Primary school settling in for 3 weeks?!

[Smarshian]

My eldest is due to start school in September. We have just been sent a letter about her settling in. Reception will not be in the first week (1st-3rd September), they will then do mornings (9-11.30) for one week and afternoons (1.15-3.30) for one week, before starting full time from 20th September.
Is this normal?! What are working parents supposed to do for those weeks? She goes to nursery full time at the moment and I will obviously ask them if they can do any wrap around either side, but it just seems a ridiculous amount of settling in and we can’t work around 3 weeks of 2.5hrs or less of school.

Are you expecting nursery to pick her up or drop her to school? If so I think they will say no. If you'll be picking her up and taking her to school that' might be more doable
My son had 8 settling in sessions at nursery, I wouldn't have been happy with just two.
When you say a shorter setting in session, what do you mean? That you want her to be in school with no other children?

@Parker231

Here’s the legal stuff - we contacted the school and advised that DC’s would be attending full time from the start of the school year as did many others in their class.

“You have the right to start your child at school on a full time basis from the September following their fourth birthday, providing they have been allocated a school place. While schools are free to suggest a preferred induction process, parents retain the right to formally request that the school provide a full term schedule for their child from the beginning of the school year.

You also have the right to delay your child's start date (known as deferred entry), until later in the school year, but not beyond the beginning of the term after they turn 5 and not beyond the beginning of the final term of the school year in April. Your child may also start part time later in the school year, but not beyond the beginning of the term after they turn 5.”

Thanks - I had just seen this online. The thing is we will suffer the faff if I genuinely thought it was better for her - but I don’t! A week maybe, but not almost 3.

God we have 4 “getting to know you” sessions in july, then 2 weeks of settling in September.

I’m a LP, work full time and will be using the schools wraparound provision when he starts properly... have had to ask his father to come stay for the first week of term, and my mother to take some leave for the second, so we can manage.

Utter bobbins.

@Rosebel

Are you expecting nursery to pick her up or drop her to school? If so I think they will say no. If you'll be picking her up and taking her to school that' might be more doable My son had 8 settling in sessions at nursery, I wouldn't have been happy with just two. When you say a shorter setting in session, what do you mean? That you want her to be in school with no other children?

Our nursery are pretty accommodating in general and they do pick up and drop off for normal school hours. If they didn’t I could probably work around getting her from school to nursery on my lunches as they are both pretty close by. Why would you not have been happy with 2 settling in sessions at nursery if your child was happy? Obviously if they needed longer fair enough, DD didn’t. I’m not meaning being in with no other children, of course not. I mean that the settling in for all children could be reduced to 1 week and optional thereafter. I really think that all families should have some choice and not a one size fits all approach.

Tricky to run your class round 30 children all on different timetables.

@Gladimnotcampinginthisweather

Tricky to run your class round 30 children all on different timetables.

I imagine it is. But many people work with tricky circumstances to best serve their goals. In this case settling children in to school appropriately for them. I am not suggesting they just turn up on a whim, but advanced planning and full day or half day options for 1 or 2 weeks shouldn’t be too tricky to manage.

I had anticipated this so had booked the first 2 weeks of September as leave in advance last year. I've now had the settling in timetable and he won't start until 27th September! Theres a week of nothing, then 2 hours PM then 3 hours AM.
Luckily I will now be on maternity leave as I don't know how else we could have managed it. He goes to nursery 8-6 three days a week but it is by my work so half an hour drive away. The school seem to assume there is a parent (presumably a mother) who can always be around to facilitate this, this just isn't the case nowadays and shouldn't be expected.

Will after school club do an early collection for the 3 weeks?

Yes. and it is a nightmare. Our local nursery who also provide afterschoo / breakfast club provided (at a significant cost) the additional cover. Kids were massively confused as they had "left nursery". It took them longer to settle as we couldn't get a proper routine going. Hate it hate it hate it.

There seems to be quite a few posters who keep saying things like “it’s so children can work out where the loos are” and “it’s hard trying to teach 30 children all at once where the toilets are”. Eh?! I was a teacher and its not hard..you just say to all children “the toilets are there, please ask before you go and if you forget where they are ask me”. It’s not a reason to delay school for 3 weeks!

