reading - what does it mean? some help please

[RomillyJane]

I have 3 dc.
Ds 1 is 11 and in yr 6, he has ADD, moderate dyslexia and Aspergers. Ds2 is 7 and has issues with fine motor skills - and possibly other (as yet) undiagnosed educational difficulties. Both are in mainstream education but obviously have had some issues there.

Right now my issue is ds3. He is 4 and in reception. He is reading stage 6B ORT books, can write sentences, add up and subtract simple numbers ( to 10 not > 10) He is being sat in 'phonics' lessons where they are learning the 'sound' 'b' .... and yet school know he can read pretty fluently...

OK, so my issues are ... 1.is ds3 just normal and I should suck it up 2. should he not be doing this phonic stuff which he already knows... what can I do?

Sorry I feel deeply foolish. I have two lovely ds with SEN, and one where I have no idea if he is clever than average, nor what to do if he is........

thanks for any advice

He's more ahead then he should be. IIRC, most can not read in reception. You should speak to his teacher about the letters, it's probably so he doesn't feel left out. I had this problem when ds started school, he was reading books from the junior school, I ended up giving him books from home to read at school as he was reading them quicker then they were replacing them.

He sounds like a bright boy

they could just be doing the phonics with him just to ensure that he does know them all (amazingl not all children that learn to read before starting school know their phonics - so can find reading later on harder if they've not covered all their phonics).

If you're concerned -go and speak to them - they may just be a bit slow at "sorting out" who should be doing waht in the class

he is far more advanced than any child in DD's class. she is in reception and aged 5.

I think i would request a meeting with tthe class teacher and SENCO. he needs to be stimulated far more than he will be at the moment.

It's possible that all the class are doing the 'letter b' phonics lesson, so he's just sitting through the planned day. Talk to the teacher about how she differentiates in these lessons to meet his needs.

Ds's first school allowed him to work in a year one class when his reception class were doing this as they all did literacy at the same time. Wasn't the best idea as he's an April baby so was very immature.

There was another thread on this a few days back and someone pointed out (probably mrz) that the group phonics work in reception's usually only about 10 mins a day. So if that's true at your school, it's surely not a problem in that it's reinforcing what he probably already knows, but at least makes sure he does. So I'd still talk to the teacher, but more out of curiosity than worry. After all if they're giving him that level of ORT book they know he's good at reading, so I'd imagine they may well be stretching him in ways you don't even know about.

My dd1 is sounds similar to your son Romilly. She's 4 and in reception and can do the list of things you state, although they don't do ORT so not sure what level she would be at. She can read lots of "normal" story books (ie not reading scheme) at home, and brings home "yellow" books from school which are really straightforward for her. I haven't said anything to school though as she's quite happy sitting through the phonics sessions, which are, as someone else said, only a very small part of the day. I'd rather she gained a completely sound phonics basis, rather than finding out later that there were certain sounds she's missed by racing through.

So in answer to your questions I think he's prabablly brighter than average but is unlikely to be the only one. I'm sure there are a few in the class equally capable. Regarding the phonics, I wouldn't suggest doing anything different from his class and maybe challenge him a bit more at home if you feel like it. If he starts feeling fed up with it, or his behaviour changes because he's not challenged then that might be the time to say something.

His reading level sounds really quite ahead of average, but maths sounds bright but not amazing ime.

As others say, the phonics sessions are short and should be fun if they are learning say, JP songs, but he needs to understand not every moment of the day will challenge him too.

That said, I'd want to know what they are doing to challenge him more with both reading and maths. Go in gently, as they might well be doing more than you think.

Reception learning can be quite intangible to parents and I think this makes it harder for those with dc's who are not at the average level of the class to see what their dc is doing.

The phonics is probably for the whole class and they wouldn't exclude any child. His maths sounds about right for reception but his reading miles ahead.

At this stage in reception I would expect that the more able child could read simple sentances - CVC words and some key words, and others might be struggling... they obviously know he is good at reading if they are giving him ORT6 though. More standard in reception at this stage in year would be ORT1-3.

Did you teach him to read before reception or did he pick it up? If you (someone else) taught him then it will all even out by end of reception. I did not teach my DD to read before reception even though she wanted to as I did not want her to be bored in reception. If he just picked it up from school this year then thats different and maybe should speak to SENCO.

Haven't read the other replies but wanted to say your DS sounds like mine. He can read fluently, writing quite well (but not quite the standard of his reading). At the beginning of Reception class he was doing the same as the rest of the class - what your DS is sitting through. But once they'd assessed him they realised he wasn't gaining anything from it and he now goes up to a year one/two for extra lessons a few times a week.

Maybe you could have a word and see if they think your DS would benefit from extra lessons in an older class?? My DS definitely benefits from it - a few other parents were up in arms about the fact that a TA was staying with him which took her out of the classroom for 1/2 an hour, but he stays on his own now and is fine with it.

To MumNWLondon, if your child really is keen to read and write then there is no way of stopping them. I was told by MIL that DS would be 'bored once he's at school'. But he loves it and I love that she was wrong of course

Just out of curiosity what would be average and what would constitute doing quite well for writing? I've no idea, whereas with reading it's much easier to tell how your child is doing I think.

Thanks for your advice. I have a parents evening next week so will ask gently what they are doing with him.... I didn't teach him to read, he just did it! he started asking about sounds at about 2 and putting CVC words together more than a year ago.