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Primary education

Join our Primary Education forum to discuss starting school and helping your child get the most out of it.

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Original poster

Reading with my Y1

30 replies

Morebiscuitsplease · 01/10/2013 18:49

My DD2 is very tired at the moment. Her teacher did say she is working them hard. So much so I am finding it difficult to read with her in the evening. She has bedtime stories but am very reluctant to read with her when she is tired as it is hard work and not enjoyable. Mornings we seem to have little time. Last year I read with a Y1 pupil and have asked to do the same this year with her. Reading as soon As she gets to school after the walk to school will mean she is fresh and ready to go. As this will be the only time she reads individually I feel I have no choice as at school they only read in a group. How do other parents manage. I strongly believe that regular individual reading practice is essential to learn to read well.

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redskyatnight · 01/10/2013 19:01

I adopted a "relaxed" approach about individual reading. In an ideal world I would like my children to read individually every day, however getting stressed about not fitting it in helps nobody.

In your circumstance I would maybe look to read in the morning - it's surely only 5-10 minutes in Y1? Or I would just cherry pick the nights when she is not too tired (plus weekends) and use the other days to read to her (IMO they get a lot from being read to as well0.

WowOoo · 01/10/2013 19:07

Read to her for a short time and ask her to read you the odd sentence or word when you know she's very tired.

We haven't been reading everything we're meant to this term so far. Some books are on the dull side and he's so tired. So, he's been choosing some of his own stuff and doing short bursts of school books here and there. We make up for it on the weekend

Periwinkle007 · 01/10/2013 19:53

I have been lucky - my 2 (reception and Yr1) haven't been ridiculously tired yet. The little one more so since she started on full days but her reading is only about 5 minutes anyway so we do it after school, she comes in, has a snack and then reads. the older one was recently 6 so older end of the year and isn't particularly tired at all so we have been able to get her to do her suggested 20 minutes.

If very tired I would just do a page and leave it at that or get up 5 minutes earlier in the morning and do it then. There was a patch last year before DD1 got her glasses where she read much much better in the morning so she used to read to me whilst I brushed her hair and sorted out school bag etc. That worked well. it was time she would otherwise have been watching TV and I was still able to do the things I needed to anyway.

simpson · 01/10/2013 19:53

Can you not read in the morning instead?

missmapp · 01/10/2013 19:57

I work full time, so can only really do evening reading with my two. DS2 is in yr1, and has been tired- we have pushed a few reading sessions though and he is now reading before his story- sometimes the whole book, other times half. It is hard, but with my two routine is everything and if that slips, getting them back to reading is a real pain.

If I had the choice, I would do reading in the morning before school, but we leave at 7, so don't have the time.

SizzleSazz · 01/10/2013 19:58

How about getting to school 5 mins early and reading in the car or sat on a bench. Fewer distractions and as you say she will be ready to go for the day at that point.

My dd1 (yr2) wants, and has always wanted to, read when she gets in from school. Dd2 (yr1) would prefer to read in the mornings after breakfast. This is sometimes c

SizzleSazz · 01/10/2013 19:58

Completed in the car

BrianTheMole · 01/10/2013 19:59

Its much easier in the mornings, 5 to ten mins max.

Beauchamp · 01/10/2013 20:00

I used to sit on the sofa every evening with my arm around my 5 year old. They'd read to exhaustion or the end of the book with me gently prompting when they needed help.
They both learned from a standing start to being free readers within 6 months.

AbbyR1973 · 01/10/2013 20:58

DS's both read to me before dinner time if I get home from work in time, or sometimes just after dinner. We do it before going upstairs to get ready for bed. I then read each of them a bedtime story in bed. I treat reading to them entirely separately to them reading to me. Occasionally if we have been pushed for time, dS 1 has read to me in the car when we are travelling somewhere, but he is essentially an independent reader in the sense of not needing help decoding words.
DS's are year 1 and reception and are quite tired, but also fairly enthusiastic backed up by a positive motivational system (bribery!)

kilmuir · 01/10/2013 21:03

beauchamps that sounds awful.
Reading should be a pleasure,

NightLark · 01/10/2013 21:05

I found this almost impossible tbh.

3 DC, plus working 3.5 days a week means mornings were a frantic rush of shouting at everyone to get dressed and out of the door for drop off with childminder (school age) and nursery (pre-schoolers * 2). Evenings, I picked up at 6, bedtime was at 7 for the little ones, by the oldests Y1 bedtime at 7.30 he was far too tired. Add a reluctant (boy) reader into the mix and it was a disaster.

We read at weekends, I carried on doing bedtime stories and (until the teacher banned us from doing this in Y2) I gave him reading credit in his diary for every back-of-the-cereal-packet/information leaflet/noticeboard he read. Then we were told only to note down banded reading books and we gave up as there was no way he could meet their targets.

