Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Age or Ability Specific Forums Pre-school Using exact vocabulary

I prefer precise language but i have found as an adult i have to simplify a lot with most people. I always thought it was one of my random ASD traits. I can now look at something and realise that it isn't supposed to mean what it actually says without freaking out which is good but it still takes me a very long time to adopt slang phrases. I can use cool now but as a child it drove me mad when people said things were cool.

I've struggled to get some family members to speak with him like an "adult." They want to switch into a baby voice or they over simplify their language.

DS is my first child and if I had any clue about parenting I would have realized much earlier that he was really into very precise terms. I remember talking to my husband when BS was 14 or 15 months old because I was running out of body parts to teach him and I thought it was strange for such a young child.

One of my son's favorite games is for me to say as many large words that I can that start with a P. I find it hilarious and challenging at the same time.

DS #2 will be here around the end of the year and I have no idea how I will keep up with DS #1 then. And then what if DS #2 is like DS #1! I can't imagine this intensity with two.

Oh, my goodness, this. DD9 is insistent that it's not 7:30, it's 7:27. It's not blue, it's aquamarine. It drives me insane! I must try your approach, although it may be too late.

Colors and time yes vAgue/specific problem concepts. I started saying I don't know the time. Then I explained to him that I would always give a. VAgue time ansswer (to the nearest 5) and that was just how it was going to be. Or he was going to be on a "what time is it" time out if he corrected me or didn't accept my vague almost or about time answer. We bought him many watches.

For colors and time, sometimes we add the suffix -ish: It's blue-ish, it's 8-ish, etc.
Or, "it's in the blue family", "its somewhere around 8-o'clock".

Precise vocabulary may come in handy when writing compositions; Having a large personal word bank with many synonyms helps avoid being a frequent word-repeater and keeps writing fresh and interesting.

The key may be helping a child see when a penchant for precision is helping communication, relationships, and fostering understanding and when it is not, by considering questions such as "what difference does it make?" or providing level of detail on a need-to-know basis. This may encourage practicing flexible thinking, empowering a child to steer clear of overly rigid thinking.
Some examples of the level of detail which makes a difference and which one needs to know:
- Stopwatches measure to the split second for timing sports, including the Olympics.
- Keeping track of minutes may be important for arriving on time.
- Hours may be the best measurement increment for activities such as sleeping.

Along these same lines, kids may also be taught to consider when vagueness obfuscates an issue. For example, when solving a mystery or a crime, being vague about time could hide the truth by making it difficult to accurately place events in chronological order.

Understanding this about vagueness/preciseness may help kiddos with future self-advocacy, such as identifying needed level of detail on the 5Ws of a gifted program and/or 2e remediation/accommodations, and gathering information to that level of needed detail.

In with that, indigo.

Language is most effective when it is tailored to its specific function.

Communication is actually a theme of many of our conversations about social skills, behavior, clothing styles, etc. That is, choices about language (or eye contact, or table manners, or transparent-outer-garments-that-display-the-exact-color-and-design-of-your-underwear) are made not only with reference to the self-expression or thinking of the individual generating the communication, but also to those of the recipients. Not that self-censorship or blind conformity is encouraged, but that one should consider whether the message received by one's communication partners will be an accurate reflection of that intended to be sent.

Another way of thinking about this, that aligns better with language arts pedagogical terms, would be that one should generate spoken and written communications with due consideration for one's audience.

I'm appalled to admit the age at which "Don't be pedantic" hit the top of our house rules list.

Conversation from the weekend:

DH: (says something about to DS7 not walking on the furniture in in-laws living room)
DS7: I am walking on the furniture (he walks on the carpet)
DH: The carpet is not a piece of furniture
DS7: In my language, a carpet is considered furniture

This triggers a long discussion between DH and DS about why we need a common language to understand each other - with DH arguing for this concept, and DS arguing against. (As well as other family members debating whether carpeting can be considered in the category 'furniture').

Me: (tries to quietly read novel while ignoring the chaos)

… and then we get into the spiral of checking and synchronizing all the clocks in the house to ensure it really *is* 7:27 and not 7:28

Stupidly we sort of created this monster, because a little toddler being pedantic is so cute. Now she's 8, I'm more like, "That's enough correcting me now!"

"You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means." - Inigo Montoya.

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