Supporting 'more able' children

[roisin]

It is with some hesitancy that I am posting on here, especially since the recent disruption of a thread covering these subjects. But I have been posting on mumsnet for over 3 years, and it is for me the natural place to come to discuss issues which are exercising my thoughts.

I have been surprised at how affected I was by that recent thread, and how personally upset I felt by the thought that there were topics I could not raise on mumsnet.

Since then I have had email conversations with other posters on mumsnet, who feel similarly. So I would just please ask that you respect the views of anyone who posts on here, and if this situation does not affect you, then please don't post negative comments.

I am just popping into this thread to say something about the school we chose for our children (dd1 starts there in jan). as we were being shown round, they showed us a small class room in the infants dept (also one in juniors somewhere). The pointed out that this classroom was mainly for 1:1 support, not just for kids with special needs but for ones with exceptional needs. Out of the schools we looked at this one seemed to be the one to be able to support children of all abilities.

I realise I was in a completely self pitying mood yesterday, so sorry for my woeful post. It is good to know that others are there. I do think we should be proud of them, we do tend to think its ok to celebrate sporting success, for example, in this country, but seem to be embarrassed when its academic success.
How is everyone else getting on?

I'm new to Mumsnet, so I don't know if anyone has mentioned the National Academy for Gifted and Talented Youth (NAGTY)(www.warwick.ac.uk/gifted/index.htm) before. So far it's just been for those at secondary school, but it's moving into primary school provision.
It does seem a shame that often it is just suggested that bright children should do more work after school or at weekends. There's plenty of room for challenging extension work at school in good schools.

Roisin, if it's any consolation, you're not a pushy parent at all! My DS's best friend is a very unusual little girl who I am certain is gifted. She's 3 now and can be a real handful - in a way that no other 3 yr old I've ever heard of cld be. She's not like a toddler at all - she's like a little miniature adult. The conversations you can have with her are amazing. Her mother is very proud of her little girl but also finds it hard to keep her stimulated at times.

My mum is the Key Stage 1 coordinator in a big primary school and I just mentioned this thread to her. She says that for a teacher to say she just doesn't have any more resources is "appalling and just not good enough". As someone else here has said, she says you should ask to see your school's Able Child Policy.

She also says she really feels for parents of properly gifted children (as opposed to the pushy parents of bright children), as it can be as much a disability as being a bit slow.

Thanks everyone who has commented since I last posted. It is good to hear other people's experiences, ideas and opinions. I do want to start my ds on a musical instrument so I will think further about that. Our Special Needs co-ordinator doesn't seem all that interested in bright children unfortunately. She seems to think they manage all right as they are. SIGH!

Lulupop - Hi! You referred back to my original post way back in March, and I realised I had expressed myself badly, so feel I have to defend our school. Ds1's teacher in yr2 did say that she "no longer had any materials within her normal yr2 extension work to challenge him" .. but then went on to develop an individual programme for him. She set him challenges and projects each week, and he was allowed to skip normal classwork sometimes in order to work on these projects. Often she spent time with him one-to-one during her playtimes, assembly times, and her lunchbreaks. She was absolutely fantastic with him, and went far, far beyond what anyone might 'reasonably expect' from a class teacher with responsibility for 30 children. We are very, very lucky with our school.

Ds1 now has the opportunity to go to an explorers club for G&T children on Saturday mornings, which he loves. He's also getting on very well at school. In yr3 there seem to be more possibilities to do extension work within the normal curriculum: to study what everyone else is doing, but just take it one step further.

We still have concerns about behaviour, and social skills. Lots of recent posts on here sound very familiar to me. We have actually taken the step of arranging to see an independent Ed Psych just before Christmas to discuss our concerns.

Yet another newbie joining the thread. It is great to have a thread where you can get support from likewise others. Our ds1 - year 6 has always been bright ( nightmare from 0-5!) but it wasn't till he moved from first to middle school that he was actually classed as g&t in maths. I have to say his school has been great - they contacted the LEA who devised a programme of extra challenging work for him to do.

I think we are lucky in that he is obssessed with football and plays for a local and the school team so to his friends he is just one of the lads which was another point his class teacher made and they are monitoring him incase he decides to 'dumb down'.

So far so good.... however he can drive me to distraction - the hysterical outbursts due to his need for perfection, the obsessional behaviour, the worrying about everything! He is so sensitive and I would just like to toughen him up a bit!!

Hi saffy. I also have a ds who is Gifted at maths. He is yr 7. Have you given any thought to doing maths gcse early? We are thinking of it for ds but are not sure the school will aprove.
They have him on the year 8 extension work at the moment but at home he is starting to do maths practice papers for gcse.
The school are reluctant to foward him any more.
But are starting him on simeltanious(sp) equations after half term which thety have told me is yr 9 stuff.

Does anyone know if Simeltaneous eqations is for yr 9 by the way.?
Not sure if school is having me on to be honest.

Hi Louise
The school has apparently told my son last week that they will do some gsce work after half-term. He is working alongside another boy so they tend to have a competitive edge to it between themselves! To be honest I'm not sure what I think of it - proud but wary! My main fear is they do the gsces early but then what? I don't know exactly what facilities the state schooling system has in place for these more able children.

I don't want him to get bored now but then I don't want him to get bored later (when the terrible teens hit us!) iyswim? I think this will be something I will have to bring up at parents evening ( not till January)

Wow age 9! thats amazing. Did the school offer him the chance to do it or was it from elsewhere.
If you've got the chance i'd go for it, he could then move on to a level work .
If you are gifted at maths I think you should not be held back, the skys the limit why should our kids be doing work in class that is boring to them. Our school only lets them sit gcse a yr early but ds will be bored rigid by then and he is very keen to sit the exam soon. although he doesn't want any of his friends to know as he is afraid of being seen as nerdy. LOL

Does anyone know what an assessment by the "gifted and talented" person at school would involve for a 6 year old in year one? DD1's teacher told us at parent's evening that she would be assessed shortly. I am afraid it took me by surprise and I just sat there looking gormless (teacher clearly thinking, well, DD doesn't get it from her then) and didn't think to ask.