The Most Mathematically Gifted Student I Ever Worked With Still Needed To Be Pushed to Learn Calculus

Even when you’re doing what you love, there will be grindy phases. But kids typically don’t understand this. It’s often up to parents, who can see the long game, to push their kids through the difficult parts in paths that they find rewarding.

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The most mathematically gifted student I ever worked with, who was drawn into math by his own intrinsic interest, still needed to be pushed to learn calculus.

Now he’s having the time of his life working on physics-y, calculus-heavy research-level math problems in high school.

Even after finding something he loves and is good at, he still needed to be pushed to do the hard work to unlock more of it.

It’s a pretty general phenomenon. Even when you’re doing what you love, there will be grindy phases. But kids typically don’t understand this.

They might get interested in a talent domain and want to become good enough to build a life around it, while simultaneously resisting doing the hard work to make that happen (i.e., stage 2 in Bloom’s talent development process).

It’s often up to parents, who can see the long game, to push their kids through the difficult parts in paths that they find rewarding.

You have to help them find what they like and are good at (or have serious potential to be good at) and lean into that.

Because everyone needs something that gives them a sense of accomplishment, pride, identity, etc.

Discussed ~54:16 in Math Academy Podcast #5, Part 2: Getting Kids To Do Hard Things.

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