Been told by ds1's teacher that he is gifted with reading.l

[MamaMaiasaura]

He was assessed as having a reading age of at least 11 and has only just turned 8. SHe said she thinks he is gifted and suggested extra support at his new school. When i went to see new school and mentioned this to his new teacher who is also the SENCO he didnt mention any extra support and also gave me the impression that there wouldnt be any saying that as the classes are mixed there will always be someone better than ds. The class is a mix of year 3 and year 4. Any advice?

I really wouldn't worry. As an experienced Primary School teacher, I would say, having this sort of reading age is quite common. On average there are about 3 children in each Year 3 class with this kind of reading age and many more not far behind. The schools I have worked in have not been in affluent areas with pushy parents either.

These children will be grouped for reading appropriately and given suitable books and comprehension work.

Unfortunately now schools have to put children on a gited register parents believe that the school can no longer cater for them. Most of these children on the register are not unusual and can be catered for within a normal classroom. They are 10% of the school's population which is about 3 children in every class of 30, in an average school.

I'm sorry awen, I think you should just be happy and proud that he is finding reading quite easy and ensure he has opportunity to read fabulous and fascinating books .. what extra support does a good reader need other than access to good books?

around 8 or 9 is the age that children start to equalise on reading ..

reading, as I've said before, is really not something one can be 'gifted' at, its a trick like jumping or skipping that they get when they're ready .. it's great and wonderful it means they can access facts and pursue interests

but once again the pathetic government focus on a marketing scam philosophy of identifying 5 or 10% of children as 'gifted' and 'talented' whereas they're just the brightest 5 or 10% really leads parents astray ..

What an odd thing for a teacher to say.

Did she mean gifted at Literacy in general? I could understand that more.

Agree with Twiglett

While I think you have every right to feel chuffed I wouldn't set too much store by it really. I remember I had a reading age test at 8 , when I moved school, and had to take the results back to my teacher. Naturally I peeked at the folded piece of paper and it said I had a reading age of about 12. It meant I was able to get on with work easily as I could understand the concepts and questions and and passed 11+ to go to a private high school. However beyond that it meant very little. I still read Enid Blyton with gusto and eventually studied English at University by which time I had long since lost enthusiams for reading. Feed your chidl's enthusiasm by all means, it will open doors, but agree it isn't that unusual.

I'm happy for ur ds, Awen., but like others say. that reading age is not so uncommon at this age -- not even for boys.
DS is also Y3 and probably that reading age (was tested as reading level of a 10yo a yr ago, anyway). Our school is not a high-achieving one -- gets noticeably below average SAT results at KS2, and DS is far from best reader his class.

I get him good books from library & encourage him to write, keeping up the love of learning and books is the most important thing with boys, I suspect.

It is nice but not unusual. DS1 was off the testing range at primary school for reading and maths. Hopefully, it shows that he is a bright boy who should do well academically. DS1 is now cruising to a 2.1 at Russell Group university and (typically for a boy) hasn't read a novel - or much else since the age of 13.

OK, thanks for replies. She made comments about the comprehnsion he was showing. He is pretty smart overall but just slow at actually writing it all down. This had actually caused concerns in the past but it has transpired that it isnt that he cant write quickly it is that he doesnt. THen if only 10 min left he completes it real quickly and still really well (very frustrating )

At the school he is in he is in highest set for reading, and numeracy and one of the upper literacy sets.

I didnt use the words 'gifted' this is what the teacher said. As she is the professional and sees him everyday I thought she would be accurate. Seems from on here that might not be so.

It isnt a medal of honour to me, just want his needs catered for well wherever he falls so he can have every cahnce to reach potential.

dd was (and still is) good and keen at reading.

Best thing that you can do is to offer him a wide range of texts, if you are not a member, join the library.

TBH I wouldn't expect that he needs extra support from the SENCO, dd never had any, and didn't need it. He just needs a wide range of stuff to enjoy.

Message withdrawn

Re the Educational establishment and Gifted and Talented....it is short hand in most schools for being in the to 5-10%. It means (usually) a bright child, rather than a Mozart or a Shakespeare in the making

But great to be able to enjoy his reading with him

Hi Awen! You might find this thread interesting, if you haven't already seen it. Starts from a different situation (teacher worrying about meeting child's needs, rather than trying to do so), but might contain some useful hints.

