How do you know what happens at school

[MommyG]

Hi all,

I've always wondered how so many parents know so much about what happens at schools, what children study, the children's levels in class for Maths, Literacy etc.. and in general what goes on..

Do you get all this from your kids? Or is it from the teachers? I would love to know more what exactly happens.. but both my DSs absolutely dont discuss anything.. The best that I get from them is .. 'I had a good day' Thats it.. I know they are happy at school, but I'd love to know more..

Is it ok to ask teachers, or would that sound too bothersome? How do y'all go about it?

At parent / teachers evening it is fine to ask what levels your child is working at - and also what their targets are for the year.

Besides that, it's just what you can glean from the kids....

Interrogation techniques...

I've actually tried all possible sorts.. asking about each thing individually, but still unsuccessful ..

I seldom find out directly from DD what has happened, what she's learned, who she played with etc. Her friends are more than happy to tell me about how she got into trouble for not doing X, doing Y or how she fell out of the tree etc. Last night she told us she'd got a vocabulary award and it was the second one she had. Me and DH were sat open mouthed that she had actually volunteered information.

Hello, I feel for you, OP. But I get an amazing amount of comparative information from DC, unprompted. DC knows what relative level each table is in literacy and maths and who is on it, and tells me. I think it's just a growing awareness of his identity (yr 3) and how he compares with his friends, not in a competitive way, but just out of curiosity.

He has a great deal of empathy for children that are not making much progress academically and always says it's not their fault and that they need more help and are very good at other things.

But you are entitled to ask your teacher for information about her assessment of your child's current levels. She'll at least know in relative terms.

Speak to other parents, ask the teachers. Another good way to finding out things is to offer to help out for an afternoon in class. You will be surprised at how much you find out. Also joining the PTA is a great way to finding out info from other parents, even if their children are not in the same class as yours.