Any primary teachers willing to give me an idea of the level this writing might be please?

[bettystearoom]

I know that you can't tell a child's level only off one piece of work but could anyone give me an idea of what sort of level you think this might be...it's the first chunk of a story my dd has written (the rest has a middle and end but it's a bit too long to type out). I am curious as to what level she is working at. I have typed it exactly as it was written, spelling mistakes, little errors and all. I am curious because in some ways she is using lots of level 3 stuff but in others - the very occasional capital D where it should be lower case for example, she is not.

Here goes:

Doggy woke up on a sunny morning then he brushed his teath for 2mins exactly or sould I say on the dot! Next Doggy Dressed easerly and his mum got his Pedergree Chum ready and after doggy got his...HUH! His school bag had diserpeared. Where was it? "Woof Mummy come here" said Doggy my bag has diserpeared.

---

The middle is another chunk that size and the end similar, same sort of punctuation, spelling and tone.

I'd appreciate any views if possible.

Doesn't have to be teachers - anyone with a vague idea about such things perhaps if your dc is a particular level and you think it's better or worse?

I don't have the experience to level it off the top of my head, and I don't have grids to hand.

It looks pretty good to me, though. Excellent variety of punctuation, varied sentence structure and some good vocabulary choices. The rougue D isn't a huge deal, but the missing speech marks are a touch worse. Misspellings are phonetically plausible, and repeated.

Assuming it's consistent, she's probably a solid level 3.
Level 4 requires a bit more complexity in terms of sentence structure, more consistent punctuation, and more accurate spelling.

secure level 3

What does her teacher say?

Thanks. Interesting as I think this is quite representative of her usual work I have seen at open evening in school and for homework but her target level from her teacher for the end of this year (year 2) was only a 2a but "probably a 3c". I didn't understand it as her year 1 teacher said she felt dd was a very good writer and I know 3c is good but scraping a 3c seems a low expectation.

For an overall L3, she has to be writing L3 in a variety of genres, not just stories. Generally in class, and certainly in a test, they will be writing within set guidelines rather than "making up" a story of their choosing. All of this could impact the level.

I'm going against opinion and wouldn't award a level 3 for the example posted although I'm not saying your daughter isn't a level 3 writer ...there isn't enough evidence there of level 3 although there are some elements.

Just on that piece...2A max. Surprised at all those thinking secure 3. Some 3C ish parts but no where near enough to say secure.

x post with mrz

I'm not a teacher but I know my year 3 DD is a secure level 3 (3b) and this is some way away
but it's really good -I love children's stories :)

I don't think you can judge from one example- and doesn't she need to be writing at a high level in lots of genres for a level 3?

Oops, sorry, posts

X posts

Seeker, I understand what you are saying and that's why I said my first sentence that I know it is only part of one piece of work and is not her overall level.

The difference in views is interesting.

Only within story writing, not other genres, what sort of thing is missing from this for those of you who think it is not a 3. This will give me an idea of what she is missing.

These are a list of points from the TES forums.

Level 3
Pre-requisite
? Can spell common monosyllabic words accurately, and use phonetically plausible strategies to attempt unknown polysyllabic words
? Can vary sentence structure (Level 2)

? Can produce work which is organised, imaginative and clear, (e.g. simple opening and ending)
? Can use a range of chosen forms appropriately and consistently, (e.g. letters - formal and informal, reporting, diary, dialogue)
? Can adapt chosen form to audience, (e.g. provide information about characters or setting, make a series of points)
? Can use interesting and varied words choices, (MUST pick up on ?ambitious? from 2B)
? Can develop and extend ideas logically in sequenced sentences, (may still be overly detailed or brief)
? Can extend sentences using a wider range of connectives to clarify relationships between points and ideas, (e.g. when, because, if, after, while, also, as well)

? Can usually use correct grammatical structures in sentences, (nouns and verbs agree generally)
? Can use sentence punctuation accurately; full stops, capital letters and question marks
? Can structure and organise work clearly, (e.g. beginning, middle, end; letter structure; dialogue structure)
? Can adapt form and style for purpose, (e.g. clear difference between formal and informal letters; abbreviated sentences in notes and diaries
? Is experimenting with a wide range of punctuation, although use may not be accurate, (e.g. commas; inverted commas; exclamation marks; apostrophes)
? Can use cursive script accurately and neatly, although may be slow, (may not be accurate for Level 3C)

? Can use adjectives and adverbs for description
? Can spell phonetically regular, or familiar common polysyllabic words accurately, (?sometimes? for Level 3C e.g. ?sometimes?, ?bonfire?)
? Can develop characters and describe settings, feelings and emotions, etcetera
? Can link and relate events, including past, present and future, sensibly, (afterwards, before, also, after a while, eventually?)
? Can attempt to give opinion, interest or humour through detail
? Can use generalising words for style, (e.g. sometimes; never; always; often; in addition?.)
? Is beginning to develop a sense of pace

Do the teachers amongst you think that all the emphasis on what level a piece of writing is going to be and demonstrating set grammar or punctuation patterns is taking away the creativity that should surely be the focus of writing at this age? It seems a little formulaic if kids are almost forcing themselves to 'include a semi-colon' or whatever?

A secure level two- which is a 2B. Assuming Year 2?

Do kids have to use cursive and spell correctly to get a level 3? My dyslexic yr3 is way off on both of those :(

No bettystearoom I think children can be very creative in their writing as there is no set grammar or punctuation patterns just the expectation that children will demonstrate higher skills for higher levels.

In theory they should use cursive (but the examples on the web site include non cursive) and common words should be correctly but phonetically plausible spellings are acceptable for less common words. There is a separate spelling test.

I would say a 2A as well.

And I wouldn't base much emphasis on the spelling or mixed capitals.

I don't really understand this. Those of you saying 2b or 2a do realise it was only an excerpt of the story not all of it? I can see lots of the level 3 targets in there with different openings and punctuation types.
Why so low? I'm not doubting what you're saying but want to understand the difference between this and a 3c or 3b piece.

Which is why we are saying it's not possible to give an accurate level from the sample you posted but that in the example there is no evidence of Level 3 expectations.

She could well be a level 3 writer but that piece doesn't demonstrate it.