Some of us find a way. Some of us find an excuse. Maybe you’re putting off that check engine light because you just don’t have time. Perhaps you want to start that new diet… tomorrow. Your knee hurts. Your backs hurts. Your shoulder hurts. You’ve got a headache. This month ends in Y.
The list of excuses is only limited by our imaginations. I have witnessed some expending more energy at making excuses than it would take to just do whatever it is they’re making excuses for.
When our oldest brought home some math homework last week, I rejoiced at seeing that it was multiplication. Double digit times a single digit, to be a exact. I knew he could do it. However, we were kind of taken aback when he told us that the rest of the class had to complete two rows (10 problems) while he had to finish just one (5 problems). We knew what the teacher was thinking, and I don’t blame the teacher at all. He has ADD so they were trying to make things manageable for him.
However, we knew better. We are not about to let his diagnosis be a crutch. Naturally, he argued with us. He’d argue with Satan himself, so the arguing wasn’t anything new to us.
My teacher said I only have to one row!
“We know what your teacher said, but you can do this multiplication. You are NOT going to use ADD as an excuse to not do the work we all, yourself included, know you can do.”
He didn’t get it at first. He couldn’t understand how he was using his diagnosis to get out of doing work. His teacher assigned fewer problems for him specifically. Instead of looking at the work and thinking “I can do this” he looked at it and said “HA! I only have to 5 problems instead of 10.” Because he has two teachers for parents, we made him complete two rows. School was out the next day because of a snow storm. We made him do two more rows anyway. School was out the day after that, too, because of a power outage. We made him do the last two rows.
What we fear is that he’ll see his ADD diagnosis as a crutch, an excuse, a limitation. I highly doubt Justin Timberlake, Jim Carey, Will Smith, Michael Phelps, Sir Richard Branson, Howie Mandel, Michelle Rodriguez, and countless others see their ADHD has a limitation. They certainly wouldn’t be where they are today if they did. The world already sets so many limitations that we don’t need to start imposing them on ourselves. I don’t ever expect him to say “Give me more work,” but I will expect him to do the work I know he is capable of doing.
Beautiful, But I dont know what you mean, when you say this month ends in a Y
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Thanks. This month ends in Y is the lamest excuse I could think of 😀
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Oooops wrong post…. (yawn)… sorry it’s been a very long day between doctor’s, dentist and shopping for our Christmas which is this Saturday. aughhhhhhh I still have presents to wrap! Wanna come over and help me! ~hehehe~
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With your guidance your children are in good hands!
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Most days I feel we’re heading in the right direction. Other days I feel like I’m wandering in the dark without a map or a flashlight. The hardest part is not knowing if what we’re doing is working…
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Funny how that stuff my parents forced n me helped me so much.
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It’s so hard to understand our parents until we’re parents ourselves.
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Good job, Mom and Dad!
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Thanks. Homework comes naturally to me 🙂
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The *poor* boy certainly is not going to get away with doing less with not one but TWO teachers for his parents! Blessed be, kiddo! 😆
Sounds like you’ve been well and truly snowed in. How big is the igloo this time?
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We actually don’t have that much snow. It’s going up to 10C tomorrow and raining so we’ll have zero snow left. No igloo, yet!
Crash hates homework. Bangs asks for it!
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What?! NO kidding? All that crazy weather in the US and Canada is a warm 10? come’on! LOL
How different are those 2 kids? Amazign isn;t it?
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We got a winter storm but the snow turned to two before it was over. We ended up with less snow after the storm! Now we have a couple days of ridiculously warm (13 C)
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My son’s teacher in second was like that and he took advantage of it big time, sometimes only doing 1/4 of the work required in class. Her thing was that she knew he knew how to do it anyway, so he got a pass. Then his teacher last year, who also has ADHD, didn’t go for any of that, and while she gave him extra time and sometimes modified things for him, he did his work.
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I can totally understand if he already knows the material. I’m more of “if you already know how to do it, it won’t take you long to get it done” kind of teacher 😀
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😀 And his motto is “I’ll just goof off and do as little as humanly possible.” Although he does much better now that he has two teachers that make him be accountable.
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Crash would do the same thing if allowed.
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Ya’ll are great parents!!
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LOL. No we’re not. We are just the best we can with what we are given. But Thanks!
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