Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Primary education

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

Flip

1 2 3

Original poster

Does my dd need a more advanced reading book? long - sorry

54 replies

leedslassy · 18/01/2008 16:37

DD started full time school in September and straight away they started to lear letter sounds. She took to this really well and learnt very quickly. In November they started bringing home erading books and she has been bringing about 1 every week home. When we sit down to read it she is flying through them with ahrdly any prompting. For example the book yesterdy had the word "everyone" in it which to me is a long word that is not phonetically spelt and thought she would at least have had to break it down into syllabelles but no she knew it.
I asked the teacher today if the books were read to them before they brought homw as I though she may be memorising some words but she said they didn't read them through straight away. Said she would monitor dd and if she agreed with me would consider giving her more challenging books. Am I right to ask for this to be done or should I just let her move along with the other children?

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

ChasingSquirrels · 20/01/2008 13:35

I think where it is wrong is that regardless of if the books get read, if a child is taking a book home every night at least they are there.
There are lots of households where there AREN'T lots of books about, and those children are the ones that suffer.
Surely the school should be fostering a love of reading - and how can this be done without supplying access books on a regular basis.

serin · 20/01/2008 19:23

One a week
We get one a day,
and if its not logged they want to know why!!! also get maths and science homework every week and a list of spellings.
DH reckons they spend more time doing homework than his GCSE kids!

imaginaryfriend · 20/01/2008 20:57

LunarSea that's exactly the same situation as we're in with dd except she only reads once a week with a parent helper. The parent helpers just do one group at a time so she always gets a turn unless the parent helper is sick.

I do find it a bit odd that even though she's been in Reception since last September, her teacher or TA haven't heard her read individually even once ... Because dd's quiet and fairly shy I imagine that the group guided reading isn't a situation in which she'd shine.

imaginaryfriend · 20/01/2008 20:58

serin, is that Reception though? Dd's school doesn't do homework or spelling until Y1.

katepol · 20/01/2008 21:45

My dds school:

one book per week (not every week though)
read to a TA or teacher every two weeks (approx, never more frequently, in fact dd2 has only been heard twice since starting in Sept)
*no reading diary or communication of any sort between school and home

....and this school was recently rated Outstanding (in all areas) by Ofsted.

I challenged the school and got the old 'lack of resources' line.

Hwr my dd1 managed to be a free reader by the end of recpetion, and I suspect dd2 will be too. I fear for other children will less enthusiasm though.

katepol · 20/01/2008 21:51

Oh, and ''being heard reading is in a group of 6 children, and they each take a turn reading one page out loud.

Mind you, dd1 'being heard reading' is all 6 reading the same book out loud at the same time , with the teacher walking round, 'listening in' wtf?!

AbbyLou · 20/01/2008 21:53

Ah thanks LunarSea. I just can't believe that children are not being heard even once by a teacher. Guided reading is not good enough in my book. Under the new Primary Literacy Framework all groups in a class have to do Guided Sessions once a week, not Guided Reading anymore. These sessions can be reading, phonics or writing. In our school YR, Y1 and Y2 all work along the same system of changing books if they have been read. I would be interested to know if some of these teachers actually have any idea of the level their kids are reading at. Formal assessment is all very well but the best indicator of reading ability is how a child reads on a day to day basis.

imaginaryfriend · 20/01/2008 22:19

AL I'm very concerned by dd's teacher not ever hearing her read by herself, not once, and not ever having yet fed back to me as to how dd's doing. The only indication I have is that dd is in the 'top' group so far. Whenever I put a note in dd's book that she needs more challenging reading matter the teacher doesn't reply.

The new Reception group next door who have just come in in January with a different teacher are having a much better time of it with good teacher / parent communication and reading books already!

Dd's teacher hasn't even got round yet to putting up a basic timetable outside the classroom so we know what day they do which activities.

dp said to me the other day that this is the only moment of dd's life so far that he wishes would rush by so we can get her into, hopefully, a better class environment.

Original poster

leedslassy · 21/01/2008 09:41

Thanks everyone for your comments. The day I mentioned it to the teacher dd came home that evening with a Level 2 book so I feel better that they listened to me. DD read it with no problem apart from 2 words that stretched her. She read it beautifully but I have asked that she bring more than 1 book per week home now.

OP posts:

imaginaryfriend · 21/01/2008 11:01

leedslassy, that's good the teacher listened to you. I don't think dd's teacher would allow her to take more than 1 book home a week as she doesn't have the resources for someone to listen to dd read it / change the book over. Or maybe she could take two at a time?

aintnomountainhighenough · 21/01/2008 11:53

Just after Christmas I asked for more reading books. After a bit of mumbling about numbers of books we are now getting 2 home, twice a week. Mind you they are still too easy so will leave it a week or two and then ask about the levels.

