Who thinks it is ridiculous when someone says his/her child is bored in school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:16:26 That is EXACTLY why there shouldn't be any homework in pre-school. The kids get burned out on homework and worksheets before they even get to real school.

Pre-schools with homework either don't truly understand child development or they give homework just to cater to what the parents want.

Homework is another topic entirely! My goddaughter used to get insane amounts of homework in pre-k, kindergarten, et cetera. It was excessive, and most of it seemed sort of unnecessary. I do understand the concept of reinforcing what a kid learns in school, but I got the impression (as did my friend, my goddaughter's mother) that the homework was a way the school kind of gave the impression of being advanced -- as in "we're so academically challenging that even 4 year olds get a couple hours of homework!"

I think it's kind of an act of desperation -- without fully knowing how to bridge the education gap between the U.S. and some other developed countries, schools think piling on the homework will help.

But as I said, that's probably a topic for its own thread.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't say my kid is bored at school, I wouldn't know that, I don't sit there, but he says it.And it might be true, because how many lines a day can you possibly connect day in and day out in pre-K? The homework is even the same, I'm tired of it,but I guess it's all they can do at that age.

It is too early to be bored. I was going to say no one should be bored in preschool. They should be allowed to play. And no homework. Why do they need homework for prek?

[Anonymous]

I was extremely bored in school through fourth grade, when I placed into a high-quality accelerated track. Before that, I remember having to wait while other kids finished their work, and listen endlessly to the same material repeated again and again. If I had been allowed to read or draw, I think that would have improved things greatly. What a waste of time.

[Anonymous]

I don't remember being bored exactly, but I remember wanting to learn something new and having to sit through talks and do worksheets where everything was a review over and over. I finally realized I was bored I guess by 2nd grade or so. In those days though there were textbooks, so kids could sometimes read ahead. Now everyone just gets a worksheet.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't remember being bored exactly, but I remember wanting to learn something new and having to sit through talks and do worksheets where everything was a review over and over. I finally realized I was bored I guess by 2nd grade or so. In those days though there were textbooks, so kids could sometimes read ahead. Now everyone just gets a worksheet.

Schools don't use textbooks anymore?

[Anonymous]

Last year FCPS bought math textbooks only on line. So far, after 4 years, I haven't seen any science or social studies text books. My younger son's newer school has some social studies reference books for the classrooms (not just the library).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why would you think it is ridiculous when someone says his/her child is bored in school?

Do you also think it is ridiculous when someone (for example, me) says that they vividly remember being bored in school?

I do at a young age. I don't think truly bright kids get bored. I remember being bored in physics in high school. I do not remember being bored every in elementary school...and I was in AAP (then GT) starting in 3rd grade...but before then a regular curriculum. I think the 'bored' kids are getting a lot of electronics at home AND/OR have behavioral issues in and out of school (antsy, restless, etc.).

I replied earlier about my K son being bored. He gets very little "screen time" at home, has no game systems of any kind, watches tv once in a blue moon, and all that mess. In fact, he has learned about all the silly "educational" websites in his computer class at school and now I have to deal with his asking to play them at home, which is very annoying for luddites like my husband and myself. And I am not sure how being antsy or restless equals a behavioral issue? What little kid doesn't get antsy and restless at times? Especially boys? I call that normal. And the school should deal with the needs of little kids to be active, not force them into sitting 7 hours a day. But that is beside the point for my kid-he can and does happily read for hours-it isn't an inability to focus or sit still for an activity, it is mental stimulation and spending too much time waiting on the next thing in the classroom b/c he finished the current work 5 minutes into the 15 minute period assigned for it.

During periods of quiet learning/listening in school, antsy and restless equates to a behavioral issue. Kids DO NOT sit 7 hours a day - ever, anywhere. That said, they do have to sit quite a bit and deal with it. Sounds like mamma is making excuses.

[Anonymous]

Yes. "Boredom" is usually an excuse for behavior issues. Everyone I went to school with who were excellent students all tended to be well behaved as well and were never trouble makers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Kids need to learn to deal with boredom, to deal with the lulls that occur in daily life, to be patient waiting for others, because let's face it, a huge part of life is waiting."

Kids are not little adults. Their brains don't function like our brains. They can't be expected to pattern adult behaviors all the time.

Brainless is what you are.

Kids are not little adults, but they do need to learn skills to prepare them for adulthood, which was the point of my post. that's why it begins with the "kids need to learn" part.

"Their brains don't function like our brains" is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. They are humans after all! Certainly, they can't be expected to behave like adults, but they most certainly are training to be adults. And that's a big part of school -- teaching them how to be adults, preparing them to be adults.

I never said there wasn't an age-appropriate way to do this. But I disagree that kids can't be expected to learn to deal with boredom, especially in rather small doses. It isn't like kids are doing the states on a map for 6 hours straight. They do switch to different subjects.

The last part of your post is just plain juvenile. So I really hope no child patterns your behavior.

They will become adults without any training, they just grow. Maybe if we gave them interesting and engaging educational environments, they would learn that the world is interesting and engaging. But then we wouldn't be training them very well for their roles in the 99%, would we?

http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/~rgibson/BowlesEducation.htm

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

I think it's ridiculous because usually they are implying that their child is gifted or advanced. But, as more than one teacher has said to me, truly gifted children are never bored in school because they're always finding something to investigate. So, the "my kid is smart b/c s/he is bored" bromide doesn't actually signal gifted aptitude at all.

