Interest is ever so important! And each of my kids have slightly different interests and strengths from stretching those interests. The hard bit is determining which ones to pursue with vigor.
Oh and sometimes you get that one child who is hard to read…and hard to determine what the specific interests are.
Interest is hugely important! But from what I read in Bounce it is not just following the child’s interest although that is almost certainly the starting point.
The author (who was a top table tennis player) described a situation where almost all the top 5 British players all lived a few doors from one another in his street! He thought this was due to the combination of a very good enthusiastic coach plus the mutual interest that the group developed through playing one another so were happy to practice almost non stop together. So an element of positive peer pressure (or maybe support) and encouragement.
So maybe looking for the spark of interest but then building ways to foster the enthusiasm and keep it going when things get tough.
Btw I totally agree about IQ not being directly related to ability although I can’t quote any evidence. I cannot imagine that the ability to carry out IQ tests is not a skill like any other that can be practiced and learned. I’ve crammed to pass too many exams to believe that! Of course some people will find this process easier than others - personally I am not so good at many of the visual elements of an IQ test. However I’m not sure it tests the ability to extrapolate information or apply it in different ways. My guess is that IQ will relate more to certain fields and skillsets than others. I doubt it has much to do with communication skills for example!
After this discussion I decided to teach physics to my son (2 years). He is studying properties of materials all the time since his first months! I will teach mechanics, my husband (doctor in physics) will teach electronics etc. Basics of physics can be explained with simple experiments so we are going to have fun :clown:
Strength of my girl (4 years) will be logical thinking. Because we discuss reasons, differences and processes a lot.
Great idea Frukc. I run with any interest shown and make a point to include my own specialties. ( can talking too much actually be useful? lol ) I haven’t spent a lot of conscious time thinking about what they should know and teaching that. Recently I decided my geography knowledge was too limited ( I am by no means stupid :biggrin: ) and I wanted my kids to experience the world in their lives so we are adding a bunch more geography to the week. They love the map on the toilet wall and tell me something new almost every day. They actually understand the term “overseas” now lol
One thing to be aware of though. I recently took my kids to a woodworking workshop, thinking my oldest would enjoy it, my middle would survive it and my youngest would get me to do his. I couldn’t have been more wrong! My youngest showed true talent with putting the kit together, hammering by himself and painting with colour matching skills. My middle really enjoyed every second and my oldest was overwhelmed and needed encouragement but loved it and asked to do it again. so my point is be careful that your ideas of their future do not blind you to offering opportunities well outside the selected scope. We have added another activity to our list to explore. Off to find a LR category on woodworking tools 