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Secondary education

Yr 8 parents' evening. I only really needed to see one teacher

4 replies

Revised · 11/06/2014 10:03

They all said exactly the same.

DS is well behaved, polite and considerate of others. Short answer tests show he has a clear understanding of the subjects and in those he achieves high level 6s. However, he's getting around 5c/5b for "proper" assessments because his written work lacks detail. He writes the bare minimum. He also needs to put his hand up more, speak up more and generally participate in class more.

He's always hated writing. He's hypermobile and was very late to write at all. It took a long time for anyone to realise what the problem was but once he got OT help, he did improve quickly. His handwriting assessments now show he's only slightly below where he "should" be for his age which means he no longer gets any help and doesn't qualify for a scribe or to use a lap top etc. However, he still finds writing difficult, uncomfortable and his hand tires easily. The ligaments in his hand are slack which means he has to grip the pen hard all the time. That said, there's no disputing he's also lazy and won't write more than he thinks he can get away with.

So, is there anything I can do? I and teachers have all explained to him that we know he's bright and would have lots to contribute to the class if he spoke up more, that nothing terrible would happen if he gave a wrong answer etc but I doubt it will make a difference. I sympathise because I was the same at his age and I don't find it easy to speak up at meetings etc now.

What about the written work? He's been told till we're all blue in the face but it doesn't seem to be sinking in

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JWIM · 11/06/2014 10:43

OP
My DS, bright (level 5s KS2) and tendency to laziness, has always struggled to produce written work - did/does the bare minimum and can be hard to read - but does contribute to class discussions. No identified reason for why he finds writing physically challenging. At secondary school we have discussed this with the SENCo and he is able to use laptops for class work and now end of year 9 tests. Perhaps try the SENCo to see if this might be available to your DS.

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Revised · 11/06/2014 11:12

TBH his problem with his fingers is such that typing (or anything requiring fine motor skills and co-ordination) is a bit of a struggle for him, so I'm not sure how much a lap top would help. In any case the "experts" are saying he doesn't need one, he just needs to put in more effort.

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JohnnyBarthes · 13/06/2014 16:18

My 13 year old has similar issues with writing, but he can type. Even if it's not a million wpm, it's better than fighting with pen and paper.

Typing tutor programmes didn't work - it's pissing about general Facebooking and online gaming that have got him to an ok level.