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What is your child being taught at reception?

94 replies

EllieNW3 · 10/03/2013 17:49

I would be interested to hear what your child is being taught at reception currently (reading/writing/spelling/maths)? Is the whole class being taught the same or is your child more advanced than others?

The reason why I am asking is that we are currenly living overseas (moving back to the UK this summer) and I think I made a bit of a mistake on choosing an IB school for my nearly five year old daughter. It's a long story but we didn't have much choice and the British curriculum school she was offered a place just didn't seem right and it had loads of negative reviews. When my daughter was at nursery (pre-reception) the teacher thought she was one of the most academically advanced so as my daughter was interested, she introduced her to blending words. Now at her current school the teacher has only just finished going through phonics, sorting words by starting letter and has only just introduced a spelling board for my daughter and she is supposed to be in the most advanced group. I am not as worried about maths, as she seems to know her shapes (3D as well as normal) and is confident with numbers, sorting etc etc.

As we are now moving back to the UK and we are looking for her to go to a British curriculum school I am panicking a bit. I have been teaching my daughter to read at home using the Oxford Read Write Inc (she is currently level 2) and I am focusing on the 45 high frequency words. Ideally, I wouldn't want to be doing as much teaching at home (as let's face it we would much rather be playing in the park) particularly as she already spends so much time at school. I have spoken to her teacher but I understand that they just aren't allocated enough time for teaching basic academic skills (there is a lot of focus on 'topics on inquiry'). Anyway, I could go on for ages. From my experience, whoever told me that there isn't much difference between the IB and British curriculum wasn't quite right (although I did know that IB might be a bit slower at the start, but didn't realise how massive the difference would be!).

Thank you for reading and I would really appreciate to hear your comments x

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HorribleMother · 10/03/2013 18:02

Are you worried that she'll be unprepared for English year 1? Because from sound of it she's pretty average (ime).

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learnandsay · 10/03/2013 18:08

My daughter could already read pretty well before starting school and has done lots of topics like farms, space, oceans and whatever, but as far as reading, writing and arithmetic are concerned I don't think the school has taught her anything. But then she knew a fair bit before starting, (probably more than the EYFS curriculum requires) and some way into what Y1 would require.

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mrz · 10/03/2013 18:09

The 45 high frequency words were scrapped in 2007.
There isn't a British curriculum England has a different curriculum to Wales which has a different curriculum to Scotland which follows a different curriculum to Northern Ireland. So it depends where you intend to settle when you return and next year England may have a new curriculum ...although a new curriculum for reception children was introduced in September ...Confused

In England reception children follow the EYFS which is a play based curriculum ..in Wales children follow the Foundation Phase until they are 7 (play based) in Scotland children follow Curriculum for Excellence (you've guessed it ...play based in P1) and in Northern Ireland children follow the play based Foundation Stage ..

The English reception curriculum focuses on the Prime areas Speaking and Listening Personal Social and Emotional Development and Physical Development ...

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EllieNW3 · 10/03/2013 18:11

Yes, I am a bit worried that she would be 'behind' others. My friend's child who is in a British school here is a lot more advanced in her reading and writing (she is used to be the same as my daughter a year ago) but I guess she is more advanced that most in her class. Her school seems very pushy though. My friend told me that they are tested on 45 high frequency words by the end of reception. They are shown each word and need to say it within a short time and not sound the words out. They are then asked to spell the words too.

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mrz · 10/03/2013 18:13

The 45 high frequency words were scrapped in 2007 Ellie so your friend's school must be in a time warp

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EllieNW3 · 10/03/2013 18:19

Thank you for your replies. By the sound of it maybe the teaching in some of the British schools here is a bit old fashioned?

We will be moving to London but it does sound like that my daughter should be ok - phew (-:. I am Scandinavian so I started school at the age of 7 so I did think that some of the schools sound a bit too pushy for 4-5 year olds.

