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Post by momto3wolves on Jun 19, 2005 12:30:59 GMT -5
What do you think of the whole hunter/farmer theory? I'm not sure I buy it...I mean, yeah, I'm a non-conformist, my kids are bright, but does that mean that the rest of the world should have to 'work around us'? I think that they are going to have to learn to live in the real world. The school system isn't going to change the way they teach, just for the 2 kids in the class who are wired differently.
About high IQ and giftedness, do you think that kids can really be both ADHD and gifted, or do you think that giftedness is being mistaken for ADHD?
Interested to see what you think. : )
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Post by finnmom on Jun 19, 2005 13:10:22 GMT -5
About high IQ and giftedness, do you think that kids can really be both ADHD and gifted, or do you think that giftedness is being mistaken for ADHD? Interested to see what you think. : ) I think a kid can be both gifted and adhd... I would think that it´s hard to mistakenly think that gifted(just gifted and "normal") kid is adhd....I think that kid´s that are just gifted dont have the obvious mark´s/trait´s of adhd, but this is only my opinion as a parent of an adhd kid. But as a parent of an adhd kid, my honest opinion is that adhd kid´s can be, and quite often also are, gifted at least in some area´s if not in all. |
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SKay
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Post by SKay on Jun 19, 2005 14:41:57 GMT -5
I'm not familiar with the hunter/farmer theory. What is it?
Yes, I think they can be both ADHD and gifted; I don't think they are the same thing. I know people can be gifted without being ADHD, and I guess they can also be ADHD without being gifted--although I'm not sure about that.
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mothercat
Member Emeritus
With a little luck and a lot of Gods help anything is possible!
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Post by mothercat on Jun 19, 2005 15:52:12 GMT -5
If you are talking about the hunter/farmer as in self sustaining verses the go to work 9-5 socialized member of the group ..I dont get what you mean?
I know hunter/farmer type people who are very self sustaining with homeschooled children who are VERY hard working and in their way contribute to the economical society without holding a job so to speak. They work much harder than some of the people who live in the community circle and work 9-5. Its not about where and what you do to get by...its about making the best and most of your life.
Kids can definitely be high IQ , gifted , and adhd. They are not the same thing . Some people have low iQ and some High, some people are adhd and others aren'.
Its called individualism and I think maybe gene pool...or as someone once said...Life is like a box of chocolates...you reach in and see what you get.
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Post by momto3wolves on Jun 19, 2005 21:16:30 GMT -5
Sorry to have confused you... the Hunter/Farmer theory is explained on this website: borntoexplore.org
Basically, what I'm getting out of it is that kids who are being diagnosed with ADHD may not really have it, and could either be gifted and not be ADHD, or act like that for some other reason. The author also suggests that kids with this behavior pattern are 'wired' like our ancestors who had to hunt for their food. They needed to be quick, impulsive and creative in order to be a successful Hunter. The Farmers, supposedly, are more like the non-ADHD kids today, who can sit quietly, aren't impulsive, etc.
It's nice that the guy gives ADHD a positive spin, but at the same time, it feels like a load of you-know-what...
I will believe that ADHD kids can be gifted, but to suggest that all of these kids are really not ADHD is puzzling.
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Post by AnneM on Jun 20, 2005 11:16:16 GMT -5
Hmmm .... This is the theory of Thom Hartmann ... who has written a few books around this theme ... I can see what he is saying - i.e. that those who are labelled adhd today would simply have been the hunters in years gone by and those who are non-adhd and more placid by nature would have been the farmer ....
I think what Thom Hartmann and a lot of those on the website you mention are trying to say is that today's world is "stifling" those who are born "hunters" ... and today the world is very much a "farmers world" .. so in effect what has happened is that the "hunters" are being given a "label" (adhd) because they don't "fit in" to the "farmer's world" ...
BTW the website you mention is a spin off from Thom Hartmann's message forum ... they are sort of "sister sites" ... unfortunately both sites (IMHO) have been hijacked by a handful of women who have excessively strong and very biased opinions (particularly extreme anti-meds) and they have ruined (for me anyway) this whole concept of Thom Hartmann's which in fact is an interesting one!
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Post by Linda on Jun 20, 2005 11:54:31 GMT -5
This is indeed very interesting...I have read his book and there are many of that are "hunters"  Anne tell me more about the hijacking. |
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Post by momto3wolves on Jun 20, 2005 15:27:40 GMT -5
Okay, so the website isn't affiliated with Thom Hartmann? I'll have to look closer... I do feel like we expect our kids to sit down and be quiet way too much. But, I'm not raising a cave man or a hunter. I'm trying to raise kids who can function in the society they were born into. It would be wonderful if teachers and employers would change the rules for the "hunters", but I can't expect it.
