Do you buy Ready for School workbooks?

[Octavia09]

I have found one in the M&S brochure called Ready for School Bumper Workbook preparing under-5s for starting school. I wonder whether I should get this one or anything similar? Thank you for your suggestions.

We still have to practice the bottom wiping

Is using a knife and a fork that important at this age? You are not going to have a big chunk of steak at school lunches.

Yes using a knife and fork is important unless you want him to use the same spoon for his gravy and custard and who do you think is going to cut up his lunch?

Is gravy also served in the schools? Yuk (my personal vie only)!
I see your point about the knives. They are useful for certain food.

and using a knife and fork is also good for fine motor skills needed for writing

Upahill, it's hardly hothousing if the child asks to do it surely? Some kids just get on really well with workbooks. Like I said, we wouldn't use them if he didn't like them.

spose you could argue that sending DC to nursery is hothousing, as much of it is aimed at preparing for school!

No. Cannot see the point. If they know everything when they get there, they may just get bored. The longer you leave it the quicker they learn.

Tarenath - get what you are syaing. I just remember when DS 1 in paticular and also DS2 (although I had grown wise to the utter crap that is spoutted in the playground by DS2's time) were starting school listening to parents bragging about all the work that their child had done BEFORE starting reception. I'm thinking 'bloody Hell, I've missed the boat with this' and thinking that I had put DS1 at some serious disadvantage.

It was utter crap. I'm thinking all these kids are g &t ( is that right ?) and they were no different than mine. Even now those kids who are in year 10 are nothing special academicaly. They are DS's mates and they are all at the same level.

I'm just glad I spent all my time building trucks, swimming with them, drawing, baking funny shaped cakes, singing songs, getting basic skills and manners right with out worrying about a friggin workbook that would alledgly prepare my child for school.

Like others have said I thought (and still think) it is more important to be able to use the bathrooma and be able to wash hands, use a knofe and fork, sit stil at a table, etc.

Sure if a child really really wants to do a workbook why not?

The other comment about sending nursery and hot housing there is a valid point. I was horrified when DS2 came home with HOMEWORK.

"If they know everything when they get there, they may just get bored."

but if your preschooler wants to do these things, and you say no, then they could be bored, surely? it'd be like my mum trying to stop me reading when I was 3, I was desperate to read and would've been upset if I wasn't allowed.

BTW I should probably mention of course DD does lots of other stuff - obviously sitting down with a workbook all day is awful - at any age. but a few pages here and there, well, if my DD enjoys that sort of thing no way would I deprive her. it's just fun for her - just another item in my "what shall we do today" armoury.

I don't believe in the slightest, though, that it'll make her any better prepared for school. how can a book do that? I agree that is just the publishers manipulating parent paranoia.

"I'm just glad I spent all my time building trucks, swimming with them, drawing, baking funny shaped cakes, singing songs, getting basic skills and manners right with out worrying about a friggin workbook that would alledgly prepare my child for school."

We do all that stuff too. We probably spend about 15 minutes a day, maybe 3 days a week with a workbook. It's just another game to him.
I think all the hands on interaction and playing will teach him a lot more than a workbook will anyway and prepare him much better for life in general

The point I was making was listening to other mums who would have you believe that their child was the latest Stephen Hawkin because of all the workbooks they have done and to find out later it is bullshit. They are no more brighter than the next for being prepared for school.

I just think these books for children at that age it is a huge money making exercise and(some) people who think it will bring their child on in leps and bounds.

I'm not saying don't do it if that is what your kids want to do. Mine our older now and I'm glad I didn't bother, thats all!!

Now let me tell you about my expierences with Kumon..............!!!

The only hot housing I would advise is to recognise and perhaps write his name and that is just because it is handy in class.

Just be supportive when he starts and it will soon click I am amazed at the leaps and bounds my ds came on over the course of reception.

At about 3.5 my DS adored those work books- I got a batch from one of the book clubs that comes to the office
He felt so special sitting down with his pencils and his books
Rarely, if ever, did any of them right but absolutely loved them

Like everything else make them available and offer them, but be no more upset if he turns them down than if he turns down the lego - which i am sure is all you would do

They can be great fun tho- DS used them again aged 4.5 at 'siesta' every day on holiday in Turkey and picked up lots of random skills. We sat and read or lightly napped and he did his letters/ numbers/ shapes etc quietly and learned a fair bit

I still think it's really good if a child enters school with the view that 'homework' or indeed 'schoolwork' is fun - and if they've been sitting down at the table with mummy and having some quality time doing a workbook (in a relaxed, not pushy, way) then that will surely help create that positive attitude

Oh gawd upahill - Kumon! argh! did your DC use it? I worked there for a year. Not impressed. the absolute definition of Manipulating Parent Paranoia!

