Shouldn’t after school clubs be for everybody?

I mean the most logical thing would be the register interest and then run it on a rota, so everyone gets a term or say 3-4 weeks at a minimum.

That's the job they do during the day as PE teachers. This is an extra, after-school club.

First come first served at our school.

There are separate teams for a few sports (the places go to year 5 and 6).

When you select and train children with better ability that at an early age, you deny the others the chance to practice, learn and improve and open the gap up. If you don't practice, you'll never be "good enough" and the gap only grows.

I got DS2 into football too late... at 8. The Covid year meant he couldn't play anything structured with other children for the entitity of being 7, lost social confidence, didn't get selected, didn't grow confidence, to catch up, didn't get selected, never played games, the gap grew and grew. The school team was entirely people playing matches outside school.

Team sports are for winners not for everyone 🤷‍♀️

Fortunately he's into solo sports, and long term has a better chance of contining.

Sporty kids tend to be good at sports in general and can definitely excel at more than one but that’s not a great ethos for after school clubs - if it’s over subscribed then the school should rotate places each term

Yes op it is very frustrating. The after school clubs should be more inclusive. Our previous primary school was the same and they just picked the best for the clubs and those who weren’t as good, maybe because they had sen or because their parents couldn’t afford clubs out of school and so were new to the sports and didn’t have the same experience were excluded.

So you have 3 children there that have 2 clubs and some children have none? How are the children that are not as good supposed to improve?

What a shitty school!

YANBU. There’s nothing wrong with teams playing matches being selected on ability, but a Y4 after school club being selected on ability is dreadful. It becomes self-fulfilling, so the kids that get to go every week naturally improve, compared to those who don’t get to play.

Children develop at such different rates at that age that those who are not quite so big /strong/fast/coordinated now, can easily have a growth spurt and become brilliant players 6 months later. Aside from that, all children should have the opportunity to enjoy playing sport with their friends.

Whilst I agree with you main point OP… this is a wild take that people can’t be talented at more than one thing.

Presumably the teacher is doing this unpaid so I can see a logic in wanting to spend their volunteer effort on developing the children who will do best at the sport.

They have been very good in providing free clubs at all imo.

I do think it could have been communicated a lot better though.

On the face of it this isn’t great and all children should be given the chance to take part.

Having run after school clubs I would say that some parents use it as an opportunity for free childcare and send children who clearly have no interest and put no effort in which drags the whole club down. I wonder if perhaps the P.E teacher is fed up of babysitting kids who have no interest in football (not suggesting your son is one of them or this is your intention).

Obviously they can be talented at both, why wouldn't they be?

But they shouldn't let some children do two sports clubs when others don't get to do any at all.

YANBU. Seems the sports coach at your school is more interested in children winning matches for the sake of his own ego rather than wanting to provide them
witg an activity beneficial to their health and wellbeing. I think it’s worth a complaint.

no they aren't. they routinely exclude children with SEN.

This is the fairest way.

Indeed – so you’re entitled to free after school childcare if your kid is good at sports? Something is extremely off with that.

Is the sports coach a teacher or an external provider? Does the school offer any other wraparound care or just these teams?

Which one? The World Cup? 😂
School is out of order here. I’d be having a chat which would end in DC attending the after school club.

Thos is absolutely shocking OP! Their job as PE teachers is to teach ALL children how to enjoy sport and physical activity and help them lead a more active life. How does this policy achieve that? What's next, only teaching maths to the bright children!?! Because that is the obvious parallel!

When DDs were at Primary it was register interest (so you listed the clubs in preference order) and they made sure that everyone got one club. Popular clubs you only got for a term.

The only exception was the school play which was auditions for main parts, but everyone could get a chorus part. (The audition process left a lot to be desired unfortunately, but on the surface it was inclusive)

Wow that’s shit and I’d be complaining to everyone who would listen. Unbelievable at ages 8!! The sports teacher is obviously a twat and doesn’t share what I would say are most people’s/parents’ values about children’s sport at primary school.

That’s not on - here, after school clubs are first come first served as places are limited. Sometimes they will pick names at random too if it’s very popular. The school have various sports teams which are chosen on ability but these are separate from the after school clubs and often meet at lunch times or for matches after school.

YANBU. In our school it’s first come first serve which isn’t great either. It should be that everyone gets a turn throughout the year for free clubs imo.