Working towards expected level

[Exactfare]

Y1 DC

Y1 DC got their report today, they are "working towards expected standard" in English/maths. I knew they were behind - and I suspect some SEN - but could anyone shed some light on how to interpret this? They also massively missed the phoenic screening target (again I'm not surprised)

How common is it for Y1 not to be hitting their levels?

Probably best to speak to the teacher. The majority will be "meeting expected standards" but It doesn't matter how common it is, what matters is that your child needs some help to catch up and how you and the school can support him in that.

I dont know but ensure you have a lot of correct band books for the summer holidays and read daily. If you are still not making progress you will be able to tell that to the school as its like an extra school term.
Could you try reading eggs to go over the phonics digraphs etc

DD is in a very similar position. I’m seeing the summer holidays as catch up time. Just a little every day as I work, 30 mins max plus daily reading and hoping it will make a difference going into year 2. I tried reading eggs half way through reception but it didn’t work then. I’ve tried again this week and it’s been a big hit!

Why not download copies of the old year 2 sats papers and see what they have to work towards? Will help you focus in on objectives.

I have a y1 DC in a similar position. We’ve not actually had the report yet but I know that we will be ‘working towards’ for a few things. I don’t know whether it’s a covid thing (massive disruption to preschool and year R combined with a summer birthday) or whether he would just be like this. I think I agree above about the little and often, so hopefully we will manage frequent reading over the summer and for us writing is a challenge so I will be working on fine motor skills and drawing to try and help with that. Mostly I’m looking forward to a new teacher and fresh eyes. And SENCo support for him in September.

Disagree. The vast majority right now won't be at Expected.

You need evidence as a teacher to put them at Expected. If you don't have that evidence in their books, they're not expected.

Ask the teacher.

Disagree. The vast majority right now won't be at Expected.
That's what I was going to say.

The expectations are the same as they were before covid but the children have huge gaps from all of the disruption.

The best thing you can do is use the time you have with them when they are at home.

@LittleSockOfHorrors as a parent I have such a huge issue that the expected standards have not moved at all. All I see is a child for whom the gap is constantly growing as he gets left behind the expectation.

what I am unsure of though is whether he’s unusual or if the whole cohort are similar. So your post is a little reassuring. Thanks.

@Exactfare What SEN do you suspect your DC may have? This can be key to knowing what type of support your child needs.

Eg, if you thought your child was dyslexic, you might approach spelling in a specific way. If you thought your child was autistic, you might approach maths in a way that focussed on lots of repetition and over learning of a few key skills.

How does your DC feel about school? Do they like it?

I can't comment I'm afraid on how common it is to be behind age related expectations. But from my experience it's good to understand as early as possible what the difficulties are, as frustration can affect behaviour (our experience).

Just to reassure you, my son was meeting all his expectations in reception but by the end of year 1 was working towards most of them. (Bad teacher who ended up being pushed out). It took until year 4 but that’s when he caught up with everyone. Now in year 9 and doing well at secondary so please don’t worry. Hopefully he will catch up too and be fine.

Working towards covers a huge range, from "narrowly missed" through to "very far from meeting". Did you get any more information on how far your DC is from age related expectations? I'd say that

It’s really important to ask the teacher
how far behind your DS is.

If a child is expected year on year you can see they are making progress. When a child is working towards each year it gives no sense of whether your child is progressing but for example at a steady pace or if your child is falling further behind their peers or even not making any progress.

Why not download copies of the old year 2 sats papers and see what they have to work towards? Will help you focus in on objectives.
definitely do not take that advice! That’s a sure way to ensure your child hates learning, Just read to them , play games like orchard games and junior scrabble.
Most importantly do not worry about artificial standards.

I would ask for a meeting with the school and ask what the plan is to get him to the expected level. It might be due to COVID and the schooling that was missed. They may have some suggestions on what you can do at home. We did home school in year one and there was lots of phonics work. And lots of you tube clips of Geraldine giraffe and some jolly phonics games that both my kids enjoyed.

What sen do you suspect? I wud ask for a meeting with the Senco too.

I agree, was coming on to say the same thing!

Firstly, talk to the teacher. Find out what the specific concerns are and what he/she recommends.

Secondly, find lots of fun learning things to do. We loved those books where you pressed a button on each page and it read to you whilst you followed. Can you still get them?
Board games, apps, if the issue is being unable to sit and focus for long then make use of signs and notices as you walk around,invent silly games involving letters and numbers, go on scavenger hunts.

Basically play with her and don't make it obvious she's doing "work"

If you’re looking for games, Five Minute Mum - website and books - has tons for phonics and maths.

I wasn't suggesting your child do old papers, they are useful in identifying the skills teachers have to teach. Eg sequences, you could then go on and do your own thing, counting up and down the stairs, using toys for sorting, drawing sequences with pavement chalk etc etc.

You have to ask the teacher. My older is in year 6 and we the SATs results. The percentage of students reaching expected standard at the school hasn’t dropped. My year 2 has got her results yet, but she said only a couple of children in her class hasn’t finished the book bands.

Talk to the teacher and they will know what he needs to focus on. Also I know of year 2s who get maths tutoring. So don’t feel down about it. The important thing is identify what needs to be worked on.

I think that is wrong to give the idea that the majority will be working towards. In my school it is at 23% so in my school they would not be the only one by any means but in a smaller percentage. However, thet may be different in your school.

What matters, as others have said, is whether they are making progress, what plans there are in place to help your child develop. What will the school do for them and what would they like you to do to support them at home. In year 2 they may start considering whether your child will need to go on the SEN register rather than a wave 2 child. Ask the teacher for all this information so you can be clear they're getting the support they need.

My daughter is summer born and also has WT in a few areas. The report came out the day before term ended so I haven't been able to speak to the teacher before the summer holidays. The notes we had accompanying the report did say that "meeting expectations" at her school means on track for an A grade so I'm not sure whether we should be worried or not.

As PP have said, working towards is a big range from very nearly expected, to far from expected. I believe around 85% of Y1 children pass the phonics screening each year to give you an idea of how common it is to pass/not.

Primary teacher here! Try not too worry too much about this, although I know it isn't easy. Your DC is at the very beginning of their school career and they're still developing as a learner.

I would have hoped that the teacher would have spoken to you prior to the report, and would have been able to explain in more detail what was meant by "working towards". I really dislike that we have to "grade" children in this way, especially when they're so young.

I suggest you arrange a meeting with your child's teacher and ask for 3 objectives to focus on. This way it is manageable for you both and it hopefully won't feel too overwhelming. Please don't let this be your summer though, and going outside, doing different things and spending time talking as a family is still more important.

Thanks all for the advice! I've got a meeting with his teacher - who isn't worried as he has made good progress over the year

But I've suspected dsylexia for a long time due to various traits I've noticed in him (eg still doesn't have a clue about time/days of the week), we also have a family history but at this age I believe it's hard to separate immaturity from an actual problem

If he does have SEN I know he's unlikely to get support at school - as it's probably mild and he's got no behavioural issues, and let's face it they are so stretched as it is. my big worry is he muddles along and no one picks up on anything until much further down the line when damage as been done to confidence etc.

I want to be as proactive as possible in supporting him, luckily he loves school andnloves learning but we have had a few comments from.him. about being stupid ☹️