ad
When the times comes for sending your little ones to school, it’s important to be confident in your decision. While primary schools can be seem as quite similar to one another, each one will have little differences that will either be closer or further away to your ideal school.
That doesn’t necessarily mean you’re looking for a school with the best scores, but that might be one of the factors you personally are interested in. Some parents want convenience, and would prefer to send their child to the school down the street, while others might travel further afield because they want a school with more enrichment activities.
While schools need to have a certain number of teaching hours, some schools will finish earlier than others. This finish time might be the difference between needing to pay for an out of school club and not.
If you’re not really sure what specifically you’re looking for when choosing a school, keep reading to find out some of the things I think are important.
What Will Playtimes Look Like?
For me, this is a big one. Of course kids need to work, but play is just as important. Do you they have a good sized playground? Play equipment? A field?
Are the foundation stage children fenced off from the rest of the school? Do they go out to play with the bigger kids including the juniors? Will that overwhelm your child?
Morti Sport & Play specialise in supplying schools and other places for young people with play and sport equipment. They fit play equipment in playgrounds, offer surfacing solutions (such as rubber mulch and other softer surfaces), and supply sports equipment and lighting. They believe that good outdoor play equipment is important and so do I. They suggest that a well-designed playground can help with cognitive and social skills, as well as physical health, helping keep your child’s education well-rounded and not just confined to the classroom.
If you visit the school on an open evening, ask about what playtime will look like for your child.
Does the School Value Creativity?
Obviously I want my child to have a good education, but I value creativity just as much. If you want your child to have the chance to paint, craft, bake and explore other creative projects, then you need to take this into account.
Some schools will just cover the bare minimum when it comes to creative topics, while others will go all out and encourage learning to be done creatively. A good indicator of whether the school fosters creativity is whether there is a lot of artwork on display. Have the children made things out of clay? Are their pictures decorating the walls and hallways? If the displays are solely made by the teachers, then creativity might not be a priority.
Are There Enrichment Activities?
You might have a child who is just happy completing a school day then coming home. If you do, that’s totally fine, but I think it’s nice to have the option to do some enrichment activities.
Some schools offer things like art clubs, sports teams, musical instrument lessons and dance. You don’t need to sign your child up to everything going for them to have a good education, but it’s nice for them to have the opportunity to join something if it interests them.
Taking part in clubs and activities broadens their social circle and gives them chance to explore new things.