To expect my year 6 child to be taught until the end of term

[fartfacenotfatface]

DC3 is in year 6. With the exception of a couple of days a few weeks ago when Ofsted were in, they have done precisely no academic work since half term (and actually probably a bit before that, once SATs had finished).
Literally every day has revolved around practicing for the end of year production and / or going outside to play (unstructured) sport (although they had a residential trip a couple of weeks ago).
DC is not really into drama so has a very minor part in the school play (I'm fine with this but I am not fine with them having to sit quietly in the hall for the vast majority of each day watching the key performers practice their parts all day everyday with nothing else to do).
They are completely and utterly bored. Is this normal for year 6 children once the SATs are out the way? My elder DC didn't do SATs (DC1 was not at state school in England and DC2 was in a covid year) and so were taught until almost the last week of term.
I am tempted to take DC out to be honest. Their behaviour is getting bad as they're so frustrated at doing nothing all day everyday.

I'm all for 'winding down' in the last few weeks of yr6 but I think most people have missed what OP has stated. Her child is sat in the school hall all day, watching others practice a performance. That's not winding down and having fun. That's sheer boredom on another level.

I went to high school in Lancashire, our school holidays always started the first week in July, we went back in August then had another week off in September.

It was a good system, the whole school was taking exams at the same time so those doing O Levels (yes I'm old) were not disturbed by other students.

A few years ago they changed it, so the kids broke up in July but didn't go back until September, poor parents.

He’s not having fun with his classmates though. He’s sitting in the hall doing nothing in near silence for hours on end.
It’s all there in the op’s posts. They’re quite clear.

You sound a bit naive! This is year 6! I get they have a week of fun before leaving school and going up to high school - of course! But an entire half term? Before 6 weeks of holidays? How do you think those kids are going to manage to start working again in September after months & months of doing bugger all AND in a totally new environment?
OP YANBU at all!

Totally agree.
If they won't do academic why not teach life skills
Sew a button.
Iron a shirt
What a mortgage is
How to turn a washing machine on
Basic cooking

End of term production and a residential trip away is not enough

This! 100 times this! Our seasons are much more like Scotland than southern Europe- we should have our summer hols in particular when they do. No summer half term and a two week one in Oct/ Nov.

Did you even read my original post? I am not saying that I don't want my DC to have fun at the end of term, I'm saying that I'm expecting them to be doing more in school than sitting in the drama hall for three weeks watching others rehearsing a play that DC has a very minor part in.
Nothing against 'fun activities' at all and I'm not expecting them to just be doing maths and grammar until the last day of term!

Yes, that has been the norm for Y6 post SATs in every school I've worked in. The schools include a few art and design activities, like designing tickets or programmes, and some kids work on IT and media aspects, or lighting and props,but really those children who either have small parts or don't enjoy performance arts are sat around doing not very much.
But you can't put on a decent end of year show without rehearsing all day every day for a good few weeks. There aren't enough staff to run classes and rehearsals at the same time, ( I still suspect the public don't get how pared down staffing is these days) so what's the answer?

Have you actually asked the school or just taking kids word for it

Drama is an academic subject at GCSE. My daughter just chose it. But her year 7-9 drama lessons in school have been awful due the kids who aren’t into drama playing up in drama lessons because they’re bored and don’t want to do it. They were meant to do a performance to parents which was cancelled as it was so bad. It was recorded and we got to see it but it was awful for the 4 kids taking it seriously and the rest stood like lemons in the background making a half arsed effort.

Your year 6 child needs to learn that they won’t enjoy everything all the time. Those kids who love drama and who might not be academic were forced through months of sats practise so the school would look good in their results table whilst they were bored out of their brains doing extra maths, reading and spag.

My DD is hear 6. They’ve done a mixture of things this term. They’ve done some science topics they missed due to extra sats work, covered the design and technology work and have also been working on their assembly. They are more relaxed and have mentally left school now.

Im a teacher. This half term is hard work. I’ve taught year 6. It’s my favourite year group but it’s a hard year for them. It’s hard for the staff as well. Everyone is shattered. The classrooms are like saunas at the moment.

Speak to the teacher if it’s going to bother you for the last week. They could be given something else to do, a book to read, another job on the production such as scenery. Are they telling you the full story? Taking them out of school doesn’t teach them much other then to quit when things get boring.

How do you expect the main parts to go down and practice whilst the others stay in class and work? Most year 6 classes have a teacher and that’s it. They can’t split themselves in half. If there is a TA they’re likely attached to a specific child so can’t be in charge of the rest of the class. They’re not going to pay supply to come and cover and all the staff are likely being used elsewhere.

Wait til they start uni and are paying tuition fees and rent for term 3, then after Easter have two weeks of exams then that's it until October....

You child is being taught.

Just not the 3Rs.

Because she’s not on board with her kid sitting around doing nothing all the time? Why should kids who don’t enjoy drama be excluded internally?

It’s entirely normal to be off curriculum and doing fun stuff. It is not entirely normal nor ok for him and others to be sat around bored.

I swear on Mumsnet you could literally post that your child's teachers had offered up your child as a human sacrifice to Satan and someone would come in to explain that it's very hard being a teacher and to tell you to stop teacher bashing

The school have confirmed that my DC's story tallies with what is happening each day.

In Y6 the most important job we have as teachers is ensuring the children are ready to transition to Y7. After SATS have finished, the real work begins in my opinion.

I would be frustrated in your position, although it seems to be a common theme. Giving up after SATs just reinforces the idea that they are the most important thing to prepare for in Y6. Getting them ready for secondary school should be the priority.

My Y6 has had a brilliant half term after the pressure of SATS.
It if well deserved after weeks of work in school and homework every night for two months preparing for SATS.
Having fun, loads of fresh air, extra PE to let off steam, cooking, bikeability, rehearsals for the end of year production, to name but a few.
He deserves it, and is really enjoying these last few days at a school he's been at for seven years.
He's enjoying being a kid before the real work starts at high school come September.
I really think the kids need this, I know my DS absolutely does and he's loving it.

Although I've been in schools where the main focus was the production, it certainly wasn't the only focus. Music tended to be involved but with everyone learning songs. Costume making and scenery painting were also options.

Other focuses tended to be around art, model making, science days, a class book with reading for enjoyment and discussion, PE/games, cookery and doing the sort of stuff that got knocked off the National Curriculum. I'd speak to the teacher to see if there's anything they could do if they're bored. I've had students help barcode and label new books for the school library and help tidy the KS1 books for example.

This is common.

They usually put all academic efforts in before SATS and put the 'fun' stuff after. Plays, trips etc.

On one side, I can see why- every thing they've been working towards that year finished when they did the SATS. And they are usually tired out.

However, yes, it does feel a little like just filling time.

But it is the last time your child will see some of these kids- so if you remove your child, they miss all the 'final' things; the speeches, the leavers parties, funny awards etc.

Quite a long time ago but this happened to my children at school and I complained. One of my children hated music sport and drama but loved English and maths.

iI hate it when people call drama sport and music fun stuff. To my kids maths a science and English was the fun stuff

Apologies for all the errors. It would be very outing if I told you where I was when posting!

Why is no one questioning the underlying problem- that the structure of the national curriculum is rubbish and only exists for the bean-counting bureaucrats who want to quantify everything. There is no earthly reason to base an entire educational system around teaching to exams. So 19th century. As though pedagogical evidence for other ways of educational engagement don’t exist! Look to Finland. Germany. Even many parts of USA (obv not Florida). States systems that teach critical thinking, not rote memorisation to regurgitate on exams. To say nothing about how the state vs private problems simply reproduce the bloody class system