A short while ago I read the blog of someone I had known in PA who wrote lovingly about her son, a young boy who -- through his interests of history and chess and quality conversation -- is showing signs of being a "nerd." I really loved this post -- her embracing of her precious son, and their conversations together about how cool it really is to be who he is.I thought about this post this morning as I packed Aidan's back-pack before school. He picked this bag out himself, bright red -- his favorite color, until he discovered that his new best friend in class likes the color blue. So now Aidan no longer reaches for the red playing piece, or the red crayon, or the red shirt. It's all blue. Oh, how fickle these little kids can be!
Today's back-pack held his lunch box, the yellow homework folder, a small stuffed leopard for "rest time," and his weekly library book. He likes Fridays -- it's Library Day, and each week the kids learn responsibility: when they bring their book back, they may get another one. Each Friday the librarian fills a book truck with certain selections, a wide range of reading material to please any child. It is from this truck that the kids can pick their book for the week to take home.
At first I didn't see the pattern. I didn't notice that, week after week after week, Aidan comes home with a certain kind of book. Science. Getting to Know Whales, or All You Need to Know About Amphibians, or The Life of Dinosaurs. I never paid attention to the fact that each week, we are learning about something specific and new.
I wracked my brain, thinking back over the weeks, trying to recall if he ever brought home a good, old-fashioned storybook. Make Way for Ducklings, perhaps? Bread and Jam for Frances? Anything related to that famous little monkey, Curious George? Nope. Not a single story of that caliber. All science.
The closest that he's come to a "story" of sorts is the very book I packed in the bag this morning: one from the Magic School Bus series. He loves these books, and this particular one had to do with butterflies -- how they're not just girlie creatures, but tough and sneaky. Yes, you could say it is a storybook -- fictional characters, a theme, an adventure. But it's all science, through and through.
Don't get me wrong -- my boy loves stories. We read several books every day, and rarely are they of a science-bent. But when left to his own devices, when it's up to him to choose the book ... I'm amazed at what draws him in. Science!
When Aidan started preschool at the age of 4, his teacher at the time was just intrigued with him. At our first (and last) parent-teacher conference, before we moved halfway through the year, she said how much she loved having him in her class, that he would teach her things that she didn't even know -- random facts and bits of information that he picked up purely for his own interest. She said a child like that comes around only once in a while, and she would love to meet him again 20 years from now, to see the kind of man he grew into. She was utterly fascinated with my boy ... and I am too.
Who will he be? What makes him tick? When most young boys played with Thomas trains, he preferred playing with a magnifying glass to see what he could discover. He's one special, unique boy -- and it's an honor to be his mother.
And I can't wait to see what book he comes home with today!
2 comments:
Matthew is the same way, a science geek all the way. I love it as I was and and still am one. I have a double major in Biological and Physical Sciences and taught science for many years before having kids.
Btw, wanted to comment about the sensory issues you brought up.
Matthew also has an extremely high gag reflex. Many things make him gag and almost vomit. Brushing his teeth has been a tough one that we have finally mastered...for the most part. He seeks out different foods (another aspect of sensory kids is to avoid stimulus or seek it out) and will put all kinds of things in his mouth to the point where he is always sick. That said, if he eats something and an unexpected texture occurs, he gags and spits it out and then refuses to eat any more. He also will often imagine bugs in his food and then gags.
He refuses to wear jeans, must have cotton sweats or poly track pants. He CAN NOT wear anything with a fly. He chews his sleeves if he wears long sleeves to the point of holes and if at all possible, will be naked.
I do think that all kids have some of these characteristics, just that kids on the extreme are bothered to the point where functioning in a normal world becomes a struggle, hence the meltdowns.
Matthew is tons better then even this time last year and I am sure at some point he will have coping techniques in place and no one will ever notice them. I just worry about the full leg cast. It has been a long time since he has had a full leg cast and he is going to hate the restriction, the heat, the itchy, the immobility, the lack of bathing the normal way, the difficulty sleeping... ACCKKK!
Guess we will find out soon enough.
Nice to know we're not alone with this science thing! :) I'm just really thankful that I can appreciate this stuff too. While I do fully fall into the history/english literature category -- loving all things pertaining to those fields -- there is a part of me that does enjoy the science side of life. I've always loved dinosaurs (maybe b/c that straddles history as well?!), and I have to say that I really liked reading about whales. While I'm not totally into it as he is, I'm glad we can share this interest together.
Bugs, though -- forget it. He took a book home with these transparent pages which let you see the layers of an insect's body and it totally grossed me out. I don't think I took that out of his bag. :) He hates bugs, too, so I'm not sure why he got the book in the first place.
SO very, very interesting about Matthew's senses going into overdrive! WOW!! I can see what a struggle that can be ... and throw in a big, hot, clunky cast on top of it all! Thank goodness this won't be happening during the throes of summer!
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