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Primary education

Join our Primary Education forum to discuss starting school and helping your child get the most out of it.

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Original poster

Sports Day clash with High School Induction

24 replies

KittyFoyle · 29/04/2019 18:22

My daughter is coming to the end of her time at primary school and really looking forward to enjoying the ‘last times’ but also full of trepidation about high school. It’s a very small primary, only two destination high schools and four or five children in Y6 moving up. There are 3 high school induction days and her last primary Sports Day is right in the middle. Head teacher unsympathetic and irritable, saying this is the only time we can do it as we’re so busy. I do know about being busy and school logistics having been vice governor of another primary for 5 years. Aside from the Christmas play, Sports Day is the only big event in the school calendar - is it unreasonable of me to think it could have been arranged for an afternoon that’s not in the middle of the high school inductions - two older kids have been through the school under a different head and he made sure this kind of thing didn’t happen. Daughter desperate to be part of her last Sports Day so thinking I’ll take her out for half an Induction Day and try to fit it all in. Her older brother is already at the high school and says he’ll be around to help her. Just feeling pissed off with the school’s poor/insensitive planning. They’re really a pretty sleepy little school - others in the area do a lot more. OK rant over.

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bookmum08 · 29/04/2019 18:30

What do the other Year 6 children think about missing sports day. If they are all upset about missing it then all of them talking to the head together about it might make her change her mind about the date.

bugsymaloney · 29/04/2019 19:03

YABU. Sports day is a fairly non-event and high school induction is much more important.

Changemyname18 · 29/04/2019 19:06

Yanbu. Any reasonable primary head should have been aware of the induction dates in good time and organised around them. Usually these take place on similar days each year. What else is so important in the remaining weeks of term that cannot be rescheduled. Also, any organised school will always set a reserve date for sports day given we cannot always guarantee a summer as good as last year.

Sculpin · 29/04/2019 19:09

Personally I'd miss sports day as I think her high school induction is more important. Agree it's a bit rubbish that they didn't think of this beforehand.

Original poster

KittyFoyle · 29/04/2019 19:23

It’s not a non-event to her - her friends are the year below - it’s a tiny school - and it matters to her.

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Ihatemyseleffordoingthis · 29/04/2019 19:24

Head sounds a right misery

What are all the other Y6 kids doing? or are they off to different schools?

TBH I would do the induction anyway, it might get her focussing on an exciting new future with more confidence, rather than the nostalgia of primary. Will there not be Leaver's events etc anyway?

ShirleyAvenue · 29/04/2019 19:24

Yes it's most unfortunate and you would think high school inductions would have been taken into account when planning primary school events.
It doesn't seem fair to ask the whole school to reschedule for a handful of children- I would definitely prioritise the high school induction, but taking her out of induction for half of one day is a good compromise.There will be other more specific yr 6 leavers' events surely?
My DD's induction day clashed with the whole school photo. Would have liked her to be on it ... but it was just one of those things....

Original poster

KittyFoyle · 29/04/2019 19:26

@bookmum08 She’s the only one going to this school, one other kid is being home schooled full time and the other two are going to another high school. It’s not a whole lot of children to organise which is really my point. High school induction is important and there’s not much else going on for end of term other than general mucking about.

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MrsRhettButler · 29/04/2019 19:31

That's a really tiny school, my Dd1 would have been upset about this too so I do sympathise and I think your idea of taking her out for it is fine.
If I understand correctly the induction is a 3 day event? She'll be there for the majority of it if that is the case.
My dds induction day fell in the middle of school camp week! I drove and picked her up for one day but she missed the other. No biggy.

Original poster

KittyFoyle · 29/04/2019 19:32

@ihatemyselffordoingthis - nail on head. Heard a child saying they were a bit sad to be leaving told ‘Well you can’t stay here forever, everyone has to move on’ before walking off. Fortunately the high school is more nurturing in my experience so will probably talk to them, do what @shirleyavenue says, see what’s planned so can judge whether it’s worth picking her up and taking her to sports day. Hope the induction days will be great - her brother is already lining up mates to look out for her. I guess that I know other schools making sure they take High School dates into account and with so few children how hard can it be? Anyway...I’ll stop moaning now.

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MrsRhettButler · 29/04/2019 19:33

Reading back I see I was correct, it definitely won't matter missing just one afternoon. I was told that as long as she attends one then it will be fine.

Original poster

KittyFoyle · 29/04/2019 19:34

Thanks @MrsRhettButler - yep - one year the Y6 leavers’ do was just one boy. Not a whole lot of planning there....think you and I on same wavelength about it.

