How do I deal with this? I'm having a moan!
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Re: How do I deal with this? I'm having a moan!
Well you can trust me to come along and disagree. 
Talk partners are not used for all creative writing work so I really don't think you need to worry that your daughter will fall behind because her talk partner has a more limited vocabulary than she does. Talk partners are usually changed pretty frequently too. There is a lot of evidence that able children also benefit from 'scaffolding' the efforts of less able children; just because a long or complex word is not used in the final written work does not mean there was not some learning taking place in both the explaining and the listening. Outcomes in learning cannot just be judged by the nice piece of writing at the end - there is so much more taking place in a creative classroom than getting it down on paper. Using a near synonym for another word is valuable if both, or even only one, of the children, understands it and can distinguish between the nuances of both.
Unless all the written work being done is collaborative in this way, I would relax, to be honest, at least over this particular thing.
Talk partners are not used for all creative writing work so I really don't think you need to worry that your daughter will fall behind because her talk partner has a more limited vocabulary than she does. Talk partners are usually changed pretty frequently too. There is a lot of evidence that able children also benefit from 'scaffolding' the efforts of less able children; just because a long or complex word is not used in the final written work does not mean there was not some learning taking place in both the explaining and the listening. Outcomes in learning cannot just be judged by the nice piece of writing at the end - there is so much more taking place in a creative classroom than getting it down on paper. Using a near synonym for another word is valuable if both, or even only one, of the children, understands it and can distinguish between the nuances of both.
Unless all the written work being done is collaborative in this way, I would relax, to be honest, at least over this particular thing.
Re: How do I deal with this? I'm having a moan!
It (not being allowed to use some words) sounds such a ridiculous notion that it must be something the teacher fiercely believes in and therefore not worth discussing!!
Maybe your daughter could make a list of words that are not permitted in her writing and bring them home and turn them into a fabulous poem, or flashcards for the fridge from which cheeky sentences are composed as suggested by Sally.
I wait for this to happen at our school and see how calm I manage to keep. I might suggest a dictionary?
Maybe your daughter could make a list of words that are not permitted in her writing and bring them home and turn them into a fabulous poem, or flashcards for the fridge from which cheeky sentences are composed as suggested by Sally.
I wait for this to happen at our school and see how calm I manage to keep. I might suggest a dictionary?
Re: How do I deal with this? I'm having a moan!
Thanks everyone. I'm feeling much more reassured today 
I had an informal chat with my DD's teacher yesterday and carefully explained my concerns. She agreed that in some cases one talk partner will benefit more from another; however she assured me that talk partners are changed around much more frequently than every half term. Infact, today my DD has a different talk partner.
In addition, DD's teacher assured me that she would never disallow words that my DD or any other child wished to use in a joint piece of work. My DD emphatically disagrees, saying that this has happened before, but after our chat yesterday I doubt that this will raise its head again. The teacher spoke highly of my Dd and said that she feels that her standard of vocab and work is very good, she doesn't feel as though there is anything to be concerned about at all. She also said that she assess the children's levels every half term so they are always keeping a close eye on their progress of lack of, so to say.
We started using flashcards yesterday, smiley faces are awarded for every sentence that DD can compose using the new words. I have integrated some of the vocab from Patricia's analysis of The Diary of a Young Girl” by Anne Frank, it's quite a fun exercise, and there are bonuses in place for using the new words in more interesting sentences. We could be onto a good thing, so thank you Sally-Anne and Patricia, of course. Once DD becomes more familiar with older vocab, it may be easier to introduce her to texts from previous eras.
DD wrote a story last night affiliated with her recent work on 'The Tempest’, having read it this morning I can see already how she has really tried to include more interesting vocab, vary her sentence openings and show off her descriptive writing skills. I think she is in much better spirits today which is great.
I had an informal chat with my DD's teacher yesterday and carefully explained my concerns. She agreed that in some cases one talk partner will benefit more from another; however she assured me that talk partners are changed around much more frequently than every half term. Infact, today my DD has a different talk partner.
In addition, DD's teacher assured me that she would never disallow words that my DD or any other child wished to use in a joint piece of work. My DD emphatically disagrees, saying that this has happened before, but after our chat yesterday I doubt that this will raise its head again. The teacher spoke highly of my Dd and said that she feels that her standard of vocab and work is very good, she doesn't feel as though there is anything to be concerned about at all. She also said that she assess the children's levels every half term so they are always keeping a close eye on their progress of lack of, so to say.
We started using flashcards yesterday, smiley faces are awarded for every sentence that DD can compose using the new words. I have integrated some of the vocab from Patricia's analysis of The Diary of a Young Girl” by Anne Frank, it's quite a fun exercise, and there are bonuses in place for using the new words in more interesting sentences. We could be onto a good thing, so thank you Sally-Anne and Patricia, of course. Once DD becomes more familiar with older vocab, it may be easier to introduce her to texts from previous eras.
DD wrote a story last night affiliated with her recent work on 'The Tempest’, having read it this morning I can see already how she has really tried to include more interesting vocab, vary her sentence openings and show off her descriptive writing skills. I think she is in much better spirits today which is great.
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Sally-Anne
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Re: How do I deal with this? I'm having a moan!
Good news Sam, and I'm only to glad to have been of help. Remember that the flashcards can also benefit any younger children in the family as well.
Re: How do I deal with this? I'm having a moan!
