"My daughter "Karina" just entered first grade. Just last evening, I got a call from her teacher about her behavior. Karina reads well and is apparently well ahead of the rest of her class. I was asked if I read to her or coached her regularly. I affirmed that I do, in fact, read to her nightly and have done so since infancy, and yes, helped teach her to read in an amateur capacity."
"I'm still a bit flabbergasted. I thought that a child reading ahead of her age expectations would be a good thing, not a bad thing. I realize this is only one conversation over the phone, but I do not like this teacher at all. I'm also not sure what I can do about it. How seriously should I take this, and if I do make a formal complaint, what exactly do I say? -Flummoxed"
"As an educator, I have never heard of a teacher being upset about a student reading ahead of her class. You are right: It is a good thing. Now, teachers often don't want students to read too fast (fearing they aren't truly comprehending what they're reading when they do), but that doesn't seem to be the case here."
Karina, a first grader, reads well and is ahead of her classmates. Her teacher phoned to complain about her behavior and suggested parental reading and coaching might be creating problems, advising the parent to cut it out and encourage outdoor play. The parent is surprised and unsure whether to file a formal complaint. An educator responds that a child reading ahead is positive and that teachers sometimes worry students read too fast without comprehension. The educator suggests the teacher's reaction may stem from being overwhelmed by classroom management rather than harm to Karina's development.
Read at Slate Magazine
Unable to calculate read time
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