-by Ketika Kasetwar, May 2023

• What is the AI algorithm that determines the values of various elements in video games?
• Do homosexual relationships exist in wild animals?
• When a nuclear bomb is tested, how far do the radiations go in the vertical direction towards space?

These are a few questions that I have answered within 10 seconds of my daughter waking up. And this is soon after shouting, ‘mommyyyy’ immediately after waking up. Just the questions changed, but she manages to bowl me over every day with her ‘wake-up’ questions irrespective of age (she is 9 now!!). Was I prepared to answer these questions? NO, a BIG NO. When she was a toddler, the questions were easy and cute, like ‘How do fish breathe in water?’ and ‘What lies beyond the sky?’ But with age, I went bonkers trying to answer questions like ‘Who decides the gender of a baby before it is born?’ and ‘Why can’t a bird and an animal mate?’

And then I learned that the best way is to answer using factual information and proper terms, without considering her age. Sometimes I had to explain these in front of other people, and more than once (read every time!!) I got shocked expressions from people, some saying that I must not use such ‘adult’ terms with her at a young age. ‘Kids must get exposed to things and learn according to their age’ is a sentence that I have heard repeatedly. I used to reply by asking ‘Who determines age and what is right/wrong for a particular age?’ but soon realized that I would be wasting my energy in useless conversation. I would rather spend that time answering my daughter’s questions or updating myself with information about her areas of interest.

It is known that the brain is most active when we sleep, as it has to process and store the information received during waking hours. And with gifted children, it feels as if their brain has a storage area where all unanswered questions get listed, to be asked as soon as they wake up. Just so that their brain can understand a missing link or seek answers to complete an incomplete puzzle, so that it can assimilate and store the information properly. This also comes from their need to start each day with a new challenge, idea, or thought.

For me, the mornings are busy, but I have also learned that these first 10 minutes after she wakes up are crucial, important, and super fun. And over the years, I have also learned to keep a few questions ready that challenge her and make her explore a particular topic more.

And now it has become a game – Who comes up with the most interesting morning question!!!