​
WISCONSIN ASSOCIATION FOR TALENTED & GIFTED

Wisconsin Association For Talented & Gifted

  • Get Involved
    • Membership
    • News
    • Partnerships
    • Newsletter Sign Up
    • Meet The Board
    • Gifted Listserv
  • Resources
    • Resources
    • Advanced and Accelerated Learning in WI
    • WATG Blogs >
      • News from the Board
      • Noticias de las Mesa Directiva
      • Gifted in Perspective
      • Dotados en Perspectiva
      • Ask the Doctor
      • Gifted @ Home
      • Student Voices
      • Guest Blogs
      • Tools to Use Today
      • From the Bookshelf
      • GT Meanderings
      • Advocacy Blog
      • Justice for All
    • Podcasts
    • Parenting
    • History + Pioneer Profiles
    • Awards & Scholarships
    • Past Newsletters
  • Equity
  • Advocacy
    • Advocacy Resources
    • Advocacy Blog
  • Annual Conference
    • 2023 Annual Conference
    • 2023 Keynote Speakers
    • Exhibitors/Sponsors
    • Parent Conference
    • Teen Conference
    • Logo Contest
    • Past Conferences
  • Contact Us
  • Get Involved
    • Membership
    • News
    • Partnerships
    • Newsletter Sign Up
    • Meet The Board
    • Gifted Listserv
  • Resources
    • Resources
    • Advanced and Accelerated Learning in WI
    • WATG Blogs >
      • News from the Board
      • Noticias de las Mesa Directiva
      • Gifted in Perspective
      • Dotados en Perspectiva
      • Ask the Doctor
      • Gifted @ Home
      • Student Voices
      • Guest Blogs
      • Tools to Use Today
      • From the Bookshelf
      • GT Meanderings
      • Advocacy Blog
      • Justice for All
    • Podcasts
    • Parenting
    • History + Pioneer Profiles
    • Awards & Scholarships
    • Past Newsletters
  • Equity
  • Advocacy
    • Advocacy Resources
    • Advocacy Blog
  • Annual Conference
    • 2023 Annual Conference
    • 2023 Keynote Speakers
    • Exhibitors/Sponsors
    • Parent Conference
    • Teen Conference
    • Logo Contest
    • Past Conferences
  • Contact Us

Reflections From a Dad

5/1/2021

0 Comments

 
Picture
I have been bubbling with excitement ever since I became a Wisconsin Association for Talented and Gifted board member. The reason is simple; my oldest son is a brilliant learner. He isn’t just a voracious academic, he absolutely loves the process of learning. He relishes school routine and he soaks in the minute details of preparing for exams.

Now, I know many of you are reading this and likely telling yourself, “We’ve heard the same thing over and over before. There are plenty of highly gifted learners in this state.” That’s true. However, Carson is in the fifth grade. He is in the 99th percentile in standardized testing and routinely talks about where he wants to go to college. (That would be Purdue University, because, as he states it, “It’s one of the best engineering schools around.”) Now this is where the story becomes a story about patience, because my 11-year-old desperately wants to be 18 tomorrow. He wants to graduate from high school, and be off to start his collegiate career --  now. That all sounds awesome at a cocktail party, when everyone is bragging about their kids. We all like to imagine their bright futures.

However, we can’t forget to live in the moment. Even though my son may be 11, he isn’t too old to build forts, play tag, or roast marshmallows. He’s still a kid. I think so many of us want our kids to grow up so fast, but in reality, the opposite should be true; we should be preserving the joy of their childhoods. Our kids are innocent and experience that childlike enthusiasm only once in their life. So, while it’s OK to imagine the future, we also need to be consistently focused on today.

How many regrets would parents have if they allowed their children to jump too soon into adulthood? There could be so many lost opportunities for growth - for both the parent and the child. For example, the parent might want to teach the child about his or her experiences and try to use them as an example for learning, and the child might want to ask questions, so as not to make the same silly mistakes that his or her parent made. Childhood gives children many chances to make mistakes, learn, and grow in a safe and supportive environment.

I know that Carson is going to succeed at whatever he does because he dives in with both feet and gives every ounce of effort. He often gets frustrated when he can sense a “talk” coming on as I try to pull back on the lure of the future, and ground him in the present, but he has accepted it more and more. He also knows that when he goes to college, he won’t be seeing his two younger brothers nearly as much, and that these childhood years with his siblings are very precious.

Though it’s human nature to surmise that things are greener on the other side (or in the future), you will be missing so many wonderful things that are right in front of you if you don’t also live in the moment. Seize those moments.

Cory Jennerjohn
WATG Board Member


0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    June 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    October 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    October 2018
    August 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    June 2016

    Categories

    All

    Picture

    RSS Feed

Picture
WATG Privacy Statement

Get Involved

Advocacy
News
The Board

Resources

​Blogs
Awards & Scholarships
Pioneer Profiles
G/T Groups

Equity

Conference

Contact Us
Keynote Speakers
Logo Contest
Teen Conference
Past Conferences