# Struggling to keep up w/class or put into "title" classes?



## Guest (Oct 4, 2010)

My 6.5 y/o son is in first grade at a public school. In kindergarden he was put into the "title" group, b/c he couldn't keep up with the class. "Title" is when two additional teachers join the class and work one-on-one with students who are behind, "slow", etc. After only a month of Title, ds went from not even making it on the charts to 1/2 way behind the class. The next month, he was OFF the charts, so he was then removed from Title. All the teachers said they have NEVER seen a kid advance so quickly in Title. 

Now he's in 1st grade this year. They change classes this year, and the whole grade is divided into reading classes based on testing. A class is at grade level, B is slightly below grade level, and C is slightly below that. He tested into the A group. I was surprised and figured he'd make it to B at the most. 

Now to the problem. Now that we're into the 3rd month of school, it seems like the new material in homework is over his head. He doesn't get it, and I don't know how else to explain it to him. We do homework/studying for AT LEAST AN HOUR every evening. He's great at math. Loves it. HATES TO READ. He has a reading test every Thursday and a spelling test every Friday. So, each night we practice reading and practice writing out the spelling words. He get's 100s or only misses 1 or 2 on each of his tests. But I feel that if I didn't work with him how I do, that he would not be anywhere near that on tests. 

I'm arguing with myself whether or not to address the teacher to the situation. He's doing great....but only because of all the effort we put into it. Am I wrong to think this shouldn't be the case? 

Should we stick with pounding things in his head to keep him up to par, OR
see about switching classes so things aren't so tough? 

Am I crazy or does anyone get what I'm saying?


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## Ohio dreamer (Apr 6, 2006)

I would talk to the teacher and see what she/he is seeing...aren't you near conference time? Working an hour at home is not an unusual thing, even with first grade, in some school districts. When I was in school the teachers didn't teach us much. We reviewed homework then were assigned the next assignment. If we didn't "get it" it was our parents job to explain it to us at home. My mom thought I was just goofing off in school and not paying attention. Once we started taking foster kids (I was an only child - and they wanted me to learn to live with other kids) and they came home with the exact same issues, she realized that that was the schools "style".

I know the school here expect the parents to sit down and work with their kids in the evenings. The kids who's parents don't often fall to the bottom 1/2 of the class. Of course there are some exceptions, some kids "teach themselves" naturally. My neighbor has one like that and one "more average"- needing parent help to master some lessons. She worked about an hour a night with him, too. Not sure how much work she does with them these days, they are in 10th and 7th.

A 1st grader hating to read is not a problem. Many kids don't like/hate to read, it's A LOT of work (some can't even read till age 7 or 8 - that is still within the norm- schools just don't allow for that). My daughter is 8 and she still hates to read (her older brother was the opposite). We homeschool so last year we just "laid off" the reading.....which is why I call her a 2nd grader this again year and not a 3rd grader (by age she would be a 2nd grader if in public school). That extra year of letting her brain make all the needed connections has helped. She still does not like reading, but it is much less of a struggle for her. The fact that you can work with your son to the point that he is doing well on tests and able to stay in the A group means you are doing a great job! There is no way I could have been able to do that with my daughter last year...she just wasn't ready.


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## ErinP (Aug 23, 2007)

> "Title" is when two additional teachers join the class and work one-on-one with students who are behind


What a blessing!! Most Title programs I've worked with, both as a teacher as well as parent, they were pull-out. 



> He's doing great....but only because of all the effort we put into it. Am I wrong to think this shouldn't be the case?


You're his mother. It's your job to make sure your child is educated, not his teacher's. She might have him for the school day, as well as being the professional, but at the same time, she has 20-some other kids whose needs she also has to meet. 
If you want more for your child, you need to provide it. And obviously you're _already_ doing the right thing. 

My children attended a sub-par school in their early elementary years. My son would STILL be struggling with reading had I not been doing so much remediation at home. Not only did he hate to read, but in the 3rd grade he was reading at a solid _first grade_ level. It was a slow, painful process. (And of course anything that is slow and painful is not going to be something we like). 
Now in 5th grade, his reading level is average. He still doesn't LOVE to read, but at the same time, his reading level has finally caught up with his interest level, so he doesn't _mind_ reading...


So, my suggestions to get him into reading: 

*If he's still having trouble with sight-words, get some flash cards and build as many sight-words into his head as you can. Phonics are all well and good, but think about how miserable reading would be if YOU had to sound out everything you read. 

