Issues with reception teacher

[HR313]

I’ve posted on here before about my 4 yr old (5 in April). She started reception last September and by October the teacher had come to me saying she was concerned my daughter had issues with number recognition and memory. She said it might be dyslexia but I’ve read schools don’t normally diagnose until age 7. Anyway she had some form of assessment and the teacher said she would let me know as soon as she had had these… about a month or so passed and I messaged the teacher (assuming she had forgotten) and she has finally spoken to me in the playground at the end of the day saying she had the assessment ‘a while ago’ And that ‘there were traits’ of dyslexia but then went on to say ‘oh I wouldn’t worry yet they don’t normally do anything about it until year 3’ and ‘it might just be an age thing’ and then in a patronising tone said ‘but there are traits’ so what the hell am I meant to take from that?! She gave me some worksheets to help my daughter with memory etc. my daughter has since been able to recognise numbers to 20 after that initially being highlighted an issue, is now on stage phonics 2 set 6 books - if anyone knows what this means? Is she behind? I’m at a total loss and feel quite cross at the teacher with being so vague and tarring my daughter as having some learning impairment and then going on to say it might or might not be dyslexia! There is parents evening mid March and I want to be able to express my concerns to the teacher about how this has come across to me as a parent. Any advise would be much appreciated. I’ve never been through the school system before and it seems like a minefield…

My child is 4 and still doesn't recognise numbers up to 20. When we had a parents meeting we were told that at this age its more about learning through play and not to obsess about their progress just yet.

It’s a shame schools vary so much in their approach. Clearly my daughter is going to struggle now regardless and will be forever behind. I don’t think any amount of support offered inside or out of school will help.

@PickledPeppa

She started reception last September and by October the teacher had come to me saying she was concerned my daughter had issues with number recognition and memory.

I work in Reception. A child not being able to recognise numbers or letters in October wouldn't be a cause for concern at all. We certainly wouldn't be considering dyslexia, let alone actually arranging for a child to be tested for it!

Something doesn't sound right here. If you're not getting any clear answers from the teacher then speaking to the SENCO sounds like a good plan.

Im in year one and some pupils struggle with this even now! I would be asking what assessment they carried out and will she be on a support plan. My alnco would be laughing me out of the building if I went to her with this. She must be a very lucky reception teacher to think a child with this (non) issue is worthy of such an assessment at four!!!

home.oxfordowl.co.uk/reading/reading-schemes-oxford-levels/oxford-reading-tree-levels/

If they are following Oxford books (seems to be the most common) then she is in the right place.

Teachers just can't do anything right, can they?
The teacher expressed a concern and you have taken it very personally.

@HR313

It’s a shame schools vary so much in their approach. Clearly my daughter is going to struggle now regardless and will be forever behind. I don’t think any amount of support offered inside or out of school will help.

I cant weigh in on whethwr the teacher is right or wrong in how they acted but if your DD does have dyslexia that by no way means that she will forever struggle and be behind. It in no way defines her or affects intelligence. early diagnosis will allow you all to find the most appropriate tools to aid learning and keep her progressing along side her peers.

it is awful as a parent to hear your child may have something which challenges them or sets them apart, but try to avoid going to a worst case scenario on this.

People who are dyslexic aren't faulty people. They can be problem solvers and tend to be creative thinkers. There's nothing inherently wrong with them, they just struggle with the current education system because it's not for purpose.

I think she sounds like a good teacher.

She is probably dyslexic herself or has experience with dyslexic children so knows the signs but also knows how long it takes to diagnose which means they end up getting behind.
It sounds like she is trying to stop this from happening.

What’s helpful for dyslexic kids can also be helpful for non dyslexic kids so I would go with she probably is dyslexic until she’s older and gets a proper diagnosis.
Using non white paper or a coloured filter is such a small thing that can make a massive difference.

I would raise a concern with the Headteacher. It could be that this is an inexperienced Reception teacher. There is huge variation in Reception pupils because of chronological age, quite apart from other factors such as previous nursery education.

Teachers at our school always come out to discuss stuff in the playground. I've had a few things flagged up with DS and then they have been turned out fine. I have been a bit taken back at the time as no one wants to hear anything about their DC struggling, but once you research and support them it's fine. The support and an open mind is key.

Btw my DS struggled with numbers as nursery didn't really push them, it was all play based, but reception is for learning this stuff stealthy. The repetition makes it sink in. He's picked it up eventually. He struggled to count to 10, always missing 7, even towards the end of reception. But he's now fine ( in year 1, just takes him longer to get it ) . It's hard because my 2 year old can do this now.

Some of the comments on this thread are ridiculous.

First, it's very clear that what you are actually upset about is your child potentially having SEN and her schooling/future looking different to what you initially had in mind. It's normal to feel like that but you need to come at it from a logical perspective rather than an emotional one. Having dyslexia does not mean she will always struggle. It's a common learning difficulty and one whose barriers, when supported, can be overcome. This is not the teacher's fault just as it's not yours.

Second, anyone making comments about the teacher being unprofessional based on a tiny snippet of entirely one-sided information is being deeply unfair. The teacher may well be unprofessional but at this stage you have no evidence for to support such inflammatory comments.

As a well-informed poster has already said, it appears as if she has had an early screening. However, screens cannot ever diagnose dyslexia: they can only state whether a child has traits of dyslexia. A formal diagnosis can only be obtained from a qualified assessor once the child is older but this identifies your child as potentially needing that assessment in the future and helps to ensure early support and intervention can be put in place now.

