Should your child be able to read when they start Reception?

[Ahmawa]

I am really confused as how I can help my DS read - there are so many models and schemes out there I am not sure which one to pick.

I like something clear progression. Would something like the book -Teach your child to read in 100 easy lessons? Or would this conflict with the way kids are taught in school?

Mine could from 3.5yo. Started school at 4.3.
Using phonics could read cvc words. But i didnt teach her digraphs etc or any 'exception words' as i didnt know the schools methods.
It was worth it, to me. She learnt those other bits really easily. But really it was not needed. The other kids picked it up easily once taught. Though some have taken longer with blending.
Only downside was that the school didnt assess so she learnt it all again. But they did the jolly phonic actions too.
My main aim was to not get left behind, being summer born, quite sickly in nursery. Low concentration levels possible adhd.
She was reading fluently without sounding out by nov of yr r. And has progressed very quickly with me. And could read lime/brown/grey etc project alien books by the end of yr r.
Obviously whether a child can read before starting will be parental or nursery effort. Or consciously not teaching. But their age will have a huge effect. Some being just 4 starting vs 5 - the age others will go into yr1. So not surprising some learn in that extra year (that the others spend at school where the expectation is that they will learn by 5 or have not met expectations.
Even now in yr 1 i catch myself thinking, wow that kid is doing well, but then realise that they are now not far off 7.
I found though dd struggled a lot with writing, was very resistant and physically not capable. But suddenly has got a lot better on starting yr 1.
Parental input with reading the books and having them ready to change has made the most difference in where the kids are now. Those who have missed a few changes etc are now bands lower down (probably exacerbated by our only being changed twice a week).
Also reading books ahead of where school have us has really helped. These things have probably helped more than being able to sound out cvc words before starting. And i also agree with mn that learning through phonics first has made it easy, in dd case, to read anything.
Some of the phonics apps are good

@minipie I started in August 1988 so I was 4 years & 3 months old

Other things are more important. Self care, obviously. But if you are interested in supporting your child's literacy these things are helpful:
Singing songs like nursery rhymes
Telling silly jokes together
Having conversations about all sorts of things
Reading to your child/sharing picture books
Visiting the library to explore different sorts of books
Plenty of outside play and indoor craft type activities to help develop their gross and fine motor skills (upper body strength and practice at using hands really useful for getting ready to write)

they learn to read while they are in reception. No need to teach them beforehand, unless they are clearly ready and interested. My eldest child could not read or write at all when he started at 4.5, but he picked up reading very quickly during reception. My youngest is due to start this year, she is very different and has picked up a lot of basic phonics already and can read a few simple words and write her own name. Take it at your child's pace.

No, I could..but tried with DS. All only really started understanding blending just after Christmas in reception.
All could read fluently by mid year 2. But all summer babies.

Are my children going to end up in school with children who don’t know how to dress themselves?!

Well yes, there will be children less capable than yours there. But hardly a shock horror thing bearing in mind some of these kids are barely four, and some may have additional needs. Do give your head a wobble.

Clearly the poster wasn’t talking about children with additional needs because she spoke about teaching your child self care rather than reading. Indicating it was somewhat standard for a pre schooler /new starter not to be able to dress themselves

So no need for head wobbling thanks. You could check yourself before you dramatise a post though

No. My DDs teacher said they would be reading by Xmas, when they started in September. She was right.

Sprinklesinmyelbow why are you bothered about what other people’s children will or won’t be able to do? Let their parents focus on them, and you focus on your own.
My 2.9 year old can dress herself, use a knife and fork, take herself to the toilet etc. Some of her peers can, some can’t as far as I can tell.

I’m not bothered in the slightest.

Are my children going to end up in school with children who don’t know how to dress themselves?!

Why did you ask then?

I don't think you should worry about it if your dc isn't interested. As pp says, self care is first priority to be ready for school. It's the school/teacher's job to teach them to read, but not dress themselves or go to the loo.

I teach Reception and no, they shouldn't be able to read. Some can, and that's lovely. Most are just beginning to recognise sounds and their own names and that's great. Reading to them and encouraging them to love books helps me so much more because it means they're already engaged and ready to learn once they come to me.

I'd much rather a child comes in knowing (or working on) how to share, take turns, get themselves ready for PE, independently using the bathroom and able to listen. Of course there are exceptions for different reasons and we encourage and praise those children who take a little longer for whatever reason. But those are the most important basic skills to prepare for school and the ones I find hardest to teach because there's simply not enough time in every day to teach 26 children to dress themselves.

