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Primary education

Join our Primary Education forum to discuss starting school and helping your child get the most out of it.

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Original poster

If your child could read when starting reception, did your school make any exceptions for readers?

37 replies

Piffle · 08/11/2007 10:18

I ask as dd is able to read quite well, sight recognises lots of words and uses phonics to sort the rest out. Very able and enjoys it.
School are doing jolly phonics and ORT, she is happy joining in but is finding it a little boring...

is this usual or would you expect the school to do something else
With ds1 they let him read alone in the book corner with the other readers...

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SSSandy2 · 08/11/2007 10:21

Our school didn't (but then that's Germany, schools are not really geared towards helping those who are ahead in any way). Might be different where you are.

ProfessorGrammaticus · 08/11/2007 10:31

IME the school expects the child to do the phonics etc and will see it as "reinforcement"

Original poster

Piffle · 08/11/2007 10:34

but it is slightly baffling her with all the actions when she is very sure of her letters already.
Oh well I guess she'll have to lump it

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fullmoonfiend · 08/11/2007 10:35

no, my ds2 could read chip, biff and their miserable cohorts before reception thanks to paying attention when his big bro was learning to read. They made him do all the phonics stuff but he rather enjoyed it. The reinforcement was actually very good for his confidence. Many kids hate feeling 'different' or 'left out' of the group activities.
he was bored by the reading books sent home, but hey, nothing to stop you letting him read his choice of book to you as well.

Original poster

Piffle · 08/11/2007 10:40

it's eons til books come home trust me

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bagpuss · 08/11/2007 10:46

Same as FMF, ds1 was like that and has only just been put on the G&T register for reading and is getting extra work and coaching now - he is in Yr 2.

Original poster

Piffle · 08/11/2007 10:52

Ah she is not G+T. Just a good reader And a smart little button

I have a ds1 who is 13 who is G+T and the difference between them is vast...

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marialuisa · 08/11/2007 10:59

DD read fluently when she started Reception and she was given more appropriate reading material and classwork but still sat through the "carpet" sessions.

She has had an IEP since Reception but it was only in Y1 that it started to make a big difference to what she did. I think that was as much to do with the Reception class teacher's attitude as anything though. When she was in Reception DD very much saw school as somewhere for playing/socialising which was fine in some ways.

singersgirl · 08/11/2007 11:00

DS2 was given books at his level to read by the October half-term, but still had to sit and do all the Jolly Phonics actions etc. He didn't mind, I don't think, and thought it was quite fun anyway. I remember him coming home and saying "We learned 'a' today", and my saying "But you already know 'a'". He then explained patiently that you didn't do reading at school, you just learned letters.

He did find guided reading later in the year boring, but no exceptions were made.

Original poster

Piffle · 08/11/2007 11:00

I think that's what I hoped for dd, play, social - confidence building (she has some SN mainly eyesight) kind of environment.

But bless her she is such an eager beaver, this is causing her some worry

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singersgirl · 08/11/2007 11:02

Ah,you see DS2 is the opposite of an eager beaver - would it be an indolent sloth? He would prefer to do nothing challenging. He really enjoyed most of Reception for precisely Marialuisa's reasons, but found Y1 a bit of a struggle. Boring work and lots of it....

Fennel · 08/11/2007 12:04

I think with my reading 4yo had the experience Marialuisa mentions, she was encouraged to progress at her own level and with appropriate books but also still joined in the carpet time phonics sessions.

It was the school's own pre-school which had taught her to read though so they can't have had a problem with her reading on entry to reception as it was their doing.

mankyscotslass · 08/11/2007 12:10

Ds was already pretty much a free reader when he started reception, but like pp have said, all the sound work was seen as reinforcement. It did improve after Easter when he got a new teacher who actually tested his knowledge when I said he was bored, and quickly moved him through the reception, y1 and y2 words. He is now in y1 and has been moved up a couple of reading stages, so is happier and a little bit more challenged now.

aintnomountainhighenough · 08/11/2007 12:18

I would expect the school to do something else but sadly it is clear (from my experience and many postings on here) that they do not. My DD is also very eager and we are just supplying plenty of reading material here, including reading books that actually reinforce phonics.

Original poster

Piffle · 08/11/2007 12:21

It is a very small village school with excellent teachers at yr1/reception level, dd is in a mixed class 12 of her age and 12 yr1's both work independently of each other in some areas (literacy for example) with the help of a TA.
She is very happy socially and emotionally, and that is probably what I should focus on.

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islandofsodor · 08/11/2007 12:24

I had the opposite problem in a way. Dd could already read CVC and some sight words but I had been doing JP at home and became frustrated that straight away she was given non decodable books to read that went against the phonics method that had been so succesful with her.

I would expect a child who could already read to still do phonics becasue they may still not have the skills to decode and they are still relying on sight words. However I would expect there to be some kind of extension work rather than just the actions.

Dd still joins in when I am teaching ds phonics and I still go over things with her to reinforce some of the double letter sounds which she can read but doesn't totally know the rule behind it.

Reallytired · 08/11/2007 18:21

How is her writing getting on? I remember you posting that your dd found writing hard. My son could read when he started reception and the teacher got him to practice his letter during the phonics sessions. For homework my son got given handwriting sheets instead of word boxes and sight words.

His class did not do group reading last year. Most of reception is play so there isn't a long formal lesson of numeracy as such.

Reallytired · 08/11/2007 18:21

His class did not do group reading last year. Most of reception is play so there isn't a long formal lesson of numeracy as such.

LIZS · 08/11/2007 18:38

dd's school did JP for first half term then had readers appropriate to their level , mixture of ORT, and Rigby mainly , so we just skipped through the early levels.

NAB3littlemonkeys · 08/11/2007 18:43

No. My DD is coming home with books with no words in. She knows all Year R and 1 keywords and has been reading ladybird books for ages.

Alambil · 08/11/2007 19:35

DS seems to have been allowed to "go ahead" of some of his classmates. Both him and the little girl from his nursery (they went to a private one) are at exactly the same level and they could read before school.

He has had books come home since 2 weeks in to term; only 2 of them had no words in and then I had a word with the teacher. She did mention "reinforcement" and it does seem to have helped DS but now he refuses to read withOUT sounding out - it is like he now thinks he HAS to sound out, even though he knows the words, just because they do it like that in school - it is very annoying!

Enid · 08/11/2007 20:11

dd2 and another little girl could read - dd2 very basic words but knew all her sounds, the other little girl could read fluently

the teacher sussed it afer the first week and gave dd2 the first lot of ORT and then jelly and bean etc. She gives her year 1 work to do when the others are doing their letter sounds.

ImportantCod · 08/11/2007 20:11

enid enid edni

Enid · 08/11/2007 20:12

Like reallytired, dd2 gets writing practice when the others do sounds. She and the other little girl who can read have handwriting books to practice writing instead.

Enid · 08/11/2007 20:13

[high fives cod]

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