Learning to read - seems to be no structure to it

[grumpypants]

I'm a bit frustrated at the moment - ds (5) is in Y1 and brings home two books a week, one to read to me, and one to have read to him. There is just no continuity to the books he is meant to read and he is just not reading as well as i thought he would be by now. Older ds also couldn't read (worse than this) buy the end of Y1 and we hired a tutor for Y2 - he is now a free reader (Y3) and has a brilliant reading age.
The school read in groups, and apparently use several reading schemes.

Any thoughts?

Evil: so not only am I bitter, twisted and negative, I'm hysterical?

I'm twisted because I suggest buying a reading scheme, and hysterical because I object to being called twisted?

Are you joking? Thank goodness I have never had a teacher like you. I have not resorted to language like this on this thread and am shocked that you feel the need to.

Mrsz: as I say, if you consider it normal to be reading the Hobbit in Y2, then I can't see what is so horrific about using a reading scheme when a child is still at pre-school level and being taught in no structured way by the teacher.

Just for suggesting a reading scheme the very devil, ORT I've seen quite a lot of passive aggression, complacency, smugness and even disingenuousness on this thread. As well as being called bitter, twisted and hysterical.

This is extraordinary.

Gooseberrybushes why would I be horrified about using a reading scheme in reception when I did just that for 15+ years? I'm horrified as I keep saying at the suggestion of buying a complete reading scheme.
You seem to want me to be saying something to fit your view of what teachers think ... as a teacher I am extremely grateful for parents who support their child at home and if asked will provide whatever resources they and I think will help. One of our Y1 parents asked for 2 books for every day of the holidays and has taken home two full levels of books to work with...

I think we established quite early the OP may have confused the fact that the school uses a number of different schemes and children reading in groups (literacy strategy recommendations - we don't do it in my school but most schools work this way) with the idea that teaching was unstructured and lacked continuity... when this is in fact better than relying on a single scheme.

I would be concerned if a child, after being in school (and taught) full time for 5 terms, is still struggling and would be putting extra support in place - however I don't know how many terms the OP's son has spent in school or if he started full time or when reading instruction began or indeed if the school is providing additional support for the child. There are numerous reasons why a child is slower to read than other children and without knowing the child it isn't possible to guess at the reason/reasons.

I haven't criticised you for using ORT. I personally don't like it and don't use but you are entitled to buy what you want with your money. I will say that some of our staff who have children in reception and Y1 take home our books to use with their sons because they felt they were making very slow progress with ORT but that's their choice too.

Why would you be horrified? I have no idea -- why do you think I keep asking you?

You expressed horror. To me that means horrified. How is anyone supposed to know you can get them cheaply, or free? You could have said that -- instead you just expressed shock and horror at buying reading scheme books. You then stood by your horror at buying reading scheme books and expressed your dislike of ORT.

If you were trying to give the impression you like parents using reading schemes, you think it's a good idea and it's helpful that they are available free or cheaply, you've hidden it well until now.

You keep asking and I keep telling you that I am horrified at the idea of parents BUYING a reading scheme not at parents using a reading scheme although you seem to want me to be against parental support ... I'm not!

My second post on this thread - mrz Sat 16-Apr-11 09:10:57

As he was learning the sounds and actions he should have been taught how to blend and segment words. Once s,a,t,i,p,n have been taught it is possible to make lots of words for reading and spelling.
Rather than buying books take a look at www.oxfordowl.co.uk/Library/Index/?AgeGroup=2&BookType=Phonics

contains a link to FREE on line reading scheme books ... perhaps you just didn't see?

mrz Sat 16-Apr-11 16:51:37

Many libraries stock scheme books (free) and there are companies that hire books to parents at a fraction of the cost of buying a whole scheme

and

mrz Sat 16-Apr-11 16:52:34

and there are also free e books including ORT available

yes really sounds as if I'm opposed to parents using reading schemes

'only boring children who like ORT' : not at all, Gooseberry. The pictures aren't the most exciting, but there is a clear thread to follow, they are easy to understand and occasionally (Victorian England, eg) they have quite exciting stories. The kids in dd's year who like them are definitely NOT boring - they do tend to be the ones though, for whatever reason, who like to stick to one kind of writing (and aren't that interested in the pictures - relative to the ones who are strongly visual and want bright colours etc).

Hi - have read through it all, and thank you for all the posters putting links - I am going to cut and paste them to have a look.

In YR I complained that he sometimes brought home books with no words as he could already get basic cvc words. I was told that it encouraged reading, and they used a variety of books to do this. There was no information about reading schemes or sets for reading. I felt a bit 'told off' for complaining.

In this year, again, no information about sets or ability levels, just books brought home. I suspect this is a policy across the school of not making class positions widely known, to avoid competitiveness or complaints from parents. His teacher has expressed surprise that i was unhappy about his reading, and said that maybe they will look at him not reading in a group. She has also given me the names of two of the several reading schemes they use.

