What reading level should a 7/8 year old be at?

[hannapanna]

We're moving to England in 7 months time. We speak English at home so the kids (7,5,3) do speak English well, but have been in French speaking school so don't know how to read and write very well. So I'd like to boost there English a bit so they aren't too behind. I'm not so worried about the 5&3 year olds but at 7 it might be more of an issue.
So what reading level should my son be at? He will be starting 4th grade when we move.
How often do your kids read? What kind of books?
Any recommendations on good books for 7/8 y old boy? Il be in England in Nov so could get him a few books to bring back and practice with.

You could try anything by David Walliams - my older two liked his books in Yr 3 & 4. If he hasn't read the Roald Dahls already, ones like Danny, Champion of the World and Charlie & the Choc Factory are fun. Mine also liked the Horrible Histories Series from about Yrs 2 - 4 which are very humorous, non-fiction, complete with cartoons and sketch drawings - they might be good for a child who's not used to reading entire English novels yet!
Mine read everyday - school homework but actually they LOVE reading - at least about 20 mins and in hols/weekends, a couple of hours.

Horrid Henry short stories are easier than David Walliams and very enjoyable.

David Walliams would have been too daunting for my two at that age and they are competent readers. But def Horrid Henry, Roald Dahl, Astrosaurus, maybe Diary of a Wimpy Kid? My ds loved Sea/Beast Quest at that age but they are utter tripe so I wouldn't necessarily recommend them but your ds might like them.

Thanks for all the ideas! Where would be best to buy these kinds of books? WHsmiths?

WHSmiths is fine.

If you have access to UK, Horrid Henrys can often be found in charity shops.
Online try The Book People or Amazon.

Definitely Horrid Henry. Better to go on the easy side than things like David Walliams which might put him off. I'd also try Beast Quest if he likes adventure/monsters.
I would order from Amazon - they you can check reviews if you are unsure.

At that age DC was reading Horrid Henry avidly. , then moved on to David Walliams and Roald Dahl.

DS2 loves the Tom Gates books and recommends them to his less bookwormy friends. It's got loads of pictures and he thinks its utterly hilarious.

I got him a subscription to The Phoenix comic too, and he looks forwards it every week.

Have look at the Jeremy Strong books too, and The Diary Of A Wimpey Kid.

I buy from eBay normally, or used from Amazon.

Also recommend book people, but if you are actually coming to UK, I really recommend visiting few charity shops as well.
They always have lots of books mentioned on this thread, often in quite good condition and cheap, so you can buy loads! (If you don't mind second hands.)

Thanks! Will definitely check out horrid Henry and other you recommend. I'm coming to wngland for a few days at the end of the month so will check out the charity shops as well!

There is a great series by Dave Lowe called My hamster is an Astronaut / Spy / Pirate etc. They are funny but easier than David Walliams ( which I think is for older kids).

David Walliams
Wimpy kid
Tom gates

I personally think the horrid Henry books are drivel

If they aren't confident readers in English it might be as well to get a few things from Jolly phonics or Read Write Inc so you can work on letter sounds so they can decode harder words as well. You can also get tricky words which they have to learn by sight.

Most schools use the Oxford Reading Tree. You can get sets from The Book People and eBay.

I really wouldn't try David Walliams or Ronald Dahl at this point.

There are loads of Horrid Henry in the Early Reader books

If you can, pop into a library and flick through the books as you will know what level your DC's will be on best.

I don't like the Horrid Henry books myself, but DS does and I'd rather he read something that he enjoyed than forcing him to read things I approved of.

Also you can get dual language books here. I get them from the library - my DCs are bilingual English and French, but their reading level is much better in English at the moment. It helps to have the two languages alongside each other for when there are bits they are unsure of.

For easy fun reading I'd highly recommend the 'Captain Underpants' series. Bit like wimpy kid, lots of pics / some comic strip stuff. Easy reading, not great literature by any stretch (!) but was loved by my eldest ds who was a competent but not passionate reader at 7/8.

Enid Blyton might be worth a try. My DS2 has just turned 7 and has loved the Magic Faraway Tree type stuff.

Can also highly recommend the 'DK Readers' series of books (available on Amazon) - these are beautifully presented, very glossy, and set at different levels of difficulty. Popular with kids who prefer the style of a non fiction book and they also feature titles based on Star Wars etc which can encourage the daunted or reluctant reader.

I would agree with a pp not to push too soon with Roald Dahl/David Walliams. Both are fabulous but given your circumstances I'd wait a bit on those. Go for easy and fun to build up confirdence.

oxfordowl.co.uk has e-books online that are free (I think you have to sign up with an email address); you can search by age range and type of book etc.

I'd have a look at the Project X series - you can get bulk deals very cheaply from The Book People. It's part of the Oxford Reading Tree series and there is a new Series 2 which has better stories while still being a graded reading system. My son enjoyed the first series and now secretly reads the ones his sister brings home (he's in Y4). Agree about HH and Wimpey Kids - can't stand them! Otherwise, mine like some of the old favourites (Secret Seven etc).

I don't have relevant experience of this situation, but I’m surprised that most people are suggesting chapter books for a 7-y-o who has never been taught their phoneme-grapheme correspondences in English. I am guessing many teachers would recommend a formal introduction to phonics (albeit faster paced for a 7-y-o who can already read/write in French and will probably pick it up very quickly).

Skipping the steps which many teachers on MN say are vital to becoming truly competent readers seems a bit risky to me.

You could purchase a series of phonics books (as suggested by Okkitokkiunga) but these will be pitched at a lower age range. This gives loads of info which might help you find things to work through with him: www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/190599/Letters_and_Sounds_-_DFES-00281-2007.pdf

Please tell us how it goes!

my 7 year old (only speaks English though) has just finished, and absolutely LOVED, The Christmasaurus which we got for £6 in Asda. The Bolds by Julian Clary is excellent and there is a second one, The Bolds to the Rescue I think. those two are shorter than the Christmasaurus which might seem a bit daunting as it is very thick.

Wow! Thanks for even more ideas everyone! Ginmummy1: I think you have a good point! I should get some very basic phonics books to start and then move on too more age appropriate books! At the moment when he reads something in English he's defenetly following the French rules for pronunciation... and to learn the English phonics is probably key.

Anyone know of any good apps with phonics perhaps?

I agree with Ginmummy - phonics first. Stick with the age appropriate literature in French for now and cover the basics in English - he'll come on very rapidly in both reading and writing when he's mastered these.

If you sign up to Oxford Owl you can get lots of age banded e-books for free. There are quizzes to take on them to check comprehension too.

If you read a few of these with your DS you will see where he's at so you can buy appropriate things when you come over.