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Original poster

Are there any KS1 teachers out there who can give me some advice?

156 replies

WantAnOrange · 11/04/2012 15:56

DS will be 6 at the end of June, he is in year 1. His attainment levels are 'below expected' in reading, writing and maths.

I am giving him extra support at home to practise his reading and writing. We read every day (once or twice) and practice writing every day. He is also doing the 'Book Quest' at our local library because he loves it, and gives him yet more practice.

I have always found that he finds maths very easy Confused.

Can you tell me what the "expected levels" are at the end of Year 1? I have not found his teacher very forthcoming and I'm finding it hard to know what to do without knowing the (ideal) end goal.

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Feenie · 20/04/2012 21:35

Ha - not amazingly. We have had to agree to disagree Hmm. She thinks that reading is a strength of the school, that Ks1 results are great and they are not behind. I think they are obviously behind, and the lack of pace has affected my ds's enthusiasm and fluency hugely. We went round in circles a lot. She says they may review it IF the screening results are down - with two thirds of the year group on phase three and below I KNOW they will be.Ha - not amazingly. We have had to agree to disagree Hmm. She thinks that reading is a strength of the school, that Ks1 results are great and they are not behind. I think they are behind, the lack of pace has affected my ds's enthusiasm and fluency hugely. We went round in circles a lot. She says they may review it IF the screening results are down - with two thirds of the year group on phase three and below I KNOW they will be.

Amapoleon · 20/04/2012 21:53

Thank you for this thread. So much useful info in one place.

Amapoleon · 20/04/2012 22:12

My ds is 5 and in reception, also on the road for diagnosis of dispraxia, should i start him off on Bearing away? He can read a bit but doesn't really esem to be making progress and much of it is from memory. His teacher is lovely and very supportive but i feel he needs more from me.

IndigoBell · 21/04/2012 07:41

Start him off on one of the sound foundation books. Probably bear necessities rather than bearing away.

Bear necessities is for reception kids.

You can look inside the books to see which one you think is the best for him.

Feenie · 21/04/2012 08:41

Sorry - was fighting on my phone for the last post, hope you got the gist Blush

Original poster
WantAnOrange · 21/04/2012 16:10

Amapoleon I agree with IndigoBell. Start on the Bear books now and you won't find yourself in the position I am in now.

OP posts:
mrz · 21/04/2012 16:16

Pleased things are going well WantAnOrange

blackeyedsusan · 22/04/2012 13:16

feenie we want updates...

Feenie · 22/04/2012 13:27

What would you like to know? I briefly described my very unsatisfying meeting with the Head a few posts back.......

MigratingCoconuts · 22/04/2012 13:35

that must have been very frustrating feenie! especially when you are in a position to know that they are in the wrong here.

Glad to hear it is going so well orange....hope it continues to do so..

Feenie · 22/04/2012 13:47

It was! On the plus side, ds has now moved 4 book bands since January - doesn't help the rest if his Year 1 though. Sad

Original poster
WantAnOrange · 22/04/2012 14:40

Feenie you're right to care for the other children in the Year group but they are not your responsability. Maybe if the other parents spoke up like you have the Head might listen!

Anyway,I think you should be proud that you have done what was needed and helped your child.

p.s. 4 book bands since january is AMAZING!

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MigratingCoconuts · 22/04/2012 16:09

4 book bands since january is a travesty!! makes you wonder, doesn't it!

My son is in reception and still on 1+, although he finds then very easy. I can see the point because I do want him to have a good grounding and not cut corners. However, he is beginning to get a bit fed up with it now. I'm hoping we're near the end of this level and he can see progress...

Feenie · 22/04/2012 16:17

I would have been happy to leave the teaching to his school, having made the decision not to send him to ours - I really didn't want to step in! And I definitely didn't want to become 'that' parent - too late now though.

Not ever doing pick ups/drop offs makes it difficult to speak to other parents, but tbh my childminder is so scandalised about how dire the phonics teaching is that she may have told a fair few people by now Blush

Ds still loves being read to, but has not regained his enthusiasm for reading yet - will take a while, I think.

MigratingCoconuts · 22/04/2012 16:43

Grin Feenie, every now and then, a school does need 'that' parent!!!

(though, obviously not for any of my classes Wink)

skewiff · 22/04/2012 16:43

Sorry I have not read all of these posts -

But I was really struck by the OP saying that the teacher said that 90% of learning happens in the home.

If this is true - what is the point of our children going to school? I am serious. I do so much with my son at home because I am aware that if I don't practise he will forget what the teacher has taught him. Plus DS has mild cerebral palsy so I really do not want him to slip behind ...

BUT what about all those parents who are working. They can't practise much with their children surely? And some families just won't.

I really would not expect teachers to expect that 90% of learning would happen in the home.

