DC left reception at level 2B

[NorhamGardens]

My youngest was level 1A in writing, level 2B in reading/literacy and 2B in numeracy at end of reception, was born in May and now in Y1.

DC is going into an extended reading programme currently.

DC seems fairly bright but these levels have only just come to my attention. I got some documentation from the school and DC seems to have reached a level 9 and then they did some extra assessing?

Teacher last year was a bit dismissive and said 'well you can tell they've spent a lot of time with adults'. Not true.

Am I right in thinking that this is fairly unusual and I should be asking questions about extension or G&T programmes? A bit clueless, sorry.

no that would get tedious and quite exhausting and alzheimers like. memory is really important.

that's a very good point, 'don't want to be working it out for yourself everytime'. pretty much the basis of culture and all that span out from there.

Going back to original post. Those levels are high & yes your child should definitely be getting some sort of extension, but more often than not this is covered within the classroom by differentiated lesson plans. Eg if a class is shown a picture of a cat & asked to write 3 descriptive sentances, the teacher will be looking for different things from different children. A child working at level 1 may write; 'Here is a cat. It is black. It has a tail.' While from a child working at 2b, they would expect something more like this; 'The beautiful black cat has silky fur. It has a long tail and spikey whiskers. The cat is sleeping.'

I agree Joyn. That it what my dd used to have to do. The teachers called them wow words - putting in these extra fancy words. Dd was given a thesaurus by one teacher early on so she used that and she still has it and uses it now and she is 12. The child has to know what these words mean though and not just put them into their writing. x x

Yep Ibizagirl, sounds exactly like ds's experience. From year 1 his teacher was expecting the following; Wow descriptive words (could use thesaurus,) compound sentences and appropriate connectives & a level of flow in his writing.

so differentiated by outcome then - as in same task with different results and expectations. tbh even at secondary school level when i was teaching most of my differentiation was done by outcome and that's the reality of exams too - they all have the same questions (except setted subjects and mine wasn't it was mixed ability) but will respond in different ways and get different results. for all of them it's about constantly improving so knowing where they are at and what you are encouraging them to move onto.

we're talking about 'able' kids here really aren't we? gifted and talented is something quite different.

i think you'd know if your child was G&T because it would appear as SEN does in general - as being really quite different and not in entirely positive ways either - genuinely G&T 5 year olds would have some quite querky and demanding needs i'd imagine.

I'm really intrigued at how other parents know all this stuff about levels etc. My dd has just started Y1 and I have no idea whatsoever what these levels mean, what level she's at, or where she's at in comparison to others. The teachers have built a kind of firewall around all that and are very strict about only telling you about your individual child's progress, with no external comparators. I have to admire that - it's probably due to all the pushy parents round here - but given that, and the fact that every question I ask my dd about school is met with, "That's a secret", and that the social code is that you DO NOT ask other parents how their children are getting on, I have nothing to either boast or despair about

i only know about this stuff because i used to be a teacher and i used to help translate it all for my sister when she was going through it with her kids at primary where it seemed to matter a lot.

i know nothing from ds's school like this - he only started in september and parents evening was basically about how they'd settled in and what lovely things about their character the teacher had noticed and whether we had any concerns. the most academic it got was me asking what system of phonics they use to try and get a heads up on how not to confuse ds by being inconsistent. we're having a phonics workshop for parents after half term and then the kids will really get started on all that.

so yes - i'm surprised too that people know what levels and things their kids are working at in their first year of primary. i find it baffling. surely the key questions are about confidence, listening skills and manners and social skills etc at this age!?!

Me at parent-teacher evening: "So, how is hesterette doing?"

Teacher: "Oh, fine! Setting in well, beginning to make friends, good behaviour except when she and x get a little over-excited and silly..."

Me: "Lovely! Well, she tells me she's very happy here so thank you for that. Now, how is she doing in her learning?"

Teacher: "Fine. Good progress in all areas."

Me: "Any particular strengths or weaknesses?" (Subtext: please tell me my child is a genius. Please.)

Teacher: "No, she's doing just fine across the board." (Bright smile)

Me: "No, um, areas I should be focusing on at home?" (Getting increasingly desperate.)

Teacher: "No, she's just fine." (Smile gets broader and glassier.)

Me: "Oh ok. So she's doing alright then?" (Despondent, abandoning battle.)

Teacher: "Oh yes, nothing to worry about there. Could you send the next one in on your way out, please?"

do you want more specific stuff from her?

Hi swallowedafly.

