I was really apprehensive and a bit dubbious about the English school system, I really didn't think children of 4 years old can be ready to be school (in Hungary we start school at 6-7 years old), I have read quite a few studies about how in this age they should just play and socialise, how their fine motoric skills are not ready yet to hold a pencil in way to wirte with it.
But the more I got involved with the school search, and the more open days I have attended, the more more my worries were put to bed. The schools are much different than at home. I realise in England teaching is more playful, espeically in the first years. There are no benches, don't have to be silent, no tests, the children don't get marks, but a comprehensive report to the parents. Also the emphasis is on praising and what the child good at, rather than punishing them or giving out bad marks etc..
You can enlist three preferred schools, our aim was to avoid our catchment school, which is badly rated school, and I also really didn't have a good feeling about it.
So for the first place we have put a nearby school where Benji's little friend would also go, altough we knew we don't really have a chance, as it is an outstanding over subsribed school, and we don't live in the catchment area.
For our second choice we have put a closeby catholic school which I really liked and had a good feeling about it. Although, again, despite living close to the school we would have a disadvatage of not being catholic.
So for the third place, in order to avoid our catchment school we needed to put a school where in the past wasn't oversubscribed so Benji would definitely have a place in. We decided next to a Sutton school which is still rated Good, but is in a middle of council estate with not so well behaved children and parents...We hoped this will be a safety net only, and we would get a place in either of our first two choices. Of course we didn't. I didn't mind, as that school also looked good, just was a bit far away, but Richard started to say that he really doesn't want Benji to go there (of course he didn't see the school and when we had to put the choices he kind of said, its up to me...grrr)
So there were were with a school choice we were not so happy about. But then I noticed on the list of county schools with available places, that Manor Primary has still 1 place open. Which I thought its a bit strange, as local mothers told me, that is a really small school, and usually there is a fight to get children in there, so we didn't even consider it, as the school is in a village about 5 minutes drive away from us. We didn't have anything to loose I sent in a late application for that 1 place.
We had to wait two weeks to find out how many people still sent late applications in, then they will decide according to distance who gets that one place. I called a few times to see how many people applied, they said 5. It seemed a bit hopeless that we will be the closest ones.
Two weeks gone, and I received a call, that unfortunately we weren't successful with our applications and they offered that place to someone else, but we are first on the waiting list.
Typical I thought, our luck. I was already planning in my head how to kill off one kid in the village to get our son into the school (of course not), when about 2 hours later I received another call that the person they offered the school place refused as they must have got into somewhere else, so as we are first on the list they need to ask if we wish to accept this place. Of course we would!!! I think even our deaf neighbour heard the big, heavy stone dropping off my heart.
So it looks like this will be Benji's school from September: http://www.manor.staffs.sch.uk/
It is a small school with 15 children each year, and in the class there will be two years, so 30 children all together. We drive front of it as well, to have a look, Benji really liked it, he must have said "Thank you Mumy for my new school" about every morning since.
So exciting times are coming with my big school boy!
We have also been in the Sealife Centre at the weekend, boys have really liked it (Robin says "Fish, fish" really nicely now)
Then we sat into the Handmade Burger place, which was really nice, Benji even noted while he was munching on his food, that "I really like this day Mummy"
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