Suggessions

V., I am assuming that by standard you mean grade. I would talk to his teachers. Does he go to school or homeschooled? If he is homeschooled I can't really help you with that but if he is going to school I would set up a meeting with the teacher as a first step. good luck.
S.

There are a lot of things that change when a child transistions from 4th grade to fifth. Be patient, but also stay concerned. Visit the school and ask what suggestions might the teacher have for your son. Sometimes, I've found that by fifth grade boys sometimes feel unconnected to the material. If this is so, maybe you could have him do some writing at home to assist him with gathering and organizing his ideas. Hang in there.
Latash

Hi-I would strongly suggest you visit his school and speak with his teachers. He may be struggling with personal or emotional issues, or maybe his new classmates are making fun of him for being perceived as smarter or somehow different. See what kind of teamwork you and the school staff can come up with. He may need counseling, which is not the end of the world. Good luck!

I was a teacher for a long time and the 4th grade is a bigger change, with much more writing involved. I wonder if he was always a slow writer and you have started to see it slow him down and take more time so he does not do it. If he has a learning problem, sometimes he will behave badly to cover it up.

Start with an appointment with the teacher. Ask if he could be tested to see if he is having learning troubles. If he is really frustrated he will misbehave. GoodLuck.

Hi V. Have you talked to his teachers to see how he's behaving at school? Are you pushing him to hard? You say you're a single mom. Does he get any attention from his father? It could be a number of things why he's starting to behave this way. I know you what the best for him. So look into all of the above.

It could be something quite simple, have his vision checked. Perhaps he's having a hard time reading and so avoiding that and sudden bad grades would be natural.

Have you had his eyes checked? If you're talking about 5th grade that's when we discovered my son needed glasses through a routine physical exam. He had never complained that he was having trouble seeing!

Hi there,

Just wanted to pass along a few tips as I have a son in the 4the grade. (He's 9) What you need to do is make a list of things for him to accomplish. (A Resonbsibility chart for instance) When my son shows frustration with homework I have him take a break (10 or 15 min. is what he usually needs) where he can gather his thoughts, calm down and take a new stab at it and this seams to work. The break time is his so I don't bother him. He is also quite "all over the place, disorganized and impatient" This is where the list comes in. I am told boys process things different and need to tackle one task at a time. If you write it out for him he will have guidelines to follow and know what you expect of him. Challenge him with a reward at the end of the week if he consistantly sticks to his schedule. Soon it will become routine. It took me about a month. Good luck!! (I'm getting more hugs and kisses for this too - even in front of his friends!) Talking to his teacher also works for me too!

V.,
Try to talk with him about his feelings. Write down and observe the things you see, and try to talk with someone at school about his daily behavior (both his teacher and social worker). However, give him some time because he could be going through a stage.

All the Best!

Is there anyone you can talk to at your son's school? Many schools have testing to see what is causing a student's problem. If you explain to them that he was a good student and that something changed, they may have suggestions.