What actually is 'transition' for Year 6?

[Saladmakesmesad]

Everyone keeps saying that the reason Year 6 are being sent back is for the 'transition'. I don't get it. Please someone tell me what I'm missing about this ever so important 'transition' business. In real terms - what does it involve? What do they actually DO in these last 6 weeks or so that will mean that after the 6 - 7 weeks of summer holiday, they're ready to start secondary school?

(Obviously they will not be visiting their secondary schools as those are still closed. And obviously no proms - not that I think they're in any way relevant.)

Full disclosure: I have a Year 6 and have no intention of sending them back.

I think "transition" is a much wider concept than just "having a day at senior school" or "making sure everyone has learnt x, y and z".

It's about the end of one chapter and the start of a new.

Same reason we mark deaths with funerals and marriages with weddings.

This thread highlights too that everyone is in a different situation.

My DD year 6 is so small that they can easily do social distancing and still feel like they can be together (7 kids).

I can see my feelings would be different if she were at very large primary.

Its yr4 and 8 here. Yr 6 dont move anywhere in my county so this announcement is ridiculous.

Not everyone has neurotypical children for whom moving fo high school is no big deal.

*To high school

I wonder if its because a lot of year 6 children start to walk to school on their own in that summer term in preperation for the independence of senior school (out here in the suburbs anyway)

Children as with everything are all ready to transition at different stages. My eldest could probably have done without most of his last year at primary school from an academic perspective. We had his first parents night in the September of p7 and he was ready academically for move up then. It was largely just fun and getting more responsibility in the school.

My youngest is a different kettle of fish. We already had to move him to a new school as he’s autistic and his previous one was not meeting his needs. He had a disastrous year before we moved him and he was still catching up academically. Before lockdown I had had several meetings with the primary school, the high school and various other professionals and he was to be having an enhanced transition and probably summer school as well. I am fed up with people only seeing things through the NT, high achieving bubble of their own children without so much as a thought for many children things are not the same.

As someone who has a year 6 child but won't be eligible cause we aren't in England I think they really only need a couple of weeks transition because they won't be able to do trips to the high school obviously. My worry for my child is that he's dyslexic (plus other issues) and id like to be able to to talk to the special needs person at the high school. Wether that will be possible I don't know though but I don't want him struggling without them knowing. X

I wonder if its because a lot of year 6 children start to walk to school on their own in that summer term in preperation for the independence of senior school (out here in the suburbs anyway)

Mine started that at 8.

Transition for my two DS’ included a week at their new school, meeting teachers, getting familiar with high school routine.

Then back to primary for BBQ & Swim, leavers assembly and lots of fun stuff and say goodbyes to their friends that were off to different high schools.

I feel sorry for children that will miss out on this experience.

@Pipandmum There's already a petition about exams next year. would you mind pm me a link or pointing me in the right direction.

Maybe they will uncancel SATS and have some snap tests of Y6?....

Transition is really important for the Y6s in my ASD class. They all have high anxiety around school anyway and expecting them to start in a brand new environment without preparation would be extremely difficult for them. We'll be liaising closely with their next provisions to make sure they all feel as ready as they can to move on.

Do they really need 7 weeks of "closure?"

Does anybody know how Y6 teachers will issue the end of year grades (Sats results) to students?

Will Y6 teachers have access to the planned 2020 Sats papers to do assessments in June once kids are back?

No. They will, I'm sure, issue teacher assessments based on all the work they have done with them and all the practice assessments they will have done on the run up.

I'm in Wales, so no SATs and our national annual tests were cancelled, but I can give a teacher assessment based on everything I logged they achieved so far this year.

They will probably spend this time doing normal work and catching up on work they missed out on.
Maybe the government are hoping that if they don’t spend the next term doing plays and having a chillout time the current year six’s might actually not have a dip in their education during this time.

DD will miss the school sex ed classes, a safety day (strangers, drugs, transport), transition to secondary school and closure and a goodbye with the friends she's had for 7 years.

A few days to finish off safely would be beneficial.

I think it's more to do with closure. Saying bye to their friends and teachers.

I believe Y6 transition is important. It's about saying goodbye to the place you've been, possibly for most of your living memory. It's about being a captain on sports day. SRE. Signing T-shirts. The play. The leaver's party. The secondary my kids will attend does a whole week of transition in the last full week of school. It's about closure. I've had children at our (lovely) primary for the last decade and I would like some closure too.
But... I can't see how any of that useful transition stuff is actually going to happen currently. As I understand it, under the proposed system they won't see over half the class at all, and most of the children won't be with their class teacher (15 max - it's a big class). They're not going to have the play, or the leavers party, or the transition week. I am terribly sad for them (and yes, I know there are worse things happening too), but I can't see that they're going to get a transition anyway and therefore opening for them on June 1st seems totally misplaced to me.

Transition to secondary is a one day visit and if your lucky a teacher from secondary coming to talk to you.

Closure is something very different and very important, not just for the children but for staff and parents also. I think they should call it what it is: closure.

They could also get the DC to sit sats and mark internally to give data to secondary for setting if they choose to, but I'm sure most schools will already have enough data to pass on to secondaries.