How are your grandchildren getting on at school?

My GD started Foundation Stage after Easter. She loves it. Talks constantly about all the things she does and is starting to use phonic sounds ..although they don't always match the grapheme lol.

My youngest son is in FS2 (which used to be Reception) at another school. He also loves it. Has lots of friends and can write his name. His linkage of phonemes to graphemes is much better than GD but then he's a year older lol. Mainly talks about how naughty his friend is...as if he's never involved lol. Loves the freedom to play outside on the large equipment.

My youngest daughter is in Year 1. She also loves school and has lots of friends. Spends a lot of time at home reading and writing ...honing the skills she has been taught at school. She likes to write and show me her correct use of punctuation and capital letters. She loves her teacher (as it should be lol) and wants to please. She's a very bright child and thrives in a learning environment.

My 6 yr old GD is in Y1 and is a fluent reader and enjoys writing. She absorbs facts: she can give you a full run down of who is who in the current royal family following the class topic on this event. Her maths is good too 2 & 3 & 5 x table. She goes to tennis club and dance club at school. She can count and say & understand some simple sentences in French and Spanish as a result of her teacher! She has done some great art work and learned loads of songs and rhymes. Most of all she enjoys learning and going to school! It is a town centre state school serving a cross section of society.

16 year old DG is in the throes of GCSEs, and is doing really, really well. She took five early with top grades, bless her. She goes to a real comprehensive school (not a grammar school in sight ) and is on committees, in clubs and enjoying it all. Her brother (nearly 14) is also happy there and doing well, he is a sensitive, rather geeky soul but equally well catered for.

The two little DGs (6 and 8) are liking school, and doing well, but going through the whole little girl friendship bit - who's playing with who today etc. so socially they are up and down. From the youngest, on the subject of after school activities (her sister does everything) "I just want to go home and play with my toys." and, thanks to a wise DDiL, she does just that.

We love that phrase - at the end of our SA trip, it was just how we felt too!

Both of my grandsons are very happy at school. But unfortunately the six year old has now become a teenager, and nobody can get much sense out of him! I pity his teacher. She does try hard.

He is very funny with it though.

I wonder whether anyone at all is going to admit that their GC are not diong very well? It's in our nature to make all possible allowances for them and to be proud of whatever they've achieved.

(Mine, of course, love school and are veritable budding geniuses! )

Eldest grandson (10) is an avid reader, apparently with a reading age of 14, and has been selected for extra tuition in a gifted children's group (this is quite a fun thing not just more of the same).

Elder granddaughter (8) tends to be unfocused but is a fluent reader and spells well. She is actually quite smart at maths but is inclined to give up if she can't do something immediately. She's pretty assiduous about her homework and is very athletic.

Younger granddaughter (5) began school, having been at pre-school, in April. She loves it, loves her teacher, loves her classmates, loves her reading books.

Middle grandson (4 next Friday) is currently at pre-school, which he loves, and is hugely looking forward to going to "big school" next year.

Youngest grandson (2 months) doesn't have an opinion yet.

They are all in New Zealand.

That is really interesting and positive and certainly matches what is happening with my grandaughters in the UK. The elder finds everything much harder than the younger (who is a very bright child), but has had very good support and this year especially we get the impression that her teacher knows her strengths and weaknesses inside out. Wish I could be as happy and positive about my two grandchildren who live in Spain (English father, Spanish mother.) The eldest has Asperger's and there is no support whatsoever in school. No special provision, no teaching assistants, no external support, nothing. This is not likely to improve in the current financial climate. Fortunately they are able to pay for private support from a therapist and this is helping enormously. The little one who is just four, started in September and is in a class of 25 with a teacher and no teaching assistant. I don't want to turn the thread into a discussion of the relative merits of European schools, but I think sometimes it helps to realise just what is available in the UK.
It would be really interesting to hear from the grandparents of children with SEN too.

Anagram the younger one of my two does a very good impression of being as thick as two short planks!"

We await to see the outcome of another few years!

To illustrate the point, at a fair the other day he was sulky cos
his brother got a pea shooter from the lucky dip and he didn't. I gave him another go - the prizes were all on view. What did he do? Chose a second prize exactly the same size and shape as the first!

Guess what it was?!!! (NOT a pea shooter!)

To be fair, I think he got flustered.

Home

sorry to deviate from thread

pardon POGS?

