Holding kids back in reception?

[WiganKebab]

Does anyone have any experience if their DC bring kept in reception for an additional year? What were the reasons? How did you feel? Did it work out for the best?

I didn't think it was usual in the UK. DD went to a very small primary school and class one was mixed - reception and younger year ones. As DD has a summer birthday she stayed in class one for her year one year as well, but she wasn't classed as a reception child.

IIRC they have to join secondary with their peer group, such a big jump from yr5 to yr7, and there's stuff like Y 6 SATS 'n' all

What are your reasons for thinking along these lines?

A friend kept her son back but this is in the private sector and its worked out very well for him.

Not sure its possible in the state sector though.

Very very unusual in UK state system, so if school/LEA are suggesting it, there must be serious reasons.

If parent wants it, it's almost impossible to achieve I'm afraid. Child would have to be significantly delayed (years).

Our primary does it to even out numbers in year 1....

Is it just one child? very unusual in UK state schools, and I would assume that this would be done after a lot of consideration and communication with you about whatever special needs prompted it - but most children with SEN progress through school with their age group, with some extra support.

Or is it a group of them to make up a mixed reception/year 1 because of issues with class size? That's increasingly common and can work OK.

Outside the UK or in private schools it is much more common to be legible with age groups - a friend with an August-born dyslexic DS at a private school was delighted that they could keep him down a year - it has done wonders for him academically and socially.

flexible not legible with year groups - damn autocorrect.

"Our primary does it to even out numbers in year 1"

But are the children still classed as reception? At DD's old primary school the year 1s mixed in with the reception kids in class 1 were still classed as year 1 and given year 1 work. It didn't hold DD back and she is now in the top sets at high school.

Similar to bunbaked, our school divides Yr 1 into the older half who go into a mixed Yr1/2 class and the younger half who stay in a R/Yr1 class. I've had dc go both ways now but feel dd1 who 'stayed' in reception did best out of the arrangements.

Why would anyone want to do this in reception? Surely reception is way too young to know whether there is a such a huge delay unless they already have significant SEN but even then it is preferable for them to stay with peers.

So it isn't a case of a child being kept back in reception but rather that the school has mixed age classes of reception and Y1 children ...very different as the Y1 children will be taught the NC just the same as their peers in the other class.

It sounds like you are talking about a mixed R/Yr1 class rather than 'holding back' 1 child? Normally this happens in schools where the class sizes aren't sufficient so they have year R/1 mixed, with a clear criteria for which children stay in this class (normally by age but can be other criteria) this means the children still do year 1 work. Presumably (unless its a recent thing) you were aware that they split the classes like this when your dc joined in reception?

Thanks ladies. It sounds like you all understand this better than I. It doesn't sound so scary now. The school have been rubbish at explaining it.

Do they all reach the same point by the end of year 1?

To be "economically viable" a class needs to have around 20-22 children in it. Many schools with mixed age classes often aim for a yearly intake of 15 so that two years intake make a "normal" class, which is fine in KS2 where there are 4 year groups,so 2 classes. But Reception and KS1 covers 3 year groups-so 45 children. You can either have a class of 15 in Reception and 30 in year 1/2 or 22/23 in a R/1, 1/2 combination. It seems your school has gone for the latter.

"Do they all reach the same point by the end of year 1"

Does it really matter? I would be worried if they hadn't by the end of year 6. At the end of year one children are still so young and develop at different rates. I think you are worrying far to much.

DD was a summer born baby and went to a small school where all the classes had 2 year groups in them. As one of the youngest she was always kept back. Unfortunately one of the classes had a weak teacher so her year 4 was a complete waste of time, but she had excellent teachers in years 5 and 6 and ended up with level 5s across the board in the KS2 SATS and is now in the top sets in year 8 at high school.

So please stop worrying.

Fret over.

How do they decide who to hold back in the mixed class? Is it age or readiness for the next class?

WE no longer have mixed aged class as we reduced our PAN to 30 from 45 but used the PSED element of EYFS to decide which children should work with the older age group

Some schools do the split strictly on birth date- so parents can't argue! Others use "academic" ability or, as in mrz case, social skills, and some schools use a combination of all 3!

DD's school did it strictly on birth date.

Good question breathe. Hopefully they will be open about the method used. When I asked about it at recent parents evening, they just kept avoiding the question, so I guess it's just their gut feel about the child's learning? Would the parents ever be consulted? Or would the teacher's decision be final do you think?

Our school is done strictly on birthdate, unfortunately for dd2 who was born in late February but finds herself the youngest in her class.

It seems odd they're not being open about the reasons, I can't imagine why they'd be evasive.

We initially split ours by age but a couple of parents asked if their child could remain in the R/1 class rather than the 1/2 class as they felt ( and we agreed) that despite their "age" they would benefit from the opportunity to be the eldest in the class

Thanks Cumbria. In what way do the children benefit from being the eldest, out of interest?