Reception-does your child have reading bks?

[threecurrantbuns]

My dd1 is 4yr9mth and started school in sept.

She does not have a reading book sent home, but a fair amount of phonic based activities and 'tricky' words (words that cant be sounded out) and word building activities.

When attending a session by the teacher to give us info on theaching english and reading etc i we were told reading bboks arent sent home until all the above areas are consistantly carried out corrected, suppose the tools to read!

Let me make it clear i only have my dd best interests at heart, but i cant lie, i am slightly worried as all and i mean all of my friends children all at diff school have reading books that are sent home with them to read each day!

Should my dd be having reading book is she missed out on learning??

I am also worried that i am not doing the best for her as she doesnt do the activities sent home often enough imo...i feel an awful mummy about it but struggle as she is often tired and i also have two other small children and it is very difficult to fit in the school work plus dinner bedtime etc etc.

We tend to do more at the weelend but im sure it would prob be more benificial to do it more often for a shorted period.

Im sorry if im completely stressing, i want my dd to enjoy learning and school but also want her to get the best start too.

Whats the 'norm'?

My DS was sent home books to "read" very early on in reception. He also had his flash card words to learn. The first few books he had, didn't have any words so he just had to talk through them with us.

Reading isn't just about the words, it's about choosing a book, holding it the right way, turning the pages, using the pictures to help if necessary. I am surprised they are insisting she get to a certain stage before sending her home with a book. I think she would feel motivated to get to grips with all the phonic words if she was able to apply the ones she did know.

Having said all that, the biggest influence on her having a love of reading is you. If you are reading with her, if she sees you reading, if books are a part of her every day life then I don't think it really matters what approach they take at this stage.

I'm not a teacher though!

bonkers the school does send books home just not reading books.

I think sharing a reading book is a great way to help let her read the words she can and you help with the words she doesn't know how to decode yet.

please remeber there are children in other countrys that dont start reading tell there 7 and by the age of 10 have over taken kids in the uk.

"the school does send books home just not reading books."

I don't really think there's a problem with what the school is doing. Reading your post again I think it's more that you need to find 10 minutes a day to sit with her and learn the words, or share the book she has been sent home with.
The school sending her home with a reading book isn't going to encourage her to read if you can only read with her at the weekend.

Is this your first child at school? Do you have a DH around in the morning or evening?

Maybe it's time to reevaluate how your evening runs so that you can find that time. Your DD "reading" to the little ones counts. Do you all have bedtime stories together?

None of hte kids at my DCs school ever have a 'reading' book. They are all encouraged to take a book of their choice home evry night to 'share'. That can be being read to, shared reading or self-reading. Neither do they have any homework in reception. Spellings start in Yr1 but these are tailoured to each individual child based on what they have not spelled correctly during the week. They teach a love of books and stories and reading. DD was rreading fluently by the ned of term 2 of reception DS took longer. Both now love reading and read because they want to.

This is my first at school my other two are nearly3 and 1 next month.

My current afternoons go along the lines of - get in from school run between 345 & 4pm by which point my dd1 needs some down time so i feel this isnt the right time to start 'homework' activities. She is only four and is very tired by the time she gets home.

Then dc3 has his dinner around 430/5pm which is followed by the girls dinner, then we go upstairs for a bath and bedtime. DC3 has a BF then is usually in bed for 630pm. Then i go into the girls and we cuddle up on the bed for storytime, they pick a book each.

The only way i can seem to include the 'homework' into the daily rountine is to do it as part of storytime. This isnt always best as obviously by this time dd is tired.

Also there seems to be alot sent home in her book (not really ten minute worth)
Tricky words (loads)
Word boxes
Phonic practice
Diagraphs
Letters&diagraphs to do word building
Words to try to read then match up with a picture
Games

I always thought repeatition was the best way to learn things, but obviously i cant do all of this on a daily basis.

I have spoken to her teacher and explained and she as listed to me the areas in which my dd is less confident to concentrate on and advised me to do just 5-10mins of fun!

I have also started some games when possible, for example used my imagination and created musical diagraphs so when the music stops jump on the diagraph mummy shouts out this is good as enables my dd2 to join in a bit more.

My dh works shifts so is often not around in the ams or evenings so cant for example put the younger children to bed so i can do some things with dd.

Reading has always been a big part of our day and has been ince dd1 was very small, so there isnt a day that goes by that i dont read to them but she is not reading to me as such!

I did get the oppotunity to do lots with her today as my other dcs were both sleeping over lunch time as dd2 isnt well and i was very proud that we did most of the activities and she was successful with all of them.

I also want to encourage her not push her so she feel like she is just playing/having fun instead of 'working'

Need more hours in the day

Sorry major waffle!

seeline interesting post as i was probably not prepared for how much would change when dd moved from the pre school to reception, i had it in my head that reception would just be a slight step up, bit more stuctured but mainly just a longer day!! How wrong was i!? Never expected homework at 4!