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View Full Version : Anyone else have a school that refuses to keep rising 5 all day?



yummymummy
09-11-2009, 11:59 AM
Mindee who I only have one day a week started reception in September, two weeks after starting school refused to keep him all day as say he's not ready and cries for his mum. Mum furious as she has planned her work around him being in full time school but school refuse to budge. She even set up a meeting with his teacher to talk things through and come to an arrangement of maybe 2 or 3 days all day home early on the others but they refuse to budge have said they will accept him full days after Christmas but if they feel he is still not ready they have the right to leave him on half days until Easter (he was only 4 in August)
I know that this is the case but have cared for lots of rising 5s and have never had this happen before (not from this school though), there are about 5 others who get collected early too.
I must say he seems cheery enough when I pick him up and keen to go to park etc so in my opinion he is trying it on to go home early and the school are allowing it to make their lives easier.
He has told me he is going to "cry very loud" after Christmas too as he still wants to go home early!

Minstrel
09-11-2009, 12:21 PM
It does sound as though he isn't quite ready for full time school. He isn't just a rising 5 but an 'only just 4'. In this situation i think school are right - badly managed entry into school can affect LO's for a long time and they are listening to the individual needs of the child. As frustrating as it is for mum as she has planned her return to work around it , she has to see its for the best interests of her child , surely?

One little one in my sons class did half days longer than everyone else (parents choice) and 5 more young ones have only just started at the beginning of yr one.

yummymummy
09-11-2009, 12:39 PM
I agree with what you say and myself had a young child for her school year and in those days they didn't start until after Easter anyway. I think the problem is that today as they are told that their children will be starting school early parents, especially if they work expect them to start school full time and are unprepared for any other arrangement.
I think children in this country start school far too early and our education standards are so much poorer than in some other European countries where formal education doesn't start until 6 or 7 so we are definitely getting it wrong somewhere.
Think that is for another thread though as a contentious issue!;)

youarewhatyoueat
09-11-2009, 12:41 PM
They have the right to do it so not much mum can do other than to try to get the child settled and prepared for after xmas, but if the child is going to play up he perhaps isn't ready and for some reason doesn't want to stay. They are going to have to make the afternoon appeal to him, I would think they have a playtime in the afternoon perhaps they could make him special person for the day, quite a lot of schools use different methods, but its up to mum to work with them.
I think that now we have the eyfs this will happen more and I also think very young children would benefit from staying a term or even two longer at playgroup and then slowly enter school with mixed care if necessary.

Blaze
09-11-2009, 12:58 PM
Our local school don't have rising fives all day untill January - it's a pain for me personally as my son is more than ready to do a full day - but the majority of them aren't - & TBH it's nice having him home the extra couple of months. There's only 4 or so weeks of school left before they break up, so not really worth the row IMHO...sorry - not much help!