Nursery report for reception teacher

[sunshineandskyscrapers]

DS has just finished at nursery and will be starting soon in reception. Nursery have passed me a EYFS learning and development summary to pass to his reception teacher. It was completed in March so not really up to date, perhaps due to Covid although he did return when the nursery reopened.

Apart from being dated it's a nice, positive account of DS and his learning. But the last page has wound me up a bit.

There is a section for additional comments and in this box it is written that DS is adopted and the age that he was adopted - long before he started at this nursery. That's it for additional notes. This grates on me although I'm struggling to put my finger on why. I'm not convinced that this is the best place to share this information or that it is even the nursery's information to share at all.

I've found online guidance from the local authority on completing this form and this section is intended to highlight conversations with parents, learning in other settings, additional needs or support that has been put in place. Based on this guidance I think I can see why they think writing that he is adopted is the right thing to do here. It's as if they've recognised it as an additional need in its own right. But they haven't related it to anything. I think that's why it just stands out to me in an uncomfortable way.

I am starting to think that I am reading far too much into this and should just hand it over to the teacher as requested, but wanted to check in with some other adopters first for a quick sanity check.

@sunshineandskyscrapers I'm afraid I don't have any experience but like you think it feels uncomfortable. We will be in your position next year and it would upset me too! I would have thought it would be better to have that conversation with the school directly, and then a further one if needed around additional support when/if the time arose.

It really irks me that in this day and age people still make assumptions when they see the word adoption, not every child is the same.

Are they perhaps just flagging it so the school can claim pupil premium?

If it's not combined with any other detail of specific needs (and as you say, the rest of the report feels ok to you) my instinct is that this was just the only suitable place on the form to pass on that info so that the right funding application goes in.

It's odd that they just put it on there without linkiing how it effects him emotionally or developmentally. I.e was adopted at 2 years old and displays behaviours consistent with x, y, z.

Do they think you wouldn't have told the school yourself?

I never got to see the report they sent to school. I did email and ask but they just ignored me!

It could purely be so the school can tick the LAC box? So e.g. maybe they might put EAL on its own with no explanation for a polish child who spoke that first?

Thanks all. Maybe they think they are being helpful re funding. Surely that's between me and the school though, and actually needs to go via the school office rather than the teacher. I've been a primary teacher myself and had no clue at that time that adopted children were entitled to funding, and much less how to claim it. And why add the age he was adopted? That's not needed to claim funding.

It comes across as a pretty pointless throw away comment that they think might be useful for the teacher to know but haven't said why.

I've decided to just pass it on anyway. I'd bought some chocolates for the nursery but DS insisted they needed flowers instead. So last night I started eating their chocolates and that helped a lot.

The funding for PPplus is significant school has too be aware child is Ex Looked after child and have too as such apply too LA for funding which is £2300 pa in nursery is just £300pa. too see how it can be used by school see www.first4adoption.org.uk click on adoption support.

@fasparent Thanks. Yes I'm aware of all that and have already raised it with the school.

I think if nursery"s intention was to flag the funding they might have said 'DS is eligible for X due to Y", but it's not the teacher that claims it anyway. Well, I know I'm being nitpicky. Happy to put it to bed now.

Maybe to put their comments into perspective - if he started at nursery soon after placement then it adds context to their comments on his progress. But it would make more sense if they had related it to the rest of the report.

@Allington He started there three years after placement. Even after that amount of time it could have some validity if they related it in some way to what was written, but it feels completely disconnected.

You may find such questions are standard practice in some areas such as Schools admission's forms., to senior school., not forgetting Adoptive children can be given choice priority of which school would be most suitable too attend in or out of area. We were given this choice for all our children.

@fasparent yes I'm aware of that too. We took advantage of this to get into a school that we are not in catchment for. This a learning and development summary and not part of the admissions process.

As I said it just felt a bit uncomfortable in the way it was added out of context without being required or relevant. I have no problem with the school knowing DS is adopted it was just the way the nursery shared it that wound me up but I've made my peace with it and I'm ready to move on.