Her big, dark-brown eyes welled up and her lower lip trembled as fat tears slid down her cheeks. I sat in mystified silence for a few seconds before asking, “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” she replied, sniffing back tears unsuccessfully.
“Then why are you crying?” I asked, trying not to let my frustration bleed into my voice.
“I don’t know.” She was making a valiant attempt not to cry, but tears covered her red cheeks faster than she could wipe them away.
As the days and weeks passed, I learned that this interaction was par for the course during homework time in my house—specifically math homework with my 5-year-old daughter.
Though my daughter was normally precocious with a love for learning that made me proud, math had the ability to reduce her to a scared, weepy puddle. The transformation from Miss Fiercely Independent with a go-getter attitude to a teary child with slumped shoulders was almost unbelievable. I dreaded homework time. Many sessions ended with me playing the role of Shouty Mom quickly followed by Guilty Mom.
Join me over at Kindred Mom for the rest of this article.
(Image credit: Brett Jordan from Unsplash)
Wemi, I so love your honesty in this post! Learning in the stretch can be so hard because it feels unwieldy and uncomfortable. But, I think you are right. Resilience is what we learn when we lean into the stretch and keep at it. I am certain your daughter will get the hang of math. May your son do well on all his examinations!
Amen and thanks for your prayers Jeanne. She’s getting there with the math – not as many tears now 😉 we are leaning into the stretch!
Oh Wemi … I think you are right about demonstrating resilience in the midst of this challenging year. It’s been a stretching season for you in so many ways. I can relate to your experiences with your daughter and math, including filling the role of “Shouty Mom.” My older girl is gifted with anything word-related but has always had to work much harder with numbers. Now I look back and see that as a benefit because it forced her to find ways to get help and persevere through hard things. But phew—those days of elementary school math homework were not my favorite, for sure! Wonderful post, my friend.
Thanks Lois – my daughter sounds like your older girl with regards to her affinity for anything word-related. I like your perspective on how the struggle with numbers has actually been a benefit – I didn’t think of it that way before but can totally see your point. We are leaning into the stretch – this mama and daughter are learning perseverance! x
Wow, Wemi, I’m so impressed that your five year old is already doing math. That is amazing.