Calling all primary school teachers - summer reading for year one

milliebear00001

efrieze wrote: »

There isn't evidence that they are doing a bad job, but as you say, they have to share the attention with all the other children in the class and I know my child is capable of more than what was asked to do in reception. Capable and willing.

She is not in a Prep school and i know what they are teaching in prep school is far beyond what she was learning at her school.

Then I'd suggest you let them get on with it, or, if you think you know how to teach her better than a professional - home-school her.

Many children are 'capable' of learning more than they are expected to in YR. The problem is, many parents mean this means they automatically should do, or that there is long-term benefit in 'pushing them on'.

Where is the real benefit in learning stuff more quickly? As long as she is enjoying school life and isn't bored, then there is no benefit in filling her up with 'stuff' ahead of the rest. I have had children who could read before they came into Reception, and children who didn't really 'get it' until Y2. By Y3/4, most of them have evened out. The higher flyers at age 11 are most definitely not those who were simply pushed (although in my experience they are often the ones who tend to have a greater level of anxiety, self-doubt and need to please).

efrieze

Whilst I agree with some of that (about it evening out for some people), I disagree with other bits. You are the professional, and I am not, and I do welcome this discussion for that very reason. My argument for pushing her along is that, if she can cover certain things quicker, then there is more time later on to learn things that there otherwise wouldn't be time to learn at school. If she can be a free reader by the end of Year 1, then there are millions of books out there for her to read, enjoy and learn from (about all sorts of things) which will only widen her knowledge about life. Reading the hungry caterpillar and going on a bear hunt in reception is not introducing her to new things as we have already done them to death at home. I hope that makes sense and you don't think that this is all about being competitive and being the best - only about being the best you can be ultimately.

milliebear00001

efrieze wrote: »

Whilst I agree with some of that (about it evening out for some people), I disagree with other bits. You are the professional, and I am not, and I do welcome this discussion for that very reason. My argument for pushing her along is that, if she can cover certain things quicker, then there is more time later on to learn things that there otherwise wouldn't be time to learn at school. If she can be a free reader by the end of Year 1, then there are millions of books out there for her to read, enjoy and learn from (about all sorts of things) which will only widen her knowledge about life. Reading the hungry caterpillar and going on a bear hunt in reception is not introducing her to new things as we have already done them to death at home. I hope that makes sense and i you don't think that this is all about being competitive and being the best - only about being the best you can be ultimately.

I find that children don't really learn in the linear way you describe. They do massively benefit from learning to read of course, but in Year 1, she will learn loads of stuff inside and outside school which does not require an ability to read. I would be willing to bet my life that even if she's a free reader, she will still be learning a minimal amount from books at that age - and rightly so! Who wants to learn about wildlife from a book, when she can watch butterflies emerging from their chrysalids for real? Why would she benefit from reading about caddis-flies, when she can go and find them for herself on a pond dipping expedition? Why would she benefit from Kumon maths, when she could be learning about weights and measures from building stuff and cooking?

I hope you see my point, when I say that the benefits and love of discovery and learning conveyed by a really good foundation and Key Stage 1 education (and of course lots and lots of play at home with you) far outweigh any benefits gained by being able to read or do vertical addition a few years early. There is far far more to a good, rounded education (and inspiring a love of discovery and learning) than simply pushing your child through a series of 'tick box' hoops.

efrieze

I just don't see they they are mutually exclusive. Why not advance on the 'tick box' stuff whilst doing the conventional learning through life approach you describe. Isn't a blend of the two optimal?

jellyhead

efrieze wrote: »

I would haev hoped when meeting my daughter's teacher next year and telling them that I am looking forward to proper homework etc she might have said "don't worry, we will be learning a lot next year" or something like that rather than smiling at me and looking away.

I could count on one hand the number of times my 5 year old was given homework in year 1 ... not including the reading books and the weekly spelling tests.

They have also read quite a few books that are the same sort of level as 'bear hunt' and they watch cartoons like 'button moon' and 'rastamouse'

I've been in a reception literacy lesson (back in the days when they had the literacy hour, it was while I was pregnant with my 6 year old) and they don't just read the book. With bear hunt it's a memory test too, as the kids try to remember the correct order for the journey back and predict what will be on the next page. Hungry caterpillar teaches them the days of the week. There will be children in the class who have never seen these books They went to the beach before doing their seaside topic because some children in the class had never been.