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spanieleyes · 29/04/2019 19:38

We haven't yet been told the induction dates for any secondary schools ( and children usually go on to at least 5) and some schools never even bother to tell us, we find out from the children! . However, if we don't give parents enough notice of sports days, we are slagged off for that.So, damned if you do, damned if you don't!

bugsymaloney · 29/04/2019 19:41

Blimey, it's not the Olympics. Save your water for a bigger fire.

It is difficult to plan dates and one Y6's high school induction really shouldn't dictate the school's summer arrangements- this might be the day when there are the most TAs in, or the most members of staff etc etc etc.

mynameisMrG · 29/04/2019 19:42

I was coming on to say YABU as one of our year 6 productions falls on one of the secondary transfer days and these things can be really difficult to rearrange. However our school is much bigger than yours and it would be impossible to accommodate all the dates to all the various secondaries.

YANBU but it sounds like the Head is. I agree with PP, take her out for the afternoon so she can still be involved.

Comefromaway · 29/04/2019 19:48

Definatly do the induction. It’s where she’ll get to meet her new classmates for the first time which is doubly important if she’s the only one from her school.

BackforGood · 29/04/2019 20:36

In our authority, every school does 'Moving up Day' on the same day.
Makes total sense...... if you are a Primary school with dc going to 7 different schools, you aren't having small groups missing on several different days...... if you are a secondary school receiving dc from a dozen different schools - they are all available on the same day..... if you are a separate infant or junior school you get space to receive your new intake as the oldest year group are all out at their new schools..... even better, when a teacher is moving schools, they are released to their new schools to meet their new class.

It makes so much sense, I don't know why every authority doesn't do it.

toomanycats99 · 29/04/2019 20:52

Our borough also has all induction days on one day. So all primaries know - there were a couple of other vista for those going out of borough but 95% are the one day

mynameisMrG · 29/04/2019 20:55

I used to work in an authority which did that and it was much easier to manage. Where I work now sent is the dates through the week before the Easter holidays which doesn’t leave much time for planning.

spanieleyes · 29/04/2019 20:59

Some schools round here do an Induction day, one does an induction week! Most are academies, they can't even agree on holiday dates, let alone induction procedures!

Original poster

KittyFoyle · 29/04/2019 22:30

Thanks everyone - makes sense to do Moving Up day on the same day but isn’t how it works here. Induction ay dates were out months ago - the info was there. I do understand logistics of several kids - just imagined when the numbers are so small it can’t be that hard. There are the same number of kids in the year as in my house and I manage to arrange things. @bugsymaloney the school isn’t big enough to have TA’s - when there are so few kids 1 is a high percentage of the year and with only two high schools in question we’re not talking about organising Brexit. But you’re right, it’s most certainly not the Olympics which if I remember rightly manages to plan for more than 4 contestants. Thanks for your thoughts all.

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Pud2 · 30/04/2019 19:55

In defence of the headteacher, in our authority we have to book sports day months in advance. This is partly because working parents need to book time off, and partly as we have to book the track. There are also factors such as the fact our PE teacher only works two days a week, and our PE coordinator, who organises the day, is part-time. I think there’s always more to it than you may realise so it’s harsh to call the head miserable. Secondary induction dates come out much later and all schools have different days. Year 6 inevitably miss something. Some inductions day generally clash with school journey too.

viques · 01/05/2019 13:54

It is a shame it's worked out like this, but I think induction days are more important especially for a child coming from such a tiny school. Secondary is going to be a massive change.

I think the best thing you can do is be matter of fact about it, accept it has happened (outwardly, you are allowed to seethe internally) and emphasise how great the induction days will be. Remind her of all the other ways she will be saying goodbye to her primary, is she making goodbye cards for all the staff, making herself a scrapbook of memories, choosing a book to donate to the school library or a plant for the school garden. Get her focussed on other primary based last chance stuff so sports day afternoon retreats a bit.

Witchend · 02/05/2019 10:37

Heard a child saying they were a bit sad to be leaving told ‘Well you can’t stay here forever, everyone has to move on’ before walking off.
That sounds quite a sensible way of dealing with it. It has to happen, matter of fact onwards and upwards will get a much more positive mindset in moving on than "oh we'll miss you too..." type responses.

Yes, she might like to do sports' day, but if you present it in a "won't it be great to be at your new school" I'm sure she'll very quickly come round to not worrying too much about it.

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