3 weeks of half days for reception children.

[Tohaveandtohold]

So my child is starting reception in sept and we got an email on Friday of their plans for
their transition and the new term. My main issue is they expect them to do 3 weeks of half day so half of the class will do 9-12 the first 2 weeks and then at week 3 they’ll be there for lunch so 9-12:45. The other half of the class will do half day in the afternoon.
I just feel this is out of touch. My child currently goes to nursery 4 days a week doing 8-6 though she’s picked up around 5 anyway and has never been clingy, so I can’t see how 3 weeks of half day will benefit her. Also we both work, luckily I’ll only go to the office 2 days a week so dh will pick up those days and we’re not using up all our annual leave unnecessarily. Can I request she only does half day for a week and that they have to provide her with full time education.
Like I don’t want to be ‘that’ parent at the beginning of her school journey but I feel 3 weeks is just ridiculous and out of touch

So long as you and other parents are aware that they don’t have to do a staggered start if they would prefer their DC’s to go full time from the start?

No, not all do.
"A pain" would absolutely screw up the annual leave of a lone parent struggling already with school holiday childcare.

My school does home visits in the summer term before starting.

Ofsted are really frowning on this now- most schools are doing away with it.

You absolutely can say you intend to send it for full days from day 1. I know people who've done it. As soon as one person does other parents typically immediately follow suit & the school are forced to abandon.

And no, most children do not need that time to settle. The vast majority are coming from full day preschool settings. Some children will be moving from nursery classes in the same schools!

We declined a home visit as they were during the working day - as did many others.

Moving to a school is very different to being settled in a nursery. Nursery will be more cosy, there is less expectation on the children and they will get down time/rest time.

A good nursery should be preparing the children for school; a good reception class is still very much EYFS and should be a gradual transition.

This is one thread that I hope is picked up by the press today so that the awareness is there for those who simply don’t know. To the PP who was afraid of ruining her relationship with the school before it even started, don’t be! The school is very much in the wrong and not you. It would actually make me consider if the school was the right one for my family if they had deliberately tried to deny my child their legal reception entitlement.

None of the local schools are any different so I don't have the option of choosing a different school. And this school is otherwise very working parent friendly - great wraparound which they run in house so you can always get a space.

If they did the three weeks malarky, I would request full time and risk my relationship with the school but for a week, I can live with it

I’m not trying to scaremonger, genuinely interested in this as an early years professional and parent, and have many years of experience of children struggling with the transition to school. Many children are fine, some schools just try to organize it to be the gentlest start possible for the whole cohort. I’m not disputing that parents can push the school for something different for their child. Just explaining why schools often think it’s important enough to stand by.

Many children are fine, some schools just try to organize it to be the gentlest start possible for the whole cohort

What you describe as gentle others could describe as chaotic.

Random half days

Staying for lunch one day, but not the next

Being picked up by mum one day, then dad, then a day at home with aunt Mabel, then going to the childminders the next day or going to school then back to nursery.

I’m not trying to scaremonger, genuinely interested in this as an early years professional and parent, and have many years of experience of children struggling with the transition to school. Many children are fine, some schools just try to organize it to be the gentlest start possible for the whole cohort. I’m not disputing that parents can push the school for something different for their child. Just explaining why schools often think it’s important enough to stand by

They could still have a soft start over a few days though and they could still have an extended transition if the cohort requires it whilst the children attend for their full entitlement.

Is there a reason why they can't, for example, run the first couple of weeks in a way that's similar to a school nursery for part of the day or adapt the day for a few weeks?

It's a fairly small proportion of children who haven't had any experience of a childcare or nursery setting beyond the home, especially with the 15 hours kicking in at 3. If those children need a part time transition then that can be agreed with the parents.

What I struggle with is the blanket decision that all children should have a fragmented and chaotic start to school on the basis that some children might find it very difficult.