Bit of an odd question soy but anyway. OP asked if she should teach her child to read And PP said no, teach them to dress themselves instead.

It’s hard to understand why a child of 4 who has the ability to be taught to dress themselves (which they presumably have, otherwise the suggestion is moot) wouldn’t have been already taught by parents who are involved enough to be considering teaching reading.

As I say, my D.C. have been taught the above at nursery at a much younger age. There is going to be a fair gulf between nursery children and children who didn’t attend if some are writing their names and some haven’t been taught to put their coat on. Now presumably, that’s an accurate reflection of a reception class, however it did surprise me.

"It’s hard to understand why a child of 4 who has the ability to be taught to dress themselves (which they presumably have, otherwise the suggestion is moot) wouldn’t have been already taught by parents who are involved enough to be considering teaching reading. " hard to understand but very common. It's much quicker and easier to dress your child than expect them to dress themselves when in a hurry to get to school/nursery/childminder.

Sprinkles, there are children with different interest, nature, personality. Even if parents tried to teach them how to dress themselves, some may still struggle. So yeah, even with children without sn, some may get it, some may not. Same as some non SN children can take time to learn to read or get numbers.

As I say, my D.C. have been taught the above at nursery at a much younger age. There is going to be a fair gulf between nursery children and children who didn’t attend if some are writing their names and some haven’t been taught to put their coat on

Not as clear cut as that though is it?
My children have never been to nursery. One starts school in September, one is 2.9. DD1 can do all the self care things mentioned above and can read and write. DD2 can do all the self care and recognises all her letters and knows the letters in her name (can’t quite write it yet).
All children are different. Some children at nursery will have problems dressing themselves, some children who haven’t been at nursery will. Some children at nursery will be able to read, as will some who haven’t been to nursery.

My son couldn’t read at all when he started school. He memorised a few books but wasn’t “reading” as such.

Very quickly he became an avid bookworm and is about to finish primary school with a reading age several years ahead of his actual age. Really don’t worry about it.

There may be some children who can read but who can’t dress themselves, because they require different skills. There may be children who are a whizz at numbers but who struggle to sit still and concentrate for any length of time. They’re all different.

Ds1 could recognisance the Alphabet and read a few words when he started in reception. He also had good fine motor skills and could write his name etc. However, his gross motor skills were way behind. He could not put his coat on without help (although he could do the zip up once it was on!). He was also very young when he started (4 years 5 weeks) whereas all the other children in the class were autumn, winter or spring born (small village primary) so he struggled socially.

I wouldn't worry about reading. Concentrate on helping your child learn to change for PE independently and develop social skills. The school will teach reading.

Yes true. But parents engaged enough to teach their children to read (and parents who believe their children are capable of being able to do so) you would generally expect to be well ahead with the basics.

There is going to be a fair gulf between nursery children and children who didn’t attend if some are writing their names and some haven’t been taught to put their coat on. Now presumably, that’s an accurate reflection of a reception class, however it did surprise me.

Well you’d maybe better be prepared for this gulf to continue throughout school. Because, newsflash, children are all individual and Work at different levels. And also, newsflash, it’s not always about parents not being “involved”. My son liked being read to but he wasn’t interested in learning to read before he started school. He was more interested in numbers. I didn’t push the reading because (a) I kind of guessed he might learn that at school and (b) teaching reading is also a skill that I, qualified in a profession other than teaching, wouldn’t be so arrogant to presume I possessed. I didn’t want to teach him a certain way when the school were likely to use different strategies and potentially confuse him.

As I said, now about to leave primary school with a reading age more akin to high school leaving age, so he’s turning out ok.

Newsflash 🤣

Also when people say dress they may mean
Main items top and pants and trousers
Or socks
Buttons
Zips
Coats

My nearly 3 can 1&2 but not 3-5. Coat because she wont have hood put up to help her get it on.
Dd1 at 4yo couldnt do 4or 5 but learnt 3 during yr r and 4 start of yr 1.
Reading well she only yesterday managed to pedal cycle at nearly 6.
Also mrsz is right dressing them quickly is often a priority especially if you have a kid easily distracted or who doesnt want to go to school/nursery and will do anything but get ready.
Im still dressing her in yr 1, she can do it herself but it results in arguments and delays.

Well the shock that children might have different levels of abilities seemed to have taken you unawares, so I thought it might be worth spelling out.

Let’s see how smug you are after 7 years of primary school under your belt. A lot can happen in that time.