My dd is similar to your ds (she's 8 next week and her reading age was measure at the start of Year 3 at 10.9, but she has improved massively since then!). She has lots of other issues (concentration-related mostly) so I kind of take the view that her good reading skills are just helping her to make up for all the time she spends looking out of the window and making up stories invoving the stationery items on her desk rather than actually writing with them! I also believe that it's much easier for the 'uninitiated' (bog-standard parent, like me!) to challenge a child who's very good at reading than a child who has a gift for maths, say, or nuclear physics

I disagree actually KM (big surprise).. the way that schools are being told to highlight a percentage of children as 'gifted' or 'talented' rather than 'top set' or 'bright' makes it a dirty word and denigrates the word for the extremely small numbers of truly gifted children in every generation.

and I will say over and over again that one simply can't be gifted at reading

but Awen your DS sounds bright and I do hope he is challenged to fulfill his potential

Message withdrawn

BTW, I agree with MB... (which was what I was trying to say, but in a much more long-winded way). It's hard to see what the SENCO could do to stimulate his reading that you can't do all by yourself with a library ticket!

Sorry, Awen... keep getting distracted and forgetting what I was going to say... My dd2 is currently in a mixed-age Yr1/2 class. I was a bit sceptical at the start of the year (especially as she is almost the youngest), but it has worked well for her. So, it sounds as if being with some Yr4s might work out well for your ds too.

Whilst I agree that being gifted at reading (i.e. saying the words) sounds incongruous, I think it is perfectly possible to be gifted at the interpretation of what one reads.

In fact the best lawyers I have ever worked with are gifted in such a way. But I would use gifted in this context, perhaps to mean blessed. As such, I don't agree that reading (or at least interpretation) necessarily equalises with age.

However, IIRC the test for reading age, which I think the OP is referring to, is for sight reading of words not for interpretation.

Message withdrawn

Forgot to say - despite what the views are of using the word 'gifted' it is still quite an achievement for your DS to be such a good reader at his age. Being in the top 10% of readers in his year, is pretty good going

I think there are people who can open a book and absorb everything on two pages at once

that is gifted at reading

But don't get too hung up on the word 'gifted' - it's just a term they use these days meaning 'bright'. He is 8 with a reading age of 11 - that's great, encourage a love of reading and he'll excell in other areas too.

The idea that he is entitled to extra school resources to obtain ermmmm books is a bit bonkers innit

I disagree, as Cod and Twiglett know, with them. I think you can be 'gifted', as a child, as reading. That would be something like reading adult books with full comprehension at 7 or 8. The 'gifted' bit is the understanding and interpretation, not the decoding, which is relatively straightforward.

I think, though, people should consider accepting that the word 'gifted ' is changing meaning in the UK, along US lines (just as I have to accept that the normal spelling for 'pooh' has become 'poo'). In the US, 'gifted' has been used for a long time to mean the brightest 3-5% and gifted classes, gifted pull-outs and gifted streams are all the norm. Not all these children are mind-blowingly brilliant.

Reading ages are pretty meaningless, in my opinion - types of test and questions vary massively. Having said that, in DS1's Y3 class the top 25% or so all had reading ages above 11. The teacher may be basing her judgement not on a score but on a general observation of his ability.

Anyway, I would encourage him as everyone else has said and be please that he enjoys reading and is good at it.

'Gifted' means something entirely different IMO as a teacher. I hate the phrase 'gifted and talented' with a passion. This is also coming from a parent with a ds of 5 and a reading age of 8+.

I don't agree that it 'all evens out' by 8 or so, but the gap does close (apart from those who really struggle due to SEN).

I always think of ds1 as a 'precocious' reader rather than 'gifted' FWIW.

I worry more that the gap between his reading and writing will cause problems

Message withdrawn

Surely the READING age just means the average, so by DEFINITION there MUST be a certain percentage of each class with a reading age of a few years older

It's like IQ isn't it - it's only an measure of AVERAGE, nothing more