Back to School

It’s time to start that first school, new class or senior school. Trepidation abounds for child and parents. Amidst the trauma of the integration process there is the real opportunity for us to consider what it’s all about. As we say goodbye at the front door, bus stop or school gate, time to reflect on how we can best support our offspring and the school.

Schools are incredibly busy places full of timetables and deadlines, but also an introduction to the world of averages. Teachers in state schools are constantly striving to meet performance criteria whilst adjusting to changes in priorities and curriculum. An average class size of 30 means that any child can only receive personal attention from a teacher assessed at 11 minutes per week. If you are on top this is not too bad but if your child is struggling in any subject then the odds start to stack up.

News from the Department of Children Schools and Families reveals that standards of reading, writing and maths amongst seven year children are in long term decline. Despite the focus on literacy and numeracy and a massive £21 billion investment there has been a fall in in basic writing skills and no improvement in reading, speaking and listening, maths and science. The fall is more marked in boys.

The fall in standards leaves many children entering secondary school with a substantial hurdle. Without this essential grounding they really start to struggle and many effectively switch off during the first two years in secondary school as the lag becomes exacerbated.

But there is help for the parent wanting to give their child an extra boost. The advent of modern teaching resources used in schools, predominantly in the form of educational games, are equally usable at home. The opportunity to reinforce the classroom lesson at home by practising the lesson content as a game at home can have a huge boost on a child’s performance and motivation. It also allows the parent to take an interactive role far above the conventional text and exercise book approach.