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Good for you for drilling the times tables. Once he gets his 9's he will be even with me! (do you know the trick for nines with holding 10 fingers up and crocking one finger - number of finger to the left of the crook is the 10 place, and to the right is the ones place. Sorry it's hard to discribe but easy to show. Basic idea is that if you add the digits together you will get 9 - 18, 1+8=9, 27, 2+7=9, etc.)
I reccoment about equal time to "mommy teach" and "kid teach mommy" so that you can do both the drilling the world needs and the encouraging that he needs to develop his own areas of interest.
If he refuses to slog through the early readers, see if he is reading his science books. Trick to try- read aloud and skip a line, see if he protests. Remember that reading aloud elegantly isn't the same at all as reading silently for understanding. If you leave him a note in the kitchen that says - "There's a candy waitng for you under your pillow" - will he start running like mad for the bedroom?
"Baby books" just aren't for everyone. For how many years did children learn to read from the Bible? Perhaps the science books are the equavalent to that for him? Since he likes to listen to complicated stories, you know he is processing deeply. Allow him to use audio books and reading aloud to feed the flame of his mind.
Food for thought: I think that there are some interesting parallels to the delayed handwriting that is so common in gifted kids, and the delayed reading that does appear in some gifted kids as well. Think about youself trying to type to me. If you only had a cell phone keypad to use to write with, wouldn't the quality and detail suffer? I know that when I go on vacation, I am sometimes itching to answer my emails, but my tiny little phone pad makes it almost impossible for me. Really really painful.
Similarly, when a brain only function on "high octane petrol" and is being given "see dick run" to read, there's going to be problems. My son's reading wasn't anywhere near satisfactory to him until he was almost 6. He may have had developmental eye muscle problems, or it just may have been that 'octane' problem. Like typing, once one reaches a certian level of skill, the ideas just flow out and the mechanics of typing or reading dissapear in the quest for communication.
Anyway - put on you Sherlock Holms hat, see where he is. Get as much specifics from the teacher as you can, but don't be fooled into thinking that that is your only source of information. You can do plenty of direct observation. We'll back you. We're a terrific bunch of problem solvers here, with a good storehouse of information, so post as you go and we'll ask good questions and share little tips.
As far as not wanting to be "one of those parents" - read all the posts here that you can. You can be one of us parents instead. If you show that you respect the teachers and are genuinly concerned for your child, I believe that you will be ok.
Some kids just are quite 'not well rounded' and elementary years are very difficult for them. If abstract thought is your child's gift, then these early years will be difficult. Both of these issues seem to become easier with time, but the steps you take now can make a big difference to what kind of shape he'll be in when the opportunities arise.
Love and More Love,
Trinity
