Do you girls think it's a gender thing... a bit... my DD also needs my constant imput/involvement... and or that of others... when I tell her to go outside and find something to do (usually when she is being silly and noisey inside) she instantly seeks out the company of others. This can be a wonderful thing... we know all our neighbours because of her! But I wonder whether she would benefit from a little more quiet moments of introspection? I enjoy my own company quite frequently, when i can get it, and I find it's when i get the best ideas and resolve a lot of issues. I'm just worried that she doesn't see the benefit in this and will grow up constantly needing the affirmations of others. She's also a very needy student and I worry she "hogs" the teachers attention ... how do you teach a child to enjoy their own company? Sorry to hijack your thread Cailin... but the issue is always at the forefront of my thinking... lucky my other 2 children aren't as needy in terms of my attention... but once again... is that a boy thing???

ETA: actually the more I think about it it's probably silly to think it's a gender thing... it's just when I was a teacher's aide it was the girls who needed the attention of the teachers more... now I'm not saying this is a bad thing... it's just that a lot of the time i felt like saying "well, if you stop talking and think about what you're doing you might get a lot more out of (the activity)"... it's definately not being neglectful letting your DD learn to function autonomously