posted
I need to write a letter to Operaetta's teacher, and don't want to come off the wrong way. Here's the situation:
Our school uses the AR points reading system. Every night, Operaetta is expected to do the following for homework: 2 math worksheets, read short story from reading book, review 10 spelling words, review 10-15 vocab words, and read an AR book. Her homework generally takes 45 minutes if we're lucky - she's in first grade. *We* read the AR book, not Operaetta. The books she brings home are simply WAY above her level, and I think above level for most in the class. Tonight's AR book, for example was a 64 page Step 2 book. Normally Step 2s are fine, but 64 pages?!
Mr. Opera wrote a note earlier in the school year, and I also addressed our concerns about the AR books at a conference in the fall. At the time I was told that it was fine that Operaetta couldn't read them; she could still take an AR test if we read them to her. Umm, isn't the point of AR for the *kid* to read?
Tonight we got a letter stating that due to her reading grades and teacher concern that Operaetta is being asked to participate in Reading Lab, a title 1 program each day for extra reading help. On every report card she has been recording as reading at grade level, and this is the first we've heard of any concerns. If she needs to participate in the program and get extra help that's fine, but I'm wondering why this is the first we've heard of her having any issues.
So here's the stinger - if my child needs help badly enough that she's being taken out of the regular classroom for 30 minutes daily for special reading help - why in the heck is she coming home with AR books that she can't friggin' read every single night? It certainly doesn't help her reading skills to listen to a story; we read nightly aloud anyway.
So, we're thinking of writing another letter stating that since we're concerned that Operaetta is not getting the reading practice she seems to need that we will no longer be reading AR books but having her read a book every night from our library at home. We have tons of Step 1,2, and 3 books as well as picture books that are appropriate. We can provide titles, and at least then she's actually reading, right?
So anyway...how do I say all this without sounding like I'm attacking the teacher? Thanks!
posted
We're having a lot of the same problems ourselves. I'll let my thoughts percolate and see if anything good rises to the top. But I wanted to tell you that, as a parent, I identify very much.
(As far as not being informed that there was a problem before, that is clearly a goof on someone's part. That should not happen.)
Posts: 13680 | Registered: Mar 2002
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posted
Hmm. Let me think about how to phrase this carefully.
Get out of that school system now! Run.
Seriously, it's only going to get worse. Home school if you have to. But get out now. (I've been where you are and my experience was a nightmare for our son. The average first grader should have 10 minutes of homework. 10 minutes per grade. Second grade, 20 minutes.)
posted
I agree with Kayla. First graders should do enough homework to establish a habit of doing it. Nothing more.
And homework should always be on the independent work level. Homework isn't for learning, it's for practicing what you already know.
One other comment about reading levels at first grade. It's pretty well understood that while some children can be taught to read very well at very early ages, the difference in ability disappears by third grade. Some children simply don't break the code until a later age, but when they do, they catch up quickly.
That's not to say that it doesn't matter what happens before third grade - it matters a whole lot - but the key is to teach the child that books contain stories and are fun, so that when they do break the code reading becomes a natural extension of the child's curiosity, rather than a school subject that they hate.
Posts: 3735 | Registered: Mar 2002
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posted
When I was doing cadet teaching in a first grade classroom 2 years ago, most kids were reading AR 2s at the end of the year (I was there from march to june), a few threes, but we took out all the books over 40 pages. That's just for your info, I have no clue on how to handle the situation.
Posts: 5362 | Registered: Apr 2004
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posted
My usual disclaimer: I'm not a parent. I am a much older sister of two younger siblings. I give thoughts and advice (such as it is) based on my experience with my siblings, myself and what my own parents have done. I am interested in children's education and have read a little on the subject. So yeah:
You have the right of it, of course. Your child should be reading at her level, neither too easy, nor too difficult! Some teachers are notoriously bad and stubborn about this kind of thing. Others are good and will give your child what he or she needs.
64 pages seems a little steep for a one day homework book for a grade one child, even for an excellent reader. Maybe over a week. Most children wouldn't sit down and read a school assigned book by themselves anyway, even if they were reading way about their 'level'.
I agree that you should teach your child to read at home (as well as school). Reading is key, and the earlier she gets it, the better, and no one can sit down with her in such a way as her parents can. Nowhere else can she eat cookies and read books at the same time, and drop crumbs on the pages and... everything. At school, reading takes place in a hard chair with EXPECTATIONS and ten or twenty minutes of a teacher's time. How is that going to make her like reading, even if she learns? See the quote below:
quote:Operaetta is being asked to participate in Reading Lab, a title 1 program each day for extra reading help
"Reading Lab" does not inspire fuzziness for me, even if it gets the job done. Take it in hand yourself. It only takes a few minutes a day to read a level one book, and you can even do it at bedtime (you read to me, I'll read to you ).
However, do not ignore the teacher, DO write the letter, because if you can get a mix of books in the classroom it will benefit your child, all children in her class and any other children to follow.
I would actually suggest going and see the teacher personally- letters are easily forgotten or dismissed, especially by a stubborn teacher. Send a short note with your child asking if you can see the teacher or talk to her on the phone. Make sure she doesn't blow you off- take in a list of your concerns or something so you don't get sidetracked or diverted. It doesn't have to be a high-intensity interview, just a friendly chat.
Also, it'll give you a chance to meet the teacher one-to-one, if you haven't already.
