I am starting to wonder about my DS

[whatwhatinthewhatnow]

He has always been interested in books and reading/writing. He could write his own name from 2.5 and can write anything you want as long as you spell it to him, even back then. He is 3.5 now.

But recently it seems to have excelled. He has started picking up books for the first time and literally reading them (my Mum will bring at least 3 new books a week, our house is packed full!) At soft play he picked up a packet of Quavers and it said 'Time for an adventure' on the top. He read it out loud. So I tested it - give him almost anything and he can read it. Or at least sound it out ie for entice he will say rice or nice. I have never taught him this, I read him a couple of bedtime stories every night before bed and that's as far as my input has gone.

He can do simple maths like adding and subtracting numbers under 10 (8 minus 2 or 5 + 3)

On the tube today he read out every stop on the Piccadilly line and what zone it was in. The only stop he could not get on the whole line was Caledonian Road.

I am now thinking I have to act on this. He is ahead of most of his friends who went up to school this year. I am really worried that he will start school in September and will be taught things like this that he already knows. What do they do with children who can already do it when they get to school

I just don't know how to go forward for the best, other than to keep encouraging him, he love's it. Should I see a health visitor?

One more that really made me go was that he announced in the post office that they were "Looking for a christmas job this year". Obviously it was a question and he hadn't quite got the ? at the end.

Is this normal or am I looking at a talent here?

Bumping for others. He's pretty special. That's some pretty exceptional reading. Do you go to the library together? Let him explore and choose his own books then when he's read the talk to him about them. Reading is one skill but understanding what you have read is harder.

Start doing more maths with him. Challenge him. Lord you don't want him to develop Matilda-esque powers!!!

sounds like DS at similar age (he's now just turned 5). Wait till he starts reading graffiti...

What we found useful around that age:
BBC fun with phonics DVD & Songbirds phonics books. After that, the frog and toad and happy families books.
Leapfrog DVD's e.g. the maths circus. Also an abacus and Numicon.
pre-school is great for social development. lego, puzzles, jigsaws are all good for fine motor control and cognitive development.

As for the health visitor - what would you want from them? They can't actually do very much in terms of education (as far as I know?).
Talk to the primary schools you are considering, ask to see their SEN and G&T policies (if they don't have one, or won't show you it, that is a BAD sign). Tell them what he is doing already and ask them how they will differentiate. Do they set? Will they advance to the year ahead or 2 years ahead if required for literacy and numeracy? Will they be able to provide any dedicated TA time for 1:1 extension work? If the person you speak to doesn't have the answers try to get a meeting with the SENCO.
Having said that, we did all this, we are now on our second primary and both have completely failed to challenge DS or provide appropriately differentiated work. e.g. he knows his multiplication tables and recently started adding 3-digit numbers in his head but his numeracy homework this week was to write the numbers from 1 to 10. These are the two best primaries in the local area (one state with outstanding ofsted, one private) so in our experience you will be very lucky if you can find a primary that can make adequate provision.

Yes, spontaneous reading like that is definitely unusual, but I don't think the health visitor will be much use. All the stuff you are doing with him sounds just right - he will ask you for what he needs, so I wouldn't really worry about that.

Reception will probably be mostly fine as well - they spend so little time doing the academics, just ten minute stretches at a time, and have so much choice that he's unlikely to be bored. Year One, however, is where it gets a bit more tricky...

Schools will not do what it takes to challenge him academically.

Even a highly academic private school won't, in fact sometimes these are the worst. In an ideal world, I would look for a small quirky, probably private, school that looks at children as individuals and gives them lots of freedom. Good luck.

A good school will be able to stretch him. We had several start able to read chapter books and they were fine.

As it happens by year 4 reading abilities levelled out and others caught up.

I've always been able to read. My mum says I was reading anything and everything kind before I got to reception. I remember being in reception getting to choose a book to take home, and longingly eyeing up the yr.2 books because they had way more words to read. Useless pictures taking up reading space! In yr 1 I was reading the green dragon books for 11+.

I am no genius though, or particularly gifted. I'm top end of clever,but just was an early reader.

I think at this age keeping them with their peers is the most important thing. There's no advantage to steaming ahead and getting your a'levels at 12. As long as school keep him engaged and he's not bored he'll be fine.

Thank you all, especially for the information about what to ask schools. I think I will start finding ways to challenge him at home in the mean time. I always thought he was quite good at reading but was unsure whether this actually means anything at this age. I looked up the G&T characteristics and he does have a lot of them, especially the developed humour and curious nature (at 2.5 he saw a woman put up an umbrella and shouted "Nice hat!" and started giggling uncontrollably!) He doesn't have all of them - he was very slow to talk but once he did, it was in sentences. He now has a huge vocab and chats away like a child of about 5 or 6 ("You aren't the biggest fan of lemon cakes, are you Mummy?")

Its unfortunate but there is no way we could afford an independent school. I am thinking we could attempt a bursary (but I bet everyone will be after those) or some other way in. We are very fortunate where we live that our two nearest primary schools are Outstanding however the attainment at one is still pretty dire. There are also a few traditional secondary schools with entrance tests locally whose students do fantastically so when he is older, if he keeps this up, there are options.

Interestingly, I was also a very early reader but I am most certainly in no way gifted! I just wonder if I had been nurtured more and encouraged at home, whether I could have done better at school in the end. DH is a teacher but he also does not come from an academic household. I will just have to think of ways to encourage him during the time that he is waiting to go to school!