I saw a thread like this when I browsed the gifted haven.
It was just a long, rambling thread about whatever was on your mind when it happened. I see a need for such a thread as there's currently a thread gone way off topic as posters take pleasure in discussion and in sharing each others company. I'll start with a story from my week. But feel free to go off topic here, or just respond to my post. That's kind of the point of this thread. This thread is meant to be for conversation whereas most threads here are meant to be kept as archives of certain topics.
The hubby got a new job. �He already had job when they offered. �This new job has him working 7 days on and 7 days off in the oilfield. �Rotating the work weeks. �He'll be gone once a month. �We can make plans and do more fun stuff and he can do all my honey-do's. �It's the same pay with more days off. �Poor Wyatt's taking it hard. �He was asking indirectly at first, "won't dada want the last bananna for lunch tomorrow". �Eventually it became point blank �"do we still have a dada?". The hubby said that was a kick in the pants. �I've told him his dad's at work. �They talk several times a day. �This morning Wyatt me told me to look at the tv. �I said, I'm busy, why? �He said "there's a mom and a dad." and he started crying. �It was a commercial with a couple laughing togeather in a kitchen. �He'll adjust. �But this is sad. �I didn't know the boy would take it like this. His dad's been gone for work before but it's been awhile ago.
Oh, that's tough, isn't it? Many of my family in the South worked the off shore oil rigs, and, yes, the kids adjust. But it's not fun to go through that.
Thanks for starting this thread.
I'm sorry your son is having a difficult time with his dad being gone. My sister in law's husband also works on the oil rigs (they live in texas too) and she often has a hard time with her little ones missing their dad. My husband is in the military and when he's gone we try to keep in contact with computer/webcam and also he reads books and makes dvds for the kids to watch. I'm sure your son will begin to predict his dad's schedule and will become easier for him to deal with the change but until then, good luck!!
I'm sorry your son is having a difficult time.
Is Skyping a possiblity? Iphone picture chat?
Chilling to hear the 'baby thoughts' in vivid technicolor!
Big hugs to Wyatt. He is clearly a Daddy's boy. He will adjust but it still has to pull on your heart strings.
How old is your little guy again? That sounds really tough!
He's short of 3.5 yrs old by a couple months. I think the daddy drawing was a positive adjustment. I guess he finally got enough phone calls and answers to satisfy his doubt. It looks almost like they're hugging and they both have smiley faces. But who knows how he'll feel after having him home for another whole week and it happens again. Well, he'll get used to it. We all have to get used to it. I was pretty sad when I made the first post, but I felt so much better after he made the happy picture.
Lotsotots5 those dvd's sound like a great idea. Actually that gives me an idea for extended family. With elderly family members I've been taking extra pictures for the photo album so there will be some kind of memories. I didn't even think to use dvd's. We have the technology. I was thinking about those "tell me your story" books you're supposed to get your grandparents to write in. But a video of them telling stories or sharing a recipe would be great momento's.
ABQmom, the oilrigs? Like the bp ? That was crazy. I don't understand the pressure, but I guess it makes a lot more pressure than they expected under water. Thanks for assuring they'll adjust.
Grinnity, the hubby's been kind of wanting a laptop. It wasn't a top priority since we both have iPhones and a computer at the house (not iPhone 4's). So, I guess here's a good reason.
Thanks Foltzy, thanks Katelyn's mom. Katelyn's mom, how you been doing lately? Enjoying the Holliday break?
His pictures are so cute!! I honestly think that's my favorite age for drawing. My 3 year old daughter just started do draw actual pictures and it's so entertaining!
Hi Texican, sorry to hear about the anxiety over dad 'gone missing', in the eyes of your son anyway...We deal with some of that on a regular basis. I am outside the house 3 days a week (god forbid!) and need to regularly re-explain to my dd4 that I go to make money (for all the cheese she eats). And the house and the car, etc. She seems to 'get' this, and it does help her. Yesterday's explanation was a bit more detailed, I talked to her about working, getting paid a bit, the bank, the bills, but not too detailed. (This was more an explanation of how I couldn't by her a $2000 loft bed she'd seen somewhere (sheesh!!))
Anyway, while they do adjust, expect to continue to have questions for a while...
On the question of laptops, and chatting about other stuff, has anyone considered/looked at the tablets running android os? They "look a lot like" the ipads, they claim '1000's of apps' available right now, but they are very new so take that with a grain of salt. I think the next android release for tablet is coming out soon, however,...and they could become a pretty reasonably priced viable option, with a greater range of hardware options and a free-er market....
Thanks Foltzy, thanks Katelyn's mom. Katelyn's mom, how you been doing lately? Enjoying the Holliday break?
I've been great La Texican and thanks for asking.
