To ask the school to stretch my DD

[PaxAeterna]

Is this something schools do?

My DD is doing very well at school, is one of the top performers I’m told. The problem is that she is starting to find school very repetitive and boring. She has constantly complained this year that everything is explained over and over again and that she has grasped a concept and is ready to move on. I had paid little heed to this to be honest but now with the end of year report stating that she is a top performer, is it unreasonable to ask the school, next year, to stretch her with harder work basically or accommodate her in some way so that she doesn’t continue to find the academic end of things dull and repetitive?

personally … I would consider getting her to do higher level exam…

for example in the UK … you can do a GSCE at a younger age.

Chat gpt can come up with really good stem activities and then deeper thinking activities. Also some mental maths work. I use it to get teen boys off screens

You say “She is already an anxious child who does not realise her ability so the very last thing I would want to do is make her more anxious.” I think she would be better off if you focus on improving this aspect of her life. Anxious people often can’t sit still, find it tortuous to go through something they don’t want to. She’d be a lot better off learning to chill out and enjoy the moment than to feed her anxious brain

Also you can ask the school to stretch her and I agree they “should” but they are busy dealing with so many behaviours and problems many will find it hard to deepen understanding without just providing additional work. it sucks- as a teacher I can see the kids who are bored and I feel for them but I am struggling to teach most to get to the standard so going that step higher is a when I have time moment… sounds horrible because it is but it’s the reality of education

I am a teacher and I dont think you should word it like that, but you could definitely say she comes home and says it's boring and can do it all, ask what she needs to do next so you can explain to her her targets.

DCU do all year round and summer courses for academic high achieving and/or gifted students. You can apply to do the exam and if accepted you can choose which cotto do. I didn’t know about it for my eldest children but my 5th was accepted after the exam but then didn’t find any courses they liked. The courses can be expensive.

All children are doing foundation gcse type work in y6 . Sats test gcse foundation topics.

Students who get greater depth in sats go on to do higher maths curriculum which goes to grade 9.

YANBU OP.

I asked for clarification about this regarding my DS (6). He has always been extremely ahead in Maths, he can easily compete Maths tasks for 2 school years ahead. (DH teaches Year 3, so was able to check this with resources he uses for his own class). He self-taught himself all his own times tables.

Fortunately, his school already streams, and he is sat with a table of other high attainers. As a child who was identified as gifted academically, I thrived in top sets which could move at a faster pace, mixed ability usually means for high attainers letting friends copy their work and explaining things to them. I actually never minded helping friends, but didn’t get much challenge myself. Sadly, this often doesn’t fully come until sixth form/university.

His teacher reassured me about the ways she is both deepening his knowledge and extending him. He has to show her multiple ways of solving a problem, and describe them. His table have access to ‘Power Maths’ books for extra challenges.

I was never as concerned about writing, as it’s naturally more open-ended for self-extension, but his teacher has done an excellent job of extending his vocabulary, punctuation and editing skills. Reading is also good, as we can access a new book daily, which is great as he reads so fluently and understands the books. Very able children can move at a faster pace.

The teaching standards make it very clear that the needs of all learners, including high attainers, must be met. Check out Potential Plus for further advice and resources outside of school. Good luck!

Thank you for sharing your experiences - this is an excellent, nuanced and insightful response. Absolutely spot on.

It can indeed be a mixed blessing to be further ahead. I put huge amounts of pressure on myself. I would be upset to score 98% instead of 100%, especially as I actually did score 100% in many GCSE and A-Level modules, followed by a double first degree. I cried when I got 1 B and 3 As at A-level, I wanted 4 As. Nobody really understood (‘but you’ve done so well!’), people were kind but I was personally disappointed.

I’ve actually just returned to further study at 39, and it is the first time I have ever studied that I am able to purely enjoy what I am learning about. I’m still getting very high feedback, but I feel completely different studying now I’m older. I don’t feel anxious, I don’t keep obsessively checking through things and worrying after I’ve submitted assignments, I am much more content with ‘no, I’ve done enough, this is good enough.’ It feels wonderful!