What to do with a kid who absorbs everything?

greenfire

Wed, Oct 03 2007, 1:44 pm

I guess he doesn't need a sponge ... What

my dd wanted to absorb so much ... when she got her first alef-bais book she wanted to read already ... she held it so tight she hoped she would absorb the information ... 'tis true ... for really ...

it's hard with a kid like that but ya gotta feed em more ... just make everything a learning experience ...

smiley:)

Thu, Oct 04 2007, 12:57 pm

Nomad - he is only 2. I dont think he'd be great at the computer (especially since we dont have a regular mouse. It's on in the computer so he has to use his finger rather than his hand.

I notice he does well with very directed activity all the time. "Take your bimba and ride it fast down the hallway, now ride it slow, now ride it in circles..." Anyone have any good ideas for directed games?

Tamiri

Thu, Oct 04 2007, 1:53 pm

Go online, there are many finger plays and ideas to do with 2 year olds. Simple-Simon is a good game to start with, "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes", holiday songs, mitzva songs etc. Give him crayons to make kishkushim with, shaving cream and playdough etc. Your day should pass pretty quickly. It's very important to take him outside every day. It helps make the time go and he gets another dimension. As long as the weather is good (we have at least another 2 months of great weather), do it. Good for the baby and mom as well. Do you play a lot of music for him? Introduce him to instruments (that sounds like a piano, guitar etc.)
Let him "help" take down the succa LOL

smiley:)

Thu, Oct 04 2007, 2:10 pm

I do music for him but I need to do it more. he loves it and I really dont!! Surprisingly he doesnt love playdough even though he likes sensory things. I think I need to direct his play more.

Taking down the sukkah - gosh putting it up made him wild. My husband took out a step stool for himself to use and the whole time my son was flipping out bc he wanted to use it. Of course we gave him opportunity but at some point we needed to use it!!!

The day sure does NOT pass quickly!!

Tamiri

Thu, Oct 04 2007, 2:44 pm

He may not be ready for play dough yet. I got it for my son's 2nd bday but only at around 2.5 years did he show interest. Try the shaving cream: put him in the tub and shpritz some shaving cream, then let him shmear it around. Same with finger paints: he can do it in the tub = less mess. Make challa dough and see if he wants to "help"; he may like that more than play dough.
Music: all the time. You can teach him to move his body, dance. Put earplugs in your ears if you don't like it.
He may be too young still for menchies (Fisher Price people, playmobile people etc.) but you can get plastic animal figures which he may already enjoy. Let him roam in your kitchen, make some "safe" drawers and shelves for him to explore.
I never had 2 little ones at once, but with a 2 year old at home the day always passed quickly because everything is new and exciting. My current one who will be 3 on Chanuka loved to come upstairs with me to hang the laundry (open mirpesset on the second florr). He could lie down and watch the clouds, look for "Mr. Sun" (we have a song for that), birds, bugs crawling around - we even found a lizard up there once. You can give your son clothes pins to play with. Let him figure out something to do with them.
Shopping is a horror, but still an opportunity to learn about vegetables,, shapes and colors. It can be an "outing". My son loves shopping, and there are pictures of farm things in the produce section so we learned tractor, cow, sheep, etc. He has know zuccini (big word) for ever, and cabbage too!
Talk to other mothers who are home. Does your area have an internet group? I found other SAHMs through the Raanana internet group.

smiley:)

Thu, Oct 04 2007, 3:10 pm

He was somewhat interested in playdough but once he uses each tool once that's about enough for him. It's also not something I could always help with as my hands arent always free.
I do finger painting with him. He loves it. Just after about 5 min it becomes rather challenging as first his whole hand goes in... his arm... you get the picture. My son is shades of green by the end of the session!

I do have to make more of an effort to put on music more often. I have plastic animals... we build a zoo but he doesnt have much imagination with the animals or ppl yet. He likes the ppl to put in his trucks (he is obsesses with cars and trucks.) My new kitchen is very very small so I dont even have enough room for my stuff. I cant make a cabinet for him. I have 6 small shelves altogether.

I should have him help with laundry, though practically I dont know what he'll do. We have a dryer- dont hang things to dry.
He's known his veggies, shapes and colors for a while. I dont do the shopping with him unless it's a small trip. It's nutty with him. He knows the names of all the animals and noises for a while, all vehicles.

We do have an internet group. I am hesitant to meet mothers, or rather children through it. I really want to see the kid first.. you can get a rather unpleasent experience by just meeting that way, as already happened once. I need to seek out an ok personality to get my kid started on a positive note with socialization.

Tamiri

Thu, Oct 04 2007, 3:56 pm

Re meeting people: we don't live in a vaccum. You are never going to have 100% kids that you approve of. If it's so bad after the first time, don't meet again, but at least give it a try.
All the things you are describing re your son's activities are right on target for a 2 year old. They have the attention span of a... 2 year old. Three minutes of this, two seconds of that... it will start to improve towards age three.
Read books on 2 year olds. You may have a more average-Joe than you realize! You may glean tips from books which will help you understand what he is going through. It's hard to be 2, especially when you are usurped by a new baby in the house. This too shall pass.

smiley:)

Thu, Oct 04 2007, 4:55 pm

I know I wont get kids right on target, but I dont need kids who shriek their lungs out constantly to the point of veins bulging out of their forehead, or throwing silverware and plates across the table like someone we ate at last week.... someone I met through the area message board. Let's just say it was not a pleasent experience for him or me, and probably not for them either.

The thing is I do believe 2 yr olds can have a longer attention span if it is nourished so I am looking for a way to do it. If I can work with him I can bring him to a different awareness, diff levels of knowledge etc. Why should he flit from activity to activity if with a little more effort on my part and a bit more directed play he could play like a mentsch.
I was a preschool teacher for a few yrs and I majored in that in college so I know what they should be doing. I am just not too imaginative or creative when it comes to thinking of specific activities for him.

I dont mean to sound like my nose is up in the air but when I see other kids his age he knows a LOT LOT more than them. It's like they are still babies.
I do understand what he is going through. Surprsingly I think the move we just made was much harder on him than the birth of the baby. He loves the baby....sometimes a bit too much. But he is taking the move ok now. I just want activities and directed play to feed to the type of personality he has which is WAY different than mine!