Thinking About High School

Collaborative Post

Can you believe it is October already? This year had flown over - I say this all the time but I honestly think time speeds up when you have children. It feels like weeks ago that I was writing about my children being toddlers and starting nursery and now they are both in key stage two and the final few years at primary school! 

I have one in year four and one in year five and this time next year I will have to start applying for high-school places! I honestly don't even know where to begin when it comes to deciding which high school to send them too. When my 19 year old was younger she didn't get her first choice and ended up at the local secondary which wasn't the best, she ended up switching schools for her A-Levels. 

This time I want to get it right as I have two children to consider who are both very different personality wise and academically.  I honestly don't know where to begin as I am torn between sending them to our local school with a lot of their friends or sending them to a different school that might be better suited to them. I just wish I lived closer to Leicester as grammer schools in Leicester sound ideal for my 9 year old daughter.  Unless a letter from Hogwarts arrives in the post - which I think she is secretly hoping for. 

Finding a primary school was so much easier as there is so much more choice and we are lucky that we live very close to a fabulous one that all three children have attended over the years. Selecting a secondary school is a whole different ball game though as older children are more independent and you have to take their future in to account. You need a school that they will happy in and that will also enable them to do well and set them up for adulthood. 

We also have to take location into account as I am lucky that at the moment I work very close to the children's primary school, meaning I can drop them off and pick them up on my way to and from work. Obviously when they go to secondary school they will be 11 years old so will be travelling there and back on their own so it will need to be a school that is easy for them to get to via public transport (there is none within  a short walking distance of our home). 

I also need to find a school that both children can attend as I want them going to the same school but it has to meet both their needs. My daughter has dyslexia so will need a school that can support her and offers creative subjects as this is what she enjoys. Whereas my son is very sporty and academic, so he needs a school that will push him to excel and reach his full potential and also has great sports facilities and teams. 

If anyone has any tips on selecting a secondary/high school for your children please send them my way as I need all the help that I can get as it really is such a minefield.