Old display - is this odd?

[onthebus]

At DD's school there is a display on the wall that features work that was produced by the children in the year group that left the school in July. I've been vaguely wondering about it since September (when I figured the school had left it up while the "new" children produced some work that could go up instead) but now we are in November I am starting to think it is really quite odd to still have it up.

The display is just fairly normal writing and pictures on the year group's (then) current topic, so it's not like it is something that can't easily be moved or that was really amazing and worthy of retaining for posterity.

Is it usual for schools to keep up "old" work - is it to show what children should be capable of when they leave, for example? Or have the school just forgotten this display exists?

Is it in the classroom or communal areas?

Think it's normal tbh. Displays take a lot time and energy which is better spent on teaching and marking or working one to one if you are a TA. Don't worry about it.

At ds's school they have an art week in the summer term that they work really hard at producing stuff. This then goes up in the communal areas like by the office and in the hall. I think they try and make sure every child has at least one thing up there.

The class rooms have the current children's work, all stuff from there goes home with the children in July.

Their displays got a special mention by Ofsted last time they came.

My DCs' school has just taken down a collage-type display from the main hall wall. It's been there since we visited the school when DS1 was in pre-school. He's now in Y5 . It was a very nice display though!
If it's in a classroom I would be a bit as they tend to be cleared at the end of the summer term.

At our school we have several corridor areas with "permanent" displays, which means for example the topic work on Africa goes up, and stays there until the following year group covers that topic.

In the classrooms the displays are generally for about a term at a time.

Schools are busy places, teachers are busy. I am sure the display will be changed as soon as they have time. A school with the best displays (for optics) is not always the best school to be in!

I worked in a private primary school (abroad) one year...we spent hours making displays to impress the wealthy parents. There was a very memorable Spring garden with flowers dropping from the ceilings...very impressive!

The time could have been better spent on actually teaching some of the children. Too often the classroom assisstants were making displays instead of helping the children who needed the help. I appreciate nice displays look good but I would never judge a school by the display or be too bothered if it were a few months "out of date".

Hi

I've worked in schools twenty years or so, and most DO like to have displays that are attractive, useful and up-to-date. But it can't always be managed from the time point of view. (I had two years in a secondary school that had Resources people that the teacher just told what display was wanted, they came in at lunch time and did it!! )

But, if by any chance you should have a few hours to spare and are of an 'artistic bent' I don't doubt a school would appreciate some help in that direction. (Maybe volunteer to hear readers first, or if you do any music or sports you could help there.)

I started as a parent-helper (Dad) when DS was in Reception, hearing readers, then did gardening with Year6, and ran an after-school keyboard club. I enjoyed working in school, and eventually became a Teaching Assistant in another school, ten years in Primary, two in Secondary. (DS is now 28 !)

cheers

It is a little odd it hasn't been updated. Would you be able to volunteer to help put a display of current year's work up? I'm sure kids would prefer that.

Why does it matter?

You're right it doesn't matter. And I take the points about displays taking time to put up and teachers concentrating on actually teaching.

The display is in a shared open plan area - it happens to be on the wall next to my DD's cloakroom so I see it every day when I take her in.

I was just surprised that a) the work hadn't been given back to the children before they left the school and b) that work by current children was not prioritised.

It sort of falls into the same vein of leaving posters about old events up (another bugbear of mine at school as I just think it looks a bit sloppy).

I work in a school as a volunteer and I had to be CRB checked (plus do a course on child protection for any disclosures/school policies/first aid etc)

A lot of time and effort goes into a display and trust me, just taking out the flipping staples off the old display is hard enough

If you could volunteer to help out with the displays then do, it is great fun and it is can take a small amount of time. I help with them to free up the TA's to do more vital work in the classrooms.

We turn boards around on a very regular basis, we have display boards in the corridors, classrooms and school hall. So it does amount to a lot of work.