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Primary education

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Reception teacher told us not to read everyday

346 replies

TeaJunky · 06/12/2013 11:58

Ok, so dd started bringing books home. She initially brought the purple level with no words then progressed onto pink quite quickly. She reads her school reading (phonics) book to me everyday and as the reading book is changed only once a week, she began to find this boring quite quickly.

I wrongly assumed that she is perhaps ready for something more challenging and I wrote this in her reading record.

Dd's reception teacher called me in at the end of the day and proceeded to show me the whole reading scheme on the trolley and explain that it only consisted of 500 words and the whole point of it was to achieve fluency blah blah (I already know all this). She said dd had been tried out on some 'harder' books and struggled with them hence she stayed on pink.
That was fine by me, so I suggested that she perhaps needed a new book more often as she read everyday. The teacher said 'really, don't read everyday because it can get boring really quickly'.
I pointed out that it actually wasn't me pushing dd to sit down and read, it was her bringing her book bag from her room and literally dragging me onto the sofa to read - she said 'honestly, don't let her do it everyday' Hmm

What ?!

The second thing that worried me about the whole conversation was the fact that the reading scheme only went up to level red, so the whole of the reading scheme was only three levels; purple (pre words), pink and red. She said that's the highest they can go in reception on the scheme.

Am I right to feel that this is a very limiting and pre-determined scheme with no room for differentiation or individual progression?

This is a highly thought of school and we are happy with everything else but the whole reading convo we had seems so bizarre.

thoughts ?

OP posts:
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fairisleknitter · 09/12/2013 16:44

Framey another here who read before school and have one child who did so to. No-one needed to teach us. My child read the "Tesco" at the age of two which I found a bit sad, but that was all it took - seeing a sign regularly. And I used to make a point of not using the brand name but saying shop or supermarket. I will understand if you think I am an idiot for that!

simpson · 09/12/2013 17:54

DD taught herself to read/blend at a very basic level at 3 before she started nursery. There was no point waiting 2 years until she started school for her to learn to read properly Hmm

DS on the other hand learnt at school.

We just did what other posters have said: bought the songbirds books, looked in charity shops, used the library and Oxford owl. But then my phonics knowledge is pretty good (in a way to show DD I mean).

mrz · 09/12/2013 19:52

"The 127 signatories included 11 Professors of Education across the UK.'" would you like to guess how many of them had ever taught in an Early Years class FrameyMcFrame?

Huitre · 09/12/2013 19:59

I don't understand where the hothousing accusation has come from in the first place. This is a thread about a child who is reading age-appropriate books and wants to read more of them. That's hardly hothousing!

FrameyMcFrame · 09/12/2013 21:26

Age appropriate according to who?

And the whole...she asked for a reading book.... That's what they all say! :)

columngollum · 09/12/2013 21:29

Ultimately age appropriate according to the parent. I have heard of schools giving children inappropriate material but I never did find out what happened as a result.

mrz · 09/12/2013 21:34

My son (at age 3) didn't ask for reading books he just read the Financial Times Wink

FrameyMcFrame · 09/12/2013 21:44

'' No-one needed to teach us. My child read the "Tesco" at the age of two which I found a bit sad, but that was all it took - seeing a sign regularly.''

And that's my point exactly. It's not at all hard to learn to read, all it takes is seeing that sign regularly!
So if we bombard our little ones with reading, they have less time for their REAL development, which comes through playing :)

6 and 7 year olds learn to read super fast and they have the understanding to go with it.

mrz · 09/12/2013 21:48

importance of play as opposed to learning can you have play without the child learning from it? “Play Is The Work of the Child” Maria Montessori

Starting age ...2002 is recent?

It doesn't take into account our relatively gentle start to education compared to our European neighbours with later starting ages but much more formal structure. Also look at www.theguardian.com/education/2013/apr/22/elizabeth-truss-right-french-nurseries
www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-22815837 and read posts from parents with children in other school systems

mrz · 09/12/2013 21:50

How many children have you not taught to read?

A fortunate few will learn to read regardless but unfortunately many other will never learn no matter how long you leave them!

FrameyMcFrame · 09/12/2013 21:55

well I have a 12 year old bookworm who reads for pleasure. I didn't teach her to read before she started school and her school took the reading slowly.

