Active discussions

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Primary education

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

Original poster

Suppose you had just found out that the other kids in DS' Y1 Class

181 replies

TwigTwoolett · 10/10/2006 19:35

all had reading books and records that they brought home every week ... that teacher wrote notes on how they read in class in, and parents wrote notes on how they read at home

and they'd had them for 4 or 5 WEEKS

and your child didn't have one (hadn't had one since Reception last year)

What would you think /do?

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
Set a reminder
SherlockLGJ · 11/10/2006 18:53

Well how did you get on ??

roisin · 11/10/2006 18:56

How did the meeting go Twig?

sorrell · 11/10/2006 19:00

I'd be absolutely incandescent and probably a bit hysterical if this happened to my ds...but hey that's me
What a ridiculous oversight. Tbh I suspect that the reading you do at home is plenty and he will be getting classroom tuition, and the teacher will now be ultra-attentive to your ds (quite rightly).

rustycreakingdoorbear · 11/10/2006 19:04

Normally reading time and literacy time are not the same thing - I would expect them to have an hour for literacy but this would not be when they were heard to read. I'd guess that their reading time is after lunch - it's a very common time to have 'quiet reading' but that they are supposed to go to the toilet when they come in & then get their reading books. If the toilets are on another floor, it may be taking them so long to get there & back that some of them don't get around to reading.... are you sure that miniTwig isn't lurking in the loos to avoid having to read??? (of course the TA should be keeping an eye out for this sort of thing)

Original poster
TwigTwoolett · 11/10/2006 19:31

Many many apologies .. don't know how it happened .. I'm really sorry

Something to do with Head of Literacy wouldn't change literacy hour and they have to do toilet runs .. and because downstairs loos were supposed to be refurbished 3 weeks ago but its been extended they thought it would be ok .. she said she hasn't done any individual reading but that turned out to be a lie .. she's done some group reading and DS took part .. and he has one tick in her reading record .. he will have a reading record book tomorrow

I told her I expect him to be read with at least twice before end of half term (next friday)

Not satisfied but accepted her apologies .. told her DH furious and that I'd been incredibly shaken by this

I want to speak to Head of Literacy .. will do that tomorrow

OP posts:
Original poster
TwigTwoolett · 11/10/2006 19:32

have had friends / playdates after school btw so have had wine .. more I talk about it the more irate I'm getting

will sort it out

but really apart from apologies which are fair enough there's no real excuses

OP posts:
Original poster
TwigTwoolett · 11/10/2006 19:43

oh and despite me having teacher comments in DS' friend reading record she swore blind they (her or TA) hadn't done that with ANY of the children

fuming!

OP posts:
GeorginaA · 11/10/2006 19:52

I'm not surprised Twig. They've really let you down over this one, haven't they?

kid · 11/10/2006 19:56

Glad you managed to speak to the teacher and get to the bottom of it.
I am a TA and I have to admit that there is no time to listen to individual children reading. There is a guided reading programme in place which means each group of children will read to the teacher once a week.
Reading books are changed once a week, providing the children bring them back on time to be changed. I work with Year 3 so maybe that makes a difference. DS in Reception and as far as I know, he does not read to his teacher and there are only 15 in his class.

LIZS · 11/10/2006 19:57

is she new to teaching or just completely disorganised and irresponsible. Surely they don't both take all the children to the toilet for a whole hour ! Perhaps they would benefit from parent helpers hearing reading if they are so overstretched ?! [angry ] on your behalf (although dd didn't read today because they were practising songs for the Christmas play !)

TitianRed · 11/10/2006 19:58

I'm sorry you've had such a bad experience, Twig. I hope you get it all sorted out.

Ladymuck · 11/10/2006 20:02

OK, I appreciate that my ds1 is at a private school, but if this means that your ds has been heard to read by the teacher 3 times in one half-term, and to date no reading book has been sent home, then this is incredibly poor imo. Assuming that your school is teaching reading for Y1 (and I appreciate different schools have different strokes) I would expect for him to be heard read at least once a week, so 2 sessions between now and the end of half-term doesn't cut it in my view.

Your staff/pupil ratio seems very good, and so I just don't understand why so little reading is done (the toilet story doesn't cut it either btw). Ds1 is in a class of 15 with a teacher and a part-time TA and he reads individually to one of them 4 days per week (Friday is library day). Soupy may have a better insight though - her school staff/pupil ratio is excellent (1:8 iirc), but they don't particularly push reading at this stage - they're more trying to promote healthy attitudes towards learning. But the school is quite clear that this is what they're trying to do - yours doesn't seem to be that clear at all?

What would have happened if you hadn't spoken to other parents I wonder?

Olihan · 11/10/2006 20:07

Twig, I think you need to ask the head of literacy what exactly she expects this teacher to be doing in terms of individual reading. I used to teach Y3 and listened to the struggling readers at least once a week, outside of Literacy hour guided reading, and as many of the rest as and when I had time.

One session of guided reading a week is appalling in Y1 IMHO. A guided reading session is nowhere near as good as hearing individuals. What does the TA do in terms of listening to the children read? There are lots of oportunities in the school day for the TA to hear a few, especially as there's only 22 in the class. She can not possibly have any idea of the ability or stage of reading that any of the children are at if that's all they get.

I think she is either useless, disorganised, or both. I'd be on her back, checking up a lot if I were you, and that's not something I recommend lightly as a teacher!!

