DD5 is currently in SK (second year K in Ontario). Yesterday at pick up her teacher mentioned that she tested DD's reading and they stopped at level 20. She said that DD was able to decode very well at that level but that her fluency was slower and she was pausing more frequently.

DD has not received much differentiation in reading instruction in school. Her class is working on phonics and learning the sounds of letters. When the class works on letter sounds, DD works on making lists of words that contain that sound. A lot of her progress has come from her own personal reading and working through RAZ kids, which her teacher assigned at the beginning of the year.

When I mentioned that DD had worked through RAZ kids to level K (I believe level 20 is equivalent to level M) the teacher said, "Oh K is a perfect level for her. Maybe she can go back to where she started and reread up until that point."

Does this advice make sense? If DD is testing at level M shouldn't we keep reading until we get to the level where she's struggling? I don't want to push DD farther then where she is but I also don't want to hold her back from progressing. Going back to the beginning feels like punishing her, why does she have to do the work twice because she's ahead?

I understand the teacher's motivation. She doesn't want DD to get too far ahead as she the has told me that she isn't meeting DD's reading needs in class. The teacher has a meeting with the school's review committee to discuss DD's placement in grade one and has already approached the special Ed teacher regarding testing. It kind of feels like we are just treading water until grade one - Let's not get too far ahead because K can't support her progress, but the problem is she's already beyond K. In order to test her the teacher had to get books from another class. Also, DD is not happy about repeating anything she's already completed she keeps saying she wants to get to Z.

My gut is telling me just to let DD keep going and possibly afterschool reading as the school isn't meeting her where she is. We have almost three months of school left. I don't know how to reign her in and I don't want to be a tiger mom either.

Sorry this was so long and if it's rambly. There's no one to talk about this with in our everyday lives.

Hi eyre

What did she mean by 'go back to where she started'? Did she want your DD to re-do level K? Not sure what the point of that would be. I'd ask if she could go to level M and see how she does.

That said, DS7 has pretty much given up on RazKids. He did not enjoy the books at the higher levels - he told me they were boring, and some of the content seemed not really appropriate for K. Mind you, it was partly because he has trouble tracking the denser text with his eyes. I would have to hold a paper under each line to block out the rest of the page, which gets tiring on the computer.


When DS was in SK, his teacher brought him books down from the grade 2 and 3 classrooms. DS also decided that he need to get to level 'Z' as fast as possible. He saw that his friends were moving up a level each week and he thought he should be as well, However this is easier to do if you are going from A to B, than going from K to L. At a certain point we had to slow him down, as he was bringing home books that he struggled with - and then gave up on.

Currently I am just letting him chose whatever paper books he finds interesting.

It sounds like your DD's teacher is willing to work with you, so that's promising. I would just keep communicating with her about how things are going. Good luck with your grade 1 discussions!

Go back to where she STARTED? My kids' school doesn't really do all this leveled stuff, but wouldn't that mean sending her back to "The cat sat on the mat"? Sounds like a formula for insanity. At the very least, let the poor kid stay at level 20!

I think it's bizarre to suggest that she should reread what she's already done. I would try to prevent that from happening.

I would also ask if you can send in appropriate books for her. Does all the reading have to be done on RazKids? I get that it has some benefits (our school used it in 2nd grade) but i think it also has drawbacks, one of which you are experiencing - it fosters this idea that you have to progress through "levels" as fast as possible, which I think can take away from the true enjoyment of reading.

Sent you a PM, eyreapparent.

Reading, fortunately, is a bit easier to allow your kiddo to run with, IMO. In fact, here is a gifted reading study that calls into question how much progress most gifted readers make AT SCHOOL during the school year (probably due to lack of sufficient challenge): https://www.nwea.org/content/uploads/2014/08/Data-Award-Karen-Rambo-Research-Brief_0.pdf (these growth patterns, btw, are DEFINITELY true for my kiddos, who have started the troubling pattern of growing more during the summer than they do during the entire school year...kind of makes the case for homeschooling, right?).

My goodness, yes, let her keep going if she wants to, although I wouldn't get too hung up with Raz Kids if she is ready to move onto something else. DS quickly became bored with Raz Kids and I found it moved too slowly for him. He was already reading chapter books, so I encouraged him to read books he enjoyed instead. After a certain point, he simply stopped using it (except for when the teacher made him at school).

Meh - my thought? Like many things at an average school, it is not designed for a gifted reader, so it is of limited value.

PM'ed you Elizabeth.

Thanks to everyone for their responses. DD is now in grade one and is allowed to bring in novels or go to the library to choose her own reading material.

Glad to know we weren't the only ones who had this experience.