I am sorry, but I do not see this as a problem. I think that you are an amazingly lucky parent! I have been a teacher for more than twenty years and I love to teach bright children. They are a delight! From less able children, I usually hope to have the right answer in a Maths lesson, but to a bright children you can say, "Well, that is the right answer, but do you think that there is a quicker and better way of getting the right answer? Why is this method better than that one? Will this method always work? Could you please give me a real-life situation in which you might find this method useful?"
Last term, for example, the children in my Year 5 class of nine and ten year olds were changing euros into pounds and dollars. In discussion, the more able children also came up with some intelligent ideas about exchange rates and why countries want to have their own currencies, as well as the advantages of many different countries in the E.U. all having the same currency.
A key component of the British National Curriculum is something called "differentiation". In other words, the children in the same class should be doing the same topic, but of course the less able children will need extra practice and support. The more able, however, need to be pushed out of their "comfort zone" and be given work that is more demanding. This does not necessarily mean that they will be given more work to do than the rest of the class, but it certainly means that they ought to have tougher assignments. Many bright children thrive on interaction with adults, so oral work is important for more able children. If your child is not being pushed and challenged at his present school, then my guess is that your son is at the wrong school.
If your 5 year old is fed up with books that contain more pictures than words, then it's probably time to move him on to more challenging reading material. I am a great Roald Dahl fan, but I have noticed that boys often enjoy non-fiction. Just about anything by Dorking Kindersley is great, especially their Science videos. The "Horrible Histories" paperback series is brilliant, particularly with all of the jokes and silly cartoons, but the books in this series also contain masses of historical information that is presented in a lively way.
Of course, if you have a computer connected to the internet, then there is a wealth of educational websites. Maybe it is because I am British, but I do rather like the BBC's educational sites, for both History and Science. "Discovery School" also has some good material on their website. On the other hand, if your son really is so bright, then why not suggest to him that it is about time he created his own website? That ought to keep him busy. There is also some software around that allows the user to create their own animated cartoons.
I hope that this has been useful, but I am surprised (and a bit disappointed) that no one at your son's present school has bothered to help you and advise you.
Dear Patty,
I am sorry, but I do not see this as a problem. I think that you are an amazingly lucky parent! I have been a teacher for more than twenty years and I love to teach bright children. They are a delight! From less able children, I usually hope to have the right answer in a Maths lesson, but to a bright children you can say, "Well, that is the right answer, but do you think that there is a quicker and better way of getting the right answer? Why is this method better than that one? Will this method always work? Could you please give me a real-life situation in which you might find this method useful?"
Last term, for example, the children in my Year 5 class of nine and ten year olds were changing euros into pounds and dollars. In discussion, the more able children also came up with some intelligent ideas about exchange rates and why countries want to have their own currencies, as well as the advantages of many different countries in the E.U. all having the same currency.
A key component of the British National Curriculum is something called "differentiation". In other words, the children in the same class should be doing the same topic, but of course the less able children will need extra practice and support. The more able, however, need to be pushed out of their "comfort zone" and be given work that is more demanding. This does not necessarily mean that they will be given more work to do than the rest of the class, but it certainly means that they ought to have tougher assignments. Many bright children thrive on interaction with adults, so oral work is important for more able children. If your child is not being pushed and challenged at his present school, then my guess is that your son is at the wrong school.
If your 5 year old is fed up with books that contain more pictures than words, then it's probably time to move him on to more challenging reading material. I am a great Roald Dahl fan, but I have noticed that boys often enjoy non-fiction. Just about anything by Dorking Kindersley is great, especially their Science videos. The "Horrible Histories" paperback series is brilliant, particularly with all of the jokes and silly cartoons, but the books in this series also contain masses of historical information that is presented in a lively way.
Of course, if you have a computer connected to the internet, then there is a wealth of educational websites. Maybe it is because I am British, but I do rather like the BBC's educational sites, for both History and Science. "Discovery School" also has some good material on their website. On the other hand, if your son really is so bright, then why not suggest to him that it is about time he created his own website? That ought to keep him busy. There is also some software around that allows the user to create their own animated cartoons.
I hope that this has been useful, but I am surprised (and a bit disappointed) that no one at your son's present school has bothered to help you and advise you.