We go to the library every Friday, so I will ask about hiring schemes there.

I am frustrated - he has no (known) SEN, and I feel a bit like he should be reading more.

I did buy two ladybird books (Level 2) recently in Waterstones, and he has read half of one of them. Not sure if this is the right way, and there are lots of suggestions on here that I will look at again before continuing.

Thank you again.

I'm not a fan of wordless books as a "teaching reading tool" (although they are useful to encourage language development) and having a book with no words won't encourage "reading"
Can you recall which schemes the teacher mentioned? as there are lots of free resources available
I would be inclined to find out what he does know and work from there.

Rigby Star? Something else with maybe bananas in it? (sorry!)

The wordless books drove me crazy, altho i know i can read other things at home - it just felt that school were not encouraging him.

Rigby Star work well
Go Bananas? if so really intended for independent readers rather than beginners

that might be it - i'll try the other one then. thank you for all your suggestions.

I would start by checking which sounds he knows and if he can blend 2 and 3 phoneme words - which tricky words he knows (he probably hasn't been taught "ere" yet so will read here as a whole word)

www.phonicsinternational.com/unit1.html provides a good overview and assessment ideas

yes - weirdly we have just blutacked 'here' up along with 'says' (based on something terrible like 'here is a cake i baked says Jane ) as he didn't know them.

Will try this holiday, am getting quite keen to be proactive. This week Floppy, next week Gollum...

It looks like he is working on the different ways the /ay/ sound can be written

tbh I'm not sure what or how he is taught. I know we all did jolly phonics in YR, and I was really pleased that he loved them, and knew them all. Now tho, things have stalled. Instead of progressing, he seems to be being left behind (altho apparently in the middle) - i am concerned about Y2 and writing - the 'other' school send home spellings in YR and seem a lot further forward and 'pushy' - pastoral care here is lovely, but not so convinced about reading.

Mayb it's just him. Off to feed the dcs but will check back with interest.

grumpy - could you go and talk to your DS's teacher? Not to "complain" (as you put it!) but to discuss his progress specifically with reading, and to ask what strategies the school can put in place to support him and what you can do at home to support and help him.

I think this thread got a bit out of hand last night - I really don't think that running out and buying an entire reading scheme of books he will read once and then move on from is a good idea, as you may well be able to borrow books from school. I bought a couple of ladybird stage 2 books for my DTDs recently, and they like them - nothing wrong at all with exposing him to as many different books as possible.

If I were you though, I would definitely speak to his teacher as soon as possible after the Easter holidays.

In Y1 he should be building on Jolly Phonics. If he knows one way of representing the sounds in English he is doing OK. Now he should be learning the alternative ways so in Jolly Phonics he was taught "ai" now he should learn "ay" "a~e" "ey" (they - grey - prey) "eigh" (eight - weigh) If he's taught these well he shouldn't need to learn lots of spelling lists. We don't do home spelling lists but do work on spelling in the classroom.

Dont be afraid to talk to yur child's teacher. Ask if they use a specific way to teach phonics/reading as you want to support your child. No teacher could take exception or think you were being 'fussy'. I spent a term helping in my daughters class and now I understand how she is taught, which makes helping her at home so much easier.

A good quick little technique for increasing basic vocab is to label everything in your house! Door, window, floor, ceiling, cupboard, box, crayons etc.

Also you can take photos of things you see while you are out and write labels and put them in DC's own special words and pictures album which you add to each time you are out: duck, car, park, dentist, canal etc.

using these two techniques your DC begins to take ownership of his own vocabulary extension.

good ideas thank you - i'm feeling q. positive

www.crossboweducation.com/synthetic_phonics.htm#44_Sounds_Wallchart

I also recommend you buy this for your child's bedroom wall or a small one for the desk top. It is a brilliant picture chart showing the 44 sounds.

(I am a primary teacher and I bought one each for my 3 DC)

candleshoe - I've got a smaller version of that which I use with my DTDs. We use them at school, A4 sized (we call them placemats - laminated on the tables in classrooms) and I teach secondary!

Aha still going

Mrsz: there are lots of free online reading activities but that's not the same as having the book in your hand. Not in any way: I appreciate you are a teacher but having read with loads and loads of children I would say having the book in your hand is a very different thing. Perhaps I was too direct - but your reaction - given that buying books is the only way I know to get books in your hand - told me that you were horrified at the idea of a parent using an ordered reading scheme. You can re-read the books, use them for other children and, moreover, sell them afterwards.

I particularly like ORT for a number of reasons. One of them is the clear sense of achievement children have when they can see their progress. And the structure and progress is very easy for parents to understand too. Spending the money is not wasteful, particularly if your alternative is buying lots of other "wonderful, magical" books. Of course it is exceptionally hard to teach early reading through free reading, however wonderful and magical the books are.

If you want a book in your hand libraries will provide them at no cost (and if they don't have them on the shelves you can order in 6 at a time)