TPS: Who's smarter?

Parker: Mom is 999,999,999,999 a number?

Me: Yes, Why?

Parker: Because at the party today we were making up really big numbers for how old Jack is turning and I said, "He's turning 999 billion, 999 million, 999 thousand, nine hundred and ninty nine. And then Owen and Miles said that isn't a number. I told them it was and they said it wasn't. Then Jack told them that I do 3rd grade math. So then Miles said he was better at math than me and did multiplication and Owen said he was smarter than me at math and did division. So I said I did exponents and then no one said anything."

Me: Parker, are any of those kids in your special math group with the 2nd graders?

Parker: No.

Me: Then, do you think they know more math than you?

Parker: No.

Me: You aren't going to meet a lot of kids your age that are better at math than you, but that doesn't mean it's ok to talk about who is smarter or who is not. You can just BE smarter without talking about it and if another kid tells you he is smarter, you can just KNOW that he is wrong without telling him and making him feel bad."

Parker: But they made me feel bad when THEY said they were smarter.

Me: But you are actually smarter, so who cares what they think?

Parker: But they started it.

Me: So you should have ended it.

QED