hevs

No harm at all, but just because a child is socially ready for school doesnt make them gifted surely? maybe the child being bored equated to him not wanting to be there? Who knows. Define G&t at age 4!!

However, that aside, the case still stands that the child is now in Australia and every state has its own set of rules for its schooling. Just because here is different it doesnt make it wrong surely?

HelenTD

It can be difficult getting help once your child is "in the system", very hard if you're still outside it. Poster has got some links now, though, so hopefully she can sort something out. I don't think she said her child is G&T, but it's a possibility worth looking into.

Kids can be bored at school (or earlier) for all sorts of reasons.

quoll

Well if she wants early entry she will have to prove that he is G&T in all likelihood. I am sure there are thousands of parents out there who would love early entry for their kids for all sorts of reasons (boredom isnt one of them, boredom is a choice), usually financial - it's much cheaper to send a kid to school than to child care!

Sure she was frustrated but she needs to know that she is living in a foreign country with its own rules and if she doesnt like it she can nick off back whence she came.

Kim67

Agree, my youngest is a July baby and she is and was one of those kids that just has to be doing something. The year she turned three she was too young for anything but childcare (which none of my three have ever gone to), so she did three or four ballet lessons a week and I had a whole lot of homeschooling material at home that she could do whenever she wanted to. If you have a bored child, it's your job to entertain them, the Government shouldn't have to change the school rules for your child. I did start my eldest on early entry into Year 1 as she was a couple of weeks outside the cutoff for her year, but ended up repeating her in Year 4 for a few months when we moved interestate (until we moved overseas) because the girls in her year were all one and two years older than her and a nine year old girl is a lot less mature than a ten or eleven year old girl. I've said it on here a lot before, it's not the early years that the age gap matters, it's when they get older.

LittleKittyCat

I disagree with you. Who is to say that children should be learning these things at the age of 4/5. Maybe a 6 year old is able to take information on board far more easily, and therefore learns at a quicker and more comfortable pace. It doesn't actually matter how a child compares to another child, afaik school and education isn't a competition. In my experience of being a parent in the UK, it is parents who are concerned with league tables and competition, not children.

As far as I am concerned, education does not start and end at school. Parents should also take some of the responsibility for educating their children. There is more to education than learning times tables and the Periodic Table of the Elements. Confidence, the ability to ask questions and social skills are just as important. You can be as educated as you like, but if you don't have the confidence to do anything with those qualifications then there is little point in having them (I should know - I have two undergraduate degrees, and no confidence which has held me back hugely).

Clare S

Just wondering if you pay for kinder school/ pre school in Western australia?

HelenTD

Yes, but the fees are low in state schools and I think that they voluntary, but they are very affordable. You usually spend more on the stationery order. Kindergarten - called kindy here - is 2-3 days a week, or part-time equivalent. Pre-primary is full-time, 5 days a week.

Blond1e

Hi,
We are due to move to WA around July 2011. My son is 8 in November and will be uk year 3 in sept and Aus year 2 in sept. Has just done his SATS and his teacher told me he has done exceptionally well and exceeded all his year groups targets and most of year 3already. My daughter is 6 in July and will be in uk year 2 in sept and aus pre-primary.

My problem is my son will be bored if he is isn't pushed as he needs to be stimulated constantly and thrives on it - his school is brilliant and keeps giving him stimulating work and we do alot at home with both kids - all led by them and not me being a pushy parent.

My daughter is on the G&T list in uk - she is in year 1 but has already finished year 2 literacy and half of year 2 maths. Her spellings in yr 1 this week are: Serious, management, environment, Government, height, weight, oblivious, educate.... (16 in total) every week she gets 16/16... we let her lead us and tell her that she doesn't have to do spellings or the extra work if she doesn't want to as the rest of her class doesn't do them but she really loves doing them.

She will definately find it really really hard to cope with a laid back academic attitude. She really thrives on learning. But in the same breath I don't want the schools to put her into a year above as I want her to mix with friends her own age. Our current uk school is awesome - she is in a class of kids her own age but for literacy and maths she joins the year group above and it works perfectly.

Does anyone think as she is on G&T the schools will try to accomodate her? Really really hate to be a pain to schools as I know they always try their best but being gifted my daughter has really heightened emotions and can become easily upset when bored and unstimulated.

Kim67

If you come to Australia in July, the Australian school year is half way through. Therefore your son will most likely do one semester (two terms) of Year 2 again and then start Year 3 in January 2012. Your daughter will either go into pre-primary or Year 1 depending on what the school decides to do (the state system have to pretty much stick to birth dates, but private and catholic ed will make exceptions - that's been my experience in Perth anyway). She will then start year 1 or 2 in January 2012.

Both your kids will be fine, they're young, they adapt and there are loads of things to stop them being bored.