How will a child who can read, count but not write at all get on in reception?

[Piffle]

Seriously thinking of keeping dd out until at least yr 1
She is in a great pre school where she can stay still age 6
She was 4 in oct.
She has some hand eye issues due to poor sight, she would be statemented but if she were to stay at her pre school she would need no support as the environment is perfect for her and she is settled
To me it seems like a no brainer
And when I say she cannot write I truly mean it's a long way off- she cannot do even barest intentional scribbles but she is above average in other areas.
I want her to be happy and under no pressure.
Arrghhh

i'd say this really depends on the school and how good the SENCo is, and the support provided by the LEA. They don't do much writing in reception anyway, it's more of a settling-in year, and if the school is switched on they will modify those exercises appropriately for the Pifflet.
The main problem with keeping her in pre-school would, for me, be the lack of peers the same age - I presume there wouldn't be many (if any) other children her age left there?

I guess it is hard to say but how do you think she will cope going straight into year 1? Why would the preschool manage to develop her hand eye co-ordination better than reception? If they have better SN support then I would be inclined to stay, but if it is just so as to avoid the issue then I think that you are giving her a greater challenge in Year 1 when then other children will already be familiar with the school environment and have formed friendships etc. That said she should be covering the same curriculum, so she shouldn't fall behind, though you may find that the school pushes the more able children into the Key Stage 1 curriculum even though they are still in reception.

btw it is not that uncommon to have issues with writing but be in the top quartile for reading and maths in R-Y2. It happens to a lot of boys, who generally aren't that great or interetested at writing.

Check with the school that they will hold a place for her if she joins later as AFAIK if you do not start in reception the school don't always have to keep a place open.

If the school looked supportive I would be inclined to move to the school when her peers do. She will have to move at some point (unless you decide to home ed), and I would have thought that the sooner she gets the statement the better. If she went to school at 6, she wouldn't get the statement for a while would she? There is usually more general in class support available in reception too, whereas there is less likely to be a tA in the classroom all the time in Y1 ime

I'm not sure I'd want her to miss reception - reception really is so much about settling into the school, understanding the routines, making friends.

I would go to the school and have a chat with them and see what you think.

(incidentally, one of mine was a non-writer and did not pick up a pen till right at the end of reception/beginning of year 1 - she had very very poor fine motor skills - school told us not to worry and just took the pressure off her and let her play through reception. It was more year 1 when they start to expect them to make a bit more of a writing attempt)

piff, wasn't trying to make a comparison between your dd and mine but just really wanted to point out that quite a lot of NT children cannot write at all in reception anyway

my dd has cp and she has problems handwriting; she also has some sight/ perception issues which complicate it further but like your dd is above average in terms of her comprehension. she has 1:1 full time support but she also has physical disabilities too

they have all different kinds of ways of helping her which just weren't available in nursery;

Teudes-somethingy (oh god I can't spell it, I can't even remember how it sounds) techniques to help her make the shapes, then also she is working on a computer with a big keyboard and special mouse and special software; there are other things that they are going to get in place to help her with issues with her vision that we didn't even know about till she got to school and they started watching her more closely

certainly go talk to school. don't hold her back if she is bright. there is lots that the occupational therapists can do

she needs support to help her achieve her potential imo. If she's a long way off writing it's highly likely that she needs help rather than jsut waiting for her to magically 'get it' - that might not happen.

Support is something that will help her grow. I would push for as much support as possible, and as much involvement in the statementing process as you can possibly have to make sure that all avenues are being explored in terms of help for her.

her pre school is montessori there is at least one staying her age.
I have to decide now as they will pursue the statement urgently, whereas if I leave til 08 they will kepe assessing and apply for 2008
the school place will be no problem - one of the joys of statementing.
She is down for a very small school as it turns out
the reason I ask is at a previous preschool they are writing their numbers and letters over dots and things as a matter of routine and she knows she cannot do this and it really affects her as she is very aware of her limitations.
she is also very small for her age and not physically confident due to her visual problems, so there are social reasons as well I guess.
I think I will talk to the school- we may be able to do both at the same time perhaps..

I think Fio makes a good point about the social aspect of keeping her out until Year 1. I'm not really sure what you would be gaining either by not sending her. IMlimtedE there is much more academic pressure in Year One than in Reception, so would be more like dropping her in at the deep end than the gradual approach.

DS went to reception being able to count (but would have thought that most children can do that), read certain words (his name, his friend's name, Asda, England etc) so basically not able to read, and to write his own name which is only 3 letters anyway. He knew the alphabet and all the numbers. So for your DD to be able to read is good.

mine coudknt read or write rreally
welld s3 can but the other tow coudlnt

So consensus is that I'm being a bit over protective.
Okies
I'll ask the ed psych for her honest opinion then...

piffle it is very sad at this age as 4-6 is the age when children become more aware of things that make them 'different'

but rather than keeping her down she needs to be with her peers for all social things

I used to be very upset when dd couldn't achieve things and thought she might 'grow out' of it even though I knew she wouldn't. And there sometimes - not that I'm saying this is the case with you but you need to ask yourself the question - is an instinct with parents of sn children I have known to keep them back with younger children so that you don't have to compare them with older ones, so that you & your dd don't have to face the difficulties yet

one example is parents of physically disabled children keeping them in special buggies rather than getting wheelchairs; they just don't want to admit that their child just won't stop being a tiny kid in a pushchair like everyone else's

apologies if this is way off the mark and I'm being harsh on you or putting thoughts in your head that simply aren't there. But imo your dd needs a statement asap so that she can continue her progression through school as a bright young kid with lots of potential who will need some extra therapy etc to help her achieve it

as I said, she may not magically grow into being able to do the words over dots thing. It might not be the right thing for her. If she's clever she needs someone to find the right techniques to help her so she doesn't get left behind

Ed psych - good idea.

