Whippersnapper

Jokingly, during school today, I called Skater a young whippersnapper. We both laughed about it and then he got serious and asked me "what, exactly, is a whippersnapper?"

So, I, like a good homeschool mom, wrote it down on my "to-look-up" list. Well...here is what it means and it's origin:

from this site:

Someone who is young and tenacious and new to a task, and sometimes perhaps shows a little bit of cheek or enthusiasm is referred to as a young whippersnapper.

So what is the origin of this phrase?

Well it has to do with cowboys, no less, and the task of looking after the cows.

One of the easiest skills to master was that of cracking the whip. So since this was usually done by a beginner who did not yet have the other skills which were harder to master at their command, then it became known as a whippersnapper, and the phrase has stuck and moved into common parlance.

So, I guess this whole homeschool thing isn't just for the kids to learn...I learned something today too. And, truth be told, just about every day so far!