Is there any evidence linking strong frienships with academic success

[4anddone]

Another class reshuffle issue I'm afraid...

Anecdotally I and many of my friends have experiences of separation from our friendship groups (class reorg or moving schs etc) and how we feel this negatively affected our school time through confidence and unhappiness. Does anyone know of any documented evidence of this as I will need to present my last plea for change tomorrow.

Outline of our situation. DD2 is currently in Y1 (2 class intake but small classes) they are going to be merged with current reception (also 2 class intake but small) to create a Y1, Y1/2 and Y2 all at avg 28. they have done it by birthday and my DD2 is May and in the Y1/2. Out of her current class of 23 there is only her and 1 other girl (whom she has never mentioned and when questioned played with). All her friendship group are staying together in the new Y2. There have been parent meetings about this over the last year (as the sch have not mixed before) and most parents were very concerned re friendships. They assured us that they would get all the classes to mix more over the last 6 months in order to help the transition. This hasn't really happened - at least not in a focussed way - they all learn play together but have remained with their own friendship groups rather than deliberate pairing or grouping of likely new classmates. I have prior to the decision raised my concern at parent teacher meeting and in an email to the head and subsequent conversation. My DD is a happy confident girl with lifelong friendships in her class and I am gutted that she will be split from those especially as I have witnessed DD1 struggle with friendships constantly (Y3) and never feeling she has her place. In my email to the sch i did also explain the my DD has several nervous/passive habits such as coughing/grunting, blinking and finger biting (she had to wear gloves for a month as she had bitten the skin from the pads of her fingers) and I don't want to expose her to any unnecessary stress as we are still trying to control these issues. DS1 starts this sch in Sept and has just filled out the entry form asking who his friends are as they will endeavour to place them in the same class. How can they think its important then but not now.

Sorry it's so long. What would you say or do if this was your child?

It's only for one yr & they will make new friends or play together at break times, too. That has been my experience.

I would moan hard at school to split them up by friendship group in future and not strictly by age. But that said, when DD was split from her old friends at the start of yr2, it was the.best.thing.ever. The new friends she made were so much better for her!

Our school has a current policy that if they are in a spilt group one year then the following year they are single grade (so yr1/2 first yr, and would be all yr3 class following yr).

It will stay the same until year 6 - no remixing :(

No remixing is terrible, and it won't work at all as soon as the troublemakers latch onto each other there's no way to separate them, I would have thought teachers would protest against it being set in stone.

Also, ours were set for subjects so they mixed up again most days for math, across 1-3 yr groups, as well. Also for spelling groups & sometimes for English in early yrs. PE & Art could be combined or broken up, as well.

Thank you, yes they are to be mixed for literacy and numeracy. Its just a bloody mess that they have handled so badly. Even more irritating is that I'm a governor and I still have had little or no communication! Just sending the head an email for tomorrow :(

Sorry I don't know where you'd find the evidence but I've seen on here quite few people saying that splitting classes by birthdays is poor practise as the 'younger' class underperforms. Maybe you could take that angle if you can find some evidence.

Hmm, DD found out at school today and has taken it surprisingly well. I had a bit of an emotional phone call with the head. I will have to go with it for now and hope that my DD positive attitude continues. It is a minefield. Every child is so different it is so difficult to have such rigid rules I fear.

Thanks for your replies.

Odd to mix by age, tbh, I wouldn't be happy about that. However, I agree with those who say that in general mixing the groups can be very positive, with old friendships continuing in the playground and new friendships also being forged. I'm pleased my ds1's year group was re-mixed a couple of times, as he used to be like your dd1. It meant the whole year group mixed better, as friendships were no longer confined to class groups.

Our school streams by ability and friendships from Y1, every year.

In my experience, with a Y3 and a Y5, the parents worry about it far more than the children. My joy and my girl have made broader friendship circles because if it, which is a good thing IMO.

My boy

Although he is a joy

DD2 now year 5 was split from all her pals at the end if year 4. Now that we are nearly at the end if the year she is still struggling with it and has not enjoyed school at all this year, despite her teacher being really lovely.

This year she also had the most sick days she has ever had. She had a bout of shingles which can possibly be stress related and moans about the slightest ailment.