Gosh it's hard work isn't it!

imaginaryfriend · 21/01/2008 11:54

Yes it is hard work but you can't help but feel it doesn't need to be ...

I'd be so much happier if dd got 2 books a week, one to be read to parent helper and one to teacher / TA. Then I'd feel the school knew where she was at.

seeker · 21/01/2008 13:12

I am a parent helper, and if it helps, this is what happens in our school.

The children each have a reading record book. Whenever anyone, parent, teacher, TA or helper reads with the child something is written in the book. Teachers don't hear individual children read very often - it's not a very good use of a teacher's time (just thing, 25 children, 20 minutes each - that adds up to a lot of time when the other 24 children aren't being taught. Guided reading is very effective - the teacher has a group of 6 or so children of similar ability, and they either read a page each or the same book, or they act out a little play, or they do some other reading activity. The teacher then knows what level each child is and can move them up if necessary. Children then read once or twice a week with a parent helper or a TA and -crucially- every night at home. Think of guided reading as the driving lesson and reading with TAs, helpers and as at home as the practice between lessons.

Oh, and books are changed whenever necessary. If you've read a book a couple of times with your child, just go into the classroom and say 'Please can x have a new book - we've finished this one"

imaginaryfriend · 21/01/2008 13:43

seeker that sounds perfect. If dd's school did that I wouldn't have any complaints at all.

seeker · 21/01/2008 14:44

The thing is, I only know that's what happens because I'm in and out of school all the time - if I wasn't I don't think I'd have a clue. What you hear in the playground and from the children themselves is often very different from what really happens. Why not ask the teacher how it all works?

Ubergeekian · 21/01/2008 14:49

If she's reading well and enthusiastically take her to the library regularly, get her lots of books she likes and tell her not to bother too much about the stuff the school is giving her.

imaginaryfriend · 21/01/2008 15:30

seeker I do know what happens from the teacher - home reader once a week read with parent helper, no opportunity of changing the book more frequently, in fact once dd had the same bloody book for 5 weeks due to no parent helper at the time. And the teacher does guided reading in their groups once a week. I'm a parent helper listening to one group read a week so I know how it works from that too.

seeker · 21/01/2008 15:31

I wouldn't "tel her not to bother too much about the stuff the school is giving her"

I would think that myself, and I would get her to read the school book once and not again, but I think parents ought to be really really careful before they criticise school to children. They've got to go there for 5 years and it's not a good idea to let them get the idea that school work is optional.

imaginaryfriend · 21/01/2008 15:33

We tend to read the school book on the day she gets it then maybe once or twice again so she's familiar with it to read to the parent helper. I never tell her to disregard it although she herself says things like 'the school books are so boring'!

seeker · 21/01/2008 15:34

Oh, sorry, imaginaryfriend - I didn't realize. That'll teach me to read the thread better

Time for "no more Mrs Nice Guy" and go to the Head?

imaginaryfriend · 21/01/2008 15:43

Yes, I'm feeling that. i was pootling along really until the other class started in January and I saw how nicely the other Reception teacher is organising things from the start. We have a progress report meeting a week today and I'm going to ask some precise questions to the teacher. If I'm not happy still I may speak to the head.

AbbyLou · 21/01/2008 18:48

I'm shocked that children don't get books changed 'because the parent helper is away'. What is the teacher paid for exactly? Our Reception teachers do it in their lunchtime if they haven't got any help from a TA. As for finding the time, that's an excuse too. I spend playtimes reading with the children to get it done, it's the only way. To be honest, I actually enjoy reading with the children. Sometimes it might be the only quiet time in a day to sit down with that child and have a one to one conversation with no interruptions.

Ubergeekian · 21/01/2008 19:45

seeker: "They've got to go there for 5 years and it's not a good idea to let them get the idea that school work is optional."

I know what you mean. But if the school is giving boring, irrelevant or trivial stuff, I think the parent is quite OK to say "Don't worry about that - let's do something more interesting." But as a last resort, after trying to get the school to mend its way has failed.

I came home from my first day in Y1 proudly clutching the first Beacon Reader. "Look, mummy, a reading book!" I said, happily. "Why don't you read me something?" "What?" "Oh, just the first page."

So I opened the book, turned to the first page, and cheerfully read out "The use of phonics is postponed until later books in the series ..."

"Oh dear" thought my mummy. "He's in for a shock."

And I was!

imaginaryfriend · 21/01/2008 20:43

AL I think it's shocking too. To be listened to at least once a week should be the norm shouldn't it?

seeker · 21/01/2008 22:22

They should be listened to every day - by someone at home.

Flip

1 2 3

Swipe left for the next trending thread