Original poster
TwigTwoolett · 11/10/2006 20:13

I would expect more than 3 sessions per half term

but something has definitely gone wrong here so just trying to play catch-up without being the most hated parent on the block

thanks for advice olihan .. any more? I suppose I should like to know how frequently the should do 1) individual reading 2) group reading per 6 weeks

OP posts:
Nixz · 11/10/2006 20:44

I am a L3 TA and i listen to my poorest readers daily, average readers x3 a week and advanced readers once a week, as well as a guided reading session 1 x week. Some of the poorest readers in the class keep their books in school and read with senco x3 week, as well as TA. Could it be that they have specialist books for some children which have to remain in school???
My dd is in y1 and so far has not been listened to at all, where as last year, she was listened to x3 week. As a result, she is really losing interest in reading at home, i think it is quite poor that time cannot be made to listen to all children at least once a week.
Apparantly, as long as a guided reading session is included, there are no guidelines for individual readers.
The children in my y3 class have come on leaps and bounds since we started individual reading on a daily basis. We also have y6 reading partners to help the children.

Nixz · 11/10/2006 20:47

It sounds like they are wasting valuable time IMHO if they cannot hear individual readers at least once a week. My dd's new class seems to be the same - total disaster classroom!

GhoulsToo · 11/10/2006 21:21

have had wine too can only

soapbox · 11/10/2006 22:18

My DS, in a class of 21 with a teaching assistant (so very similar to yours) did individual reading every day with the teacher in Y1. Usually 3-4 pages.

In addition, once every few weeks he read with one of hte volunteer parents and did guided reading in the groups.

I'd be fuming!

SherlockLGJ · 11/10/2006 22:19

I am angry for you, this is not good enough, I am like you in that you will nearly always support the school, but at the moment they have let you down badly. TBH.

hatwoman · 11/10/2006 22:30

twig - like everyone here I'd be pretty pissed off; but agree with hub2dee that it won't have a long-term negative effect; I also think you handled it really well. However I have to ask your forbearance and forgiveness for my next comment....Can't you suggest to the teacher that they start early on that essential life skill of reading whilst on the loo?

Ladymuck · 11/10/2006 23:24

Twig, I guess my point is that I don't think 2 sessions between now and next Friday is "catching up". He should be having those sessions anyway IMO in terms of an "at least once a week" session. The catch up should be on top, and could include a nightly book home for example.

It doesn't seem entirely clear as to whether your ds was an exception, or whether their overall reading targets are very low. I'm probably biased in that ds's school makes a real priority of reading (probably because it makes their life easier as pupils can access indivudal worksheets earlier if they can read, but I'm probably being too cynical there). I'd be curious to know what other things are taking priority in Y1?

Well done on handling this so calmly by the way! You seem to have trodden a fairly diplomatic path so far. I look forward to hearing the end of the "toilet" saga!

Original poster
TwigTwoolett · 12/10/2006 06:29

That's an interesting point about it not being clear whether it was DS alone who was 'missed out'

And one that infuriates me potentially the most tbh

I spoke to her on the phone at just after 12pm and asked her if there were other kids involved

I then asked her again in our meeting at 3.45 .. and she said "I'll have to check my records"

I am going in to school today to speak to Head of Literacy as advised by some of you (and RL friends) .. I am beginning to believe this wasn't a 'mistake' I can easily forgive but complete unprofessionalism and a huge potential problem

I will also speak to head if I have to (am on first name terms with him)

interestingly enough I'm running for governor this term

OP posts:
ghosty · 12/10/2006 07:44

Oh Twig ... ... I am speechless ....

I know we are in NZ but the policy in DS' school is that Reading comes first before any other literacy ... it makes sense doesn't it really, how can you be literate if you CAN'T READ ... so our first year of school here (called Yr 1) reading is the focus of everything ... and all literacy work comes directly from their reading scheme ... they are ability grouped for reading from half way through the first term and 'team read' ... all the children in the group have the same reading book, they 'team read' every day, with the teacher, do activity sheets about that book, then take it home to read and then the next day another book comes home. DS had 4 books a week last year. Every day they had a reading lesson, a word study lesson (learning sounds), a writing lesson. No TAs in our school ... 26 kids and one teacher.
Not that any of that helps you but I would be livid if I were in your shoes ...
I used to teach Yr3 and Yr4 in the UK (private school but had over 20 in my classes) and I would hear every child read twice a week ....

Olihan · 12/10/2006 08:03

Hi Twig, was talking to dh about this last night (he's also a teacher) and he also thinks that in Y1 they should be having more individual reading time. I've got a couple of friends who teach Y1 so I'll find out what they do. Dh and my thoughts were the teacher or TA should be listening to him at least twice a week, on top of guided reading, more if he's not secure and not very keen.

Dh said to find out what the school reading policy is - they should have one, and how much autonomy the class teachers have with what they do over and above the literacy hour.

Will let you know what my Y1 teacher friends think!!

Olihan · 12/10/2006 08:11

Knew I'd forgotton something!!

Has the teacher been there a while or is she new? If she's an NQT she should have another member of staff mentoring her, so if that's the case, I'd also be asking what support she is getting.

If she's an NQT, it's slightly more excusable but if she isn't, it's totally unacceptable.

Did you get to see her 'records' yesterday? I'm just wondering whether she actually has any and how up to date they are kept as she seems to be very vague about what's actually happened. Obviously you can't ask to see other children's but all the reading records should be in one file together.