If you don't need school for childcare...

[HorsesDoovers]

If you don't need school for childcare will you send your child back on 1st June? I have a Year 6 DS and I am so undecided. I handed in my notice at the beginning of all this so I am now at home and can home educate him if I choose to. I don't want him to miss out but I also don't want to take unnecessary risks.
I know that he will be sat at a desk, socially distanced, for most of the day as this is what his school has done for Key worker children. The school has said they will send more details tomorrow but that they are well set up to follow the guidelines as this is what they are doing already.
It sounds a bit miserable really and I'm not sure how much he would benefit from it.
I also don't want him to miss out on any transition to Yr 7, but we've (understandably) had no info on this so I don't even know how its going to work, if if happens at all.
Just looking for opinions really.

Stay at home parent here and my year one won’t be going back.

I'm WFH and my children are years 3 and 5. School haven't told parents what their plans are, but I think I would send them back.

We all need to learn to live with coronavirus and I want them to be resilient. I may think differently if we had underlying health conditions.

I just asked my yr 4 son (very neutrally) what he thought of the pictures of much emptier more spaced out classrooms and he said " I would much prefer that, I actually wish they always looked like that"

I really think that our hospital admission and death levels will be too high for schools to reopen on 1st June.

@NeverTwerkNaked that's interesting! Blesd him. Schools can feel quite busy for some children.

@SunbathingDragon maybe, it just feels like they're going to forge ahead anyway - driven by the Government, not necessarily what schools want to do.

Exactly *horses". I think it is too easy to assume that "the norm" is what all children want. He is a little geek and hated sharing his desk with children who distracted him.

I think we can calmly explain the spacing is to protect the NHS and many children will be fine with that and may even to our suprise prefer it.

My granddaughters won't be going back to school or nursery yet for several reasons. Obviously the risk to them and the teachers so the fewer going the better, but more importantly, the fact that the 5 year old loved starting school and the new distancing regime will be be awful and may make her hate school which would be horrible. She is doing fine at home and learning plenty. It isn't easy for my daughter as she has her own business but she can just tick over working around her husband's hours and she is obviously finding it hard work in her own with 2 littlies every day.

I thought I would want DS to go back asap (Y2) but seeing pp's pictures, and a video on the news over the weekend of kids 'playing' in a 2m square (not playing at all, actually looking miserable and like they have been drugged) I am finding it very difficult to come to terms with the idea of children being subjected to this.

I think the emotional impact of going back to this sort of environment where he can't touch anything/one, or pull faces at his mate's sandwich filling, or whisper a funny joke in their ear, or give a high five to celebrate a goal (if they can even play with a ball??) or get a hug if he is upset will be more damaging than him being stuck with us at home, and he's an only child.

Maybe it won't be like that, maybe that's just unrepresentative properganda designed to create a backlash, who fucking knows anymore.

PorridgeAgainAbney there are certainly no 2m squares planned for our schools return. Children will be in a group of 10 children, and they will be able to play together freely.

Absolutely not they're safer at home.

The picture of the " squares"has been roundly discredited. It was very manipulative. (It was a picture taken out of context.)

Some children may actually prefer not being so crowded into classrooms.

No - not yet.

How do we know that the children in ihatecoronavirus' picture aren't playing a fun game of islands in shark infested waters or something? You can't tell anything from a photo.

Children, on the whole, are resilient and I know full well that the staff at the school where I work will be resourceful in finding ways to make the new rules fun.

Those of you talking about returning part time, is that a private school? as the government directive is very clear that full time schooling should be offered and if that is not possible, the number of year groups should be decreased until full time schooling can be offered.

Driving and Never that's good to hear. I suppose I just have to wait and see what our school says.

All these pictures have coincided with a spectacular weekend of PMS so they've tipped me over the edge.

I don't think I will be sending them back until the time is right

In Wales so don't have this option, but no I wouldn't be sending mine back. Eton, with all its resources, is remaining closed because they cannot guarantee the safety of children and staff. Why would we think that state schools, with fewer resources, can achieve what Eton can't?

Eton is a boarding school. Essentially a hotel. Entirely different.

Eton is a secondary school. Their term ends in late June anyway. And they are delivering a full timetable of online lessons (and so are all the feeder preps). The scandal is the widening gap between state and public schools as a consequence of this.

The scandal is the widening gap between state and public schools as a consequence of this

Indeed.

@RealJudas thank you for saying that. I too think it is possible for schools to make this a positive atmosphere for children.
My son was so excited at the thought of a desk to himself!!

I will be sending DS yr 6 back as I think the pros outweigh the cons and it will be better to start schooling gradually than whack them all back in together

He needs the interaction and we have talked about risks and the importance of doing things differently to protect each other

Waiting until it's 100% safe just isn't an option. It never was before! Flu, chicken pox, slapped cheek...

They can't keep schools and businesses closed forever - the financial and mental implications could be worse for some that the health risks - good that parents will still have some choice though

I don't think I'll be sending my year 6 back in on June 1st. It doesn't feel safe enough yet, for children or teachers! His school haven't yet outlined exactly what measures will be in place to keep everyone safe but I've read the government guidance so have an idea of what's expected of them.

I'm not completely against him going back at some point before the summer break but we'll see how things go.

Seeing how quickly and unquestioningly my youngest has adapted to social distancing, id rather he didn’t go back to any abnormal school setting. He was just getting into his stride with school when lockdown happened. I think the mental gymnastics of adapting to “weird” school (which is what it will be for a good long time I think) might be storing up trouble for the future for him, when he needs to start actually paying attention to school work/academics. My eldest child is much more resilient and missing her friends. I’d send her in if she wanted to go, but fear she won’t like it and will want to stay home after a week or two, which really wouldn’t be fair on the teachers and staff.

So, basically, I don’t know.

@RealJudas the guidance is only that - guidance.
Schools are not obliged to follow it which is why most are only offering part time schooling for all year groups.

My children are not in the year groups that have been chosen but I will need to take up a key worker place if schools reopen on June 1st. I have managed to keep them at home so far.