Dd going crazy after writing a bit

[Totpisinthenineties]

Getting really worried about Dd, 5. She was always very bright, early to talk, large vocab etc. We’ve always done activities-crafting, reading, she loves me doing sums with her and so on. Today we were writing out santas letter, she was sounding out words and writing the letters-some backwards and so on, all very normal, she then went just really silly and scribbled everywhere, then was hyper for around 30 minutes, I’ve noticed this for a while now after concentrating on an activity for a short time. Is this a sign of adhd/ASD I’m not understanding it at all

No I don’t think it sounds like either of those things. Concentration can make some kids feel a bit wired because it’s tiring.

She's 5. She sounds tired.

@Didimum But each time after such a short time?

@RachelGreensHair Excess of energy for everything else though

She's just had to concentrate very hard on something difficult and relatively new for a while. It's not surprising that she's gone a bit daft, maybe to release a bit of pent up feeling? She's very young still.

Maybe you were quite intense about the exercise, which should have been for fun really, and she's felt the tension and needed to blow off steam?

If you're really worried about it have a chat with her teacher. It's really not a sign of neurodiversity.

Yes. It doesn’t sound that unusual.

I definitely wasn’t intense about it at all, she used to enjoy this type of thing. The teacher says all she wants to do is play…

@TheNoodlesIncident She seems unable to concentrate for long and days when she’s doing something like that, she tries to stop herself from getting angry as she keeps getting it wrong. I’ve told her there is no wrong and not to worry etc…she was never like this before starting school

She’s five. All I want to do is play sometimes, and I’m 52.

She’s probably tired after having to work much harder at school each day than she would have done at home and so is not as regulated to then do these things in the evening on top of the school day. Maybe save these kind of activities for weekends instead of a Friday night after a full week of school!

@FortunataTagnips I know…the teacher said it in a negative way though and I just find her reaction odd when she tries to concentrate on something for even a few minutes

She’s just tired

And possibly this stuff is less fun since she started school

Her behaviour doesn't seem to point to neurodiversity. Children that age can tire quickly when concentrating and then often act a bit silly/ hyper to release pent up tension. Her behaviour doesn't seem unusual.

I think it's normal. Used to teach this age group, I've seen it again and again. Learning to write is HARD (I think it's the hardest thing they have to learn at this age as it requires both mental concentration and physical coordination/stability). As an adult, I can't remember the first stages of learning to write myself so I think it's easy to underestimate just how taxing it is. Her scribbling/being hyper is probably just her needing to stop doing it for a bit and not really understanding how to express it.

It's much more challenging for them too when they're trying to achieve a certain result (letter to Santa/story/etc) and not just having a bash at writing letters and words for fun. My boy is the same age and exactly the same- he loves getting his paper and pens and practicing the letters he knows he can write well and making words, but becomes completely bonkers when I try to direct him to write something in particular. I expect it'll pass once she feels more confident and the skill becomes more automatic.

@shreddednips Thats reassuring thank you, she seems to not like writing her name etc, when she used to enjoy it. Will it be a big difference by the time she’s 6? Worried she won’t keep up/be able to cope with what’s expected of her

I taught primary 1 for years. If you read some educational studies a lot of them will say that children are labelled as ‘behind’ in the uk and us before children in other parts of the world have even started ‘formal’ education. There’s a reason why 6/7 is a better age to start this type of learning and it’s simply that a lot of children (granted not all) are not ready for this level of intense learning at such a young age. They are still figuring out spacial awareness and social emotional stability. Your DD sounds totally normal to me! Of course, speak to her teacher if you have concerns. Something that may help is to have her move large muscles while sounding out e.g. move hands and arms while spelling out a word-it’s a way I was able to help kids who found the concentration part hard!

Please don't be quick to slap a label on her.
It's Friday, near the end of term and she is in Reception! A really bad time to choose for extra handwriting practice no?
She is probably just knackered and when kids are knackered they get daft, it doesn't mean there is something wrong with her.

It's hard to say because they're all so different. Generally, I'd say most five year olds can concentrate on academic activities in short bursts but are more geared towards play, play is a need at this age. Is she generally on track at school? (Sorry, you may have already mentioned).

Sometimes children clam up a bit with reading/writing when they're worried about making mistakes, some like to know they can do it really well before they do it in front of people.

In your shoes, I wouldn't worry too much- especially if she's generally on track at school. 5 years old is still really little and what they do at school is already an overwhelming amount for many kids.

I recommend being very low-key about writing at home for a while to take any pressure off (not saying you're pressuring her, but she may perceive pressure because it's such a hard thing to learn). Praise any attempts, if she scribbles and gets silly I'd say something like 'you know, if you're feeling tired and don't feel like writing, that's ok. You don't need to be silly, you can just say you need a break and we can do something else and finish xyz in a bit.'

Maybe try modelling coping strategies when you are finding something difficult/make mistakes yourself. It might help her if you show her alternative ways to manage the feelings when she's struggling with something, silliness is probably just her way of letting the tension out.

Overall, I'd just watch and wait for a bit, but I bet it resolves.

@Arthursmom totally agree. Five is really young, formal education is really asking a lot from them and (IMO) they SHOULD mainly be playing at this age. I wouldn't draw any conclusions at this stage unless this is part of a bigger picture.

Writing a letter, or even part of a letter, is a really intense and difficult task when you are 5! I remember trying to get mine to write in Christmas cards etc - more than one and it was pretty much the same. I doubt there is anything to be concerned about.

Also. Drawing pictures then labelling them is a more fun, low key way to do things. They can label the first sound/first and last sounds or first middle and last-whatever they want and they can colour once finished. Perfectly acceptable letter for 5 writing to Santa

Oh, this, a million times.

@FortunataTagnips 100% 😂

She's overstimulated.
Let her relax or play WITH her with stuff she not you chooses.

@PTSDBarbiegirl I do…she chose…she seems to be overstimulated and hyper active a lot…this is my concern