Guest Posted October 13, 2004 Posted October 13, 2004 Makes me mad too - hali. I had to fill in profiles and write a full report on the six areas of learning for each child in my Recepetion Class. I put a lot of effort in the reports and very little in the profiles ( I only had to fill in the summer term) and I'm so glad I didn't. Plus some of the profiles were filled out incorrectly and I didn't really want to add my name and thoughts to them anyway to be honest.
AnonyMouse_1027 Posted October 13, 2004 Posted October 13, 2004 I know mousebat i do too........just makes you think why bother....moan over...
Guest Posted October 13, 2004 Posted October 13, 2004 Does FS equip children for KS1 - No!! I had a lovely Rec class last year who I believed would be a class everyone looked forward to. We also have a WONDERFUL and innovative (and very sympathetic Y1 teacher) who adopt lively and practical lessons wherever she can - but the children are still stuggling because they don't have time to 'play'. Wales (and the rest of Europe) looks increasingly appealing. When will the government see the light of day?
Guest JudithU Posted October 16, 2004 Posted October 16, 2004 I am not sure the issue is about whether the transition is right or wrong, I think it is more the case of whether we are getting it right in KS1. I have taught both Reception and Year 1 and 2 and think that the move in Wales to extend the F/S is right. Yes some children are ready for more formal learning but I believe we can offer appropriate learning experiences through play and still get results. In KS1 the children are still very young and shouldn't be only offered formalised learning. Creativity is the future of education and having creative learning opportunities can only help. I think children learn best when they don't know they are. I have had role play areas in Year 3 even and the children learnt so much.
AnonyMouse_75 Posted October 16, 2004 Author Posted October 16, 2004 umm.... more interesting points to ponder over thanks Tiny and Ladybug for the link and additional info they have been of great help Im on the hunt for the recomended reading too (thanks sycamore) with the changes in Wales towards KS1 and the desire expressed by several posts for England to follow suit how best could KS1 be changed? I know the end of SATs seems to be a main desire, but what about the curriculum in general? would the extention of the foundation stage be the answer? or is there another prefered option? if you could design the curriculum for KS1 what would you like to see? and if you could change the Foundation stage what would make it better? the aim would be to make the step from Reception to year 1 a small managable change rather than the huge step that exists at present
AnonyMouse_64 Posted October 16, 2004 Posted October 16, 2004 Speaking purely as a parent here I would say that the step should not be significant if the teacher is responding to the needs of the children. However, the teaching of Ks1 children is significnatly different to the FS stage and this is the fundamental problem. There really needs to be a move to 'educate' practitioners at this stage to recognise and respond to the differences in children that exists not just at KS 1 but throughout their schooling. But is this actuallly workable?? At what stage do we accept that children will have to 'conform' if the teaching is cost effective. Sorry - just rambling!! I hate to see children who are keen and eager to learn at 3/4 yrs old become disenchanted later in their school life and completely switch off. Young children are so enthusiastic in their learning - this really ought to be nurtured more.
Guest Posted November 20, 2004 Posted November 20, 2004 Hi, I am also in the middle of a dissertation around this subject, although my focus is more on whether KS 1 teachers would support moves to extend the FS Curriculum into Y1 or above as they are doing in Wales - would be interested to hear people's opinions! I I am also the parent of 5 year old twins who moved up into year one in September. Whilst one of them does not seem to be having many problems adjusting,the other is finding the transition problematic. this is not lack of ability, as he is doing as well academically as his brother. There seem to be two main reasons for his disaffection. One is the lack of autonomy involved in the Y1 Curriculum, which he resents hugely , and the other is a lack of stamina. He is not as physically robust as his brother, and he tires easily. This seems to be having a detrimental effect on his ability to focus in class. There is also a big difference in personality. Dom is very keen on order and rules, and likes to know where he stands. Rob is much more individualistic, and less keen to be 'like the others'. It is hard to know what the FS could do to help Rob prepare for KS1, it appears to be more of a case of him not being ready for extended bouts of formal learning.
AnonyMouse_79 Posted November 20, 2004 Posted November 20, 2004 Hi Salhowe and welcome. Thanks for your first post, nothing like getting stuck in straight away. The comments you make about your sons are interesting and I guess pertinent to the whole debate. You are highlighting why for some children a formal year one is not advantageous. Although we talk about Wales extending FS into KS1, they are only just beginning to adopt a FS and I wonder whether it is actually the same as ours? I think for those older teachers amongst us, becoming more informal will not be alien to the way we were trained but for younger teachers, unless they have followed an Early Years specilaism it could be more difficult? It will interesting to hear your conclusions.
AnonyMouse_64 Posted November 21, 2004 Posted November 21, 2004 Hi Salhowe and welcome. Know exactly what you mean about it suiting some and not others. This has been the case with my own children. Luckily for me my oldest daughter was such an individual that she refused to conform when she entered Y1 and continued to direct her own learning, much to the bemusement of her teacher at the time. (I'm not talking total anarchy here!! ) The fact that the teacher took this on board and let her continue (within boundaries) meant that she had an extremely productive year, whereas it could've been disastrous for her.
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