Could the average Reception age child read this passage?

[Avocadoes]

"I want to go to Lily's party. I will go on the bus, then I will walk. There will be cake and lots of fun. Do you want to come too?"

My DD is nearly 4 and a half and her reading has just been assessed (by school) using the passage above.

I am just interested in whether most Reception kids would be able to read all the words in that passage and do so without halting to figure out each individual word.

[londoniana]

at 4, I believe children should be able to play with others and learn through play!

my dd is in Reception, August born so fairly young. I'm rather annoyed with all the homework that WE get. phonetics, cursive handwriting, rhymes, etc.

having said that, DD loves the books she gets from school (3 books/week) and loves to do her homework for 10-min at a time (max!). we get to write 4 letters from Fri to Wed, it's too much!!

so my agenda is a bit different than her teacher's. I encourage her to look at the pictures and tell a story and draw things.

sounding out letters, blending, handwriting - for now I'll let the school deal with that.

[Bessie123]

My dd is 4yrs 8 months and she could read it. I don't do extra reading with her at home, only those stupid Biff, Chip and Kipper books she gets from school for bedtime reading

[learnandsay]

I think there's quite a bit going on that we don't understand, and by that I mean none of us. Loads of people denigrate reciting familiar texts as not reading. (Personally I think they're often, but not always wrong, but we'll let that one go.) But the wee one was reading a Hopscotch Elves & Shoemaker today, with words like amazed, incredible and heaven knows what else. And I thought wait a minute. I know you can read, but not this well, surely! It turns out that the other half had read the book once (and only once, apparently) to her last week. I only got it from the library last week. Something's going on in the kid's brain if it can remember the word amazing or incredibly for a week. (And the other half is abroad at the moment, so it couldn't have been more.) It may not be scientifically significant, but if four year olds can remember and read words like incredibly and amazed, then why are we sending them home with:

Dot got a pot and Sam can ban a pan?

[yorks05]

Not even my ds (on lime in year 1) could have read that at this sstage of reception.

[simpson]

They do surprise us sometimes!!

DD picked up a stage 8 ORT book yesterday and decoded it pretty much perfectly....

Although I reckon she only "understood" about 50-60% of it. But it was interesting to see how strong her phonics / decoding is....

Will be interested to see what parents eve brings ( it's on Tuesday)....

[learnandsay]

Today outside the supermarket she said that sign says carwash

How come she makes a dog's ear of wash and reads carwash? (Secretly I think I know the answer already.) A list of words without context has no context. In a way it's what phonicsy people are always talking about a "code".

But a carwash is a carwash, ie it's a place that washes cars, so why not have a sign outside saying carwash? (Hmm, maybe four year olds are smarter than us after all.)

[DrWhoBrain]

Im amazed by how well some children are reading i just asked ds who is 6 years 9 months and he struggled he had to sound out a few and couldnt get 'want' 'lilys' or 'party' at all he also struggled with walk but got it with prompting

[Melmagpie]

my dd is 5 and in yr 1 and could read this easily but no way a year ago in reception.

[tooearlytobeup]

My dd, who is in reception could read that easily and could have a year ago. I know that she is ahead for her year though and dont think any of the other children in her class could

[Rollmops]

DTs could read it, easily. 4.5 in Reception.

[Jenny70]

My DS is reception this year (and already 5, older in yeargroup). Couldn't read any of that.. even the number of words would freak him out. If it was his name, he'd spot that definitely, maybe the I's if prompted. But no way would he make any attempt at it.

Literacy not his strong suit. But he loves maths, and he'll get to reading when he's ready.

[XBenedict]

DD1 would have been able to read that at reception age but DS - not a chance!

[simpson]

DD as I have already said can read well but what amazes me more than her reading is her complete obsession about wanting to do it.

She totally seems to have the love of reading already at 4 and has been like this for over a year now...

I am happier about that tbh than her actual reading level iyswim....

[Tgger]

I think you encourage your children in what you enjoy and what they enjoy- sometimes the two meet, sometimes not! So, DS was not exactly hothoused in reading, but he enjoyed letter sounds, knew them all earlier than most and had started blending before he was 5, taught by nursery. Then age 5 and a bit he was very ready and eager to read and learned very quickly. He was not so eager age 4.5, I remember having a go with him, but he didn't want to so we didn't push it.

[losingtrust]

That's funny my DS told himself to swim at 4 but learning to read not until 7 and now he is better at reading than swimming for his age!

[Karoleann]

DS2 (4) wouldn't be able to read it apart from I and to, however, I could have and so could DS1 easily at the same age.
They're just identifing the really good readers, which is great.
All children read at different ages.

[learnandsay]

Some schools in the UK are bloody awful. Some parents have a right to be worried.

[radicalsubstitution]

Tgger - that was my point.

DS was 'hothoused' when it came to swimming lessons as I had a (possibly unfounded) fear of him drowning by falling into a swimming pool.

Some people 'hothouse' their children when it comes to learning academically, as they are afraid that the education system will not teach/stretch/develop their skills adequately.

Our DSs will probably end up with a broadly similar swimming ability by 11 - just as they will probably end up with a broadly similar reading ability.

[Tgger]

DS couldn't have read that in the first term of reception. Now age 6 he is very good for his age. He has learnt to read, enjoys books, has a love of books and stories. All good. I want to keep it that way so will keep encouraging. His swimming is dreadful........, am encouraging that too, for various reasons have only just started weekly lessons. He is perhaps in the bottom percentage in regard to water confidence and swimming for his age... but am happy to support him with that just as I support him with his reading. Maybe at age 8 it will have levelled out and he will be average at both for his age, we shall see.....

[learnandsay]

I guess people in the UK teach four year olds to read because children go to school at four. I guess is six year olds were winning the Olympics more of them would be turning up, twelve and thirteen year olds already are.

[radicalsubstitution]

At 6, DS is an exceptionally good swimmer. He can swim 25m in good front crawl, dive, and pick an object off the bottom of a 1.5m pool.

Does that mean he is going to by an Olympic athlete? No - we just started him in lessons from 3.5. He will probably end up being a 'good' swimmer - but nothing exceptional.

I'm sure he could be exceptional if we sent him to lessons 6 days' a week . Just as some children pass A level maths at 7 years' old. Makes you wonder what the rest of their life is like?

[learnandsay]

That's interesting. Can you please point me to some of this research? I suppose people who do not have high expectations placed upon them don't have to live up to them.

[mrz]

What it means learnandsay is that they are a good reader for a 5 year old but they may not develop into a good 11 year old reader because there are so many more higher order skills required as children mature.
Research suggest girls, in particular can start to struggle when things become more difficult (not just with reading and most with parents with high expectations) where slow starters are more resilient

[learnandsay]

I don't know if that means that children once good at reading become bad at it. It might mean that some fail to progress beyond a certain stage. But I'm guessing that if they've got parents who are sufficiently concerned with their education and they go to good schools they'll probably do well. Of course no one can predict what's going to happen in the future. But then no one is trying to. All people are doing is making sure their children can read. No one can teach a four year old how to read when they're eleven unless they own a time machine. So stating that is a bit pointless.

[mrz]

being a good reader at age 4 or 5 is only an indicator of being a good reader at age 4 or 5 and not that they will continue to be a good reader at age 10 or 11 or 16 ...