*sneaks in* when did your dcs read and write and how much support did yoh get?

[HighwayRat]

Dd(4) has started reading, we think she will be free reading in the next 6 months, school seem prety good, they are allowing her to take phonics lessons with the reception kids (shes just 4 so wont start school till sept) but wont give her any reading books from the school, they've sent home the odd one but dd is so keen with them doesnt likd the segive bought but her teacher doesnt think she should start on the scheme yet because they don't want her to habe read them all too soon

How do you get a school to challenge your child without being that parent?

Surely if she's progressing that fast then the scheme books she'd be on in September (if any) would be mch further on than the ones she'd get now?

But if she's reading that well already could she not choose her own books from the local library, or read picture books you have at home? I don't think DS is heading for free reading any time soon but he can do fine with things like Dr Zeuss, Apple Tree Farm etc.

support from schools and preschools is very hit and miss. our preschool was told it wasn't allowed to teach reading and couldn't send home books so I bought songbirds phonics and some other books. I also made sure they realised they could read 'real' books too as this then opens up reading greatly.

I think the role of the parent in this situation is difficult. some teachers are very set in their ways that every child reads every book at the same time in a set order and others are more than happy to acknowledge that some children are further on than others.

When DD was in nursery she didn't get reading books as the HT didn't believe kids could read in nursery

Tbh we just did our own thing with a combination of Oxford owl, the local library and reading chest and then progressed to "real" books.

I would be more concerned with what they are going to do when she starts school. If she has already done reception phonics, will they be putting her into yr1 for it or will she have to repeat it for the year?

Oneof her friends (he is 5) has been put on the HLP 'list' at school for maths and reading, he does some maths classes with year 1, so I'm assuming that when she moves up to reception if need be she will move to y1 if needed. The foundation stage is fluid in this school so kids can move around and play with each other.

I am concerned re the reading books being too 'meh' for her next year though I do appreciate that it is difficult for her ps teacher to make enough time to see to dd individually daily. Its a minefield!

It's a bit odd of them to let her do phonics with reception but not let her have any reading books. 'Free reading' is a school phrase for when they finish the school scheme, so I'm not quite sure what you mean when you say she'll be free reading in 6 months?

DD's nursery were fantastic with her (also school attached) and she left nursery on purple band (ORT 8 I think). However, she was also taken by me to the library once a week to choose whatever books she fancied. Sometimes they were too easy, sometimes too hard but always what SHE chose and developed her love of books.

You will be labelled as one of those parents if you cause a fuss while she's not even at school yet though!!

Do you need any support from the school? My children learned to read using a blackboard and chalk and the story books we had at home. There were books they could bring home in Reception and Year 1 but we largely ignored them because they were rather boring.

My dd is bringing books home from reception. She's just started nursery and will not go to school until sept 2015. They said in her term report they will get reception to assess her reading to be able to select the correct books. I've gone to the library and booked out a selection from different schemes to see what she likes best, so I can purchase a set myself as she really seems to want to read for herself.

The reception class is actually mixed years (all of KS1 in addition) so they do not have any problem with different stages of literacy.

YY to reading schemes having boring stories!! The DK non fiction for pre readers seems different. Also I would second some
of the dr Seuss which use repetition and yet manage to capture the imagination.

By free reading I mean she will be able to pick up a book and read it, she already does this with the simple babyish books but a bit more advanced. She is working on the 2 and 3 letter sounds together I think they are called diagraphs?

I am concerned re the reading books being too 'meh' for her

That could happen regardless of her reading level. The stories should be engaging enough that she wants to read & keep her love of reading alive, and they don't have to be technically challenging to do that at all. DS is in yr5 & has been a free-reader for yrs; he still enjoys the most basic Biff+Chip books (brought home by little brother), as long as the story is novel.

We get lots of early readers from the public library.

Holiday criminal - with you saying that I am wondering if it is I who finds them boring and not so much her! I agree about any and all books that a child enjoys being key to feeding the desire to learn to read. We keep reading all sorts and she chips in with familiar words.

DS (reception) was free reading well before school. We spoke to his teacher, she admits finding books for him is a challenge but she is pretty enthusiastic about it and has correctly identified how much he loves non-fiction and tries to get him that.

So far, we aren't bothering much with what he gets at school, though we do do it with him as requested, we're just making sure he gets the right stuff outside school. I've decided to make notes in his reading report book periodically to list the books he has at home so she knows where he is, and take it from there.

One of mine was free reading well before school. It wasn't a bother. The TA just escorted her to the free reading shelves further up the school for her reading books. This works better in a through primary, rather than an infant school.

The others were free reading mid way through yr r. Again, no bother, they just accessed books from higher year groups. Dd2 was assessed at reading and comprehension level of a 12yo in yr r. To be honest, she didn't get much out of the school books, we just went to the library or book store.

All that said, none of mine got anything at all before the start of yr r. The nurseries weren't allowed to do reading or set reading type work, their remit was solely pre-reading skills.

I'm not that bothered, tbh. If kids are going to read, they are going to read. What nurseries or schools do is largely irrelevant for kids who have taught themselves before their peer group. Just take her to the library and let her choose what she wants.

Your foundation stage unit sounds like ds's. It was great, as he just ran with the yr r kids on his third birthday. Much less flex once you hit yr 1. They tried to get him assessed by the LEA at 3, but were told that no child is g & t before they reach statutory schooling age. Bwahahahahaha.

Dd decided she could read just after she turned 3 and writing followed about 6 months later

School assessed her when she started reception and she got books from further up the school so it was no biggy

Just to confirm what julybutterfly said earlier in this thread, a free reader at school, is a child who has read through the reading scheme levels set by the school. The school I work at, has about 15 different colour levels that children work through. When they have finished the scheme - voila - they are a free reader, that is they can read what they want.

Update - they've given her a reading book, she's so excited

We don't get anything. They're aware that she's reading and knows some digraphs/trigraphs, but they've not done anything at all. I know there's a few of them that have started reading and are bored though! Tbh, they're doing a lot of work on writing and forming letters properly, which I think I prefer as she won't write at home with me and there's plenty of time for her reading next year!