First Grader Having Reading Trouble

My son just started first grade a few weeks ago and was given some kind of reading test. The teacher told me that he is having trouble with reading. I thought this was simply because he has not yet learned how to read.
The teacher now wants him to have further evaluations. I am puzzled. Shouldn't my son be given a chance to learn to read before the school decides he's not getting it? - Truly Puzzled
Answer: You bring up many good points that you should be talking about with your son's teacher. Find out exactly what the reading test was designed to measure and why the teacher thinks your child has or will have trouble with reading. His teacher should be applauded, as the earlier reading or reading-readiness problems are discovered, the greater the success in resolving them.
There are many skills that children need to have before they actually start reading words in books. First and foremost, they must understand that words are made up of speech sounds. This is called phonemic awareness and is an educational buzzword that is used in all the current reading literature.
Without phonemic awareness, children can have a difficult time learning to read. For example, does your son recognize that "boy," "baby" and "ball" all start with the "b" sound? Can he say the first or last sound in a word like "sit"? If your son can't do these things, he will need to be taught how to think about and work with sounds in spoken language. Working with nursery rhymes can be helpful.