so my son failed his SATs and thinks he's stupid.

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He failed his SATS and has been in floods of tears , how the hell does one limit damage to his self esteem on this . I'm so gutted for him and those like him what a away to start his secondary education . He's on a spectrum for dyslexia can't spell or remember t tables etc etc . But this does not make it easier to cope with

Don't fully understand the system as in Ireland but in my experience dyslexic children learn better when they have some individual tuition. As they learn in a different way someone needs to take time to discover his way. That is not possible always in a busy classroom. So extra tuition is good not to pass that exam but to help him learn. Children with dyslexia need a huge amount of repetition and everything broken down into small bites. I would be more concerned about his overall learning than that one test.
Dyslexic people are often very bright and quite gifted in other ways which often only comes to the fore as life goes on.

I had a few children who worked their hardest and didn't quite make the 100 across the board. They learnt a lot, tried their best and had a great Year 6 they'll remember fondly. They will be fine at secondary school, still enjoy learning and are not failures in any way. As others have said, it was a farce this year. My results in year 6 weren't as good as they were for the last couple of years (very different cohort) but they did their best, I did my best and that 98 or 99 for one child shows incredible hard work and progress that they should be very proud of. Each one of those children who didn't make 100 in one area has a great skill in another - computing, art, PE, just being the most thoughtful/hard working and caring child you could ever wish to meet/teach.

I sincerely hope the results are a dim and distant memory for my class and that they are enjoying their summer holidays.

gomad at the risk of derailing the thread, you sound like a great teacher. As a parent, yours approach is the one that gives me confidence that my DC will be OK. I hope that you too are enjoying your holidays.

DD1 is off to Uni this Autumn to train as a primary school teacher with English as a speciality. I will share this thread with her.

"Dyslexic" children don't need individual instruction (sorry dyslexia tutors) they need high quality teaching and early identification of their actual difficulties (not a label).

I think there is a huge variety in what dyslexic children need.

For my son, the "phonics" system was totally hopeless and useless, for example.

yet all schools persevere with this method.

Schools use phonics because it is the most effective method for dyslexic pupils.
Unfortunately the dyslexia label is pretty meaningless and has become a catch all literally meaning problems with words.

Thanks, buttered... there are lots of good teachers around, but our children are so lucky to have a head that thinks the same way as me and governors who trust us. I love my school! Best of luck to your dd next year - if you're in the right school for you, it's the best job in the world. I moved here from secondary via 4 maternity breaks and love it.

mrz, dyslexia does exist - my son is living proof. He will always struggle academically and will always need to make an extra effort with written stuff at work. It can be exhausting. I fully agree that high quality teaching makes a huge difference, but it is a much bigger issue. OK, the label is used far too much but for some it is a problem far beyond reading and writing. Ds always had a reading age above his chronological age(I taught him using phonics) but finds it ridiculously hard work. Books on tape (back then) were where he gained his wide vocabulary. His spelling will always be weak because he just doesn't retain it. He was fine at primary level - level 5 for all but writing - and even passed his 11 plus without extra time because he's very bright, but struggled at GCSE and above to achieve his potential. According to Ed Psych his IQ is in top 2%. Exams certainly don't show this. e used to beso frustrated because his 2 older sisters always aced exams. Luckily he has found a career he loves and excels at - tree surgery - but please don't dismiss dyslexia so quickly. It can be dealt with by phonics at a basic level, but really needs to be recognised for a young person to achieve their full potential.

Where did I say it doesn't? But and its a big but there isn't a universally accreted definition of dyslexia which literally means difficulty with words ...it's a useless label as it doesn't serve to identify any causes.

the measure of someone's worth is not their academic achievement. especially not their sats achievement which relies on the teaching of the school and the support they have given.

some people are cleverer than others. in no way does this make them better. their ability to be kind, compassionate, caring, persistent, hardworking, etc, etc are much more important.

also people can succeed in different areas. does not matter if it is not the traditional academic, though a previous poster has shown that dyslexia is not necessarily a barrier to academic success either.