Otherwise we might as well all be homeschooling.

mrz · 22/04/2012 16:46

I would say much of the learning in the home is through normal day to day interaction with loving and caring family no teaching required

IndigoBell · 22/04/2012 16:47

I'm afraid my school believe, not that 90% of learning happens at home, but that the amount of progress a student makes is 90% dependant on their home environments :(

(or something like that. They are quoting from some recent report....)

I think I am going to home school next year. :(

Original poster
WantAnOrange · 22/04/2012 19:21

I agree that home enviroment and parental imput are vital for acheivement BUT this does not give schools the right to judge parents poorly and opt out of their responsabilty.

I feel that, as we live in a society that places the responsability of teaching children to read with the school, and says to parents "we will educate your child", they should damn well follow it through!

I may have well Home schooled and wish I'd been brave enough to make that choice before DS started primary. Now I feel it's too late, and it would be emotionally damaging for my DS to take him away from what he knows and all his friends.

The Head teacher I mention mis-quoted and used that statement to meet his own ends. What it really means is that children learn their values, morals, socail skills, life skills, independence, confidence....etc....at home. These things are the most important a child can learn, but schools cannot use it as a cop out for what they have chosen to take responsibilty to teach.

OP posts:
skewiff · 22/04/2012 20:45

So do you think your school is misquoting too Indigo?

And are you really considering homeschooling next year? With all your children?

I feel such a coward. It really feels like homeschooling is what I should be doing. DS comes home every day exhausted from school - but there is not much evidence that he has learned anything. OK he is only in reception.

However his reading and writing abilities are most definitely a result of what we do at home. During the holidays he comes on in leaps and bounds. During term time there is a limit to what we can do and so his learning slows down.

This all feels topsy turvy and a bit wrong ...

Original poster
WantAnOrange · 23/04/2012 07:46

It's all topsy-turvy!

OP posts:
IndigoBell · 23/04/2012 08:24

Skewiff - I don't think my school are misquoting - although I think I've remembered the number wrong I think they only said 85%

None of my kids want to be home schooled. And the boys are fineish. But DD really isn't and I'm very stressed about it all. If she gets a rubbish teacher next year (for example she might get her Y3 teacher again) then I can't keep sending her to school to be babysat.

Out of my limited option I think the best thing will be to keep her home in the morning and teach her English and maths myself. Then send her to school in the afternoon because she likes school.

However, I've been threatening to home school her for 3 years, and never had the guts so far :( only because she likes school and doesn't want to leave.

Her teacher this year is very good, which is why I'm happy for her to finish Y4. But it's all a bit bittersweet. She has a very good teacher this year, which means she will almost certainly have a worse teacher next year. So if this teacher can't teac her to read and write I don't see how a worse teacher can.

But actually I don't think a Y5 teacher can teach a child to read and write. Even a good one.

If you want to HE, remember it doesn't have to be for ever. You can just do it for a term or a year......

Original poster
WantAnOrange · 23/04/2012 14:55

The thing with HE is my DS says he loves school. This morning he said "I'm so happy it's a school day 'cause I get to see my friends again!". How many kids would actually say that?

As a parent I'm torn between doing what makes him happy and what's best for his academic achievement. I don't think its right to up-root a happy child, but on the other hand that is not what school is for.

I also worry that people would assume he'd been horribly bullied or really ill, or had SN that prevented him from attending mainstream school. His situation just isn't that dire. HE isn't IME socially accepted. My MIL once said that "HE children do really well academically but are socially weird!" I know that's not true but it's what others may assume of him. I think DH secretly harbors this opinion too and really isn't keen on the idea.

I think this all hangs on next years teacher for us to, combined with how well the catch programme works.

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Original poster
WantAnOrange · 08/05/2012 07:50

UPDATE

We've got a little way through the book and he's doing ok but there are a few obvious problems that no amount of practice seems to help.

He muddles up the letters 'b' and 'd'. This is a habit he has had since he first learned the sounds in reception and he just can't get it.

He writes the letter 's' back to front, despite being shown several thousand times how to do it correctly, and regular practice.

He cannot form any of the numbers (well except the number 1). We have been practicing this everyday.

He now has an IEP in place, which, to be quite frank, is shit, doesn't cover the half of his problems, and one of the targets he can already do. Angry However, I have gone along with it, because I know that they need this piece of paperwork to have failed before there is any hope of a referal.

OP posts:
IndigoBell · 08/05/2012 10:04

Muddling up b and d, and reversing s is a symptom of an eye tracking problem.

(ie their eyes move left to right as often as the move right to left, so that is why the letters look the same)

DD still can't get b and d or p and q right.

But like you say, no amount of practice will help.

Eye tracking is easy to fix using software called Home Therapy Solutions

Unfortunately, I can only find 2 people in the UK who will sell it to you:

Tinsley House and Sheinman Opticians

Another thing you can try is ReadingPlus. I'm fairly sure that will also correct eye tracking problems.