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SKay
Member Emeritus
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Post by SKay on Jun 20, 2005 16:01:05 GMT -5
Momto3wolves, thanks for this info. As I said, I've never heard of this specific theory before, but I find it interesting and have bookmarked that website. I sort of touched on this idea in my thread " Does this bother you?" when I said I wondered if society is trying to put everyone in a box (trying to make everyone conform to a certain type of personality (sit still, concentrate on one thing for a certain amount of time, etc). I'll have to read up on this some more!
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Post by AnneM on Jun 21, 2005 9:35:51 GMT -5
Okay, so the website isn't affiliated with Thom Hartmann? I'm sorry !! I misled you ... The website IS affiliated with Thom Hartmann but only in the respect that he advertises that website on his forum and I believe vice versa .... Thom's own forum is separate ... however BOTH sites tend to be populated by the same group of people ... hope that clarifies it! |
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Post by kstquilter on Jun 21, 2005 11:31:16 GMT -5
well i've read some of this hunter idea and think there is probably some merit to it. our kids probably would have been the hunters and this is much more a society of farmers.
personally, i think that means we need more hunters. not necessarily more adhd people, please! But we do need people who think outside the box, who are willing to be impulsive and take chances. it beats the heck out of what our kids were called in past generations, lazy, day dreamers, quitters, etc.
doesn't mean our kids can't function in this society at all. they just learn a different way. they will probably do different jobs than our non-adhd kids too. but that's ok, there is a place for everyone.
i think my job is to help brittany learn to live and succeed in this world the same as it is my job to help my son do the same. she'll just take a different path than my son will. but then i think most siblings take different paths whether they are adhd or not.
as far as being gifted, i think both are possible. i know brittany is very bright just like her dad is. she is usually borderline honors classes for english type classes but not math. this is why some kids, girls especially, aren't always diagnosed as early as other adhd kids are. their brains get them so far before they can't keep up anymore. but like all kids, some adhd kids can be gifted while others are not. just like some non-adhd kids are gifted and others are not.
it's like they are given a hardship but to help compensate, they are given something special as well.
i guess i try to teach both my kids the same lessons. to be kind, a good friend, do well in school, be a good person, all the important things in life. chris just catches on to those lessons faster!
brittany will get there, but by a different path than most of her friends will take.
of course this is all just imho!
karen
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Post by sweety on Jun 21, 2005 16:40:21 GMT -5
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Post by Linda on Jun 21, 2005 20:16:20 GMT -5
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Post by momto3wolves on Jun 22, 2005 16:08:33 GMT -5
kstquilter-I get what you're saying, and I do agree. What turned me off about the website is the statement that public schools damage kids with ADHD. I know it happens, but it doesn't mean it will. I like to think that with the parents' involvement, that the outcome is better, but maybe I'm just being naive. My oldest is going into second grade, and I haven't been 'around the block' in regards to the school system.
I think the 'hunter' gene theory is really interesting.
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Post by kstquilter on Jun 23, 2005 11:06:29 GMT -5
mom to 3,
i think the public schools can damage adhd kids and think it can damage regular kids or be great for all these different kids. my experience has been it's up to the teacher.
my son, non-adhd, had a wonderful 1st or 2nd grade teacher. she was fairly young so new. she was enthusiastic, etc. i was a room mom and at a meeting with the other room moms, we got to talking about the teacher. our kids tend to be allowed to bring water bottles to school for about the 1st month of school if the weather is real warm. one of the other mom's had huge complaints about this same teacher because her daughter had some sort of bladder problem that made her need to drink water all day long. doesn't seem like it should be a huge problem but then that child has to go to the bathroom all day as well and then the other kids want to go too, etc., etc. so while this teacher seemed fine to me, she didn't seem to handle the exceptions well.
my adhd daughter had the worst 4th grade teacher she ever had. i tried to talk to her about literature, any questions, anything i could do to help, etc. she said she'd taken a few hour class three years ago so she didn't need any extra info. i voluteered at the school and we met in the hall one day about 2 weeks into school and she just mentioned that if the meds didn't work, brittany shouldn't be on them.
we had a horrible year all year long. every day was a struggle. we never had that much trouble with a teacher the rest of her school career.
i have to agree that some teachers can truly ruin a child, at least for awhile until maybe the next teacher can undo some of the damage. or someone else is able to help repair. the good thing is that kids tend to bounce back as a whole. and there are alot of really good people who do great things for our kids. they just aren't always in the schools.
i wish you much luck as you begin your school life and wish you only good teachers for your kids.
karen
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