It sounds like your daughter is quite advanced, and she's nearly 6 as you say. Mine only turned 6 last week and the pace at which year 1 goes is fine for him. Your daughter will be sharing a classroom with kids like my son though, so if she is too advanced she might be a bit bored.

She will enjoy the history lessons, they've learned a lot about the victorians. It all came spewing out when I took him to London for his 6th birthday (and bought hokey pokey from a victorian ice cream van), and he's looking forward to learning about the great fire of London in year 2 now he knows about Pudding lane

If you want to enhance her learning maybe you could find somewhere for a victorian day out? There's Blists Hill (near Telford I think, we haven't been yet).

balletshoes

efrieze wrote: »

I just don't see they they are mutually exclusive. Why not advance on the 'tick box' stuff whilst doing the conventional learning through life approach you describe. Isn't a blend of the two optimal?

I've read this whole thread, very interesting. While I think its a great goal to get your daughter to a stage where she will have free reading and enjoy doing that, I did wonder if you'd considered what will happen, for example, in school, if you've already covered the Kumon math subject/taught her fractions well ahead of when they cover it in school, all together. What do you imagine your daughter will be doing in the classroom when the rest of the class start tackling it?

I admit I'm not a pushy mum, but I have instilled in my daughter that I expect her to do her best in school, pay attention and try her hardest. She is, at the end of year 5, level 5 in one subject (reading) and almost level 5 at her other literacy and numeracy subjects.

I do agree with others who have posted here - if your child is having problems keeping up with a subject in school, and there is help out there (whether thats Kumon, extra worksheets, or one of the websites already mentioned in this thread), then great, find a method which works and stick with it. But if your child is progressing well, and is able to read/write/spell/calculate in line with what you would expect a child of her age to be reasonably able to do, then I don't think its necessary, or even preferable, to push her along. Isn't there a danger that your daughter, having "ticked the boxes" early in her school career, will be a very bored young lady in school come say year 4?

milliebear00001

efrieze wrote: »

I just don't see they they are mutually exclusive. Why not advance on the 'tick box' stuff whilst doing the conventional learning through life approach you describe. Isn't a blend of the two optimal?

Because there is no benefit in pushing the tick box stuff early, but there could be a great deal of harm done if she ends up doing it to please you or because it leads her to see herself as having a greater weight of expectation than other children her age, or if she is simply coming to believe that learning is a chore, or something to just 'get through'.

A good education is always about learning from life. It is pervasive in every aspect of, and subject at, primary level education. Nothing is ever taught in isolation from real life and so it is 'experiential' and 'discovery' learning (to be technical about it) that she needs, and which she will really benefit from. It is this stuff you should be emphasising at home, as it's where you, as a parent, can make the most difference to her achievements and outcomes at school.

efrieze

I have thought about that. The thing is that she is very happy at school and is relaxed (at the moment) that some things are very easy to her but which may not be easy to others. Kumon has taught her all her letter formation (correctly, not the way she was doing it before) whereas they haven't taught them that yet at school. I assume in class, when others are learning this, she will just practise and do more free writing. She has not so far come home bored, but there is that risk. I guess that I will have to reassess if she is ultimately in the right school for her.

In respone to something else said earlier, to trust the professionals, the problem I have is that some teachers are better than others.

milliebear00001

jellyhead wrote: »

I


She will enjoy the history lessons, they've learned a lot about the victorians. It all came spewing out when I took him to London for his 6th birthday (and bought hokey pokey from a victorian ice cream van), and he's looking forward to learning about the great fire of London in year 2 now he knows about Pudding lane

I teach the Victorians every year and just had to ask my 7 year old what hokey pokey is! (She's just done the Victorians in Y2).

efrieze

milliebear00001 wrote: »

Because there is no benefit in pushing the tick box stuff early, but there could be a great deal of harm done if she ends up doing it to please you or because it leads her to see herself as having a greater weight of expectation than other children her age, or if she is simply coming to believe that learning is a chore, or something to just 'get through'.

A good education is always about learning from life. It is pervasive in every aspect of, and subject at, primary level education. Nothing is ever taught in isolation from real life and so it is 'experiential' and 'discovery' learning (to be technical about it) that she needs, and which she will really benefit from. It is this stuff you should be emphasising at home, as it's where you, as a parent, can make the most difference to her achievements and outcomes at school.

I am just not sure I agree with all of that, sorry. Again, I don't see that my way and your way are mutually exclusive. You might be an amazing teacher too, but that doesn't mean that my DD will get a teacher as good as you.