ASD and reading

[FateLovesTheFearless]

Dd1 is currently undergoing assessment for ASD.

She is seven and her school teach reading with the Oxford reading tree system. She is in primary three and still on stage 1. They have said they suspect dyslexia but won't test until the end of primary three.

She can memorise an entire story if read to her and can read very simple words. Over the holidays I took in hand her reading and have taught her the sh,ch,th and wh sounds which has helped a lot with her reading and her confidence. I don't think the Oxford reading tree system is right for her at all as she is so literal it's taken me most of the holidays to convince her that reading is not memorising a story, it's reading the letters to make words. She also struggles, being so literal, in accepting that letters she has been told make one sound, can then make a different sound with other letters.

There is a referral coming to the school for a child plan but I wondered if it might be beneficial to just go into the school, explain my findings over the holidays and ask if there are any other methods they could try with her reading to better suit her, than wait for the referral to come through and/or a dx.

I do intend on keeping on with the extra support at home, what I don't want to see is her return to school and the Oxford reading tree leading to her losing confidence again and losing her newfound pleasure in reading as opposed to plain memory.

IMO Oxford Reading Tree is carp (was an Infant teacher for 27 years) but is almost universal. Lots of children memorise the stories at the early stages. Unfortunately ORT introduces lot of words in an attempt to make the stories interesting, but there isn't enough repetition.
Do they do phonics in class separately?
Glad you have helped her to enjoy reading.

Fate, Ds uses headsprout! I don't let him progress to the next level unless he cores more than 90% and he's just flying (after a bit of a rocky start).

It's a scientific approach to reading, starting with the letters that are most commonly sounded the same way and as you get into sentences comprehension is also tested.

I have asked and apparently they do teach phonics separately. My dd2 (NT) is in primary two and is on stage four with reading, is good with phonics so I think the teaching must be adequate.

I just don't think the OLT is right for DD1. I also worry that whatever I do with her at home may be in conflict with what they are doing in school which will just make her anxious. She does struggle with letters like b and d and m and w and will sometimes read words back to front, for example age will read ey the, ey the before saying they, so I do tend to agree there may be dyslexia there but she still manages fairly well overall.

Reading eggs isn't as scientific as headsprout but you can usually find some codes online or in the freebie magazines like families (library will have copies) to try it out for nothing. Some people code-chase and stay free for yonks.

Plus it's the same people as mathletics, which schools are often keen on, so they might 'approve'

Thanks I will look at those websites.