Reading and writing in Reception.

[flyingpinkduckgirl]

Hi! Interesting conversation with a friend today re selective schools that have a 3+ or 4+ assessment. Basically she said that children entering these schools in Reception are expected to have mastered the basics of reading and writing already... Putting words together, sounding out words, decoding basic texts and that sort of thing.
I thought they'd still be obligated to start with the basics and maybe move through faster? Anybody got any experience of this? What do you think?

It would be a good reason to avoid those types of schools imho.

Certainly a friend at a private school near here said they had desks in nursery/reception at their school amd weren't really learning through play in the way my child was!

I went for an interview at a very posh private school (20 years ago now) out in the middle of nowhere. It was for Reception so I burbled on about child initiated play and child centred learning until the head stopped me mid flow and said "oh we don't believe in that rubbish here, we have desks facing the front"
I was and unsurprisingly didn't get offered the job!!
Surely private schools aren't like that now though?

Thats actually a sort of child cruelty. Finland dont start all that until and they have the best education systsem around. Makes my blood boil. And teachers cooperating with that are worse.

But.... I wasn't intending to start an anti selective school thread, I have no idea what they're like now. Hopefully plenty of opportunity to play and explore?