[mike&stef]

Hi all,
First of all many thanks for all the helpful info over the last year. I've not posted much because you're such a knowledgable lot that a quick search usually finds an answer, someone else has usually been there and done that.:clap It has also been probably the most stressful year of our lives together so far and I can't quite believe yet that there is New Zealand sunlight at the end of the tunnel.

We've just had a thought that has us really worried and I wonder if anyone has had similar or could help us work this one out.

We've just got PR and are flying in to NZ end of August for a 7 week road trip from North to South Island. We're hoping to find work in/around Dunedin or Christchurch but will travel.

We have 2 boys age 6 and 9 who we will need to find schools for wherever we settle. Our concern is for our youngest who is 7 in November. He has been late to speaking, reading and writing which we feel is more due to confidence and maturity rather than a specific problem.

In the UK, as one of the oldest children in his year group [year 1 ages 5 to 6] he is achieving at a relatively low level compared to his peers.
Our worry is that a November birthday would put him as one of the youngest children in year 3 [ages 7 to 8]. Therefore he is going to skip a year and be even further behind his peers. We are really worried that this will totally wreck his confidence.

Does anyone know if this is the case based on his birthday?
Could we choose to have him stay in the year below, he is small for his age and would "blend in"
Anyone else experienced something similar?

With advance thanks for any wise words from the forumites!;)

Mike and Stef

[Mels]

This is always a bit of a conundrum. I have been through it too but in the end I came to the conclusion that, especially at that age, the school will put them in the appropriate year. As schools are small often there are two years in one classroom which may help the process.
There are a number of posts on which age = which year. I will see if I can find one.

Mels

[peebles16]

I think the NZ school system is more flexible. Our eldest has just turned 7 and when we arrived at beginning of school year he was put into Year 3 class (much to my surprise I have to say) however, within a day they realised he wasn't going to manage and moved him to a Year 2 class :yes Also kids don't all start at the same time in school here but can start on their 5th birthday and go into new entrants class - my understanding is that how long they spend there depends on the individual child and school set-up. I've posted earlier about my own experiences regarding assessments, support provided and how well my son has done so far in NZ education system - now if only I could figure out how to put in a link??

HTH
Karen

[Mels]

Try this one while Karen thinks :D:D

http://www.emigratenz.org/forum/showthread.php?t=14043&highlight=school+year

Mels (running for cover -Hi Karen)

[mgbridges]

Our DS was 5yrs 8mths when we arrived, August 2007 and went into a Year 1 class a few weeks before the end of Term 3 but with kids who were all older than him. Most had already had their 6th birthdays and some were a year older than him. It became clear quite quickly that he needed to be in the other Year 1 class but there wasn't the space available so the school gave him extra support. e.g. he joined the new entrant class in Term 4 when they were doing the Phonics Programme.

At the beginning of this school year (Jan 08) he moved on to Year 2 but into the class with the younger children. It was definitely the right move and he is a better 'fit' but is still struggling and is still getting additional help, he has also been referred for RTLB (more on that in this post: http://www.emigratenz.org/forum/showthread.php?t=17205)

At this stage we don't know all the reasons for him being behind as we haven't had formal assessments done. He is definitely what I would call an 'immature' 6.5yr old and is not where he should be in terms of reading, writing or maths. And I can't help but wonder if one factor is the fact that due to the way the academic years fall he missed out on approx. 2.5 terms of Year 1 teaching.

To try to help your concerns most schools assess a child before they start. They will endeavour to put your child into the most appropriate class taking into consideration age and ability and I'm sure would listen to your concerns. Once you get settled make sure you visit several schools to find the right 'fit' for your child, I'd also try to keep up reading and writing practise during your roadtrip.

HTH and apologies for rambling a bit.
Anneliese

[peebles16]

Try this one while Karen thinks :D:D

http://www.emigratenz.org/forum/showthread.php?t=14043&highlight=school+year

Mels (running for cover -Hi Karen)

Cheeky mare :laugh

Here's the post me thinks - more about assessment etc to compliment mbridges post :yes

http://www.emigratenz.org/forum/showthread.php?t=16211&highlight=teachers+blunt

Karenx

[mike&stef]

Well as usual, people straight to the rescue!! LOL It's like the 6th cavalry.

I have read your threads and posts and they were very useful, certainly puts it into better perspective. I think as we are both teachers ourselves then the thought of a low end year 1 child being thrown to the wolves of year 3 had scared us, big time.
And to think 7 odd years ago we were beavering away busily to conceive and make sure he was the oldest in the year!! Should have been a bit more leisurely about it!;)

Thanks again and it's as always a relief to know someone out there has been there , done it and come out the other side. [and is willing and generous enough to share the experience!]

we'll get back to madly sorting out our keldt because the removers are here in 9 days and we're nowhere near ready. At least when it's in store we can start to look forward to our trip and start planning a route!! Shall be searching for posts because I know I've seen one!

