I could do with some parents opinions on an idea i have had.

My husband is a qualified/experienced primary teacher, works full time in a primary in Rotherham. I am a qualified teaching assistant (qualified to higher level). My husband has been offering private tuition for primary kids coming up for their SATS, or who are just struggling a bit etc. However like us people are feeling the pinch and can't afford the individual fees, he charges £15.00 per hour which seems to be fairly reasonable.

Anyway my idea is to run homework groups or group tuition, 4 kids maximum per group, and they would receive input from both of us. We would be looking for £4 0r £5 per child per hour. We've thought about how to accomodate differing ages/abilities etc, but before i take it any further would anyone be interested??

If this is in the wrong thread, my apologies

My kids aren't school age yet but I'm a primary teacher and I think it sounds like a great idea!

thanks for the reply Saff, the friends i have asked think it's a good idea too but wanted to see what a wider audience thought

I really like the idea, I think my daughter (10yo) would benefit from something like this. Good luck with your venture.

Great idea :) I would use this if my kids needed extra help. Good luck.

I have children in my care of all different ages, If we had a child struggling I would use some one like that, small groups work well and are affordable

thanks for your replies fols, that seems encouraging, now need to look into where to advertise our services, any ideas would be gratefully received.

many thanks again

I don't know if you can do this but you and your husband could target the schools you're interested in getting kids from and discuss it with the head and ask if you could send a flyer home with each child, or put it in their newsletter or something.

it does sound good, I'd be interested if my daughter ever needed extra help, and its very affordable

i think it is a great idea. this is what the problem is with some schools the classes have to many children in that the teacher may not be able to give there full attention to someone that needs it and the extra help such as the kind your offering is a great way for the child to get that extra help that they need i say go for it

many thanks for all your replies, oh and i have been thinking about this for a while.
i'm not sure about asking local schools to advertise for us, in my experience some are reluctant to endorse unknown services and seem to think it casts doubt on their own abilities to educate the children at their schools. I've put a post on netmums and am going to ask friends to pass the word, i think parents prefer personal recommendations for this sort of thing. I might put a post on here too.

any local shops who would put a flyer in there windows?

run an add in the star or sheff telegraph?

I think it's a shocking reflection on schools, parents and the system that anyone is seriously considering cramming primary school children for SATs.

I think it's a shocking reflection on schools, parents and the system that anyone is seriously considering cramming primary school children for SATs.

its not about cramming for SATs, its about ensuring your child is at the same level as the rest of the class, because with overcrowded classes so many children get left behind and overlooked as the teachers don't have time to notice as they are forced to get results instead of ensuring kids are enjoying learning.
My OH can't read, he has dyslexia which was never picked up at school. If my daughter was struggling with her reading, if I was unable to teach her then I wouldnt hesitate in paying for extra help because I've seen how hard life is if you're unable to read.

The OP said he husband offered "private tuition for primary kids coming up for their SATS". Giving children extra lessons outside school on school subjects so that they may do better in exams is cramming. You may think it excusable, or, indeed a good idea, but it's still cramming.

You say it is cramming but if the children gain an understanding through working in smaller groups then is it really cramming if this knowledge stays with them. Cramming implies you cram all the knowledge in and then after SATs they forget it all. I think that these groups can help certain children who learn better in small group situations. If you do this before SATs then yes it might help them to get better marks. You don't have to emphasise SATs and you don't have to put pressure on the children. Some children may actually enjoy these groups. Not everybody agrees with SATs but we have them and like it or not they do influence groups at secondary school and therefore have implications for a child's future.

exactly honeyb that was what i was on about earlier so many classes are crammed and the curriculum is so vast that kids are forced to learn quickly and no teacher knows which child is struggling and which one isn't they are just expected to do the work, the teacher doesnt have time to make sure each child knows what they are doing and i would be quite happy to pay for extra tuition if my child/children (when they are born) were struggling to keep up or had any learning difficulties

regarding the SATS cramming.........my OH tends to work with children who are struggling in a particular area, say maths for instance, mostly they come when they are in year 4, which is two years before the SATS. He doesn't regard SATS performance as important which he clearly explains to parents, he's more interested in seeing the child improve their performance as this has a direct effect on their motivation and self esteem.

He does have kids coming who are worried about their SATS and think that cramming will help, my OH points out that at this age (10-11) it's too much pressure. He has pointed parents in the direction of WH Smits's as there are plenty of revision books available, but he says education at this age needs to be stimulating and meaningful to the kids. Rather than stuffing heads full of facts that don't have real meaning and simply switch them off as it's so boring.

They repeat most of the year 6 curriculum in their first year at secondary school and more attention is paid to teacher assessment than the SATS.

to many teachers put to much pressure on kids to perform well it is nice that your OH wants them to do well for themselves and enjoy education and learning not for the results of the SATs