We usually don't share like this on this forum BUT hey the subject is Random Chatting! I did get my dream car over the Holidays and have been out driving it around. Since it was my dream car and what I've wanted forever DH wouldn't let me settle and I got to order exactly what I wanted so I had to wait for 2 months but the wait was worth it!
DD has been on break and goes back to school next week. We had the pleasure of seeing the extended family on DH's side over this past weekend and this side of the family speaks Spanish. They were blown away by DD's Spanish. One Uncle who is fluent in Spanish was in shock, stating that her pronunciation was better than his. Glad to know the school is really working for DD in that regards. (I am pathetic with any foreign language. It's my downfall.) It was really cute how all of them, when seeing DD, said something in regards to her Grandpa and how she is the apple of his eye. I guess all he ever talks about is DD. She isn't their only grandbaby but she is the youngest.
I hope you had a great Holiday and hope Wyatt adjusts soon!
Also: On the topic of video chat with Wyatt's Dad. I know money is tight for you but is it possible to get the IPhone 4s? They have video capabilities. Of course besides the cost is the service and if he would have service on the oil rigs. <<shrug>> just a thought. But I do agree that Wyatt might adjust faster if he could see his Dad when he talks to him.
Hi Texican, sorry to hear about the anxiety over dad 'gone missing', in the eyes of your son anyway...We deal with some of that on a regular basis. I am outside the house 3 days a week (god forbid!) and need to regularly re-explain to my dd4 that I go to make money (for all the cheese she eats). And the house and the car, etc. She seems to 'get' this, and it does help her.
Hi Chris - I was out of the house 5 half days when my son was 4, and I had heard that having an explanation phrase was helpful ( like your cheese - lol) so here is one I repeated almost every day:
Mommy goes to work for 4 reasons:
1) Make Money
2) Help People
3) Use my Special Gifts
4) Grow Inside
Of course there was discussion about what each of them meant. What is funny to me in retrospect, is that I thought that all 4 year olds would be able to have such discussions if only all moms were as wonderful at explaining things as I am. L O L My denial of my son's giftedness was firmly in place. If anything, I felt guilty for making him 'weird' for my on selfish need to communicate deeply with him.
I didn't really think of myself as gifted, except in a statistical 'top 3% of what school likes - but so what?' kind of way, and couldn't bear the idea of individual differences.
I would have said, at the time, that all people have special gifts and need to find them and use them, but that our society was imperfect at identifying, helping develop, and rewarding all the special gifts. I still believe this actually, but without the shell of denial that gifted kids have special educational needs that schools have an actual responsibility to provide an environment where development is even possible, let alone encouraged.
And without the shell of denial that most folks are so tuned in to the 'usual developmental path' that families with kids on a asynchronous developmental path are going to need to ignore most of the 'common wisdom' about parenting and find individualized ways to parent their unusually gifted kids.
Wow La Tex, I haven't been able to bring those two thoughts so close together in words before today - thanks for starting this 'Random Chatting' and thanks to C1234 for reminding me of those bittersweet days.
For what it's worth C1234 - as much as my son hated me going to work at age 3 and 4, he now at age 13 and 14 is that relieved that I have 'other places' to use my special gifts and Help People than on him!!!! I love these 'true but simplified' discussions what we can have with our preschoolers. In Kindy, DS didn't want to go to school, and said "Why do we have to?"
My BIL used to say things like "Because the police will come and arrest me if you don't" which I thought was horrifying at the time, so I said: "If you get in the car, I'll tell you all about it" and once he was strapped in the carseat was all onto Child Labor and Child Labor laws! What a fun way to take a 5 year old to school! I really wondered what was wrong with all the other Moms who didn't have these conversations.....Now I get it!
Live and Learn!
Grinity
What is funny to me in retrospect, is that I thought that all 4 year olds would be able to have such discussions if only all moms were as wonderful at explaining things as I am. L O L My denial of my son's giftedness was firmly in place......
And without the shell of denial that most folks are so tuned in to the 'usual developmental path' that families with kids on a asynchronous developmental path are going to need to ignore most of the 'common wisdom' about parenting and find individualized ways to parent their unusually gifted kids.
.... I said: "If you get in the car, I'll tell you all about it" and once he was strapped in the carseat was all onto Child Labor and Child Labor laws! What a fun way to take a 5 year old to school! I really wondered what was wrong with all the other Moms who didn't have these conversations.....Now I get it!
Live and Learn!
Grinity
Grinity,
I was thinking of you as I drove through Connecticut on 95 the other day - and it made my drive much nicer.
I too wondered why other parents wouldn't just talk to their pre-schooler. How silly I was!
Even now, I sometimes forget that most other people don't have children like mine and what works for them won't work for us and vice-versa. What really brought this back to me recently was our trip to see my family for the holidays. My brother's daughters are both GT, the oldest probably PG+, but they have never had any educational issues with them because they are in a district that takes care of GT kids from elementary school on!
