The Gifted and Talented Register in schools

nzmegs

it is one thing to have your children identified as G&T as both mine were, but quite another when it comes to doing something about it. My son has extra english lessons, book clubs, able writers days, things like that. My daughter who has a special maths and english talent has had nothing at all. I asked for extra maths homework but that is it.

Some schools/techers make an effort and others don't. I think they have to be seen to have some sort of a program, but in practise it isn't always worth the paper it is written on. Nice to know though I guess.

patchwork_cat

NZmegs do your children go to the same school? I agree neither of mine got or get anything out of being identified. I tried to get DD's school to sign up for the YG&T, but they wouldn't. DS is at 6 th form now so it doesn't matter and DD is at Grammar school so technically they should all be G &T!

They have both done OK without anything being done, but I was concerned that DS could have gone either way in y7/8 as he was getting very bored and disrupted by less able kids. They are special needs just as much as the less able kids, but until there is a financial incentive and obligation some schools won't do anything more than pay lip service to it.

I have had long discussions with our LA G&T to try and get them to do something about the Primary school, but there was nothing they could do.

Spendless

I'm not too worried about the science bit. In 18 months time DS will be at the local secondary school which specialises in science, maths and computers. At Easter he is going to a 'science day' there only so many from the feeder Primarys get invited and this is the 2nd year DS has been selected, he is 1 of only 2 children to be selected for the second time running.


I'm not totally convinced this musical 'ability' isn't connected to his maths, where to me he has always shown an ability (eg I went to collect him from playgroup when he was 3 or 4 and they showed me these huge re-occurring geometrical shape he had made out of ...can't think of name but it has long straight bits and then 'balls' all out of plastic and the playgroup leader said it was the best thing they'd ever seen created) but DS's maths has been a bit of hit and misss school wise. In reception my friend went to help out there and said she could spot he was miles ahead of the others in numeracy but it was only commented on in yr 1 and when I said I'd always found him good with figures she replied that it was only just showing in class. Then he had the same teacher for yrs 3 and 4 who said that Ds had the potential to be an accomplished mathematician.

Hmmm :think: still think I need the music parents evening first before I approach school about what if anything they do.

jellyhead

If he's not great at violin what about getting 'rock band' or 'guitar hero' for playstation or whatever?

I don't know much about G+T, My son's in high school and is on another register, the 'aimhigher' scheme but that doesn't mean gifted really, it means 'top stream but lives on a council estate', it's to persuade them to go to uni. His year 7 science teacher said level 7 was gifted, but they must be looking at something other than exam marks for the G+T thing, perhaps a real interest in the subject outside of what is taught in the lessons.

From what you've said about your son in the past he's always seemed really clever to me, the things he comes up with are genius really, he's so funny Congrats on his being chosen!

jellyhead

I read somewhere that music helps babies with numeracy skills, not sure why though. It wasn't just the counting in nursery rhymes, it was the patterns.

The humming back thing is an odd one. I can do it but husband and son can't. They are more interested in music than I am and they are much better at playing instruments. All I ever played was horn, and the recorder. I can play any tune on the recorder, but I'm not actually 'good' at music (I'm clumsy and have poor fine motor skills though, so that limits my playing ability). My son was trying to work out the blackadder theme tune once, to use as a ring tone on an old mobile phone (you had to compose the tune yourself) and he really struggled, but I could do it straight away. I'm not gifted though, in anything at all lol!

Spendless

Thinking more about the humming that is how the school select the pupils to learn whichever instrument they are introducing and DS said he tried out for loads and never got in. He never got in for violin either, another pupil told him he had so he turned up for practise and when weeks later the 'mistake' was spotted they let him stay. I've always felt this was the reason he isn't selected for orchestra or competitions etc.
So how come he has now been spotted for musical ability when no -one saw it before when he tried out for these instruments? Could it just be down to practise as he now has 2 lessons a week.

In yr 5 all pupils learn an instrument so DS has 2 violin lessons a week 1 because he got thru (by accident) for learning in yr 4 and the lessons have continued and the 2nd lesson cos he's in yr 5.

I'm still leaning more to he has a mathematician who can play a musical instrument rather than he's a musician that's good at sudoku.:rotfl:

P.S Jellyhead- I'm considering writing down all DS's thoughts on life.

