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

Original poster

Am I right to be concerned?

32 replies

handsomeharrysmum · 01/03/2008 07:23

I have a ds in year 2.He is 7 years 2 months.Have just been given his current levels in numeracy and literacy, level 2b for both.Not too concerned about that as I work in a school and understand the levels.He is reading stage 11 ORT with no problems at all.
It's his spelling-here are the words he was given this week with his spellings underneath.
four, two, feathers, tail, mane,beak, horns, neck,tree,leaves,climb,Africa.

for, too, fethers,tale, main, beek,hons,nek,tree,leevs,clim,Afrika.
Giving him 1 out of 12.

Obviously when we looked at them together they improved straight away, but its SATS soon and his spellings will really bring his score down.It is soo frustrating.Any one else feel like this.He hates writing which doesn't help.

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

reindeermum · 01/03/2008 07:29

My ds is exactly the same age, but I don't work in a school and do not know anything about these levels and what they mean. I know that he has sats soon but don't know anything about that yet either although I understand school will be giving us details soon.

I am not worried or concerned at all about what level he is. I am grateful that he seems a happy child and gets on well with friends etc. Why are these scores so important to you when he is only 7 years old? Sorry if I sound harsh - really don't mean to be at all - but is HE concerned about them or is it just you? Is he happy and getting on well generally?

reindeermum · 01/03/2008 07:30

Although I can totally understand why you are frustrated at the 1 out of 12 when he is generally of a good level

Squirtle · 01/03/2008 08:16

He is making phonically plausible attempts t all the words so i would be very proud of him. Are his versions of the words after he has had some time to learn them?
Whenever he does his SATs test/tasks (and he could hve already done them)the spelling is only a very smll prt of the overall writing level. The finally level given is totally down to teacher assessment so I really don't think you need to panic about SATs.

cece · 01/03/2008 08:28

My dd is also in Year 2. Her spelling is far worse and she is predicted a 2A/3 (on a good day) or at least that is what her teacher said. TBH the SATs level is decided by teacher assessment.. The SATs tests at Year 2 only inform their judgement. TBH I am not sure why you are so worried about his SATs score anyway, it is not really going to be something that effects his adult life is it? I am not even going to mention them to DD, as far as I am concerned I don't think she needs to know she is being assessed.

OneHandedTypist · 01/03/2008 10:00

A good school will reasess their ability at start of Y3, anyway, to decide which groups to stream them into. Not just at the start of Y3, actually, but repeatedly (arguably excessively) re-assessed as Y3 goes along.

Encourage more reading to help with spelling.

LIZS · 01/03/2008 10:04

I don't think ds Year 5 would get all of them right out of context tbh.

jollydo · 01/03/2008 10:12

also for, too, tale and main are real words which he may have come across and could be confusing with four, tail, two and mane. Recognising different spellings of words which sound the same is tricky even for older children.

dramaqueen · 01/03/2008 10:21

Were they his weekly spellings? Did you help him learn them? If not, then why are you surprised that he doesn't know them?

If they are randomly tested then he made a good attempt at them. Either way i think you are at fault for being too obsessed with his sats levels. It's hardly his A levels is it?

SoupDragon · 01/03/2008 10:25

Why do you care about his SATS results? They're meaningless.

Original poster

handsomeharrysmum · 01/03/2008 10:41

dramaqueen, I see where you get your name from.I'm far from 'obsessed'.I don't particularly care about the SATS results,I want my child to do well at school and the fact that he is very good at everything he does apart from his spelling makes it more frustrating.The spellings were given in context I told him it was the number 4 and number 2 that he needed to spell.

OP posts:

cazzybabs · 01/03/2008 10:56

Do the words like four and two get said in a sentence so he knows what he is supposed to be spelling? The trouble with English is is such a mix of langauages it is so blooming hard to get right! He just has to learn them = the ck on nek is common - can you find other words with him in books to fit the pattern. Africa - can he learn by the word shape. ea as in beak/beek is also common again can you find other words with him!