I would be interested to see if there are any studies which show that long (over the space of weeks not days) transitions help the majority of pupils settle.

locally at least he seems more and more schools are moving away from drawn out transitions and instead doing it over the course of the first 5 days or less then straight to normal.

I think the real issue is why are children so tired starting reception that half days are the norm for several weeks? It really shouldn't be so different from nursery at that age. Formal education starts way too early, that's why kids are so tired. Schools fail so many children from the start, and now the testing regime and pressure on them starts at the age of 5/6 with stupid phonics tests. You don't fatten a pig by weighing it.

There's probably other parents in the same view as you. Be polite and give as much notice as possible to the school and just raise it.
Its so valid to have your own view and concerns, and okay to speak up.
I think the only thing is how you speak up. If you're going straight to them and addressing the concern, then there's times for tweaking and you're trying to solve a problem.
If you're just moaning about it to your friends but not actually raising the issue then that's not as okay.

You might as well give them a ring. Explain your daughter is already used to full days. And that a portion of the other kids may be as well.

You can then highlight that it's tricky for you as you're two working parents.
And also it may be weird for your daughter to adjust and then readjust back.

Good luck :)

It sounds like the half days was maybe meant to be kind to the kids, but it sounds like your kid doesn't need that phasing. Hopefully the school will consider all childrens needs.

My child's school does this but for one week only and it helped them adjust to the change of routine. I do think 3 weeks is a bit ridiculous though. 1 week would be enough in my view.

I totally agree with this. Reception is very different from Nursery, far too different in my opinion. However, many nurseries also do staggered starts. It’s about attachment and security for the developing child.

This is my experience when we were looking around potential primary schools for DD. I asked the question at every visit and the longest settling in period any had was a week. All the schools said they’d moved away from longer periods because they’d found it was more disruptive and stressful for the children and they did better with a shorter settling in time (with a very small number of exceptions who could make individual arrangements but didn’t need to hold back the rest of the class from staying the full day).

The key issue is letting the school know as soon as possible that your DC will be starting full time from the start of term so that they can ensure that teaching is in place.

Really sorry - not deliberate. Only just joined and wasn’t sure exactly how to post and if it had posted. Apologies again.

Moving to a school is very different to being settled in a nursery. Nursery will be more cosy, there is less expectation on the children and they will get down time/rest time.

Well, surely there is an easy solution, then: only do "school stuff" during the morning, and just do outdoor play/toys etc. during the afternoon, during the first few weeks?

(Counting 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 before the cries of SCHOOL IS NOT CHILDCARE start. Uh, actually, school does function as childcare to an extent. It's not only childcare, of course, but yes, childcare is also part of its function, not least because actual paid childcare has grown up around the school day. Society cannot magic up a whole bunch of extra childminder spots that only exist for "the afternoon hours during the first three weeks of September." Working parents are not the enemy; we're actually paying taxes which, among other things, pay for running schools and paying teachers their salaries and pensions).

What some people fail to realise, is that children being brought up by their primary caregiver until they start school (if they start school), is the norm. Nursery (and school) are a choice. It's not biologically normal to put young children into a nursery setting to be looked after by strangers essentially.

Nope.

The biological norm for little humans is to handed around from arm to arm during the first couple of years while breastfeeding, and then at around 2 (when your mum gets pregnant again) be weaned forcibly by being handed off to the older kids and expected to toddle around after them all day long, and spend almost no time at all with your mother from that point onwards.

Nurseries are not the biological/historical norm, but modern stay-at-home-motherhood isn't either.

My son had to do this for a week and it really messed him up. He had been in full time nursery and his sister was in the school so he couldn't understand why she was going and he wasn't. Any more than a week would have been impossible work wise. I'd be that parent

Yes, absolutely so

Doing what is in your child's best interests is great. For many children that will be full time from day 1. It should be a choice. Right now, too many schools are still not providing that choice, despite being obliged to do so. This should be simple enough for everyone on this thread to understand.