As the parent of a "gifted" kid, I was under the assumption that gifted meant academic ease. Obviously I'm not gifted. Cali is in the 3rd grade and it's now becoming obvious how these types of kids don't necessarily blend into the average landscape of the standardized classroom. If you had to stick a label on her forehead, it'd read "Artistically Creative Thinker". Which isn't exactly popular when it comes to structured education.
So it's not at all surprising that these kids are dismissed as ADHD or learning impaired, when nothing could be further from the truth. Every parent thinks their kid is special. I'm no exception. But from the second Cali was born, I knew that I wouldn't be able to find parenting answers in a textbook. She was born with a strong mixture of curiosity and skepticism. She wasn't out of my belly five seconds before she started quietly assessing how to break free of the hospital burrito blanket. You could actually see it in her beady little eyes. I believe her Daddy and I looked at each other and said, "We're screwed" in unison. So we adopted the whole "Explore and Play" mentality. Nothing in our home was off-limits to her. She was like a free range chicken with art supplies and snacks.
Someone recently told me that Sesame Street ruined everything for teachers. Why? Because kids come into the classroom and expect a show when they need to learn to sit still, keep their mouths closed and be instructed. Okay, first of all.....I hate Sesame Street, so my kid didn't watch it. EVER. And I don't really find comfort in the fact that teachers have this fantasy that every kid that darkens their doorway is going to sit still, shut their mouths and be instructed. It's laughable. My husband has told me that I wouldn't last five minutes as a teacher. Not because of my inability to interact with small people. But because bureaucracy is a four letter word to me.
I worry that my daughter is going to be a cynical 4th grader. The majority of her peers are high achievers, which makes her feel even more alien. I've watched her go from loving school to banging her head on a table saying her teachers hate her and that she's stupid. To say this is breaking my heart is a huge understatement. I fantasize about her one day wandering into a room of idiosyncratic kids who relish off-the-wall humor and aren't motivated by grades. Kids who share ideas that may seem impossible and far-fetched anywhere else. So as parents, we've decided to actively look for these kids so that Cali knows she's not alone in her uniqueness.
Because I refuse to let a dehydrated and stale educational system drain my child of everything that makes her brilliant.
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