(note: Bunny is not her real name.)

Do you know how sometimes, when you are young, your mom will look at you and say “I hope you have a daughter just like you”, as some kind of curse? Well, I don’t think it’s a curse, but it certainly is happening.

Yesterday, Bunny had homework to do, just like always. Second grade is a little more intensive with the homework, but we’ve managed so far. She brought home a progress report - that’s a mid term report card - and it showed that she had a D - 67! in Math! I couldn’t understand it. We have been practicing her math facts every day, just like her teacher wanted us to. She’s been flying through them. So why the bad grade? It was a puzzle.

Also, last night, her Dad helped her with her math homework, and she snuggled into the recliner with him to do it. I could hear his voice getting more and more strained, so I wandered over to see what was going on. Would you believe that she was sitting there, saying “umm… um… I don’t know…” in this cute innocent voice? And he, just like he should, wasn’t telling her the answer. These are easy math questions, nothing she hasn’t zoomed through before, but suddenly, she just couldn’t do it. We made her get up, go to the kitchen table where it was quiet, and do it, thinking maybe she couldn’t concentrate with the other stuff going on around her. She STILL sat there, doodling, waiting for us to tell her the answers! It was extremely frustrating, and after 2 hours, she had answered the last question, and we got her to bed. No one was happy.

We talked until late into the night about this. What could be happening? Something medical? Was she not getting enough positive attention? My husband and I started planning “Bunny-only” activities, thinking that it might help. We know that one of her friends has told her that not knowing stuff makes you cuter to boys. I talked to her about that, too. I wrote a note to her teacher about the low grade, wanting to find ways to help her study better. It was a nervous, anxious evening. This is a girl that reads at a 4th grade level, and has a 100 average in reading, spelling, science and social studies. Last term, she had a 97 in math. It was really confusing.

I’m not the kind of mom that pushes their kids. She’s just naturally smart. She flies through everything she has to study. Normally, she’s really proud of her grades, too. In the back of my head, I thought she might have had a stroke or something.

So .. this morning, I got a call from her teacher. It turns out that Bunny’s been acting very oddly in school for the past 2 days as well. BUT, her teacher had an explanation. Bunny noticed early this week that her teacher was spending more time with some of the other kids. They need the help, and aren’t reading at a 2nd grade level yet. Bunny used 7 year old logic and decided that if she did badly, she’d get more help, more attention, and more time with her teacher. The kid is just too smart. Her teacher told me that she was just acting really goofy and the bad grades were due to a timed test. Act silly on a timed test - “ummm I don’t knowwwww..” and you fail it. She’s basically so bored, she’s devising behavioral experiments in class to see if she can get more attention. I told you she was smart.

Her teacher is making her a “Peer helper” for the class. It’s a big honor, and we both think it will refocus Bunny onto doing well. She’ll stay after school one day a week to help others read. Wow.. 2nd grade and already a tutor! The carrot is that if she gets her math up enough, she can be a peer helper with math, too. Hopefully that will spur her back to doing her best. I remember what it is to be bored in class. You can get in a lot of trouble that way, even get yelled at and berated if you have the wrong teacher. Luckily, we have great teachers.

Outside of school, Bunny is your normal kid. She has a love for mermaids and fairies, and really enjoys drawing pictures and writing stories to go with them. It’s hard buying birthday presents for her, because she really likes playing dressup and pretend play more than dolls or barbies. She said a few weeks ago that her favorite things to play with are her friends.

So I’m glad I was blessed with a daughter that’s just like me when I was little. Even though it can be frustrating at times, she’s a super cool kid, and I wouldn’t trade her for anything or anyone on the planet.