Obviously it's difficult to comment without knowing your child. But ...I really urge you to follow Fernando's advice and consider an assessment as support as early as possible will really help his progress and self esteem. Learning difficulties are often developmentally related which is why some sort themselves out over time. However, sometimes the brain just needs some extra support to make the connections in the brain to help with visual/auditory processing etc so that the brain matures in line with the rest of development. If you see a disparity between some areas of learning and others that usually indicates a learning difficulty. This is what we were told in Yr 1 and sure enough our son's assessment flagged up a lot of areas. I agree that very short bursts are better than longer ones. You could alternate 5 mins of reading with 5 mins of a game of his choice. You could ask him what sort of books you'd like him to get for you ie on what subject so that you can get him interested in reading via a topic that engages him. The fact that he's avoiding it is because it's uncomfortable for him and as it gets easier he'll enjoy it more. Also, I realised that it's key to pitch all areas of difficulty lower than you'd expect to build confidence. It doesn't matter when they reach the various milestones but any book I got that was only slightly too difficult put him off completely. Also chart his progress, keep books or words he used not to know and show him how much he knows now compared to how much he could read x months ago. Kids have little concept of their own progress. Rory's story cubes are great for telling stories verbally, the whole family can play. You roll the story dice and someone has to start the story about whatever the picture is and then the next person follows on the story from the picture on the dice they end up with and so on. There's no wrong or right and it can be hilarious. Good luck.

I went to a really interesting talk the other day on the importance of fostering a healthy work ethic in kids from a really young age (pre-school). The essence was that you should try to instill in children the belief that there is no subject that people are naturally good or bad at. So the message is that most people can be good at most things if they practice something enough. Examples given were avoiding phrases like "you are so clever at that" and instead praising the effort that is going into learning something or how hard they have tried.

If kids believe that you are naturally good at reading or maths, or not, then they will be inclined to give up at the first hurdle. Whereas if they expect to have to work at something to get good at, it will give them a really useful life skill and give them confidence to tackle new things.

It really resonated with me and thought I would share in the context of your post. I started off thinking that it was all obvious stuff, and it is, but I am definitely guilty of telling my little one that he is clever etc at the things he can do really well, like maths, but neglecting to praise his efforts when he has struggled a little more with something.

Children do not develop according to straight line graphs. The current intense focus of assessment and testing is based on an idea that they do. As a result it is not the child that is hard on himself but the system. Getting extra tuition, constantly trying to get him to do something is likely to put him off for life - reading becomes a chore and something to be hated.

What is he good at - there is no mention of this. Focus on what he does well, even if it is talking to the cat or digging holes in the garden. Reading can come from an interest in something else. Certainly continue the reading to him.

It saddens me as a retired teacher that children are now see more as a test result than they are as individuals with varying talents. Have confidence in your child and allow him to enjoy what he is good at and, by all means, ask him about his school day but don't transfer the school's anxieties or your own to inhibit him.

I may have posted before but..... I was a secondary Maths teacher. One of my pupils "hated Maths" but came back after school to produce several editions of a Maths Mag which was distributed to other pupils. This route enabled me to get him more focussed during lessons and he went on to get the grades he needed. He will probable never enjoy 'academic' Maths but he won't be scared of it.

Haven't read through all the posts but agree not to push him as he's still so young. Practically speaking, when we were both working full time and my son was in reception (older end of the class) we had the same battles and realised that 5 minutes in the morning when he was well rested was far more productive then trying to fit something in after we'd got home at 6:30. He wasn't miraculously reading all of the sudden, but he had the mental energy to try without resorting to tantrums

One of my best friends has a six year old daughter who struggled with school/reading/general academia. She bought a reading toolkit from readingrevival.com and it helped enormously. It was easy to use and her daughter improved dramatically, even going top of the class for reading and her other studies improved as a result. She gives it a big thumbs up so may be worth a look? x

Great responses, not much to add to but try comic books. Boys mature at varying levels and sometimes are too active to want to 'work' through so many words on a page. He is still young and will pick up as he gets older. I also note the comments on dyslexia and the suggestion to act now, which is valid. I've been there with my sons and marvel comics converted them to avid readers, they later were unable to put down novels.

