Mummy, can I have something to eat?
Mummy can I go on the Wii?
Mummy, where do Pandas live?
Mummy, do you know what happened in school to day?
Mummy, where is Japan?
Mummy, what is a soul?
Just a few of the random questions I have answered or tried to answer recently. I read somewhere that young children ask around four hundred questions a day. I did think that this figure was excessive, but then when you think about it, how many times do you hear "can I...?" or "why?" So maybe it is possible?
Children are naturally curious. That is a good thing. Their curiosity is how they learn about everything; even the never ending "why" which can be oh so frustrating, it is all part of a natural process. Although I'm not sure how much my children learnt from my stock answer of "because it is!"
As they grow older though some of the questions you get can really throw you. One minute you are explaining why it is important to pee in the toilet and not on the floor, the next you're floundering trying to explain why people die or what heaven is.
All of my children are particularly tenacious too when it comes to answers. They will not be fobbed off. Oh no! If they ask me what the capital of Azerbaijan is, they want to know and they will not be happy until they know. I must admit that having immediate access to a smart phone with decent Internet access is a godsend at times.
But they seem to think that as their parent I am some sort of expert in everything. Little did I know that before giving birth, I should have done a degree in pretty much everything, in order to be able to answer the questions they throw at me.
It is not just the children who assume that either. As a parent of four, some people think that I also hold the key to all parenting knowledge. So many people ask me for advice and say things like; " you have four children, you must know!" I wish. The one thing I do know is that all children are different and that when it comes to parenting there are no rules.
So as for the four hundred, actually no make that sixteen hundred questions that I have thrown at me on a daily basis, I will continue to do my best to answer them or if I can't I will divert them to Mr. Google. Maybe I will introduce a question book to be kept somewhere central for those questions I need to come back to or checkup on. As for maths questions, we have a rule for those and they are not allowed before nine o clock in the morning, or after for that matter.
Mummy can I go on the Wii?
Mummy, where do Pandas live?
Mummy, do you know what happened in school to day?
Mummy, where is Japan?
Mummy, what is a soul?
Just a few of the random questions I have answered or tried to answer recently. I read somewhere that young children ask around four hundred questions a day. I did think that this figure was excessive, but then when you think about it, how many times do you hear "can I...?" or "why?" So maybe it is possible?
Children are naturally curious. That is a good thing. Their curiosity is how they learn about everything; even the never ending "why" which can be oh so frustrating, it is all part of a natural process. Although I'm not sure how much my children learnt from my stock answer of "because it is!"
As they grow older though some of the questions you get can really throw you. One minute you are explaining why it is important to pee in the toilet and not on the floor, the next you're floundering trying to explain why people die or what heaven is.
All of my children are particularly tenacious too when it comes to answers. They will not be fobbed off. Oh no! If they ask me what the capital of Azerbaijan is, they want to know and they will not be happy until they know. I must admit that having immediate access to a smart phone with decent Internet access is a godsend at times.
But they seem to think that as their parent I am some sort of expert in everything. Little did I know that before giving birth, I should have done a degree in pretty much everything, in order to be able to answer the questions they throw at me.
It is not just the children who assume that either. As a parent of four, some people think that I also hold the key to all parenting knowledge. So many people ask me for advice and say things like; " you have four children, you must know!" I wish. The one thing I do know is that all children are different and that when it comes to parenting there are no rules.
So as for the four hundred, actually no make that sixteen hundred questions that I have thrown at me on a daily basis, I will continue to do my best to answer them or if I can't I will divert them to Mr. Google. Maybe I will introduce a question book to be kept somewhere central for those questions I need to come back to or checkup on. As for maths questions, we have a rule for those and they are not allowed before nine o clock in the morning, or after for that matter.
Oh where would we be without Google?
ReplyDeleteFor a week my little 'un was trying to convince me Gorillas lived in nests which I disputed. Eventually I referred to Google and he was right. Outsmarted by a two year old!
Then a few days later on a packed tram he told me giraffes ate penguins. Quite clearly wrong but without access to Wifi I found myself whispering my answer for fear the whole carriage where braced to laugh at my expense?
I now find myself secretly Googling his most extravagant claims ... heaven forbid he realises that daddy doesn't know everything after all!
They drive you mad, don't they?! I once documented every single question my kids asked in a day (they are the six longest day posts early in my blog). Needless to say, I was writing non- stop all day!
ReplyDeleteIt's hard isn't it-I'm finding lots of questions flying my way too-already worried for when I'm required to help with maths homework and he's still a toddler. Other than algebra, I'm not the best at number crunching!
ReplyDeleteIf the questions weren't enough to turn my brain to mush the thought of them all talking and it being 1600 - terrifying!
ReplyDeleteI'd actually double the number of questions asked for a girl if Tilly anything to go by! xx