I wait with baited breath on the "disallowed" words; hopefully you will have a better experience than me who has been told in the past a certain thing would change and then it didn't until I had mentioned it approx 7 times. Then it was changed in time for children coming up the school from below but a bit too late for mine. Anyhow I will now put my cynicism aside. (Oh maybe the teacher read your posts on here??!)
Anyhow, even if this practice continues despite what she has said to you, you seem to have found some good solutions as a result of having had the problem. As they say, every cloud has a silver lining. And your daughter will probably be desperate not to have any words disallowed and will go to the ends of the earth to ensure that she and her talk partner can produce dictionary definitions for everything under the sun. Perhaps it is a well thought-out psychological technique the teacher is using!! The disallowed words probably remain in the memory for ever!!
It does sound as though your daughter is very interested in writing and is a good writer, so I'd not lose that creative element in a flap over NC grades. It sounds from what you are saying that she has some "flair" which will not necessarily always show up within the confines of NC grading at this age but will pay dividends at GCSE and A level etc.
Anyhow, even if this practice continues despite what she has said to you, you seem to have found some good solutions as a result of having had the problem. As they say, every cloud has a silver lining. And your daughter will probably be desperate not to have any words disallowed and will go to the ends of the earth to ensure that she and her talk partner can produce dictionary definitions for everything under the sun. Perhaps it is a well thought-out psychological technique the teacher is using!! The disallowed words probably remain in the memory for ever!!
It does sound as though your daughter is very interested in writing and is a good writer, so I'd not lose that creative element in a flap over NC grades. It sounds from what you are saying that she has some "flair" which will not necessarily always show up within the confines of NC grading at this age but will pay dividends at GCSE and A level etc.
Re: How do I deal with this? I'm having a moan!
I know that I am so totally out of step with the prevailing view here that I am actually nervous to post this, but to me the idea of using flash cards to teach vocabulary is terrifying, particularly in a child's own home. I have no statistics to show that it is ineffective but I rather think it would be in the long term; reading and being read to; listening to radio talk programmes and engaging in conversation are much more enjoyable and I would think a lot more likely to interest a child. I would be cautious of making a child feel that home is an extension of school and that achievement at school is prized above all else.
As I say, I know I am out of step but felt had to say it.
As I say, I know I am out of step but felt had to say it.
Re: How do I deal with this? I'm having a moan!
I don't think you are out of step, Amber. I wouldn't use flashcards at home either...I'm visualising my son's face now if I suddenly produced a bunch of cards...and it isn't very pretty ! I've posted before, that for my children at least, I find it best if I think up a few words and then use them in my every day sentences...telling them what they mean . My DD has now adopted a very theatrical way of speaking , knocking everyone out with her exaggerated hand movements...but my little DS who never reads and has never been great at writing has also picked up lots of different words and has just been moved up a literacy group because of this.
I have to say the best vocab " thing " I've come across was an electronic thesaurus which we discovered in our neighbours house when we were supposed to be feeding her cats , but instead were having a poke around.
My DC absolutely loved trying to think up alternative words and then checking if they were right...we had to spend hours over there !
I have to say the best vocab " thing " I've come across was an electronic thesaurus which we discovered in our neighbours house when we were supposed to be feeding her cats , but instead were having a poke around.
My DC absolutely loved trying to think up alternative words and then checking if they were right...we had to spend hours over there !Re: How do I deal with this? I'm having a moan!
I do not understand about the "talk partner" arrangement. DS's school use lolly sticks to choose their talk partners every half-term. On both occasions my DS has had to suffer; firstly with a child who continually misbehaves and for this half-term, he is now working with a child of much lesser ability.
I would like to know what the benefits are supposed to be for the more able child as I do feel that the more able are used to help the Teacher.
Please don't shout at me for posting this comment, but I am quite perplexed by the whole "talk partner" scheme.
I would like to know what the benefits are supposed to be for the more able child as I do feel that the more able are used to help the Teacher.
Please don't shout at me for posting this comment, but I am quite perplexed by the whole "talk partner" scheme.
Re: How do I deal with this? I'm having a moan!
I don't think our school has talk partners ( well, DD has an unofficial one ! ) but my DS has had to put up with pairings with disruptive children.Luckily , he can't bear bad behaviour and is actually a bit ocd about it ( unless it's from him of course ) and takes himself off into the hall on a regular basis to work by himself. At least then when I look at his work on the wall I can gauge what he can actually do, not wonder if it was all the other childs work.
Re: How do I deal with this? I'm having a moan!
Yeh so am I . One of my children mentioned yesterday they had done talk partners in the afternoon. I asked her whose her's was - she gave me several different names and told me she didn't speak to any of them. The same day she told me that she and a few others spent their time in the reading corner experimenting with a poppy pin. She never gets told off. I don't know why!!
I know what you mean about flashcards Amber, but I don't think some children mind them - a good game with them can be fine. And if school doesn't use flashcards then maybe they are a novelty at home.
Didn't you home educate at one time Amber? How then did you ensure a separation between school and home. I had a family stay here once for a week who home educated. It was interesting, but the whole day morning til late night seemed to be school as there were three different children of differing ages to cater for. The parents had a completely different role I felt, even outside "school".
I know what you mean about flashcards Amber, but I don't think some children mind them - a good game with them can be fine. And if school doesn't use flashcards then maybe they are a novelty at home.
Didn't you home educate at one time Amber? How then did you ensure a separation between school and home. I had a family stay here once for a week who home educated. It was interesting, but the whole day morning til late night seemed to be school as there were three different children of differing ages to cater for. The parents had a completely different role I felt, even outside "school".