Madmathsmummy - I have to say Kuman worked for DS1. He was falling behind in year 5 with his maths and couldn't get to grips with it. Someone suggested it and we gave it a go to help him with his SATS. He was getting extra support from school as well. I quickly realized that Kuman was a longer term solution.
It was a lot of commmitment, you know doing it everyday, even on holidays, Christmas day, birthdays etc. However we got into a routine.
The results were remarkable. DS got put into 2nd to top set for maths at High School and then moved up to the top set.
We have only just quit it. I think what helped was that DS really liked his tutor who was a retired teacher who was like a grandad. He took to him and wanted to do well.

I know a lot of people are really against Kumon and have bad expierences but it was ok for us. We had to play about with different routines until we found one that worked for the family though.

oh ok! I was assuming you were against it sorry. if it worked for your DS then great! kumon-style practise can be really good for those who are struggling... I think it's the 4/5/6yos who get sent just to 'get them ahead' because their parents can afford it, that makes me a bit

Yeah I know what you mean mathsmadmummy, that was my point about the work books. Great if it is fun and playing, not so great if it's about pushy mums wanting to get their kids to the top of the class before the first day in reception!! It still makes me cringe about the overheard conversations I remember from the playground. I thought it was awful seeing small children at Kumon.

My main problem was that me and DS fought over it so much but his DH wanted to keep him going until he was getting regular maths homework from school (totally different issue and a thread on it's own)
DS was supposed to do Kumon when he came home from school. I mean which teenager is going to want to do that. I'm on 'tea time duty' and it became arsenic time.

We swopped things about so DS got up at 6.00am with his dad, DS did Kumon while Dh did the butties and polish shoes and then mark the maths.

Things got easier then and I had nothing to do with it anymore so the relationship between me and DS got better.

MathsMadMummy it is highly unlikely that your child will be given workbooks/sheets in most schools and some children who have used workbooks at home expect more of the same in school and can be very disappointed. I don't think many teachers (especially those who work with infants) see workbooks as quality teaching I'm afraid.

I'd hope not but the only homework I ever see other kids with is worksheets - which is definitely not ok at that age IMO.

good advice about them being disappointed though, thanks I will bear that in mind

"Great if it is fun and playing, not so great if it's about pushy mums wanting to get their kids to the top of the class before the first day in reception!!"

I bought my son a Schoolzone Workbook not because I want him to be the best (and why not) or because I am pushy. I do not want him to be behind or feel like an alien. Who knows may be other parents buy such books but tell others not to. I remember when I was a student other students would moan and tell others they did not study anything or they were so much behind etc then it would be the opposite. This is an old trick for some people.

I think it is very good for your kid to spend a few minutes a day with a book especially before you reception. It is of course depends on a workbook. The one I have is I think is not like from the M&S. The Schoolzone book is a book to learn through having fun. We have not opened the book for sometime though. It would be good to remind him how the letters and numbers look; it would be good for him to sit down and write some letters. But I am not going to shout at him if he is not going to.

It also depends on the child ... DS would not think it was good to sit and write down anything if he didn't have to ...

Octavia09 but we aren't taking students, we are talking 4 year old children most of whom won't know letters and numbers. In my reception class I was lucky to have 1 in 30 who could make an attempt at the things you feel are important.

Yoaser Octavia!!!! calm down! I have no hidden agenda. My kids are way past pre school stuff. I'm just telling you of bullshit that goes on.
Like I said you would think some people's kids were due to be the next champion of the world and they are 4 years old (no pressure there then!!)

Calm down guys. It would be really good if that was like you say. I said somewhere before that in my son's former nursery the teachers said the same thing that kids entering foundation class do not need to know how to write, how to read etc. They will learn everything in there. Yet, when kids in the nursery did not know a few things some teachers behaved liked that was the end of the world. Mrz, I appreciate your opinion but I cannot expect that all primary school teachers are going to be like you. Of course at this stage the kids cannot know how to write and read although some can, very few.