DS bored in year 7

Have you looked at his books to check what he’s saying? Mine is reading books in English they’ve not done before, he’s about to dissect a pigs heart in science, is doing new sports in PE, a second language and expanding the one he was learning at primary etc. my son says he’s bored but what he means is this work is harder and more in depth and he misses the less intense workload of primary. There will obviously be an element of recapping in yr7 as the teachers gauge the pupils understanding and how deep that understanding goes.

There is often a lot of recap at the start of Y7 but it seems odd that there is nothing new at all. Not even in subjects like English where he can surely write to a higher standard? They are reading texts in English Lit he's read before? Studying periods in history he's already covered in the same level of detail/from exactly the same angle? He's playing the same music and drawing the same pictures that he's already drawn?

is he asking for extension work? Has he spoken to any teachers?

(what I'm getting at is - is "bored" really a cover for can't be bothered, or don't feel happy?)

I've been surprised at how little practical stuff there has been in science - probably not helped by the Bunsen burners not working the day they were supposed to be using them apparently.

He is doing some new stuff (French for example) but I guess it's too interspersed with stuff that isn't new and interesting.

I find DS is having the opposite experience maybe his Primary school was just a bit crap. He is loving learning Spanish (they did French at primary) he is enjoying all the practical science with bunsen burners etc (they never used these in Primary) Life Skills is another subject they didnt do at primary along with woodwork and food tech. He is also doing some different sports in PE so far they have done boxing and lacrosse and water polo none of which he did at primary.

Is there absolutely nothing new they are doing? Even if it is just PE?

No advice I'm afraid but just wanted to say that DS is also saying he's bored in year 7 and he's come direct from state primary. It seems to be mostly because it's not new stuff but also I think he's just finding the style of teaching (lots of just writing things down from the board) much less engaging than in primary.

We raised it at parents evening and his form tutor just told him to ask the teacher for extension work. DS has anxiety issues which mean he struggles to speak to anyone but close family/friends and there is no way he would do that but I couldn't help but think that the teachers should be noticing if he is regularly finishing the work quickly (particularly as they know about his issues with not being able to speak up). They have just set for maths and science so am hoping that will at least help in those subjects.

A lot of the work they do in year 7, particularly in maths, is to do with consolidating the things they learned in year 6. But I am sure it’s not all the same in other subjects!

Can I ask whether the switch back to state was financial because if not perhaps switch back ?

Most secondaries cover some yeàr 6 stuff in first term so they know that all kids have covered some basic stuff before moving on. They will probably then test and set kids by Christmas

He’ll soon start new work. I’d be surprised if there is not a single subject where he is learning new work? Sometimes languages in Year 7 can be hard to gauge.