What should my P2 be able to do?

[honeycombbiscuit]

I feel so worried but just keep being told she will do it at her own pace and that learning through play is best.

TBH my kids are now so far past that age group that I wouldn't really know specifics.

Just wanted to say though that my DD was really slow to learn to read - she's now on track for a first in a really demanding degree. Once she got it she got it and then some. Whereas DS didn't speak at all till he was nearly 2 and has never been a big reader even though he was reading earlier than DD. His most recent report card makes it clear that he's doing really well across all subjects and expected to do well in his exams next year. So it's still early to be panicking if the school seem ok with everything.

What is it that she's not doing that you feel she should be able to do? And when is her birthday? That can have a big impact on how they do compared to others in the class.

Reading and writing.

If she is looking at letters, she knows most of the sounds, but very slowly. Trying to sound out a word then takes so long I think she has forgotten the first sound by the time she gets to the third. If she has to write a sound down she doesn't always match the right letter to the sound.

We have so many books and she's met all other milestones on time. She loves insects and she can tell you lots of things about the world.

I feel so worried and I don't know how to help her properly.

Have you spoken to her teacher op?

There is a huge variation in P2 in terms of reading and writing and it doesn't sound like she would be outwith the huge range that is 'normal'.

Remember also that she has had a hugely disrupted P1 and that she missed out on a big chunk of her preschool year too. The impact of that will take time to become less noticeable.

When you say she takes time to sound out a word, is that one that she's trying to read or one she's trying to spell out herself?

Definitely have a chat with her teacher but try not to worry too much at this stage. X

Yes, I have. She said much the same things, disruption last year, etc and give her time.

Both reading and spelling take her so much time and she guesses words and letters.

I just feel so worried that she is falling behind and I should be doing more.

My son was P2 in lockdown. Reading with him was like an exercise in torture! He'd stumble on two letter words.
He's P4 now and has come on really significantly. There is a point at which something seems to click.
The best thing we did was read something other that Biff, Chip and Kipper at bed time. He just didn't engage with those books. We read the apple tree farm ones and took a page each and it really helped

On another note, how is her hearing? My son had grommets just before starting school and although he is now discharged and can hear, the subtle differences in word sounds are lost on him. Phonetic spelling was ridiculous because the letters he thinks he hears are nothing like the actual words! Much as I hated it, I do wonder if home schooling (joke calling it that as I was working) did help in some ways. We did more old fashioned sight reading and he got that better

I work in p2, tbh the huge majority are the same. Yes they are behind non covid equivalents, remember their preschool, p1 and p2 have all been significantly disrupted but they are very young, some are still just turning 6, and will catch up. Learning through play is definitely hugely beneficial at this age too. Keep reading to your dc and instill a love of books even if they aren't the ones reading them. Go over the sounds in a fun way, spot letters when you are out but ultimately try not to worry too much your dc is far from unusual right now and we have interventions in place to help them catch up throughout the year groups

I've never noticed a problem with her hearing but with you saying that I will get it checked.

Bloody Biff is an after dinner torture. We read her book and do her homework. I bought magnetic letters and some other letter games and try to make her practise twice a week but I don't know if I'm doing it properly.

I would pay for tutoring tbh. Was the 'click' in P3? When is the time to worry?

Should I know about interventions in place? That does make me feel slightly better, thank you.

If she’s at this point in p2 and is struggling there will be interventions in place - or at least there should be. It depends what exactly you mean (e.g. does she struggle with recognising phonics sounds, has she been labouring away at the same book band for ages, or is she still quite sticky when reading aloud but is able to decode and understand progressively lengthier books). Does she have sight words to practice for ORT - there are sight words that don’t follow usual phonics patterns up to stage 9. Is there a possibility your daughter could be dyslexic?

Nothing seems to have changed from P1. She can fairly reliably tell me that she has played, put her dot beside her name for completing her challenge, gone to the teacher's table.

Yes, she struggles recognising sounds and words. Definitely not on lengthy books but we do have words to practise.

I really haven't a clue about dyslexia. I do feel like there is something not right though.

Far too early to think about tutoring. You definitely don’t want her to think she’s behind or is king, as this demotivates and that’d be much worse than needing an extra few months.

