DD is not meeting expectations

[frootito]

DD (year 1) had an absolutely glowing report but is not meeting expectations in maths, phonics or reading. There are mitigating circumstances as she's just coming out of a recurrent patch of bad health that really affected her during reception and year 1.

The teacher said she was off her game on the day she tested but nonetheless she is behind.

What I observe is that she can read but it's a bit laboured and doesn't really flow. She writes great text (imaginative stories) but her handwriting is illegible and her maths is just about ok (her teacher marked her down for writing the numbers back to front).

For lots of reasons I'm not overly worried. And I have no intention of stressing my lovely DD out.

But I would love to help her in a fun way over the summer if I can.

Does anyone have any recommendations for fun reading (we've lots of phonics books and will do one a day).

Writing - is there a way to make writing exercises fun and not a chore?

Thanks in advance

My kids really took off with reading once they found something they loved. When they love to read they will want to read more often and it will come naturally. I had them reading the school type reading books sometimes, but we would also buy different books for them to read for fun as well.

Coloured overlays / glasses wont necessarily help someone who cannot read or access phonics.
I once did a reading test on a child whose mum had spent a fortune on coloured glasses. He had left his glasses at home on the day, so I tested him without them. I then did the same test a few days later when he brought his glasses in. He scored higher the first time.
There are as many experts who dispute the benefits of overlays as ones who claim that there are benefits. I think that if overlays work as a placebo and ‘helps’ a child to read easier, then it doesn’t really matter!
https://www1.essex.ac.uk/psychology/overlays/controversy.htm#:~:text=Estimates%20indicate%20that%20about%2020,all%20affect%20susceptibility%20and%20severity.

I came on this thread to recommend Five Minute Mum. She’s on Insta and has a blog and some books and has literally hundreds of ideas of how to practise reading, writing and maths in fun ways.

But I also want to make a point about illness. I was seriously ill as a child and missed a lot of school. A focus on ‘not meeting expectations’ as a result of this is a very adult-centric way of addressing what a child has missed through illness and does nothing to deal with the unmet social and emotional needs the child will also have experienced.

So school should back off a bit and allow you to support your DD to catch up on all the social and emotional support she might need as a result of her experiences.

At this age to improve writing, I would start with reading. If she loves non-core subjects, get her non-fictional books to read. You can get books that fit into the book band system but also covers interesting topics. Usborne and National Geographic both publish these types of books.
Fundamentally if your child loves the content of a book she will enjoy reading and therefore become better at it. The more she reads the better she will be able to construct her own writing.
For maths, puzzles, logic games and board games help a lot.

Handwriting for any real length requires finger strength, think up some activities where she needs to peg things up or pick small things up like dried peas with her fingers or clothes peg and make it a contest to make it fun.

The right grip or pen makes a big difference, teens I worked with who had dysgraphia swore by Stabilo ergonomic pens. Your DD might be a bit young but pencil grips are worth trying.

What a shame that a 5 year old is deemed to be 'not meeting expectations' and is expected to be writing and reading fluently. There's a reason that dyslexia is not assessed for at such a young age as formal learning simply doesn't work for all 5 year old, and it's simply too early to suggest that they won't just catch up.
We get it so wrong in this country and cause parents such uneccesary stress. European countries are so much more sensible!

@Pawpatrolsucks

This- keep a watch for dyslexia as she sounds classic signs showing through and don’t trust the school to assess with their screening in yr 2 it’s very basic, have her privately assessed.

Agree with lots of these comments. Focus on the long game - things do change over time. My eldest was below expected throughout primary, and had suspected dyslexia but no formal assessment. When she joined secondary she was predicted a 1a for GCSE. We tried to keep her engaged in activities outside of school such as sport to boost her self esteem. Thankfully support at secondary was fantastic and she started to really progress. She developed lots more in confidence and had some dyslexia support. Got a grade 9 last year in her GCSE.