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Primary education

Should I be concerned about the lack of writing?

42 replies

Annanon · 22/05/2013 14:37

Dd is 5.8yrs and in reception. I recently had the chance to look through her work in class. She has written a total of 10 sentences all year. One sentence this month. Two last month. This is typical of her class, and more to do with the pace of work for the class than Dd herself. There is no written work by any of the children on display. Each child has a writing book, where they occasionally (maybe once a week) draw a picture then label it underneath. E.g, 'I went to my friend's party' written by the teacher, then copied by the child underneath.

They do have another book where they practice writing individual letters and some basic digraphs (sh, ch) but that's it. Nothing in relation to any phonics they may (or may not) be learning that week. No emphasis on writing whole words or constructing sentences.

Is this normal? Reading through some of the other threads on here it seems as though the pace in Dd's class is incredibly slow. Should I be seeing more evidence of being taught to how to write / construct sentences by now? Dd has great pen control and very neat writing. She loves practicing individual letters, or familiar names in cursive (has done for nearly two years now). I feel she is definitely ready for more at school, but I am repeatedly being told that they learn through play.

It is similar pace with numeracy. Literally two pages of basic addition (to ten) all year. Just lots of writing numbers to 20, or counting the dots and writing the number in the box. I know they do practical numeracy work, counting one more, one less etc. How much written numeracy work is typical at this stage in the year.

Several other parents were also equally shocked when we saw the children's work. We are concerned about the pace when it comes to basic literacy and numeracy, but it is so hard to know what to expect. Lots of us feel that there has been barely any progression all year.

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redskyatnight · 22/05/2013 15:09

Reception is all about learning through play (yes I know your school has told you that).

That meant for DS that he was free to go off and play with the cars and building bricks and be encouraged to do free play activities that improved fine motor skills.
And in more formal sessions learn to write most of his letters to a mostly recognisable standard, write his own name and start to write the very odd simple word.

In DD's case it meant that she spent every day writing notes to her friends or writing play scripts for them to act out. And was encouraged in free play to look at improving her writing.
And in more formal sessions she was working on improving her hand writing and writing and correctly punctuating simple sentences and then stringing them together.

Same school, same approach, different children.

(Y1 is more formal and you'll likely see more structured progress).

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freetrait · 22/05/2013 16:00

I would expect to see some sentences using phonics they are covering. Well that's what DS did but all schools are different as are all children as pp said. IME they do a lot LOT more writing in Y1.

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Periwinkle007 · 22/05/2013 19:44

lots of reception classes do a lot of practice writing on small white boards, do they do this and just do very little on proper paper?

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MyLittleDiva · 22/05/2013 19:52

They are 5 years old and in reception. Chill the hell out!

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mrz · 22/05/2013 19:53

Learning through play shouldn't mean that children don't do any writing unless they choose to in their free play.

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BabiesAreLikeBuses · 22/05/2013 20:57

You don't know how much is being done on whiteboards, i also don't think you should stress about writng in reception. My dt1 in reception doesn't do much writing but will happily do it in directed activities, my dt2 writes lots loves making cards and notes for friends, what you describe doesn't sound like a major cause for concern and as pp said y1 more structured...

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Annanon · 22/05/2013 21:44

Thank you for the responses. I know she is 5 & in reception - I told you that Wink. I hadn't factored in writing on whiteboards - very plausible.

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Periwinkle007 · 22/05/2013 21:49

I think many schools now use the whiteboards because lots of children lack confidence committing to paper and for most of the initial work they do it is messy and it means they know they can rub it out and try it again etc. They then have books as part of their learning journey (is that what they call them in EYFS?) and perhaps then another book of their best work. sometimes teachers get them to write in them and sometimes they stick work into them. (and sometimes the kids just get the pen all over their school uniform so their mothers spend a fortune on vanish stain remover!)

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Pozzled · 22/05/2013 22:24

Annanon I thought my DD's class were working at a slow pace, but they have done a lot more writing than yours has. I would be quite concerned actually at this point in the year. I think it's fine to be very laid back about writing in reception in the autumn term, but they should now be laying the foundations for Y1.

It is possible that they are doing a lot on whiteboards, but if they were I'd have thought they'd still be keeping the evidence- for instance a photocopy of the board. I would be asking the teacher about how they teach writing, what progress your child is making and how they will assess her level for the ELGs.

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mrz · 23/05/2013 07:05

I think there is a place for whiteboards but as a reception teacher I saw a huge improvement in writing standards when I gave out lined books for the children to use independently in addition to the books they used for teacher led writing.

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evertonmint · 23/05/2013 07:25

My DS is in reception. His 'best' writing book is very similar but it appears that is only one element of the writing they do - everything in class is labelled (e.g. Scissor drawer), clearly by different children, all drawings on display now seem to have some sort of written explanation by the children etc. One morning at drop off they were randomly showing parents the stories they had written - separate from their books, and not sure where they have ended up, but clearly more writing is happening than just in the books and learning journeys.

Also there has been a big increase in emphasis on writing this past half term as they prepare for Y1.

Ask the teacher about it as you may be missing something without realising it.

Also if you're worried, may be worth encouraging at home to see what she can do - my DS loves writing shopping lists, letters to Santa, labelling drawings etc so I can see huge progress in letter formation and proper sentence construction.

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tiredbutnotweary · 23/05/2013 09:52

From what you say, I would be concerned too.

