Tell me about Year 5

[freetrampolineforall]

Dd is about to go into year 5. I read ages ago on MN that this year group is notorious for drama and difficulty. Tell me your Year 5 dramas and difficulties.
Dd's class is 2:1 boys: girls and the girls are generally a tight, happy friendly-to-each other group. Is this all about to end? Hormones already at work with the girls so not really a surprise if they play an even bigger role. Apocalypse or Just Growing Up a bit?

DD will go into Y5 as well so looking with interest.

I found at the end of Y4 we had some difficulties with friendships. Friend's DC at another school also reported this. The friendship groups are smaller and more fixed so there is more drama if DD and another girl clashes one day and more "we broke up and will never be friends again" while before it was less dramatic and less tears and sadness at home about it.

DD's school is mixing children this year again so while DD will have some of her friends with her, there will be also some girls she previously had issues with. it will be interesting to see if they are now more grown up about it.

Learning wise I think the school will push. They had very good SATs results this year, below their usual scores as expected thanks to the re-vamp, but higher than average and they will push to getting back to the top of the game again. Lovely.

DD is just starting yr 6 ; she has a small group of friends. In yr 5 she really didn't have many friendship problems but I did notice that her friendships have got closer and more intense. Also she wants to see them out of school for endless talk far more. Definitely hormones are kicking in, several girls including DD have curves. 1 or 2 girls at her 10th party were really mature and were ridiculously helpful. Her school are mixing the year group up again and she has ended up in a class with just 1 girl from her year that she knows well. I am a bit nervous about it as she has discussed this in a negative way all summer holidays

Thanks, Milk. That's helpful insight.

Our DD was bullied dreadfully during Y4 (excluded from everything, socially and academically) so we moved her to a new school in Y5 and it was wonderful. Large year group (40 across two classes) and although very strong personalities (bullies!) were in evidence, DD never came across them. Has forged some strong friendships of girls all growing up at the same stage - agree that in Y5 some children mature much, much faster than others (physically and mentally it seems). And by the end of the year, it felt that the bullies were actually starting to learn that bullying wasn't the best way to go ...

Great to read things going better, oompa. Thanks.

I found Y4 worse than Y5 for friendship breakdowns. By Y5 it seemed to have more settled down (DD's school is also one where the classes get mixed every year). It's a year where the girls start growing up - my DD was one of the first to hit puberty and found this very difficult; whereas the boys seem to get somewhat left behind (difference in maturity levels is very obvious!) Peer pressure starts to kick in.

My DD has just gone in to year 5 too. She had a horrid time at the start of year 4 with friendships and we ended up moving her to a different school. Her class now are so lovely and all get on really well. I'm hoping that it's a cohort thing rather than a year 5 issue (fingers crossed)

Mine has just left yr 5. No major dramas. Also a boy heavy class. I did find friendships switched no falling outs but the group that did the same work and were doing 11 plus prep naturally became closer friends. There did seem to be a big difference academically more noticeable than in other years. Also big differences in maturity and physical development.

I'm a teacher and have always found Y3-4 more difficult in terms of the girls' friendship dynamics.

I'd say if they have made it this far then you're almost out of the woods

That is good to hear cheapandcheerful ......

Hoping this thread will be a collection of stories and advice as Y5 progresses!