suprise academic

[baby24]

Following on from previous thread on academic differences between siblings, has anyone had a dc who they thought wasn't particularly academic as a pre schooler actually prove to be academic when they started primary school?

What do you mean by academic?

Sorry, it's a genuine question - people do mean different things by that word.

I can't quite work out in what way you could determine if a pre-schooler was academic or not.

Nor how you could not expect kids to change over the course of their schooling.

I mean it in the traditional sense ie. good at maths, literacy etc.
I suppose i am determining pre school intelligence on stuff like being good at tricky jigsaws, being able to follow complicated instructions for things like lego, etc., being able to focus and concentrate on something for a long period.
This is probably a silly post for as you say, dc change through their school life, but just wondered.

my children all read later than it seemed MNers do (well into year 2 before they became fluent)

They were all fairly bumbling, unpushed small children - I don't agree in homework in primary so whilst I encourage it I would happily tell a KS1 teacher no it's too early for them.

DS1 got all As and A*s at GCSE
DS2 is bright enough to get by and will do fine but could charm the coat from your back on a cold day
DS3 is a bit of a maths whizz and writes amazing poetry (reluctant reader and probably the latest to learn to read) but yet to see how he does as he's year 5 primary
DD is creative so far and an unknown quantity academically as she is in year 1 only

HTH

I've had the opposite. Ds was viewed as very bright at nursery so much so that they taught him to read when he was 3 (usually didn't start this until they were 4). Got to school and assessed as having SENs in yr 1 and getting worse now we are in yr 2 (lack of concentration and no interest at all in school work).

leave them alone is my view

(now I want to sing baa baa black sheep for some reason)

do mean let the learn at their own pace without forcing learning on them activate?

yes in a way

but the whole "learning" thing is a kindof hokum if you ask me and it seems to be what makes parents sweat - is my child doing as well as, or better than your kid, is my child the brightest, shall I be smug that mine has better books home than yours?

I'd like to think, but often forget if I'm honest, everything any human being does on a daily basis is learning - there is always something new

I've found letting them just live, talking to them and ignoring them in equal measures, letting them know that they have responsibilities as well as rights and they're not actually the cenre of the known universe seems to help - and having 4 of them gives you less option in a way

but sitting down and teaching them makes me want to shudder

You speak a lot of sense activate. I often find that i get too focused on how well my dcs are doing when i know really that it doesn't matter if you are top of the class etc.

I know a lot of people - some adults now, some teenagers - who were below average in early primary and did/doing very well academically at secondary and beyond.

All of mine were good at jigsaws and concentrating on lego as preschoolers, it doesn't always translate into academic brilliance. Now they are bigger and still good at jigsaws and concentrating on lego. Which is lovely, particularly useful in a wet half term, but you don't do SATS and GCSEs in lego and jigsaw skills.

Yes.

DS1 and DD both tried incredibly hard from day one, they were bright and often top of their class but it was because they tried hard for it IYSWIM.

DS2 is on his own planet. Was late to walk, talk, potty train, ride a bike, dress himself... Floated through nursery school without appearing to learn anything and without any idea of sitting still and listening. Continued in the same way in Reception. By year one I was being called in with "concerns" that he couldn't concentrate. However by the end of Year 1 they had realised that he not only read at the same level as the more able Year 3 children he had also taught himself to read in another language. He is now in Year 2 and they are in the process of testing him as G&T () He still doesn't concentrate though, and puts his shoes on the wrong feet.