Opinionated Kids

My kids, for the most part, know exactly what they like and don't like. There the similarities end.

My son is extremely verbal and will let me know every step of the way if he doesn't like something. For example, this morning I had him revise and edit a 1400 word story he has written over the past few weeks. I told him the editing would replace his normal Daily Paragraph Editing worksheet that he does. A few minutes later he pops off the computer and announces, "Mom, for future reference, the normal paragraph editing normally takes me 5 minutes. This has already taken me 10-15 minutes." I gave my "But that is what the real world is like" speech and sent him back to the task. I get pronouncements daily of things Denver doesn't like, so while I try to acknowledge them, I'll admit I get a little callous about being sensitive and responsive. "Just do it," becomes a favorite phrase, particularly when I am preoccupied with lots of other tasks.

My daughter, on the other hand, resists silently. I will ask her to do something and....she just doesn't do it. Well, she'll do it if 1-she wants to and 2-she remembers. Unfortunately, I have a lot of tasks that I juggle, so I often do not follow up on my requests or at least not for a day or two or more until I realize the task still has not been done. Thus, request #2 or #3 comes into the picture and it might drag on for weeks. Cleaning up her workspace, turning in certain assignments and turning in corrections fall into this category often.

I have to admire classroom teachers that deal with this huge range of students every day....and the whole spectrum in between. When you start looking at the complexity of a school classroom and all that a teacher tries to accomplish during a school year, it becomes mindboggling. Two kids are keeping me on my toes, and keeping me entertained as well as I practice flexible teaching/parenting!