I don't know if there is a direct link between friendships and academic progress but I would think that a happy child is likely to do better.

My advice would be to speak to the school about any concerns you may have. If they listen great but sadly some schools are great at listening to patents and then totally ignoring the issue!

I think from what you have said about your child that yes, this may well affect her, and its sad.

You cant catch up with old friends at break time, its not the same...

I would push for her to be put with her friends.

I was alone in infant and primary and it was horrid...until I moved schools and found a BF for life in first week . I hated going in, I was lonely, felt so incredibly awkward...

This happened to my DD in year 1 and she has finally after all this year got a lovely friendship with one other girl..but lost that initial fab friendship group. Of course she may well be separated again now from that lovely new friend and all her old friends....yes she has coped well but NO she was not as happy in year 1 as in reception.

Fight for her.

This happened to ds in Year 2. His 3 best friends were in the other class. It didn't make any difference to be honest, if anything it was quite good that they weren't distracting each other during work time and also I don't think they spent that much time together during class anyway (sat on different tables etc). At play and lunchtimes they were still as definitely the foursome they had always been, perhaps even more so.

I think there's a massive difference between coping with say lunchtime when you don't know anyone and with the structured time in class. The teachers will do lots of things to help them all integrate, I am sure.

Lunchtime has been a big deal to my DD.

Not being able to sit with her friends to eat because of hiw lunch arrangements are and not seeing her friends at all on wet days because if wet indoor play. (And it has been a very wet winter here!) it has made a great deal if difference to my DDs moral and keenness to be the first one in school every morning.

Generally mixing classes works well and benefits the children as a whole.
Parents are FAR more anxious about it than the dc.
dc can still play together during playtime / dinnertime play / before and after school - the rest of the time they are in lessons.
Generally children who have had the opportunities to be in different groups, working with different children, been used to being taught by different teachers are a lot more ready for secondary schools than those who haven't had those opportunities.

So they can play together at lunchtimes and breaks.

However, as a general rule children do tend to play with their classmates-and I have seen that in both the 2 form entry and the 5 form entry schools here where they mix the forms up.
If there are two best friends who have split and agree to meet, and both want to meet, then they may continue being friends. Although in almost all cases I've known at least one has then got a best friend from their own class, often leaving the other one feeling very alone.
However in this case there is a group and a one. The chances are very high that the group will have no need for the one, and so won't wait, there will be times their game will reflect what they've just done, or they'll be excited about something.

For those who say it makes no differences I would say:

PE
School trips
Work with a partner
Discussing what happened at school
Assemblies
Wet play
Parties
Form jokes/excitements
Golden time
Other friends
Extra play for a treat...

All things that having your friends in another form effects. Things like parties: You don't get invited to the parties as much from the other form, because you get forgotten because you're not there, or because the parents give a whole form, or restrict it to just their form because of numbers. You don't get invited to as many parties from your form because at lunch/break you're playing with the other form so you aren't seen as a friend as much.

Agree DE WE.

Thank you for your replies. Glad I'm not the only one who feels like this. I don't really have many options at the moment but just generally feel sad about the situation. I have been assured that I will get an early parent teacher meeting in the new term and if she is really unhappy they do have so "wriggle room" to make so adjustments.

My main issue would be having a Y2 class, a Y1 class and a mixed class. If you have a two form entry school the classes are usually balanced regarding age, not all the older ones in one class and the younger in another (apart from maybe in Foundation Stage).
I would not have wanted my summer-born son only to have been taught alongside the other summer-borns and children from the year below. In my experience, both as a TA and as a parent, the youngest are just as likely to be high-achievers and I think splitting them that way would disadvantage those children.
The way they have split the year groups has also meant that the youngest year 2s and the oldest year 1s have been most affected as they have been taken away from their classes, whilst most of the children have stayed together. They really should have done three totally new classes if they have to mix year groups, making sure every child is with at least one friend.

DeWee

I agree with some of your list but not sure about a couple e.g assemblies- not a social occasion, in fact we often make sure our children don't sit next to friends they'll chat to. Also work with a partner, most people don't only work with their best friends and children should have to learn to work with others not of their choosing.