The range of writing ability in my DDs class is large, so some children are only filling in gaps in typed sentences, whilst others can fill a page or more. But the point is that they are encouraged to do as much as they can, and they are encouraged by teacher led activities (i.e. it's not just left to those that want to write during play). There is some grouping for this, I know that guided reading is followed by a writing activity, so that is at least once a week.

In addition there's been a Christmas card, Easter card, Mother's Day card and there will be a Father's day card, which children will write more, or less depending on their ability. The most recent activity was to write a well know fairytale in their own words - how much each child writes depends very much on their ability (and speed) in DDs school.

Having said all that, you need more information about what's happening in your school. But I think you have enough reason to go and have a friendly enquiring chat - to help you understand the schools approach. You will either feel reassured ... or not - good luck Smile

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greenformica · 23/05/2013 13:21

Reception is all about play and learning through play. I would personally be horrified if they put too much into writing. In fact I really wouldn't worry too much about writing till juniors.

The best thing you can do for your DD is read, read, read to her lots and then for DD to read to you 10 mins a day. The rest (including writing) will just fall into place with little effort.

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greenformica · 23/05/2013 13:30

I think often many PFB parents can be very pushy in the reception year. More to do with the parents ego maybe?

It really doesn't matter how heavily they are pushed in reception, they will find their natural level by juniors regardless. In my sons R class half the top table ended up on the bottom table by year 6. The naturally more academic kids and prolific readers ended up on the top table by year 6.

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mrz · 23/05/2013 17:06

are you a teacher greenformica?

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learnandsay · 23/05/2013 18:03

How does a parent so accurately track the complete performance of all her child's classmates throughout their school lives, broken down by table? An impressive feat! Can it be continued to degree level?

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Annanon · 23/05/2013 22:53

Thanks for the replies. It's interesting to see the spread of opinion.

I had similar concerns (started a similar thread) in January, regarding the lack of pace or differentiation in my Dds class. I then convinced myself that it was early in the school year and that things would surely pick up a bit soon. I am starting to see that this isn't going to happen. Also, a growing number of other parents are starting to voice similar concerns.

My gut instinct and lots of what I see on here tell me that things are going unnecessarily slowly, and that my Dd could happily be learning a bit more, without seeing it as a chore. According to Dds teacher, she is enthusiastic and completes any work that is set for her at school - there just isn't much being set. I am worried that year 1 will be a complete culture shock.

We have had cards written by Dd sent home for Christmas & mothers day etc, which have alway's been beautifully written and have indicated to me that she is ready to move on a bit. I have casually asked the teacher if there was any written work I hadn't seen and there isn't. The children have access to whiteboards, but not for teacher led writing, as such, except for individual letter formation. The whiteboards are mainly for child led use. Dd says she likes using the whiteboards to draw on and that she writes her name on her pictures.

Having read through the feedback here I am going to ask for a meeting with Dds teacher, to explain my concerns and to find out any individual learning targets for my Dd. Should all children have their own EYFS goals or is it a general aim for the class that they either meet or don't?

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crazeelaydee · 23/05/2013 23:05

Hi, I think that after class room assessments are done at regular intervals the CT's concentrate on the areas that a child may be lacking in. Not sure if that is the same for reception class, I was under the impression that reception class was to ease a Dc into the transition to yr 1 when the learning becomes more structured.

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mrz · 24/05/2013 06:30

Assessment in reception is continuous (as it should be in all year groups) and the reason it is called the foundation stage is because it is where children learn the skills from which future learning can be built ... not because it eases children into Y1 Hmm

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MrRected · 24/05/2013 06:51

IMO they make a natural leap in Y1. My DD hardly did any structured writing pieces in prep/reception. Of course, they labelled their pictures and did the odd assessment piece but they were never required to sit at a table and write for the sake of it.

FFWD to Year 1 (mid term 2 in Australia) and they are all coming on in leaps and bounds in their writing. Now that they have moved away from play-based learning and into a more structured style of learning it seems to be a natural progression. My DD is currently writing a book for her friends' birthday present (she's 6y0m) - she's written a gorgeous story (three pages of legible writing, which is well punctuated, it does have some spelling mistakes but she spells words like princess/house/castle correctly).

My honest opinion is that reception/prep is the introductory year to school. There should be no pressure on a child wrt literacy and numeracy targets. The ongoing assessment will be more than enough for a teacher to flag any remedial or extension requirements in Y1. If you are really, really worried, then talk to the teacher.

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mrz · 24/05/2013 06:53

Why do people assume that writing equals pressure on the child Hmm

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MrRected · 24/05/2013 06:56

I don't assume that at all mrz. Not at all.

I said there should be no pressure wrt to targets. Who cares if a four year old attains an A/B/C and what does it really mean? There are so many variables on the day - is the child in the mood? Are they feeling anxious because Mum just left them in the classroom.

I made it very clear that this is my opinion. You are perfectly entitled to yours but give over with the sarcastic smileys. Please!

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Orangesarenottheonlyfruit · 24/05/2013 07:02

I would be concerned. My Dd is 5.7 and yesterday her teacher showed me her story that she had made up and written in cursive writing. The teacher was showing it to me because it was neat not that the amount of writing was unusual.
I would be hugely worried if they were faffing around for an entire year, what a waste of time!

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mrz · 24/05/2013 07:05

My post wasn't directed to you MrRected but people in general (or I would have said why do YOU assume...)

There aren't any A/B/Cs for 4 year olds just very general development statements which a child will partly meet, fully meet or exceed ... no test on any day but a continuous assessment over the whole of the school year in which they turn five.

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mrz · 24/05/2013 07:07

oh and in the main the assessment is based on what children do in their independent play ...

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