Sincere thanks again Mike and Stef :):)

[Tia Maria]

Just to agree with the others, that the NZ system is quite flexible. For instance, their is an older boy in my son's class, as he came straight from South Africa, where they start school later, so he had no familiarity with school.

Also they tend to mix up classes each January, (at our school anyway), so originally my son was in a year with everyone turning 6 in the same calender yearas himself. The following year his class was split in half and mixed with a class where evreyone was turning 5. Next year they will join the two classes back together. Hope that makes sense, it took me awhile to get my head around it!

They seem to have more of a general view that they are in the Juniors and try to mix them up a bit so they get to know plenty of children in the school.

So I think the only thing you may have to worry about is that they pick up on it. But as long as you mention it early, (a simple, 'when will you assess his reading?', will probably do the job), he should be slotted into the right class. :nice1

Cheers

Tia

[Debbie]

Hi all,

We have 2 boys age 6 and 9 who we will need to find schools for wherever we settle. Our concern is for our youngest who is 7 in November. He has been late to speaking, reading and writing which we feel is more due to confidence and maturity rather than a specific problem.

In the UK, as one of the oldest children in his year group [year 1 ages 5 to 6] he is achieving at a relatively low level compared to his peers.
Our worry is that a November birthday would put him as one of the youngest children in year 3 [ages 7 to 8]. Therefore he is going to skip a year and be even further behind his peers. We are really worried that this will totally wreck his confidence.

Does anyone know if this is the case based on his birthday?
Could we choose to have him stay in the year below, he is small for his age and would "blend in"
Anyone else experienced something similar?

With advance thanks for any wise words from the forumites!;)

Mike and Stef

I don't know if I'm understanding your post correctly but my son is 7 at the end of Sept and is yr 2 not 3. I thought that a birth in 2001 would be a yr 2 child starting yr 3 in Feb.

In my experience NZ schools are very adaptable to the individual child's needs and as said they often have combined yrs . Worth asking the question when you pick a school or if you feel that it is necessary look at holding back a yr. My son's school has several children who for their own needs are back yrs and it doesn't seem to be an issue or have any of the stigma that is associated with this in the U.K. (This may be, in part, because of the area we live has a lot of immigrant families with children who's home language isn't English).

Debbie

[rowells]

Hi Mike and Stef,
I cant answer your question, sorry.
But, how did you manage to get the schools here to agree to 7 weeks off?
We would love to do what you are doing, can you take kids out for that long?
Rache

[mike&stef]

Thanks for your further help,

Yes Debbie thats what we were worried about;that in the UK he has just finished Year 1, he will be out of school for at least 4 months and then if we're settled in NZ by February 2009 then he would enter school as year 3, having missed year 2 completely.
Hopefully as you and others have posted the school will be flexible enough to accommodate him, I've worked with mixed years before and he would have fitted in one of those classes.

Regarding keeping them out of school for so long, well as we don't know where we're going to end up as we've yet to find work and we will be of "no fixed abode" for at least 3 months, plans are then to buy a tent and travel and camp until I find work!! I don't suppose the "authorities" will even know about them never mind try to get them into school.
We are both primary school teachers and feel that this once in a lifetime adventure that we're embarking on will be an education in itself for them and any gaps then we can help to fill in later!
Having said that. filling in the whole of year 2 had us worried!

regards Mike & Stef

[Debbie]

I have to start by saying that my kids never started UK school so this is based on hear say but...
I wouldn't worry to much about him missing a yr out. Comparing what my son is doing yr 2 NZ and what my cousins kids do yr 1&2 UK the NZ kids are way behind. I don't mean this to show NZ schools in a bad light it is just that they seem more concerned with the whole child development at this young age. UK schools seem very concerned with hitting academic targets. As a result my cousins yr 1 kid is doing the same maths & reading as the bottom end of my sons yr 2 class and her yr 2 UK kid is doing stuff, (like higher number times table and multiplication) that only comes yr 3 at my sons school.
The kiwi schools I've looked at and experienced all have grouped the kids into smaller working parties for reading & maths so they can work at their own pace with in their class.
Debbie

[aberdian]

From our experience (and recent discussions with our boys teacher), the systems are way different in NZ to UK, with the accent being on teaching the kids skills rather than "stuff". This means (in his class at least) that there's way more priority put on writing and reading, especially writing in the early years than in the UK. There's no history or geography or science or pesky facts to bar the change between the UK and NZ systems. :)

I think it's unfair of me to attempt to compare the two, they're wholly different animals. We're of the opinion that the move to the NZ system is way easier than going back is going to be (if that ever happens) tho....... If you've a kid with decent fine motor skills it'll be fine, if you have a kid who likes fact based learning (like mine!) then they may need some extra curricular stimulation.

Disclaimer - these are personal observations, based on my personal experience. It goes without saying that other schools/teachers/pupils may well be different. :)