is (so I am told) very good using his phonic knowledge and uses the sound to spell out the words he doesn't recognise.
I think he is about average ability in his class and just as a guideline he is reading (with some assistance) ORT books stage 4/5!
Hopefuly this will be something to use as a guide.
Good luck.

stickynote · 03/12/2004 12:15

I'm in a rush, so don't know if this site will help or not:

standards

ds is nearly 6 and can read the words you gave as examples but I don't know where he is in his class IYSWIM.

Original poster
604chic · 03/12/2004 12:17

I'm a bit new to all this and want to help as much as I can. You mentioned ORT stage 4/5, what are these exactly and where do I get them? Could well put my mind at rest.

OP posts:
DingleAlltheWay · 03/12/2004 12:18

BTW, he also uses a lot of guesswork, using the pictures as clues. I think that is what is expected at this age! I do need to remind him when he rushes. For example; he knows the book and might say " dad was angry" when it actually read "cross."
Surely the aim at this age is to encourage them to enjoy the books!

EniDeepMidwinter · 03/12/2004 12:18

Can you check with her school to see what her teachers think? If they aren't worried you shouldnt be either.

DingleAlltheWay · 03/12/2004 12:20

Sorry, ORT are Oxford Reading Tree books, these are the majority of the books he comes home with and I believe they are fairly well used in schools around the country.

Original poster
604chic · 03/12/2004 12:23

thanks for all your help, i will try and get a few books and see how she gets on with them. Seems I may have over expectations.

OP posts:
tortoiseshell · 03/12/2004 12:23

I think children vary hugely at this age, and even within a class, there can be a year's difference in age between the oldest and the youngest. Having said that, I think the reading can suddenly 'switch' on. My ds has just shown an interest in it, and we have started doing some, very casually, which he is doing by learning the words, rather than sounding them out, which I think he is not ready for. I learnt this way too, and I wonder if it is more suitable for younger children. Because my mum was working, but took me to work at the university where she was lecturing I was taught to read really young by the professor in her department(!), and I do remember being surprised in school that lots of the other children were learning to read 'the' and 'in'. So it sounds like your sdd is about average.

Having said all that, she may suddenly just click with it, and 'get it'.

tortoiseshell · 03/12/2004 12:26

Love the bit on stickynote's link, one of the worksheets that says to take in a puppet (eg frog, cat, dog but NOT duck) that only says words that rhyme with it.

crunchie · 03/12/2004 12:28

Someone somewhere on MN posted a link to a site which has all the words a reception child 'should' be able to recognise or read. I think there were about 50 words. My dd is now in year one and there are many more words. Personally I think that a 5 year old should be able to read those words you mentioned.

However I would keep out of it a bit, get your dh to discuss it with her mum perhaps. Learning to read doesn't really come from the parents (IMHO) if there is a problem the school should be dealing with it. Has there been a parents evening that your DH could go to. I know you are concerned but I would try my best to back off, otherwise it look like you are critising the BM (not a good idea atthe best of times I think)

ItllBeLonelymumThisChristmas · 03/12/2004 12:51

Speaking as an ex-teacher, the words you list should be read by a 5 year old (possibly with the exception of shop) but all children are different and one would really have to know the individual child to comment usefully.

With regard to learning joined up writing, there is a school of thought that believes that all writing from the very beginning should be joined up to encourage children with the correct letter formation. Some teachers feel children learn to write their letters, but not necessarily forming them correctly so they then have to learn the correct formation again when they come to join up. Learning joined up from the start supposedly stops them having to re-learn.

LIZS · 03/12/2004 12:53

Think crunchie is referring to here where you can also look , even term by term, at what order letter sounds/blends may be introduced.

Difficult for you to get hung up about it on behalf of sdd though, perhaps your dh needs to become more actively involved in her progress and any issues she is experiencing at school before you can really take much action. Reading is a very personal thing though ands some kids just find it fits together later than others but still become fluent very quickly.

Original poster
604chic · 03/12/2004 13:00

Have checked out the website but not put my mind at ease much (at all). Main problem is that sdd lives over 400 miles away and so all we find out is from her mum on the phone. Very difficult for us to take a real active involvement. We get to hear when she has dressed up for the day, or made something or painted something, but everything else gets glossed over. Not an easy situation, which is why i wanted to know what I should be expecting from her at this age. Thank you all once again for help.

OP posts:
hatter · 04/12/2004 13:37

Hi 604chic. It must be tough to take an active role at a distance. Could you get her some reading related Christmas presents? The ELC do some great books with stickers in that my 4-year old loves. I don't know what the situation is and whether there'a any possibility her mum might think it a hint and be offended, but if not you can get some fun things. The other thing you /your dp could maybe think about doing is start writing to her. My mum (a teacher) does this with DDs, she sends postcards and nice pictures that she's seen that she thinks they'll like, and writes a short message in easy to read writing. The girls love getting something specifically for them, and it helps them see the point of reading and writing. You could encourage her to send something back

New posts on this thread. Refresh page
Swipe left for the next trending thread