| OP, have you had him tested to see if he is highly gifted? |
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My oldest son hates school. He's starting middle school and it's always the same. He doesn't hate camp, and he has really strong interests that have a relationship to academics (science/biology/animals/nature and also mythology and superheroes!). But he hates school - irrespective of the teacher or the subject or the season.
I think the PP who raised the point about how "anti-boy" the US educational system can be is right on target. If my son were in a program where he had 3 recesses per day, where he wasn't reprimanded (or worse, forced to sit still longer) for fidgeting during circle time as a kindergartener, etc., school might not be such a chore. But it wouldn't be a cure-all. For whatever reason, my son has these strong, strong interests but finds everything else excruciatingly boring. I have a younger boy who's only just starting first grade, but he LOVES school - can't wait for the start of the week. He's super active too, so I'm not sure what the difference is, but I literally knock wood/cross my fingers/say a prayer that somehow that enthusiasm will sustain itself. |
How did parents cope before child psychologists? All those kids from years ago must've been all f*d up. |
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Do you have a schedule for the morning? If not, make one and stick with it. Either penalize for not following it or reward for following it, whichever you think works best. There is less time and less opportunity for tantrums.
When your child says he hates school, do not argue. Tell him that you understand but he has no choice, he has to go to school. Do so in a very calm but firm voice and repeat as necessary. |
| My DS hates going too. He doesn't say he its boring, he says that he hates that the teachers are always telling him what to do. I think he would benefit from more downtime and recess. Last year I finally broke down and bribed him into the car every morning. He got an Oreo every morning for about a month for getting ready and out the door on time. After that it was a routine, but he really was never happy about it. Even when there was something fun happening at school |
Given that most of the shrinks I've known are crazy, and teachers have the worst kids, I think behavioral psychology is a nonsense science. |
New poster here. What it does is help create good habits. The old fashioned way of creating good habits was punishing a kid when they didn't do it. This is a different approach and when done correctly, it's highly effective. |