Parents evening year one

[Sycamore76]

Hi there, my ds has just turned 6 and is in year one . During parents evening the teacher mentioned they have been grouped and he is on the high end of expected level , can anyone explain what she meant at all? Thank you !

You really need to ask the teacher I'm afraid... but if you were going to guess, then they've assessed all the kids, and split them into groups. Your DS is at the high end of the expected level of attainment.

Unfortunately you can't tell if they mean he's at the high end of the expected level for this stage, or if he's at the high end already of the expected level at the end of year one. Or even just doing what was expected of him based on end of reception.

Thanks . I am not a pushy parent but I am just curious as I didn't know they grouped them in year one ! He is on green books and got exceeding in six areas in the reception report ( the rest expected level ) . He started year one on yellow so it's clicking a little now . Thank you

I don't think it means any more than it says - he's a little above where they'd expect at this stage, so doing well but not an outlier. Perfect place to be. I would be very happy with that, but guess you could ask the teacher if you want to know more.

DD's Y1 class have different groups for different activities - reading, writing, maths. They had a similar thing in reception. The kids aren't supposed to know which is the top group, but it is obvious.

Thanks . I probably should have asked more during parents evening but my ten mins got taken up very quickly! They did say he likes learning learning. I guess he is on the middle tables which i am happy with but his reception teacher said he is strong in maths ( new teachers says he likes maths ) .

It sounds like he is doing well and at this stage you probably don't really need to know much more than that.

As he gets older they may go into a bit more detail and as the kids themselves get older they know where they are in class even if the classes are not set/grouped! Believe me!

Oh my ds doesn't seem aware and just says he is sitting with girls ... I hope he stays unaware for as long as possible ...he knows about book bands though and wants to be on the same as his good friend . I am just happy he is enjoying learning ( so far )

www.readingchest.co.uk/book-bands

According to this, green is actually at the right level, tbh.

Oh ok , thanks . I feel he has made good progress as he started year one on yellow . Do they group them on the reception reports ? He got exceeding for maths and reading ( think that was from the high frequency words) and expected for writing .

Very hard to get exceeding in writing tbh. My ds is with the girls too at school and generally in life, seems to get them better than the boys that are a bit boisterous for him.

From the teacher's comment, it sounds like they've assessed and grouped on where they are now in year 1. Would be bonkers not to really as some come on hugely over the summer, some fall back if they don't read at home.

Don't worry about comparing book bands to reading chest, different schools use them in very different ways. A yellow at DS's old school is more like an orange at current school in terms of the proficiency and fluency required. On the other hand current school "weren't allowed" (teacher's words) to give exceedings in the EYFS report, so those were few and far between.

Thanks catkind. I must admit that I didn't do to much over the summer , still some reading but we read every night for about 20mins now . I guess they don't tell parents about these assessments then . Do they do them every so often?

I don't mean a formal assessment, I just mean the teacher listening to them read and setting the groups and book levels appropriately. Clearly your DS has done well if he's gone up levels and teacher is saying he's above expectations. I wouldn't expect to be told anything more specific than that I don't think. I volunteer to hear readers as well as having my own Y1 so get a bit of a glimpse of the workings at our school, but suspect every teacher has their own methods.

Thanks , she didn't say above expectations , just that he had been grouped the higher end of expected which I was a little confused about .i do agree though as long as he is progressing at a personal level it's fine .

By 'assessing' they mean the feedback he is giving to the teacher every time he speaks / answers a question / doesn't answer a question / reads / writes / discusses things / etc. etc. It isn't one single formal test, it is all the information the teacher will gather throughout the day, every day, every week.

Ok that would make sense as people as there is lots of movement within the tables as children progress etc

So in the class there will be children who are exceeding, some possibly quite advanced, some who are expected and some below expected. On a casserole if 49 there may be one top group, 1 bottom, a couple in the middle. Your son is at the top of the middle. Tbh if you did a bit more with him at home you may be able to give him a boost up a bit.
Assessment is ongoing informally daily. Kids move between groups all the time and you aren't told when your kids change groups. Groups may vary for maths and English (they do at our school).

Casserole of 49? 😂
Class of 30

It's also worth remembering that the 'expected' level isn't particularly high.

sycamore Ds is 5 and in year one and sounds a lot like your Ds. He also started the year on yellow and is now on green. It was explained to me that they expect him to slightly exceed by the end of the year as although at the moment he’s at the right level, now he’s ‘clicked’ with reading he’s prigressing quicker than usual. Of course that could change I guess. In school they’re grouped at similar levels and ne t term he’ll be on a different table. I’m expecting the groups to be really fluid as they develop at different rates. I’m just happy he’s enjoying school and making progress

Depending on reading scheme some yr1s may also go to the year above to read.

Yes some will have almost finished or gave finished the reading scheme

Thank you all - very helpful. Tbh he really enjoys maths and is already doing what is expected for year one ( reception teacher did say this at parents evening ) we don't push it but he likes the mathletics etc . He is left handed so I don't know if that makes joined up writing more tricky but he is getting better . There are quite a few very advanced kids in his year but some parents did push reading etc before they started school ..,,

Hi my dd is left handed It hasn't made any difference to her writing. Some children just click with reading quicker, my dd finished reception on gold level, could not read at all before starting school. However her twin sister was 5 levels behind her, took her longer to pick it up. . By end of year 2 they pretty much are all free reading regardless if where they were in year 1. By year 5 it really makes no difference who learned what when. If your son is at the top of the middle he's doing ok and more importantly he's enjoying school 😀

Newme that's great re your daughter . Yes , I am very pleased that he likes learning . Someone said to me that he should be exceeding as he is an October birthday so it had me a little worried but I am pleased where he currently is .