I wish I'd kept a written log of all the examples that I have of this. So many times, I've looked at his schoolwork and thought, "This would be marked wrong in regular school." But when you take a moment to understand his thought processes, it quickly becomes apparent that he isn't wrong; he just thinks outside of the box. WAY outside of the box, sometime.
For example, I remember one worksheet when he was about 4. He was learning about emotions, and he was supposed to label various pictures as either HAPPY or SAD. One set of pictures showed 2 kids, facing away (so their facial expressions wouldn't give away the answer). The kid on the left was watching his balloon flying away. The kid on the right had his balloon tied securely to his wrist. Micah marked the left kid as HAPPY and the right kid as SAD.
Fortunately, instead of immediately correcting him, I asked him why he'd marked it this way. He explained (in a bit of a patronizing voice, as if the answer were obvious), "It's fun to watch a balloon flying through the air, so that boy is HAPPY. But the other boy is stuck with his balloon tied to his wrist, so he is SAD."
Today, Micah was working on synonyms. He had a list of words and was supposed to give a synonym for each one. As I was correcting his page, I came to the word "strike." He had written "bite." I was just about to mark it wrong, but luckily I thought better of it.
Me: Micah, why did you write "bite" as a synonym
for "strike?"Micah: Because it means the same thing. (Duh!)
Me: Well, "strike" means to lash out; to HIT. (Trying to give him an obvious hint as to the correct answer.) "Bite" means to sink your teeth into something. They aren't the same thing.
Micah: They are if you're a rattlesnake.
Oh yeah. This is why I homeschool Micah.
4 comments:
Yes, I believe this is true for many kids in the public school system. Unfortunately the teachers don't have time to ask why all the time. You'll have to tell me more about homeschooling sometime.
Your kids are amazing. There thought process shows you have done a wonderful job of letting their minds grow.
Yes, I truly believe Micah thinks outside the box. You are right, most teachers would mark his answer wrong. That is wonderful that he is able to develop his mind, his way!
Check your gmail...I have sent you an email because my comment was getting way too long!
Has he read "The Mysterious Benedict Society"? Aidan really enjoyed how the main character was an "outside the box" thinker. The boy in the book had always felt stupid, until he took a special placement exam for the highly gifted where his "stupid" answers turned out to be the correct ones....
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