I'll merge the posts - thanks for replying

Sorry for starting a new post - for some reason I was logged out when posting a reply to to the original thread.

To the mum of a 6 year-old having trouble with school work.

I think that home support is a great idea. Try to make it a team work with your son, ie agreeing with him on which days of the week he'd have a go at reading, creating a routine he has decided with you, rather than being imposed (like at school).
Ask him what would make him feel good, what he'd deserve after making such an effort. It could be a sweet, a walk to the park, something he likes. Then stick to the routine, it's a 'deal', make him read only small amounts at once, perhaps just one page for a while and give him the treat at the end, each time. Teach him how to manage his frustration, ie having a sip of water, take a deep breath and try again reminding him how good he's doing at trying. On days he refuses, encourage but don't force. Keep the treat for the next time...It might work. That way he knows that you appreciate his effort and that he is good at it because he gets rewards, while you can hopefully get a routine in place.

It's great that he likes books (as when you read at bedtime). Ask him a few questions about the story when you read to him. He might not have the confidence to read but he might already have a good understanding. Other children can read early but then they don't really understand what they are reading (I had a child like that), which is a problem later on.

Don't dispair, they all catch up in Y3. You'll be surprised! Maybe he's not ready because he is still learning to cope with primary aspects of school (the schedules, the rules, sitting down listening, staying indoors, long hours, fast canteen, friendships, using the loos, etc, not all so fun at that age)? I'm saying this because to be able to enjoy learningn one has to be happy and settled in the school and that takes time for some children, which is fine but difficult for them.

Y1 is quite hard. Less playing. Are you sure the extra support is not too heavy on your son? Schools use those to maximise results but remember it's not always suitable and unhealthy side effects of competition between schools. Some children feel sad being taken away from their peers into support groups and some are made to feel different when that happens. Extra support is 'extra' work, it is more scrutiny and it can make a child feel under pressure, more tired and less willing to learn as a result. If you think that might be the case ask the school to stop the extra support. The fact is that your son is rejecting school books and that tells there is something wrong with their methods. You are able to give him support at home that is tailored to his natural pace and is gentle, and that will definitely have a greater impact on him where he would not need the school's extra support.

If in doubt, make an appointment for your son with your GP or a paediatrician. Bring the support plan (SEN?) that the school has drawn for him (the teacher will give you a copy on request). Discuss it, how many times a week does he go into support groups? Does he really need it? Is it suitable for his nature? Is it worth investigating, checking his ears, eyes, iron etc? Your consultant will tell you.

ONe last word: you are doing the best for your son. I know because he so enjoys when you read to him. So don't beat yourself up! By reading you I think that your son may need to be allowed to learn at his own pace, or they may be making him too tired and stressed at school or a bit of both.

Rowena Edington based in Wandsworth is fantastic, she used to head up the learning support unit at Northcote Lodge - here's here website:

http://www.learnability.co.uk

Hope this helps!

Hi

I have just read your post that your partner and brother are both severely dyslexic - dyslexia is genetic and I really would act now if I were you. Teachers hate to talk about dyslexia early on, as schools won't assess children until aged 8 because for some children the problem will be developmental, but the sooner he gets help the better and the help can't hurt him.

Toe by Toe (phonics) and the Power of 1 (maths) take you from scratch and ensure your child is taught systematically each day, and will allow you to help your child at home. I know a lot of people who swear by these books. They allow the child to practice untl the knowledge is secure and have good instructions to allow a parent or helper to supervise correctly - they are really good. It worth throwing good rewards at these exercises as a sweetener, especially at the beginning until the routine is established and he can see how the extra work is helping him. Keep the sessions short with loads of praise.

