Presentations to class in state school

[Wilberforce42]

Hi

Do all state primaries make all the children do individual presentations to the class at the end of term or is it just some schools? Ours does and so does another in the area. I was wondering if it is universal as my son hates them and it’s a real problem for him.

Sorry he’s in year 4 but they start doing them from year 2 until year 6.

Our school starts them from P1 (yrR) and they do at least 1, usually 2, per year. They are always based on a specific topic they have been learning.

In P1 they are supposed to be about 30-45seconds long and by P6/7 (Yr5/6) they are up to 4-5min.

My DD in P3 (Yr2) have done 3 this year and we are so over presentations! My DC have always been quite happy doing them, but they involve so much work - research, preparing a poster or PowerPoint, practising and learning the talk so they know it by heart, and then finally presenting it to the class. It’s a huge undertaking.

It is a HUGELY valuable skill to learn, I was impressed they did this when my daughter was in primary (15 years ago now), because we didn't when I was at school. The more you do the easier it gets.

Thanks for the replies. Has anyone’s child opted out for any reason? And also can anyone tell me if they do this at independent schools?

I'm really glad this is part of the curriculum now to be honest (and it certainly is in Scotland) - my overriding memory of my first year at uni was that I hadn't a clue how to do a presentation and felt at a distinct disadvantage to my privately educated peers.

At DD's independent school by the time they were in year 4 they would be presenting something several times a term.

We do six per year. It sounds like it’s pretty universal then. Thanks very much. X

I think presenting to an audience is a valuable skill and you should be delighted that your school does them, however much your DS hates them.
If anything I would expect independent schools to do much more of this than state schools, it helps develop the confidence which I think is one of the intangible benefits of private education.
There are so many jobs where presenting to an audience may be needed, even ones you might not expect like computers / IT where presenting a design idea, or training in a tool or whatever might be required.
Lots of kids have to do stuff in school they hate, e.g. PE, or mental maths tests, or art, or writing stories. You can't just opt out. If it is a massive anxiety, then getting that sorted is better long term than just opting out.

I know of several children who have partly opted out because of huge anxiety about doing them. They do the prep, the teacher ‘presents’ it and the child can answer questions (either stood by the teacher or from their chair) about the info if they feel comfortable doing so.
This helps build confidence incrementally and can be a good way of encouraging a child to slowly build up to standing in front of the class.
Other strategies would include letting them click through a PowerPoint if they have done it that way, from the side and not taking any questions if they find that a bit overfacing.
There’s no point making a child feel more anxious as it’s a valuable skill but one that has to keep pace with a child’s own confidence.