To feel sad that none of ds's stuff gets displayed in class?

[emkana]

He's nearly five and in reception. Not one of his things has been displayed in class so far. He has special needs and can't draw or write anything recognisable, but he enjoys the scribbling/Mark-making that he does and I just think they could just once put one of his pieces up?

Small note: teachers aren't supposed to be responsible for displays any more

In your school maybe but certainly not in the school I'm a Governor at.

Contrary no, the op says the vast majority of children were in the assembly.

At my children' school, everyone's work is displayed.
Especially when they are so young.

His drawing won't be put up because it was stuck into his book.

On any given topic they seem to display about fifteen to twenty pieces.

Teachers aren't meant to be responsible for displays - that's nationally.

Lots still CHOOSE to do it - it used to be my method of unwinding at the end of the day (although I gladly delegated backing display boards as sumo wrestling with a roll of backing paper while balanced precariously on a table was never my forte... and on occasion I dragged my very very tall hubby into school to do it for me and passed him around the other classes to do the same cos the git doesn't need a chair tos tand on) but I'm very arty and LIKE doing displays - and I was bloody good at it till some bastard nicked my good staplegun and never brought it back!

I picked stuff generally (honest admission here) based on if it fitted the space available and if it was at the top of the pile to hand - nothing more or less - and had evil open plan classroom from hell so naff all wallspace available. No evil conspiracies or anything sinister like that.

Assemblies and the like - everyone got to do/show something (if they wanted to).

Why haven't you tackled this as a Governor emkana? Or even as a parent if you're in the school as much as you say?

We try and make sure that every child has at least one piece of work on the wall and the slightly more "freestyle" ones may have a label such as "X's spaceship".

Worra, because it has lots of emotions attached to it which I need to get a handle on, and because the assembly was a bit of an eye-opener for me.

And because I looked into the classroom yesterday when setting up for a PTA event and realised yet again there was nothing by ds displayed.

emkana really all it takes is a quick word.

I can understand you being emotional as a parent but not as a Governor. You have a duty to the other children.

You need to talk to the teacher. There is no other option.
Sorry.

I admit to having only skimmed through the previous posts but I would just ask, is your DS upset that his work has never been displayed? Has he noticed this? Does he feel excluded from any type of activity, be it assembly or anything else? If the answer to any of those questions is yes then I would most definitely make an appointment to have a chat with the class teacher about things.

However, a lesson I have had to learn over the years (mainly with DS1 who is autistic) is when to "let the little things go". In my experience, there will be many, many things that irk or even upset you during a child's school life but, obviously, some will be much more important than others. The benchmark for me is that if something upsets or bothers my child then I will mention it. If it bothers or upsets only me and not my child then I will generally leave it. I have also found, not surprisingly really, that teachers tend to listen to me more & take my worries more seriously if I am not raising every little issue with them, only the larger more important ones.

Having said all that it has taken me a rather long time to get to that way of thinking (DS1 is at the end of Year 8) and in your position, when he was in Reception, I probably would have been heartbroken! .

Good luck xx

In an inclusive environment all kids achievements should be celebrated, and there should be no 'quality' benchmark on display work.

The assembly thing is ever so sad, I'm sure that someone could have supported him in having a role.

Yes but that's if he wanted a role. You can't force kids into these things and the OP hadn't even asked the teacher if the child was offered/encouraged to take part.

My child had the same problem and I did ?let it go?, but it?s become literally set in stone for us.
They built a millennium wall incorporating a special piece of work from every child. It was meant to be a permanent record of every child attending in the millennium . Later they added all the children who joined those classes as late comers. The building?s used for community events and some church services. You can guess who?s existence is missing and big as he is, he?s still quietly sad about being erased from their history.

You need to find a way to ensure SEN children being ?included?, actually means ?one of? not just ?added on,? and as a governor you need to do it for everyone?s children.

I am however going to raise an eyebrow at you abusing your position as governor/PTA person to conduct all these ongoing audits of whose work is on the walls. You seem to have been doing (from these posts) a heck of a lot of afterhours patroling the classroom - perhaps it's different in reality but that's how it's phrased on here. If you do go in and talk to the teacher I'd think of how you word it because I think I would be pissed off and going to the head if people were using the PTA and what not (and I was blessed with the classroom that was usually the first to be used for such events) to go through books and the like.

Also making a lot of assumptions and reading between the lines that could very easily be solved by actually coming out and asking, rather than all the after-hours creeping around the classroom.

Does he actually DO the mark-making type activities anyway? Or is he one of those kids who will do a quick squiggle and head off onto the bikes at any available chance? Some kids it's a nightmare trying to get any type of work out of them for the wall from their own choosing, whereas others will give you 27 pictures a day given half the chance. Or perhaps when he's called to do a creative activity he refuses... there are lots of possibilities which you won't know about unless you blooming well ask!

"TheOroiginalFAB its sad that only the best goes on the wall, that means that a lot of kids with SEN would be excluded, and is actually giving out a subliminal message that only the best is good enough sad."
Piglet - I am torn as I see it from both sides but I have also seen the same child get the lead in the class play as last time. Every child should have their work on the wall at some point but if it goes on the website then the ones with neater writing and more colourful are often chosen. It is not pointed out to the children that their work has gone on the wall so I don't worry that some will feel they are not good enough.

Actually,it's the physical putting up of the displays that TA's do now.The teacher still has to choose the work that goes onto the display.
Worra-are you always so curt in RL? I agree with what you are saying but it's the way you are saying it that irritates me.

YANBU

Curt no, straight speaking yes dex

You need to mention this to the head. Some discrimination is going on here and I'd bypass class teacher altogether and go straight to head or SEN coordinator.

I'm a TA and usually select the pieces for display. The main criteria for me is that they are finished pieces of work and the technique required for the piece has been achieved or at least attempted. I mount all of those then display as many on the board as possible. I wouldn't have a clue who is always on display or is never on display. Having said that, there is always two boards with everybody's work on as well as a SEAL board with a contribution from each.

Op, sorry if this is wrong, but it seems to be about your feelings not your ds's.

'Teachers aren't meant to be responsible for displays - that's nationally.'

How bizarre. They are at my school. We don't have TAs, have LSAs whose role is to support learning, not stapling/laminating etc.
Everyone pitches in with display boards and classroom admin ime.
The LSAs spend a large portion of their time on small group interventions or 1-2-1 sessions.

Abusing my position? I give hours of my time to the school, I don't think it's that bad if I have a quick look at the latest displays in my sons classroom while I'm doing it.

YANBU. I have noticed at DS's pre-school that whilst they are careful to make sure that something is displayed from everyone, much more of the girls pictures and writing are on the wall because at that age they are generally much better at drawing and writing.
It is wrong and your DS does matter, at that age surely what is important is that they are creating things and are engaged, it's not like its graduate art school for goodness sake. Agree with framey you aren't being precious go and talk to the junior head.