The whole is greater than the sum of the two parts

The above statement seems to fit MaxiMad very well at the moment.  In his project book today there was a note to me and MadDad about his mathematical skills from his teacher, which reads

" we have started using the addition and equals signs to record MaxiMads calculations.  MaxiMad has excellent mental skills and can confidently explain his methods.  Children is FS2 (reception) are not expected to write down number sentences but we are using laminated cards and magnetic numbers and signs for recording"

As MaxiMad is our first child, I have no benchmark as to what is average for a four year old to know or do, but it seems that he is a little bit talented.  I have no idea where he gets his brains from, but it seems that me and MadDad have done alright in making our little men, as minimad is not all that far behind Maxi.

Tomorrow I have a meeting at the school to discuss what we can do to help our children and support the school in their education and welfare.  I received a written invite from MaxiMad along with a letter about this last week.  They are going to discuss their expectations of us as parents.

One thing MadDad and I are keen to exploit is the MiniMad's joy and keenness to learn, we are both aware that this may not last forever and whilst both boys are interested and excited about new things we want to enjoy this with them.

We have never been ones to sit down and do lessons with the boys, but we do try and explain things to them and follow the path that they are on.  MaxiMad loves to know how things work and why things do specific things, so we try to accommodate this.  We point out things on our walks and everyday tasks can become a maths game for him.

I am amazed at both boys capability to grasp  and understand things and also their urgency to know about the world around them.

It is such a wonderful thing to see the world through innocent and virgin eyes, to watch as things unfold before them and as they make connections.

I am not and will never be a pushy parent, in fact before we had children, we both decided that we wold like average children, as we thought that it would be easier that way.  After everything I have been through, I just want for my children to be happy and healthy.  I want them to know, understand and feel love.  I want them to be able to take joy from the small things in life (which is where the picture comes in, they both love icecream and I am loving the weather, which has allowed for icecream outside through September).