Y7 disappointing report after promise of support

[noteventhebestdrummer]

DS has a really mixed report at the end of Y7, mostly the bad things are lack of effort and some silliness in class. About half his grades are good and half bad or very bad.

We've had a nightmare time this year with his older brother who was at the same school and is no longer living at home, while he was here things were high stress and horrible. School knows all this and I put it to them directly how much DS had been affected.

I know that this is no excuse at all for his lack of effort but he HAS improved since his Easter report at least. What is bothering me is that since Easter the school promised to expect lots more from DS and that they would let me know if there were EVER any problem with his homeworks or having the right equipment or with silly attitude. And all term I heard nothing! Now I get a report complaining of all those things!

What should I do next??

Thanks, I was disproportionally upset by it I know because I wanted the small stuff to all be OK...good advice! Will also pester his new teachers in Sept. He has the same form tutor next year which is good and bad.

I would check now! Quite often the actual comments on the report were made a month or longer ago, so they might be out of date.

Request some kind of meeting to discuss the report and progress made (my son gets one of these every term).

I had been expecting problems with my son in year 7 but they never materialised. I think that was because of two way communication.

I ensured my sons planner was completed and checked every week. If he didn't give it to me on a Sunday - I went and found it. I questionned all unticked homeworks with a close deadline.

To make sure he was putting in effort and homework - his pocket money was directly linked to him getting grade 1's or 2's (out of 4) on the regular school reports we receive.

School had my email address - it wasn't used except for regualar (by which I mean once a term) contact with SEN.

It worked better than I had expected. He now seems to be quite settled and used to the system. His last report was homework, behaviour and effort of all 1's apart from one subject where it was all 2's.

Thanks, I think I need to be really on the ball next term and to check his work often as well as to contact his new subject teachers by email, I don't think his form tutor will be any more help this year than last!

At least if you take control, you aren't relying on others - who you can't control.

I don't know if your son gets pocket money and how much it means to him but - for me - that was great as it took all the stress out of my son not putting in the effort. If he didn't do it, no squabbles or arguments, just pocket money docked next term. He knew I meant it and, I suppose, that's why it worked.

I'd never dock or make an issue out of lack of progress to target - it's effort and deadlines met I need to see. If he doesn't make progess to target then we speak to teachers/try to help to find a way to make progress.

Good luck! I know it's a worry.

It IS his effort marks that I worry about most. His older brother who has gone off the rails in a horrendous way knew that he had been top in the entrance exam for this school and knowing that you are fundamentally very smart is actually a bad thing. I don't want DS (12) to make the same mistakes in thinking that being able to pull an amazing mark out of the bag on exam day is the way to do things. He is a different kid though and less likely to take risks (I hope) as well as having lived through the nightmare of his older brother's actions in recent months, this is likely to put him off!

He does care about pocket money so that may well work. I hope his teachers will help. One of the things I need to address is to get him to do homeworks well rather than to alevel of 'it's ok, I wrote 2 pages', I guess he will grow up and this will improve!

Thanks.

Good news!

Things going so much better this year and life is happier for all of us.

Half term report is all excellent/good and my 'rewards for house points' is costing me lots of money :)

School are better at communicating but not 100%

Thanks!

Just don't ask HOW LONG the games bag has been missing for...