Do all parents think their children are geniuses?

[Tobywongg]

This has been bugging me for some time. At all family gatherings I've been to there is talk about how smart their 3 year old daughter and 5 year old son are going to grow up to become Einsteins. Even around other parents, all of them seem to think that their baby is super smart.

Does anyone else think this? Did you think your son/daughter was super smart?

Discuss.

[Pud'n]

I'm sure people are just being flattering when they praise other people's kids, at most family gatherings. And I'm sure at least most people are aware if their kid is smart or not by the time they start going to school. Whether they have the gull to tell their children if they're average or below-average is the real question.

[FuxieDK]

I just heard on the radio, that (here in Denmark) 91% of all parents, think their kids are "above average intelligence"..

Kinda like almost everyone thinks they are champs in bed.. ;-)

[bals]

yes most parents think this.
It's why you hear the occasional story about parents yelling at teachers because there's no way their perfect little child could be failing a class even though the child is.

It's just if they actually believe it or if they are just using it for encouragement is the issue.

[eriseis]

Childhood development is a pretty amazing thing. Just in the perspective of language to see a kid absorb it and progress in his learning of it is pretty nifty.

So parents think the babies they love are awesome and cute...we're gonna criticize too? Really?

90% of the people in this site thing they're geniuses too...

[vindicatorx]

pretty much all of my friends who have kids have told me at one time or another how smart their kid is. When I look at the kid I see them drooling acting like a normal kid and it made me come to the conclusion that yes, all parents think their kid is special/smart/can do no wrong.

[WingsofLiberty]

My mum is a maths teacher so you tell me... Until I moved out she was always complimenting me about how gifted I was and etc etc.

She was so convinced that it really started to bug me out, but to be honest I could never change her mind; I guess it's just a parents' thing(especially a mother's imho).

[Uennie]

My dad did because he had me tested as a kid.

But I sure showed him.

On a more serious note, no, they don't. A lot of parents are very aware of their kid's limitations. Luckily though, for as many things as a kid is bad at, there is usually one thing they are really good at (and that they like, and can turn into a living). It's all about knowing what to support as a parent, I think.

Some parents ... Yes they believe their child or children are the blessing from above. While well-intentioned, it isn't that beneficial. The important thing is, that not all parents are like this.

There was an episode of Community where Winger had to "retcon" a memory of his mother telling him how amazing he was, to instead be telling him that he's going to be shit at a lot of things, but there will be some things he'll be good at.

Or even, "A Jeff of all trades, is a master of none."

Hur hur.

[skitzin]

Well it would be a sad day when your parents start telling you at an early age:

"Your nothing special, the best you can hope for is to finish school and get a decent job. Perhaps college/university if your lucky. Then you'll marry some average looking person and repeat the process all over again. Oh and also you mother and I can't actually save you from much of the bad stuff in this world so here is a stick so you can make a shiv, so good luck and have fun!"

Personally I think people get caught up on being overly nice at some time but the way I figure it is these things are stuff you deal with when your older but as child you want to be supportive of your and others kids because for all you know they could be the next Einstein, he was a school drop out don't forget. Where I think a lot of the overly positive stuff comes form is an almost subconscious act of competition where they are trying to one up another set of parents, not saying its malicious in intent or anything but that we as humans will often compete with each other on many levels.

[Deleted]

My dad told me I would end up wasting my life, my mom told me I'd end up a street bum.

I showed them =D

(It was kind of reversed psychology. Even knowing and understanding the concept, to this day I still convince myself they meant it!)

[Gandrake]

if it makes them happy why do you have to take a shit on them lol

but your child is your legacy, and a reflection of your character. why wouldn't you want to be proud of it? i mean, it does not always turn out that way and sometimes they grow up with some kind of personality disorder like SPD or Major Depression. But your child is going to be the most important student and social experiment that you have ever worked on in your life, they are probably just trying to be positive.

[Uennie]

if it makes them happy why do you have to take a shit on them lol

but your child is your legacy, and a reflection of your character. why wouldn't you want to be proud of it? i mean, it does not always turn out that way and sometimes they grow up with some kind of personality disorder like SPD or Major Depression. But your child is going to be the most important student and social experiment that you have ever worked on in your life, they are probably just trying to be positive.

Because those "super-positive" parents can talk down on kids their kids hang out with. Other parents don't like that, and parents (believe it or not) don't want their kids to hang out with the kids of parents who are dicks to their kids. The OP is talking about those parents whose kids can "do no wrong", that their child is the blessed one and if they can't understand something it must be because of the teacher, or the other students, but it's never their kid's fault. That kind of attitude leads a child into a dangerous ego and a lack of responsibility. Too much of a good thing (validation) is harmful to a person's character. It is the negative factors that we face and overcome that makes us great people.

In response to the "your child is your legacy", I feel like a more accurate thing to say would be to reference "The Sum of Us".

Your children are the sum of you, the sum of all the past generations of the family, so of course how can you not be proud of them or love them. It doesn't mean you won't be disappointed, and it doesn't mean that they are the sum of all mankind (which is the attitude a lot of parents take, and is what the OP is referring to).

Of course I'm not saying you should shit all over your kid, but no one should bullshit all over them either.

[PACOX]

We all have come to a verdict about my nephew. Bless his heart. Thats all I can say.

[oplawlz]

It's a failing of many parents to see only the good in their children. While support is good, correcting failings is even better. Giving advice on parenting is almost as useless as giving advice on love, however --- everyone thinks they know better or are special in their circumstances.

[Ilyanda]

<defensive>My daughter skipped a grade.</defensive>

...I didn't help, did I?

[eriseis]

My mom always told me I was smart...but at the same time gave me multiplication problems daily 2 grades before they were taught at school and for every math problem I got wrong I had to do 10 more.

...I guess she didn't wanna just say hollow words o.O

[Irraticate]

I agree with what Eriseis said; the fact that children can absorb things so easily and develop really quickly while still being seen as a baby is a very powerful thing. Granted, I understand what the OP said too. A lot of parents DO take it overboard. And it's sad to see.

[Letmesleep]

I just heard on the radio, that (here in Denmark) 91% of all parents, think their kids are "above average intelligence"..

Research has shown similar results in regards to how adults see themselves as well. More often than not people believe their intelligence is higher than it actually is. I'm not surprised the inflated sense of self worth trickles down to how they perceive their children.

[Toroc]

Remember that saying " A face only a mother could love"? Well it tends to extend a bit further than that most of the time.

[Spoinky]

I'm surprised this hasn't been mentioned yet, but isn't it just because parents are proud of their children?