(wouldn't that be nice?) My oldest and his oldest are almost carbon copies of each other and it was really funny listening the him remember how they dealt with their DD as a 7 yr old (she's 17 now) and how similar it is to how we deal with ours. Then we saw cousins who have an adopted 5 yr old son and are having problems with him in pre-school. I watched him play with my DDs and knew immediately that he is most likely gifted as well. They had been parenting using all of the "old standbys" that their friends had been passing on to them and it wasn't working well. I pointed them towards Hoagies site as an intro to gt and they went through the initial "wow - this is about my kid" as soon as they started looking at it.
After feeling like we're isolated most of the time with our DDs since we live far from family it was really nice to not only visit them, but to see that our daughters fit in nicely with the rest of the family and that what they do is "normal" compared to their cousins.
My brother's daughters are both GT, the oldest probably PG+, but they have never had any educational issues with them because they are in a district that takes care of GT kids from elementary school on!
(wouldn't that be nice?) ...
After feeling like we're isolated most of the time with our DDs since we live far from family it was really nice to not only visit them, but to see that our daughters fit in nicely with the rest of the family and that what they do is "normal" compared to their cousins.
Fitting in at school or fitting in with relatives - both are nice! There are a few districts scattered through the U.S. where the schools really do take care of their GT kids. So nice! If only I had known myself better, and the genetic component to giftedness, maybe I would have made an effort to live in one of them! Oh well, not my path, I guess! Glad you enjoyed your trip. If shaking your family tree helps, then I say 'shake it baby!' - even though there is distance, with email and skype one can make worthwhile contact.
Love and More Love,
Grinity
Haven't looked because android's verizion and we're AT&T. The 4gs only gives video chat where there's wifi, not in the field. Already tried that way to get the new phone. They got the hd video and an editor to put my video clips togeather. I would love to paste all my video clips togeather.
We have skyppe at the house. My sister said my nephew walked by the computer one night after skypeing and he was calling Wyatt, where are you?
Congrats K, santa's the greatest.
Let me tell my aww, cute story. Then i'll hit submit. We were watching CMT, something with George Strait in it. Martina Mc Bride came out singing Garth Brook's "the dance" and Espy started singing with her. From the belly, putting her heart into it. She's three months old now, and she is a chatterbox.
I have an IPad and I get some advertisements when I'm playing certain games. One such advertisement is about Skype and being able to use the IPhone with it now. Might want to look at it. Of course it could still be a WiFi situation.
Sounds like you have a talker on your hands.
DD was a major chatterbox when she was a tiny thing. Okay ... she has ALWAYS been a chatterbox and I don't see that EVER going away. She even talks in her sleep!
We usually don't share like this on this forum BUT hey the subject is Random Chatting! I did get my dream car over the Holidays and have been out driving it around.
Kind of like the Lexus commercial
La Texican - sorry that your son is taking it so hard. How about upgrading those iPhones to iPhone 4s?
Yeah Katelyn Sr., did your hubby get a paperbag and a trampoline for you to hyperventilate and faint into?
It takes a hotspot for the wifi for the iphone4 webcam. We might get another laptop and one of those Internet cards. We got a calendar on new years and had the boy mark an x on it everyday last week. Yesterday we put the calendar on the kitchen table and drew large numbers 1-7 in the boxes from today to next Wednesday. The hubby told the boy "I'll be leaving tomorrow, I'll be back in 7 days". The boy said, "because you're going to work and I can call you on the phone". It's just a minor adjustment. It appears he understands. Last night he was clingy and today the hubby left for work.
In other news sugar is usually rationed around here and I left a bag of chocolate mini's on the kitchen counter. By the time I noticed the boy had a chocolate goatee and was running back and forth in the hallway. I told him to go to the bathroom and wash his face. Nothing else you can do by that point, it's already done. Took literally three hours for him to stop.
And the baby last night. Well I was trying to google savassana while she was nursing because someone here wanted a recomendation for meditation for her son. (I didn't like the narrators voices available on YouTube under savassana, so I never posted it.). The baby started singing along with the Hindu music on some yoga I was watching. I think it's cute that she sings so I put on some big voices, I turned on YouTube Dolly Parton, Olivia newton Jon, Whitney Houston that phantom of the opera girl, etc. It backfired. The baby sings loud. I tried to stop so she wouldn't wake everybody and she would cry until I turned it back on. Oh no! Cute, but spoiled. Yep. It's a girl
On the language side I can get directions, order a taco, and ask for the clearance price without using English but I don't really feel my Spanish is adequate enough to want a conversation with it. I use it with strangers some because it's expected down here, but never with my friends and neighbors because it sounds like I'm talking to a toddler con la lingua. But with the hubby gone I make little videos to text him. The boy just showed a good friend of ours a video clip of my Dixie Spanish before I realized what he was doing with my phone. !Que embarresada! (just kidding, that means pregnant). Anyway she watched it at least 3x with a goofy grin before she gave it back. My stepmom says with my kids learning Spanglish from birth I'll have my monolingual tendancies cured for me.
