Moving Up: How to Ace Secondary School is a handbook that all Year 6 children should take a look at. Foley guides the reader through all aspects of the transition into secondary school discussing the practicalities of having different teachers, subjects and uniforms but also tackling the meatier topics about relationships and bullying.
Moving Up is divided into 3 sections. Part 1 focuses on Year 6, dealing with all the rumours that are going around about secondary school and which ones might actually be true. Part 2 is all about Year 7 and what to expect when you get there: the first day, the subjects, getting lost, the rules, and so on. The final part is probably the one that I’ll be coming back to the most. Much of it doesn’t seem overly relevant at the moment, with talk of peer pressure, bullying, social media and relationships a little way off for my kids just now, but I’m sure they’ll be on the agenda soon enough.
We’ve finished the book and really enjoyed it but it will not be the last time I’ll use it. I will be sharing it with pupils and parents at school and returning to it with my own children at home. It’s a useful book, upon first read, for answering questions that many Year 6s will be concerned about and putting worried minds at ease, but it covers so many important issues, I’m sure we’ll be revisiting certain passages as they move into secondary school.
Tom, age 11, says: “It’s given me tips about secondary school. It’s good to know before I go what things I’ll need for different subject and it was really helpful in letting me know about the different uniform I’ll need.
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