7 year old finds school boring and gives up everything too easily!

[Feellikerubbish]

My 7 year old has always been very reserved and clingy. He started reception and has since opened up and become more confident. He used to do well at school and enjoy learning. At 6, when he started year 1, he made the occassional comment that they sit and do more work than play. Now in year 2, he says he likes play time and he likes maths but other than that, doesn't like school.

He has trouble concentrating sometimes. He sleeps enough, eats enough and i don't think he has ADHD or ADD. The problem is, he's always willing give things a try and always up for new challenges but as soon as it becomes slightly more challenging/time consuming, he loses interest.

We had a maths homework which was a board game. For each square you land on, you double the number on that square. He enjoyed this as the highest number only went to 10. Next step was to add another digit to each square so i added a 1 before each number. He was capable of adding 2 digit sums but he lost interest and started complaining how it can't be a game as it's no longer fun and it's taking a long time to calculate the sums. Also, he comes across very lazy, choosing to add sums by drawing sticks or counting his fingers when i know he is capable of doing it in his head mentally or use another way on paper but again, it uses time so he uses the easiest way instead.

This behaviour is seen throughout everything he does. Going swimming with us to play, he loves it but he every sunday before he goes to swiiming lessons, he complains and begs for a week off. Also the same with karate lessons, which he begged for a long time to start it, loved it so we bought the karate suit, then started losing interest and asking to have a week off nearly every week.

His interests include playing computer games on his ps4, lego and sometimes reading (when he finds a book he likes).

Computer games is restricted to 4 to 5 hours a week spread out but mostly on a friday night and saturday morning. But all he goes on about is computer games (Minecraft).

Socially, he isn't doing so well. Although he has a few good friends, he's struggling to form a bond or get on well with them. He easily gets in a mood and then he would be rude to his friends. Not understanding that they won't understand why he keeps getting grumpy and eventually they may not continue to play with him!

I am really struggling with how i can help him and would love to hear any tips or advice i can try please!

Try him on Mathsisfun.( IXL) It is free for 30 mins. I would also recommend Khan Academy. Com, sponsored by Bill Gates. This is a totally free Maths website. However IXL is more child friendly.
I showed a friends GC recently who were 3 and 5. We wanted to catch up and they had nothing to do. When it was time to go they wouldn't come off it.
It has a scratch pad option, so that you can work out on the IPad screen, it has rewards, videos and will give you a progress report if you register as their coach. It also tells you all the work a child could cover in a years spreadsheet.
As to his lack of interest. Is he going to bed early enough. They need quite a lot of sleep. It is a bit too early to say that he lacks motivation.
Also I would watch his sugar consumption. There is sugar in almost all processed food and orange juice.
Toast and cereal in the morning contains, sugar in the bread and sugar in the cereal. Lunch unless it is home cooked, there will be more sugar in there some where. At night a meal made with Dolmio Pasta sauce, more sugar and then a sweet biscuit or a fruit shoot or sausages, baked beans more sugar.
I would watch his sugar intake.

You may have invested money in them, but if he doesn't WANT to do these additional activities would it not be better, for now, to concentrate on school, and the things he does need to do. What is he like at reading and writing; science; ICT; music & drama; PE & games?

Let me know about his reading level, what books he likes, and what sorts of simple stories or recounts he can write; I'll look back sometime and see how you are getting on.

Try some of this to help with Numeracy:

Practical things are best for grasping number concepts - bricks, Lego, beads, counters, money, shapes, weights, measuring, cooking.

Do adding, taking away, multiplication (repeated addition), division (sharing), using REAL OBJECTS as just 'numbers' can be too abstract for some children.

Number Bonds of Ten forms the basis of much maths, so try to learn them. Using Lego or something similar, use a LOT of bricks (of just TWO colours, if you have enough) lay them out so the pattern can be seen of one colour INCREASING while the other colour DECREASES. Lay them down, or build up like steps.

So:

ten of one colour none of other
nine of one colour one of other
eight of one colour two of other
seven of one colour three of other

etc,

then of course, the sides are equal at 5 and 5; after which the colours 'swap over' as to increasing/decreasing.

To learn TABLES, do them in groups that have a relationship, thus:

x2, x4, x8

x3, x6, x12

5 and 10 are easy

7 and 9 are rather harder.

Starting with TWO times TABLE, I always say: "Imagine the class is lining up in pairs; each child will have a partner, if there is an EVEN number in the class. If one child is left without a partner, then the number is ODD, because an odd one is left out."

Use Lego bricks again, lay them out in a column of 2 wide to learn 2x table. Go half way down the column, and move half the bricks up, so that now the column is 4 bricks wide. That gives the start of 4x table.

Then do similar things with 3x and 6x.

With 5x, try and count in 'fives', and notice the relationship with 'ten' - they will alternate, ending in 5 then 10.

It is important to try and UNDERSTAND the relationships between numbers, and not just learn them 'by rote'.

An inexpensive solar powered calculator (no battery to run out!) can help learn tables by 'repeated addition'. So: enter 2+2 and press = to give 4. KEEP PRESSING = and it should add on 2 each time, giving 2 times table.

There are good web sites, which can be fun to use :

www.ictgames.com/

www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/page/default.asp?title=Woodlands%20Junior%20School&pid=1

Thank you all for the information. I will check out all the links later after work.

I have given him the option to stop karate and swimming but he doesn't want to, just wants to take time off and miss a lesson here which i feel is not acceptable as we pay for these lessons in advance.

He just likes to have fun and as soon as something takes time, he loses interest and finds it boring :( Literacy is the main problem at the moment, he really hates it! Trying to make this fun hasn't been easy.

Ferguson- He likes reading and is reading green coloured books and he told me there is 2 more colour level books after green so i think he's doing ok. Writing he really doesn't like. Maths he is capable but just as i said, loses interest when it becomes more challenging. Science he likes and loves ICT and PE. Not really that into music.

I agree that he can't stop and start activities; he should be old enough to understand he either does them regularly, or drop them altogether (at least for now).

Different schools use different colour band systems, but I think this is probably the most 'standard' one: www.readingchest.co.uk/book-bands

For children who are reluctant writers, I often suggest if you have a tape recorder, or a phone that records, he can DICTATE his story; then he can play it back, amend it if necessary. Later, he can try to write it, or type it. When I worked with Yr2 boys who would only do a line or two of writing, when I let them dictate their ideas to me, and I typed on the computer, they came up with all sorts of great stories.

Often, it is the physical writing that is the problem; the ideas are in their heads, but they can't get them down on paper.

To encourage his reading and writing, and maybe to help you know more about phonics you may find this useful:

An inexpensive and easy to use book, that can encourage children with reading, spelling and writing, and really help them to understand Phonics, is reviewed in the MN Book Reviews section. Just search ‘Phonics’.

Good luck, and I'll come back sometime to see how he's getting on!

Hi you have totally described my 7 year old. His lack of concentration at school is what drives me crazy the most. We started maths factor in dec it has a monthly fee but his Maths has come on massively and it's only a slight battled to get him to do it.

His friendship groups don't help they are a group of lovely but silly boys who regularly play each other off against another.

As a Mum I am finding it all quite stressful and hard work at the moment. I am hoping for that miracle cure :-)