Parents of inquisitive kids- how do you handle this?

[gatorsmom]

Our nearly 6yo is constantly asking us to define words. Today he asked us what the words "respect, acknowledge, honor, and pride" mean. Does your 6yo do this and do you give them an answer off the top of your head or do you read them a definition from a dictionary? He does it so often and I'm usually int he middle of doing something so I don't have time to think out a clear answer that he'll understand. Which, of course, leads to more questions.

What do you do?

[Twoboos]

Yes, our nearly 6yo does this too!! It makes me crazy some days!

I usually try to define off the top of my head, but sometimes it's HARD, or I feel like I'm not giving a proper definition. I should probably start using a dictionary to save my own sanity. :wink2:

[kijip]

We pretty much have been answering questions non-stop ever since T started talking. Off the top of our heads or looking it up. Once he started reading, we gave him a dictionary to help out. Also when topics come up, we will look up kid appropriate websites with him. He has about 100 million questions a day.

[caleymama]

We pretty much have been answering questions non-stop ever since T started talking. Off the top of our heads or looking it up. Once he started reading, we gave him a dictionary to help out. Also when topics come up, we will look up kid appropriate websites with him. He has about 100 million questions a day.

:yeahthat:

Lately while reading DD has been writing down words she comes across but doesn't know in a composition book reading journal. Then we either give her the definition or look it up, or have her look it up in the dictionary. Then she jots down the definition in her journal. All her idea. Some recent words: obliged, contradict, descending, wraithlike, malevolently, alley, mahogany. Some of them are pretty easy to explain off the top of my head but others I needed to see a definition to explain well.

[ellies mom]

Yeah, I've noticed it is very difficult to define some words without using the word. We bought Ellie a kid's dictionary a few years ago. It helps. But like Katie, we look a lot of stuff up on the internet and we buy books based on her interests.

[kedss]

I would look the words up, read them to him, then tell him what the words mean to you-

[MarisaSF]

I figure all kids do this? I do it. LOL.

Yes, keep answering. IMO it's the best (only) way for them to learn. My 2yo asks *daily* what the words "private" and "party" mean on top of whatever new word he comes up with. "Private" and "party" were the first he asked about so I guess he thinks it's part of the game to ask those first. I think it's so funny! Sometimes it's exhausting answering countless "why?" questions in a row, but it's important to me that he knows he's being acknowledged.

When my 4yo asks what a word means, I try to figure out what context she's asking about. Did she hear it at school? A book? A song? Then we talk about what it means, different ways to use it in a sentence, how to spell it, etc. She's learning how to use the dictionary and internet look-up functions as well.

Growing up, we always had a dictionary and encyclopedia near the dinner table for when such questions came up.

[egoldber]

Oh yes. There's a reason we call her The Inqisitioner LOL!!!

I usually define off the top of my head, but we do look things up sometimes. We use dictionary.com all the time.

[Momof3Labs]

I usually define off the top of my head. I've learned to ask him where he heard the word because sometimes the context changes the meaning that he is looking for.

[caleymama]

Oh yes. There's a reason we call her The Inqisitioner LOL!!!

I usually define off the top of my head, but we do look things up sometimes. We use dictionary.com all the time.

Hahaha - I can totally relate!


I've learned to ask him where he heard the word because sometimes the context changes the meaning that he is looking for.
Definitely a good point. For the words in her books, I'll have her read me the passage/sentence if I don't already know what's going on. Otherwise, yeah, I do ask where she heard it/read it.

[MartiesMom2B]

Yes she asks all the time. I'm like Beth, say what's off the top of my head or look it up.

[kijip]

:yeahthat:

Lately while reading DD has been writing down words she comes across but doesn't know in a composition book reading journal. Then we either give her the definition or look it up, or have her look it up in the dictionary. Then she jots down the definition in her journal. All her idea. Some recent words: obliged, contradict, descending, wraithlike, malevolently, alley, mahogany. Some of them are pretty easy to explain off the top of my head but others I needed to see a definition to explain well.

Great idea with the reading journal. We took a binder and a set of A-Z dividers (like you would get at an office store with 1 tab per letter) and he has built his own wordlist/dictionary from that. We have a policy that we won't spell a word for him unless he writes it down in the binder. ETA we did this because while answering questions about meanings can sometimes grow old, I pretty much always find spelling words aloud insanely annoying.

[caleymama]

Great idea with the reading journal. We took a binder and a set of A-Z dividers (like you would get at an office store with 1 tab per letter) and he has built his own wordlist/dictionary from that. We have a policy that we won't spell a word for him unless he writes it down in the binder.

I like that idea too, and I know she would LOVE it! The composition book came about because she wanted to start writing down the books she'd read in preparation for the library's summer reading program (which starts tomorrow, finally). I happened to have an extra composition book laying around, so that's where she's been recording title/author/# of pages. She then wanted something to write down the words she doesn't know in and instead of getting another notebook we stuck a post-it tab about 5/6 of the way through the book and she's using that back section for the words. She writes the title and author and then does a bullet point for each word she comes across. :ROTFLMAO: She kills me. I may just have to suggest your idea, though, when she runs out of room in the current book.
Is it crazy that I've toyed with setting her up on goodreads.com? Certainly no question *that* apple didn't fall far from *this* tree!

[brittone2]

I usually define off the top of my head. I've learned to ask him where he heard the word because sometimes the context changes the meaning that he is looking for.

Yes, this. Sometimes if he tells me where he read it, I realize he's actually thinking of another similar-sounding word, kwim? If I can figure out where he saw/heard it, that helps. If I don't know we look it up together. I keep meaning to start a notebook for the car, etc. so we don't forget to look certain things up later. Since we homeschool, I get bombarded by about 1000 questions a day by my 5 year old. It makes my head spin!!

[zoestargrove]

If I can't define off the top of my head, we look it up together.

Growing up, my dad use to tell me to look it up and I can tell you that is the fastest way to get a kid to stop asking you questions.

[mommy111]

If I can't define off the top of my head, we look it up together.

Growing up, my dad use to tell me to look it up and I can tell you that is the fastest way to get a kid to stop asking you questions.

Maybe I need to do that :)
I try to define things off the top of my head, otherwise we carry a pocket dictionary to look up words. Answering the questions is tougher, some days I find myself phasing out and doing the yes, yes, um yes thing....bad mommy!!!

[Gena]

We have the opposite problem here. DS does not know how to ask questions for information. He can ask questions to make requests (ie "can I have some milk?). And he constantly asks us questions he knows the answer to; we always say he is administering quizzes.:p

But he does not know how to ask questions to gain new information. This is something that was on his IEP last year and continues to be on his IEP for next year. But he loves to read his dictionary and his encyclopedia, so I guess he usually just looks up the stuff he wants to know.