What is your Kindergartener's Reading Ability Right Now?

[Anonymous]

My son can read about 80% of the words in one of those Level 1 books. Slowly. This is better than what he could do when he first started kindergarten in September, so I'm not worried. I'm just curious about what other kids are doing right now. I know many of the other kids in his class were reading when they started kindergarten. Is that really the norm?

[Anonymous]

I just find it hard to believe that the majority of kids start Kindergarten "reading". I think people define "reading" in different ways though. Some people say their kids are reading when they can sound out a few simple words and some mean their kids can independently read a book. I can tell you that my five year old is absolutely not reading - not sounding out words. I hope she isn't too much of an outlier. I've been told by many that learning to read happens at different ages for all kids and they all seem to catch up to one another by third grade. We'll see if that's true in our case.

[Anonymous]

I have twin daughters.

One is reading worse than when she started kindergarten. She read Bears on Wheels the night before kindergarten. Now won't sound out words for fear of getting them wrong. She'll only read the sight words.

Other daughter is reading level 1 books, needing help with maybe one or two words on a page.

[Anonymous]

About like yours, OP. She can read a whole level 1 book, with help. The caveat-- she always scrutinizes the picture on a page before she starts reading. When she encounters a word she doesn't know, she tries to guess based on the picture, rather than looking at the letters and sounding it out. This annoys me, and makes me wonder how much she's really "reading", versus recognizing sight words and guessing.

[Anonymous]

i think they are all over the place and that is fine. a couple can read pretty fluently, some are sounding out words, some are doing level 1 books, some of getting the letters straight. i can tell you for a fact it really does not matter. many kids learn to read at the end of k or in grade 1 and are terrific readers. on the other hand, some do learn early (and there really are some kids who can read for real in k...my son was one of them, he was reading magic treehouse books on his own at the end of pre-k.) one issue is that kids can be almost a year apart in age which makes some difference. they do even out by the beginning of grade 2. some are just more interested early than other, really does not make a huge difference. some start reading because they want to read the sports pages or read a game on the computer, etc.

[Anonymous]

. I can tell you that my five year old is absolutely not reading - not sounding out words. I hope she isn't too much of an outlier.

My son isn't at the point of sounding out words on a page, but can tell you which word is which in a title or in a page, so he has basic phonics awareness. I would hesitate to say that he isn't "reading" yet, though. He is working on other important reading skills such as predicting, making personal connections, and retelling. It seems that we get so caught up in this idea that a child only knows to read when they can sound out words on a page that we overlook the more full nature of literacy.

http://teacher.scholastic.com/professional/readexpert/mythread.htm

Building Reading Skills

In Grades K–3:


Draw on and build children's knowledge base.
Help children understand narrative and expository text structures.
Set purposes for reading.
Make personal connections, as well as connections to other texts and issues.
Have students make and check predictions.
Discuss setting, characters, plot, outcomes, and any new information learned.
Use illustrations to teach children how to infer.
Model and teach children how to apply strategies such as predicting, questioning, retelling, and self-monitoring.
Teach new language patterns and words that are critical to the text.
Analyze new words in the text by comparing them to known words and patterns.
Use meaning, syntax, and pictures to solve word problems.
Analyze a new word by looking at and saying each letter or cluster of letters.
Reserve time for daily independent reading.

[Anonymous]

She tested at a 2nd grade level before Kindergarten started this year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have twin daughters.

One is reading worse than when she started kindergarten. She read Bears on Wheels the night before kindergarten. Now won't sound out words for fear of getting them wrong. She'll only read the sight words.

Other daughter is reading level 1 books, needing help with maybe one or two words on a page.

OP again. I notice a bit of that with my son. Phonics isn't his strong suit, but he seems even more hesitent to try and sound them out now. He does seem to be memorizing a lot of sight words though. And he does ask me questions like why the number 1 doesn't start with a W.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I just find it hard to believe that the majority of kids start Kindergarten "reading". I think people define "reading" in different ways though. Some people say their kids are reading when they can sound out a few simple words and some mean their kids can independently read a book. I can tell you that my five year old is absolutely not reading - not sounding out words. I hope she isn't too much of an outlier. I've been told by many that learning to read happens at different ages for all kids and they all seem to catch up to one another by third grade. We'll see if that's true in our case.

OP here. True, I don't know how people are defining it. I'm going by what other parents are saying. The head of school told us that they expect kids to make progress from their initial starting point, but that they don't expect all kids to be able to fully read by the end of kindergarten. Her own child wasn't reading fluently until the end of 2nd grade, when it suddenly just clicked. And now she never stops. There must be a huge variation on skill development. I just don't know how to identify potential problems. My brother could read in 3rd grade, but had no ability to comprehend what he was reading. That's my biggest concern, although it seems to me my son has a clue about what he's reading and relates to it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:One is reading worse than when she started kindergarten. She read Bears on Wheels the night before kindergarten. Now won't sound out words for fear of getting them wrong. She'll only read the sight words.

Only one kid, but we are seeing this, as well. My DH and I were just commenting the other day about how it seems like our child knows less now than before K started. Obviously, it's not the case, but we are perplexed!

[Anonymous]

My child tested at a 2nd grade level. Her writing is not at the same level though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My son isn't at the point of sounding out words on a page, but can tell you which word is which in a title or in a page, so he has basic phonics awareness. I would hesitate to say that he isn't "reading" yet, though. He is working on other important reading skills such as predicting, making personal connections, and retelling. It seems that we get so caught up in this idea that a child

I'm not sure what this means if he isn't sounding out the words - that he knows sight words?

[Anonymous]

My kinder is reading Junie B Jones. Except she's not mature enough to understand that kid is a freaking brat and if she behaves the way Junie does we will kick her ass.

So I dont' think it means anything. Plus everything I've read says the kids even out by 2nd or 3rd grade. I don't care that she's an early reader. I just want her to enjoy reading and be a lifelong reader.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kinder is reading Junie B Jones. Except she's not mature enough to understand that kid is a freaking brat and if she behaves the way Junie does we will kick her ass.

So I dont' think it means anything. Plus everything I've read says the kids even out by 2nd or 3rd grade. I don't care that she's an early reader. I just want her to enjoy reading and be a lifelong reader.

LOL! I like you!!!

[Anonymous]

My son's pre-k teacher asked me if I taught him how to read. No, but I read to him often and he had a great preschool teacher. Kindergarten was different. Reading up to 2nd grade level books, but like a previous poster, not understanding what he was reading. Now we're in 2nd grade and reading at level and above level books, but working on comprehension.