Son refusing to go to school, what can I say?

[Bogger2]

There's been loads of disruption at my son's school (different heads, teachers, supplies etc) and now he's finished his Year 6 SATs he says there's no point in going to school as he isn't learning anything and just gets shouted at by random teachers (he's quite quiet & hates shouting!). He refuses to get out of bed most mornings and it's sooooo stressful. I don't know what to tell him! Any advice? I get what he's saying but I think he needs to learn to 'show up' and 'get on with it' etc even though things aren't great.

[JocastaFarquhar]

Do you work? Could you look into home educating until secondary?

[SaltyMyDear]

Yes, if you don't work just pull him out of school.

He's absolutely right. He won't learn much for the rest of the year.

[uhoh2016]

No you must make him go. He needs to learn a life lesson that sometimes we have to suck it up and get on with it even tho we don't really want to. It's not for long until he leaves hopefully they'll get to do some fun stuff now sats are over etc.

[SaltyMyDear]

Or you could let him take the rest of the term off and he could learn the life lesson that he's not a sausage in a sausage factory and that if his reasoning is sound (in this case that he'll be taught very little in the next few weeks) then he should follow his sensible conclusion (in this case to not go to school)

That's a very empowering life lesson. That He's an important intelligent person who is in charge of his own destiny.

[Janefromuptheshops]

There's a middle ground between sausage in a sausage factory and special little snowflake

[ParadiseCity]

My son is in Y6 and just this morning told me he wasn't going to school. I wonder if they are all winding each other up a bit. Anyway there is no way I'd say 'ok darling have a few months off'!

In your case I'd get in touch with school and ask them to keep an eye on him etc etc so they know he is unhappy about going. Ask for their support.

If he skips the rest of y6 I think high school would seem quite intimidating.

[DriveMeToTennessee]

I'm as soft as they come but really am surprised at suggestions of letting him decide to take the rest of the year off?! Agree with Jane! 😄

The important life lesson here is having to get on with it and do things you don't always want to do. If you allow him to miss the rest of yr 6, who's to say this won't carry on into yr 7? As paradise says secondary could seem quite intimidating after missing all that time. I would pull mine out of school straight away in the right circumstances- if they were being bullied and having a dreadful time for example, or if there were really serious problems with behaviour or the school or whatever, but this isn't really one of those situations.

[eyebrowsonfleek]

Does he have secondary induction coming up?
The period after SATs is usually fun learning like plays, residential...

[uhoh2016]

Can't believe there's even a suggestion that he finishes school!!!!! It's not just as simple as keeping him off you need to prove to the authorities that your actually teaching him etc is that really worth all the hassle for a few weeks? ??
What if he says the teachers at high school shout are you doing to home school him then? ?
What if he has a job where he occasionally gets bored and there's nothing to do or his boss shouts?? Are you going to tell him to quit his job and you'll keep him the rest of his life???
Sometimes we all have to do things we don't want too - that's life!!