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Hi any year 4 teachers,i would appreciate your input!

4 replies

stripeycat13 · 01/08/2014 01:09

My child has been severely let down by 2 schools unsupported and v unhappy, so I home schooled for a yr, when I took him out he was 3 yrs behind. Now 8 he is still 2 yrs behind due to the damage caused, hs has been difficult and slow but we have made good progress, filled in a lot of gaps. He is still unable to read though fluently it is hard work for him due to his slow processing probs. He would be the youngest in yr 4 in with 8,9,10 yr olds, he is young for his age and he cant read or write anywhere near the others. Am I being cruel putting him in? his younger brother is starting and he wants to go too.

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benannoli · 01/08/2014 07:42

Hi SENCo here. What do you know about the school, what support do they have for children who are behind and may need targeted interventions? Check this out and if you get a positive response I would say you are being cruel by not sending him. If you don't send him when will you, what will you do when it comes to secondary? To wait until then would be cruel. Let him get a few years of primary under his belt before secondary and if he wants to go surely that is half the battle. Does he do any social activities outside of school, scouts for example?

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Ferguson · 01/08/2014 13:40

Hi - retired primary TA here:

I have looked at your previous MN queries, via Search, including references to Totnes and Dartington.

You do seem to be in a rather difficult situation, and some of your posts are confusing:

Am I correct in thinking one child is due to go into Yr4, but is probably working about two years behind, having been home schooled? You also mention sensory problems, but (I think) didn't clarify exactly what.

A second child is due to start Reception.

Somewhere there is also a mention of a third child, but age not specified?

To get you started on Phonics and reading:

look in MN Book Reviews area, "Children's educational books and courses" section. There you should find the Oxford Phonics Spelling Dictionary, and a link to show you sample pages from it. For a child who is behind in reading, this is probably one of the best books to help them, and it goes right up to secondary level. I assume you do not personally have much experience in Phonics, and how reading is currently taught; there are however, plenty of 'threads' in MN Primary Ed, and one of the most experienced and knowledgeable teachers is mrz.

For help with numeracy, I offer the following:

?QUOTE:

Practical things are best for grasping number concepts - bricks, Lego, beads, counters, money, shapes, weights, measuring, cooking.

Do adding, taking away, multiplication (repeated addition), division (sharing), using REAL OBJECTS as just 'numbers' can be too abstract for some children.

Number Bonds of Ten forms the basis of much maths work, so try to learn them. Using Lego or something similar, use a LOT of bricks (of just TWO colours, if you have enough) lay them out so the pattern can be seen of one colour INCREASING while the other colour DECREASES. Lay them down, or build up like steps.

So:

ten of one colour none of other
nine of one colour one of other
eight of one colour two of other
seven of one colour three of other

etc, etc

then of course, the sides are equal at 5 and 5; after which the colours 'swap over' as to increasing/decreasing.

To learn TABLES, do them in groups that have a relationship, thus:

x2, x4, x8

x3, x6, x12

5 and 10 are easy

7 and 9 are rather harder.

Starting with TWO times TABLE, I always say: "Imagine the class is lining up in pairs; each child will have a partner, if there is an EVEN number in the class. If one child is left without a partner, then the number is ODD, because an odd one is left out."

Use Lego bricks again, lay them out in a column of 2 wide to learn 2x table. Go half way down the column, and move half the bricks up, so that now the column is 4 bricks wide. That gives the start of 4x table.

Then do similar things with 3x and 6x.

With 5x, try and count in 'fives', and notice the relationship with 'ten' - they will alternate, ending in 5 then 10.

It is important to try and UNDERSTAND the relationships between numbers, and not just learn them 'by rote'.

I am sorry it seems complicated trying to explain these concepts, but using Lego or counters should make understanding easier.

An inexpensive solar powered calculator (no battery to run out!) can help learn tables by 'repeated addition'. So: enter 2+2 and press = to give 4. KEEP PRESSING = and it should add on 2 each time, giving 2 times table.

There are good web sites, which can be fun to use :

//www.ictgames.com/

//www.resources.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/maths/index.html

UNQUOTE

PS: As people on other 'threads' said, try CAB, or other local support groups, as it is obviously very hard or you to resolve all these difficulties at once, on your own. Come back if you want any other clarification.

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Saracen · 01/08/2014 15:27

Please forgive me if I'm speaking out of turn, as you haven't asked advice from home educators and I don't know your situation.

It seems to me that as your son has progressed two years in just a year at home, your educational approach is looking very successful and it might be hard for a school to find the resources to match that. I wouldn't imagine they'd be able to work with him one-to-one for many hours a week as I assume you've done. So if he and you were happy to carry on then continuing home ed might be best, at least until he is on a par with his school peers. If your only school option is to put him into a Y4/5/6 class then it might be a particularly poor fit educationally and socially, and that might dent his self-esteem. (Have you discussed with the school the possibility of putting your son into the class below for the time being? If he is working at a Y2 level and is "young for his age" then that would seem more appropriate.)

Few home educating parents would insist on HEing a child who really wants to go to school. However, often children ask to go to school because they've misunderstood what it involves, or for reasons which can easily be addressed at home. For example perhaps he thinks he'll get to be with his brother at school, not realising that they'd be in different classes. Or maybe he just wants to meet more children and you could do that in another way. So if you think your son would be better off continuing with home ed, it could be worth trying to find out exactly why he wants to go to school. If he remains keen on school but you have reservations, you could let him try it, but remind him that he can return to home education if he doesn't enjoy school as much as expected.

I hope you find the right way forward for him!

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stripeycat13 · 02/08/2014 01:25

Hi I just did a long detailed reply and my internet crashed and lost it!,Ferguson thankyou for your suggestions,i do quite a lot of games and different things with him he knows his 2,4,5,10 tables and is grasping a lot of other maths concepts too I have filled in a lot of gaps with literacy too,could do with someone to read with him more but its hard to balance it all.He has done lots of science,cooking environmental science and swimming.He has learned a huge amount about money and its real use how to work things out in shops ect.His reading processing rate is slow and therefore time consuming and this is why I fell he will struggle in mainstream. Home ed has only served to improve his confidence and self esteem no end he is good emotionally at the moment a massive improvement to the little boy who believed he was rubbish at everything,and I am concerned school may destroy this if the level of learning is way above what he can do.I never set out to home ed but I can see the benefits,i have little support though and wanted to give him the chance to go with siblings.Sarencen thanktyou I do see your point and I may do if I cant find the right place.I wanted a year 3/4 group maybe so he could be a yr 3 for another year perhaps.

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