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Primary education

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reading levels year 1

69 replies

teacherspet33 · 20/09/2010 18:22

Hello, what is the average reading level/book band colour in year 1? I'm trying to work out how my child is compared to her peers.
Many thanks

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Anenome · 20/09/2010 21:11

Agree Mollie! My DD is on one called Animal Friends...it's green though...maybe the red ones come after the green ones? Bcause it says on the back that there are 18 of them in this level!

So boring for DD she hates them!

mychatnickname · 20/09/2010 21:11

Have looked it up and Ginn level 4 seems to be the upper end of the green band.

Anenome · 20/09/2010 21:12

Where did you find the reference mychatnickname? If you don't mind me asking... can't seem to find anything googling...

mychatnickname · 20/09/2010 21:15

There's a guided reading level document on the internet somewhere which someone posted on here ages ago and I bookmarked. I will try and dig out the link.

Anenome · 20/09/2010 21:17

Ooo thank you mychatnickname!

MollieO · 20/09/2010 21:23

I've given up asking at school why ds has the books he does. His reading doesn't seem to progress but when I question it I'm told that they have a tried and tested method. Maybe they do but it doesn't seem to work for ds.

Interestingly the pressure seems to be off reading in yr 2 as we've been told the focus is on writing.

StarExpat · 20/09/2010 21:26

With practice at home, children improve their reading by practicing reading things that they can read well, without need for support. So Totoros, if your child is flying through, that's great. :)

mychatnickname · 20/09/2010 21:27

I agree to a point star...surely there need to be some new words occasionally?

MollieO · 20/09/2010 21:28

Must be nice to have a child who is happy to practice reading at home. I have no idea how that feels!

Anenome · 20/09/2010 21:28

I agree about the pressure easing on the reading...it is the writing that's in the spotlight for us too.

It's a relief but I still gt her teacher pushing me...we're expected to read at east 2 pages a night...and she does the same inn school daily....but I confess that this term I have not made her do the reading nightly as she's just peed off with it!

The only way I got her to do it tonight was by commenting and encouraging in the voice/character of Mrs Twit from The Twits!

StarExpat · 20/09/2010 21:31

Yes absolutely mychatnickname :) But at home practice should be a child's chance to read fluently with ease for enjoyment.

littlegreenie · 20/09/2010 21:32

why don't you ask your childs teacher???? that is infact their job. If your childs teacher is good you will get good information. Also, children do not learn in straight lines, they may take more time than other children to learn things, but they will more than likely get there in the end.

Try not to worry x

MollieO · 20/09/2010 21:33

'read fluently with ease for enjoyment'?

Anenome · 20/09/2010 21:33

StarExpat....but the stories are crap...so there's no enjoyment!

snice · 20/09/2010 21:38

When I worked in a yr 1 class recently the children ranged from ORT Level 1+ to ORT Level 10 with the majority on 5-7 by the end of the school year

MollieO · 20/09/2010 21:42

Ds was on ORT 4 at the end of yr 1 but only just and not secure. The expected level was apparently ORT 5 according to the other year teacher but ds's teacher denied there were expected attainment levels. Some of his classmates were on ORT 7-8.

StarExpat · 20/09/2010 21:44

Well then that's a problem if the stories are crap. I don't like ORT stories either. I don't use them :) I can't really comment on the British system as I'm not in it. It is much more pushy different Grin

Anenome · 20/09/2010 21:46

What is ORT? Confused

StarExpat · 20/09/2010 21:47

Oxford Reading Tree. You know, Biff, Chip and friends. Grin

Anenome · 20/09/2010 22:00

Oh right! Grin

MollieO · 20/09/2010 22:01

Ginn and New Way (the other scheme we are subjected to) make ORT stories seem positively Booker-inspired.

cherrymonster · 20/09/2010 22:03

ours dont do the ORT, they seem to be rigby books, and i have no idea where to find out the levels for them.

RoadArt · 20/09/2010 22:07

You cant compare what levels of books other kids are on when they are from different schools.

All schools use the schemes for their own benefits, some will ensure that kids can "read" properly and fully understand the books, other schools will just upgrade the colours because a child has read the book, perhaps once, but isnt really able to understand it.

Some schools change books every day, others might not change the book for a couple of weeks.

Some use the books religiously as a true guide, others use the books as a means to just get kids to read.

There is no point getting anxious, worried, or upset by comparing, because you are not comparing apples with apples between different schools, and sometimes even classes within a school where teachers have different views of the use of the books.

To get general age guides, use the book websites and look at their reference tables.

And, speaking from experience of wanting to know just like you do now, it really doesnt matter down the line. The kids dont get better or worse thought of because of their reading or maths ability. Its more important that children can understand and discuss what they are reading, rather than racing through the colours but not have a clue about what they have read.

Just enjoy reading with your DC.

RoadArt · 20/09/2010 22:08

fds.oup.com/www.oup.co.uk/pdf/oxed/primary/ORTreadingAges.pdf

Heres the ORT reading guide

MollieO · 20/09/2010 22:11

Good point RoadArt. I save my worry for comparing ds to his classmates. That is sufficiently depressing enough!