DS (Y3) in bottom set again!

[gabsid]

Last year I supported DS with maths as I felt he was behind. Finally, his Y2 teacher re-tested his maths and he was moved 3 table groups from the Y1 class into the Y2 class. His sats results were 2b.

Now, new school and DS comes home and tells me that maths is his favourite subject, he said it was so easy that is is hidious (bonds to 10/20, counting in 2,5,10s). His teacher said that if he can do more he is not showing it, e.g. putting his had up, paying attention, comleting work quickly - DS does not do quickly, he is dreamy, he likes and won't do anything if he can get away with it.

I stepped up my 1-1 support at home again and he does Y3 stuff fine. Ordering, partitioning and calculating with 2 and 2 digit numbers, he knows Xtables 2,3,4,5 and 10 quite well and we work on X/: facts.

I get the impression DS is in the bottom set because he is slow and dreamy, and not because he can't do more.

I don't want to teach him maths until he does his GCSEs!!!

calculating with 2 and 3 digit numbers

How many sets? What's the ability of the other children in his year? If there's only a couple of sets I can see that children with a 2b might well be in the bottom one.

As I'm sure you know, lots of children perform better at home in a 1:1 situation that they do in a class situation. If he's not doing the "easy" work in class, it's unlikely that the teacher will give him "harder" work. Have you had a conversation with her about what he can do at home?

There are 3 sets and she said that he is in the top of that set, which still seems too easy, e.g. she said he put together an amount of money using different coins and all the others used only one coin, e.g. 5p coins. DS has done that for a long time now.

It seems we are in the same situation as last year and I am fine with him being in that group as long as he is challenged - just a little bit.

Is the school academic?
Ds2 is at a school in a nice middle class area. He's targetted 2a at the end of y2 (ie. above average nationally) but is in the second bottom group for numeracy.

At ds1's old school, half the year was in the higher set and learned material that came from books targetted a year ahead of their school age and the lower group were learning material that came from books aimed at their own age. There were sub groups within the sets but lower set meant lower half of the year and an average child who is dreamy might end up in the lower set.

"Dreamy" to you might seem like "not confident" to a teacher and being in the lower class could mean an increase in confidence. The culture of teaching is that they need evidence to prove what grades children are working at so if your son isn't producing the work then the teacher is stuck.

I am not a teacher so am happy to be corrected but in KS1 it is considered acceptable for a child to need adult help to keep on focus but in KS2 it definitely isn't. I have an August born Y2 and I know that his teacher is trying to help him (and others) become independent workers before Y3.

I wouldn't say the area is very 'academic' most parent around here wouldn't have a degree, but parents want their DC to do well. However, DS's infant school was to be considered to be very good at teaching maths (Ofsted) - just my DS didn't seem to be able to be taught.

However, last year he did the work with the Y1 class just as well as he did with the Y2 class - when his teacher moved him last year (from the Y1 group to Y2 maths group) she just said: "he is doing it".

I do wonder whether he would 'just do it' in his same slow, dreamy way.

I am just worried he is falling more and more behind if I don't move him on myself.