Teacher keeps asking Dd to do jobs

[Nextdoorarebangingagain]

Is this a good, bad or nothing…thing (rubbish sentence, but you get the gist)

Dd is almost 8, bright and hard working, but also chatty with friends in class. She’s been saying recently she’s been doing jobs for the teacher-putting kids work in files, going up to the office or another class.
I asked her if others do jobs and she said no, I asked her if she finishes her work and is then asked to help with jobs (she doesn’t ask to do jobs) she said usually

If you’re a teacher in particular, why do you choose certain children to do jobs (i’m wondering if she’s finishing early and being too chatty and distracting others 😬 or something else)

Ah the 80s were great 🤣 When I was in Year 4, after I’d finished my work, my friend and I were sent to the staff room each day to do the washing up. There was always a little bowl of sugar lumps left out on the coffee table and we’d happily chat, wash up the teachers’ mugs and eat sugar lumps for as long as we could spin it out for. Great memories.

It could be many reasons or one? We have a few structure here, Class Dojo etc so many kids get certain tasks etc & that's fine, it's all transparent for parents to see too but sometimes some pupils need a movement break or a distraction from being a distraction whether that's because they're "spaniels" & get through their tasks at hyperspeed & get bored or they don't & so get bored too, the only way to know is to ask the teacher, we walk our classes out to the gate every finish time so it's easy to have a word with your teacher or phone the office, also to add, Filing? Other than Art masterpieces ready to go home in June there's no filing a teacher, lazy or otherwise, would allow a child to do, jaysus I thought I lost my file cabinet key in my room & I nearly lost a half stone in weight so in conclusion ask the teacher AND your child

When did the OP say her child was off task, talking too much, fidgeting etc? Just because your kid is disruptive doesn't mean OPs is.

Why so rude? I dont spend my whole life on mumsnet to reply to every comment.

Movement breaks, usually. So annoying unfocused or fidgety kid might benefit from that kind of thing. I often ask for volunteers tbh. I choose kids who can catch up or who have finished their work.

Doubt it.

Some kids do well being kept busy with a variety of tasks (not just school work) for various reasons. Some relish the responsibility. Some whizz through their work faster than others. Some are fidgets who need bursts of physical activity to help refocus.

My son has ADHD (it wasn't diagnosed while he was at primary but he was a constant buzz of energy and struggled with sitting still). One day they had "open classroom" where parents could go in for the day and see what they did. The other kids filed in and sat in rows ready for assembly and we could see our son dashing round the back of the room switching computers on and getting mouse mats out. I alerted the teacher and she said "oh that's one of Johnny's jobs, he gets the room ready for the first lesson which is IT today, makes himself useful while we're waiting for assembly to start". She obviously had the measure of him!

From the first post, the OP says:

(i’m wondering if she’s finishing early and being too chatty and distracting others 😬 or something else)

My DD isn't disruptive, but she loses focus sometimes and a purposeful distraction does her good and means she can then focus again.

(I'm also a teacher and use the same strategy)

My DS is autistic and very bright. I'm pretty sure his SEN plan has "give him jobs" as a strategy to help him. It's a movement break, it gets him away from the classroom noise for a few minutes, he practices attending to instructions, he likes the responsibility. Other children get jobs too!

There are a lot of reasons a teacher might do this! If you're concerned, just ask the teacher.

Thanks all,

So she’s the second oldest in the class and at the parents meeting the teacher did say she finishes the majority of the work really quickly. She seemed really happy with her and she has the highest attainment level in all subjects, however she did say she could be chatty with classmates (said it gently with a smile so didn’t seem to indicate a huge problem, I did mention to Dd to chat at playtimes with friends)
I also know my Dd and she does often have to be doing something and does say when she finishes work she has to sit and wait
It wasn’t filing, but from what I can gather, she was putting the kids work in their folders/files or something
I don’t think she would need a confidence/self esteem boost, so not sure it’s for that.
She doesn’t like helping at home though, wish she would 😂

In our school it would generally being the ones who are restless or disrupting others in the class

Quite a lot of the EHCPs I’ve read suggest giving children jobs to do, to give them a movement or proprioceptive break.