However, I strongly encourage you taking to the reading battlefield yourself, because you can get the job done WAY faster and way more less painlessly than a school can. The goal here is to get your Operaetta to not only read but like reading!
quote:but we took out all the books over 40 pages.
I disagree with this. I think there should be longer more difficult books in the classroom even if no one is apparantly reading them. More difficult books should always be visible and available, because there's nothing wrong with someone trying.
Posts: 8473 | Registered: Apr 2003
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posted
I missed the Title 1 part at first, if your school system the students are only allowed in title 1 for 6 weeks in the year, then they rotate other kids from the class in. The class I helped with had 21 kids, and 5 were in Title 1 at any given time. So by now, all of them had filtered through, and the ones who had been identified with a learning disability were going back for the last two six weeks (this should be the 4th right?).
I'm just guessing your school system could be similar because it's likely you have Admin who went to IU, and so do we.
Posts: 5362 | Registered: Apr 2004
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posted
Is there a particular reason why you want to write a letter without having a conference with the teacher first?
Maybe if you sit down with the teacher and ask her to bring some of Operaetta's work so you can review it together you can get a better idea of what is going on.
I agree that it sounds like way too much homework. In our school AR books are at the child's pace - if it take them three days to read it and then take the test that's fine, they aren't required to read one every night, though they are encouraged to read something every night.
Maybe the teacher is seeing a discrepancy, Operaetta is scoring well on her AR tests because she has good recall and you do a good job reading to her, but she isn't reading as well on her own.
Posts: 14428 | Registered: Aug 2001
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posted
Thanks for the thoughtful replies. I figured I'd write the letter leaving an opening for a conference. However, as I said, I did discuss my concern over the AR books at an earlier conference, and Mr. Opera has written a letter about the issue as well and we didn't get much of a helpful response. We've even talked to Operaetta at home about looking through the AR books before she chooses one and making sure she feels that it's on her level (i.e. can you recognize a lot of the words in the book when you flip through, or does it look way too hard?)
breyerchic, that's an interesting point about rotating all kids through the Title 1 program - perhaps that's the case here, but since the letter said there were concerns, I don't know. It was a form letter with my daughter's name filled in.
Teshi, excellant advice about reading! We read in our home aloud every night before bed for 30 minutes, and then Operaetta reads in bed for an additional half hour. Before she had 2 reading assignments every night, we would sit together and have her read aloud to me. Now, I have to admit that after doing homework for almost an hour, plus our nightly storytime I almost wonder if she'll get "booked out" if I add more reading time! Maybe I can start sitting on her bed with her while she reads before sleeping, though. I think you bring up a very good point that parents have to be involved in their children's education; we just can't expect the school to do it all.
To be honest, I'm really confused about the whole thing. Like I said, there has been zero indication on her report cards that there's a problem - each grading period she's been marked as reading at grade level (there are options for below and above as well).
I guess some of this reflects my frustration with school systems at large. I love our school, I really do - but I honestly think they give way too much homework. Sadly, it's not limited to just our school system. We've been in 2 others, and the only time my kids weren't overwhelmed with homework was when we lived in another state. When we moved back here, they were behind and we had to do some work to catch up.
Her teacher is genuinly nice, and that's why I don't want my letter to be seen as an attack in any way. I know she's under the gun to get test scores, etc. Sometimes I think the way things are set up just sucks for everyone involved - students, parents, and teachers.
posted
Bah, too long. I think I'm feeling angsty tonight!
You know, I think some of this is about my feelings of failure as a parent as well. Both of my kids now have had a tough time with reading. Boy Opera struggled for so long that I remember at one point bursting into tears at a parent/teacher conference. He just didn't "get it" and no matter what I did I couldn't make him. Finally, when I was just about to beg his teacher *not* to pass him onto fourth grade, a light bulb went off and now he's a fantastic reader.
I know that I truly haven't failed. Kids struggle; it's a fact of life. But it's like...geez! I've read aloud to Boy Opera since he was 8 months old (nightly) and Operaetta since birth. They adore books; they adore stories. I've done everything "right" - including pulling out "Bridges" workbooks every single summer and keeping their skills sharp over vacations. I've been congratulating myself since Operaetta started school on doing such a good job with her, and breathing a sigh of relief that we wouldn't have to struggle with reading again like we did with Boy Opera.
posted
SO, I think that a conference with the teacher would be a good idea if that's how you're feeling; I'd want to know how she all of a sudden is behind if I were you, too. It seems to me, too, that a letter is a lot more likely to be ignored or brushed off, unfortunately. Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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quote:Originally posted by Space Opera: Oh well. At least they do like to read, right?
I'm far from an expert on education, but I'd say that this is probably more important in the long run than the reading that she does for her first grade classes.
Posts: 2437 | Registered: Apr 2005
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We read in our home aloud every night before bed for 30 minutes, and then Operaetta reads in bed for an additional half hour. Before she had 2 reading assignments every night, we would sit together and have her read aloud to me. Now, I have to admit that after doing homework for almost an hour, plus our nightly storytime I almost wonder if she'll get "booked out" if I add more reading time! Maybe I can start sitting on her bed with her while she reads before sleeping, though. I think you bring up a very good point that parents have to be involved in their children's education; we just can't expect the school to do it all. ![[Frown]](frown.gif)
