Dali,
In which city in India do you live? What languages do you speak?
I'm married to a Malayali. My 2 sons have been raised in a rich combination of the Malayali and American cultures. We have a home in Kerala, near Kochi, but for the most part we reside in The States.
Having seen first hand some of the parenting differences between the cultures, I can say that Indian parents/adults interact with young children (under 5 years of age) MUCH more than the Americans do. The child is nearly constantly in direct contact and conversation with an adult. While there are a few toys to be had, they do not dominate the child's day as they do here in the States. Rather the child is allowed to explore their natural home environment under the constant, vigilant watch of an adult relative or servant.
Really, the children are not read to as much as Americans do; hence the lack of children's books. Young children in India are held much more than here. Here the child is likely to be plunked in a swing, saucer or car seat. The car seat is often misused to be the baby's sleep inducer, too.
To me the young child in upper middle class India is the prince or princess...adored and encouraged to learn as they wish.
In my experience, it is the early childhood experiences in India that really help the gifted potential in the children. The upper level education -- grammar and up -- is a bit too harsh, still, but in my 22 years of being closely tied to the culture, I have seen vast improvements in that area.
As for teaching Siya, I think you've made tremendous gains already. I'm going to have to ponder a bit some solutions for you. It is true that Indians do not recognize giftedness as much as the West and given that the West is pretty limited that way, too, that means you have quite a battle ahead in developing education opportunities for Siya. I have a difficult time getting my DH to understand that our sons are "gifted" and need things to be different than the norm in most aspects of their lives. He feels that "gifted" is a ridiculous American invention. teehee!! Funny thing is both his parents, who reside in India, think the boys are "extremely too intelligent" (to quote Achaachin -- FIL) and they know that changes must be made to accomodate their learning. How that knowledge missed my husband, I don't know, but oh well, I digress....
I wanted to say, too, that Rite and Siya have the moon in common! When Rite was 19 months, we were driving cross-country through the flat and dry state of Nebraska at night. There was a full moon. Rite always loved the moon and knew the book "Good Night Moon" by heart. When we through a ball in the air it was, "Ball Moon Sky" not "throw the ball" for him. Anyhow, on that drive, he was watching the moon through the window and asked, "Momma. Is the moon a hole or a ball"! I asked him what he thought it was and he said, "I think its a ball, but it looks like a hole." hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. Now I'll always wonder.:^)
Our "moon kids", Dali, keep us delighted and slightly worried all at once!!!
