Hw do you keep them loving learning?

[hunkermunker]

DS1's face when he learns something new is a picture - wide eyes, big grins - lovely!

Is it possible to keep them enthused? How? Or is it a given that he'll be a jaded teenager mumbling "yeah, whatever" on a good day?

Er...How do you..., not Hw.

(Helps not to have a dimwitted mother, I think!)

From my experience as a jaded teenager, don't forget to praise the little achievements just because your child frequently makes quite big achievements. Keep doing it. Listen to him read even when he can read with the fluency of an adult. Keep telling him how clever he is at such-and-such. Listen to him and pass comment when he rushes up to tell you something utterly fascinating.

I have this sneaky suspicion that just a few of the 'cool' teenagers at school are still excited by new discoveries and enthusiastic about learning; but they quickly learn to hide it well at secondary school.

My eldest is nearly 9 and is still incredibly excited and enthusiastic when he learns something new.

I'm sure a degree of 'yeah, whatever' is unavoidable. DS1 is eight going on eighteen frequently. Keep the channels of communication open and learn with him (yuk! That sounds like edu-psychi-babbly stuff, but YKWIM) and he'll continue to grin and wonder,I'm sure.