Loving the idea of Random Chat, thought I'd just throw this one in there.
Last night DS8 was discussing death, and in his opinion, the lack of necessity for it.
Logic as follows:
More people/increased population = more brain power
More brain power = quicker and more successful technology
More successful technology = planet exploration
Planet exploration = planet colonization.
PLENTY OF ROOM FOR EVERYONE:)
lulu -- I love it.
Here's my random thought for the day. You know you've been following this site for too long when: Your ds5's CoGat scores come back with everything in the 97th and 98th percentile and Naglieri in the 98th percentile and your gut reaction is why are they so low? Had to kick myself over that one. He had the scores he needed to get in the school gt program so life is good.
I know that one too Knute ....
Glad ds is getting the placement he needs.
You know you've been following this site for too long when: Your ds5's CoGat scores come back with everything in the 97th and 98th percentile and Naglieri in the 98th percentile and your gut reaction is why are they so low?
Hugs! CoGAt just doesn't seem kind to highly G kids so I'm happy he met the cutoff. DS has same reaction recently when his whole 9th grade class took the PSATs and his score was almost equal to what he got on the SATs a year ago. I reminded him that there are much fewer questions so that little mistakes count more. It's an 'occupatinal hazzard' I guess.
On the morning show they announced a thirteenth zodiac sign and a re-assignment for the rest of us. Now 'm supposed to be a pices? I don't like it. It's weepy and sensitive and takes on other peoples problems and never turns anyone away. No, no, no! I'm an Aries. Stubborn and spoiled and first in the Zodiac. I can't be a pieces. I don't even know what that is. Ooh. What about all the people that have Tatoos of their own sign or their family's signs?
What is funny to me in retrospect, is that I thought that all 4 year olds would be able to have such discussions if only all moms were as wonderful at explaining things as I am. L O L My denial of my son's giftedness was firmly in place.
I'm late to this thread, but it gave me a bit of an A-HA moment. When DS(now 9) was 15 months, he was VERY attached to nursing. At that time, I found out I was expecting my next child and had to take medication for several months that meant I had to stop nursing DS immediately. I had heard horror stories from other moms about how upset their DC were when nursing was stopped against the child's choice. I sat down on the bed with DS on my lap, and told him that this would be our last time nursing because I needed to take some medicine that could make him sick if we continued. He said "OK, Mama," contentedly nursed for the final time and never asked about it again.
At the time, I never thought about this as anything unusual. I couldn't understand why other moms didn't just talk to their kids when they decided to stop nursing. It seemed odd that their kids, many of whom were older than mine, were upset about it. In retrospect, a bit of a lightbulb has gone off.
We had a very ah ha type moment last night. DD 5 is in 1st grade. She hates to do homework. I think we figure out why. Her math homework usually has between 5-15 questions and she finishes them in all of 5 minutes and her reading questions are usually around 4 (The teacher usually writes these for her because they don't have any questions for the book she's reading). She finishes her math homework in 30 seconds to 1 minute. Her reading takes her about 2-5 minutes depends on what the question wants. We finally figure out that she doesn't like to do it because it's not challenging. She works at a much higher level in both those subjects. They are working on time, counting money and greater than or less than. They've now each about 5 times and she knew it after the first time and is bored with it. Her reading, she loves to read, is reading Mouse and the Motorcycle for fun at the moment but in school they are making her read Junie B. Jones and then ask her questions such as What is one important thing that happened in Chapter 1? What's the Characters Name? I can see it when I watch her. She hates it. It's time for Parent/Teacher meetings in a week or two and my husband and I decided that we were going to talk to her teacher and pull her gifted teacher in because there has to be something better. When she's with the gifted teacher they do much harder math stuff and much harder reading questions.
No one told me that it was going to be this difficult raising a gifted child.
Cool, I'll buy that. We're a tropical astrology, not an astronomical one. And it all depends on the weather. Ty. I do feel better.
sigh of relief
(The teacher usually writes these for her because they don't have any questions for the book she's reading)....but in school they are making her read Junie B. Jones and then ask her questions such as What is one important thing that happened in Chapter 1? What's the Characters Name? I can see it when I watch her. She hates it. It's time for Parent/Teacher meetings in a week or two and my husband and I decided that we were going to talk to her teacher and pull her gifted teacher in because there has to be something better. When she's with the gifted teacher they do much harder math stuff and much harder reading questions.
