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Original poster

Child Genius

186 replies

evaperonspoodle · 25/02/2019 20:29

And so it begins!

I must admit I love this programme mostly to watch the parents Blush Strong contenders for the unhinged parenting award are the PHd in Chemistry mum or the Twins' mum. She clearly thinks the world of her son and her daughter is a not so close second.

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Kneehigim · 01/03/2019 14:23

Just watched all the episodes so far all in one today. Totty, Connor is a truly likeable boy. And I love you and your DH! So very down to earth.
The over enthusiastic blonde woman, with the son with longish hair (can't remember whether his name is William or Michael), but he seems bizarrely unaffected by her bat-shitness. Of course he doesn't like reading woman if it's never for pleasure! Silly pushy woman.

I felt really sorry for Melissa the twin of one of the boys. Forever in her brother's shadow.
Nisha seems very self motivated. Ishal, well, uncle.......... where do we even start with that. Is it normal for an Uncle to have such influence?
I'm secretly rooting for a girl to win after Connor got knocked out. He was the one you really wanted to do well. Such a tall and handsome boy too!

nolanscrack · 01/03/2019 15:55

The Whole Isha thing is odd,if the contestants are 12 or younger why is she at a school that starts at 13,why are the school allowing the regime from the uncle and why if she is at that particular school in the first place,Ive never known it be a first choice for very academic children..all very odd

LIZS · 01/03/2019 15:59

Could that school ( not sure which it is tbf) have year 7/8 junior or a prep school? Relatively few girls' schools only intake at 13 now.

nolanscrack · 01/03/2019 16:33

Its a coed and you enter in year 9

BartonHollow · 01/03/2019 16:34

I think that's the case

A lot of the major boarding schools generally have an 11+ and 13+

And that's due to a diminishing number of schools and applicants that are in them that are 7-12 preps

They still exist but are harder to come by

Cloudtree · 01/03/2019 16:39

Come on guys this is a bit mean. William's mum is actually really nice. She is very invested and little anxious but she's a really nice person.

They were approached to be on this after he won a competition via school, they didn't put him forward.

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evaperonspoodle · 01/03/2019 17:02

William's mum came across as very anxious, as if her life depended on him doing well. It was well beyond someone who wants her child to get through, the way she behaved when the phone went off made her look quite unwell.

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BartonHollow · 01/03/2019 17:12

That was Michaels Mum with the phone

The concerns with Williams mum have been slightly different... but I don't think are entirely unfair/misplaced

Cloudtree · 01/03/2019 17:16

She is anxious and not very confident at all. She honestly is very nice.

I’ve only watched snippets of the programme but she was really worried about how she was going to come across and whether she’d embarrass the kids.

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evaperonspoodle · 01/03/2019 17:53

Apologies! They are all probably very nice but their behaviour is often questionable. I do remember Raya's(?) mum previously saying that things are edited to make them look a bit mad but William's mum seemed as if she was trying to achieve her dream through her child. Reading books and highlighting 'important parts' is a tad over invested IMO. The woman has a phd in chemistry but would rather train a genius. The mind boggles.

I just looked at the application form for CG and you have to send a full family picture in, so they are obviously targeting people who come across as 'colourful' from the outset.

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BartonHollow · 01/03/2019 20:22

It is interesting to note as has been pointed out that specific parents and children have been targeted for this by the production itself

That means voluntary applications are down because of portrayals

And who wouldn't come over a bit giddy at receiving a personal call from Channel 4?

JuniorAsparagus · 01/03/2019 22:26

Really glad Ben made it to the final.

2rebecca · 01/03/2019 22:38

I don't really see the point in all the spellings. Maybe it's because I have a son and 2 step kids who are dyslexic (f knows where it came from, all the parents can spell) and with spell checks on computers it seems a poor market of intelligence. Why aren't there more pattern recognition/3D shapes/ logic questions that dyslexics can do too

2rebecca · 01/03/2019 22:40

Marker!!! Some of us can spell but aren't very careful

BartonHollow · 01/03/2019 22:44

I feel the same about the Maths, I tested as high iq/profoundly gifted very young

But either the maths teaching I received was poor (potentially, had some shockers at high school) or I had a level of dyscalculia

I got Maths GCSE but despite high IQ developed almost a blindness/phobia towards it after primary.

