Holidays: Term 1
This term, 8 families have taken holidays during term time.
Between them, 9 children missed 47 days of school- that is more than a whole half term between them!
9 weeks also equates to approximately 188 lessons. Every time a child comes back having missed lessons, it can take more of the teacher’s time to help them understand what is going on and to help them catch up with everyone else: this is time taken away from children who did not go on holiday.
Every week, talk partners get changed so that means 9 children had no talk partner for a whole week which could affect their learning.
If we assume test papers or other assessments to happen on average twice a week, and more for Year 5/6, this means that 18 assessments may have been missed overall. Teachers and teaching assistants often then have to make time for these children to do them separately- sometimes in KS1 this means the adult sitting with the child; in KS2 this would mean having to find the space and time to support the children in taking the test.
There are 10 playtimes a week so that means these children missed approximately 90 playtimes: that is 90 playtimes where their friends missed them out at play. When children come back from being away, it is often more difficult for them to settle back in socially and staff have to support them—let’s say on average each child needs 10 minutes to be settled back in- so that’s 90 minutes of pastoral support.
This is of course a fiction- it was written by a couple of our pupils but please don’t underestimate the impact. Thank you