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#21
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fidgety kids
"Chris" wrote in message ups.com... That's been my take pretty much. He is bored, he repeatedly states he is bored. I figure he needs to find some way to occupy himself that is not distracting to others. Teachers seem to have different levels of tolerance for this. In 4th grade his teacher remarked that he "read at inappropriate times." Turns out when she was reading aloud to the class he preferred to read his own book. I don't see that as a problem, but she sure did. Similarly, the example of his science teacher who, despite quite clear evidence that the kid already knew the material, was upset that he was reading in class. So, we continue to work on that front. I've suggested doodling, but his teacher is not too keen on that either. He gets frustrated with helping other kids, but that is something he needs to learn to deal with better. My daughter reads ahead in the book the teacher is reading out loud. Another idea is to present "doodling" as note taking. He can take notes on the story being told, perhaps to help him pick out reoccuring themes, or work on illustrations of the story. In science note taking should be even more necessary, to pick up minor facts that may be important later on. To note math equations. Or even to write down questions that explain things in more depth that he can ask when appropriate or look up later. |
#22
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fidgety kids
"Chris" wrote in message ups.com... Paula wrote: Anyway, it's a life skill to deal with boredom productively. Who hasn't had to sit quietly and at least seemingly attentively in numerous boring meetings? That's been my take pretty much. He is bored, he repeatedly states he is bored. I figure he needs to find some way to occupy himself that is not distracting to others. Teachers seem to have different levels of tolerance for this. In 4th grade his teacher remarked that he "read at inappropriate times." Turns out when she was reading aloud to the class he preferred to read his own book. I don't see that as a problem, but she sure did. Similarly, the example of his science teacher who, despite quite clear evidence that the kid already knew the material, was upset that he was reading in class. So, we continue to work on that front. I've suggested doodling, but his teacher is not too keen on that either. He gets frustrated with helping other kids, but that is something he needs to learn to deal with better. One of the things the teacher can do is have your son read and do book reports on topics related to class. For example, if the class is doing astronomy, he can do a book report on a book about a dwarf planet (e.g., Pluto) or the moon or the Big Bang or whatever. That way he is occupied, he is learning, and he is out of her hair. And if she doesn't buy into this, maybe he can do the book reports on his own and hand them to her. In fact, in some science classrooms, they don't use a textbook, but use books at different levels so that the students can learn in their own way. Jeff there is no requirement for gifted education, and in fact our school district has come out quite strongly against any "special treatment" of advanced kids, even before NCLB. But beyond the "boredness" there is a distinct issue of fidgeting that may be related to the boredom, but seems distinct in some ways. I think the suggestions about limiting videos and increasing physical activity, as well as possibly looking at his diet are good ideas that I haven't really thought of as seriously as I probably should have. chris |
#23
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fidgety kids
"Cathy Kearns" wrote in message t... "Chris" wrote in message ups.com... That's been my take pretty much. He is bored, he repeatedly states he is bored. I figure he needs to find some way to occupy himself that is not distracting to others. Teachers seem to have different levels of tolerance for this. In 4th grade his teacher remarked that he "read at inappropriate times." Turns out when she was reading aloud to the class he preferred to read his own book. I don't see that as a problem, but she sure did. Similarly, the example of his science teacher who, despite quite clear evidence that the kid already knew the material, was upset that he was reading in class. So, we continue to work on that front. I've suggested doodling, but his teacher is not too keen on that either. He gets frustrated with helping other kids, but that is something he needs to learn to deal with better. My daughter reads ahead in the book the teacher is reading out loud. Another idea is to present "doodling" as note taking. He can take notes on the story being told, perhaps to help him pick out reoccuring themes, or work on illustrations of the story. In science note taking should be even more necessary, to pick up minor facts that may be important later on. To note math equations. Or even to write down questions that explain things in more depth that he can ask when appropriate or look up later. You know, in math class, I never took notes. I never figured out what I would write down. I learned the basic facts and