2rebecca · 01/03/2019 22:47

I think being older helps as you learn to control your emotions and have been in more situations where you have questions you can't do but have to get on with the next one. The little kids have less resilience as they haven't yet needed it. Not sure why I watch this as I find it frustrating yet compelling.

2rebecca · 01/03/2019 22:51

I think some people especially females just decide they can't do maths and put up their own mental blocks. My stepdaughter was like that. She's a gifted musician who went to a conservatoire but decided she couldn't "do" maths and private tuition couldn't really budge that. It's like the Richard Bach quote from his book "Illusions". "Argue for your limitations and they're yours"

BartonHollow · 01/03/2019 22:53

It is frustrating to watch

As a former gifted child I still have resentment that it wasn't pushed and I recurved a very average education in average schools

However I think many of these children are being pushed beyond what is fair or reasonable

And I think not being pushed is a lesser hardship than being pushed to break

BartonHollow · 01/03/2019 22:54

Oooo that is interesting I'll look that up.

2rebecca · 01/03/2019 23:04

He's the guy who wrote Jonathan Livingston Seagull. I read Illusions as a teenager(I'm now 54) and it made a big impression on me. There's some pseudoscience/woo type stuff in it but a lot of the quotes in the "Messiah's Handbook" are memorable and relevant particularly when you're a teenager and a bit religious anyway as I was.

KittensAndCake · 01/03/2019 23:31

I thought you were all saying Connor was nice and the normal one because his DM was on here (Hi Totty 👋 ) But after watching I can wholeheartedly agree, Connor was the nice normal one with non-pushy but supportive parents.
I also liked Harry, his parents seemed nice too.

Why aren't there more pattern recognition/3D shapes/ logic questions that dyslexics can do too

I agree. This programme seems to be a test of how good their memories are 😒

By the way Totty, what was Richard Osman like? I'm asking for a friend Blush🤭

Cattenberg · 01/03/2019 23:46

The competition must be stressful every year, but it seems particularly harsh this time. All those awful “twists” eg. the lowest scorer being eliminated early, sudden death rounds and the round where everything hinged on the last question.

It seems to be all about creating suspense for TV and not about getting a full picture of the children’s abilities. The kids are amazing, but I don’t think the extra pressure is fair.

NCforthisoneb · 02/03/2019 01:21

It is frustrating to watch

As a former gifted child I still have resentment that it wasn't pushed and I recurved a very average education in average schools

I agree with this. As much as the more “normal” children on the show are applauded for not being pushed, there is another side of the argument that because their parents are in awe of their cleverness as opposed to being able to nurture it properly, they are being frustrated of their true potential.

I expect to be flamed for this post btw. But it is true whether you like it or not.

BartonHollow · 02/03/2019 01:35

My parents aren't/weren't equipped by their own educations and experience as well as a preinternet age to realise that what they were being told meant that the nice but ordinary primary and the very average comp weren't going to fully meet my needs

It was more

"Your childs IQ is so high it can't be quantified by the metric we have for this age group"

"Well. That's great!"

The end.

I think they thought it just meant I would do well

The sort of thing "driven" parents do, was out of their sphere of reference

I was bored a lot of the time and got lesser grades than I could have in certain subjects because I phoned it in and still got good grades, and also because the teaching was aimed firmly at the middle and of variable quality

NCforthisoneb · 02/03/2019 01:42

I empathise with your post Barton.

To be clear I was commenting on the c4 programme format in particular.

I can only imagine the frustration of being a naturally bright and gifted child without the appropriate recognition let alone support from your parents.

Your case highlights an uncomfortable area that parents who are not equipped to nurture their gifted children face. However it is in the parents’ favour that if they don’t realise this uncomfortable truth, then they are safe from sleepless nights over it.