Letters home from school for G&T register.

[SouthernandCross]

We have three DDs at school. One in year 1, one in year 4 and one in year 5.
They go to a local state school with outstanding Ofsteds that is quite academic and they are all in the top groups of their various classes.
During Parents evenings we've sometimes had the teacher go through a spiel about the G and T list, but no one has actually said any of our children were on it until this year.
This year we've been told that two of the girls were on the list for reading, which wasn't unexpected- they are all reading at least 4 years ahead of themselves, but I was surprised that we had actually been told as I had got the idea that the school didn't make a big thing about it.
We haven't told the girls involved. They are all bright and we don't think they ( or we) really need to know.
But then yesterday, DD1 ( who is in year 5) came home with a letter telling us she was on the G&T register. The letter was just a sheet of paper, not even in an envelope and so she read it and she knows she's on it now.
Is it normal for the children to know these things? They all know they are good readers and good at maths etc, but do they really need to be singled out this way? I don't want her getting big headed and thinking she's better than her classmates or her siblings!!
What do other schools do?
Do you think there is any advantage in letting the children know?

I would be furious especially given the (ridiculous) name for it.
It's is a title that can set a child up for failure (this is not the same as saying oh they are not gifted, but merely expressing that I do not like it as a label).

It is certainly a label that the parent should decide whether the child finds out or not.

PS, DS would be intolerable

dd would still think she wasn't able to do stuff. (not that we have had a letter or likely to get one, but when she was reading white band books in reception, she though she was a poor reader!)

Has your school had a management (eg deputy/head/governor) change recently? It seems to me they may have changed the policy on how they handle g&t.

My experience with my 2 school age children has been to receive a letter in year 1 about it, (included in school report, so in an envelope,) detailing what it meant & how they give differentiated work etc. I don't think I actually told ds, but he knew, I think school may have said something to him, but either way it became obvious as he gets to do inter school masterclasses that are solely for g&t kids. I chose to tell Dd1, (who started yr1 this year,) when reports came out as she knew about the list from her brother & had been hoping to do some masterclasses too. I've made a point of not telling them what subjects they are on it for though, as I don't want one saying to the other 'haha I'm better than you at science or whatever'. I just tell them it means they are doing well at school & that their good work has been recognised.

If I were you I'd have a chat with dd1s teacher, it seems a bit weird to suddenly add a child to the list in yr5, when they've been doing well throughout their time at school. Perhaps they've got some plans to start working with the local senior school if they are g&t yr 5/6, so are now making a more formal distinction. The only other thing it could be is that as you've mentioned it's quite an academic school, is that up until now your dc has always been just outside the top 10% in her year & therefore this genuinely is the first time she's made it on to the list. Guess the only way to find out is to talk to the teacher.

I would be very annoyed about this. I have always made it very clear to the school that I don't like labels and don't want dd to be aware of any labels. She knows that she is ahead of her classmates but nobody makes a big deal of it.

I'd be complaining to the school about this if I were you.

I think they have been on the list other years, but this year they have decided to inform parents of it.
I have talked to the head of inclusion and she didn't realise they hadn't been handed out more discretely, so hopefully it won't happen again.
It's too late for our eldest little miss Know It All though :(

Whether it has a negative effect on your child or not is likely to depend on how the school (and you) handles it. Dd was told she was on it but it made no discernable difference to her; she already knew that she was fond of learning and good at it, so being invited to join the g&t club didn't tell her anything new (she decided not to in the end as she thought it would cut into her lunchtimes).

No, haven't told DD and do not ever intend to; there are already too many "Look at me, I am fucking brilliant" children in the year, regardless of G&T status because I hate it and always will do.

DS came home with one of these letters just stuffed in his bag two weeks ago. It was in an envelope though. The letter just says what they are on the register for and that differentiation in class is the way forward. (It's a one class per year school.) We weren't expecting it although looking back the HT did catch me in the playground one afternoon for what I thought was just a polite how's things chat.

DS does not know & will not be told by us. He has however clocked that he gets different homework in that area.

In our school it's called "Extended Provision" which is a much better term IMO, but they differentiate the homework loads for all kids anyway, which is great too. Also a single class per year school. And the letters come just photocopied and stuffed into bag, no envelope.

DD knows, partly because someone (else!) said something careless in her presence ( ) and she put 2 & 2 together and asked - in the end I felt it was better to discuss it openly with her. The benefit was that her self esteem absolutely SHOT up (it had been dangerously low due to problems at school... ) - and she finally understood why she felt so different from others.

We keep stressing that a) it's not ok to talk about it outside the family, but it is ok to show it through work and b) being gifted is less important than working hard, putting the effort in to develop that gift into a talent and being a nice person (as you don't choose to be gifted or otherwise). We also praise effort, not achievement, religiously.

Parenting's a minefield......(in case you hadn't noticed).....!

Totally agree Eyeofnewt. Always praise the effort. Ds is exceptionally good at a lot of things but came home from school at the end of last term with a head teachers award for hand writing, (something he'd always struggled with & has at last started to improve). I was so pleased his effort had been recognised!

I think they don't get big headed about g&t (or whatever it's called in your school,) when you remind them that everyone is an individual with different talents, just like some people are good at running, others art & others still at maths or learning. You don't think someone is better than you if they can paint better than you so there's no reason to think someone who is good at writing stories or doing sums is 'better' than anyone else, either.

Dd didn't get any type of letter. I was told with dd at parents evening in year 6 and they were talking to us about it like we knew what it was. Dd had been on it through school and they assumed we knew. First we heard of it was in year 6! Didn't do anything though. Dd just had more homework than friends and harder maths and longer pieces of writing to do. Now at high school she is in set 1 for all subjects except pe and is doing the same work as children within that set who aren't on g and t. They do get to go on some different school trips, but that is the whole set, not just g and t. The school calls the top set g and t.

at her school calling all of the top set "G&T", bet that riles the other sets!