I'm so glad DDs school never did this, she started school abroad so the process was different as the school day is longer (9-5) with a 2 hr lunch and they schedule in a naptime during lunch for the first term and then after that they can have a nap or quiet play - helped with the younger ones who were tired from the long day but also gave them all a fixed routine.

My cousin's daughter started school this year and they had the first week where they split the class into morning or afternoon sessions (they asked the parents preference of AM/PM sessions and split the group as best they could to accommodate) so that they could start in a smaller group and spend the first week working on routine stuff- where to hang up up coat, where their peg was, where the toilets are, lining up to go outside etc- but from Monday of week 2 they were all in full days. I think that's the best system - it still allows the children to start in a smaller group and ease into that first week allowing the teachers to get to know them a.bit better but it's only that first week where parents have to sort wraparound care, after that they're in full time.

Our school (scotland) settling-in period is one week only. If the child is not expected to cope with that they're kept in nursery another year! I would much prefer a more flexible approach where those who have been in 8am-6pm nursery can just crack-on but kids who need longer to build-up to a full week are allowed to.

It’s annoying!! My older daughter they did it till October half term! We had to keep her at her nursery in the afternoon - mad dash to do pick up and drop off at lunch time!!!
My younger one they did it for 3 weeks husband and I had to split it WFH and leave (no family near by)
It makes sense to settle into school and nee routines. but both mine had been at full time nursery before and they mornings wasn’t enough to tire them out

Is normal, it was the beginning of October before mine were full time

Ps my Dd2 really struggled with the full day when she first was full time, they called me at least twice a week to pick her up because she had fallen asleep on the mat. Not all kids are ready at 4 to be full time (dd1 wasn't full time until nearly 6 because we lived abroad then). My kids were never in full time nursery, most of dd2's class were in the same position because the school nursery was only 3 hours a day, schools need to take this into account

Yes this is very normal. Many schools do longer.

It's normal, it's been like this for at least the last 22 years since my eldest started. They do what works best for the school, staff and children. Parents individual needs don't come into it. This is school not childcare.

My children’s needs are impacted by my needs. Most of the teachers on this thread have said it isn’t best for the children.
Just because something is normal doesn’t make it right. Making things work for different types of families and being inclusive is important.

They do what works best for the school, staff and children. Parents individual needs don't come into it. This is school not childcare.

No one's saying its childcare but it absolutely isn't always done because it's in the children's best interests. In many schools it's still the 'norm' only because no one has challenged it. I'd actually argue it's very outdated practice and has no benefit to the vast majority of children.

The legislation is there to protect everyone whether that be sending full time from day one or a staggered or deferred start.
For my DC’s full time from day one worked. For others it might not. Everyone can make a decision based on their DC’s and circumstances.

@Smarshian

My children’s needs are impacted by my needs. Most of the teachers on this thread have said it isn’t best for the children. Just because something is normal doesn’t make it right. Making things work for different types of families and being inclusive is important.

Like I said it's school, it's purpose is to educate. They don't have the staff or funding to pander to every parents needs. They provide education, you as theparent provide the childcare. You need to get used to this and have a plan because there's countless holidays, inset days, half days for events etc etc you will need to accommodate for.

If you are going to send your child full time from the beginning and the school allow you to then think of the impact it will have on your child if no ones else asks this. They may be the only child there all day, at some points they may be the only child. That’s not a good introduction to school at all.

I think it also did us no harm to have to fit work round the child's schedule, just this one time in their lives, for a few weeks.

Eh? Just this one time?!

I must be doing something wrong, because I seem to do little else but fit work around DS's schedule! (Looking at you, Half Term).

I also think you are confused about what being g inclusive means. It means making adjustments for children with special needs and disabilities. It certainly dosent mean making accommodations around a parents job, that's your responsibility.

@Plumbear2

I also think you are confused about what being g inclusive means. It means making adjustments for children with special needs and disabilities. It certainly dosent mean making accommodations around a parents job, that's your responsibility.

So you're just going to skip over the fact that children are fully entitled to be in school from day 1? Schedules like this do not benefit the children, parents or teachers in most cases. Honestly the sooner this outdated practice is challenged the sooner it will end.