It's not so much to me that you are being overprotective as that for a sensitive child lacking in physical confidence, the change from montessori pre-school (where she will be older than most of the other children) to Year 1 could be a bigger leap than the one to Reception would be.

Probably good for her that it is a small school though. DS is in a Year 1 class of 30, with 22 boys and they can be very loud and boisterous at times.

the school I prefer is reception of 9 children she is fearful of large noisy groups... then in yr1 classes are mixed to 15 pupils mix yr1/2
Not ideal BUT still better teacher input than one class of 32 in one age group as would be standard at any other school locally.
Dd being confident and happy socially is a huge concern and priority, over the academic one esp in the first couple of years IYSWIM

My son has problems controlling a pen. His gross motor skills were delayed and it has had an impact on his fine motor skills. My son is under the local child development centre. He is in reception and loving every minute of it.

I worried about what it would be like him going to reception, but he has been fine. His teacher and LSA have been skilled at improving fine motor skills. My son is under the community paediatrian. If the situation doesn't improve by year one then my son will attend a hand writing workshop organised by an occupational theraphist. My son also has severe glue ear and the school has been great about that.

Why are concerned about your child being statemented? It is very rare to statement children these days. If your daughter is OK in other areas she might be on school action or school action plus. Ie. An LSA at the school might give her some one to one support for periods of the day that she needs it and maybe the school would contact a teacher who specialises in visually impaired children for advice.

I found that when my son left nursery and went to school he came on leaps and bounds. He has benefitted having a qualified teacher rather than just nursery nurses directing his learning. Also its a long time until your little one goes to school, her pen control will improve.

Being on the special needs register doesnt mean that a child is stupid. My son is a ahead in lots of areas (except hand writing, PE and dressing)

If you are concerned why dont you make an appointment with the head teacher of the school that you are interested in sending your child to discuss your worries.

It is up to you, but I think you would be making a mistake not sending her to school.

Dd has a condition called Noonan Syndrome, she has several mild areas of concern her sight is appalling to be frank and unfixable to a point, she cannot perceive depth at all and requires large text which has to be statemented it cannot be provided to the school without a statement apparently.
I'm not worried her being SN, she is in some ways not at all in others.
I know dd is bright as a button, she has no learning delays at all and I am sure with time and confidence and support will fit in well within a normal school environment.
She just seems so erm breakable...

Hi Piffle
My first advice is if you think that your child will be able to get a statement, then do it and get the ball rolling as soon as you can, in my case it took a year to get a statement for DS2 and he was already in school. It would be much easier to start a school with the help already in place.

Also it can mean that you have more options as to which school they can go to. Do bear in mind though that it does not automatically get you in to any school you may wish for, it depends where you live and how many other statemented children there are in the school.

With regards to missing reception, I think if you are sure that you want her to go to a particular school, then it would be a shame to miss reception, because this is the year that is the most fun and the children have more freedom.

Year one can be a tricky year for some children, because the pace does change and they do not get anything like as much free time. They have to sit and listen and do a lot more work.

But if you are unsure where you want her to go and you want more time to see how she gets on, then leave her where she is, if she is happy and you are happy then there is no need to rush into a change.

I wouldn't worry about the not writing bit though, whatever you decide.

we are told the statement is a given, not the exact provision though their out clause I suspect
She has been under extensice support since birth - luckily not needing nearly as much help as we all first thought.
They are intending to put statement provision in place for school entry whenever that will be
Have meeting with ed psych on 30th Jan so will bring up concerns then I think
Interesting to hear honest opinions thanks

she might surprise you and cope really really well in reception

I wuold send her the school sounds lovely (so does she btw, well I know she is as have seen her piccy)

thx Enid, she is lovely I am loathe to let her enter the real world as ds used to be lovely and now he is this smelly hormonal 13 yr old adolescent who smiles only for money...

ds2 could read and count but barely hold a pencil, now, half way through reception he's writing really well, and drawiing properly. He has to do it so he does and has really improved, at nursery he didn't have to do it and found it difficult (left handed) so wouldn't.

I'd agree with Fio though- request a statement. If you find you need one you'll be waiting over 6 months- better that its in place and you find you don't really need the help.

yes, definitely get a statement and try to pin the school down on what support she will get.

I'd say she will be fine in reception and it should be a valuable time for her to learn about school and make friends...I have been surprised how important it has been to my ds who started in sept.

And don't let the writing thing influence you at all, it's very normal for 'output' things like writing to come much later than reading. Also, in ds' reception there is such a huge age range...some kids a full year older than ds, (give or take four or five days) and of course there is a huge difference in what they can do. Many kids in his year are nowhere near writing, ds included!

oh meant to say- if she goes straight into year 1 it'll be a huge jump for her. You could ask about part time- but tbh I don't think that really helps, and is a total pita (and you find she'll get forgotten and you'll never know what is going on)