Nothing to do with ‘lazy teachers’ 🙄

I work in a school. There are many reasons a child might a child might be given jobs to do frequently including

They lack self-confidence or resilience and being trusted with responsibility can help them to feel good about themselves

They need a 'movement break' due to being restless/fidgety, possibly linked to ADHD traits but not necessarily

They are chatting too much and annoying or distracting their classmates

They are often 'in trouble' so the Teacher is giving them opportunities to earn praise in the hope this leads to an improvement in their behaviour and relationships with staff over time

There are low level safeguarding concerns and being sent to do a job with a TA gives them a chance to chat with the child one to one about how things are at home, or for the child to disclose any concerns

If two children in the class aren't getting on they might be given jobs to do together as a way to help repair the relationship

The Teacher asks for volunteers to do jobs and some children just volunteer more than others

I don't have a problem with the child who has finished their work being asked to do jobs. I do have a problem with one intelligent child always finishing their work before the others. Me thinks the teacher can't be bothered to set your DD work that challenges her and she learns from.

This was my child. Teacher actually said, he's the child i trust to go there and come back 😂

Movement break as others have said. I know which children really benefit from a purposeful walk around

All of the above. Also echoing the PP who said sometimes you actually just need something doing, like getting a box of tissues because a child has a cold and you’ver ran out for example, and you are alone with 30 children as most people have no full time TA now so you do have to just ask a child (one who is finished) to do it for you. If your DD is do in really well and is happy, that’s great. If you want the jobs to stop, just tell the teacher ‘stop asking her to do jobs’. As a teacher, I’d just follow this request. Yes I’d probably think aggggh when you asked me as I would have yet another issue that day but I’d just do what you said.

I would also take it with a pinch of salt when your daughter says it’s always her being chosen and nobody else.

Same. My teachers trusted me and recognised my potential at a young age. That's why I was given certain jobs to do. I was proud of it and I had an excellent relationship with those teachers.

She might be distracting others. If a child finishes early, they either get an extra task or they can help others who are struggling, and be " teachers". It might buy the teacher a bit of time she can spend on quieter children who might struggle with the work instead of having to manage your daughter's behaviour.

Teachers are advised to do this for pupils who need a movement break to be able to concentrate again.

I always did jobs for the teacher. I took the register to the office, I gave out the milk at break (showing my age) and would often take things to other teachers rooms. I even remember being asked to brew up once but I didn’t know how! I loved being teachers pet as I saw it. I was bright and always finished my work first so it makes sense she was just giving me something to do.

I can see Dd benefiting from moving about a bit and being given something else instead of just sitting there. Would a teacher be likely to feel it necessary to inform parents this happens?

If she is happy, has friends, doing well, working well above age related expectations then no, it wouldn’t come up on my list of things to inform a parent.

My son is often given little jobs like this. In his case it’s built into his EHCP to allow him a “back” break (so he can walk and stretch his back - he was born with scoliosis).
However, when I was a teacher I would deliberately save a few little tasks for one particular class of students. There was a very talkative girl in the group, who was very popular and liked to command attention. When she had finished (she was very bright and always finished quicker than her friends) if there was no extension task I would send her on a little errand that I had “forgotten” about earlier that day.
It meant she had the attention she craved, she got a little walk around the school and burnt off some energy, she wasn’t chatting to everyone and she felt important. Most importantly I wasn’t constantly getting on her back about being quiet when she was clearly finished and bored.

I gave out the milk at break (showing my age)

I was milk monitor too. And I didn't even have milk - I never liked milk (from a toddler, my mother says) and I spent so many playtimes trying to get it down they said I needn't have it.

And dinner monitor - before school going to lay the tables in the dining room - and I didn't stay to dinner.

And best job of all - going to the entrance hall to ring the handbell when it was playtime or dinner time. (It was a new school building but they hadn't put in an electric bell.)