to be rather bemused the nursery had senco in to check our DS...

[soopermum1]

...without telling me in advance. i have no idea what or who senco are, but they have apparently ruled that my son does not have behavioural problems. am now very bemused.

his behaviour has been pretty atrocious at nursery in the last few weeks but i wouldn't have thought he was giving reasons to diagnose behavioural problems. while i trust what the nursery is telling me and have been addressing it at home with him, he's not nearly as badly behaved at home.

now senco are saying that he's getting too old for nursery and development-wise should be in school (he's 5 at the end of october.) there's not a huge amount i can do about this as he goes to nursery full time and i completely agree with what they've said. he's a bit of a show off and obviously has a captive audience in the younger kids at nursery. he's now the oldest, and certainly the biggest at nursery and he has a rather forceful nature.

nursery have said they're splitting the older ones out more from the younger ones and have bought a lot of 'older' toys so i'm happy that theyre working with me on this. just a bit bemused about the whole thing and feel a bit powerless as there's not much i can do about school and because senco have said, and i agree, he just needs a firm hand. this is what he gets at home, but nursery are bound by all sorts of rules and regs, i can see for myself the level of discipline they can give him is less than i do at home.

DS can't wait to go to school, he loves school type learning at nursery and certainly seems bright and ready to do more structured learning, wish i could send him tomorrow

[scottishmummy]

SENCO are Special educational needs coordinators (SENCOs) they have responsibility for managing the effective delivery of the education psychology service, learning support, behaviour support, SEN assessment and administration, and parent support.

however nursery should have told you this was an Assessment.allowed you opportunity to discuss your son you know him best after all)

[soopermum1]

cheers, scottishmummy (i'm a scottish mummy too) is it normal for a senco person to rock up to a nursery to just see how everyone's doing or do they only come when invited re particular children?

[CarGirl]

I would have thought invited for a particular child!

[scottishmummy]

usualy by invite and request eg someone flagged this up to her. you need to find out who and why

[scottishmummy]

senco scotland

[HonoriaGlossop]

Do you need him at nursery full time?

If he doesn't need to be there every day maybe even a bit less nursery might be better for him - you can perhaps do things that interest him more and are more age appropriate. He might be getting bored with the routines and the possibilities of nursery and you could try to suit his needs better than they can maybe!

BTW I think it was bad practice to invite the SENCO in without telling you. They should have consulted you really.

[soopermum1]

nursery manager did say something like 'we did tell you about this' and i muttered' oh yes,' but i really can't remember her telling me and if she did i certainly wouldn't have understood. it was just when she said 'behavioural problems' i thought 'bloody hell'.

am a bit concerned now that this has been arranged without my full approval, understanding and consent. i would've registered what it was if she had explained what senco is, if she did even tell me in the first place.

oh god, i can feel a showdown coming on

[soopermum1]

unfortunately i work full time, he has to go to nursery full time. he probably is getting bored

[scottishmummy]

ok deep breath you have done nothing wrong at all - you try to do your damn best. The nursery manger should have requested a 1:1 mtg told you of her concerns, with actual corroborating evidence and dates, and accounts. not a rushed o we got to talk - you and your son deserve more

[struwellpeter]

I think you need to ask the nursery to explain who they mean. Both nurseries where I worked had SENCOs who were nursery staff who as part of their job in the nursery dealt with any Special Needs as Scottishmummy said. The nursery is only able to call in Special needs people fom the LEA for an assessment if the parents agree. You probably need to get this clarified.

I wouldn't worry at all about your little boy. It sounds as if he will love school and that the nursery is trying to find other things to keep him happy. Does he enjoy imaginative play? Will his nursery let him do messy outdoor things? Can they manage to let him have some responsibilities if he can tow the line for a while?

[windygalestoday]

im a nursery nurse and a mum of boys!!!
i think your son has 'outgrown' nursery the staff he has will be very familiar he knows the rules knows wht toys they have and is probably needing extra stimuli- it is very hard as a nursery nurse to provide extra provision for 1 child but i feel they should be accomodating him better than they are,id be very cross that it wasnt made 100% clear to you that senco were paying a visit- but t lest senco have advised them regarding firm hand etc etc so maybe things will look up....good luck x

[elkiedee]

When does he start school? September? Or August as you're in Scotland? Are there not others who turn 5 in the summer/autumn at his nursery?

[soopermum1]

he will start school in september. there are other kids his age there, but he's the most boisterous out of them, bit of a class clown, and certainly the biggest in stature.

[Kitti]

They should have had your permission first. When I spoke to the school nurse about my daughter she needed my permission to speak to other individuals and my daughter herself so I don't see why it should be any different for a nursery. It's not your fault he's not in schoool yet. They don't take them until September do they?? I'm guessing he'll be fulltime straight away - that's how it is in the south and part-time if they're not 5 until the following year. It's only another term to wait.