I'm pointlessly boasting here, but I want honest opinions:

[conuly]

How brilliant is Evangeline?

We started getting some jigsaw puzzles a while back, maybe a month ago. Small ones, 24 - 36 pieces. Prior to this, we had done *no* puzzles with Evangeline at all. Like, not even peg puzzles because they're such a pain to keep track of, not having boxes or anything.

I showed the niecelings how to make a frame of the outer pieces first (an idea they really didn't get) and how to look at the box to figure out the puzzle (an idea they both glommed on to fast). They put together their puzzles. I didn't see either one use them for a couple of weeks. Then Evangeline started putting together the puzzles alone - but she'd done them before.

I brought up a new puzzle today, 30 pieces. She'd never seen it before. No help from me, she got it done in 15 minutes. Slow for an adult (one can only hope), but exactly where is that for a three and a half year old? Average? Slow? Super fast?

I don't want to go around feeling smug (because somehow her puzzle prowess is all me...?) until I know how smug to feel!

Comments

[sayga.livejournal.com]

I think you should go ahead and feel smug. She sounds like a very smart little girl!

[conuly]

I know she is. It's because she's named after me. Definitely. *grin*

And she's a darling, you know. Every time I say or do anything remotely nice, it's a huge grin, a glomping hug, and "You're da BEST, Connie!"

[pne.livejournal.com]

she's named after me

She is?

[conuly]

Well, no, but my middle name is Evangeline.

[lizziey.livejournal.com]

I'd say feel pretty damned smug.

Seth only recently graduated to the "good puzzles" (the 100 piece ones), but Topher has been on the 100 piece ones for a few months. But then, putting shit together is his nitch in life. Sure, he can't talk worth a damn (aside from, you know, echolalia (fuck you, mozilla, echolalia IS A WORD)), but counting and putting puzzles and lego things (as seen on the boxeds, he build the adult helicopter in a couple hours, "missing" cuz we couldnt find him! haha!)


For a kiddo her age (3, right? She's some months younger than Tate?) doing a brand new puzzle that fast is GOOD!

[conuly]

1. Niche.
2. Thanks! I'll now proceed to tell people it's all due to my influence. (I'm lying through my teeth, of course, but why not?)

[lizziey.livejournal.com]

THANK YOU!! I knew that word was wrong, but spellcheck wasn't giving me the right spelling, heh.

As well you should, and I will leave that there. :-p

Well, no, in all seriousness, most of her "learning" life has been spent with you, in comparison to any other adult in her life, so yes, I would say most of what she can do is due to your influence and yours alone.

[conuly]

Well, my philosophy is to never do for her what she can probably do for herself. This is MOSTLY because I'm lazy, but I justify it by pointing to all the shit she can do by herself if I just leave her alone and let her have at it. So I don't really teach her anything unless I'm feeling energetic and/or bored.

Though we are working actively on letter sounds and handsigns now.

[lizziey.livejournal.com]

Its a good philosophy, and one I had to work on adopting regarding Tate. With Seth, I *let* him learn on his own (and GDI if ONE MORE PERSON had told me when he was a toddler "zomg he is going to hurt himself on the playground equiptment!!! help him!!!" when he was climbing better than their 7 year olds, I would have killed them!), but with Topher he is *so* delayed (we've added in 2 days each of Occupational Therapy and Physical Therapy, along with his already established 3 days a week of speech therapy), that I always ran to *help him do it* or spoke for him when I knew what he wanted. And I've REALLY had to hold myself back from doing that because I'm not giving him the same opportunities as I did Seth. And I know if I *treat* him like he can't, not only won't he learn it, but he'll come to EXPECT me to always do it for him, you know?

Blahhhh, you probably already know all of this, but I don't often get to chat with people who DO understand it all, you know?

[conuly]

Also: Type in the word "echolalia". Right click upon it. Click the check mark "Add to Dictionary".

Firefox will have been well and truly fucked.

[lizziey.livejournal.com]

Oh I did. Mozilla hates me, I forced it to accept Obama as our president. Apparently, it was a republican. :-p

[sayga.livejournal.com]

I think you should go ahead and feel smug. She sounds like a very smart little girl!

[conuly]

I know she is. It's because she's named after me. Definitely. *grin*

And she's a darling, you know. Every time I say or do anything remotely nice, it's a huge grin, a glomping hug, and "You're da BEST, Connie!"

[pne.livejournal.com]

she's named after me

She is?

[conuly]

Well, no, but my middle name is Evangeline.

[lizziey.livejournal.com]

I'd say feel pretty damned smug.

Seth only recently graduated to the "good puzzles" (the 100 piece ones), but Topher has been on the 100 piece ones for a few months. But then, putting shit together is his nitch in life. Sure, he can't talk worth a damn (aside from, you know, echolalia (fuck you, mozilla, echolalia IS A WORD)), but counting and putting puzzles and lego things (as seen on the boxeds, he build the adult helicopter in a couple hours, "missing" cuz we couldnt find him! haha!)


For a kiddo her age (3, right? She's some months younger than Tate?) doing a brand new puzzle that fast is GOOD!

[conuly]

1. Niche.
2. Thanks! I'll now proceed to tell people it's all due to my influence. (I'm lying through my teeth, of course, but why not?)

[lizziey.livejournal.com]

THANK YOU!! I knew that word was wrong, but spellcheck wasn't giving me the right spelling, heh.

As well you should, and I will leave that there. :-p

Well, no, in all seriousness, most of her "learning" life has been spent with you, in comparison to any other adult in her life, so yes, I would say most of what she can do is due to your influence and yours alone.

[conuly]

Well, my philosophy is to never do for her what she can probably do for herself. This is MOSTLY because I'm lazy, but I justify it by pointing to all the shit she can do by herself if I just leave her alone and let her have at it. So I don't really teach her anything unless I'm feeling energetic and/or bored.

Though we are working actively on letter sounds and handsigns now.

[lizziey.livejournal.com]

Its a good philosophy, and one I had to work on adopting regarding Tate. With Seth, I *let* him learn on his own (and GDI if ONE MORE PERSON had told me when he was a toddler "zomg he is going to hurt himself on the playground equiptment!!! help him!!!" when he was climbing better than their 7 year olds, I would have killed them!), but with Topher he is *so* delayed (we've added in 2 days each of Occupational Therapy and Physical Therapy, along with his already established 3 days a week of speech therapy), that I always ran to *help him do it* or spoke for him when I knew what he wanted. And I've REALLY had to hold myself back from doing that because I'm not giving him the same opportunities as I did Seth. And I know if I *treat* him like he can't, not only won't he learn it, but he'll come to EXPECT me to always do it for him, you know?

Blahhhh, you probably already know all of this, but I don't often get to chat with people who DO understand it all, you know?

[conuly]

Also: Type in the word "echolalia". Right click upon it. Click the check mark "Add to Dictionary".

Firefox will have been well and truly fucked.

[lizziey.livejournal.com]

Oh I did. Mozilla hates me, I forced it to accept Obama as our president. Apparently, it was a republican. :-p