I agree with this 90%. I do think the ability to entertain yourself depends somewhat on motivation and persistence. While most truly bright kids *need* to find intellectual stimulation, some bright kids may be lacking the drive to find stimulation that's acceptable within the classroom (not disruptive etc...). My kids are in magnets and I've seen all kinds of excuse-making for bad behavior, some really egregious cases of moms defending brats. I've also met some truly bright kids who behave wonderfully -- these are the kids who quietly doing origami, as one small example.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
Kids are not little adults, but they do need to learn skills to prepare them for adulthood, which was the point of my post. that's why it begins with the "kids need to learn" part.

"Their brains don't function like our brains" is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. They are humans after all! Certainly, they can't be expected to behave like adults, but they most certainly are training to be adults. And that's a big part of school -- teaching them how to be adults, preparing them to be adults.

I never said there wasn't an age-appropriate way to do this. But I disagree that kids can't be expected to learn to deal with boredom, especially in rather small doses. It isn't like kids are doing the states on a map for 6 hours straight. They do switch to different subjects.

The last part of your post is just plain juvenile. So I really hope no child patterns your behavior.

They will become adults without any training, they just grow. Maybe if we gave them interesting and engaging educational environments, they would learn that the world is interesting and engaging. But then we wouldn't be training them very well for their roles in the 99%, would we?

http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/~rgibson/BowlesEducation.htm

I'm 100% with the first PP. The second PP is "off" in so many ways, starting with the naive "kids just grow". She follows this with a blinkered "let's make education more fun," which seems based on two very false assumptions, that (a) school is *always* boring and never interesting or engaging and (b) boredom is an evil rather than a part of life, therefore boredom must be completely expunged everywhere it is found. Then she wraps it all up with a childish reference to the 99% which, if she had bothered to think about it, makes the bizarre point that only the 1% find life "interesting and engaging" -- huh?

First PP is right. If we make school into Disneyland, we will create spoiled monsters. School should be fun, but a little boredom never hurt anyone. The second PP also misses the point that many have made here, including myself -- that truly smart kids can find ways to amuse themselves in class.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Kids need to learn to deal with boredom, to deal with the lulls that occur in daily life, to be patient waiting for others, because let's face it, a huge part of life is waiting."

Kids are not little adults. Their brains don't function like our brains. They can't be expected to pattern adult behaviors all the time.

Brainless is what you are.

Kids are not little adults, but they do need to learn skills to prepare them for adulthood, which was the point of my post. that's why it begins with the "kids need to learn" part.

"Their brains don't function like our brains" is the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. They are humans after all! Certainly, they can't be expected to behave like adults, but they most certainly are training to be adults. And that's a big part of school -- teaching them how to be adults, preparing them to be adults.

I never said there wasn't an age-appropriate way to do this. But I disagree that kids can't be expected to learn to deal with boredom, especially in rather small doses. It isn't like kids are doing the states on a map for 6 hours straight. They do switch to different subjects.

The last part of your post is just plain juvenile. So I really hope no child patterns your behavior.

They will become adults without any training, they just grow. Maybe if we gave them interesting and engaging educational environments, they would learn that the world is interesting and engaging. But then we wouldn't be training them very well for their roles in the 99%, would we?

http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/~rgibson/BowlesEducation.htm

Sure, they'll become adults without training but preparing them for adulthood increases the likelihood that they will be successful and functional adults -- as opposed to setting them up for a lifetime of disappointment because they expect to constantly be entertained.

The 99 percent comment is stupid. By definition, 99 percent of people will be in the 99 percent. I'm in the 99 percent. I'm glad my parents and my education prepared me for real life and that I have skills to deal with even the mundane aspects of life as well as the challenging. Of course I know the world is interesting and engaging, and preparing me for adult life didn't detract from my sense of wonder.

[Anonymous]

To the OP's orginal question --- no I don't think it is "ridiculous" when my child tells me he is bored. I also don't think I need to correct anything. He has talked to his teacher about what he would like (he actually wants more worksheets b/c he likes solving concrete problems -- and teacher says "no work sheets in 1st or 2nd grade" so DS is out of luck). I believe he IS bored in the sense that he's not engaged with what is happening at school. He's gone from saying he wants to skip a grade to saying he doesn't want to go to school at all. That makes me a little concerned, but I believe the school is providing an decent education -- it's just not the type of activities that DS would like. It's not the end of the world -- hopefully he'll find something that clicks with him next year or the next. It may take some time.

I think your question is kind of condescending. It's not "ridiculous" that my child tells me he's bored. It can be ridiculous when people get hysterical about their child being bored. My kid goes to public school -- that means I don't pay $30K/year for him and I have to accept something less than ideal. It is what it is. I don't pay for the caddilac education, so I can't complain too much that my Ford version is less than luxurious.

[Anonymous]

Children in Kindergarten often use the word boring when talking about something they do not want to do. If I say let's run errands when children are playing the response will often be , BORING. If they want to go to the park and there are chores to be done , BORING. It goes right along with the hair flip which I am sure will soon be eye rolling. I hear it at school when a child is working on a difficult assignment. It is often their way of saying this is not what I want to be doing right now. I agree with a PP give them some shores and they will stop complaining.

[Anonymous]

that was chores not shores...but the beach might be the answer....children know it is time for summer vacation and something different