Why has Year 2 teacher sent DD home with a ridiculously easy reading book?

[pokesandprodsforthelasttime]

Granted it's only the 2nd week of term and the teacher probably hasn't got round to assessing all 30 children yet.

But surely they should know which book band she left Year 1 on?

Is it my job to let them know where she's up to via the reading record?

DS (YR4) came home with a book he read last year. However, apparently he shouldn't have read it last year as it was in a box that they weren't meant to read until this year (subject matter perhaps?). Back onto the scheme books this term - but he can read them very quickly. So he reads a bit out loud to us, reads the remainder in his head - gets quizzed on the story or facts from a quick flick through of the book - then that gets written in his reading record. The following day when there's no new book we read something else - perhaps getting him to read a poem out loud or something - or simply continuing with one of his books he is reading at the moment - again this gets put in his reading record book.

If you do this sort of thing the teacher is going to see that your child is doing much more reading than the band they're on and it might be a nudge towards getting a push up the levels if that is appropriate.

How long do you think it would take for your DD's teacher to assess every child and make sure that they select three books that are at exactly the right level, that are of interest to the child? Just have a wild guess. This is day 4 of school. Have a .

particularly as reading is only one area... ds2's year 2 class have also been assessed for maths, and literacy as well as reading. That's 31 children levelled for 3 areas in a week.

Have you tried asking her teacher?

Have you tried asking her teacher?

Hi pokes&prods:

I think you are quite justified to be confused.

I am a bit at some of the responses from teachers to your question.

Quite reasonably you see getting a book way below your DCs actual reading level (as you instinctively see it) a bit confusing.

Just as devil's advocate here - teachers - do any of you consider sending a note along with the first book warning parents that you're starting off with a book which may appear easy, but you want to start slow & ensure all the skills gained last year are refreshed?

I think this is again a case of poor communication.

Clearly many teachers do this - but year after year parents MN is full of parents confused by this or reporting their children have been made upset by this.

I get that you're just starting to evaluate ability for all your pupils and have to evaluate in several areas for up to 31 pupils at the start of the year - but do you explain any of this & what you will be doing to your pupils' parents?

This book isn't refreshing skills she learnt last year, this is one she had in reception 2 years ago. It was one sentence per page, and about 6 pages long. She's reading My brother's famous bottom at home at the moment. Just so you get a measure of how ridiculously easy it was.

This is DDs 2nd week back at school BTW so yesterday was her 6th day back. I appreciate they have to assess all the children but surely they have records from last year as a baseline?

It's not difficult to check where each child was up to 6 weeks ago and give them an appropriate book. Further assessment in the classroom can be done at the same time so the level may be altered slightly in a week or two.

Yes Pastsellbydate the communication is appalling, the teachers have never written in her reading record in the 2 years she's been there so far, so I'm never sure what's going on.

And if they've assessed (or guessed?) her reading level so wildly out, god knows where they've put her for maths and literacy. It's this sort of thing that worries me....

I would say that the correct level of challenge for a reading book to bring home would be one in which your child reads about 95% accurately.

I also find the patronising tone of some of the teachers here quite astounding. Of course I bloody know how to assess my DD's reading! I am an educated adult, and it's hardly rocket science to know that reading involves expression, understanding and fluency as well as decoding, and that if your child isn't managing that then they have progress to make before they move on to 'harder' levels. This magical knowledge is actually really quite accessible to those who have not done a teaching degree.

Though in any case, I much prefer DD to read books she wants to read and enjoy, whether she finds them easy or really hard. She keeps doing that and she'll make good progress - as indeed has happened. We read loads together over the summer, with no regard whatsoever to book bands, and her fluency and expression have come on in leaps and bounds. And we had a brilliant time in the process. I can't even remember what book band she left reception on to be honest, and don't much care to remember.

I agree impecunious. I also find a lot of teachers quite patronising to parents - in real life and on here.

Your type of post just comes across as so desperate and needy almost. It's like you can't bear that the teacher, of all people, can't instantly see what a genius your child is and promote them to top the class. Why do they have to be pushed and challenged for the get-go. Let them relax back into school before you're tiger mumming all over them.

Posts like yours make me really sad.

Do you think she might have got it in error?

Wipsglitter if you read the posts you'll see that the OP is talking about her child being given a reading book several years below her reading level. That would concern any reasonable parent - it's hardly tiger mother territory.

I have read the posts. I still don't think it's something to get your knickers in such a twist over. If you read the OP's posts you'll see it's day six if the term. There's weeks and months of learning ahead. Her child is not going to be cast to the dark side of being unable to read because they've been asked to read one book below the "right" level.

Push, push push.

Clearly they have bungled. I had exactly this with DS in Y1. A book that he'd read in March in YR, ok that was only 6 months earlier, but in that time he had essentially learnt to read. The book he was given was about yellow book band, and he was basically a free reader, or certainly on white. It annoyed me so much that after it was changed (to white), I made an appointment to see the teacher to chat about his reading so that we were on the same page. Actually that was really helpful, she listened and responded and from then on the books were better and the right level (ish).

A year later and the books he is bringing home aren't that different, but I did just go upstairs and find him reading part of the Sunday Times , so I don't think I will bother raising it again. His inspiration comes from books at home rather than school generally, although he seems happy to read no. 10 Mr Majeika too from school. I will wait till parents evening and see how things are then and maybe see if there are any more inspiring books for him/what the teacher feels is appropriate.

Teachers are human and they make mistakes but they also allocate books for a reason including books you may consider to be below your child's ability.

Totally agree with above comment about communication - if you knew WHY teacher had chosen this particular book ie he's struggling with inference/subtext/sounding out/expression etc that might help.

Just to send a really easy book home is surely confusing for both child and parent

Sorry that should be *she not he

I have an appt on Thursday to talk to the KS1 Head about DD's reading books as she has been put several levels down despite free reading since April (reception).

If you really want to know what's going on, make an appt to speak to the teacher or ignore the book totally

mrz If a teacher deliberately sends home a book several years below a child's current reading level, with one sentence per page when the child is otherwise reading chapter books, then I'd say it's rather incumbent on the teacher to let the parent know what the rationale behind it.

Because being the ignoramus that I am, if that happened in our household I would tell my child not to bother wasting their time and to go and read something more interesting instead.

Wips The point is less that it's 6 days into term and that it's just one book, and more than you'd expect your child's teacher to have liaised sufficiently with the previous teacher to have a rough awareness of where each child is at. If that hasn't happened (and it certainly does in my DD's school) then that's fair reason to be concerned.

rationale behind it is*.

We've just done day 4 back at school and there isn't a sniff of a reading book.
My DD2 has just gone into yr3 and tbh I couldn't care less. She reads at home for pleasure and loves researching facts about wildlife so she is reading which imo is all that matters.
Reading books will appear at some point and we will endure them but reading for pleasure will always carry on at home. The joy of going to the library to choose something new to read is still with me now as an adult.

DD's yr1 teacher admits that all she has been told about DD is that she was in a group of 5 doing guided reading at stage 7. She had been told nothing else.

Wipsglitter, there's nothing wrong with wanting your child to work at the level they ought to and there's nothing wrong with wanting your child to reach their potential - actually both should be positively encouraged. Why would that make you sad? The reverse makes me sad - the parents who couldn't give a toss and leave it all to the teachers.

Good posts impecunious. As with so many things, it's often essentially up to the parents to ensure their child is stretched. That's really terrific for the parents (including like you I assume impec) who are happy to do and can in fact do it. But if they can't (or let's face it, won't do it, like some parents) then the poor kid is not really going to benefit.