Siblings without Rivalry

When you have a 9 year old who is charming, funny, smart, witty, a good conversationalist, well-liked by his peers and adults, and you also have a 10 year old who thinks he is none of these things (even though he is), there's bound to be rivalry. I picked up a copy of Siblings without Rivalry to see if I can learn some things to help these two get along better - or at least not have so many hurt feelings. I think I should've gotten this book when I was first expecting little one.

The boys are so much alike in so many ways, but so different. They aren't competitive about physical things; it's more about perceptions of fairness (what is fair anyway?). Who got more time on the computer? Who has to go first to take a bath (I went first yesterday, no you didn't...) ~ well, you get the idea.

Ay-yi-yi! I suspect the teen years ahead will be rough enough... hopefully we can all learn some skills to take the sharp edges off.

I just finished reading How to Talk So Kids will Listen & Listen so Kids will Talk and WOW! I've heard about this book off and on through my years as a parent, but I never had a chance to pick it up until recently when it was recommended to help me develop my own "script" for addressing the needs of one of my grade schoolers. I've already used some of the techniques not only when listening and talking to my children, but also with co-workers, friends, and other people I encounter every week.

School Picture Day

Today was picture day at school. In the past, I've picked out what I wanted the boys to wear for their school pictures, but this year I let them dress themselves with just one rule -- it had to be clean. One picked a grey shirt with blue and red thin stripes. The other picked his Disney Cruise Line shirt.

You know what? For the first year, both boys will look like they always look. Hopefully they didn't have weird smiles.

3rd Grade Math Super Stars

Every year the school sends home "Sunshine Math" (a.k.a. Math Super Stars) for every child.

Here are some examples from the first one for 3rd grade:

1. Ann was asked to find the number of marbles that were added to the other marble groups to get the total. Can you find the number?

3 marbles + ____ marbles + 2 marbles = 13 marbles


2. Joe has 3 quarters, 1 dime and 2 nickels in his piggy bank. How much money does he have to spend in the candy store?


3. Tom is helping his sick neighbor by taking her dog for a walk every day, bringing her the mail, and doing other odd jobs. Mrs. Burns pays him $7.50 a week for his help. How much will he earn in 4 weeks?

4. Find the pattern in these numbers and then continue the pattern by writing the next three numbers: 1 6 3 8 5 10 7 ____ ____ ____


5. Robin gave her friend a puzzle like the one below. Solve the number puzzle yourself:
Find * + 11 if you know that 8 + * = 12.

6. There was a line waiting for movie tickets. Sue realized that there were 6 people in front of her and 6 people behind her in the line. How many people were waiting in line for movie tickets?

7. A turtle crawls up a 12 foot hill after a heavy rainstorm. The turtle crawls 4 feet, but when it stops to rest, it slides back 1 1/2 feet. How many tries does the turtle make before it makes it up the hill?


8. Four classmates are to stand in order from tallest to shortest. Tom is taller than Sally. Sally is taller than Bob. Maria is taller than Bob but shorter than Sally. Using the clues, place the four friends in order from tallest to shortest.

Post your answers in the comments. No fair asking your 3rd grader for help.