Mine hated phonics and the reading books till they got to Project X books which he just found really interesting. And then one rainy tent holiday in P3 we read Harry Potter 1 to him. And he just could not wait till the next chapter. We found him snuggled up in his sleeping bag with a torch, and piecing together huge long words when he’d struggled to read sentences with 5-10 words before. By the end of that holiday he’d read HP1 and HP2 and was a fluent reader, so it was just finding something that grabbed him once he had the initial competence. The other thing was subtitles. He wanted to watch tv early in the morning before we wanted to be woken so we compromised that he could watch an episode without sound but with subtitles.

For her words she has to practice - ask her teacher if they have any printable games/flash cards they can give you to practice at home. Don’t be afraid to have an honest conversation about how she does at home, or ask for a meeting to discuss her progress for reassurance.

Children ultimately do learn at their own pace and it won’t always be linear 😊 having an interested parent is a positive factor for your DD’s education too.

Do you have a local library? Try to go with her once a week and let her choose a couple of books for you to read to her at bedtime. Just to instil an interest in reading as that will keep her motivated. Lots of praise when she gets words right and I know its hard but try not to pressure her.
I got some phonics and common words flash cards from Amazon for my p1, they're pretty good.
If there's something she's good at then do that often and give her lots of praise, talk about how good she is at xxx in front of others to give her a confidence boost.
She's only wee and as pp said the past 2 years have been hugely disrupted.

Both my dc by p2 have been able to read about Oxford reading tree level 5-6, I'd recommend going to the library or second hand book shops if the school isn't giving you more than one book a week.

Jolly phonics workbooks are on Amazon. For maths, a lot of schools use the SPMG heinemann books which again are on Amazon.

Spelling, have you got spelling lists from the class to practice and build on? You can find spelling lists to practice online.

It may be ok, but on the other hand of the school have identified they're behind their non covid peers I'd expect a concrete catch up plan with suggestions for at home support.

The other thing i'd suggest is optometrist to check how eyes are working together if you've not been just in case. Problems blending and skipping words can have a root in eye problems.

Usborne and national geographic have great fact based readers my dd loved.

Both my dc by p2 have been able to read about Oxford reading tree level 5-6, I'd recommend going to the library or second hand book shops if the school isn't giving you more than one book a week.

Was this pre covid? Both my dc were also reading level 5 and both later turned out to be dyslexic however we currently have no p2's reading at this level apart from one asd child who taught himself to read long before starting school. Some might be able to read the words but they've missed so much of the building blocks to be actually effectively reading and comprehending that level with the associated grammar.

Should I know about interventions in place? That does make me feel slightly better, thank you.

No you probably won't, there will likely be a group rather than just your dd, however I'm afraid if anything like our school it will be inconsistent atm due to staffing. We currently have 20 staff off with covid (but suspiciously not many dc, suspect parents have stopped testing) so the support for learning staff, intervention teaches and SLT (that we have left - 1 atm) are all covering classes and assistants are tied up with 1:1s (or often 1:2/3 so can't even manage small times we'd have done previously to help). It's really far from back to normal atm unfortunately.

It may be ok, but on the other hand of the school have identified they're behind their non covid peers I'd expect a concrete catch up plan with suggestions for at home support.

We have one that would be brilliant if only we could staff it

No I have a current p2 reading at this level - she's not advanced for her year that I've heard!

I know the situation is horrible in schools at the minute which is why I'd be looking to offer more parent support personally.

global.oup.com/education/content/children/series/wild-reads/

These I bought second hand and they're lovely if you like nature books @honeycombbiscuit - my dd is a fan too and could talk for quite a while about snails or bees etc.

Jolly grammar is good too - I would not worry but there are so many nice non biff reading books out there to read that are more fun. The magic key ORT books are better later.

Usborne has a history series - my dd was fascinated by Roman public toilets all being open plan in a line.

The read write inc books are also really good imo. Certainly helped things clock for dd. Personally not actually a fan of biff and chip.

Depending on your position with your DC using devices, I found the Teach Your Monster to read phonics game very helpful. I read with them as well, but they take better to drilling type reputation from a game than from me. It's free to play on a computer so you could try it like that, if you want the app on a phone / tablet you have to buy it.

Biff,Chip and Kipper are the work of the devil and it shows good taste to be bored by them. M

But I think you sense something isn’t right @honeycombbiscuit? If so, don’t be fobbed off. I allowed myself to be told all the “just a phase” type stuff when I questioned DD’s progress in maths in p2, and for years afterwards. There was an issue, but discovered too late. Push for answers and help if you think she needs it.