Figuring out your child is gifted and may not think like other kids doesn’t hit you like a thunderbolt. At least it didn’t for me. It was a gradual process with little clues along the way. Many of them ignored or just not recognized.
There was finding out she could read at age two. It was the daycare director who told us about that. I just thought she had memorized all those Dora the Explorer books but a trip to the library proved she could read much more than just Dora.
Same way with math. She knew all her numbers and could even count in Spanish (thanks, Dora!) well before age two. I was starting to suspect she might be bright but the gifted word wasn’t yet part of my vocabulary. Differentiation? Enrichment? Forget about it.
My focus was on potty-training, getting rid of the binky, and more potty-training. The important stuff.
My husband has always made it a point to share his love of sports with our daughter. To date that love has not proved contagious but he keeps trying.
One of the ways they’ve bonded is watching football. Sadly, she generally insists on rooting for the opposing team because willfully cantankerous.
It was while watching a football game one evening, she was about age three, that we had one of those elusive thunderbolt moments.
I forget the exact score of the game and I don’t remember for sure who was playing. Probably the Detroit Lions and they were probably losing. Again.
She started getting agitated and saying there was a mistake with the score on the TV. Let’s say the score was 9-14. Detroit obviously the team with 9 on the board.
Nope, we assured her the score was correct. Then came the tears of frustration as she tried to tell us there had to be a mistake. Little voice raised, little feet stomping, cheeks red, tears flowing.
Finally she was able to get out there had to be a mistake because touchdowns with extra points equals 7 and 7 doesn’t go into 9. Obviously the NFL has made a scoring error.
Proud papa moment! Tears were dried and an explanation of field goal conversions ensued.
It was then I realized that most three-year olds, who were barely potty-trained, were probably not doing division in their head.
Not sure she remembers the finer points of the game but her love of numbers is still strong.
Encouraging a Love for Math
What do you do with that?
I had no idea. Not sure I have the right answer even now.
On trips to Barnes & Noble she gravitated to math workbooks. We started playing Monopoly and you can guess who the banker was. There wasn’t any formal math instruction or enrichment until kindergarten.
Mostly because I didn’t know what to do or where to look.
Once in kindergarten the differentiation and enrichment started in earnest. Thanks to a progressive and saintly teacher, she was moved into higher grades for both reading and math.
The first year of kindergarten was supplemented with EPGY math, the old version. With the guy with the creepy voice. Her words, not mine. And more workbooks.
Then I found online resources, apps, and books to keep her engaged. Murderous Maths is a recent favorite.
Math enrichment is now part of our everyday life. Most recently she’s taken Art of Problem Solving pre-algebra and competed in the AMC8 competition. She’s spent Saturdays in IMACS classes where she met one of her best friends. Sundays, ok, some Sundays, are at Math Circle at the local university.
Despite the fact that there seems to be a national outcry to educate more girls in STEM, math accommodation can be tricky to get at local schools. Luckily we have a school that’s willing to try to meet her where she’s at and for that I’m grateful.
What’s been your experience with kids who love math?
This post is part of Hoagies’ Gifted Education Page March 2016 Blog Hop: March Mathness. Read more here.
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