Parent/Teacher meeting aren't the best place for this sort of discussion. 15 minutes per family. Many, many families.
If the teacher is writing the question for your daughter individually, then why can't she write questions like 'please copy edit.'
Call the school NOW and let them know your DD is suffering and hates to do homework and request a meeting with teacher and GC to explore this in depth - you'll need at least an hour. It isn't normal to hate homework in 1st grade.
Best Wishes,
Grinity
Thanks. My husband and I are calling on Monday. We're going to set up a meeting with both of them and go from there.
The one good thing about of school is that there is only 15 kids in the class. So parent meetings are actually about 30 minutes or longer. Sadly most of the parents won't request a meeting since it's not required only the first meeting is required.
FWIW, both of my DDs hated Junie B too. They thought that she was an obnoxious, attention-seeking troublemaker. If the teacher is already writing separate questions, why not suggest letting DD read things that she enjoys. It won't make the questions less annoying but the reading won't be as painful.
I just saw the movie "The King's Speech" - enjoyed it very much. Lovely vignettes of gifted family life. I thought that they portrayed George IV as gifted as well. Opinions?
I am a mentor for a FIRST Robotics team, so I am currently spending my weekends in "the shed" with my team working on designing and building their robot for this year's competition (check out
FIRST Robotics FRC group for more info). DDalmost 8 has been coming along trying desperately to get the "big kids" to let her help. Well, I loved watching her work her way into these high school kids' field of view. She was a persistant, yet gentle little fly that eventually they noticed and allowed her to help out. She was rewarded for her persistance by being allowed a chance to drive the prototype bot at the end of the weekend. You should have seen the grin on her face!
I love the fact that I can take my daughter to something as cool as this and not have to worry about her destroying the place, but instead have confidence that she will find a way to helpout with the project. All of the difficulty it is sometimes raising a kid like her seems almost worth it when we can do things like this.
I don't know where else to send this e-mail but my uncle sent it to me this morning. The gifted kid's will love these "puns for educated people". Something else to talk about tomorrow at breakfast.
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���� For all you word lovers out there---this is classic!
�
Puns for Educated Minds
�
1.
The fattest knight at�King Arthur's Round Table�was Sir Cumference.
He acquired his size from too much pi.
2.
I thought I saw an eye doctor on an Alaskan island,
but it turned out to be an optical Aleutian .
3.
She was only a whiskey maker, but he loved her still.
4.
A rubber band pistol was confiscated from algebra class,
because it was a weapon of math disruption.
5.
No matter how much you push the envelope, it'll still be stationery.
6.
A dog gave birth to puppies near the road . . . and was cited for littering.
7.
A grenade thrown into a kitchen in� France�would result in Linoleum Blownapart.
8.
Two silk worms had a race. They ended up in a tie.
9.
A hole has been found in the nudist camp wall.� The police are looking into it.
10.
Time flies like an arrow.� Fruit flies like a banana.
11.
Atheism�is a non-prophet organization.
12.
Two hats were hanging on a hat rack in the hallway
One hat said to the other:�'You stay here; I'll go on a head.'
13.
I wondered why the baseball kept getting bigger.� Then it hit me.
14.
A sign on the lawn at a drug rehab center said:� 'Keep off the Grass.'
15.
The midget fortune-teller who escaped from prison was a small medium at large.
16.
The soldier who survived mustard gas and pepper spray is now a seasoned veteran.
17.
A backward poet writes inverse.
18.
In a democracy it's your vote that counts;
In feudalism it's your count that votes.
19.
When cannibals ate a missionary, they got a taste of religion.
20.
If you jumped off the bridge in� Paris�, you'd be in Seine .
21.
A vulture boards an airplane, carrying two dead raccoons.
The stewardess looks at him and says,�'I'm sorry, sir, only one carrion allowed per passenger.'
22.
Two fish swim into a concrete wall.� One turns to the other and says�'Dam!'
����
23.
Two Eskimos sitting in a kayak were chilly, so they lit a fire in the craft.
Unsurprisingly it sank,
proving once again that you can't have your kayak and heat it too.
24.
Two hydrogen atoms meet.� One says,�'I've lost my electron.'
The other says�'Are you sure?'
The first replies,�'Yes, I'm positive.'
25.
Did you hear about the Buddhist who refused Novocain during a root canal?
His goal:� transcend dental medication.
26.
There was the person who sent ten puns to friends,
with the hope that at least one of the puns would make them laugh.
�������������������������������������������������������� No pun in ten DID��
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For the record, I have a friend who's in to tracend dental medication whenever he's in at all. (really, the guy is... DUMB... except for the smart part)
I'm just writing to cry at you all. We don't fit in. Everyone is complaining about how their kids sleep. And it's so not even the same ballpark, I don't feel like I can say anything. And they're complaining about temper tantrums. And it's not the same ballpark NOW, let alone when DS used to have tantrums. I'm down to talking about where I found the missing bannana last week. DS spent all day yesterday talking about dead things, and then there was the chicken egg conversation (and dye plants, just to confuse the issue), and I'm shy of even talking to his dad about it becuase.. because... because...
