Transition from Nursery to Reception...

[JingEllBells]

I think I'm probably getting worked up about nothing here, but I thought I'd run it past you ladies and see what you thought.

Dd2 has been attending nursery at the school that dd1 attends (and where dd2 will eventually go) since the summer term of last year. She will be four in March 2006. She is really happy there, enjoys going and seems to have lots of friends (including one or two special friends, whom she talks about all the time).

The school has always had a policy of children starting part-time in Reception the term after they are 4. They then do a term of afternoons, a term of mornings and go full-time in the term in which they will be 5. However, the nursery only opened in January last year, so this is the first year that they have had to deal with the transition between Nursery and Reception (rather than just starting children off in Reception). Dd1 went to a separate nursery school elsewhere in the town, which has now closed down.

At a recent open day at nursery parents were told that they were not going to move children from Nursery to Reception just on the basis of age, but were going to assess them also on the basis of ability/social skills/readiness for 'proper' school, etc. A lot of parents were up in arms about this, and felt that their children were going to be 'held back'. TBH, I wasn't that bothered, because dd2 loves nursery and I'm sure that once she's 4 will be time enough for her to start in a more formal setting.

However, I've just found out that they have decided to move the children up on the basis of age, just like in the past. I can see that this is less divisive. But it turns out that over half of my dd's class will be moving up to reception in January, including all her friends. The children that I know of who are staying in nursery are the ones who started in September, and from the little bit I've seen when I drop her off, they seem a lot 'younger' than her in their behaviour, etc.

Anyway, I am worried that dd will be isolated in nursery when she goes back in January, having 'lost' all her friends, and that she'll be bored with these younger children (and obviously more, even younger, ones will be starting to replace the ones who are moving on).

So, my dilemma is, do I talk to her nursery teacher about this and express my concerns, or am I going to look like a pushy mother who is trying to get her child moved up a class before she is ready. I honestly wouldn't be worried if a couple of her friends were staying in nursery with her, but everyone I've spoken to is moving up. She is a fairly level-headed child, so I don't think she's going to throw a huge wobbly when she realises her friends have gone, but I just feel that her peer group is being taken away from her, and it makes me feel sad (and because of the way the school works, it won't be till September, when her 'old' friends go full-time and she goes onto mornings, that she'll see them again...).

Any advice? Am I worrying about nothing? DH says I should take a chill pill...

[BudaBabeInAManger]

Sounds daft IMO.

DS did a year in nursery attached to his school but no-one moved up till start of new school year.

No problems as all his friends moved also - and he is one of youngest as 4 in August.

[santabops]

what a starnge system.

dd started nursery in the one attached to her school in the Sept and left in July. Just like all of the other children.

She then started Reception in the September just like everyone else - regardless of which month their birthday is in.

It all worked fine, except for some reason that I cannot fathom she wasn't put into the reception class with her closest friends. (I did ask the teachers but they didn't know why this had happened). However, although she was a bit sad about this in the beginning, 2 months later she has a much wider circle of friends than she would have done if she had stayed in the same class as them iyswim.

Will they still see each other in the playground?
That is what kept dd cheerful when she was first split from her friends.

[JingEllBells]

No, that's one of the problems santabops. She won't see her friends at all till next September, because they will now do afternoons till Easter, while she'll continue to go to nursery in the morning. Then after Easter she'll change to afternoons (in Reception) but they'll be doing mornings. So it'll only be after the summer (when she'll move to mornings and they'll be full-time) that she'll see them again, and 9 months is a long time when you're 4, isn't it?

It is a really complex system, but OK, it's the system that the school has always had (and in this LEA they are not allowed to go full-time till the term in which they are 5). That's why I feel unsure about mentioning it. I just feel that in the circs it's really working against my dd.

[stripey]

It does sound a bit confusing but if she is only 3 I cannot imagine how they could move her into Reception in January? Will her friends eventually be in the same class in September? Will they still be in Reception or will they be in Year 1?

It sounds confusing to me as my 5 year old has not long started in Reception (he was 5 in Sept) and my 3 year old will start Nursery in Sept (he will be 4 then).

[JingEllBells]

Stripey... it is confusing... even more so because the school has an intake of 45, so one class is mixed-age. In theory, then, the kids who start full-time in reception in September will do a whole year there (having already done two terms full-time) before moving up to Year 1. In practice (at least, last year) the oldest ones were moved up earlier (after Easter) and are now in a mixed Year 1/2 class, whereas the younger ones like my dd1 are in a 'straight' Year 1 class. Aaaargh... this is doing my head in.

I think that they could put dd2 into reception earlier if they wanted to. In our school it's all part of Foundation Stage (Upper and Lower). What they couldn't do is start her full-time before the term in which she's 5. So instead of two terms part-time in reception she'd have to do three. I'm not entirely sure this is what I want though. I am just sad at the thought of her being separated from her pals and the people I have always considered her peer group.

[stripey]

Hmm Good luck.

This is one of the reasons I have chosen to defer ds2 starting Nursery until September. He probably could start in Jan but I know (cos ds1 was previously in Nursery) that nearly all the children in there are almost 4 and would all be moving up in Sept or Jan and he would have to stay behind. For some reason they only have about 3 children moving up this Jan so there would only be 3 spaces.

Saying that though she will probably make new friends easily and I am sure some will be more mature like she seems to be. I don't know how the school keeps up though?

[JingEllBells]

Thanks Stripey. Yes, I'm sure she will make new friends. And I suspect I'm more worried about it than she is. I think it must have been a bit like in your school - very few children starting at the same time that she did. Ho hum...