My son seems really down !

[mystery]

[sherry_d]

Wearing my rose tinted glasses I do think how lovely to have another baby

You definately have rose tinted glasses Scarlett, I have a 3 year old who has been poorly for the last few days and now he is much better and back to himself keeping me on my toes. I really see the difference now between girls and boys, my DD didnt have this much energy

My DD is quite the opposite to your son and it worries me sometimes whether she knows exactly whats coming. She doesn't seem at all phased and is just taking it all within her stride. I hope it stays that way for her, I am the one panicking a bit but she is calm as a cucumber.

[scarlett]

Sherry...I think that may be girls for you , my 6 year old DD loves a crisis and will wear a very determined look on her face whilst sorting it out !
I know what you mean about small boys....thinking back trips to the park were never that relaxing !

Mystery...

[Looking for help]

You have to remember the horrible things like strapping everybody in their car seats, and having to take hordes with you on a 5 mile journey to the nearest supermarket to get a pint of milk, and the time when somebody threw up all over the library, and when you didn't get a decent night's sleep for 10 years, and oh I could go on.
Now its not a national emergency if we've run out of bread, I can ask one of the older ones to nip out in the car to get it, and can go out in the evening on a whim, without having to make elaborate plans, that all fall apart at the last minute.

[sherry_d]

Hijacking your thread Scarlett, I am curious about how effective streaming is. Doesn't it just make teachers resent or not bother and have low expectations of lower ability classes?

[doodles]

Rather naively I hadn't realised that some schools stream before the children even start. I find that rather odd or are these sets/streams quite fluid i.e you can move up and down quite easily? It may be that some children really flourish with a new environment and a new teacher.

Seriously, I find this quite interesting.

[scary mum]

DSs school streams for maths in year 8 and then science and English in year 9 (I think). Given that all the children at GS are likely to be quite bright I do think it's a bit premature to stream them before they get there. DDs previous school stream at the October half term if year 7 but it was a non selective school.

[scarlett]

I don't think it's streaming in how we might understand it...because it's an all boys school apparently they recognise that many of the boys will be stronger in the maths/science subjects but not so great at literacy and I think it's to see if any boys might be dyslexic etc...the tests were just 2 hours of literacy , so maybe that was also why DS2 was feeling down ! He's only 4b for writing... higher for reading, but nearly level 6 for maths, so that's a big difference ! It's not really about the teachers...more so the children can work well within their ability I suppose !


LFH ...yes, I remember trying to fold a small child in half to get him into his car seat when he was arching his back like a wild animal. Take a leaf out of DH book and just bundle them in the boot.......

Doodles..DS will be at a grammar so I feel wherever he is ( and he won't be top ! ) it doesn't really matter as he has earnt his place there and they must all be much of a muchness.I'd rather DS was comfortable and not forever thinking he was at the bottom.I don't know if the boys really know which form is top and which is bottom...but in general they've passed the 11 plus so must be similar ?

Just looked at the letter we received and it says that research shows some boys underachieve due to poor literacy skills and so to improve literacy skills they stream according to that...but also according to what language your son had chosen too.It also said they can then identify any more able children who might then benefit from extension work.

[doodles]

Scary, DS's school also set for maths in Yr8. I just hadn't realised that some schools do this before the children get there I thought they all did it after the children had been there for a term or so.

[Looking for help]

My older children's grammar only set for Maths, not for anything else, it sounds as if though, scarlett, that the school is doing a good thing, by trying to identify boys with issues regarding literacy, problems which I think are often overlooked in primary, especially when they are so good at maths and science.

I hope he enjoys his taster day much better, and then can look forward to starting in September, with you in your tree costume lurking in the shadows somewhere not too far away in case he should need to hug a tree