Child Genius (C4)

[TheFirstOfHerName]

Anyone planning to watch this?

I was a little like these children; joined Mensa as a child, but used my ability to coast through school/university rather than to achieve anything noteworthy.

DS2 is also of this ilk. We are not doing any of the things these parents are doing, although when opportunities arise through school then obviously we let him participate.

Well, even if he can do the maths ... I do wonder.

I'm a rubbish mathematician but my brother is a maths academic, and I was chatting to him yesterday about the difference between memory as a measure of academic success, and understanding as a measure. Apparently, even in maths up to undergraduate degree and beyond, you could get through by memorizing proofs rather than really having the sense of how everything works.

I think Rubiyat probably has quite a bit of both, but the questions didn't test the understanding at all.

(And I do agree it's brilliant he's interested - he seems a really great kid and I think I would trust his dad to know that memory isn't understanding, it's just the programme is misrepresenting things.)

Dh and I came to exactly the same conclusion, LRD . I know flip all about physics, but could probably memorise a list of facts about string theory without having the slightest clue what I was talking about.

Clearly Rubiyat is bright and has a really good memory, but I didn't see any evidence that he understands the physics behind string theory.

He will struggle at Harrow as he won't have his parents telling him what to do. He didn't know how to congratulate the winner. He really seemed to have little in the way of social skills.

He was 8. Most 8 year olds I know would have stamped their feet or burst into tears at the end. I think he was remarkably calm and self possessed at the end. I'm not a fan of his parents coaching but I think he had dignity for his age.

Hand cream
He is only eight fgs
He is three years younger than Sharon , so I don't think that one can really compare the two
I think he will do very well at Harrow
Tbh , I don't think that any of them are geniuses ,
I just think that they are very bright kids who have been coached by interested parents .
All that nonsense about the topics being postgraduate level.
As others have said , it is all memory.

I thought his dad was awful at the end. I know it's edited etc, but "he did exactly as he was told to do" I mean, really. Where were the hugs? The child was clearly disappointed. Why was no one telling him he was brilliant and they were proud of him?

I wonder if it's him or his parents who want Harrow.

His parents probably want him at Harrow, where I live in , all the parents want their kids to go to the best grammar schools , whether they are able or not.
So the fact that the parents want him to go to Harrow is not a big deal.

Yes, but it was the way he said it - "if I want to go to Harrow, which I do..." My kids are 8. They want to go to one of the two secondary schools near us, purely because the other one has a green uniform, which is Slytherin colour and therefore to be avoided. That's normal for an 8 yr old...

Did anyone think the way the results of the semi final were given were a bit shit?

At least they didn't have the terrible debate round from last year.

I don't know if how they edited Tudor changed through the series, but at the beginning he was portrayed as a little boy who was afraid of his father and desperate for approval and by the end it was just all about how cocky he was.

Trivia about Queen Victoria's favourite dog is not degree level history ffs!

The only reason Victorian studies is 'degree level' is because its not on the national curriculum for GCSE or A level.

None of it was degree level. I was getting so sick of that relentless voiceover.

I didn't think Tudor was cocky, though. To be cocky you have to be doing more than parrotting what your parents say and looking scared. He looked absolutely shocked when he lost.

I wonder what made the 'experts' do it? They all seemed really kind and I thought it was so nice of the physics bloke to go and chat to Rubiyat afterwards. But it seemed odd they weren't even there to ask the questions?

The experts were there weren't they? It kept cutting to them looking shocked as a primary school kid got their questions right.

I expect they couldn't have the experts ask the questions for consistency.

Oh, sure, I know they were there, but it seemed strange.

I guess the consistency thing makes sense - but it wasn't consistent anyway, because they'd made up questions. I know it's just more Mensa being Mensa, but you'd think they could have let them have a little five-minute chat and show us a clip or two of them talking at the least.

I thought Tudor has come across as arrogant at times, but it's pretty clear (from what was edited anyhow...) that beneath the bravado he is still a little boy who lives for his parents' approval.

Rubyiat needs to participate in some sport to experience learning to lose/come second imo. That Eleanor was comforting him when she had definitely gone out at that point should be embarrassing for him.

Agree the way they found out the results was shocking!

We don't know that he doesn't play sport, and he did look embarrassed to me. They are all obviously bright enough to know she knew she was out but he'd thought he was in.

Rubiyat had it very tough, he went first, then had to wait for all the other contestants to come back one by one to find out if he was through. Then he thought he was still in with a chance, only to have it snatched away at the last minute.

I thought he dealt with what was obviously a very stressful and tense situation pretty well. No tantrums or lashing out at the other competitors (that we saw anyway). That the other kids found out whether they were through or not by the other kids telling them what they got was shit. They should have been kept separately and all told each other's scores at the same time so that they all had the same wait and reveal, and it wasn't being done by an 8 year old.

I think Sharon could have done with less time playing chess and revising and more time running about and doing sport.I am a bit shocked that her parents were both GPs ! Not a grewat example to other parents who they presumably advise on lifestyle choices.

pommedeterre but Eleanor could turn on the waterworks herself though couldn't she? I though she was a bit spoiled actually.She came across as the least likeable child taking part, to me anyway

I think the best person won, at least she wanted to do it for herself and wasn't driven by her parents.
She lives up the road too, so she'll do .
Phew, I also liked Eleanor another one doing for herself, I found all the other contestants weird bordering on abuse at times.
Tudors parents made me mad, all they did was coach him and tell him about Harrow, poor child. I felt really sorry for him.

I found the other contestants parents weird.

I said to my children that Tudor would struggle at Harrow as well. The reason being is that his learning is managed. He was not learning independently, but with lots of parental input. I felt that Sharon and Eleanor were naturally the brightest. They seemed to enjoy learning for learning sake, rather then being forced by their parents.