Worrying about use of ORT and HF words in reception

[Kerryblue]

Actually, I am feeling really tearful right now

I have dt's, just started reception. This morning their teacher told me she is going to send home some 'tricky' words for them to learn and start them on reading books. When I asked which ones, I got the answer I so didn't want - Biff and bloody Chip!!

Bit of background... my Year 4 dd is still on reading schemes, is having masses of extra help (for example a 'wheel' of sounds such as 'gr' 'st' 'cl' etc that she has to read every night), and has just really struggled with her reading. She learnt (or not as the case may be) with Biff and Chip. That scheme totally failed her. She is one of the 1:5 who needs synthetic phonics, it's just we didn't realise this at Key Stage 1. Long story.

My Year 7 ds, who although reads well now, was a late reader and also learnt with this scheme.

Both of them were very much 'I will only do what the teacher asks me to do, you mummy, know nothing!' type of children. The dt's are going the same way. If I want them to read to me at home with Songbird books for eg, I bet they will fuss about it because it's not what the teacher wants them to do.

I am probably being over emotional about this, but I really, really want them to learn with synthetic phonics. I have learnt so much about different types of learning to read - mainly from mumsnet actually - for me to believe that this is the best way. How do we know they are going to be OK with Biff and Chip until it's too late.

At the moment, they know all their letter sounds, some digraphs and long vowel sounds (using the Letters and Sounds DVD and poster) but are struggling with blending a bit. So they are at the very start of their learning to read journey and I so don't want it to go wrong for them.

What should I do next with them? How do I help them?

'which still seem to sell' - maybe because they support the ways of 'How the Best Schools do It' in 'Reading by Six'. My interpretation of the document is that it doesn't support systematic phonics 'first, fast and only', as mentioned earlier as the desirable way to teach 'reading'. The document is obviously designed to promote and support systematic phonics (and it could be criticised for promoting one particular commercial scheme over others) so this 'method' has been heavily emphasised as the main contribution in teaching reading but the following are a few quotes to illustrate the these government endorsed schools are successful in teaching reading because they use 'mixed methods' well.

'Boxes of banded reading resources are available in every class and children are encouraged to choose books at an appropriate level. The unusually long lunch period includes half an hour that is used for individual and guided reading.'

'The school considers that children do not become fluent readers using one skill alone so children take part in guided reading at least three times a week, and more often if they need this. As well as texts from the Oxford Reading Tree scheme, which include phonically decodable books, ?real? books are available for the children to take home, banded by difficulty. A team of parent helpers assists with guided reading.'

'There is a holistic approach to the teaching of reading in Old Ford in which phonics ? based on Read Write Inc. ? guided reading, early attention to writing and constant language development all play their part....The school also retains a commitment to Reading Recovery for a number of pupils each year in Year 1.'

'they are also given the first set of words of a first-stage reader to take home to learn. Once they know them, they are given the books with the words. Progress through the sounds that children need to learn follows a standard list and is supported for each child by two reading schemes: New Way, a phonically based scheme, and the Oxford Reading Tree. This combination of phonics and reading schemes, including a phonically based spelling scheme, Spelling for Literacy, is continued through Key Stage 1.'

'This means providing high-quality texts, both literature and non-fiction,
and ensuring that children are introduced to these through cross-curricular projects, story-tellers, and the promotion of books and reading by teachers to children. Reading is given high status.'

Our 'STARS' scheme is definately a remedial scheme! It might just be a Cardiff based literacy initiative. I just remember seeing that the A stood for Accelerated and R for Reading and was as I know he struggles and was a bit when his teacher last year said he was average for reading and not so strong in his numeracy (he is so the other way around!)

Although DS is very bright (he can remember things I said to him over a year ago including where we were, what we were doing & sometimes what I was wearing!!) he still gets his letters muddled (b,d,q etc) and this year has started reversing his numbers. He is still on level 5 Biff & Chip and hasn't progressed since April.

I'll have a look at the websites MaisieD posted so that I can have an informed discussion with the SENCO on Friday. I'll come back and update what our STARS is in case it helps anyone else.

zebedee - you are confusing the term 'mixed methods', which refers to mixing the methods of the initial teaching of decoding (look and say and phonics) with the teaching of other reading skills, which phonics never ever precludes.

Only one of your four quotes could be attributed to the support of mixed methods - the others simply support the view that other skills besides decoding are needed to read well. They do not support the view that the teaching of decoding should use mixed methods.

www.cardiff.gov.uk/content.asp?nav=2%2C2869%2C5228%2C6167%2C6174

Thanks mrz. I just wish there was a bit more information about what is involved. Makes it difficult to support from home...