Do I owe it to dd to ask for more next year, or is it enough that the teacher says she is "fine" and happy?

[emkana]

Dd turned nine in May and just finished Yr 4 at a state primary. She is a level 4 a in Maths, English and Science. In the CATS (cognitive ability tests) she took recently she got a score of 132, which apparently puts her in the top 2 % of the country. She has a reading age of 14 + and a spelling age of 13.something.

All through her school career so far she has been happy and all the teachers have always said what a delight she is, but she has never been put on the G & T register or been stretched particularly. So far I have been quite okay with that, but this last year her teacher didn't seem very interested in dd at all - evidence for this was that dd only got a star of the week award once, and only after I asked about it at parents' evening, whereas other children have had it up to 4 times - and no, it's not given primarily given to those who are struggling, the ones who had it the most times are well-behaved and fairly high-achieving pupils.

I'm just pondering whehter to keep going the way we have or whether to approach things differently as dd goes into Yr 5? And if so, how?

[emkana]

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[emkana]

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Are you all reading this thinking "oh get over yourself?"

[UniS]

is it possible.. that she not getting a "star of the week" BECAUSE she is coasting and not having to put much effort in so she doesn't put much effort in . And the teacher KNOWS this...

Does DD think she has done anything particularly great or worthy of notice?

[emkana]

No I think dd tends to be a perfectionist and she always tries her hardest - she is very keen on awards etc

[IndigoBell]

Well, she is clearly very bright and she is also doing very well at school - 4a is a god score. So I would probably leave it.

She may be on the g&t register and they haven't told you. They may well be stretching her without you realising it - or they may not.

But my experience of schools tell me that if she is not being stretched it is because that teacher isn't very good and doesn't know how to. Discussing this with school won't help - because that teacher is not capable of stretching her.

Anyway, I wouldn't worry. She's on track to get 5 s in year 6 which puts her on track to receiving As at gcse. So I really wouldn't worry.

[marialuisa]

Do you have any idea what the general profile of her year group is? The scores are good but it is quite possible that she is part of a group of children achieving at that level so not necessarily in need of any additional "stretching" apart from that which is already given to the top group-which you and she may be unaware is happening?

My own DD is the same age and by all accounts, freakishly bright. She's much happier at a school where she doesn't have an IEP and teachers suggesting she do GCSE maths in Y6 than at the school which did. If she's happy then I wouldn't worry too much, there are so many other ways to make life interesting for her.

[seeker]

4a in year 4 is very good indeed. If I were you, I would make an appointment with her year 5 teacher as early in the new school year as possible, and ask about what targets they are going to set her, and what are they going to do when she goes up the sub-level that will take her to leel 5 when she has nearly two years left of school to fill with productive work.

She can still be "fine" and "happy", but they really need to ahve some sort of plan, however vague, in place to keep her busy and learning.

[PrettyCandles]

I would wait and see how your dd gets on with her new teacher.

My ds1 is like your dd. Just finished Y4 with 4s in all subjects, and an advanced reading age. Until now he has had teachers who clearly delighted in him, but his Y4 teacher has found him difficult and has been very reluctant to do anything differently for him. However, he has maintained his high performance despite being a bit bored in some lessons, and he seems to have enjoyed his year.

Several other mothers of high-achieving children in his class feel exactly the same way about this past year and the teacher. So perhaps while the teacher's personality doesn't appeal to us, she is nonetheless doing an acceptable job.

I have had some discussions with the G&T co-ordinator at the school, and she has included him in the extension activities.

Have you talked to the staff member responsible for your school's G&T programme?

[emkana]

Thanks everyone for all your kind replies, really appreciate it. I might try and talk to the G & T person - if I'm brave enough! But will also see about seeing her teacher early into Yr 5.