How much progress have your reception Dc made so far?

[Annanon]

My Dd is 5 and in reception. She joined in the nursery year, settled in really well straight away and flourished. However, I am finding the pace of the reception year extremely slow and am struggling to see what she has learnt so far this year, in terms of basic numeracy and literacy. She has spent the whole of last term re-capping what she learnt in the nursery year. Her end of term report read almost exactly like the one from the term before, in the nursery (e.g. knows single letter sounds, can blend CVC words, can count to 20 and identify 2d shapes).

What is typical for a reception class to have covered so far?

I don't know what they should have covered so far, but my ds4 is in reception and has covered most of the basic phonics,is reading simple floppy phonics books, counting reliably now up to 50, can attempt counting up in 2's and 5's. His drawing has come on a bit with a bit more accuracy and detail, he listens well and has made friends, the rest is a mystery.We have parents evening in Feb so hoping for more guidance then.

When my dd was in reception by end of first term they started phonics, we're reading simple books, she could count past twenty ( up to fifty) and she new all the shapes and colours etc in pre school. There is alot of playing in reception and many don't bring books home until teacher has cemented alot of the phonics.

I do think
Though that I
Would also be a bit concerned that she hadn't progressed since nursery but then there will be kids who didn't know what she already does know so teacher will be laying foundations. It can seem pain stakingly slow at first but then they r away.

Biggest change is that they can both read, neither could on starting. One reading a. A basic level, the other has made really quick progress and is on level 5.

She can now do her coat up and sing lots of Christmas songs.

Thanks for the reply. I know there will be a range, and that its hard to gage what they're doing. I just worry that Dd isn't learning much yet this year and is coasting along on what she already knew. She is one of the oldest in her year, very comfortable with the 'school routine' and very sociable. Last year she was so excited to share the new things she had learnt.

My little boy has progressed loads in reception. He knows most of his letters and attempts writing them, knowing only a J and no numbers before he started, he can write and recognise numbers 1-10. Literacy and numeracy he's a slow starter but socially and physically he's brilliant. All these posts about reading levels in reception drive me nuts, just look at the EYFS learing goals, nobody in my son's reception is what I would call reading, they blend some words. We are a good school in a good area.

I know what you mean. My dd is also on the older side in her class and there was a degree of boredom at the end as she had gained all she was going to from
Reception I think. But year one now and she's well away. There is plenty you can do at home. They don't focus on levels and achievements in reception its all about the routine and behaviour and setting the tone for the learning that will happen.
If there is no evidence however of any progress soon I would perhaps bring it up calmly as they really should be adding to their abilities not stagnating :)

DD could read last year. Is still bringing home level 1+ books, sometimes exactly the same books as last year - she & I both remember them. When I pointed this out the teacher said that she has now asked the nursery teacher not to give out any books to the older children, so that they wont be repeated in reception .

Phonics wise, Dd learnt no new sounds at school last term, but spent the time re-capping the single letter sounds. The class are progressing to ll, ff, ss, ck this term. Dd knows these and has done since the nursery class.

DD can write her name ( very neatly) and has been able to since she was 3. She has been doing lots of patterning in preparation for cursive writing, but is only just being shown how to form the first group of letters. She has been able to count (reliably) past 100 since the nursery class, but her report commented on her ability to count to 20. I feel that the children in the class who are younger or who did not attend the nursery are learning, but Dd is waiting around for the rest to catch up.

From what I can tell the EYFS curriculum is not about what you'd call academic learning. If you look at the EYFS learning goals it's stuff like can they move their bodies forwards and backwards, do they listen to other people and can they share? Other goals later on aren't much more challenging, number bonds up to twenty and things of that sort. If you're really lucky and your child is much further on than that already, hopefully she'll have a teacher who can accommodate her at her level. On the whole it probably doesn't matter if the teacher can't as long as you go down to WH Smith's educational department, buy the appropriate work books and spread them out on the kitchen table. My personal view about school is that it's more about fitting in than it is about academia.

Ds (4) was quite advanced starting reception so I was a bit sceptical about how much progress he would actually make, I was looking a tthis first year as more about getting used to the way of school life etc and hoping they'd notice him. I've been pleasantly surprised - he has clearly made progress.

Biggest difference is his reading (started only able to read cvc/cvcc words, now comfortably reading Green band with good comprehension too).
His addition has also improved (though he still takes a wild guess sometimes when he can't be bothered to work it out!)
He can also do more multiplication tables than when he started, so they have brought him on even though he's the only one working on this sort of stuff.
The other day I asked him what half of 28 was (in context, not really expecting an answer) and he instantly said "14" and when I asked how he knew that he said he's been learning more about halves in school. Before school he could divide even numbers up to 10 by 2 but that was it.

I would say his social skills have improved too, and his confidence - though he can certainly act like a 2 year old at home! But school say he's fine there which I guess is the main thing.

Only questionable thing is some of the stuff he's picked up as retorts (bum bum head, anyone?) but it's only to be expected I know

I would that that I am glad Dd gets to learn through play, and I know reception is less structured than the rest of the school. However, given that the settling in phase took place last year for my DD and many in her class, I feel there is a missed opportunity to move on a bit, rather than more of the same.

