By Claire Martin
Denver Post Staff Writer

Feb. 28- Most parents want the best for their children, but earnest intensity can interfere. Take this quiz. Give yourself a score of one, two or three on each question.

 1. Your son's baseball coach has decided to put the boy in the position of catcher. Though he really wanted to pitch, your son says he doesn't mind - but you do: You've worked with him enough to know he's got a good arm - and as a former varsity starting pitcher yourself, you know what you are talking about. You:

 a) Congratulate your son on being the catcher - it's an important position, after all, and not everyone has the skill to do it well. (1)

 b) Tell him that's fine for this season but promise to help him sharpen his pitching for next season. (2)

 c) Call the coach and tell him what a big mistake he is making. (3)

2. Your about-to-turn-4 daughter wants more than anything to wear a store-bought Power Puff Girl costume for Halloween. You're appalled. Not only do you hate those sorts of TV shows, but you were really looking forward to making that cool pink and silver unicorn costume you saw in a magazine. Halloween finds her:

 a) Happy as a clam in her blue Bubbles getup - hey, it didn't cost much and look at all that time you saved! (1)

 b) Wearing your homemade version of the Bubbles outfit - which, besides the arms, came out pretty well. (2)

 c) Grimly dressed in a beautifully made pink velvet unicorn suit. But she smiles gamely for the photo. (3)

3. You are just about to leave for the office when you notice your seventh-grader left his math book on the kitchen counter - again. You could drop it off at school for him, but it will make you late for the first meeting of the day. What do you do?

 a) Walk out and leave the book on the counter, even though you know he'll be docked 10 points from this week's quiz grade. (1)

 b) Drop off the book, and deduct $2.50 from his weekly allowance for the cost of your time - he's got to have some penalty! (2)

 c) Call your office to tell them you will be late, and deliver the book right to his homeroom so he doesn't have to worry about it. (3)

4. Tomorrow is the spelling bee, a major event in your school, and it happens that your fifth-grader is a top contender for first prize. But instead of studying, he's messing around with his brothers outside. You:

 a) Look fondly at him out the window, and wish you could be so relaxed the night before a big presentation at work. (1)

 b) Decide to play spelling games with the family at the dinner table, so he gets in some practice time anyway. (2)

 c) Call him to come in and study - you're sure that's what the other kids who take this seriously are doing right now. (3)

5. It's your 15th anniversary, and your husband made reservations for the weekend at a beach town upstate. Sounds like a lot of fun - but the calendar is already filled for the weekend, with birthday parties, soccer practices and ballet classes for your three children. You decide:

 a) They can take a pass - and they'll have lots of fun playing with their cousins who live next door to Grandma, who has offered to take them for the weekend. (1)

 b) Swallow hard and offer the nanny next door $250 for the overnight, since she'll have to work so hard at getting everyone where they need to be. (2)

 c) Tell your husband you just can't do it. Maybe next year. (3)

 Score:

1-5: Congratulations on your sense of balance!

 6-11: Warning, you are teetering on the edge.

 12-15: You likely are a hyperparent.

 Source: "Hyper-Parenting: Are You Hurting Your Child by Trying Too Hard?" by Alvin Rosenfeld and Nicole Wise (St. Martin's Press, $22.95) 

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