Should my daughter have been put back a year?

Montymud

We recently moved to Ireland and my eldest daughter was in 2nd class (in england it goes: reception, 1st class, 2nd class and so on) and my youngest in reception. They have now started at their new school and my youngest is where she should be, junior infants but my eldest is only in senior infants. There was a whole class year between them but now they are side by side, so my eldest has been put back a year. So far as I can tell by their ages my eldest should be in the next class up. Youngest was born end of november 2004, eldest - end of august 2003. I have brought this up with the headmaster but he says she is in the right class. How can this be? How can one go back a year but the other stay in the year she was in. I think the headmaster has made a mistake. Can anyone clarify please? Thank you - Im so confused!

TheColl

Your eldest being born end of august 2003, would have turned 5 in 2008 and generally speaking that would be the right time to start school here, meaning that this current year should be her second year in school, i.e. senior infants.

There is little over a year between your two children, so I don't think they should be two years apart in school. I think the principal has got it right. If you ask about the ages of the other children in the class you'll probably find that your eldest is in with children of a similar age.

dolliemix

The Principal is correct. If your eldest was born August 2003, that would make them 6 and not 7 until next August. He/she is probably a little older than most in his/her class but she/he would be much younger than the other students in 1st Class. Its probably better for your child anyway as she/he adapts to the Irish Curriculum

icescreamqueen

I'm teaching first class this year and the majority of the children in my class have already turned 7 at this stage. I have a boy in my class who is the same age as your daughter and to be honest he sticks out like a sore thumb. He just doesn't have the same maturity or committment to his work as the other children. I would leave your daughter in Senior Infants and if you're finding she is finding the work too easy, try to challenge her with extra work. There is a big jump in terms of the curriculum in 1st class. She will have an extra hour in school each day and it would be easier for her to adapt to new surroundings, children, teacher etc. with the shorter day as is.

ShamoBuc

I would think Jnr and Snr infants would be the correct class level to place your children in given their age. Also given the change of curriculums it will probably prove advantageous in the coming years.

E.T.

The big problem when children come from the English school system is that the 2 curriculums don't have fully equivalent levels. There isn't a reception year in the Irish school system - the nearest equivalent would be a very good pre-school where the children do cover early mathematical activities and learn the alphabet/letter recognition (usually not phonics). Unfortunately there's no guarantee that children here will attend or have access to such a pre-school. Reception wouldn't be the same as Junior Infants here, which is where some confusion may have arisen. Although some of the literacy and numeracy covered in Reception would be at the same level as Junior Infants, the methodologies would differ and we don't have classroom assistants help out with these areas.

Year 2 in the English system would be roughly the equivalent of Senior Infants in our system. It might be more advanced in some parts, but more basic in others. Socially I'd completely agree with the principal's decision to start your eldest child in Senior Infants (I teach Junior and Senior Infants and give extra lessons between 2-3pm to various classes from 1st to 4th so I've a fairly good idea of the variety in these levels). In the first place the new school system is a big enough change for a 6 year old, especially with the additional language change - most teachers will give a lot of general instruction in Irish, obviously they'll give it in English too, but the younger the child is exposed to a language, the easier it is to pick up. Most of the children in my Senior Infant class would be at least 6, with the majority turning 7 before the end of the school year. As a teacher I'd feel that putting a 6 year old into a completely new setting with children who would be mostly 7 or even 8 would be the wrong choice.

Your younger child is an ideal age for Junior Infants, children here can start school at the age of 4, but from my experience in general, being that bit older gives a huge advantage socially and often educationally.

shivs

Hi there,

We too returned from the UK. To be honest, l think it's better here, as my children were always thee youngest in their classes - they coped with the work, but there was almost a full year between them and some of their peers. This makes a HUGE difference, esp the further up the school they go.

Enjoy the time they have in Primary!

TheColl

E.T. wrote: »

Your younger child is an ideal age for Junior Infants, children here can start school at the age of 4, but from my experience in general, being that bit older gives a huge advantage socially and often educationally.

+1

Montymud

Thank you all for your replies. They have been so helpful given some of them being quite comprehensive. I feel much better about everything and I have to now agree that Senior Infants is the best place for. Your help is much appreciated.