Year 4 child bored at school

[Pantheon]

My dd has started saying she is bored at school - I think she is not being challenged enough. She completes her work and then isn't given anything else to do. Should I be talking to the teacher about this? If so, how to approach? And what can I be doing at home? (She reads widely, we talk about different topics, take her to interesting places etc.)

First of all, take it with a pinch of salt. In our school a mum went in all guns blazing saying her child wasn’t being stretched/was bored etc, and the teacher was immediately able to show that the child isn’t completing the work correctly, let alone needing more work. 8 year olds don’t always make reliable narrators.

It would be highly unusual for a teacher to leave a child with nothing to do for any length of time or regularly, there will be some plan for the kids who are quicker.

So I’d ask the question - is she finishing the work in class time to a good standard? What happens if she finishes the work quicker than others - should she be doing extra reading time or are there worksheets for extension work? She’s saying that at times she doesn’t have anything to do, could we go over with her what she is supposed to do as perhaps she’s not sure?

Basically approach it as calm questions and trying to understand, rather than any kind of criticism, for the best results.

Is this in all subjects or just Maths?

Give her chapter books to read at school when she is done. When my ds was in primary he used do all 3 levels (easy, medium and hard) and then read a book he brought from home. Or he would help others. At home perhaps dc could focus on more challenging math (look at UK math challenge), reading a variety of books that you can discuss with them after. Or learn a second language.

Thank you all for your replies.

@AwoogaAwooga I agree and would approach cautiously! When she has finished her work, my dd says she helps other kids or is allowed to play a game on an iPad. I'd much rather she were reading or doing extension work, but that's not what I'm being told. (Will check this!) I imagine she is finishing the work to a good standard as she is a perfectionist and often too hard on herself.

@KingscoteStaff Maths is probably the main one, but it is happening with other subjects too.

@SamPoodle123 great ideas, thanks! I will make sure she always has a book in her bag. She has expressed an interest in learning another language.

Ask your school to sign up here: ukmt.org.uk/enrichment/primary-mathematics-resources and print out some extension material for her to work on when she's done.
Also check out https://corbettmathsprimary.com/5-a-day/ - she's probably ready for gold or platinum. Maybe give her two or three sheets per day if she's a fast worker.
https://corbettmathsprimary.com/content/ - this is content videos and worksheets by topic rather than the random assortment in the 5-a-day

https://whiteroseeducation.com/parent-pupil-resources/maths/home-learning?year=year-5-new - this has videos on year 5 topics (or any other year)

https://whiteroseeducation.com/products?page=1&product=34%7C1&year=year-5&packtype=single&subject=1 - you can get worksheets here

https://nrich.maths.org/parents/primary - more resources here. These activities are designed to be challenging. E.g. https://nrich.maths.org/problems/shape-times-shape

Push the school to provide her with extension work.

My ds had this issue and the school were unhelpful so I found someone outside of school who would help. Extra maths and a more interesting reading book, and we did a science project for each topic they studied at school. A music lesson can help as well.

Be prepared for it to be worse in years 5 & 6 when the teachers focus on getting the less able dcs up to standatd for SATs. Don't let her get bored. It can be very damaging.

Extend outside of school. Musical instruments and languages are a great way to keep fast learners engaged and challenged. Getting too far ahead at school is a problem for future years. Kids who love learning new things won't find lateral extension much fun, from our experience.

I had this with DS1, along with the 'he's not that bright, he doesn't get it all right' 6 months later a top prep offered him a 100% scholarship ( not a bursary, those came later for senior)
Even bored kids get slapdash and don't get it right, particularly if they don't see a point to the work.
Feed the child's enthusiasm, with the Internet there is a huge amount of resources out there. We didn't have much more than the library 30 years ago.
I second the suggestion of music, languages and think about drama, sport, widen the child's experiences.

Beast Academy is a great online option, particularly if you're worried about studying advanced math making things worse (a notion which I disagree with) as it's meant for gifted US maths students so the curriculum doesn't match 1:1 with the UK curriculum.

Thank you all so much for these links and ideas! I appreciate it.

I would suggest empowering your daughter to handle this herself with the teacher if she can. It will be so much more meaningful if it comes from her.

Next time your daughter finishes her work early (and after she has checked that it is of the highest standard she can achieve) can your daughter have a chat with the teacher to ask whether, instead of helping others (which she is starting to find awkward as it is interfering with friendships...) she could be given some interesting/challenging work, or if there is nothing available, she could bring her own workbook or reading book?

The teacher will respect her for asking, and it is a good lesson for your daughter in speaking up for her own needs. Much more meaningful than a parent asking on her behalf (although, of course, you can discuss it at parents' evening if it is coming up.)