BibleBeltCatholicMom Posted June 22, 2012 Share Posted June 22, 2012 I've been thinking about passion lately. I haven't really felt that my daughter is passionate about anything. She likes some people and some things *a lot* but nothing I'd really call passionate. So I asked her. Me: what are you passionate about? Her: (narrows eyes, looks askance) passionate??? Me: what do you like to do more than anything else? Her: (narrower, askancer) more than anything? Me: Yes, you like swimming but not more than anything else in the world. You like violin but not more than anything else in the world. What's your favorite thing? Her: well, in school I love love logic and math. logic then math but they're very close. Me: but it doesn't have to be school. It can be anything at all. Her: . . . thinking . . . it'll sound dumb. Me: of course it won't. Her: it's something you NEVER let me do. EVER. Me: (narrows eyes, looks askance) Her: I just want to take things apart, put them back together, and see if I can make them work. Me: More than anything? Her: More than anything BUT . . . you never let me see if they work again. Me: but you've got your legos, NXT, and other stuff. Her: legos don't count and NXT has to work b/c i follow the instructions and tell it to. So, what do you do for a kiddo like that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lillehei Posted June 22, 2012 Share Posted June 22, 2012 Go to the thrift store for cheap kitchen appliances, clocks, etc., let her take them apart and see if she can get them back together. What a great passion!! We were just watching Nova Science Now and the scientist they talked about started as a child taking apart their answering machine and putting it back together (even with extra pieces leftover!) and it worked better than before. She is now an MD/PhD at MIT. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted June 22, 2012 Share Posted June 22, 2012 Take her to Goodwill and let her pick out some old electronics? The internet means she can probably find a manual online for just about anything manufactured in the last decade or so, if she needs more information. Google using the term "tinkering" and you may find groups or clubs in your area... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*Michelle* Posted June 22, 2012 Share Posted June 22, 2012 http://www.tinkeringschool.com/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sebastian (a lady) Posted June 22, 2012 Share Posted June 22, 2012 Doesn't even have to be electronic. Look for alarm clocks, the old mechanical type. Many of these would have more durable metal parts. Look for older toasters. My kids have collected a couple of computers and had a great time pulling them apart to look at the components. But at some point you do get down to where you can't follow with the naked eye. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sebastian (a lady) Posted June 22, 2012 Share Posted June 22, 2012 Maybe she could find enough parts in alarm clocks to make something like this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sebastian (a lady) Posted June 22, 2012 Share Posted June 22, 2012 I've also seen some cool instructables for steampunk style alterations of items like keyboards or lamps. I think this would go a ways toward understanding the components of how something works. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BibleBeltCatholicMom Posted June 22, 2012 Author Share Posted June 22, 2012 Thank you, all, for the ideas. Tinkering . . . who knew! Her complaint in this area is that I will let her take apart just about anything (that I don't need) but I balk at letting her plug back in. I've given, donated, bought all kind of things for her to take apart. Then she wants to plug it in and I can't stand to let her. I imagine sparks and shocks and smoke and . . . I'm a wet blanket! and you KNOW wet blankets and electricity just don't mix! Should I let her plug in? Am I being over-protective? I rather thought that was reasonable but . . . should I be persuaded otherwise? It doesn't seem . . . safe. I'm willing to reconsider. What are your thoughts here? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted June 22, 2012 Share Posted June 22, 2012 I would NOT let her plug it into my walls. I might let her have a battery operated power source and let her try it out. BUT only if she then agrees to do the work required to figure out why it didn't work..assuming it won't. Does she have snap circuits? She needs to learn about circuits and how that works before she goes plugging things in. Someone who does would never ask about plugging in wet things. She sounds like a Tops Science kid! They have some physics units she would love. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whitestavern Posted June 22, 2012 Share Posted June 22, 2012 Not sure how old she is, but I have a ds9 that is like this. We signed him up for Camp Invention this summer (week long summer camp) where they are required to bring something electronic to take apart. It looks very cool :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deniseibase Posted June 23, 2012 Share Posted June 23, 2012 Let the word get out that you are accepting broken stuff for take-aparts, and pretty soon you'll be able to forgo the Goodwill trips, people will give you all kinds of stuff :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alphabetika Posted June 23, 2012 Share Posted June 23, 2012 Go to the thrift store for cheap kitchen appliances, clocks, etc., let her take them apart and see if she can get them back together. What a great passion!! We were just watching Nova Science Now and the scientist they talked about started as a child taking apart their answering machine and putting it back together (even with extra pieces leftover!) and it worked better than before. She is now an MD/PhD at MIT. :iagree::iagree:I've got one like this, and this has been a great solution. She actually doesn't want to be a traditional scientist, she wants to be a linguist, but even in that area she is interested in "the science of linguistics," for lack of a better term. How languages work, how grammar is structured, how to create an alphabet and written language. I think this is a thinking style that applies itself to all of life. But if your dd is mechanical and likes to work with her hands (my dd is), give her things she can legitimately take apart and put together. Also, if you ever buy things that are "Assembly required," let her try to assemble them from the directions. Give her any chance you can think of to design/devise/build something to completion. It took me awhile to recognize this in my dd because I am so very different. Now I am amazed at what she can do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angela in ohio Posted June 24, 2012 Share Posted June 24, 2012 How old is she? I have a lot of ideas, but it will depend on her age... