Would you be happy if your child only changed their reading book once a week and had no other homework?

[nappyaddict]

I know it's not a huge deal in the grand scheme of things but one of the schools we looked round the other day said they only change reading books once a week which didn't seem very much to me. They don't get any other homework (which I am happy about and is making me lean towards this school than the others) but when I have asked other people what happens at their school they either say they don't have homework but change their book a few times a week or they only change their book once a week but they have other homework aswell.

My dd rarely brings home reading books anymore and when she does its always 'Kipper's Shopping List' I am investing in some Oxford Reading Tree books for at home from here but that is mainly because she is behind at school so I want to help her catch up at home.

Have a word with the teachers if you are concerned.

My DS1s school change the book(s) once a week. As his reading has improved he gets more than one book. Saves admin their end and mine (I only have to remember to return the books one day a week).

If you can see what level their reading is at you can always top up at the library.

It depends how old your dc is.

For example, my ds is in Reception and can't read yet so they change books 2-3 times per week.

Dd is in Yr3 and only changes her book once a week as it's much longer (plus a library book)

It was the reception teacher who said they only change once a week.

Are we talking about Infants?

I wouldn't be happy with once a week book changing and I am not by any means pushy, quite the opposite.

Especially in the early stages of learning to read going over the same book time and time again serves no purpose.

When DS1 started school 4yrs ago his school were more like that and it got really boring. They instigated a more formal policy of getting parents to listen to their children read at least 5 times a week and it paid dividends in the children's reading standards.

DS2 has just started reception in that school and has a different book every night so never gets bored or just recites from memory and his reading is developing a lot faster than DS1's did because he is getting more practice and more variety.

Better to have too many book changes than not enough. I agree though, no other homework is good.

Ok.

Do you mean the class reader or books they choose themselves?

Iirc when dd was in Reception the reader was only changed once a week but they could also choose another book to bring home once or twice a week (they didn't get readers until the second term)

erm sorry not sure what a class reader is. she says they bring a book home with a reading diary type thing which the teacher write a few short questions and they have to answer them.

Ds2 started Reception in September and he gets 2 books a week. He is actually very good at reading and I don't think this is enough so I usually get him extra books from the library. I also have a set of ORT books which I ordered when ds1 started school as he used to sometimes go weeks without changing his books and I felt that was really holding him back.

The readers are the staged ones usually 'Kipper and his mates' or some such. Thats the one dd never changes her story book changes daily. Most schools here use the Oxford Reading Tree ones.

you are talking about a child starting reception?

absolutely I'd be ecstatic about this

A class reader is one simple book which the whole class will learn to read together ('Dear Zoo' for example)

Yes, all children have a reading diary but we've only used it to make a note which book they have brought home and to comment on whether they liked it or not, and later on, also how they are getting on with reading. The teacher also sees diary and will comment on their reading.

That's my experience anyway. They have never had written questions etc. Hopefully a teacher will see this and advise you!

Dd1 gets 2 books a week in reception, no other homework yet.

We bought the oxford learning tree home pack, dd loves reeding them at home.

We can change DS's (Reception) reading book as frequently as he wishes. Sometimes this is every day and sometimes he just can't be bothered and it probably is only once a week!

TBH though I find the reading books really restrictive, and he has started picking out letters/words for himself in the books we read to him which I think is.

It wouldn't bother me that his school reading book was only changed once a week, if you otherwise liked the school. I would ask questions about how often they read in school, is it groups or individual.

Twig - she said throughout the school (it is just infants) they only change it once a week. would you be happy about it when they are in y1 and 2 aswell? i can understand when they are just starting out but thought they might change it more often than that later on.

well to be honest I find the school books that are sent home quite a drain.

In year 1 and 2 it was good because he had to read them out loud to me and we could swap comments with the teacher in the reading record ... he generally got one a week

Once they are free readers it doesn't matter

and in the main they read their own books anyway .. so we always have the tension between 'book from school' or book at home

it really is only of use to have one book when they are emergent readers .. and one a week is fine .. because it's not just the ability to read it, it's have you understood what happens and why it happened that needs focusing on

(tbh I can't be bothered hearing my child read now that I know he can so he just reads, tells me what he's read and I ask him questions to see if he'd understood)

Some days I would love this.
DS1's reading book (in reception)gets changed when he has got to grips with it, it could be he has the same one for a couple of nights, at the moment he seems to be having some sort of reading spurt and it is being changed every day. Which is good, I s'pose.
He also has a writing sheet (practise writing a number or letter)to do once a week (has all week to do it), phonic letter sounds to learn (about 4 a week) and a story sack (kept for a week) which is more for fun.
It is a struggle to fit everything in tbh.

But twig, even the most fantastic reader will come across unfamiliar words which you can explain and tell them how to pronounce.

Yes, absolutely - this is what my kids' school do (still true for dd in yr 3, although the chapter books she brings home are obv v different from the twigs of the Oxford Reading Tree my reception child gets).

Am utterly bemused by the post about 'going over the same book time and time again', why would you do that? They read it, we talk about it, then it's done and we read things we choose the rest of the week. Excellent system.

so he'll ask ...

Twig - even though he only changed his book once a week did you listen to him read every night? Wouldn't he get bored of reading the same book over and over? Or did you read a few pages a night rather than the whole book over and over again?

DD1's school (she's in Yr 1) only change once a week, but they put 4 books in so you have a week to work your way through them.

Ah I think Zazette has answered my question. So in infants when your child only got one book a week would you read it all in one go rather than a few pages each night?

DD doesnt seem to have gotten bored of kipper's shopping list but it is not helping her reading she has simply memorised the book. Though they are meant to change the books weekly no one seems to stop dd choosing the same book over and over and over

Did I say we re-read the book? God no.

To be honest he'd read the school book once, usually at the weekend, because it was due to swap on Tuesdays.

We'd read bits of night-time books together as well.

When he was learning to read I got him 'red nose readers' and when he read one out loud to me start to finish he'd get to keep it

The school books really supplemented that kind of approach and gave me a point of reference to talk to the teachers if I needed to

Zazette - it is difficult to get books the right level that DS can read himself at the moment and I am not going to buy ORT books to read at home because he is developing so quickly he would be through them in a couple of weeks and it is money wasted.

Of course we read books together at home, loads of them, but in order to move on through the reading scheme and get the right sort of practice that fits in with what he is doing in class he needs the school reading scheme. It won't be an issue later on but in the early stages a book a week isn't enough. A book a day is keeping his interest a lot better than it did for my book worm DS1 who had only a book a week and made painfully slow progress and was throughly bored by the whole school reading experience.