*Go to the library and check out books. If he's good at/likes math, Im going to make a leap that he might also be a science/how-stuff-works kid. 
Get some good non-fiction books. Let them be well above his reading level. Personally, we love the Eyewitness series at my house. 
He's just going to look at books for a while. He might even ignore the books he's checked out and hauled home. That's OK. Let it develop. Next week, get more. 
Make it an every-Friday-after-school event or whatever works in your schedule. 
Let him know that books are a priority. (Even if you already have shelves in your house groaning from all the books you own. lol We do, too!) You're so happy to have him in the group now. The group of "people who can read!"

But the library books are just for fun. No stress. He doesn't have to READ them. Just _enjoy_ them. You want to keep a positive light on books for the year when his reading level finally catches up!


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## QoTL (Jun 5, 2008)

I practically could have written your post 

My 6yo dd also struggles with reading. To be honest, EVERYTHING she can read is because at home, I'm teaching her phonics. I tried giving her extra instruction in sight words, and it's a big fat no go for her. Our school hates phonics, but that's the way my dd learns. She rocks and rolls at home, and can spell anything she sounds out. Reading goes well at home, too, although I constantly have to remind her not to GUESS, which is one of the 'strategies' our school uses. IMHO guessing isn't reading for someone her age (it is for pre-school kids).

We are currently in the planning stages of homeschooling my dd. Just makes very little sense that she's spending so much time at school to not learn what she's there to learn (and to feel dumb so much of the time). 

As for the 'title' programs, we did not put her in one. In our case, it's MORE sight words, not a way to accomodate a different learning style. Yes they play games, but in the end it's just a lot of drill. We did sit down with my dd's teacher last year AND the 'title' teacher to listen in an.. adult and open manner. The more we heard the less we were convinced that it was the way to go for our child. Here's my other issue: even if the program helps her right now, or this year.. she will always struggle 10x harder than the other kids because she's trying to learn in a manner that she isn't a natural at. Which means it will always be 'hard' and she'll always feel handicapped. Not what I want for my bright, eager to learn little girl. Last year, instead of putting her in 'title one', I started tutoring her at home. She jumped from reading 8 sight words to reading 18 in just two weeks- and I WASN'T teaching sight words!! I was teaching her how to sound everything out! She took that on her own and learned to read the 'sight' words (many of which are easily sound-out-able)

This year her teacher is saying there are huge problems but has declined to even meet with us. So I'm working with dd on what I think she needs to know. I've noticed a huge improvement in her math skills since we started and practice makes perfect with reading - I'm sure school is still unhappy though, since they frown on sounding things out. I care less every day, since in the end my dd IS learning to read, which is the point.

I realize every situation is different, and your school system may be MUCH better than mine. I also realize sight words DO work for some kids, and that some people firmly believe in them over phonics. To me, though, phonics makes sense, and is succeeding where sight words completely failed.

I just wanted to give you our experience from our own trenches. Best of luck to you with your little boy.


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## ErinP (Aug 23, 2007)

That's extremely unusual. Most schools utilize both methods. 
While it's important to have a large sight-word vocabulary because obviously that's how almost everyone reads, it's also important to know how to decode new words.

But high frequency words should not be sounded out. (For that matter, most high-frequency words CAN'T be sounded out.) 
Come, have, from, their, find, of, where, they, was... 
All of those break the rules and just have to be memorized. :shrug:


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## QoTL (Jun 5, 2008)

ErinP said:


> That's extremely unusual. Most schools utilize both methods.
> While it's important to have a large sight-word vocabulary because obviously that's how almost everyone reads, it's also important to know how to decode new words.
> 
> But high frequency words should not be sounded out. (For that matter, most high-frequency words CAN'T be sounded out.)
> ...



Since I only have two in one school district, I can only say they are being taught in a different way than I was . 

When I checked on my dd (when her K teacher told me she was having trouble) I realized my dd didn't even know she was supposed to read from left to right! Even my 3rd grader, a good reader (who did learn with sight words), doesn't know a noun from a verb. 

There are words that break the rules, of course. But frankly I think learning to sound out words opens thousands of words. Learning sight words teaches them that list only. And even with my dd, who learned 'Go' as a sight word, doesn't recognize 'go' as the same word. ARG.


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## ErinP (Aug 23, 2007)

QoTL said:


> Even my 3rd grader, a good reader (who did learn with sight words), doesn't know a noun from a verb.


Actually it's fairy normal for third graders not to know nouns and verbs. Parts of speech are an abstract concept and they're just really starting to get into it at this age. So don't worry about that part...
(I don't understand what that has to do with sight words, though)



> There are words that break the rules, of course. But frankly I think learning to sound out words opens thousands of words. Learning sight words teaches them that list only. And even with my dd, who learned 'Go' as a sight word, doesn't recognize 'go' as the same word. ARG.


