What is your primary school's policy for "bright" children

[Blossomhowl]

My ds is 8 and is doing really well in year 4.

I had his PAR day today and teacher said that quit often the brighter children, especially ones that have reached the national average, usually are set work and get on with it.

He had so many children on IEP's that needed his help and admitted that he could do with an extra pair of hands.

Obviously there are children that are needier than ds but I still think he deserves to be taught to his level and have the same amount of attention as every other child.

I don't like the fact that he has to just get on with it.

I think it's outrageous that a teacher is expected to teach 30 children of all different abilities without any help.

When I asked the teacher what the policy was for ds he didn't seem to know and was quite vague (he is a new teacher).

Just wondering what other schools did?

Thanks

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There are several threads on this issue in the G&T topic. Brighter children being left to get on with their work is quite common in the state sector. Whether it's actually that bad a situation has been discussed on there too. (Some practice in organising one's own time is useful before secondary school, and some work, particularly literacy, can be of the level the pupil makes it iyswim, but on the other hand not all bright children are necessarily self-motivated).

My children's primary school does some extension work and there are some schemes run by the local authority out of school hours. Is your son's teacher really teaching 30 pupils without any help from classroom assistants or LSAs, Blossomhowl - that would be rather unusual. If there are classroom assistants, they can assist as much with the more able end of the class as with those who are struggling.

How do I know if he is G & T though?

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our school does nothing. Just have to shoulder all extra work ourselves until secondary school when thinks seem more suited to brighter children. ask what the schools policy is - ask the head...

Bh, this is a hoary argument which usually ends with posters getting a hard time from other people who think they're boasting.

IME for many schools providing proper support for higher-achieving children will not be a priority, principally because their main motive is to get as many children to the magic Level 4 in Y6. For a reasonably bright child this is not a demanding target, and many will have reached this stage, or even the higher Level 5, some years earlier. It would take a really outstanding school to resist the temptation to let these children just coast for a year or two while they concentrate on bringing the rest up to the benchmark. I think there are a few schools that really do provide imaginative and appropriate challenge and support for children who are achieving beyond what the National Curriculum requires them to achieve, but IME they are the exception.

Being left to get on with it is pretty much the norm, I would say. Depressing, but true. Wrt G&T (hideous term), you could ask what the school do to identify their G&T children, and what they are doing to support them. You can then compare this with what is happening in practice, and if necessary make a fuss. But I wouldn't count on it having much effect in the long term.

Not all schools are forthcoming with that information, I'm afraid, Blossomhowl. It's best practice for primary schools to have a G&T register and a policy, but I don't think they have to have one.

You certainly don't need your son to be officially G&T to visit the Mumsnet G&T topic area (and you don't have to pass an aptitude test yourself either). And it's not populated exclusively by parents of geniuses either - G&T schemes are aimed at the top 5-10% rather than the utterly exceptional. So if your son is at the top end of the class he probably would qualify - but the implications of that are highly variable .

I hate to sound boasting but I am very proud of ds. He works hard

I think G&T is defined as top 10% at my dd's school so whether your child is G&T rather depends on abilities and talents of the other children there. Given this, I wouldn't for a moment think I was boasting by saying my dd is on the G&T register at her school. At many others, she wouldn't be. The school's policy is to provide extension work in class, which we have seen very little of... She still enjoys school mainly because of her friends (which is why we wouldn't move her) but I know she gets fed up with the behaviour, which stops everyone learning, and with some of the stuff they get asked to do.

Some education authorities have a good plan of action and others just wing it!

Ours Wing it, School says if identified it would be no problem as they pair the kids off with older kids when learning.

Eh hem my ds (reception) was placed in year 1&2 French lesson for one week and the following week they forgot to move him up and sat through the basics getting very bored. So not reliable there then!

I am of the opinion to forget any hopes of assisting your children to get on (not in a pushy way) as all attempts are ignored.