Mixed Year Groups & class size

[PrimaryConcern]

School has announced will be mixing classes as can no longer afford a teacher per year group. What happens about infant class size max of 30 if Yr2 is mixed with Yr3, does it still apply?

Hi OP,
In our school, we have mixed classes.
Yr1-yr2
Yr3-yr4 and yr5-yr6s
It seems allright. The older ones tend to help the younger ones.
Not a lot we can do about it🙇‍♀️

Sorry, I should have explained a bit!
Proposal is that Reception and Yr 6 won't be mixed.
Which means 3 teachers across years 1-5. Numbers are such that Yr1 &2 would be around 42 in total so I am wondering how the regulations work in a mixed 2/3 class.

I’m pretty sure 30 max applies,

When I was at a small school the higher ability of the year below joined the year above. But if you were poorer at maths say you would be in a maths set in the correct class. It was nice until year 6 when all my friends had left as I was with the year above mostly.

Thanks, I had in the back of my mind that if the majority are Yr3 the 30 max wouldn't apply. No idea where I got that from though! The school is very chaotic and though I can see there is no other choice, I think it's fair to say it's not really going to help the current issues.

IIRC:

• Infant class size limits apply in a mixed Year 2 / 3 class if the majority of children in it are Y2.

• So in the case you give, if a Y1/Y2 class of 30 is formed, 12 Y2 children will join Y3. The resulting class will probably not be subject to infant class size regulations because for the class to reach 30, there would be 18 Y3s, so a majority Y3 class.

• If the school decided, because of the balance of the different year groups, to keep the Y1 / Y2 class small and put 16 year 2s up with 14 Year 3s, my understanding is that it would then be subject to ICS regulation.

Yes; it's about the year the majority of the class are in. Y2; then it's limited to 30, Y3 and it's not.

Gosh, that’s a nasty split. We have split year groups but never split across yr 2 and 3 because it’s two different key stages. We do mix reception and Y1, but even though that’s EYFS vs key stage1, the gap between children is smaller, and some y1 children benefit from a more play based classroom, even if they are being taught the KS1 curriculum.

NotAnother,

I would agree that's nasty. I've taught a Y2/3 split class (as well as, at other times, Y3/4; Y1/2 and R/1/2) and it's not a split I would recommend.

In your school's position, I'd have R/1 and 1/2; 3/4 and 4/5 if 6 are to be kept separate.

5 classes is not a comfortable size, though, and i can see it makes thing awkward.

4 classes - 2 smaller of R/1 and 1/2, then two larger of 3/4 and 5/6 - are IME both more common and work better.

I would also say that, again in general, mixed classes do work better (except for R/1, which I agree can be good for those still needing a very play based curriculum in y1) if ALL the children in a year group are in one class, even if that class also contains another year group.

So 3/4 and 5/6 are better, IME, than a structure that e.g. splits Y4 across a 3/4 class and a 4/5 class. The experience for the two 'parts' of the year group is always very different, and the criteria used for the split are a nightmare to negotiate successfully!

Thanks.
They are fairly certain reception won't be mixed, Yr6 is not a definite. Reception is actually in another building!

But the current Yr5 have had some of the most chaotic teaching, and with SATs, I can see why school are leaning towards a non-mixed class for September.