To Screech, Perchance to Scream
Abbie still isn’t talking, and that’s okay. I’ve learned to accept the fact that she’s going to take her time saying her first words, and may end up learning vocabulary from her brothers. Everything will be okay as long as she’s speaking by the time she enters kindergarten, because no child of mine is going to begin her school career with a failing grade in vocabulary.
Abbie can sign, but her main form of communication is whining. I survive the days by examining the context when she whines, and figuring out what she wants from there. If she throws a book at my feet and screeches, she probably wants read to. If she whines while passing our bedroom, she probably wants to watch the mobile on the fish swing. If she bellyaches in the kitchen, she probably wants Goldfish. If she moans while running around the house carrying a burp cloth, I go for the Goldfish again. If she screams while doing anything non-descript, let’s just say I probably rely on the Goldfish too heavily.
Whining while playing with a toy usually means she wants it to do something, but can’t figure out how to make it work. For example, she may want the mobile to spin, but doesn’t know how to make it work so she’ll stand next to it and scream until I turn it on; or maybe she wants to play with her shape sorter, but can’t figure out how to pull the triangle piece back out through the little square hole so she’ll sit and scream until I pull the triangle piece back out for her. Also I usually need to pull her hand out to make her stop screaming.
These are obvious situations, but yesterday she threw a mystery scream at me while playing with a toy that I still haven’t deciphered. It happened while playing with her IncrediBlock. The IncrediBlock is part of the Peek-a-Block line of toys, which are little plastic blocks filled with starfish, monkeys, bulldozers, or other interesting objects that children never notice but parents seem willing to pay $1 per block to buy. The IncrediBlock is an 18-inch cube that works with the Peek-a-Blocks to create an immersive learning experience, by which I mean it lights up and makes noise. Each side of the block has a different activity for kids to play with: The top has a spinning wheel and lights, one side has a door revealing a storage compartment, another side has drop-down storage, and the bottom has an on-off switch, which is Abbie’s favorite activity.
The IncrediBlock was one of the first toys Abbie discovered how to use by herself. Push a button, and it makes noise. Drop a block down the chute, and it makes noise. Push the switch in the chute, and it makes noise without having to bother with dropping a block down the chute. She’s been able to activate every feature on the block for close to a year now, but yesterday she started screaming while playing with it. I looked at the block, saw that the power was still on, it was still upright, and no triangle pieces were blocking the chute, so I ignored her and figured she just had some issues to work out with it. She kept screaming though. Then she grabbed my shirt and pulled me to the block. I double-checked and found all lights lighting, spinners spinning, and songs singing. I tried ignoring her again, but she kept screaming. Finally I figured out exactly what she wanted: Goldfish. While the screeching was on hiatus, I hid the IncrediBlock under a blanket and hoped she’d avoid playing with it until she could use words to tell me what she wants, or at least forget what was frustrating her.
Abbie can sign, but her main form of communication is whining. I survive the days by examining the context when she whines, and figuring out what she wants from there. If she throws a book at my feet and screeches, she probably wants read to. If she whines while passing our bedroom, she probably wants to watch the mobile on the fish swing. If she bellyaches in the kitchen, she probably wants Goldfish. If she moans while running around the house carrying a burp cloth, I go for the Goldfish again. If she screams while doing anything non-descript, let’s just say I probably rely on the Goldfish too heavily.
Whining while playing with a toy usually means she wants it to do something, but can’t figure out how to make it work. For example, she may want the mobile to spin, but doesn’t know how to make it work so she’ll stand next to it and scream until I turn it on; or maybe she wants to play with her shape sorter, but can’t figure out how to pull the triangle piece back out through the little square hole so she’ll sit and scream until I pull the triangle piece back out for her. Also I usually need to pull her hand out to make her stop screaming.
These are obvious situations, but yesterday she threw a mystery scream at me while playing with a toy that I still haven’t deciphered. It happened while playing with her IncrediBlock. The IncrediBlock is part of the Peek-a-Block line of toys, which are little plastic blocks filled with starfish, monkeys, bulldozers, or other interesting objects that children never notice but parents seem willing to pay $1 per block to buy. The IncrediBlock is an 18-inch cube that works with the Peek-a-Blocks to create an immersive learning experience, by which I mean it lights up and makes noise. Each side of the block has a different activity for kids to play with: The top has a spinning wheel and lights, one side has a door revealing a storage compartment, another side has drop-down storage, and the bottom has an on-off switch, which is Abbie’s favorite activity.
The IncrediBlock was one of the first toys Abbie discovered how to use by herself. Push a button, and it makes noise. Drop a block down the chute, and it makes noise. Push the switch in the chute, and it makes noise without having to bother with dropping a block down the chute. She’s been able to activate every feature on the block for close to a year now, but yesterday she started screaming while playing with it. I looked at the block, saw that the power was still on, it was still upright, and no triangle pieces were blocking the chute, so I ignored her and figured she just had some issues to work out with it. She kept screaming though. Then she grabbed my shirt and pulled me to the block. I double-checked and found all lights lighting, spinners spinning, and songs singing. I tried ignoring her again, but she kept screaming. Finally I figured out exactly what she wanted: Goldfish. While the screeching was on hiatus, I hid the IncrediBlock under a blanket and hoped she’d avoid playing with it until she could use words to tell me what she wants, or at least forget what was frustrating her.
posted by Matt at
10:56 PM
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