Taught an autistic kid to ride a bike last week and he was totally made up... I told him he wouldn't be ready for the road training, as he needed lots more practice...he was a little upset but accepted the situation and could see the reasoning behind it. Unbeknown to me, the school told him to practice at the weekend and bring his bike in the following week. Consequently, he arrived today, full of beans, fully expecting to take part. The school insisted I reassess him, as he'd been practising, with his Grandad, and really wanted to take part. I suggested this wasn't a good idea, but the head was most insistent... OK, I said reluctantly....so, while all the other children were getting their bikes ready, I asked the boy in question to ride around the perimeter of the enclosed five-aside pitch, as close to the railings as possible... needless to say he crashed about five times. I had to tell him that he wouldn't be able to come out... Floods of tears, inconsolable for a good ten minutes.... Thanks, School.....well thought out.... Poor fella Sometimes, I wish people would put more trust in other's judgement
Does the head have a pars and milestones review in the not too distant...... "........pupil-level data will inform self-evaluation, and benchmarking of performance against other schools with similar characteristics. The data will support planning for improvement at pupil, class, year group, key stage and whole-school level."
I'm all for inclusivity, when it's appropriate, but on this occasion it wasn't. We were also told by the head that we weren't to take the kids onto the canal towpath and cycle trails around the country park, 2 minutes ride from school, on account of the fact that some of the parents are likely to complain if their kids get muddy.... the same parents no doubt allow their kids to play Grand Theft Auto, in the safety of their bedrooms.....or is that just me being a tad cynical?
t I get the impression that the school has had issues in the past, and are keen to be seen to be doing their utmost to be inclusive....in this case, however, it wasn't the best course of action. I'm not admonishing the school, tbh. I don't know how vociferous the boy's parents are...I suspect this had a lot to do with their insisting I reassessed him...
It's a great school, nice kids, dodgy area...that narrows it down to roughly 70% of the primary's in Bolton
Yeah far to sensible taking them into a park where if they fall the'll get muddy ,far safer on harder surfaces with traffic
Our boys used to go to a school that didn't allow them to play football on the field because they would get dirty, in stead they were encouraged to play football on the tarmac'd tennis courts ! Lot's of grazes, torn trousers, broken rists etc etc...
Presumably that was during break time rather than PE lessons though? Makes sense really; parents WOULD get the hump if the kids went home caked in mud every day.
In winter we got kicked onto the muddy footy pitch ,kicking the ball that used to weigh a ton ,but we all got into a massive concrete bath after, boots and all..
We're there to teach basic road skills, improve awareness and build confidence. It's a really well structured training program, where kids spend a full 6 hours, over two consecutive days, learning how to deal with the types of traffic situations they're likely to come across... You can imagine the Risk Assessments, H & S etc. that goes with it! We always try to incorporate some easy off-road riding as it's very much part of the fun, and a great way to nuture a sense of adventure (a great deal of which has been frightened out of kids, IMO) True....but on the consent forms, which parents always read very thoroughly before signing () we do say that we'll make use of local trails and off road routes where appropriate....which is why it always makes me smile when kids turn up in their best gear, as it's non uniform
I bet! My comment was aimed at the kids being told to play football on the tennis courts rather than the playing field getting muddy; not your budding Bradley Wiggins'!