Sorry my links were old, a cursory glance over the internet in the space of 30 seconds.

FrameyMcFrame · 09/12/2013 21:56

And 'learning' was meant in terms of formal learning...obviously!

Galena · 09/12/2013 21:59

And the whole...she asked for a reading book.... That's what they all say!

Well, it's what I said, because it is what happened. She now, at the age of 4, will often spend her pocket money on a book. The one she bought yesterday was 'see inside your body' and since buying it she has been telling me about neurons, red/white blood cells, platelets and so on - because it fascinates her.

Sorry you find this so hard to believe, but I haven't hot-housed her, she has done it herself.

mrz · 09/12/2013 22:00

I have two children the eldest was reading the Financial Times at age 3 without any formal instruction and the younger who didn't learn to read until much later and then only with formal instruction (very slow) in school both read for pleasure ... not sure what that proves.

FrameyMcFrame · 09/12/2013 22:06

Nothing. But far more children are put off by over zealous parent.

FrameyMcFrame · 09/12/2013 22:07

Sooner isn't always better, people really find that hard to comprehend!

FrameyMcFrame · 09/12/2013 22:09

Also, I find giving a 4 year old pocket money a bit strange!

Galena · 09/12/2013 22:14

Jolly good. Now I'm hothousing and strange. Marvellous.

The fact that it started off as a reward for doing 2 sessions of physio each and every day without fussing need not bother you. I'm happy with our decision to give her pocket money. She is learning money sense and patience ('I want that book, I need £5 and I have £3 - so I need to wait 2 more weeks'), but of course, that's more hothousing, isn't it?

Huitre · 09/12/2013 22:15

I have a 7 year old bookworm. She did ask for books, she asked for them often before she'd started school. Before she asked for books, she asked about letters. Her favourite game when she was about two was getting me whichever magnetic letter I'd asked for off the fridge. I only started this game as a way of getting her out from under my feet when I was cooking (the fridge was in the cupboard under the stairs at the time). And someone gave her the letters, I put them on the fridge and then she started to ask about them. For her reading and letters WAS playing. She just thought it was fun. Should we not respond to our children's sensible questions about how the world works?

Since she could talk, she's been telling stories and asking me to write them down, so one day I said 'how about you have a go at writing them too?'. Is that hothousing? I don't think so, but yes, she could make reasonable stabs at writing her thoughts down before she started school. I just helped her to do what she was interested in. She writes a story a day now, at least. Sometimes more. If she's not writing one, she's telling me another. If she's not doing that, she's asking me what's half of 57 and telling me that the world is so weird because her little mind is genuinely captivated and entranced by the idea of fractions. I don't sit her down and tell her that we are now going to talk about poems or fractions or division, it is all entirely her own idea. And I really don't think that it's a bad thing. A bad thing would be artificially restricting what she had access to.

I really can't see how a red level book is inappropriate for a child who is asking to read every day. I have no reason to believe that the OP is telling us all lies. Why on earth would she? She sounds perfectly sensible to me.

Huitre · 09/12/2013 22:17

Actually I gave my three year old pocket money. Mainly because I was sick of the demands for CBeebies magazines. So she got £2 per week, which was enough to buy one magazine and that was it. She got the idea pretty quickly.

Huitre · 09/12/2013 22:19

I don't think you are strange, Galena!

Galena · 09/12/2013 22:22

Huitre, thank you. You make me feel ok about my parenting again. I've just been interested in DD and answered her questions about the world - and she has been a sponge and soaked up the information. I didn't think I was making such a big faux pas as some posters are making out!

FrameyMcFrame · 09/12/2013 22:29

Yes you say they choose to read but it's with direction. The child can only choose from what is on offer, if it's a load of books and some magnetic letters on offer then that's what they'll play with. But if there's lots of toys that are changed regularly, or other children available then I doubt many 3 year old would choose to sit in the corner with a book.

The reason? Doing reading in the corner doesn't teach them what they need to learn about the world, about physical properties of objects, social relationships bladh-di blah...go read about it :)

ClayDavis · 09/12/2013 22:30

You really haven't made a faux pas Galena. If it makes you feel any better the most effective way of getting my niece to do her physio was to place a book the distance you wanted her to crawl/walk to.Then she'd bring it back and we'd read it together. I'm pretty sure that's definitely hot housing.

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