To be upset about the class Pods!?

[irishmammy85]

My DS (5) is starting school this year and they have been put into pods of 4/5 and not 1 of his good friends are in his pod...😭 surely it's pointless separating them as they will be having play dates outside of school!! Also does it not make sense to have them with their best buddies to make all this easier on them!? Aibu...I don't want to be THAT parent but I'm gutted for him already and they haven't even started 😫

You are being that parent. He will make friends in his pod and also be able to meet friends outside his pod. He is 5 this is not a big deal.

@Bunnybigears I Get that but why are they even bothering to pod them if they are just going to mix after school...surely that defeats the purpose! A pod is used to contain/control spread no??

Is t the idea to limit contact with other kids outside of school bubbles?

[quote irishmammy85]@Bunnybigears I Get that but why are they even bothering to pod them if they are just going to mix after school...surely that defeats the purpose! A pod is used to contain/control spread no??[/quote]
Because school is not responsible for what they do outside of school? How does school know who is going to.be having playdates with who, before they've even started at school yet?

What does a pod of 5 mean? He’ll be in a class of 30, right?

They may want to encourage new friendships rather than have kids continue their nursery ones. There will be new kids starting who don't have the luxury of knowing anyone and it will be harder for them if everyone else is paired off already.,

They need to do their best to limit contact in school, parents can choose what to do outside of school.

Being put with different kids is actually a good thing, it widens their friendship circles. Being put with their closest friends isn't always a good thing for learning.

One of the kids in DC's class is a first cousin and the play together and we rely on each other for school pick ups etc...they have been placed in separate Pods...
His best friends from the playschool (attached to the school) are in separate pods...it's like they purposely separated them imo...

Get that but why are they even bothering to pod them if they are just going to mix after school...surely that defeats the purpose!

After school it's up to you what your child does, in school it's the school's responsibility. The current situation must be a nightmare of administration for schools without precious parents nit-picking.

Perhaps his pod classmates are more conductive to his learning?

See this is my concern for schools going back, its all very well the schools having bubbles and being careful but whats the point when parents arent bothering outside of school because their child needs to play with their best buddies

OP your school sounds very lucky to be able to keep children in such small groups if just be grateful for that if i was you unlike most schools ours included eho are having to do year group bubbles of 90 children in each bubble because they dont have the space to do anything else.

I'm a teacher myself so I know the in's and outs of it all but I would never do that in these circumstances to be honest. It's not like they are only sitting with them...they cannot even play with each other! It is ridiculous!

@noblegiraffe no there's 18 in the class

They probably have purposely separated them 🤷‍♀️

Schools do things that will be best for all the pupils. Sometimes that doesn't coordinate with what you personally want for your individual child.

Do you really think they have done it out of spite something?

If you're a teacher then surely you get it?

Take your mum glasses off and put your teacher glasses on and have a look at the possible reasons again.

They did not purposely separate them. Unless they've got the same last name, they probably don't even know they are cousins. Parents think everything is a personal decision but 99% of the time is logistics and what's practical. Also agree that how would the teachers know who socialises with who and obvs that could change at any point. Your son will be fine, please don't make a fuss. It is incredibly difficult working in schools atm.

@Waveysnail they couldn't possibly know that, this is their first year at school.

@mrsBtheparker I'm not being precious, I'm a teacher myself so I'm on the other side of it!! However I have ensured that my pods have a friend within them!

100% should know better as a teacher!

So as a teacher you would know they need to take into account summer/winter born, pre-school progress reports, boy-girl mix etc AND know it's impossible to sort school matters by parental friendships...

@EnidMatilda we are a small village...they know. 

@DifficultPifcultLemonDifficult I have looked at all the Pods trying to think reasonable answers and I'm stumped! As I said upthread my pods all contained at least one friend for each child.

5 year old friendships change like the wind. We would never organise Early Years by friendship. Imagine asking all the parents who's friends with who and then trying to sort that impossible jigsaw. Bloody nightmare.

Unless you’re in Scotland then play dates can only be with SD anyway. Maybe school think parents are following the guidelines.

@Subordinateclause

We don't have progress reports here.

They can start here at age 4 up to age 6 so there is a wife age group...they don't base it on age here they base it on stage...which they don't establish until after Christmas.

And even though you have considered friendships in your pods, some of your kids / parents will be disappointed. That's just the way it goes.

I would separate known friends, and definitely family, of children when I was a Reception teacher. It's time for them to learn to get on with new people, and not to rely on known friends.

You'll just have to get on with it, I'm afraid. And be positive about it in front of your DS.