If anyone lives with a child who 'doesnt mean to be naughty' then you'll relate to this post.
I have a little girl, aged 4, who while being bought up the same way her two older sisters are, is very different in almost everything she does.
She didnt walk until she was 17 months old for a start and once she did learn to walk she quickly turned into the tazmanian devil.
We would go to various toddler groups, one being 'messy play' which as the title suggests, was a couple of hours worth of all the messy play you could think of.
The support workers from Banardos had never seen a child like Sophie before.
They were amazed at how, in the literal blink of an eye, one tiny child could cause so much chaos. And all 'without meaning to be naughty'.
Sophie would have a paintbrush in her hand one minute, and the next the cupboards, floor, doors, walls, herself and several other children would be covered in paint. This all happened in the space of 30 seconds and im not even kidding. I couldnt take my eyes off her for a second because she'd either be on the rampage, or have vanished into thin air.
The amount of places i found her in that she wasnt supposed to be in! Once was at the farm, and she'd taken herself into the barn next door to play on the childrens soft play area. I was keeping an eye on the older two playing on the haystack, she was at my feet in one of those red and yellow cars.. and literally two seconds later she was just gone.
Cue a mild panic attack later and there she was happily playing away. She knew exactly what she wanted to do, and always has. She just couldnt give a hoot what happens in the process of doing what is set in her mind.
To Sophie, the world is black and white.
If she wants a drink she NEEDS it right this second and is dying of thirst until she gets it. If she has her mind set to doing something, she is determined that she will do it and nothing will get in her way. She has no fear, no sense of danger, and no real care for authority.
These things arent because she is a bad child, she just really doesnt see danger, or that she must tell us where she's going, or anything other than whats set in her head.
She learns everything at her own pace and it can take some time for things to register in her head. She was a very late talker and then surprised us all by coming out with full sentences.
She memorised every child's name card at nursery and would hand them out to each child even though she couldnt read a single word.
The nursery staff told me they'd never had a child who had ever been able to do that before, and that was just from her watching them each morning.
They also underestimated her ability to cause chaos. I was laughed at when i told them what she could do with a paintbrush - until it happened to them.
I was asked how on earth i cope with her and a very close eye was kept on her from that day on.
She would climb, draw, etc on anything she fancied and there was no way i could let her near a road because she'd run across it with no warning atall. I had to use a pushchair with her for a long time and even now she can still be very unpredictable.
Sophie started Reception in September and her teacher has already had several incidents where she has taken herself out of class for a wander round the school.
Several members of staff have found her happily wandering the corridoors, playing in the toilets and having a grand old time.
Sophie doesnt get worried, or scared to be by herself. She is that much in her own little world that is so black and white that she just sees what she'd like to do - and does it!
Her teacher who is quite strict has to drum it into her over and over again that she must ask to use the toilet, and to stop taking herself off round the school and several weeks later it is only just beginning to sink into Sophie that its unacceptable.
The dilemma i have as her mum is that she is already being branded 'naughty'. She gets told off several times a day and has already been sent out of the classroom, to which she shrugged and didnt really give a stuff about.
I try explaining to her teacher, who i will is a bit of a know-it-all and wont properly take onboard what im trying to tell her about Sophie. Its very hard getting across to people her little 'quirks' and 'characteristics' and trying to make them understand.
Sophie doesnt mean to be naughty, she just doesnt realise she is being.
As we all say.... 'There's something about Sophie'.
I have a little girl, aged 4, who while being bought up the same way her two older sisters are, is very different in almost everything she does.
She didnt walk until she was 17 months old for a start and once she did learn to walk she quickly turned into the tazmanian devil.
We would go to various toddler groups, one being 'messy play' which as the title suggests, was a couple of hours worth of all the messy play you could think of.
The support workers from Banardos had never seen a child like Sophie before.
They were amazed at how, in the literal blink of an eye, one tiny child could cause so much chaos. And all 'without meaning to be naughty'.
Sophie would have a paintbrush in her hand one minute, and the next the cupboards, floor, doors, walls, herself and several other children would be covered in paint. This all happened in the space of 30 seconds and im not even kidding. I couldnt take my eyes off her for a second because she'd either be on the rampage, or have vanished into thin air.
The amount of places i found her in that she wasnt supposed to be in! Once was at the farm, and she'd taken herself into the barn next door to play on the childrens soft play area. I was keeping an eye on the older two playing on the haystack, she was at my feet in one of those red and yellow cars.. and literally two seconds later she was just gone.
Cue a mild panic attack later and there she was happily playing away. She knew exactly what she wanted to do, and always has. She just couldnt give a hoot what happens in the process of doing what is set in her mind.
To Sophie, the world is black and white.
If she wants a drink she NEEDS it right this second and is dying of thirst until she gets it. If she has her mind set to doing something, she is determined that she will do it and nothing will get in her way. She has no fear, no sense of danger, and no real care for authority.
These things arent because she is a bad child, she just really doesnt see danger, or that she must tell us where she's going, or anything other than whats set in her head.
She learns everything at her own pace and it can take some time for things to register in her head. She was a very late talker and then surprised us all by coming out with full sentences.
She memorised every child's name card at nursery and would hand them out to each child even though she couldnt read a single word.
The nursery staff told me they'd never had a child who had ever been able to do that before, and that was just from her watching them each morning.
They also underestimated her ability to cause chaos. I was laughed at when i told them what she could do with a paintbrush - until it happened to them.
I was asked how on earth i cope with her and a very close eye was kept on her from that day on.
She would climb, draw, etc on anything she fancied and there was no way i could let her near a road because she'd run across it with no warning atall. I had to use a pushchair with her for a long time and even now she can still be very unpredictable.
Sophie started Reception in September and her teacher has already had several incidents where she has taken herself out of class for a wander round the school.
Several members of staff have found her happily wandering the corridoors, playing in the toilets and having a grand old time.
Sophie doesnt get worried, or scared to be by herself. She is that much in her own little world that is so black and white that she just sees what she'd like to do - and does it!
Her teacher who is quite strict has to drum it into her over and over again that she must ask to use the toilet, and to stop taking herself off round the school and several weeks later it is only just beginning to sink into Sophie that its unacceptable.
The dilemma i have as her mum is that she is already being branded 'naughty'. She gets told off several times a day and has already been sent out of the classroom, to which she shrugged and didnt really give a stuff about.
I try explaining to her teacher, who i will is a bit of a know-it-all and wont properly take onboard what im trying to tell her about Sophie. Its very hard getting across to people her little 'quirks' and 'characteristics' and trying to make them understand.
Sophie doesnt mean to be naughty, she just doesnt realise she is being.
As we all say.... 'There's something about Sophie'.
