I am new to all this so forgive me if I am repeating a topic.
I bought a book today called ,The Indigo Children by Lee Carroll and Jan Tober. It talks about how children are different and the various levels. It also say about these children being so different from the children we were in terms of learning because of evolution. It is an interesting read.
On a seperate note, my 15 month old is colouring nearly all day. She is mostly holding a pencil corectly. Did any one elses do this?
Emma
The Treasures article made me realise we are right!
My dd (now 4.2) first picked up a pencil at about 16 months and immediately held it correctly. She would spend ages "writing" minute lines of marks and particularly loved filling in the boxes on forms with her hieroglyphics!
I can't remember exactly what age, but it was definately before 2 - basically from the time she first started drawing, Caitlin was able to hold the pencil correctly. I remember at 2.10yrs the Montessori teacher commenting on how well she held the pencil and I was amazed as it was so normal for her. Actually I thought about that the other day because my son - 2.4 isn't holding it correctly - another difference in my children. However my son is now correctly identifying words off flashcards (without the pictures to help) - more so than my daughter!
They are all so different and each have their own strengths and weaknesses!
And yes, Caitlin used to draw little lines to fill up a page, along with drawings which she would turn into a book and then 'read' the quite complex story to me!
My wee girl (who turned 2 last month) insisted she be able to draw with the big kids at Playgroup when she was 8 months old.
I remember noticing that she held her pencil correctly before her first brithday, and before her brother decided to do it properly when he was over 4 and a half. (I had noticed him doing it right before then, but he is very stubborn- so would instantly change to being awkward if anyone watched him).
Isn't this interesting? I know at school some 5 year old aren't holding a pencil correctly but like the previous responses my daughter held her pencil correctly very early on (probably before 1 year) and wrote and drew constantly - pretend shopping lists etc.
Can anyone enlighten us why some children seem to instinctively know how to hold a pencil?
My DD is now 5 and can't go out for a 5 minute car ride without pen and paper (and she takes pen and paper to bed with her).
I noticed my 15 month old holding a pen correctly. She also does it with her big sisters' crayons. Normal size crayons. My oldest daughter is gifted, I don't remember her doing this. She would pick up Steven king books and look at them in the car. She was 2 then. I wonder if my youngest daughter is gifted also.
My younger daughter held the pencil for the first time at 14 months with the correct grip. And she was scribbling up to an hour (I stopped her thinking it was too long for a 14 month old). She started drawing zig-zag and circles before she was 2. My older daughter who is confirmed gifted was holding pen/pencil with her whole hand at 3 years!
My son, 16m3d spends HOURS with his Magna Doodle... drawing lines, the same line over and over sometimes exactly so you cant even tell it was done two different times. He's extremely social and active (big climber and has the playground down to a science) but he is amazing with this drawing business, he holds the pen for his doodle pad the exact same way I do, as an adult, to write a letter.... we're shocked! He only uses his Right hand as well, never his Left and so much so that if he is in a hurry to grab something (anything) and does get to it with his Left hand first he will instantly look down at it and place it into his right hand, then proceed on. Should we look into Montesorri schools? is there montessori stuff we can do at home? I want that approach but it's a tie between athleticism and artistic. Those are his OBVIOUS gifts...I just dont know how to pursue them and which one to focus more on! My husband is a lead designer at Sikorsky and has been an avid drawer/artist his whole life so we know where he gets it from I just dont know which to gear him towards. Opinions!?!?!?
He's 16 months old. You don't have to "gear him" towards anything. Have fun, do lots of varied things, talk and listen to him. He will flourish and so will you.
It can be very beneficial that you've noticed advanced skills early on.
We have enjoyed Montessori schooling for our children, and are continuing with a local Montessori primary.
There are a very few Montessori centres in NZ who cater for your son's age group. Even more start at age 2. Some have long waiting lists, so if you're interested, have a look.
http://www.montessori.org.nz/school-search
This site also has many resources for parents of young children.
If you are in a main centre, you may want to investigate Small Poppies, which starts at age 2 in some cases.
Nicolle - I agree with Anonn, why focus on one of these things? At 16 months old he may develop lots of new talents as he is introduced to new things. The climbing side of things may calm down a bit, my daughter was a big climber at that age but now I would be hard pushed to get her to climb on a chair (she is 13 years old). I would just continue to introduce him to new things - music, nature, dance or whatever and see how things progress. There is no hurry, he will be all grown up before you know it.
I have 5 children. Only one has had a professional assessment. They have all held a pen/pencil correctly from the first time they did so, which would have been some time between 1 - 2 years old. I had never made a point of showing them how to do so.