I am rubbish speller (and I teach year 1) so I feel for your son. I think the spelling is marked seperalty for tyhe SATS...yes it might affected his level but it shouldn't affect the words he chooses to wrtie in his creative writing.

cornsilk · 01/03/2008 11:06

Maybe he needs to find a different way to learn his spellings? They are all quite good guesses and phonetic so I wouldn't be concerned.

Twiglett · 01/03/2008 11:08

the only ones that are actually incorrect phonically are

hons for horns and clim for climb

the rest are good attempts

I wouldn't worry too much about it .. you know that SATS are bollocks and are about the school and not your DS ..

My ds is in year 2 .. they don't do SPELLINGS at all

flamingtoaster · 01/03/2008 11:10

One way of improving spelling (and increasing creativity in the reluctant to write - I've been there, done that and have the t-shirt) is to introduce typing. Whether or not he is ready to touch type depends on his hands being big enough to rest comfortably on the guide keys and not move too far when reaching to upper and lower rows. My DS taught himself when he was six and he didn't have huge hands so at 7 your DS should be fine. If you use something like Mavis Beacon Teaches typing and do the practice initially on the 500 most common words spelling will improve rapidly. Also reluctant writers will often do much longer and more creative stories if they can type them out. Typing is also a great skill for later in the education process - long projects/coursework can be rattled out very quickly. There are a lot of "fun" typing courses out there and there are free ones on the internet as well (though they aren't such fun).

bluenosesaint · 01/03/2008 11:15

I wouldn't be concerned in the slightest tbh. They look like pretty good attempts to me

I was unable to spell all through primary (and most of secondary) school. My mum was concerned and voiced her concerns about it (at length ) at every parents evening!
My teachers were never concerned. I went on to get English GCSE's and an English 'A' Level

Perfect spelling when you're 7 is no reason for concern imo ...

And don't get me started on SATS ...grrr ...

maverick · 01/03/2008 11:28

You may find the information on this page helpful:

www.aowm73.dsl.pipex.com/dyslexics/spelling.htm

bluenosesaint · 01/03/2008 11:29

Ooops post should have read "imperfect spelling when you're 7 is no reason for concern imo ..."

doh

mrz · 01/03/2008 11:34

I don't teach in year 2 at the moment but from memory the wording on the KS1 SATs for writing is something like "spells common words correctly and makes phonetically plausible attempt at others" out of that list I would only say a couple are "common" words ie. High frequency words. SAT results are more important to the school than the child as they are used for league tables.

Original poster

handsomeharrysmum · 01/03/2008 14:46

thank you so much for these positive and sensible replies and yes I have stopped worrying about it now.

OP posts:

RosaIsRed · 01/03/2008 16:33

DD2 is in year three. She got a level three in her English SAT last year and her spelling is at least as bad as that. She has a spelling test every week, and if we drill her beforehand she can get them all right, but if we have forgotten to check, she normally gets them ALL wrong. I am not joking when I say that DD3 who is in Yr1 can spell better. So I really wouldn't worry at all.

mrz · 01/03/2008 16:44

From experience most children who get ALL their spellings correct in spelling tests rarely apply them when it comes to writing stories.

Original poster

handsomeharrysmum · 01/03/2008 18:04

thanks rosa and mrz.

OP posts:

seeker · 01/03/2008 18:14

My dd is 12 and at a selective school. Her spelling is woeful - my current favourite is researsh. But her teacher says it will get better and is doesn't not appear to hve held her back academically at all. I wouldn't worry.

NAB3wishesfor2008 · 01/03/2008 18:19

Just read OP.

SATS at 7? Heck, my DS is nearly 7 and we have heard nothing about SATS.

smartiejake · 01/03/2008 18:21

I really wouldn't worry about it too much he's only 7.2 and already achieving national average for literacy. He's fine and the spelklings part of the SATS don't actually amount too much in the overall score.
CHildren need to be exposed to new words that can not be spelt phonically about 40 times before they go in and are spelt correctly all the time (in free writing,and in context not just for test.)

DD2 was dire at spelling in year 2.
Now in year 4 she's fine.

Flip

1 2

Swipe left for the next trending thread