how can i raise concerns without sounding like a twit?

[rotavirusrita]

Ds is now 9. He enjoys school but he has been saying recently that he is bored. He is I think bright.... his vocabulary is good and he enjoys watching thinks like bbc 4 documentaries and can have interesting conversations about them too. He also reads a lot- we are reading lord of the rings it together and he seems to comprehend most of it. Feedback from school is that he is at an average level and making steady progress. He is very well behaved/ quiet at school. I have never raised any concerns with teachers about him not being stretched because I didn't want to be to be that parent that makes a fuss. Plus I think everyone thinks their child is bright don't they??? Ds says he finishes work quickly sometimes or finds it easy but doesn't want to cause a fuss so just sits quietly. As he's average level and making expected progress school don't seem to think there are any problems
I've been talking to some other parents and I wonder if my laid back attitude is doing him a disservice. He also has now starting saying he's bored at times.... which is a big deal for him as he's normally not a complainer!!!
Should I carry on with my laid back ways, have a quiet word with his teacher? Or think about an ed psych assessment about why he can't translate things onto paper?
Sorry bit long many thanks in advance

[YellowAndGreenAndRedAndBlue]

First thing is chat with teacher, explain he is quiet but is telling you he finishes his work and is bored, what do they think, what can they do to push him on a bit.

You dont need an EdPsych!

[rotavirusrita]

I've already told them this...... they agree but he says they tell him to read of do maths activities on computer. He often doesn't say anything.
It's a very small school so has had same teacher for 2 yrs and will for another 2 . I think she has hands full with other pupils at times.

[learnandsay]

If his syllabus is available you and he could work out what he's supposed to be learning and simply learn more than the syllabus provides for using library books, the Internet, suitable TV programmes and the like. The Open University has lots of interesting information. It's probably not fair to expect the school to do everything for him. But if he's prepared to do extra work it would be fitting if the school showed some interest in what he's doing and learning. (It might not.)

[rotavirusrita]

I suggested an ed psych as a colleague recently paid for an assessment for himself as he found it difficult to get ideas down on paper. That showed that he had dyslexia. I wondered if a similar thing might explain why explained the incongruity between assessments and verbal reasoning

[learnandsay]

You'd need a good degree to write sensibly about the contents of a BBC4 documentary and you're saying that your son is nine.

[givemeaclue]

He needs to speak up when finished his work and do the additional maths activities and reading they are offering. There are some fantastic on line maths applications that could really extend his learning. Or he could sit and be bored. He is choosing the latter I would try to find out why

[rotavirusrita]

You are right of course. I don't know why he's making that choice. I think we will have a chat tomorrow. Thanks for your thoughts

[auntevil]

I have a Ds in y5 who is also saying that he is bored - he also has dyslexia but this is not the cause of his boredom. H has found that there is a wide range of differentiation required in his class.
On the days that the teacher starts the lesson from the lowest level he switches off and drifts away. He studies better when she starts from the higher level as it keeps his interest.
Do you think that this could be happening? That the lesson isn't being pitched at a level that he finds interesting?