Forgot - his writing too has come on in leaps and bounds.

Learn and say - I agree with you to an extent but there comes a point where as parents you just can't teach the stuff they need to know especially with a bright child, surely? It depends how educated you are and how much of an all rounder, but looking at the progress ds is making in maths I won't be able to support him much past last year of primary, and that worries me! I'll have to sort that out when/if the time comes though, he might have totally gone backwards by then...

Yes, I suppose it is a missed opportunity. But the curriculum has deliberately been designed that way. If you want your daughter to move on academically this year you're going to have to move her yourself because the EYFS framework doesn't include the kind of learning that you have in mind.

Give the kids some time to be kids ! It's a shame that UK kids' parents are obsessed with academic learning at the age of 4 and 5 , when in some European countries they don't start school til 6 or 7. Including Finland that comes top in schooling tables.
Let them ski and skate and sledge and play like the kids are doing here, please.

barnet, yes and no. It is possible to let kids be kids but also encourage them academically. There's a fine line, I think piling on pressure is obviously bad but there are ways to make it fun that could actually benefit the child in the long run.There are many other differences between us and Finland.

My DS can recognse and write the letters of the alphabet, can count to 100 and recognises most of the numbers up to 100. He loves practising writing. He can write his name, mummy and daddy and can usually figure out how to write simple words by sounding them out.
At the weekend he read his reading book all by himself for the very first time by sounding out the words. I love his school and he is doing brilliantly there. They are fantastic teachers. Most of the learning is still heavily play orientated, which is great. I can't help thinking there is enough pressure put on children as they get older and have no problems with an 'easy' reception year.

'I feel that the children in the class who are younger or who did not attend the nursery are learning, but Dd is waiting around for the rest to catch up.'

This is probably exactly what's happening, it did with DC1. She started nursery knowing her letter sounds, blending CVC words, writing her name and CVC words and didn't really make any progress until mid-way through reception.

Tbh I can't see that it's a problem as long as she's happy. If she's saying she is bored or whatever then have a word with the teacher, otherwise just think she's 5 the fact that she isn't being 'academically stretched' is really not an issue.

he read his reading book all by himself for the very first time by sounding out the words.

You have to do a double-take when you see them doing this for the first time, don't you!

DS's school seems to be in the minority here in that they really do play all day long. Most of his friends at other local primaries are in very academic programs but DS learning entirely through play. He is in the process of being evaluated for dyspraxia so writing development is painstakingly slow. Reading and phonics won't enter the picture until next term as well.

Vagndidit - your user name
That is all!

Sorry OP.

I dont want to put any pressure on my Dd and I do of course want her to enjoy playing with her friends at school and having fun. But the fact is she has spent the past term at school and not at a creche. There will be children in Dd's class who have made loads of progress over the last term to get to where they are now. If Dd had learned to read simple words, or count to 20, or learn the phase 2 phonics over the last term, of course I would be happy. It's just that she learnt them in the previous term at the school nursery and simply repeated them last term. What was new material for some in her class was a repetition for my Dd.

I am trying to gage what is a realistic range of activities for a reception child, so that I know how to express my concerns regarding what I perceive to be an absence of differentiation.

Academically my dd has made almost no clear progress - still wouldn't say she can read & number recognition, letter formation etc still about the same BUT she started as a just 4 year old and is happy, confident and secure at school which is probably a good starting place for the next 14 odd years of learning.

Her big sister was 5 when she started school and stormed ahead, helped by an amazing teacher who found time for all 30 children as individuals. I do worry sometimes she'll struggle when the age difference levels out and the others catch up (she is well aware of being ahead at the moment).

If your dd is bored, I'd take it up with the teacher. If she is happy, I'd leave it be. She has years of school ahead of her.

IME (4th DC now in reception) your child was quite advanced before she started school with regard to reading and maybe a bit above average for numeracy.

Apologies if I missed it, but I can't tell if her writing is clear and neat. If she can write out a word like "chat" independently, or the number 61 when asked (presuming she can read it fine). Or what else she can do with adding & subtracting. I'm not sure what she has learn in "topic" (maybe science), or if she has had any emotional, social or behaviour issues to work on. DS learned about types of buildings and garden birds last term, he can now recognise & name several species he didn't know before. So that's example of non 3Rs stuff he's learnt.

I guess what I'm saying is that I would tend to want to feel fully confident in every other area before feeling disappointed in lack of development in an area where my child already excelled and was well above targets.

My DD (5 next week) knew her alphabet (mostly) by the end of nursery and could recognise numbers to 10 and write her name (with errors). The nursery/school asked the parents to hold off on teaching them to read, so i didn't make any effort to progress her at home. She can now write her (quite long) name beautifully, has written at least one short story at school (Goldilocks and the 3 bears....I was quite when I read her lengthy effort!), is reading floppy books comfortably and blending 'in her head' up to 5 letter words, is reasonably confident with numbers (although not brilliant) and, most importantly, has made a lot of new friends, is having a wonderful time and loves school.

Roll with it...ime, the learning really starts in yr1 and this is all about establishing confidence and making sure the building blocks are in place :)

learnandsay I did shed a 'proud mummy' tear!!