understood the equations. I did my homework. I might have copied problems in my notebook. But if I did, I never used my notebook. However, I used my notes in Soc. Sci. and Science class. In math, you have to learn the basics, like +, *, - and /. You would be surprised how many kids use their fingers in math class for counting, even in the sixth and seventh grades. In fact, I think calculators should be banned from schools before college, except in science class. I did totally fine without one in math class, all the way through calculus. I also learned to take brief notes. I took a class in molecular biology. When we talked about DNA, I didn't write down that it carries the genetic information. I already knew. Why waste ink and paper? When there is a story being read, like in English, he should definitely learn how to take relevent notes. He should also learn how to take good notes in science and social studies and math (if it helps him). He should also learn to outline passages well, like in history and science. I also like the idea of illustrating things. If he is bored when they are studying the planets, he could draw pictures of the either planets in this solar system (pluto is a dwarf planet). This will help him remember things about the planets. (Of course, if he draws as well as I do, he is better of taking notes or just looking at pictures. ;-) ) The only other thing I suggest is that he learns to understand things. I could tell you what the letters in DNA mean, but if you don't understand what DNA is for, it won't matter. If he learns to understand things, rather than just memorize things, he will definitely be a leg up. Jeff |
#24
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fidgety kids
wrote in message ps.com... ... Using gifted kids as tutors for other kids needs to be approached carefully, IMO. It risks making the child seem even more different to his/her peers, and sets them apart in a way that becomes socially uncomfortable. Some experience teaching is probably good for many kids, but again, it shouldn't be the only thing they do all day. One thing that is good for kids is to tutor younger kids. It gives the older kids confidence and self-esteem. The younger kids benefit by getting more one-on-one attention. Working in groups, if done properly, is often helpful for all the kids, because they all take on roles as teacher and learner. And when you teach, you learn the material you are teaching even better. However, the key words as "if done properly." Schools who refuse to give advanced kids any special treatment are doing them a huge disservice. It is unreasonable to send a child to school for 7 hours per day year after year and have them not learn anything other than how to be bored without showing it. If we turn these kids off of learning at a young age, I'd argue that we have also done society a disservice. I do think it is good that kids learn to behave properly, even when bored. However, it is better never to test the kids on thisl. Kids are going to learn more if engaged than if bored. Jeff --Robyn |
#25
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fidgety kids
On Wed, 6 Dec 2006 14:45:39 EST, "Jeff" wrote:
"Chris" wrote in message oups.com... Paula wrote: Anyway, it's a life skill to deal with boredom productively. Who hasn't had to sit quietly and at least seemingly attentively in numerous boring meetings? That's been my take pretty much. He is bored, he repeatedly states he is bored. I figure he needs to find some way to occupy himself that is not distracting to others. Teachers seem to have different levels of tolerance for this. In 4th grade his teacher remarked that he "read at inappropriate times." Turns out when she was reading aloud to the class he preferred to read his own book. I don't see that as a problem, but she sure did. Similarly, the example of his science teacher who, despite quite clear evidence that the kid already knew the material, was upset that he was reading in class. So, we continue to work on that front. I've suggested doodling, but his teacher is not too keen on that either. He gets frustrated with helping other kids, but that is something he needs to learn to deal with better. One of the things the teacher can do is have your son read and do book reports on topics related to class. For example, if the class is doing astronomy, he can do a book report on a book about a dwarf planet (e.g., Pluto) or the moon or the Big Bang or whatever. That way he is occupied, he is learning, and he is out of her hair. The original poster mentioned that when a teacher does provide some extra assignment for her son, it is always of the form "write about ...." and he really does not enjoy writing. Of course, more creative and more active options for enrichment are easy for the rest of us to dream up (Build a model of ..., make a video of .... draw a map of the setting of ... ) but they aren't much help as long as the teacher isn't interested in having that kind of activity going on in her classroom. On the other hand, that reminds me of something. A bright kid who reads well but does not enjoy writing -- that could be another clue to look into LD testing, either through the school or privately. Louise |
#26