"I think you'd know if your child was G&T because it would appear as SEN does in general - as being really quite different and not in entirely positive ways either - genuinely G&T 5 year olds would have some quite querky and demanding needs i'd imagine."

My son is classed as SEN by his school. It does cause more work for teachers, I know they have to seek advice from higher up the school including at secondary level. I think he would probably have demanding behaviour if they did not deal with him so well ( at using the term "deal with him" but I cannot think of another way to phrase it!).

We were being taken aside from when he started nursery before 2 about different things and different times (longer concentration span,motivation at what would be considered "academic" things such as reading, writing and numeracy and a great memory). We never paid attention when we sent him to nursery we had not even thought of singing the alphabet and other basic stuff to him. We are young parents, certainly no friends had children so no idea of normal development rates, I actually think this helped. So it was only when he started school properly (he was at a nursery attached to the school) that we listened to the school and started to realise that yes maybe he is more advanced (in some areas). When he was being assesed at secondary school levels in reception we did realise. His marks are never compared to others but I am sure that is the same for every child and rightly so.

I think you are right that there is an element of when the child is more work than a bright child eg Ibizagirls DD is amazing at maths and requires extra different work from the school (including being able to sit public exams early), my son requires a lot of 1-2-1 (3 hours+ a week). I do think kid gloves are used sometimes ( teachers can be afraid to praise, as literature says it is better to praise effort and I think some times they do not think our children work hard also sometimes they do not want to bring attention to the child for fear they maybe socially excluded by peers).

The latter reason for not bringing attention to the child for social reasons I fully believe in.

i was very lucky iggly that at primary school they just let me go for it. i remember well picking my own books right from the start and being allowed out of lessons to go along and read in the library and stuff. i remember doing secondary maths and english and being really encouraged in independent learning but with out any big sing song that made me particularly aware that i was having a 'different' education to my peers.

where things went very wrong and 100 times more difficult to deal with was when i started secondary school and there was clearly no handover or continuity of 'care' for want of a better word. i had nothing to learn for literally years. i was seen as difficult by some for, i think, asking 'awkward' questions like they thought i was doing it to be challenging or something. the difference between primary and secondary was shocking - totally changed my life and quality of life.

i'm always being told ds is well ahead of himself and very bright and peculiar for want of another word in his advanced thinking and language and negotiation of ideas. i'm so wary though of making too big a deal of it or putting pressure on him in ways that effect his development as an all rounder. i think i trust the school at this stage - it's a pretty good primary though the ofsted report mentions more being needed for the most able kids - that can be a good thing as it means fresh strategies are going in and they're focussed on it (being positive).

if it turns out to be right that he is very able or gifted then i think the real carefulness will need to come in in that transition to secondary school - obviously i'm biased but they can really slip through the net then if someone is not mindful of what they need in terms of stimulation and 'fuel' - they can also be massively ignored because they appear to be cruising along and can really disengage because they too need praise and encouragement if they're to stay chanelled.

personally if i had a gifted child in secondary i'd be doing early exams and qualifications on the side to make sure they could feel progress and achievement and kept up the pace they needed to go at to keep developing rather than switch off.

sorry for long post.

i'm aware i'm a bit paranoid about the whole gifted and talented business because i'm so wary of how to handle things with ds in such a way as to let him be what he is rather than assume or label or push him

Great believer in tiny class sizes, individual attention and good run through communication.

also having had issues myself with it i guess makes me even more wary.

main thing is i really think it is an SEN - not just about being clever or quick - it is a need for special educational provision in order to get the most out of school and can cause just as many problems as a learning difficulty in the other direction imo.

I was banned from asking questions at school .

me too iggly. i don't think we could home ed because i do really think he needs the interaction and stimulation of a school environment - i'm a single mum with limited energy and i can't be everything all the time iyswim. but i do wish that schools were different and could be more flexible to their learners. i'm thinking a juggling act of school plus some home ed will get us through.

iggly i can remember being utterly confused by having been sent out for asking questions when i really, really hadn't done anythign rude as far as i was aware!

i really hope things are better now in schools!

so sorry for thread hijack OP!

DS is highly motivated at things that interest him. Seriously think of instruments later on, this is great as they work at it and see the improvement. DS loves that he can play some of his favorite songs.

I would never home ed due to DS being a "social whirl wind" (parent of one of DS's friends).

I do think classes are ridiculously large now.

same with ds - he buzzes with activity and being with people and all of that - it would be cruel to not send him to school iyswim. social whirlwind is about right. he knows everybody and all about them within a day of starting out in a new environment. there is no way i could give him enough social outlet and opportunity without school.

classes are huge and it is a shame.