At what level is your 7yo reading?

[3coolcats]

Not in terms of levels of Oxford Reading Tree and such-like - that's all meaningless to me.

Just - what sort of sight words are/are not known? What sort of books can they manage to read more-or-less independantly? Do they like reading, or do you have to make them practise it? Please forgive nosiness!

All sight words

Good blending and attempts at blending difficult words

also...My near,y 7 yr old doesn't read for pleasure but will read every sign, every tag line on an advert etc. he is reading simple chapter books at school.. There are others in his class who have read Harry Potter

My ds is 8 next week.

He's reading equivalent of "beast quest" etc in English and Gaelic and has ploughed his way through the first Harry Potter! (It was ploughing though!).

Current fave is 'Horrible Histories'. He says he want more books with "small words" ie smaller size type.

Cyb - not sure what you mean by 'all sight words' - could you give me a few examples? Thanks

well starting with the basics, I , am, at, me, my , said, was etc

then progressing onto common words like would, could, though, etc etc. If you google search 'Soight words' you may get lists if thats what youre after

My seven year old can read anything the average adult comes across in everyday life. As far as reading for pleasure goes she tends to stick with books well below that level, Mr Gum, Horrid Henry Daisy and the Trouble with, that sort of thing. She is very conservative in her reading tastes and it is a battle to persuade her to try new authors. She really only enjoys humour.
I read her a chapter of something or other every night and she usually goes on to finish the book by herself that night - she is a very fast, if unadventurous, reader.

DD is 7y and in Y3. She reads most things TBH. She is currently enjoying the Jill Tomlinson books. She reads lots of stuff like Enid Blyton, Roald Dahl, Horrid Henry, poety books, Daisy books, Rainbow Faries, Worst Witch, My Naughty Little Sister. She started Harry Potter but the story didn't hold her interest as yet so never read beyond first couple of chapters.

DD enjoy reading for pleasure and reads in bed every night.

She doesn't like reading out loud very much though, unless doing it for a specific reason.

If she comes across a word she is not sure about or the meaning of then she comes and asks.

DS is 7 and in Y3. He reads anything and everything. His favourites are very, very boring tomes aimed at adults on how things work. He was reading pretty much anything in Reception, though; and had done all the Beast Quest/Astrosaurs type things by six. But that is just the way he is.

DD is 5, and I don't think her reading will be anything like the same level when she's 7. I wouldn't worry about what other children can or can't read - they all get there in the end.

(Ah, and no - I've never had to encourage him to read. More a case of him having a meltdown because I have to stop him reading. DD needs more encouragement).

DS is 7.5 in Year 3, and what I would call a 'reluctant' reader!

He can read and is an above average reader for his 'age' (although one of the weakest readers in his class )

He would find Horrid Henry fine, probably fine with Roald Dahl, but Harry Potter would be way beyond him (probably for emotional reasons as much as 'technical' reasons).

He can 'de-code' words well, and mostly only gets the more tricky words wrong - especially if there are alternative sounds.

Was listening to him read last night, and he coped fine with words like 'extraordinary';'spluttered'; 'handkerchief' etc.

He needs to work on his fluency now - I always ahev to check if he really understands what he is reading. He doesn't always get the intonation (e.g. in speech) in the right place.

However my biggest problem is that he simply DOESN'T read for pleasure - rarely picks up a book (except his Star Wars manual and the Beano).

DS1 (same parents, same support, same books at home etc etc) is a bookworm, and had a reading age of 14 when he was 7.

I'm hoping it's a phase for DS2

My DD1 6.5 has been a fluent reader for about a year now. She is able to read anything but is only just now getting the stamina for chapter books. She reads one or two of those rainbow magic books a night and I'm letting her until she gets bored of the same story over and over again and starts searching out more interesting stuff!

I know she's pretty unusual, though, to be reading like that so young. She learnt by herself as well - she's home educated.

Dd is 6.5, Y2, can read pretty well anything. She reads on her own, and I can't stop her reading. Current favourites are Noel Streatfeild (Ballet Shoes and White Boots), Enid Blyton (Secret Seven, Malory Towers), Roald Dahl, Narnia, the occasional dreaded Rainbow Fairy (I can't ABIDE them!), and also likes reading factual books.

Ds 7 in year 3. He can pretty much read anything, can sound out unfamiliar words he comes across. He reads whatever he can get his hands on, at the moment his favourite is the Dr Who complete A-z of Aliens and Monsters! He has 5 or six books on the go at the moment, plus his football magazines, and he usually reads the sports pages in the daily paper.

His fluency is ok, but his expression is not so good.

He does not like reading aloud either, but he has grudgingly accepted it as a neccesary evil for the dreaded school reading books only.

He will come and ask if he comes across a word he is unsure of.

DD is nearly 8 and was above average until she switched schools.

She'll read Roald Dahl, although she prefers me reading it to her. She'll read Horrid Henry, Flat Stanley, Jacquline Wilson, Roddy Doyle and abridged classics.

Oh and those Rainbow Fairy things. Don't know what they're called, but I'm refusing to read them now. The're shite.

I teach a yr 3 class, the reading levels ranges from some children who have a reading age of 6 and are struggling with simple blends, to children who have a reading age of 13 plus and can cope with most books. I would talk to your childs teacher if you are concerned, but try not to worry about what others are doing, we all learn at our own rate.

DD2 will be 8 in May. She is apparently the best reader in her year and reads pretty much anything quite fluently. She is currently reading the Humphrey the hamster series that her older sister had enjoyed. I don't need to push her to read as she enjoys it and always reads in her bed before going to sleep.

dd2 is nearly 8. She has been a fairly reluctant reader - in fact I don't think that she has ever chosen to read a book. She can read most of a Horrid Henry book to me at bedtime, but it will take at least a week. She is currently in a small booster class at school, 3 times a week, for an hour at a time, in order to help her improve.

DS is 7 and in Year 2. He can pick up and read virtually anything, including the Times. He reads school books willingly, but if he had a choice would only read information books related to subjects he's interested in.

What's interesting is that in Reception, he was a below average reader. Over the summer hols, everything clicked, and on return to Year 1, he was put into the top reading group!

Peaceflower that's the sort of story I want to hear.... I'm convinced that DS CAN read, but is just not motivated to. He reads his DK STar Wars dictionary avidly, and that has son tricky language in it, but I struggle to get him to read fiction.

I've just subscribed to FirstNews in an attempt to give him some 'bitesized' stuff to dip in and out of.

dd is 7 and in Y2 - She's been reading chapter books for about 18 months or so starting with Rainbow Fairy type things and progressing in difficulty/length/complexity.

She can now pick up anything and read it fluently - although there are plenty of books which I'd dissuade her from as she's not ready emotionally for them so she either wouldn't enjoy or understand them.

She loves reading and constantly has her nose in a book

ds2 only 'got' reading in Y2 and was way behind many of his friends - however once it clicked, he was away and is now an insatiable reader (in y5), in the top literacy group and more importantly really enjoying reading