Has anyone a child who has been 'moved up ' a year?

Independent Schools as an alternative to Grammar

Moderators: Section Moderators, Forum Moderators

11 Plus Platform - Online Practice Makes Perfect - Try Now
sahunt
Posts: 11
Joined: Wed Aug 26, 2009 4:23 pm
Location: Bristol

Has anyone a child who has been 'moved up ' a year?

Post by sahunt »

Hi,
I have been looking at Indie schools for my son as he is very unhappy at his current school and one option that has been suggested is to move him up a year and put him into year 2 (so missing out the rest of year 1). I have major reservations about this although I know he is very able - having looked at year 1 and year 2 I can see why he dislikes year 1 but year 2 seems to be a big leap. So I wondered if anyone has experience of this - good or bad??
BTW he has an October birthday but to be honest I have always liked the fact that currently this seems to really advantage him at school. (My DD is August so I have had years of seeing how hard it is to be the youngest.)
Also they seem very flexible and say there will be no problem in repeating a year later on??
Any wise words appreciated,
thanks
S
T.i.p.s.y

Post by T.i.p.s.y »

It depends on a number of factors including whether the school goes all the way through to 18 or if there is a change at 11 or 13+. My son has always been ahead one year since Nursery and although it's been great academically and he has been absolutely fine socially I did begin to notice that he was never picked for positions of responsibility or good parts in the plays. I began to wonder if he comes across as more immature amongst his peers. We have just decided that he will not go on to his senior school a year early because he is our first child and we have no idea how a big inde and going through puberty later than his peers will affect him. He is very unhappy with our decision as he now has to try and bond with his actual peer group and although the decision was purely for pastoral and social reasons he feels that everyone will think he is not clever anymore. There is never any easy answer with a very bright child but if I had my time again I would have insisted he remain in his own year group. Nursery, reception and Year 1 is utterly boring for a gifted child and they are often miserable but Year 2 onwards begins to offer more of a challenge.
Ed's mum
Posts: 3310
Joined: Mon Aug 13, 2007 11:47 am
Location: Warwickshire.

Post by Ed's mum »

Schools dislike doing this for social reasons. There has been research done (cannot cite any) that shows the importance of staying with the year group. Academically he would probably be fine. My son is a September birthday and could easily have coped academically with a move up a year group, but he would definitely have struggled socially.

What would happen when he gets to senior school? You would need to check that the school you would like to send him to would accept him a year early.

We never move children UP at my school but sometimes do keep them back a year. It's not a decision that should be taken lightly - although I'm not suggesting that it would be.

I expect that Tipsy will be along soon: her son was moved up a year.
hermanmunster
Posts: 12815
Joined: Fri Sep 15, 2006 9:51 am
Location: The Seaside

Re: Has anyone a child who has been 'moved up ' a year?

Post by hermanmunster »

sahunt wrote:Hi,
I have been looking at Indie schools for my son as he is very unhappy at his current school and one option that has been suggested is to move him up a year and put him into year 2 (so missing out the rest of year 1). I have major reservations about this although I know he is very able - having looked at year 1 and year 2 I can see why he dislikes year 1 but year 2 seems to be a big leap. So I wondered if anyone has experience of this - good or bad??
BTW he has an October birthday but to be honest I have always liked the fact that currently this seems to really advantage him at school. (My DD is August so I have had years of seeing how hard it is to be the youngest.)
Also they seem very flexible and say there will be no problem in repeating a year later on??
Any wise words appreciated,
thanks
S
Hi - is this to move him up at the current school or the indie? If it is his current school then it is perhaps trying to solve a problem, howevr it is a strange thing for an indie to suggest if the child has not already been there. Why don't they put him in their year 1?
I woudl be concerned that they haven't got any places in year 1 at the indie but want you to send a child there anyway and then will move him to the right year group when they have a place. Have seen this done before - but usually they put them in the year below. :wink:
It is very disheartening for a child to repeat a year - they tend to make lots of friends and then suddenley the freinds are in the year above doing nice interesting things - or going off to new schools.

I suppose ultimatelty it depends on the problems at the current school, whether you like the indie and whether there any other options.??

Herman
x
Ed's mum
Posts: 3310
Joined: Mon Aug 13, 2007 11:47 am
Location: Warwickshire.

Post by Ed's mum »

Beaten to it! I told you she'd be along soon! :mrgreen:
T.i.p.s.y

Post by T.i.p.s.y »

Ed's mum wrote:Beaten to it! I told you she'd be along soon! :mrgreen:
:wink:
sahunt
Posts: 11
Joined: Wed Aug 26, 2009 4:23 pm
Location: Bristol

Post by sahunt »

thanks for all that swift advice.
It is indeed based on a combination of a larger year 1 class and smaller year 2 class at the potential new school and the work he is capable of doing.
Last year he was a very lucky boy and got a fab reception teacher who worked through a lot of year 1 curriculum with him (just him) - he used to get his own maths homework and his own spellings. Great except that in year 1 they are recapping year R work first (??) and he just comes home and says the work is stupid etc. Schools answer is that if he won't /can't do the work they will move to a lower table!! They say he cannot have any new reading books and will have to spend the year re-reading the books he had in reception.
Anyway - my concerns were around the social, physical, sports type issues that have been mentioned. The school is up to age 13 so there is plenty of time to re-adjust but like you mentioned that could be tricky. I'm not at all convinced but as we are part way through the year I did think if started in year 2 he could stay in year 2 next year?? There will be 12 in the class so plenty of scope to tailor the work.
Very difficult as on the one hand he is not happy but on the other I like that he finds it easy!! My gut feel is that all he needs is a good/experienced teacher that can build in some 'stretch' to the year 1 curriculum.
TIPSY - are you making your DS repeat year 6?
T.i.p.s.y

Post by T.i.p.s.y »

DS school does not have defined year groups and in the last two years there is a scholarship form made up of boys from two year groups so he will just stay there for an extra year. We are lucky that there are no defined year groups and boys move up depending on ability so a class could have an age range of three years.

If he is moving to an inde he may find some of Year 1 easy but in theory the year group should be working at a faster pace than the state school. He will be pushed on in his reading and may be learning other things such a french, do more sport and an extended day so it may be best to keep him in his year group as moving to an inde often requires a jump in stamina.
Ed's mum
Posts: 3310
Joined: Mon Aug 13, 2007 11:47 am
Location: Warwickshire.

Post by Ed's mum »

I am hugely surprised that his current teacher is not dealing with the real issue - which sounds like a classic case of boredom through lack of work to stretch him.

Could you go and speak to someone else at the school - Head of KS1, G & T co-ordinator/SENCo or the Head? This really is not the way they should be dealing with this issue.
sahunt
Posts: 11
Joined: Wed Aug 26, 2009 4:23 pm
Location: Bristol

Post by sahunt »

Hi Ed's mum - yes that is indeed what I should do but having been in a few times (in a very friendly way I thought) I have been met with major resistance and it is clearly making things worse not better.
I would have moved him for year 3 anyway as I work full time and need him to do an extended day (get rid of the nannies at last !!).
I'm just worried that it may be just to suit the new school rather then him.
thanks.
Post Reply