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School raising issues - advise?

6 replies

Luckystar1 · 04/04/2022 13:54

Apologies if this is in the wrong topic. I hoped to get some help please.

My DS is 7, in year 2 of primary school. He is a bright boy and was doing academically well last year.

Towards the start of this school year, his teacher asked if we could discuss some issues. She then told me that she had undertaken an assessment on all of the children and his had come back as ‘needing immediate intervention’. This was surprising to all of us (including the teacher) as he was getting full marks in spelling tests and in the top group for reading.

He was placed in a programme to assist children who may have fallen behind due to covid.

The assessment has since been repeated on a few occasions, each time, with a similar outcome, but reading/numeracy/spellings etc in class have all remained high.

He has very few problems with his homework, we listen to reading every night, do spellings etc.

I recently spoke to the teacher again who has said that the assessment was recently repeated and again ‘immediate intervention’ was required.

The assessment was undertaken in the classroom. She said that she then took him to a quieter area and his score improved dramatically, bringing him into the ‘doing well’ bracket (not its actual name but you get the jist).

The only change was that she sat with him, and that it was quieter (she had no actual input into the assessment or his answers).

I sit with him nightly to do his homework, explain what should be done, and he gets on with it, but I do sit beside him. As I say, I notice very little problems with any homework he has had.

The teacher has suggested ruling out hearing and sight issues and also wants to start investigating a processing disorder.

Now, I’m happy to do this, but I do worry that a few things this year may have contributed to how he’s doing which are not a disorder.

His class has increased in size (they split a smaller class into his class), there seems to be a greater focus on writing homework in homework diaries, gold stars for achievements etc.

I’ve also noticed he can go days without bringing home his reading books, not handing in his homework etc, but no one seems to check this or remind him to do it.

I’m wondering if anyone has any ideas as to alternative theories?

I’m happy to pursue the processing point and have booked hearing and eye tests already. But I do worry that the class is perhaps just a bit chaotic and that he’s being lost in the midst of it?

Thanks so much for any ideas!

OP posts:
NoSquirrels · 04/04/2022 13:58

What specifically are the areas of concern, if his numeracy, reading and spellings aren’t an issue? Is it that he’s not completing as much as they’d exist? Because this could be processing/overwhelm if he does better in a quieter environment.

It sounds sensible to get his hearing and sight checked.

Luckystar1 · 04/04/2022 14:08

Everything seems to come from the results of the assessments. So nothing from his actual work, or certainly nothing that is raised throughout the year until these assessments are undertaken.

I’m happy to rule out (or in!) things, it just seems a bit of a shock that a formerly highly achieving child (and one whose work is good) underperforms so greatly at these assessments.

OP posts:
JonSnowedUnder · 04/04/2022 14:16

I would want to know exactly what they are assessing and how. If he is getting full marks in spelling and top table maths then yes it could be down to the way he is being assessed - was it verbal rather than written as it would be in class? Or is it like the phonics test which I would struggle with but I can read.

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Hiddenvoice · 04/04/2022 14:29

If he is doing well with his work in class, I assume he doesn’t have a teacher or member of classroom support close by to him to help him complete it? Could he be working with another child to complete the work?
Could he be distracted and then nervous when completing assessments in class? Moving to a quieter location with just his teacher will help him feel comfortable and remind him of how he feels doing homework with you.
I’d ask about what types of questions are being asked in the assessment- is it strictly writing/ reading or numeracy or a combination?
With moving onto year 2 I would expect him to do more writing into homework diary etc
You could try moving away from him when he does his homework. One night explain what he has to do then go and do something else. Keep checking in to see how he’s getting on.
I’d progress this into asking him to sit and start his homework without you sitting next to him to see if he can complete it.
I wouldn’t worry too much, he is still young and it’s good that the school are assessing and wanting to support him

NoSquirrels · 04/04/2022 14:30

But what is the assessment they’re doing? In what way is he underperforming? They need to explain that to you.

If they’re saying processing and get checked for hearing & sight because he performed better out of a stimulating classroom environment one-to-one, then it sounds like on the assessment he’s just not completing as much as he needs to.

Get them to explain specifically what they mean because otherwise there’s no way to advise a particular course of action.

Luckystar1 · 04/04/2022 16:08

Thank you everyone. I don’t actually know what type of assessment it is, but I’m assuming the other children are performing as they are expected to, so he should be too.

I just explained his homework to him and sent him upstairs to do it (literacy), he was back down in less than 10 mins with it completed correctly.

I’m really at a bit of a loss tbh.

The teacher has moved him all over the class in a bud to ‘get to the bottom of it’. He definitely wouldn’t be getting supported by other pupils as there has been a range of abilities.

He did sit at a table with a support assistant present for a while, but the teacher felt this wasn’t a good mix as he didn’t need the support and it affected his confidence.

I have wondered whether his confidence was majorly dented at the start of the year with this assessment as he was then put in the programme and has said since then how much he is finding the year hard and he’s behind (he’s not as far as I can see!).

I am friends with some other parents who sometimes ask how we found ‘x’ homework as their child struggled, and we have very rarely found similar issues.

But I don’t want to look like I’m ignoring an issue or burying my head in the sand over something either!

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