A couple of months back, it suddenly dawned on me that my oldest daughter, let's call her Tai Pi, could do with some help with her schoolwork. Before that, I had been very relaxed. I mean how difficult can primary 1 work be? Then I found out that her math scores were much worse than her friends' and I also found out that her friends did math exercises everyday either with their mothers or their tutors. It caused me quite a panic. Since then I have bought maybe 5 math assessment books and also English and Chinese assessment books - quite therapeutic actually, buying assessment books; it makes me feel I'm doing something to help Tai Pi make the grade. Now I make her do math exercises almost everyday and weekends are quite traumatic - I turn into a crazed, table-banging, screaming banshee when Tai Pi makes careless mistakes or forgets what I just taught her the weekend before. I know I really shouldn't lose my head but it is just so frustrating, and I would much rather be doing something else, like make a pinata, which was what we did today (after she finished her math exercises of course) - we made a pinata out of a paper bag and decorated it with colourful strips cut out of plastic bags and then filled the bag with near-expired sweets and chocolate, then we invited our friends over and the kids had a great time whacking the pinata while I got to get rid of the damn sweets and chocolate that were sitting forever in the fridge. See picture of the kids scrambling for the goodies.
So anyway, I'm starting this blog to chronicle the treacherous road to PSLE that Tai Pi and I are treading. Will Tai Pi do well in her first exam? Will she end up in the worst class in primary 2? Will I end up in a mental institution? Tune in to find out.
1 comment:
You are such a typical kia-su parent, the ones who, I'm afraid, are more likely to end up with equally frustrated, ego-depreciated kids. Motivation is the best teacher. If you need some tips, ask me. I was one of the most inspiring teacher during my years of teaching. And believe it or not, the more brilliant kids are the ones who do not waste time with assessment books. I know because I asked their mothers what their secret is!
Love from Tai Pi's aunty
Post a Comment