Gingham_Ribbon

Spendless wrote: »

I'll wait till I've had the music parents evening but what would I ring up and say? I mean 'my son has been identified as being G & T in music but I've no idea why cos all I hear is a screechy violin on the rare occassions he practices' doesn't sound quite right-lol

It's not just the music though, which may or may not be important. If he's gifted in science, there are loads of things the NAGC can advise about and meetings that he could go to with other kids who are interested in the same things.

dizziblonde

Could be they've picked him in any number of ways - I've always put kids down who've had a real, best way I can think of to describe it is, flair for something. Last time I was full-time I think I put three kids down on the register - one was a brilliant artist, another was a very very able child in terms of mathematical understanding and speed calculations (who wasn't getting top marks in the class because he was bone idle with it unless heavily pushed along in the right direction!) and a very capable writer - who again wasn't top in the class, but in terms of his ability to manipulate sentences and language, he was obviously exceptional.

Other schools just put the top X% in a subject on the register very simply and bluntly - both have benefits to their system.

One teacher within the school should have G+T (and not gin and tonic... that's Friday nights) as one of their co-ordinator areas - might be worth asking them for specific details... perhaps he's talented at making a less cat-slaughtering, ear-murdering screech on the violin than the rest of the kids?! I'm remembering a supply lesson I had with 45 children ALL screeching their way through something on violins... and it's a painful memory!

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

jellyhead wrote: »

I read somewhere that music helps babies with numeracy skills, not sure why though. It wasn't just the counting in nursery rhymes, it was the patterns.

The humming back thing is an odd one. I can do it but husband and son can't. They are more interested in music than I am and they are much better at playing instruments. All I ever played was horn, and the recorder. I can play any tune on the recorder, but I'm not actually 'good' at music (I'm clumsy and have poor fine motor skills though, so that limits my playing ability). My son was trying to work out the blackadder theme tune once, to use as a ring tone on an old mobile phone (you had to compose the tune yourself) and he really struggled, but I could do it straight away. I'm not gifted though, in anything at all lol!

Spotting intervals is not a particularly easy skill - you may have learned it, but the others may not - yet. Being able to hear the difference between a root note, a major third and a perfect fifth, knowing that you've just heard a triad with a major third and a perfect fifth and being able to play a chord comprising C, E & G are all completely separate skills. (sounds good, though, doesn't it? )

Add the complication of singing the darn thing back and it seems fair to accept that they have spotted a hint of promise there.

Although, I have to say that being able to spot talent from a school violin must be pretty hard - I have been one of those parents at the teatime concerts with a fixed smile on her face for the kids doing violin, secretly thinking 'Oh no, will this make my eardrums cry for mercy?', but determined to try and look supportive as the strangled sounds escape from the front, thinking 'thank goodness for that' as they finish and a kid with some other instrument comes on stage. I know it's mean, and the only way they will get confidence and get better is with practice, but it really is uncomfortable listening - much like innovative jazz of the 50s, I suppose [shudder] .

Perhaps your DS will have something else he would enjoy playing in the future, like bass guitar? Just because he's played violin he isn't restricted to it permanently, after all!

Filey

Spendless wrote: »

Out of interest is this connected to maths at all do you know or does anyone else? DS was good at maths from an early age, which was noted on his reports in yr 3 but he seems to have lost that ability lately though he has claimed it is due to noise levels in his class (and if that's true then I sympathise, I do a lot of courses as a mature student and have the same problem!)
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Musical ability and mathematical ability often seem to be connected. Unfortunately i have neither. I used to have piano lessons when a child, and I remember my mother standing over me forcing me to practice, saying 'You will thank me for this when you are older.' This was in the days when all
well-brought-up young ladies could play the piano, and everyone had piano lessons, and indeed had a piano in the house.

Being a devious child I eventually used to tell my mother that the piano teacher's son had chickenpox/illness du jour so I was unable to go to my lesson. All was found out when mother met piano teacher one day at the shops and asked if little Freddie was better yet.

It is very difficult to know how much pressure you should put on a child to practice. Grand daughter had flute lessons for several years but eventually it became a battle to get her to practice. Had to nag constantly which i hate doing. (She lives with me.)

She is classed as Able and Talented (they don't do Gifted at her school} in French and science. She is able at French because she went to school in France for 3 years so naturally she is able. But not necessarily gifted.