Schooling after lock down

A similar thread has been started before.

I speak from experience (primary teacher/deputy). Work planned always covers a wide range of abilities and levels. There is never the ideal class where all the children are at the same level. Consequently, work always has and always will be differentiated. My lesson planning always showed 3 levels (those working at expected level, those under and those over). This helps, particularly when teaching a mixed age class. One year I taught a class of 30 children which comprised of Year 3, 4 and 5.

There will probably be an assessment period (I don't mean lots of tests (exams!). Teacher assessment goes well beyond exam papers.

No teacher will force children to go over lessons already done at home. They will have kept accurate records of which children have done the 'home' work.

What I hope the GOV will do, is to stagger the return of children (ages) and give schools/teachers/teaching assistants time to rearrange the school layout (if social distancing is to be carried on). Schools will need time for staff to meet together before the children start back.

Looking forward to the next school year, the governor predicts a mix of applications, 1/2 of the students attend in person 2 days per week, then the second 1/2 half, while maintaining online classes-

I was never asked to take on a class in a three year age range, that must have been tough.
However, I do remember my first year as a pupil at secondary school where our history lessons covered the rise and fall of the Roman Empire which we had been studying in the last term at our little country Primary school. I can well remember how bored I was.
(Now when we got onto the Napoleonic Wars )
Classrooms are much more challenging places for teachers these days, with bored children disrupting lessons ..... so I was pondering over the trials that may lie ahead. You have reassured me (but I'm still glad I'm no longer a teacher).

I think many of the children will be surprisingly glad to go back to school and have a regular predictable routine, plus the company, however restricted, of other children.
Unfortunately, those who have parents who have undertaken their education responsibly will miss having the-one-to-one attention available from mum and dad.

I'm a teacher. I currently teach a Y9 class where once of the students struggles to write a sentence. Another of the students is already a GCSE grade 6ish (B in old money). They are about 5 years (if not more) apart in development.

As said above. Differentiation.

My 10 yr old (yr6) GD is going back and when I spoke to her last night she was so excited to be going back. She can't wait to see all her friends. My DS and DIL have been religiously home schooling both kids but it's not the same. Feel sorry for my 9yr old (yr 4) GS as he's not going back and he really wants to.

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Indeed - teachers already practice differentiation in the classroom anyway, so this will be no different. Gone are the days when children all sat at their desks facing forward and being fed the same information.

It seems so far that we seem to be back to the days where all desks face the same way forward...

And they're very nearly back again!

I've just been giving thought to the excited younger children this evening looking forward to seeing their friends and their teachers again after so long. Getting their school uniforms ready, packing their school bags, sharpening their pencils in expectation. Early to bed tonight.
I think the teachers are going to be spending the first half of the week listening to a variety of stories about home schooling, and about mums' and dads' valiant attempts to keep the children working!
Good luck to them all!

My DD who works in Primary is looking forward to it, but spent most of last week phoning parents to explain protocol, she’s expecting some very wary youngsters. Many little ones, who’ve just about integrated are now used to parent(s) ‘on tap’ it’ll be tough for everyone.

Our parents have been, in the main, very supportive and appreciative.
The big difference between the levels of home schooling will cause a few problems mostly covered by differentiation.
The first 1-2 weeks will involve various forms of assessment-from hearing readers, observing involvement in lessons and written activities linked to what they have been provided with for home learning.
I’m quite concerned about some parental attitudes, where they have done everything set, and more. As one parent said, “He’s finished all the Y3 work so we’ve been doing Y4 on IXL.”
That’s fine, differentiated work will be provided, but I hope the child can do those activities without 1-1 support.
In Thursday’s class zoom, they were all so enthusiastic about coming back, so ??.?

Excuse me if someone has already suggested this, but wouldn't the most straightforward thing be for children to resume the year they were in last March? so for example, they may have been in year 9 and so they go bak now and resume year 9 - no schooling lost, no need for long days or summer schools, the impact would be that everyone end schooling 1 year older than they would otherwise be. Since it would apply to all schools, there would be no stigma attached.

If the Y6s don't go up to secondary school, there will be an extra year of pupils in the primary school as Reception kids will still need to start school - they'll need extra room, extra teacher, extra TAs. At secondary school, they'll be a year short - what do they do with the staff?
Universities will also be a year short, as the final year students will be gone, if there are no incoming students to take their place. They are now highly financially dependent on tuition fees. Again what would they do with the staff who have no students to teach?

ExD I think it was Cockcroft report 1982 (?) who first noted that there was a 7 year range when teaching a class of 11 year olds maths. Some functioned mathematically like 14 year olds, others like 7 year olds. Obviously, no-one must be bored because it's too easy, and no-one left behind because it's too hard.

chardy at the lower end, the reception admissions could be delayed for a year.

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How can I get my GS to pay attention in class. He has become more distracted since lockdown as he missed half of Primary one and several months of Primary 2

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