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fidgety kids
On Wed, 6 Dec 2006 23:08:01 EST, Louise
wrote: The original poster mentioned that when a teacher does provide some extra assignment for her son, it is always of the form "write about ..." and he really does not enjoy writing. Of course, more creative and more active options for enrichment are easy for the rest of us to dream up (Build a model of ..., make a video of .... draw a map of the setting of ... ) but they aren't much help as long as the teacher isn't interested in having that kind of activity going on in her classroom. The tests that they use to qualify different students as gifted in the district I work in results in a lot of gifted students who hate to write, and often hate to read as well. But the guidelines for enrichment activities for gifted kids are along the lines of writing extra pages or extra reports. It drives me nuts as a counselor to deal with the aftermath. We have kids being "punished" for being gifted and parents who believe their kids are not working hard because they are not getting straight A's (usually their lower grades are in Language Arts and things like Social Studies which consist primarily of reading and writing reports or taking written tests). I get really tired of explaining that gifted does not mean good at every kind of school task. Having seen how hard the teachers in my schools work to try to keep things interesting for a whole lot of students at different levels and how much pressure there is to keep test scores up, I don't blame them for not dreaming up all kinds of other activities for kids who aren't good at or are bored with pencil and paper activities. Those that used to are being pressured not to because standardized tests are paper and pencil activities and it is all important that the kids be able to sit for hours taking written tests and doing well on them. Sometimes the teachers don't want to but often they just can't. That is why I encourage parents to talk to the teacher about what the student can do when bored. I've been surprised at some of the great ideas that have come from student/teacher/parent collaboration. It has to be something that works with the individual classroom as well as the individual student, but there are usually lots of options. If you ask the teacher what the student can do that would not be disruptive instead of arguing with her about why you don't think what your kid was doing should be considered disruptive, you get further. For example, there is a huge difference in the message it sends when Johnny pulls out a book and reads while the teacher is reading or talking about something else out loud and the students seeing the teacher tell Johnny he can go ahead and read his book since he has already passed the test on whatever it is that she is teaching to the class. My third grade daughter has an arrangement like that and the teacher loves it. Other kids who like to read or do things other than listen to the same concept be explained again are asking if they can do what they like to do if they get a good grade on a pre-test. They are more self-motivated and she can pinpoint what group teaching she ends up doing to the specific needs of those who are still having problems. But if my daughter had just pulled out her book, I would have told her that is inappropriate because it sends the message to her classmates that she can blow off the teacher when she is trying to teach the class something. On the other hand, that reminds me of something. A bright kid who reads well but does not enjoy writing -- that could be another clue to look into LD testing, either through the school or privately. Fits a lot of ADHD kids I work with. If it's ADHD, it's easy to solve. Whatever the outcome, it's better to find out and start addressing it specifically now than later. -- Paula "Anyway, other people are weird, but sometimes they have candy, so it's best to try to get along with them." Joe Bay |
#27
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fidgety kids
Louise wrote: On Mon, 4 Dec 2006 20:24:22 EST, "Caledonia" wrote: Do they have IEPs for gifted students (w/o disabilities that are impairing their academic progress) where you are? Yes. My sister had one from 1979 (Grade 3) to 1990 (Grade 13). I was ten years older and envious as anything, particularly about the way that the program reviews included the child. Louise Ah. To my knowledge, we don't have that here. Interestingly enough, I was in the (then-new) GATE program as a kid, and never, ever, participating in a program review. And I can certainly vouch that my parents never did either, unless this was part of a parent-teacher conference night event. Caledonia |
#28
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I agree with the rest that exercise is important. They need a venue to release their pent up frustrations. Try to ensure he exercises everyday, maybe run 5 rounds a day to exhaust his energy.
Try to sit down with him as if you are in class. Help him to look around for something to keep him occupied and is acceptable by the teacher. This can lessen his movement. For more ideas, go to www.raisingconfidentkids.com |
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