Beauchamp · 01/10/2013 21:14

kilmuirs - it is a pleasure! Ds2 is upstairs right now reading. Both Dc love books and pretty much always have.

by to exhaustion, I don't mean until they collapsed! Only until they were finding it hardgoing.

ChocChaffinch · 01/10/2013 21:15

nightlark - that's sad they banned it as IMO every bit of reading counts, dd now 7 is fascinated with lists of ingredients on jars & packets,

my ds, age 5 is not as enthused about reading as my dd but we treat library books as a special treat, I lay them on their beds and they rush up after school and leaf through,
with him he reads a short chip and kipper tripey book then picks his bedtime story, he LOVES being read to,
I agree reading to them is crucial, using diff voices and lots of expression, and taking time to check understanding, discuss topics, notice unusual punctuation
I also read my books a lot in front of them, 7yo will ask what my book is about, I also get her to read the paper occasionally,
It is v difficult to fit in so reading is bedtimes here, they read 1st then we read to them, if theyre really tired we just cut their bit shorter. with after school clubs, swimming etc etc the week is quickly eaten up

grumpalumpgrumped · 01/10/2013 21:15

We read in the mornings as I am not home until 7, and DH has severe dyslexia so cant help in the evenings.

AbbyR1973 · 01/10/2013 21:56

Night lark... Seriously? A teacher banned bedtime stories??? Unbelievable. I would be furious and then totally ignore it. Why on earth would any sane person ban a bedtime story, and what business does any teacher have telling you want you can't do with YOUR children in YOUR time? Seriously?
Grrrr.... It's got me cross just thinking about it!!

Periwinkle007 · 01/10/2013 22:06

Abby I think the teacher banned writing down reading cereal packets and leaflets in the notebook not banned bedtime stories although I did misread it myself first.

Original poster

Morebiscuitsplease · 01/10/2013 22:21

We have lots and lots of books and both love stories. (I work in a library :) will keep trying, we did manage some tonight. Just feel it is important to keep it positive. Her reading isn't bad, but I know it is my input that makes the difference.

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NightLark · 01/10/2013 22:30

No, not banned the stories, just banned giving any kind of credit / making any kind of record in reading diaries of DC reading anything that wasn't a banded reading book.

Ferguson · 01/10/2013 22:30

If you have the time, by all means support reading in class if the teacher is happy for you to do that, but work with other children besides your own.

Twenty-five years ago, when our DS started Reception, I was a 'parent helper' one morning a week, for five years. I also did gardening activities with Yr6 and ran an after-school keyboard club with Yr6. In other schools I went on to be employed as a TA for twelve years. One of my earliest 'readers' turned up again seventeen years later in her final year of Teacher Training! So you never know what the future holds . . .

NightLark · 01/10/2013 22:32

which was a shame, as getting DC to read anything at all was an uphill struggle, made far, far worse when he began to fall behind all his classmates in the competition for being a 'gold' reader, 'diamond' reader etc etc.

ShoeWhore · 01/10/2013 22:38

Maybe the answer is to try to tackle the tiredness and bring bedtime forward a little until she is more used to being back in the swing of school?

I'd get up 10 mins earlier tbh and do reading in the morning if you can. Or could you squeeze it in straight after school or while you are making dinner?

freetrait · 01/10/2013 22:53

Definitely important to be positive, shouldn't be a battle. Also important if possible to do it everyday- well that equals the best progress, providing first point is observed! I would work on getting the routine but not worry too much about how long or what she reads. So if she is really tired just read one page, or a few sentences. Then gradually when the habit is there you can build it to a bit longer.
Am just starting to listen to my 4 year old read each day. She prefers reading at bedtime where all is quiet and focused. Oh yes, make sure it is not too hard- start with something well within her grasp when you are trying to establish the habit. 4 year old is on easy books that she enjoys so that's easy, and nearly 7 year old can read well so we just do what we feel like re him reading, but do some most days.

3birthdaybunnies · 01/10/2013 23:10

I found it really hard listening to my eldest two, mornings are fairly manic and we don't drive to school so can't sit in the car. We have varied from just after school to bedtime. Never found a time to suit them tbh. It's better with ds as he has started early so I can listen to him when the girls are at school. I think though a lot of it is to do with motivation. He will demand to read even when he is really tired and has already read a couple of stories. The girls will try to dodge it on a Saturday morning when they have had a good night's sleep and a promise of a trip to the park as soon as they've finished. Not sure how to tackle the motivation though.

Original poster

Morebiscuitsplease · 02/10/2013 22:28

ShoeWhore I find that she is quite wired in the evenings and whilst in bed is not going to sleep...had this when she started school. Some mornings she has not got up till late and frankly there is not a lot of time....
Immediately after school is not good as she wants to play and as they have very little play in Y1 I feel she needs that. Also she does have activities twice a week....
I know the importance of reading regularly, it would help if they did listen to them read individually at school.

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