Reception EYFS school report question

[lovessummer]

Have just had the annual report for my dt's. It is a super report and they have obviously settled really well in school. We are really pleased. In the bit where its mapped to the 'Early Learning Goals', they are either 'expected' or 'exceeded' in everything, except 'writing', where they are 'emerging'. Does this mean they are below where they should be in writing at the end of reception? Is there anything we should be doing with them over the holidays to get their writing up to speed? (they don't really like writing, so we haven't pushed it as we have been focussing on their reading and ensuring they settle well and are happy, but obviously if they need extra input then we'll do what we can). Or is this an okay level for them at this stage?

Yes, expected is the expected level for the end of reception. However depending on how they've been assessed (there's been murmurings of very strict moderating on the TES forums), they could be very close to expected but just not quite have made one or two specific aspects.

If you search on google for the EYFS exemplification materials you will find examples of writing at the expected level (the exemplification materials only cover expected).

You should also known that getting exceeding is any areas (but particularly maths for example) is a superb achievement because the bar has been raised considerably from last year. So very well done to your DTs

Thanks tired. I'll have a look for that stuff. I suppose I am wondering if there is anything we should be doing to support their writing. Ie don't understand if 'emerging' means more work needed to get them to the level they should be at?

Yes, emerging means a child hasn't met the requirements for the expected level of that particular Early Learning Goal; which for writing is:-

Expected: Children use their phonic knowledge to write words in ways which match their spoken sounds. They also write some irregular common words. They write sentences which can be read by themselves and others. Some words are spelt correctly and others are phonetically plausible.

This could (if I've understood correctly) be argued to be above level 1C of the national curriculum (levels go 1C, 1B and 1A, with 1B being the expected level at the end of year 1). This is because 1C only requires children to be writing phrases and that's with support - I believe EYFS achievements are supposed to be independently achieved.

It's very possible that writing will just 'click' for them in year one, but there's a lot that you can do over the summer to help:

Lots of reading, not just books but signs, leaflets, anything with writing on!

Let them see you writing very often- write shopping lists, labels, notes for other family members. When you do it, occasionally 'sound out' a word as you write it, to reinforce the idea that words are built up through sounds.

When they play, try to introduce writing e.g. my 4 year old loves doing shows, so I might suggest that we make a poster or a programme. It doesn't have to be an essay- at this stage 'The show is here' is plenty. And again, if they're not keen on writing, you can do it. (You could always do one sign and then leave a pile of paper 'just in case they need any more'!)

Try writing in the sand at the beach, or in paint, or using water on the garden fence, or with a sharp stick in play dough.

Use magnetic letters and make up notes from them on the fridge. Try asking questions so that they can answer- shall we go to the park or the shops?

Try writing postcards or letters to friends.

But don't push it too much- you want to make it fun, notput them off.

It is extremely hard to get "exceeding" in writing. Our Local Authority moderator said it was equivalent to a secure level 1, or level 1b.

THis means that lots of children will be levelled as "emerging" or "expected" and very few "exceeding".

hi all, does your report include all 17 areas - with emerging/expected/exceeding for each 17 -- or just the 7 (or 8) groupings? in some primary schools in our area they only include the groupings. also, do they compute a score? i.e. emerging = 1 , expected = 2, and exceeding = 3? and if yes, do they give you stats for the school or for the class?

thanks!

We have a table with a cross against exceeding/expected/emerging across all 17 levels. Then there is a written record across "characteristics of effective learning" against 3 subheadings. There is no total points score or mention of points but easy enough to work it out. My favourite bit is the written narrative actually because it tells me that DS's teacher really has understood how he works although it is nice to see where they measure up against expected progress (PFB boast: DS has got 10 exceedings )

Hi. Can anyone advise me where I might find information relating to what is required to be assessed as emerging, expected or exceeding. My daughter brought her report home today and I am immensely proud of her. She got marked as exceeding in all areas expect speaking, which I am a little confused about. The teachers comments imply that this is because she is shy. I would have thought that this particular area would relate to ones use of language and communication rather than their confidence which would fit more with personal, social and emotional development. Any guidance or advice much appreciated. Thanks.