Getting help in school for bright children...

[Zeppmum]

Ok,Im new to this website but from reading some of the older posts i will get honest opinons and possibly some advice towards the next step..

My daughter who is currently at the end of her year 3,came home with her report the other night,she is level 4a reading,3a literacy,3c maths.
Iam proud of her as all parents are about their own,but her teacher has said over the past year,she is exceptionally bright,there are a few others in her class like it,so im not saying shes the golden child by any means,but now she is going into year 4 i was hoping with said results on report that she may be put on the Gifted and Talented List..
Wny am i being so pushy?,Because shes told me at home that she wants more challenging work at school-if shes already 3 years ahead mentally in certain aspects of her learning(her literacy,im not saying all)then shouldnt she be given work or at least some form of additional learning that is at her level?
Any comments or advice welcome please :)

So, having survived great hardship and shown yourself reslient and capable of looking after yourself, you now think you deserve some payback???? Does society owe you anything just because you can survive hardship better than someone else?

No I don't expect and never have expected anything from anybody Rabbitstew,I get on with my life and depend on nobody but myself, I don't need an award for resilience to pain and poverty, I don't expect to be spoofed or the government to spoonfeed me because I have the right to claim this, or claim that, I don't want a pat on the back at all. Clearly people in this country have expectations and need social support, the ones that can't work, the ones that have lost their jobs, the disabled , the elderly, and I'm certainly not saying they shouldn't , you misconstrued my original comment which, in reflection didn't appear to be put across in the way it has been read.

OK... There is actually a lot you can do to help your dd yourself in this situation, too. You have already done a couple of things, by talking to the teacher and being interested in your dd's needs and encouraging her. As others have said, libraries help, too, if your dd's particular interest is with reading. And I'm sure there are online resources. You don't need your dd to be on a G&T list to get the recognition and help she deserves.

If you are not happy with how your DD is being stretched and challenged at school, then do more at home. Schools don't have a monopoly on education.

Your DD can do a wider range of reading. She should read a good newspaper and discuss some of the articles with you. You should try to take her out to museums and open days.

I would say put the onus back on you, OP.

Thank you Rabbitstew, I will ensure that the library is a part of her routine, and as long as she's got her head in a book she's happy and hopefully lead her to new unexplored interests too.

Yes you're right ClaireBunting, It is up to me to educate her the best I can, I guess this G&T is just specifically for the children who are really outstanding, yes the trips to museums and historic places will help too..
Thank you :)

I think you're putting too much emphasis on the G&T thing Zeppmum
Some schools participate and some don't.
Your daughter is doing well at school and is obviously progressing.
Can't you be happy and contented with that?

Yes RamblinRose,Iam happy with her average levels in most subjects it was the advanced reading which I know now isn't a talent, but a skill that I was questioning, that is all, and while the onus is on me as her parent to educate her, yes the library is the place which will help, but it was her teachers comments about her creative literacy and her making abstractions that lead me to believe she might be in need of a little more challenging work at school, and some friends of ours are TA, s who suggested the GT idea..

Another way to stretch her is to learn an instrument.

Another thought, get her to keep a diary or scrapbook for anything (eg current affairs and museum trips) that she finds interesting.

Yes it's been talked about, she's interested in learning the piano so Ive asked about locally for a tutor,just need to book in advance in a few weeks time when they have a free slot.
Most of her time she's on the computer playing with Photoshop,I can't understand that at all!

Sorry - got to the end of Page 1 and just have to say to the OP that people who are on the "social" do not automatically get any extra educational support for their children.

Any parents whose children actually need extra educational support generally get it. I know some incredibly well off people whose children have SEN and receive extra support. It is wrong and insulting of you to imply that only people on benefits receive this kind of assistance from schools.

Your child, while being above average in some subjects, probably just needs to be in top sets / doing the extension work in lessons, which any half-decent school will be doing as routine.

Many girls are advanced at reading, at 9 I had the reading age of a 15 year old. It didn't mean I was a genius.

Great idea Claire, yes I will, she has made one of The Queens Jubilee and now with the Olympics that's a good topic to start the summer holidays with,If I can afford to take her and sister to London for the day I will too,if not then we will plan a visit and I will let them make scrapbooks of places they want to visit in the capital.

My experience, for what it's worth, is this. My DD1 now aged 8 has always been bright and very quick to pick up things and learn. By year 3 she was chronically bored in school despite me talking several times to the teacher. She wasn't challenged or stretched. She'd finish her work very quickly be it literacy or maths and would just sit there twiddling her thumbs. Her teacher was very honest about the limitations of what she could provide in a class of 30 children and we eventually made the decision to home educate which has worked fantastically for us and her. I know many people couldn't /wouldn't do this, but as a previous poster has said, eduaction isn't just down to the scool and the state, there are other options.

Having a bright child is hard work. My dd just finished nursery attached to school (going into reception in September) with level 2's. I would much prefer for her to be average because she doesn't fit in, finds it hard to make friends her age, doesn't get as much time to play and be a little girl and I feel everyone expects so much from her. And it doesn't make you popular at the school gates having a bright child. Fancy swapping?

Diabolo, I have friends with children too with sen, who are on benefits because they care for their son 24/7.. I have friends who are incredibly wealthy and have children with sen.. I have friends who work with sen and mainstream children.. Please read my badly expressed comment again and read my frustration for the system through it. I have apologised before and do not wish to offfend, I expressed a opinion which didn't come over as it was intended. My fault, Thank You.

OP, 'playing' with Photoshop could be a really good way of channelling artistic ability, working with problem solving and of course developing high-level and commercially useful IT skills. Don't put her off it, think of creative things she could do with it. Has she got a digital camera so she can create and manipulate her own images? There are so many ways that this hobby of hers can be used to expand her horizons - creating her own comic book for a start (helps her think about story development, characters, vocabulary tailored to audience etc.) There are many more.

zeppmum I was all for posting a really helpful reply until I read further down. My opinion is that you are rude. You've been quite insulting and insinuated plenty on this thread.

I would be hoping your DD's don't pick up your views more than the level they're at at school.

Playing with Photoshop is fab.

It gives me a headache, so I am impressed with anyone who can achieve good results.

It will certainly show your DDs artistic flair and her perseverence.

Thank you CatnipKitty, yes you obviously made the best decision for your child, it is entirely in our own hands, the educational needs of all children are not met in school, you took it out of the systems hands because they were not helping you at all.. This was one of my questions.
Not an easy decision but the best you want for your children entirely.

Zeppmum, do the stretching yourself if possible. DS1 ended YR2 with 3a - Maths, 3b - Literacy, 3b - writing. 3 - Science & 3 - RE.

I have always known that he was a good student but at the start of year 2 I was unhappy with the finishing of his work in both Maths and literacy. E.g
what time is it?
he writes '3'
' 3 what?'
'oh' he says and writes '3pm'
and
'Mr A has 12 apples and got 8 more, how many apples does he now have?'
he write 20 instead of 20 apples

So I have been working on these sort of things + he is moving sch in sept and I was given a list of topics he should have covered by end of yr2 by new school. So using bond books to help with finding areas where he needs extra work.

Ok, Thank you

Iyatoda, Thank you that's a great tip:)
Its something that would make it more fun I guess!

OP - could you get your child a tutor, maybe, to do the stretching - and if not a professional one, then a sixth-former or an out of work graduate to push the boundaries a bit more? And I agree with the musical instrument suggestion - why not two?

Thank you Clair, I haven't a clue what to do with it or how she does it, but she was using something called paint net before? And was making great posters and was layering?words and pictures onto pictures! A friend lent us their photoshop and said see how she goes with that, so I did! :)