What is the most obnoxious or even delusional brag you have heard from a parent about her/his child?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It probably depends on the sport, and on your kid's age relative to when kids peak at the sport. Gladwell said that he was a great runner at 13 but that he was so-so by the time runners peak at about age 24. Gymnasts peak at, what, 15-18? So somebody who's good at gymnastics at age 12 seems to have a better chance at being good at the peak ages. Likewise, it's hard to make a prediction about how a 4-year-old with a WPSSI of 99.6 will fare in the adult world.

12:31 can correct me, but I think the point is that showing greatness at age 6 MIGHT lead to greatness as an adult, but there's no guarantee. For all the reasons Gladwell pointed out, like you lose interest, or you don't have the persistence to work hard at it. Or you have a psycho coach who turns you off the sport, or you get injured.

that might be Gladwell's point, but I was addressing an earlier poster who was insisting there's no such thing as athletic talent. And I'm saying that there is. Obviously, there are a lot of other factors in getting to the highest level of a sport, but it doesn't all just "even out" by 3rd grade.

[Anonymous]

There is a lot of evidence that early success in IQ tests tends to even out by 3rd grade, because IQ performance at age 4 is so linked to the parents' SES. Not in every case, but in many cases. I wonder if this is what a PP was referring to when she said it all evens out by 3rd grade. I'm not aware of similar studies for young athletes, just what I've seen on my own kids' fields.

As we all know, IQ and physical ability are pretty different, and the skills required for different sports are pretty different, and the peak years for certain sports are pretty different! So it may be hard to defend generalizations about 3rd grade that are broad enough to apply to IQ as well as to all sports.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

But when somebody comes on to DCUM to tell a bunch of strangers who don't even know their kid, that their kid is the next Einstein, of course everybody has to jump in and say something like what Gladwell said so much more articulately in the article somebody pasted above. It's not the bragging per se. It's the whole dynamic around that bragging, with the pathetic bragger leading off, followed by the chorus of "wait till she's 25" posts, that gets annoying every time it gets played out on DCUM, which is about once a day.

So you keep saying, but you keep talking about the "pathetic bragger" and not the pathetic people who jump all over someone and derail a thread just to prove a proud parent is delusional in thinking their kid is great. This thread isn't about the "dynamic" it's about the bragging that seems to get your hackles up.

I'm the poster you quoted. I did actually talk about "the chorus of 'wait till she's 25' posts" and how the WHOLE DYNAMIC is annoying. I bolded it, so you can see it. Also, I'm not aware of referring to "pathetic braggers" more than once on this thread, to which I've only made a few contributions. Stop being so nasty, and get over yourself.

Why is that a nasty post? I was only quoting you. Yes, you highlighted the part about the whole dynamic but as you know that's not the topic of this thread or the other threads that have all mysteriously appeared about how awful "bragging" is.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Why is that a nasty post? I was only quoting you. Yes, you highlighted the part about the whole dynamic but as you know that's not the topic of this thread or the other threads that have all mysteriously appeared about how awful "bragging" is.

I was trying to point out that real problem was the dynamic around bragging, not the bragging itself. Why is this so gosh-darn awful? Jeez, you come down like a ton of bricks on something that is a valid point.

No, I didn't start a single one of the threads about how awful bragging is -- if that's what you're insinuating. (And did I miss a few, or is there only one other thread?)

[Anonymous]

The most delusional brag I have heard is someone ssuggesting their child was more gifted than mine. I mean really, who would believe that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The most delusional brag I have heard is someone ssuggesting their child was more gifted than mine. I mean really, who would believe that?

You just had to find a way to let us know your kid is gifted, didn't you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:And I still think people who consider most of this stuff "bragging" have their own jealousy and competition issues.

Hear, hear! I rarely hear people brag, but now after reading this, I realize that I just don't label it bragging.

[Anonymous]

Nanny here- I read MB's private school appilcation. The child she described sounds NOTHING like DC. The application was so fake and gave DC all these qualities he does not have. For one, I have been speaking Italian to DC since day 1, and he understands perfectly but refuses to speak and Italian. MB told the school that DC not only speaks fluently but is starting to write Italian as well... He's 3.5

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And I still think people who consider most of this stuff "bragging" have their own jealousy and competition issues.

Hear, hear! I rarely hear people brag, but now after reading this, I realize that I just don't label it bragging.

And I think it's bragging. Even though I'm really happy with my home and kids and have nothing to prove there. There's a reason bragging is a pejorative word, not a compliment....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nanny here- I read MB's private school appilcation. The child she described sounds NOTHING like DC. The application was so fake and gave DC all these qualities he does not have. For one, I have been speaking Italian to DC since day 1, and he understands perfectly but refuses to speak and Italian. MB told the school that DC not only speaks fluently but is starting to write Italian as well... He's 3.5

That is funny and sad..for the the child. Don't even get me started about parents who make private school applications all about their own egos. If you lie and/or cheat to get your child into a private school it will come back to bite you in the as$ and the person who suffers is the child. It's about finding the best learning environment for your child, not about impressing your friends. Stepping off my soapbox...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nanny here- I read MB's private school appilcation. The child she described sounds NOTHING like DC. The application was so fake and gave DC all these qualities he does not have. For one, I have been speaking Italian to DC since day 1, and he understands perfectly but refuses to speak and Italian. MB told the school that DC not only speaks fluently but is starting to write Italian as well... He's 3.5

That's a very stupid thing to do, because all they have to do at his interview is hand the kid a pencil and someone can ask him to write his name or cat or dog or hello. Private schools admissions people are not idiots, and they have a way of busting people like this in about five minutes.

[Anonymous]

I agree with previous posters about how athletic ability is much more obvious than intellectual ability. The latter is a lot less obvious.

[Anonymous]

I'm the person who threw in the "it all evens out by third grade" comment that seems to be hanging people up, so let me clarify:

(1) I do not personally believe this is true;
(2) it seems to be the go-to response on DCUM to a parent whose early elementary child is showing signs of being gifted; and
(3) I was (only half-jokingly) providing that phrase as an answer to the original question regarding the most obnoxious/delusional thing I hear parents saying.

[Anonymous]

OK. Although for a lot of kids, IQ does even out by 3rd grade. Not for every kid, to be sure. But whenever a mom comes on here to say "my 4-year-old is 99.5 pctile", you can sort of understand why eyes begin to roll, because for most (not all, of course) kids, this score will drop considerably by 3rd grade.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OK. Although for a lot of kids, IQ does even out by 3rd grade. Not for every kid, to be sure. But whenever a mom comes on here to say "my 4-year-old is 99.5 pctile", you can sort of understand why eyes begin to roll, because for most (not all, of course) kids, this score will drop considerably by 3rd grade.

Sure. But clearly it doesn't for a lot of kids, or GT differentiation would not begin in 3rd grade.