I have 7 grandchildren ranging in ages from 25 down to 7 so far, and each one has had a different experience. The oldest never knuckled down and by high school just went through the motions of attending , struggled after leaving to get a job but is now in a job working with his hands that he absolutely loves and is doing well. The others range from loving everything about school and 6th form to one who struggles on a daily basis with certain subjects. The youngest loves school but can chat for England and has had a struggle with reading , finally she now 'gets it ' and is striding along and making great progress.
Everyone has a different experience and as grandma my wish is they all come out the other side with the skills and knowledge they need to take them into the working world and that they can secure jobs they love to do, and make a little money as well lol.. having a supporting family that takes an interest in the daily mysteries that are 'school', helps enormously..

His piano playing is coming on in leaps and bounds though.

Well there you are then, jingl - he could be truly gifted in that area!

Two of my GC go to a primary school rated 'outstanding' by Ofsted. Their experience is rich and varied - GD (Y4) went to Normandy with a school group, spent time in a French school, bought their lunches in a market - using French and visited a cheese farm where they learnt about the process, and tasted the product, of course. They did a lot of writing about it when they came back. GS (Y3)does Judo before school one day a week which he loves and never complains about having to get up early! GD is an avid reader, especially of Jacqueline Wilson (of course!). GS can also read anything but prefers factual things. He is a mathematician; she dislikes maths but can do it if pressed - just like her granny. She has taken part in two Shakespeare activities with older children, one of them run by the RSC education team in which she played a scene as Jessica in the Merchant.
This is an example of the best our system can show. I know some other schools are not so fortunate in their leadership.

Mamie.

I am pleased to see your thread as it shows me at least someone is considering the point there may be a difference of opinion for good reasons.

My GD is 6 this week. She is a loving, happy girl with a cracking sense of humour. She is happy at school and enjoys going. However, since she started it seems all the basic skills we gave her before starting school have not been greatly improved on due to lack of academic lessons within the school lessons. She needs to improve her writing and spelling and maths are practically none existant. Her reading is fine but that is down to us not the school. I have checked with other parents in her class and she is at the same level of her classmates. So, she does not have dislexia nor any other problem. I welcome the fact that her school could be made to teach a language etc. it is only a positive move for her.My concern is it maybe too late if not implimented soon. She has the attention span of a gnat and I am sorry to say the lack of academic work and educational skills the school provide are breeding laziness in that side of her character.

What would those gransnetters who's GC are getting obviously better education do if their GC were not being taught times tables etc. at 6. We all love our GC don't we, please just because you are in a situation that is good for you, have a little empathy for those who are struggling with the system as it is.

My DGD1 has just finished her A levels and at this moment in time I think the going out on the Town bug has hit, so we will see if she can be kept on with her studies.

DGS1 age six is in year one and his progress this year has been amasing, last year he was with a class teacher who did not like boys and it reflected in the boys progress in the class, his teacher this year is newly out of teacher training and has made a huge impact on him and the rest of the boys, she has them all eating out of her hand.

DGD2 4yrs is about to go into reception in September from Nursery and is too quick for her own good she sit with her brother and attempts to do his home work so I dont think we will have many problems with her.

DGS2 is only 3years and enjoying Nursery.
DGS3 is 18months attending toddlers etc.

J04

I sometimes put in the word home as I type a comment that takes me forever and it gets wiped out, although I am certain I have logged in and used add to comment correctly.

That's odd POGS. Wonder why that happens.

j04

Yet to work it out, I am sure it is me as I am not very computer savvy.

POGS I think we have really responded to you on the other education thread, but I just wanted to say that what you are describing sounds entirely normal to me for a summer-birthday child in Year 1. Don't worry - I am sure she is doing fine. Does the school have open days for grandparents so you can go in and see? Could you offer to go in and help from time to time?
I would love to be able to do that, but I live in a different country from both lots of grandchildren. The two in the Uk are fine, but it breaks my heart sometimes that I am not there to help with the children in Spain.

My GD is six with a reading age of 10, can swim like a fish and her artistic skills are amazing. She has been drawing figures and flowers since she was 18 months old and now the detail in her drawings is wonderful to see. The two year old can sing whole songs in tune and enjoys playing the piano but her drawing is still scribble and when asked what it is, it's always a pumpkin.

Oh, dear, POGS - I was feeling a bit better about the progress of my nearly 6 year olds, but now.....