How come so many kids seem to survive being in one room ten hours a day five days a week? It can't really be true, can it?
Mich, master of angst.
Mich, I know what you mean. It is so hard not to get into some sort game on it. I really do wonder sometimes how so many children get through what seems to be an awful system in a lot of ways and still be OK. How does that work?
Hmm, then again, thinking of my last foray into my local shopping center, and maybe they aren't so OK
(sorry, I'll be good now...)
Thanks. I feel better now. I've finished a couple of things that really had to get done, and I grumbled a bit (here and also to DH).
Oh. And DS packed himself into a suitcase (we're leaving tomorrow). That was cute enough to fix a LOT.
-Mich
Finally talked to the Gifted Teacher today and the 1st grade teacher. They are going to rearrange the way books are done. She has 2 more chapters to read in the Junie B. Jones book so she will be finishing it. Next book she gets to pick and I've talked to the teacher about her burning out reading. So we're going to 1 chapter a night with better questions instead of "What is one important thing that happened in the chapter" It'll also help with her writing which is horrible but we're working on it. With the Gifted Teacher we have set up a meeting to go over a few things but in the mean time she's going to discuss yet again with the 1st grade teacher that DD does not need to be doing everything so repetitively. She agrees that it should be more challenging and that she gets it after 1 or 2 times of it being taught and doesn't need to rehash it 10 or more times.
So we're getting there. Now if I could get DD to remember to turn in her homework, it would be much better.
Great news, Foltzy, I hope it works out!
Hysterical puns! We're big fans of them around this house. Can't wait to show them to the DC!! Thanks for posting them.
I loved the puns! Word play is a huge entertainment for our entire family. I shudder to think what the servers at restaurants think of us some times. We play word games frequently while waiting for our meals. When several of us are together we can have as many as 14 people playing off each other.
Random thought...
IS it wrong to be almost happy that DS (11) is getting his first C on a report card this time? I'd be completely happy if it meant that the work level was appropriate. Sadly, it just means that DS was so bored, he forgot to turn in assignments. However, it still gives me something to use to demonstrate why he needs to do the boring homework. No chance on getting more meaningful homework so we're working on the grin and bear it and just get it done AND turned in attitude.
Random thought...
IS it wrong to be almost happy that DS (11) is getting his first C on a report card this time? ... However, it still gives me something to use to demonstrate why he needs to do the boring homework.
Contact with reality in a way that doesn't cause permanent harm should always be celebrated! Much better to learn the lesson now with support than later.
Sad about giving up on getting appropriate work, though - can you find other ways to let him spend some of his time at his readiness level (summer/ afterschool/ weekends?)
Grinity
Grinity,
Yes, we do spend out of school time on much more level appropriate learning and exploration. He loves that sort of activity. Case in point he is stuck in 8th grade SAXON math but loves to pull out his Dad's Calculus books and figure out derivatives on his own. He is also working on a Science fair project that in my opinion is much more complicated than most of his age mates. We go to museum exhibitions, music performances and he reads everything under the sun! It is just painful, for him and for us that school provides so little academic challenge and so much challenge in dealing with arbitrary rules, and following rules without much incentive. I agree these skills are good to learn, however, they can be learned with a challenging academic program.
Ok, am I the only one that thought Random Chatting, was going to be about children that wont stop talking?
Ok, am I the only one that thought Random Chatting, was going to be about children that wont stop talking?
ROFL
If it were, my DS9 would definitely qualify me to participate!!!
I am a Bad Dad, I was so busy copying the puns to my facebook, that I forgot to pick up DS8 from ES to take him to MS math. Tardy because of Dad.
It is just painful, for him and for us that school provides so little academic challenge and so much challenge in dealing with arbitrary rules, and following rules without much incentive. I agree these skills are good to learn, however, they can be learned with a challenging academic program.
Couldn't agree with you more! It's amazing to me that so many
educators think that these things AND an appropriately challenging curriculum are mutually exclusive.
Grinity,
Yes, we do spend out of school time on much more level appropriate learning and exploration. He loves that sort of activity. Case in point he is stuck in 8th grade SAXON math but loves to pull out his Dad's Calculus books and figure out derivatives on his own. He is also working on a Science fair project that in my opinion is much more complicated than most of his age mates. We go to museum exhibitions, music performances and he reads everything under the sun!
Can you show the school the paper notes when he is figuring out derivatives and see if they can set up a mentor to come and show him some math every other week?
I sounds like you are doing a really good job with the enrichment outside of school hours!