That's really odd too. I've never heard of sight words being taught with capital letters (precisely _because_ of the reason you mention!)

No, like I said, phonics and sight words should BOTH be taught. 

Think about how YOU read. You're not sitting here sounding out what I've written are you? In fact, I would venture to guess that you haven't sounded out a single word in this entire post! 
Can you imagine trying to get meaning out of something when you had to stop and sound out every word? Or even every third word? Transfer that to a kid who is doing precisely that. 
That's why you teach sight words...So they can have fluency like every other reader and read for the _purpose_ of reading. That is, to get meaning. 


The need for phonics is obvious. Most people understand that kids need to be able to decode new words (because most adults need to be able to do the same, on occasion).
But for whatever reason, many people don't understand how important sight words are. 

I can't remember the exact stat, but something like 60% of what the average 1st and 2nd grader reads is made up of the first 100 high frequency words. 
Ie, it's _very_ beneficial to have those committed to memory!


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## Guest (Oct 5, 2010)

Okay, I'm confused. From what I've read from the post, phonics and sight words are two different things. I thought phonics WERE sight words. So I guess it's the other way around? Sounding out a word is phonics. Sight words are words you memorize. 

Yes, it is a VERY good school system. They are consistently rated EXCELLENT year after year in every category within the state. I believe they said that last year they were one of the top 3 rated schools in the state. We actually don't even live in the district, so they go there through Open Enrollment. The teachers and staff are VERY DEDICATED to their jobs. But their policy on education and discipline is that it's the parent's job first, then the teachers. It's not to say that there aren't "those one teachers" who don't exactly fit the bill. The school is also known for their sports' achievements. This I don't care about at all. But they engrave this in their little heads starting at Kindergarten registration. We are one of those football towns. So on Fridays, the coloring sheets that are brought home are always Garfield with a football with "Beat the Tigers!" on it. One thing that does bother me is the snobby attitude there. I went to school there as well. I graduated in 2003, so it wasn't that long ago. Trust me, they are the snobbiest people around. I already realized it. But after moving away and then coming back, it's a big eye opener.

Anyway, thanks for all the suggestions/encouragement. I guess we'll just keep chugging along. Ds is just one of those kids that REALLY has to concentrate to do his best, while others grasp the concept readily. As for the math, we NEVER study. I figure he knows what he's doing, so there's no need when he has other areas to concentrate on. 

Any suggestions for when he gets the "I'm stupid. I can't read. This is dumb." and starts crying stuff (which is nearly every day). I usually try to get him to take a little break and then come back to it. But it doesn't always work.

Here's the concept that he just can't understand right now:

Pets feeds the Mom. Mom feeds the pets. Which one is correct? Well, he can pick which one is right, but when given the 'wrong' sentence and told to write it the correct way, he's clueless! Advice?


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## Ohio dreamer (Apr 6, 2006)

Lyndseyrk said:


> Any suggestions for when he gets the "I'm stupid. I can't read. This is dumb." and starts crying stuff (which is nearly every day). I usually try to get him to take a little break and then come back to it. But it doesn't always work.


What worked with my son at that age (his issue was math) was I would write an algebraic equation on the board and ask him to solve it. Of course he couldn't. I'd ask him "are you dumb or stupid because you can't solve this"? "No, Mom I haven't learned that yet"....."So, are you dumb or stupid because you can't do XYZ?" "No, Mom I haven't leaned that yet". "OK, let start working on learning that. Remember learning takes time and just because we start today doesn't mean you will know it all by tomorrow." One big difference is my son was the only student in his class, though. So he didn't see others doing well what he was struggling with....so no peer pressure. Remind him of the list of things he excels at. Ask him if kid ABC is stupid because they can't do it as well as he can.


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## QoTL (Jun 5, 2008)

Lyndseyrk said:


> Okay, I'm confused. From what I've read from the post, phonics and sight words are two different things. I thought phonics WERE sight words. So I guess it's the other way around? Sounding out a word is phonics. Sight words are words you memorize.



You are correct. Phonics has to do with the sounds of the letters, the letters make up the words, the words make up the sentence... etc.

Sight words is memorizing the words, but it is more than that. It is the belief that children should get the concept of the sentence, and that the sentence is more important than the individual words. Again, there is more to it than that, having to do with using pictures to get context, word substitutions, etc.

I do think both are important.. after a while. I prefer phonics first, though. Again, I'm not knocking sight words here since I DO know it works for some kids. 

