is anyone elses dc struggling in yr 1 with more work and less play?

[griffalo2]

Ds has been really miserable for the last two weeks or so,crying at every little thing.
Ive just asked him what was wrong and was everything ok at school.
He says its really hardwork and lots of it,so much his hand aches writing.

I was expecting this a little,but I was not expecting him to be so upset.
I said to him that he will get used to it and he has a week off soon so can relax at home and have a rest.
Parents evening is Monday,should I say something?
I dont think the work is too hard just too much

[mrsshears]

Hi griffalo2 your ds is not alone in this,my dd hasnt enjoyed the transition either and we are only just turning a corner now.
My dd has struggled with the lack of free choice and being 'made' to do things that arent 'interesting'.
I would mention it and also ask how ds is when at school,although if he was upset in school i think the teacher would have told you.

[picturerail]

We've had the same with DS1. He's been really tired & irritable for the last fortnight. Mornings have been especially difficult & we had tears almost every day last week. He has speech & occupational therapy so I think that combined with the increase of "work" has knocked him for six. I haven't had the chance to speak to his class teacher yet (parents evening is next week) but his SENCo & teaching assistant have said that he's fine once he's in class & that this is something they all go through.

[40notTrendy]

Mine same. Has said he doesn't like the teacher but suspect its down to being made to do more work. I am concerned though as he is one of many summer born children who have only done two terms. I think the teacher hasn't made allowances for that. I have concerns about other things too, which I'm planning to ask about at parents evening. Yr 1 not good for us so far!!!

[BleughCowWonders]

Yes dd is pretty miserable. And hasn't adapted well to the extra work. Is v tired - we're all looking forward to half term to get some rest.

[griffalo2]

Thank you for replys,i hope your dcs find it better soon.thinking about it more,i have noticed some of the other children crying and clinging on to their mums in the morning,they must be feeling the same as ds.

[Feenie]

My ds is the same. At my school we do transition Friday afternoons from January, and still teach through play throughout Y1, but with a little more 'formality' after Christmas Y1.

Never realised just how significant that is until my own ds had one morning of transition in July and a total change from mostly play to hardly any overnight. He does not like it!

[frightstick]

Mine too . Lots of people have said transition in yr1 far more traumatic than starting reception.

Really hoping DS gets used to it soon. Can't cope with the mood swings.

[forehead]

Same happened to my ds when he started year 1 and he was
a summer born boy which didnt help much.
I decided to take him to the park a couple of times a week after school, which helped a lot.
He is now in year 2 and is fine.

[Feenie]

That's reassuring, forehead.

[DownyEmerald]

I totally underestimated the change to Yr 1. Someone warned me before she started school that she might turn in to a monster. She didn't last year (tho' it wasn't perfect) but this year, some days she is.

Horrendous behaviour, I can't do anything right, total crying jags about the tiniest thing. We had parent's evening last week, and she seems to be fine at school. She is also fine while at the childminders, but if it's a day I pick her up, or after the childminders she is foul.

I've discovered, accidentally!, that if we do something a bit constructive together it helps. So finding sheet music on the internet that I play on her recorder and then we sing together. Or a crafty thing. I need to think of some more - I had been mostly leaving her to play by herself, because that was fine before - but now it's a bit more like having a toddler and needing to organise fun stuff to do.

It is weird - starting Reception really messed up her sleep, but that is mainly fine now. I did take her to bed at 5.30 ther other day! 7 has been her 'normal' bedtime for a while, and I am mixing that up with a lot of 6.30s at the mo.

Last year they had weeks of half days. I really wish we could have had a bit of that this year. This is real school, a bit of 'golden time' on a friday, and they do do fun things, but dd has to be 'switched on' a lot of more of the day and it's obviously taking it out of her. I do feel bad that she is obviously so tired, but I also need her to know her behaviour is awful. So I try to point that out, but not get ratty with her (but it is really hard).

[Feenie]

I really get now how important our transition is! Have always supported it, but teaching Y2 upwards have never realised just how valuable it is.

Ds has to go up outside stairs to get to 2nd storey Y1 classroom, and is a lot tinier than the other kids, which has compounded things a little,

[tryingtobemarypoppins2]

This is a national problem and ££££ has been spent on transition projects but IMO (taught Y1 for 5 years) it is all about making the curriculum pratical and esp for little boys! You must say something.

[Feenie]

You have to pick your battles though, tryingtobemarypoppins! Have enough issues with reading teaching (or lack of) to be getting on with.

[2kidsintow]

Hurrah for living in Wales. The transition phase lasts all through to year 2. My DD is in y2 and is still enjoying things a lot. She misses her y1 teacher, who she adored, and is finding it hard to get to know her new teacher, but is still doing a lot of play based learning so it has softened the blow.

Not looking forward to next year as in her school, not only is that their first year of 'real' school, but also they lose their afternoon break.

[rosy71]

Ds1 is in Year 2, but we had this last year. It lasted the whole of the AUtumn Term. He went from loving school and learning to being silly and in trouble all the time. Thankfully he adjusted and is fine now!

[tryingtobemarypoppins2]

We have had a county project looking at taking Early Years/play based methods into Year 3.....it is more than possible but takes a great deal of resources, adults and energy!

Funny enough we are looking at schools for DS next year. 1 has great early years dep, but is a very small school although did get outstanding from ofsted but there are not many clubs, school trips etc, the other very poor early years but the rest of the school is outstanding/good etc. Really not sure what to do as those first few years are so vital.

[Feenie]

Ds's school had a good rating for Reception, and we were very happy with it, but in July Ofsted rated attainment as satisfactory and cited KS1 lessons as unsatisfactory. I suppose that means they will be especially looking to improve Y1 then, but reading books home have confirmed all my suspicions.

[tryingtobemarypoppins2]

oooo that's not good, poor you :( What is your plan?

[Feenie]

I will be asking the teacher at parents' evening to please explain what's going on with the reading - if I can't tell what the hell they're doing, as a Literacy coordinator, then who can?!

They used Rigby Star for Reception, and his decoding skills were coming on very well - now they have suddenly chucked him on ORT Stage 3. So he is trying to read words like 'furniture' and 'curtains', and has resorted to memorising without looking at the words. If they are going to use a sight reading scheme, it would make me go but fair enough (ish) to use it properly. But chucking a Y1 child straight onto Stage 3 makes no sense to me.