What would you consider a late reader?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It seems early, but it might be worth a conversation with the teacher to see if phonemic awareness and decoding skills are developing. Approximately 20% of kids have reading disabilities that are best addressed as soon as possible.

My dd was formally diagnosed with dyslexia in 1st grade, but there were flags by 2nd quarter of kindergarten I wish we had noticed.

Good advice. I thought my DS would "get it," being that both parents are avid readers, but he didn't. At the beginning of 3rd grade, the red flags became apparent and we had him tested. He has a reading deficit, decoding issues/phoneme awareness. We hired Lindamood Bell, a specialized reading tutor.

Another one who thinks this is good advice, but at the same time, not reading at 5.5 is not late. DC wasn't reading at the end of 1st grade, when we had him tested. We used a tutor starting at the end of 1st grade and shortly after starting 2nd grade, he was reading. Still not at grade level, still working with the tutor, bus has made more progress in the months working with the tutor than in the years before.

[Anonymous]

Many parents in this area push kids to learn to read way to early. In fact as a literacy specialist I have seen countless kids who can read at 4/5 but have no comprehension at all. There is more to reading then just being able to read the words on the page--you also need to be able to understand what you read as well!! 6/7 is more of the national average & totally appropriate. I've seen many kids who found reading clicked for them at 7, and they took off surpassing those "early readers".

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP,

Back off on the "learn to read" track and make reading enjoyable and fun. Put away the Tag Jr and Leapreader, got ABC Mouse, etc.

Read picture books together purely for pleasure. One of my favorite authors is Jan Brett. Here's a list of other great books: http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/caldecottmedal/caldecottwinners/caldecottmedal

If your kid is still struggling next year, get tested for possible reading issues, however your kid is probably more hampered by anxiety at this point than his ability to read. Unfortunately, I think all your well-intentioned efforts to help have backfired.

I also agree with this advice. We did not have this problem because my DS is the oldest in his class, and at 5.5 he was still in pre-K and not reading really at all. Then, like magic, the switch flipped and before his 6th birthday he was reading fluently and in the span of a few months had passed three grade levels.
The best thing IMO is to back off totally for about 3 months, then revisit. During that time, keep the reading fun and focus more on language, meaning, and ideas. If he's not ready in 3 months, back off again. He will very likely begin reading on his own at some point. If not, address it with his teacher later in the school year.
I really wish all of the focus on early reading would go away. Those ABC mouse commercials make me want to throw objects.

+1
My DC was also the oldest in her PreK class but she did not read until she turned 6 yo. It was like PP said... a switch was turned on and she learned to read in a very short time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does your child know letter sounds? Can he rhyme? Does he know any sight words?

Yes, he knows letter sounds. Yes, he knows about 20 sight words. I don't think he can rhyme. He knows the word cat but doesn't yet get hat if I switch the c to an h. DH and I don't pressure him. He gets frustrated that he doesn't get it.

I agree with others -- the problem isn't his reading level, the problem is his frustration. I know it seems like the supportive thing is to help him with reading, but I think that's actually counterproductive and reinforces his anxiety about it.

Instead, reassure him that different kids learn to read at different ages and he's way too young to worry about it. Also, remind him that different people have different strengths, and talk about areas where he excels and areas where his friends excel.