Best Wishes,
Grinity
Edwin, my first though was that someone else understood my son's need to constantly commentate on everything. His mind does not have an off switch and neither does his mouth.
Sadly, we frequently have to tell him to be quiet because our ears are tired. We only use this when he is giving us a step by step button by button commentary on what he is doing in his handheld game.
Although I have heard that we have it a little easier than another parent I know. Her son wants to be a Sports Commentator and uses a Sports commentator voice to talk about everything
Lucky for us they do sleep. The fun part for me is that DS8 starts in the middle of a story, and I have no idea what he is talking about, and he gets frustrated that I don't understand.
Here's what I've been doing lately.
http://i945.photobucket.com/albums/ad296/Hablame_today/1e9a474d.jpgNot my design. I googles paper m�ch� vases images and tissue paper flowers.
I'm making my first big family party. It's small by local standards. I'm making 20 tables centerpieces with little guest gifts and they need take-home centerpieces, so this is what I did.
. Plus I'm making rice. , beans, and a cake. And the guys are bbq-ing. Good times. It's MIL's eightyith
I meant to tell a story on the Santa thread. You can see how on top of things I am. I messed Santa clause all up. I told him to write a letter to Santa and we put it in the post office. I said "now maybe Santa will come to our house.". He said, "probably not. He'll probably mail me something.". We're rural. We do everything mail order.
Thanks for starting this La Tex
I was just thinking that "it can't be helped", it is the way it is.
That as soon as any of us say or admit that our child is 'gifted' (or if we don't even use that word, but just that yes, does something levels ahead (not talking about sports or music, ha) of other children) to a teacher or another adult, that it can't be helped the types of reactions we get.
Only with another adult who already has experience or is gracious enough would you get acceptance at some level. Those are such treasured people!!
But those other adults, you know who they are, (horror and shudder), where their reactions totally blows you away. Because we have extra "senses", we sense almost immediately that some of these adults say "oh, let's see how smart your kid really is", "what do you know", and "see, they're not that smart" ... and then add on, "you think you're so smart" "big whooping deal" blah blah blah
I've decided that as soon as someone displays that, I am no longer responsible for their education. No, I will not be the one to educate them. (I'm too sensitive.) I will not spend my energy and my small time on earth explaining to someone who already has that attitude. Gah, it isn't about being smart anyways. It really has nothing to do with that. SIGH.
I will run. Fly. I rather sit in the dark.
I can't stand it. When you were young, did you ever wonder what was wrong with everyone? Why were the 8-10 yr old girls all acting so weird and how come they didn't "get" things? sigh. It was so frustrating.
Would anyone like to sit in the dark with me to explore the universe?
Jesse, yes sure, count me in.
Brian Greene has a new book out on the multiverse...
Actually I am becoming cranky and more 'in your face' as I get older so although I have done some good in the dark time, I am more willing to just talk to people.
I do recall wondering what was up with all the 15 year old boys being so.... well, less than brilliant, let's just say.
I have had some wonderful conversations (ok, maybe just a couple) with folks who do get it, so that is always nice. I actually got a 'good for you!' from a parent at the preschool/k where dd4 goes when she found out that dd was in K. She knew all about having to skip from her older daughter so was totally supportive. Whew.
I like the way you wrote that.
Well, Jesse, I hate to tell you this. It really kind of is about being smart, whatever that means. Lol, I know what you mean. It's like, "You mean to tell me that my little kid doesn't know everything you've learned in your forty (sic) years of life in one of the two or three skill areas that you bothered to master and that, in your expert opinion, defines the definition of smartness.". Gimme a break.
I'm Not naming names but I have a long time family member who's going out of her way to play those kind of games right now. She has a couple relatives with boys the same age. The unnamed relative wants to insist the boys are "equally smart" when neither me nor the other mother have that attitude. We both have a good idea about how deep the boys are. And yes the meddler is a close relative who's around a lot. It's hard to tell the other boy's mother about parenting or educational ideas let alone giftedness. and the meddler is going out of the way to make the boys develop evenly and she's not raising either one of them. That's enough hints. You probably already know who it is.
I'd love to explore the universe in the dark, starting with finding out what this moving lines I see whenever I close my eyes are. I wish I knew math. Then I could say :)=\): or some kind of fancy equation and everyone here's so smart someone would know what kind of lines I was seeing. And someone else would know what they are. But, sadly I have to use my words. I feel so limited trying to describe radiating rays that drift solely down, curving concaving to follow each other like sheets of paper falling onto a stack seen from the side. Also the gravity of the procession moves, at times it's downward, at times it's tword the tear duct, at times tword the outeredge, or inner top edge of my eye. They can go a different direction different nights, but the hold the same pattern once they've started for the entire resting period.