As to the poster who mentioned that I know all my words by sight.. lol. Yes, I do. Because I've read and read and read. I learned with phonics and yes it's a struggle at first. But houses have to be built a brick (or a board) at a time. READING builds comprehension and fluency, in my opinion, not memorizing or repeating (or worse: guessing). At any rate... apologies to the OP, no more from me about this subject, I promise.

As for getting past the 'I'm stupids', I make a point to tell my children CONSTANTLY that I have the brightest kids I know. I believe it, and I make them believe it, too. And constant reminders that we all have to learn something to know it- that doesn't make us stupid. Reminders that big people make mistakes helps, too. I think I also say a lot of "Honey, I KNOW you can do this," as well. You are the mom, the superhero. If you believe it, your ds will, too. At least while he's little  

For that sentence, hmmmm... I might tell him the first 'critter' in the sentence is the one doing the action. The tiger jumped, the cat meowed, etc. So if you want Mom to run/jump/give a cookie, her name has to be first. Not sure that helps, Someone with more experience might be able to give better advice.

I'm sorry to hear about your school system. Oddly had a converation with my college prof yesterday about how he was fired from a teaching position because he turned in the star quarterback for cheating. I'd thought that stuff only happened in the movies.


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## ErinP (Aug 23, 2007)

QoTL said:


> Sight words is memorizing the words, but it is more than that. It is the belief that children should get the concept of the sentence, and that the sentence is more important than the individual words. Again, there is more to it than that, having to do with using pictures to get context, word substitutions, etc.


 I think you're thinking of something else. "Whole language," maybe...?
"Sight words" are nothing more than just the words you recognize on sight. That simple.  



> As to the poster who mentioned that I know all my words by sight.. lol. Yes, I do. Because I've read and read and read.


Yep, and that repetition is what made you (and all the rest of us) _memorize_ them.  



Lyndseyrk said:


> Any suggestions for when he gets the "I'm stupid. I can't read. This is dumb." and starts crying stuff (which is nearly every day). I usually try to get him to take a little break and then come back to it. But it doesn't always work.


This reinforces my point to make sure books stay FUN! 

Also, something I used to do when teaching early readers was to label absolutely everything. Bathroom. Phone. Computer. Window. Table. Etc, etc. 3x5 notecards. Have him help you so he watches you making these words. 
All of a sudden he'll have a huge array of words that he can "read." Whether he _really_ can or not is irrelevant. He needs some serious confidence builders going on.

So far as the sight word discussion, yes, phonics is the process of putting letter sounds together to make words. Sight words are the words you instantly recognize. For most kids, "the" is one of their first sight words. 
You need both.

This link is for the first 100 most common words in the English language (ie, high frequency words):
www.eyeonthesky.org/pdfs/HighFrequencyWords.pdf
Use your 3x5 cards to make some flash cards with these words on them. Just start with the first 20 until he has those mastered, then add the next 20 and so on. 
If he can get a decent sight-word vocabulary built, the reading process will be MUCH easier.



> But their policy on education and discipline is that it's the parent's job first, then the teachers.


And they're _right_.
Trust me, you really don't want it the other way around.


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## olivehill (Aug 17, 2009)

I agree with Erin P in that I don't see a problem with you needing to work with him at home. It's our job as parents. 

As far as the advice I just wanted to chime in and suggest a book for _you_. 7 Keys to Comprehension by Susan Zimmermann and Chryse Hutchins. It teaches you what makes a good reader and how to teach your child to possess those skills/traits. It was gifted me by a family member who is a ESL and reading teacher when my kids were small and I always recommend it to other parents now. Reading has always come naturally to me so I never thought about how and why I read, the book breaks down the subconscious things good readers utilize to be good readers and then explains how to _teach_ those things. I used the techniques in the book with both of my kids and they're both doing well. I can't say it's because of the book, since I don't have a before/after to compare with and it's possible they just are good readers to begin with but I like to think it helped.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

Let the teacher know he is struggling with the reading portion. They may be able to put him in a group that works at a slower pace than the one he is currently in. It is extremely rare (IME) that a child excels at both reading and math, usually they do great in one and get by in the other. Your son really should not be crying every night about the work being too hard.

As for correcting the mixed up sentences, if they are all like that, same words but out of order, try writing the words on recipie cards (one word per card) and have him shuffle them around until they sound right.

When I was in second grade my group was learning to diagram complex sentences. So some kids do understand the concept that young, some don't. It's like walking or talking, each child progresses at their own pace as the brain matures. It doesn't mean one child is stupid and the other bright, each is just different. I was always envious (and still am) of people who can do math in their head. I can do it if the problem is written down but not in my head. It doesn't mean I'm stupid (although I certainly feel that way) it just means my brain works a little differently.


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