The teacher has told you the traits in your initial discussion: short-term memory retention and number recognition. However, ask to see the screening report so that you can read it through in more detail. Dyslexia does not always affect reading so please do not fall into that common misconception. All 3 of my current dyslexic children are proficient readers with 2 on track to be Greater Depth in their KS2 assessments at the end of this year.

I think the teacher was unprofessional in her very brief comments in the playground. She can’t throw out a comment about dyslexia & not expect to need to explain a bit more to a parent. I’m an ex EYFS teacher & I know how much parents worry about their kids progress. I would have arranged to have a call with you later on to quickly go over what school had done.

However, the teacher has done nothing wrong in flagging concerns & doing an early screen. If your child did have dyslexia, the earlier it’s caught & the quicker she’ll get support to keep up with her peers. I’m
not surprised nursery didn’t flag anything like this. I don’t think ever saw a nursery flag issues such as dyslexia in my time. They might flag the Johnny doesn’t get know his numbers to 10 but that’s about it.

Contact the school & ask for a meeting to discuss what’s been done & any concerns the teacher has. Her comments make me think that she doesn’t actually have any & your DD is probably just running at the lower end of ability in her class. It’s probably due to her age & it absolutely does not mean she is doomed to fail.

My DD is in reception. She was always kinda top of end of expectations at nursery but she’s very much middling at school. She’s a summer baby & one of the youngest in her class. I’m not worried, we do lots of play based learning at home. I don’t doubt she’ll be fine in her education. The most important thing in reception is she likes going to school, she has made friends, she’s kind & she’s keen to learn. The rest will follow ❤️

@TheHoptimist

It can be very hard to accept that a child many have SEND. Many parents kick back and blame the person who tells them

Maybe do a little more research
I knew my daughter had dyslexia age 5 and I once taught a 5 year old who I put forward for diagnosis and was diagnosed

I agree. I’m an early years teacher and flagging issues up early on can be so hard and it’s such a shock for parents.

However, she shouldn’t have said dyslexia. Also depends if your daughter was working on a particular number and struggled to retain it. Maybe there’s more to it than just not knowing numbers?

I’d arrange a proper meeting if it was my child.

Also private nurseries don’t always have the expertise to pick up on things (no disrespect at all to private nurseries) but it’s the difference between a trained practitioner and a trained teacher. In my experience private nurseries are also wary of being too negative as you are a paying customer so it’s different from being a parent at school.

@HR313

It’s a shame schools vary so much in their approach. Clearly my daughter is going to struggle now regardless and will be forever behind. I don’t think any amount of support offered inside or out of school will help.

I think you need to calm down and try not to overreact.

I was told my daughter in year 1 was possibly dyslexic. I’m a teacher so it really upset me I’d possibly missed it in my own child! Anyway, nothing was confirmed and then covid hit. We’ve carried on doing work at home, tried to keep practising in her weaker areas. She’s making good progress (usually at this point the poster says their child is a genius!😄) and is working well. Maybe she is slightly dyslexic I’m not sure and school don’t think so. But it’s not the end of the world.

The other thing I’m noticing with a lot of children coming into Early Years is their lack of independence, reluctance to persevere and ability to think for themselves. This is also important to work on.

@HR313 - sounds like one of my DS former teachers. He was in pre-school attached to the primary he is in now and at parents evening I was told he had dyslexic traits. I asked for clarification and she said when asked to count to 10 he didn't stop at 10 and carried on to 15 - I couldn't fathom how that was a dyslexic trait. I was also told he was immature. He was f#cking 3! No one since has mentioned anything about dyslexic traits - I asked his reception teacher the following year and she said there were none and why did I think that. So I explained and she just rolled her eyes.
Your DDs teacher sounds like a real arse and it was totally out of order to discuss in the playground. I

@Iamnotthe1

Some of the comments on this thread are ridiculous.

First, it's very clear that what you are actually upset about is your child potentially having SEN and her schooling/future looking different to what you initially had in mind. It's normal to feel like that but you need to come at it from a logical perspective rather than an emotional one. Having dyslexia does not mean she will always struggle. It's a common learning difficulty and one whose barriers, when supported, can be overcome. This is not the teacher's fault just as it's not yours.

Second, anyone making comments about the teacher being unprofessional based on a tiny snippet of entirely one-sided information is being deeply unfair. The teacher may well be unprofessional but at this stage you have no evidence for to support such inflammatory comments.

As a well-informed poster has already said, it appears as if she has had an early screening. However, screens cannot ever diagnose dyslexia: they can only state whether a child has traits of dyslexia. A formal diagnosis can only be obtained from a qualified assessor once the child is older but this identifies your child as potentially needing that assessment in the future and helps to ensure early support and intervention can be put in place now.

The teacher has told you the traits in your initial discussion: short-term memory retention and number recognition. However, ask to see the screening report so that you can read it through in more detail. Dyslexia does not always affect reading so please do not fall into that common misconception. All 3 of my current dyslexic children are proficient readers with 2 on track to be Greater Depth in their KS2 assessments at the end of this year.

This in spades. , also a parent of a high achieving dyslexic child. The only thing that will hold you your child back is your attitude "not normal " struggle /behind forever etc Your child doesnt even have a diagnosis ! Dear god educate yourself please for the sake of your daughter.