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Primary education

Join our Primary Education forum to discuss starting school and helping your child get the most out of it.

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Original poster

Not many girls in class....does it matter?

25 replies

Clare123 · 27/07/2010 20:49

We are looking at a prep school for my daughter that will only have 4 other girls in her class (but 10 boys). They have another class of similar proportions in the same year.

Do you think that will be problem?

Any thoughts?

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PollyTechnique · 27/07/2010 21:01

Is she starting in reception?

What sort of personality and temperment does she have? Does she get on well with boys at the moment?

If you think she can thrive in a predominatly testosterone environment then that's fine. If she shys away from physical rough play and noisy boys she might feel alienated.

Five girls is a smallish friendship pool to draw from (too small?). Do you know the other girls? Hard to say I know, but do you think they might be a good "fit" friendship-wise?

ProfessorLaytonIsMyLoveSlave · 27/07/2010 21:07

DS has just finished Reception in a school like that, and we've decided to put DD's name down for it. Over the course of the year we talked to the parents of the girls in DS's class and put out feelers to parents of older girls, and they all seem to think their DDs are flourishing (and DS's classmates certainly do seem to be). There's also a lot of mixing between the classes in a year group so there are plenty of friendships formed with girls in other classes.

I probably wouldn't do it for a shy and nervous girl who didn't like a noisy and rambunctious environment, though.

IndigoBell · 27/07/2010 21:08

I'd run a mile. Far too small a group to form friends with.

stripeyknickersspottysocks · 27/07/2010 21:15

DD goes to a state primary where she is one of only 3 girls in her year. Think there are about 6 boys in the year. Her class is a mixed class with the next year group, so next year it will be A Yr5/6 class. However the next year is also boy heavy and think there are only 3 girls in that year as well.

I have found that in such a small school the girls tend to play with girls from other year groups. There are about 6 or 7 girls in Yr 4 and DD plays with them.

Even so I would say the one downside of DD's school is the small pool of potential friends. If 2 of them fall out or there is general bickering, which does happen, its hell. Worse than when she was at a bigger achool and could go off and play with another set of girls for a bit.

ZZZenAgain · 27/07/2010 21:16

I think it could be a problem for her, yes.

werewolf · 27/07/2010 21:20

Too few girls.

AnnoyingOrange · 27/07/2010 21:21

Too few IMHO

ProfessorLaytonIsMyLoveSlave · 27/07/2010 21:24

There will be ten girls in the year, though -- that doesn't seem too few to me (assuming that fraternisation between classes is encouraged, e.g. joint games sessions, some mix-up teaching, some subjects done as a larger group).

hotcrossbunny · 27/07/2010 21:25

Dd had 7 girls to 23 boys in her reception year. I was so worried, but actually it was great Dd still plays with lots of the boys now she's going into year 3 and I think it minimised lots of the bitchy girly fall- outs that can occur. BTW, dd is a very quiet shy girl...

HouseofCrazy · 27/07/2010 21:27

Similar question here but froma boys perspective? What do people think of that? Does it being a boy make a difference or does it not matter as much?

(sorry for the hijack OP, just though I would ask as it is in a similar vein.)

CMOTdibbler · 27/07/2010 21:30

In DS's year, there are three classes, each of 15 children, and each has 5 girls. The city has a good girls only school, one junior of a now coed (merged schools) that was girls only till last year so is predominantly girls,and theres another girls only in a nearish town, so obv that takes a lot of girls out of the coed schools.

I'd have thought 10 girls was enough to mix with, but might depend on whether it was a boys school that now takes girls, or the imbalance was due to reasons nothing to do with the school

mrsshackleton · 27/07/2010 21:31

Dd is in a state primary with only 7 girls. It does worry me a little as she only seems to get on with a couple of them, but it has forced her to make friends with boys too and I think that's a good thing

primarymum · 27/07/2010 21:32

We have 1 boy in our Reception year!

NoahAndTheWhale · 27/07/2010 21:37

DD starts reception in September and the school had September and January intakes. There will be 3 girls and 8 boys in her class in Septemver and I am interested in how it will work out. There will be another 16 or so children in January although not sure of girl/boy mix.

DS's class is being split into two classes of 16 from September. His has 5 girls and 11 boys and the other class is similar. Think there are just lots of boys in his year.

CheapHawaiian · 27/07/2010 21:39

Ds1 has always been in a boy-heavy year group (2 thirds boys) and on the whole the girls in his year have coped well. I agree that it is a small pool for friendships, but IME the girls have a lot more confidence because they compete more equally. The class cannot be split along gender lines and so there is less differentiation. They have just finished Year 6, and 'Sports Star of the Future' was a girl, as was 'Most Likely to Make a Scientific Discovery' at their Leavers' assembly.

