What do you want to be when you grow up?

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I asked my son that today (age five for newbies).

He said, "I want to work on the cords under train tracks, especially at the train station."
He then said that he knows that trains have metal wheels, coal helps some of them go unless they are electric trains but there has to be cords with at least some train tracks. He was convinced. He explained why we can't see the cords and then further explained exactly how they go under the train tracks or certain parts (He just corrected me and said the cords are right by the train tracks not under). He then stated that he also wants to just fix up tracks that are broken because they do get broken sometimes BUT he really just wants to work on the cords and make sure the cords aren't broken anywhere as that would affect the electricity and the trains wouldn't run. He then went on for about five minutes on how the train tracks sometimes become broken and make the trains derail.

Sorry for the long run on sentences but that is my son! Gotta love him. His peers often don't understand what he is saying but that's alright. Adults usually do.

Before he said all of that, he had trouble coming up with answers on what he wanted to be. I gave him several suggestions that is usually typical of five year old boys. He then said, no - I want to fix cords .....

Wherever we go, he noticing the ceilings and how the cords and pipes are put together. He notices how in some places they are put together seemingly more efficiently than other places and makes suggestions on how places can improve their system/

I remember wanting to be different when I was five. I was asked that question and stated that I wanted to be the first baby doctor in outer space. I wanted to deliver the first baby in outerspace because it has never been done before LOL

Last edited by natesmom on 23 Apr 2009, 8:50 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Ah Bless

What does he mean CORDS? SOME vehicles have a spcial track. SOME have powerlines with brushes that connect from the vehicle. SOME, like coal operated, have NO external power source.

BTW NOBODY would pay just for THAT. The special track would be cared for by the guys taking care of those tracks, and the powerlines are probably taken care of by the people that take care of other powerlines.

So why does he think you can't see the cords? I think MOST here are internally powered.

That's a sweet and cute answer. I bet that interest will come in handy soon.

Sometimes it takes a child to state the most obvious of things. I'll bet that made your day.

he is 5

I think he's comparing them to a toy train set which does have current carrying cables under the tracks.

Aw, Zukenkerl, why do you have to bring in reality? Oh, yeah, AS logic

The child is 5 and within a few years he'll figure out that there aren't any cords. And he'll transfer that desire to something similar. At 5 it's more a hint that an action plan.

My son has wanted to be an inventor since about that age. At first his ideas were crazy; over time they've gotten more practical. But it definitely gives us a game plan for helping him with his education. When he complains about having to write, we'll explain that he is going to need to explain his inventions on paper to get funding. And so on. I thought it was funny when he decided taking woodshop was essential to his goal of being an inventor, but I held that in check and asked him questions. In that way, we forge his education together.

Perhaps he'll never realize that dream. But he's acquiring some great skills in the process, and ones that he enjoys having. The vision of a 5 year old leads, eventually, to all the tangents that ARE real careers.

Well HEY, he figured there COULD be power, and that it must be conveyed. I figured he would come up with a more reasonable way. Heck, look at cars! They have batteries, and most of the time even the batteries aren't used.

When I was 5, I came up with a couple ideas for a "perpetual motion" machine. I have since found that MOST somewhat intelligent engineer types do. Leonardo Da Vinchi did, and a friend of mine, not knowing that I did the same thing, told me about HIS plan(that he came up with when HE was young). We both had a nice laugh. Of course, MY plan and his had diminishing returns because of various factors. Da Vinchis had no hope of working, but he didn't have access to current technology anyway. BTW that SAME idea I had as a kid lives to this day. The prius uses the same type of ideas. I don't know if I even thought about starter motors at that time.(KIND of the same kind of concept) But HEY, I was 5, as you said.

So YEAH, I KNOW that 5 year olds aren't totslly logical, and know only so much, but oh well...

BTW Wood IS a good medium for a base for mechanical inventions, and inexpensive.

BTW if he REALLY wants to work with electricity, he should learn English(it IS a popular language),. and Schematics and Pictorials. And that ALSO means learning at least BASIC electronics. So I hope he realizes that there IS some studying to be done.

[quote="2ukenkerl"]What does he mean CORDS? SOME vehicles have a spcial track. SOME have powerlines with brushes that connect from the vehicle. SOME, like coal operated, have NO external power source.

BTW NOBODY would pay just for THAT. The special track would be cared for by the guys taking care of those tracks, and the powerlines are probably taken care of by the people that take care of other powerlines.

So why does he think you can't see the cords? I think MOST here are internally powered.[/quote


What!?

I think it's cute. My son may have said something similar...I think he wanted to be a conductor.

But I agree- give the kid a break. Not all 5 year olds are inventive geniuses, aspie or not. How many people end up doing what they said they wanted to at age 5? I said I wanted to be a veterinarian. I HATE school.

Thanks everyone.

Yeah, honestly I was a bit surprised that he mentioned cords. He knows how trains run and has never mentioned cords before. He truly does know that there are different types of trains and can completely tell you how each one is run. He has had ideas of making new trains and even how to power them. I honestly didn't get why he was saying what he said at first either knowing that he knows about trains. It was cute, anyways.

None of the train tracks he has have cords (that is an interesting thought as I had to really think). All of his trains are battery operated.

I think he is just completely obsessed with cords and electricity in general right now. He notices those things whenever we go out and thinks of different ways to make things more efficient. He really does have a difficult time expressing what he knows (extremely high nonverbal compared to verbal). He also stutters. He has pictures in his head and can make things but he often doesn't explain it the way he is envisioning it.

Zuk - Ummmm.... perhaps you were a bit more verbally intelligent than my son at age five. He is very smart but his verbal skills are really not as high as yours probably was at that age. He can make pretty amazing things though. He does have some wonderful ideas.

Nate has a more basic circuit set but perhaps we need to go higher. There is a week long kid inventor program this summer where kids learn more about electricity and circuits, and then help makes stuff. I think he would really enjoy it

There is indeed a cord underneath the track which powers trains:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_rail

Its not a cord in the conventional sense of a flexible metal string, but it does send electricity to the trains.

He also might be referring to overhead lines:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overhead_lines

These are more typical of the cords he is talking about, but they go over the train rather then under it.

In any case, at age 5 I can forgive him for not knowing about the various railway design standards.

Show him about this one

http://www.csmonitor.com/2001/1213/p15s1-stct.html

Then get him some magnets to play with! (it's supposed to be dangerous to eat magnets though, so careful, I think you said he was a chewer )

My now 9 at about 5 wanted to: "Work with number so that he could help people." I just kind of blinked and said "you want to be an accountant?" I was like okay, that would be decent money. haha.

My now 7 year old at 5 wanted to be a Fire Fighter or a Singing Missionary Bus Driver.

My soon to be 5 year old wants to be the color blue...

I think the 3 year old is going to be a dare devil He's a sensory seeker.

aw bless. When I was about 5 I wanted to be a "teletubbie dresser-upperer" and dress up as a teletubbie as a job (teletubbies was my obsession from 4/5-8 )

Even all the toy trains I have seen with that idea had special tracks. Even most powered toy cars on race tracks do. Hey Natesmom, THAT might be an idea for his next toy! They work the same way many large trains work. The vehicles have brushes that contact the special rails so they can get the power to run. You can even change the speed and maybe do other things, though the same connections.