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkateLeft Posted June 24, 2012 Share Posted June 24, 2012 So, what do you do for a kiddo like that? Oh, there's so much good stuff out there! You pretty much described our whole family. Your daughter sounds like a budding engineer. :D Check out Make magazine! Even just browsing through it is great fun for a kid with a tinkering bent. They often have projects for kids to do with adults, and they sell some really cool kits. (It's amazing what you can do with something like an Altoids tin and a camera battery.) One of the coolest things that I did as a kid, and that my kids have loved, is building things using a soldering iron. Obviously, you have to teach them how to use it safely, but a middle schooler is old enough to learn. We've bought a variety of kits that include the printed circuit boards and parts. You really get to see what all those little electronic components do. I'd teach her some basic electronics, and start her out working with projects that are battery powered, rather than letting her plug things in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BibleBeltCatholicMom Posted June 28, 2012 Author Share Posted June 28, 2012 How old is she? I have a lot of ideas, but it will depend on her age... She's 13. :bigear: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BibleBeltCatholicMom Posted June 28, 2012 Author Share Posted June 28, 2012 Oh, there's so much good stuff out there! You pretty much described our whole family. Your daughter sounds like a budding engineer. :D Check out Make magazine! Even just browsing through it is great fun for a kid with a tinkering bent. They often have projects for kids to do with adults, and they sell some really cool kits. (It's amazing what you can do with something like an Altoids tin and a camera battery.) One of the coolest things that I did as a kid, and that my kids have loved, is building things using a soldering iron. Obviously, you have to teach them how to use it safely, but a middle schooler is old enough to learn. We've bought a variety of kits that include the printed circuit boards and parts. You really get to see what all those little electronic components do. I'd teach her some basic electronics, and start her out working with projects that are battery powered, rather than letting her plug things in. Make! You just made my day! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angela in ohio Posted June 28, 2012 Share Posted June 28, 2012 She's 13. :bigear: Okay, as a pp said, start with MAKE magazine. They just put out a summer supplement book ($9.99) that has all sorts of "beat summer boredom" ideas. You can get it in the magazine aisle at the bookstore or at Radio Shack. A trip to Radio Shack is another idea, as they have recently been putting in a huge DIY electronics/arduino section. MAKE has several excellent books, too, on electronics, arduino, etc. So, anyway, let her tear something apart and put it back together. She will quickly lose interest in that. Then aim her at the MAKE stuff. The MAKE Electronics book will get her started making her own awesome stuff, and then she can branch out into specific projects of her own design once she has the fundamentals. To do anything really fun, she will need to learn some basic programming. She is the perfect age to download Greenfoot to play with. She can learn Java programming in that way. If she loves Logic and Math, she will LOOVVVEEE computer programming. :D She should learn how to solder, too. You can get a little soldering iron and the stand, etc. If she has any interest in Robotics: Is there any way to get her on a FIRST Robotics team? There's nothing like it for tearing things apart and putting them back together. If not, see if there is a VEX or Robofest event in your area. Those are two programs you can do on your own. Anyway, once you get MAKE, there will be ads for all sorts of other awesome products in there, and you will be on your way. Popular Science is another good magazine, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkateLeft Posted June 28, 2012 Share Posted June 28, 2012 Popular Science is another good magazine, too. One quick note about Popular Science... I agree that it's a great magazine, and my kids LOVE it. However, sometimes they run ads that... uhm... aren't really appropriate for my ds (enlarging things, dysfunction... you get my drift), so I have my teens go through it when it arrives, and tear out any inappropriate ads. The last couple of issues have been fine, but about three months ago, they ran one ad that made me go :blink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angela in ohio Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 One quick note about Popular Science... I agree that it's a great magazine, and my kids LOVE it. However, sometimes they run ads that... uhm... aren't really appropriate for my ds (enlarging things, dysfunction... you get my drift), so I have my teens go through it when it arrives, and tear out any inappropriate ads. The last couple of issues have been fine, but about three months ago, they ran one ad that made me go :blink: Oh, yes, I forgot about that. I have to go through it before the 10 yo gets it. There's the full page Viagra ads, and the personal ads in the back. Ick. What's worse is Popular Mechanics. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkateLeft Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 What's worse is Popular Mechanics. :glare: :lol: I guess they know their target demographic! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angela in ohio Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 :lol: I guess they know their target demographic! Yep. I've thought of emailing them, but my youngsters are obviously not their target audience. :D The good news is that MAKE is very clean, and so are Air&Space and Robot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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