Is ds just smart or should I be more involved...

[alittlepeaceofheaven]

DS is approaching 6yo and will be starting school next month and I was wondering if I should talk to his teachers or just leave it...

It's only the past year that I've actually noticed how intellegent he is didn't really pay attention to his milestones as a baby.

He is able to read, write (including grammar, punctuation etc) and speak like an adult. He is also fluent in 3 languages (and can also read & write in these languages). He is also fluent in sign language.

He has extensive knowledge in science mainly biochemistry and space science. Only last week he explained in great detail how the body reacts in space and what experiments NASA are doing to figure it out. I had to ask him to simplify twice.

At a guess we used the bbc bitesize to test him out of curiosity and he got good results in KS3 (excelled in english, science and history)

He's always loved arts n crafts but art is his favourite subject behind Space. His pencil work is astounding - to me anyway! And loves drawing portraits of our dog & siblings. DH has tattoos and DS can free hand the design from skin to paper easily.

So it's only those few subjects... so I don't know if he's just talented or if I should have a word and ask the the teachers to keep an eye on him...

I'm looking for honest opinions and anything I can do to help him. At the minute he likes "learn" when he's interested and will just ask me if he can browse for books or "research" on my laptop and then asks if he can have it or earn it which he usually earns and disappears outside to his shed or his room to do whatever...

He's still is a typical 5/6yo boy. Loves exploring, age-related crafts, sports, imagination play etc. He loves playing with his friends and interacts with them very well, he is very out-going and has no problem making friends too. It's only when his favourite subjects are mentioned or you watch him draw do you realise how smart and talented his is. In the strangest way he's almost humble about it... Is that normal?

Sorry I'm rambling!!

[bexleigh]

I haven't been in this situation as my DS is still a baby, but here's my two cents (feel free to ignore). I have some "gifted and talented" children in my family and I know that they can become frustrated and bored with school if they're not being challenged enough. It might also make life harder further in the future if he cruises through his school years - personally I found it far too easy to get good grades at school, so when it came to university and then the workplace, I was not accustomed to having to work hard! So I would definitely recommend talking to the school at some point if you feel he's not benefitting from his lessons enough.

[Lovelydiscusfish]

Will they be doing some kind of home visit or similar to find out about him? His accomplishments sound extraordinary for his age, so you should definitely let them know in advance, so they can plan appropriate learning opportunities for him, I would think.

[alittlepieceofheaven]

No home visits but he did go to an open day with us and met some of the teachers but he was too busy raiding their bookshelves to pay attention to them . I did make an off comment about his favourite subjects and his artwork but I didn't think it too important to explain further at the time. Now, however, I'm worrying over it. I do have the headteachers contact details so I may give him a call or drop him an email for advice.

[Flexibilityiskey]

I think if it were me, I'd say nothing for now. Let the teacher get to know a bit about him, see how he settles in, and then have a chat with him once they have first hand experience of his abilities.

I only say that because I can imagine schools have lots of parents who think their children are exceptional, so until they have actually seen it, I'd think they might think you were exaggerating his abilities. He does sound like an incredibly clever little boy. I think to begin with he will be concentrating on getting used to the new environment of school, so it won't hurt if it takes a week or two for the teacher to get the measure of him.

[Piratejones]

get MNHQ to delete the post here, but keep the otherone.

[alittlepieceofheaven]

All sorted. I really need to brush up my skills.

Again, thanks for the advice.

DH agrees to leave it for now and see how he gets on. I hope you enjoys it :)

[Piratejones]