DD starts Year 5 in September and her class is going to be 2 thirds boys as well. I think she'll be fine. It seems that there is less of a 'best-friend' mentality, and all the girls get on well as a group, as well as playing and working with the boys.

suecy · 27/07/2010 21:54

DD is in year 2 and has only 2 other girls in her year (2 have come and gone along the way). It's mixed classes as only 15 per year, so she's always with either the girls in year above or year below aswell, both of which have 8 girls in.

Being completely honest, I wouldn't choose to have such a small core of girls - sometimes they fall out but have so few of them they can't afford to ignore eachother, and they all seem to prefer bickering to playing with boys!!! Also, cos of the mixed classes, at the start of each year she's adjusting to differenct girls suddenly being in or out of the class.

I don't like it. My girl is very much a girl's girl and she hasn't broadened her horizons to play with boys. It does cause problems. Also, the other 2 girls never have birthday parties and their mums never invite my DD round so she has very little contact with friends outside school.

Academically it hasn't affected her in the slightest, and I agree there is a benefit from performing well next to boys at this age in terms of confidence.

All I'm saying is it is a downside for us of her being in such a lovely, small village school. She still loves school, but would just love there to be more girls!

katiestar · 27/07/2010 22:33

DD has recently moved to a school which is really weird in that it is always very boy-heavy.Not just one or 2 years but has been so for decades.A small village with lots of farming families all related to one another.
There are only 4 girls including her in her class.2 in yr 2 and 2 in y3.Much less bitchy than her old 'girl heavy' class and she's much happier.A few teachers have told me actually that few girls and many boys are the classes which gel best.Also the girls tend to play with older and younger girls more

Original poster

Clare123 · 28/07/2010 20:59

Thank you all so much for replying and giving your opinions. There have been a totally mixed response. I think my daughter would get a great education from the school and lots of individual care, so I think problems would be quickly picked up.

Stll not 100% sure, but I do want her to go to co-ed.

OP posts:

domesticsluttery · 29/07/2010 10:53

We obviously have all the girls

DS1 is in a year with 15 pupils, 4 boys and 11 girls.

DS2 is in a year with 15 pupils too, again there are 4 boys and 11 girls.

It is a small village school so they were in the same mixed Yr 1/2 class last year, so out of 30 in the class there were 8 boys and 22 girls.

sunnydelight · 30/07/2010 07:31

I wouldn't do it personally as you have a choice, that is a very small pool of friends and all it takes is one or two dominant personalities and there is nowhere to go for your DD.

Rather ironically DS2 is in a girl heavy year and DD in a boy heavy year at our school. As DD is the third she basically has to go to the same school as the boys as without the sibling discount private would be unaffordable. If I was deciding just for her although I love the school I would probably not have sent her. I have previous experience of limited friendship groups in schools and it often seems to end in tears, especially for the girls. If things don't even out further up the school (she's in Y1 at the moment) I will probably move her for high school.

whiteflame · 31/07/2010 02:17

well on the other hand, even if there were even numbers of girls and boys, there would only be 7 girls!

nooka · 31/07/2010 04:38

I think it is too small a group , and definitely too small a group of girls. Unless there is lots of mixing (within lessons as well as at break times) I would have thought it high risk for not making friends. But then that depends on the sorts of friends your dd is inclined to make. My dd makes friends with everyone, so my worry with her would be about the inensity of such a small group, and the likelihood of small issues becoming huge dramas. For my ds, who is much more introvert I'd worry about the high chance of there not being anyone similar enough to him, and that he might not make any friends at all. We've had this a bit this year, where he is one of seven boys (19 girls) and really not clicked with anyone (which is a bit tough when dd has had school friends over most days). He has made friends with some of the girls, but not proper friends IYSWIM, and it's not been good for his self esteem or social skills.

Original poster

Clare123 · 01/08/2010 20:30

Defintely more people warning against it. really not sure what to do, as I would like my children to go to school together (I have a son too). Hmmmmm!

OP posts:

BeenBeta · 01/08/2010 21:15

Clare123 - I know of a Prep school that has that 5 girls in a class of 20 was too few. Girls were quite isolated and marginalised in a sometmes naturally pysical and loud classroom environment. Albeit a Prep school atmosphere. I would advise against.

HouseofCrazy - our DSs are now in a predominantly girls Prep school with about 20% boys. When they began the school there were only 5% boys. Before that they were at a similarly very girl heavy (90%) school. It has done them no harm to have spent their entire school career in what were essentially girls schools in nature and ethos.

I think it would be much more difficult for secondary school age boys going to a girls school.

gladders · 02/08/2010 11:21

it depends on the group of girls surely? if you get a group of 5 nice friendly happy girls it could be fine socially -although team sports options would be limited?

but - if you get one bossy/stroppy/dominant girl, then it could make life for the others very difficult?

my kids school works hard to balance the genders and i think that's a good thing - for the boys and the girls. am not sure i would want either of them to be in such a minority in their class?

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