La Texican,
The lines you see may be ocular migraine variants. They are created by patterns of rhythmic neuronal firing in the visual cortex. The can occur by themselves, or be part of the aura that leads up to a migraine. Hildegard of Bingen had them, and interpreted them as angelic messengers. I know lots of people who have them, and I don't see a problem with having personal interpretations anywhere along the whole spectrum from odd physical artifact to spiritual manifestation.
I'm looking more for the physical answer. It doesn't hurt and it doesnt really bother me. I think it's kind of relaxing. Thanks for putting a name on it for me. Migraines do run in my family even though I don't get them, I guess that's all I get out of them. Cool.
La Texican and aculady,
about migraines, I always thought I didn't get them although they run in the family, but a friend was telling me about painless migraines diagnosed by her Dr, and I thought it was weird, but I noticed that there were times when I had other migrane-like symptoms (like sensitivity noise/light) I tried taking painkiller, and that went away! I don't think it's a migrane per se, but I think it is related. It didn't even have to be a strong painkiller just paracetamol. Aculady, do you know anything about that?
See, how random is that
Aye! LoL. No wonder I thought it was relaxing. It says there's a side effect of fatigue.
As I was sitting in my classroom today looking at the mess I call a desk and the other one I call my "work station", I had to laugh because it suddenly occurred to me that although some of DD's organizational issues are due to her brain going too fast all the time to physically keep up with, she obviously is just following in my footsteps
Why do the obvious things take so long to become clear?
I had the exact same reaction after months of telling DS to stop sticking his fingers in peoples faces - serious close talking issues which few preschoolers like - I kept wondering why he was doing it, till I finally caught myself wagging my finger at him as I informed him of some consequence. I had not noticed i was doing it but he had. Obviously it was what you do when trying to get people's attention!!! Oops!
DeHe
I've been busy. Everybody been sick. We had to go to town anyway. Haven't slept because the babies are sick. I try to make a habit to stop and look at ds3 when he wants to show me something. He doesn't let me fake it either. Like he showed me a heart on the bottom of the teddy bears foot. Mom do you see this? "Oh that's a nice heart". Do you see this one? He asks, of the other foot. And I'm busy. "yes" without looking closely at the other foot. "mom. Do you see this one.". "yes.". I kept looking up, but it was couple times before I look closely to see there's no heart on the other foot. Stinker!
Anyway he came up with something the other day that I thought was great, according to the conversation I read on here about parents teaching kids to "look me in the eye". Well my son told his Mamma, "I need to see your face when I tell you something". While he was trying to tell me something. kinda backwards of the parents teaching the kids not to be rude.
Anyone who read my dilemma about the doll and the Teddy bear here's the update. We saw the HUGEST teddy bear in the grocery store. He hugged it and made it hug him back, yes, it's that big. I told him to carry it. We went to the toy section and looked at the dolls. I said well, you know I said I was going to get you a doll. Your dad said dolls are for just girls, Teddy Bears are for boys and girls. I'll get you this Teddy bear instead of that doll I promised. We'll look at the dolls for your sister. We looked and decided since we truly couldn't agree on a doll we'd let the sister get old enough to pick her own dolls out. Ds wanted a cool mechanical doll for baby dd, I wanted a simple doll as a keepsake when she's older. All plastic, no fabric. Because apparently fabric gets thin and rips after 20 years.
The important thing was to get him to stop interrupting me from feeding the baby. I did that by telling him. "the baby wants me to lay still while she nurses and she wants me to stop talking. Don't make me move, or don't make me talk. I'm going to stop talking now". It seems to be working.
When DS was very little and before we knew so much about his difficulties to get his attention and talk to him I used to place both hands on the side of his face and turn him to look at me, then once I had his full attention I could talk to him. Wasn't long before he would do the exact same thing to me when he wanted my attention
The doll one made me smile too. Promised him we would go shopping for a toy as a reward (for something? don't remember what) we went up and down the isles - he kept coming back to the dolls and I kept moving him on till he said no mum I've looked at everything and I want Tania. Tania? yes mum that doll, she's called Tania. To this day I have no idea where the name came from. So we bought Tania and he insisted on taking her out there and then and carrying her around the Mall. Bear in mind this NZ land of the macho male, we copped a lot of strange looks that day. She lasted a few years but I reckon when we got to school and she mysteriously dissappeared that DH got rid of her.
Ah sweet memories...
Dear Hoosier Mamma, I wanted to mention that sometimes it's hard to find past threads in this forum. Someone once said the best way to do that is to type in the phrase or topic you're looking for + davidson forum into the google box rather than using the forum's search box. K.
And congrats on your kind start to your school adventure!
Jess. I pm'd you. You could answer me here or make me a P.M. if you want.
cheers'/'
(that's a margarita smilicon) I just made it up.