School giving out awards.

[ottermadness]

Full disclaimer: mum of 4 finding homeschool v difficult. Worried I’m becoming bitter.

School are sending out awards from the teachers in the post. Social media full of very proud parents (understandably). However, all the awards seem to have gone to kids whose are either single child families or have at least one parent furloughed and sibling still in nursery.

I know it’s not about me, but I’m feeling totally demoralised by this. Is it really a good idea from school to do this?

@MinnieMountain

This does annoy me. DS’s infant school has a weekly Zoom assembly where 10 or so children are nominated by their teachers for doing particularly well/trying hard.

DS gets upset because he’s not mentioned. He’s trying hard at some things and coasting on others but it’s not incentivising him to try harder. I doubt it would for most 7yos.

That sounds like what most schools do outside of Covid. With 10 children a week, they will eventually get round everyone. Many children are disappointed every week that it isn't them. Teachers help them to learn how to deal with the disappointment. It is an opportunity for them to learn that sometimes it's not about them, it's about others this week. If your child is only 7, perhaps you just haven't seen this part of his learning before. When it does get round to him, it will feel earned and deserved.

OP if your eldest child is only 5 and you're feeling overwhelmed, I wonder if it would be better to just give the schooling a break and do other things that can involve all 4 of your children so you don't feel the need to split yourself? Like reading them all books, counting houses on walks, mixing paint colours.

I think competing for certificates isn't important in the scheme of the challenges you're facing.

Your 5 year old cares so much more about what you think, and benefits so much more from you being well than anything she can get from school right now