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EllieNW3 · 10/03/2013 18:21

mrz - clearly so (-:. I know at least two other British schools which still use high frequency words here in Dubai.

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learnandsay · 10/03/2013 18:23

I'm not sure if mrz meant no high frequency words at all or just a particular group of them which was scrapped in 2007. My daughter's school still uses them. I don't know how many but I think it's more than 45.

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mrz · 10/03/2013 18:24
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EllieNW3 · 10/03/2013 18:25

learnandsay - thank you for that. If your daughter supposed to know all of them by the end of reception?

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EllieNW3 · 10/03/2013 18:28

Sorry meant to say 'iS your daughter..?' (-:

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mrz · 10/03/2013 18:28

There are 300 HFW in the Letters & Sounds document

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mrz · 10/03/2013 18:29

They aren't meant to be taught by sight

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learnandsay · 10/03/2013 18:29

She not only knows them but has apparently gained access to the words cupboard where the words the class haven't been shown yet are kept and she seems to know quite a few of those too. The teacher told me that children who already know the words will be asked to spell them instead of reading them.

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mrz · 10/03/2013 18:34

learnandsay all children are meant to learn to read and spell the words

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learnandsay · 10/03/2013 19:00

I've heard you say that before, mrz. That's just what the teacher told me. I don't know what she meant in relation to the other children, (maybe nothing at all.) I didn't ask.

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mrz · 10/03/2013 19:01

I said it because it's a fact learnandsay

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learnandsay · 10/03/2013 19:03

That was never in doubt. But what the other children have to do has nothing to do with what my daughter has to do. Maybe that's why the teacher didn't say anything about them.

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mrz · 10/03/2013 19:04
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Floggingmolly · 10/03/2013 19:10

Your dd "gained access to the words cupboard". Grin You crack me up, learnandsay.
I wonder how you'll cope when your dd's peers begin to catch up, or even overtake her. It's bound to happen.

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mrz · 10/03/2013 19:15

It concerns me that a "word cupboard" exists

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intheshed · 10/03/2013 19:20

My DD is in reception, she started in Sept knowing all her letters but not able to read or write whole words, so pretty average I think (unlike learnandsay's DD!). Now halfway through the term she is on phase 3 phonics, able to write simple sentences using phonics to make a good attempt at words she doesn't know, and has just started learning about using capital letters and full stops. With reading, she started on pink books and is now on red books, in what I think is the ORT reading scheme? I also read the Julia Donaldson Songbirds books with her at home and she can read the level 2 and some level 3 books.

In maths she can count to 100 and do some simple addition but I was told in parents evening she needs to focus more on being able to explain the relationships between numbers, eg knowing which is the highest/lowest out of 4 numbers, and number bonds to 10.

Hope that gives you some idea? I was told she is making good progress and where they would expect her to be at this age.

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learnandsay · 10/03/2013 19:43

I won't know what my daughter's peers are doing, so it's never going to bother me.

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wild · 10/03/2013 19:45

must get a lock for my words cupboard Wink

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simpson · 10/03/2013 19:46

DD is in reception and they are learning to read/spell tricky words (they get 10 at a time and do a test when they have finished and are given another list ....to do, don't get me started on this method Hmm although I think DD might have finished now as she has not had any for a while.

She has learnt the beginning, middle and end of a story. Stranger danger/road safety, 2 and 3 D shapes, parts of a plant (ie stem, petal, root etc) and is currently learning about space (which seems to be incorporated into other subjects like numeracy in counting backwards till "blast off" and having to write a postcard to an alien. Also making a rocket with junk modelling etc.

She could read very well before starting school (but not write). I am not sure what phase she is on as we are having "issues" with sound time ATM.

Numeracy wise she can add/takeaway using a number line (only to 20) and do basic addition in her head but does have problems holding a number in her head ie 15+3 and she would count from 1 to get the answer (which was why a number line was introduced.

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