Late again, of course, but it's because I was sick yesterday. I probably caught whatever ick my husband had last week. Anyway...
I was talking to a coworker who has two elementary-school-aged boys earlier this week. Evidently his eldest is smart but lazy (gee that sounds familiar -- this doesn't describe me as a kid, but it does describe my husband, brother, and most smart boys I knew). He had homework over Thanksgiving break, and every time his parents asked him about it, he said he'd do it the Sunday night before it was due. Lo and behold, when his father checked his grades, he had received a 69. Confronted about it, the kid said he didn't understand some of the questions. His dad asked him why he didn't ask for help, and the son's response was that he didn't think about it (probably because he didn't have the time).
So the son was punished. But the father made it clear that he was not being punished for receiving a D, but because he had not prepared. This is where things get tricky -- if you try your best and still get a D, well, ok. Maybe theoretical physics (or in my case, geometry) isn't your thing. You shouldn't be punished for trying your best, especially since in the long run, grades don't matter all that much. But I really like the fact that this father is trying to instill in his son the value of hard work and planning ahead, especially when he's young enough that schoolwork is really just for practice at this point. (The father, by the way, has a PhD in civil engineering. So he knows what hard work means.) This is a father to learn from.
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