Another teaching programme which is really good is Reading Reflex which teaches all 44 sounds in English. Eg the 'ou' sound could be taught using 'get out now!' at bath time and you could drop foam letters in the bath and he could stick them on the tiles, or you could put an 'out' on the door to practice every time you leave the house - just be imaginative to make it fun. The Spellzone website gives different options in lists for spelling each sound - eg search 'ou sound', but don't go ahead of what they are teaching at school. Choose easy words for each option so his confidence increases.

Hope that helps. I have dyslexic kids myself so know how important it is to act early.

Hi,

I am so sorry to hear your son is finding school so difficult. I am a year 2 teacher, currently on maternity leave and tutoring key stage 1 children from my own home on Saturday mornings. It may be a little early to consider individual tutoring, but I am very happy to chat to you about the problems he is having and little things you could do to help at home. I have fifteen years experience in key stage 1 classrooms and have a wealth of experience dealing with children with many different challenges towards learning. Hopefully I might be able to alleviate some of your worries too! Please do feel free to give me a call anytime on 07790330220, or email me sonya.mclernon@gmail.com
I really hope things get a little easier for you,
Best, sonya

Generally speaking, Yr 1 is too young to judge if there is a underlying problem or if it's purely maturity related.

Is you child a summer born? That alone could account for a lot - at that age a few months make a massive difference with regards to maturity. In most European countries, kids aren't even at school at this age. Many are just not ready/interested developmentally and expectations are too high for such young children.

That said, if there are physical problems like eyesight or hearing (e.g. glue ear), things will get worse if not addressed. So it would be very wise to eliminate that as the first step.

With regards to the rest, is he generally doing OK developmentally? E.g. can he concentrate on a task that interests him (i.e. not school work) or does he get distracted easily? How is his speech and verbal comprehension (i.e. non written)? Can he follow multi-step instructions? Is his vocabulary vivid and well-developed? Can he retell stories/tell you about something that happened in a coherent fashion? Is he generally alert/interested/intelligent? Does he like logic puzzles/problem-solving (i.e. not maths worksheets)? If all of the above checks out, I would say you can safely assume that his maths and reading difficulties are a maturity thing and you can afford to wait until at least mid-year 2 (having eliminated physical issues) before getting worried/getting EdPsych report done.

If things don't improve by mid-year 2, I would do an assessment by a good EdPsych to make sure there are no issues such as dyslexia/working memory/processing issues etc. Mid-year 2 is not too late even if an assessment reveals issues, you'll have plenty of time to resolve things before secondary.

Even if a report doesn't show issues you'll know where he stands on the IQ scale and you'll know what your starting point is.

Regardless of the outcome though, approach suggested by Fernando is the right one. Regardless of the diagnosis (or lack thereof), remedial actions are the same. Lots of on going, well-structure, little and often support using multi-sensory methods. It's hard work and you just have to make time for it and this work every time. I am afraid it's difficult to outsource unless you can shell out thousands for various (well-qualified!) tutors to come in 3-4 times a week. I am afraid one hour per week to do "fun" school work won't work - neither for resolving maturity issues nor more serious ones (if any).

There are plenty of resources to make things fun and multisensory (http://www.ldalearning.com for example), tips on Internet, Mumsnet and this forum. It's just a lot of hard work and not a quick fix.

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If I were you, I would decide whether you think he is just young for the year/immature/lacking confidence etc, or whether you think he might have a learning difficulty. You can ask school whether he is showing any signs (eg reversals, problems writing letters and with phonics, etc), and what he is finding hard in maths.

If you suspect there is a possiblity he is dyslexic or some other problem, then I would treat him as if he is as the sooner he gets help, the less the impact.

Getting ears and eyes checked are also a good idea.

Re maths, buy some Dienes Blocks and some Numicon for counting. Teach him to recognise numbers to 12 as patterns (as per Numicon), and then teach all the number bonds systematically, starting at 3 upto 10 and beyond - the patterns aid this. Also check out Utube videos for Singapore maths, which teaches maths using modelling. It really help with making maths fun and tangible.

Good luck!