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 has always been like that. It's nice to see him re-visiting things when he has more of a clue re what they're about. When he was learning to read, and I mean about yellow book band we would find him in bed "reading" Usborne book for Boys which is about lime level or more I think!

Maybe your DS will come into his own. My nine year old nephew has only got more into reading recently. He reads some similar things to DS . Probably understands them more.

There isn't anything to stop children reading what they want for pleasure (odd that anyone would think that) but for a teaching purpose the teacher (not pozzled) should be identifying which skills he/she wants the child to practice/develop/extend and allocating texts accordingly - two very different things
It seems most people here equate allocated books to being Biff & Chip type texts perhaps that's why schools are conning parents with the "free reader" label - they aren't willing to invest in better teaching texts.

www.pandorabooks.co.uk/ecommerce/primary-fiction-books/book-bands/Book-Bands-for-Independent-Reading-Beyond-Lime-QuickCode-955.aspx

I agree mrz- but the key word in your post is 'should'. I think your teaching and your school are the exception rather than the rule. And if the school doesn't supply outstanding teaching of reading, then it naturally falls to the parent to pick up the slack. I'm not early years trained, but I'm learning very quickly!

Which is why the whole "free reader" label is a con - "look at what a good job we have done teaching your child they are a free reader in reception!" (often means we have no more suitable books for your child so we will let them tread water for the rest of the year) [rolls eyes]

Heh heh @ chub.

I read these threads with amazement. I have two children- one is 15 and one is almost 7. My first was reading fluently at 5, she had a love of books and to this day reads constantly. A bright, intelligent girl - it came so easily to her.

Fast forward to my youngest in year 2. He can't read a thing. Well, his name and 'mum' but that's more or less it. The most basic one word to a page books come home and he struggles with them. He's not dyslexic and he's not stupid. Ill get to the bottom of it anyway.

So back to the point I wanted to make. Does it REALLY matter what band/ colour book your small child is reading? I've had to learn that no two children are the same and being smug about your child's reading prowess can quite easily backfire on you when you have another one

Mrz - this is exactly what is happening to DD.

She is not going to be taught any skills needed to progress, she does guided reading at stage 6/7 with a group of 4 others.

The school only goes up to stage 11 and she has finished them. Admittedly the books she came home with yesterday were good but tbh I think that was a fluke as DD chose them herself.

She does not get a suitable book chosen by the school/teacher to bring home to read. But luckily she has me to supplement her reading/books.

and THAT is why I'm appalled by "free readers" simpson

Well, what can I do about it?

I had a meeting with KS1 Head yesterday who listened and was great and then DD came out from school yesterday again with books she had chosen herself. Admittedly the books were good but that was a total fluke.

Also the time it takes to read these books would be better spent on other books IMO.

There's not a lot you can do if a school isn't willing to invest money and effort apart from not being fooled by the label into believing your child knows everything and won't benefit from practising skills which may include using easier books

DD (y2) has been bringing home non fiction books this week. I'm not sure what level they are but we've had a variety of grey, navy and cream stickers. Although she can read them with ease she's learning so much from them so we're both happy.

I'm not sure where the new levels have come from. DD was free reading and last year's teacher was happy for her to take books in from home.

This year's teacher seems to be encouraging her to further improve rather then just letting her think she's learnt all she can when it comes to reading.

Book bands seems to cause so much angst amongst parents, either comparing to others or moaning that their little darling cant possibly be on this level and surely something 1000 pages thick would be more suitable.

I really feel for teachers, they do a great job and yet have to listen to parents moaning and questioning their judgement every day. The odd mistake will happen as they are only human but most queries are from tiger parents.

Simpson, DS loves the wimpy kid books and i have been trying to steer him away as he has read them several times and have found some similar to the wimpy kid style. Can find you the titles if you like so you can have a nosy on Amazon to see if your DS would enjoy.

Parents should also remember the book banding system was developed for mixed methods (Reading Recovery) and don't work very effectively if your child is being taught phonics effectively.

As I said before, I don't care what level of difficult ness a book is for DD, reading is reading!

But when they ( the school) find a random Biff book that she has not read at varying levels (so far we have had stages 6-9) and just bung it in her bag with no thought to the book, I get pissed off! DD hates reading scheme books with a passion and there was no thought to the book just a oh Simpson's DD has not read this one, hence my meeting yesterday. If they were non scheme books at the same level I would not be so bothered.

They know she has lots to learn (as do I) but I just get the impression she will be treading water till other kids catch up. IMO she should be learning about different genres, punctuation (in more detail than she knows), paragraphs (for reading)...

Happymummy - would love other titles thanks he does like HP too and read the first How to Train a Dragon book but refused to read any more!

Simpson, that is rubbish on the school's part. I tend to be of the belief that a child can learn something from most books, with the right support. (i.e. an adult asking the right questions). But I'm not sure that holds true for bloody BiffChipKipper.

Do you make her read them? If I get an unsuitable book from school, I ignore it and get DD to read from her own books or the library. (NB I wouldn't do this if the book had been carefully chosen by the teacher to meet her learning needs. ). I'm also making it very clear to DD that the actual reading aloud is only part of reading-talking about the text is just as important.

DD reads to me every night and atm is reading Amelia Jane. When we got the first bloody Biff book, I asked her if she wanted to read it and she said no, she wanted to read Amelia Jane.

So book went back unread, then we got another one which was when I spoke to the teacher and she said all kids have to have Biff reading scheme books till NC L3 unless the KS1 Head says otherwise, so I had a meeting with KS1 Head who said yes, no problem, pointless her reading them etc...then she came home with another one!

Isn't she almost L3 anyway?y DD is around 2b and I know from your previous posts that your DD is a long way ahead of mine.

Not that L3 is some kind of magic line-of course she still needs suitable books and teaching even if she is there.

Exactly, it is the school who seem to be making a L3 magical

According to the meeting yesterday she is a 2A with some elements for L3 in her fictional reading only.

I was also told that a L3 is the highest she can go to in yr2, but I'm not worrying about that right now as that's 2 years away.

"I was also told that a L3 is the highest she can go to in yr2"

Yes, clearly there is some magical property to being in year 3, that suddenly allows you to move up a level. I wonder if a beam of light will reach down and touch your DD at some point in the summer holidays before yr2 and allow her to access L4 reading?

What utter nonsense.

we are doing a mix of school and home books both in school and at home. sorry not sure that makes sense. sometimes she takes in her own chapter book if she is part of the way through one and they then listen to her read that and sometimes she brings home a school one. It makes it a bit more interesting for her and I think they have the sense to see it is widening her reading experience without her going up levels so to speak. she is past book band 11 but as only in Yr1 the books they now have are allstars and 'My first read alone'? which I see purely as being sort of extra books to read and continue to develop interest (well if possible with those books) adapt to chapter style format, continue to work on different skills etc but keep them more age appropriate. I don't mind that, so long as she is enjoying what she is reading. She wants to take in www.amazon.co.uk/The-Life-Times-Honey-Bee/dp/039586139X to read to them at the moment. I don't think they will complain as she can learn loads from it