Reading books (reception)

[newname0601]

My dd has been bringing reading books home now for over a term. They used to challenge her and they were getting progressively harder getting to 3 or 4 sentances per page. For the last 2 weeks though they've got all easy again with just 1 line per page. She's wizzing through them and is clearly very very bored of them. There is no challenge in them at all.

I promised myself that I wouldn't be the pushy parent banging on the teachers door for my dc to be moved up a reading level / group or whatever. Do I just leave be for a bit longer and hope that the teacher realises these books are too easy for dd or do I go and speak to the teacher? She's reading the appropriate level from the library so I know she's getting the practice so maybe its not worth bothering the teacher?

I would put a note in her reading record to this effect. The teacher has 29 other kids to concentrate on, and this way she won't slip through the net.

Does she have a reading book that you make notes in when you read with her at home
Just put a note 'DD read this book easily. She is not enjoying it as much as some of the previous more challenging ones' or something like that and the teacher will change her books

I put a note in her reading book and got a message back saying that she's been given these books because she's stopped decoding words so needs to build confidence . I don't really understand this as she's stopped decoding the words out loud because she seems to be doing it in her head. She must still be decoding the words because how else is she reading them correctly? So is she meant to not do it in her head and do it out loud? I think we'll just wizz through these books and ride with it, I don't want to go back to the teacher about it again. It makes for easy evenings and we are still enjoying the library books. The school change the books daily if they've been read at home so we can get through them quite quickly.

Can she read names correctly? I personally find this is a good way to work out if dd is decoding because it seems to eliminate picture/sight vocab.

Be grateful you got a reply, even if it doesn't tally with your experience (even direct questions are ignored here.) dd sometimes reads "easy" words incorrectly whilst tackling harder words, which can be exasperating, especially if the teacher only sees that she can't read the easy words.

After much whinging and wailing and gnashing of teeth, I try and tell myself that IT DOES NOT MATTER which book she is on at school as long as she is making progress at home with home/ library books And that she enjoys reading. (doesn't always work though)

good luck in working it all out. Perhaps ask the teacher exaactly what she is struggling with annd what you can do to help.

Think I am about to have same discussion. Dd has just been told to get a book 2 levels below current level. Read it in seconds. Will have to find out why.

I understand that you don't want to rock the boat, newname, but could you write another note back saying that as she already knows all the words in the easy books she is being given, they don't actually offer any opportunity for decoding practice. OTOH, you could just be grateful that the homework is so easy she can whizz through it.