My rambling thoughts on education......again.

As an ex Maths teacher i hv nvr expected my kids to be excellent in Maths, they dont hv too, coz they are not me. my elder daughter since std 1 she didnt know how to do increment and decrement 逆序顺序，my std answer was: dont worry, this year u dont how to do, next yr u will know. now at std 6 she can comprehend questions like 13,19,x,31,37. i am repeating this to my 2nd daughter who is now in std 3 coz i know questions like this may not be quite suitable for 9 yr old. although i know there is education system to put blame on, but in front of them, i wont blame the system, i will only tell them this is just a challenge, there are many things in life that we may not be ready to take up but we can always get ready and observe.. my elder daughter since std 1 she didnt know how to do increment and decrement 逆序顺序，my std answer was: dont worry, this year u dont how to do, next yr u will know. now at std 6 she can comprehend questions like 13,19,x,31,37. i am repeating this to my 2nd daughter who is now in std 3 coz i know questions like this may not be quite suitable for 9 yr old. although i know there is education system to put blame on, but in front of them, i wont blame the system, i will only tell them this is just a challenge, there are many things in life that we may not be ready to take up but we can always get ready and observe. 把一个教育制度的盲点变成我们作为老师父母的生命和生活教育，这是我们可以给孩子最好的礼物。

我们很多时候喜欢断章取义，我们是可以向犹太人芬兰人美国人等等吸取宝贵的经验，但是there is also a reason why we are born chinese and bred in a multi racial/culture community，有原因的，凡事都有因有缘呵。we may be adapting sth but we have stayed dogmatic and we always thought 'this is good n that is bad'. 每个族群有自己的进行方式，诚如每个家庭都有自己的家风，我们不能说什么是好什么不好，只有最适合的。考试制度也一样，有些人因为没有考试而怠惰，所以重点不在考试本身，而是方式。但是方式也因人而异。有些人因为老师的谩骂而进步回来感激万分，所以重点又不一定是方式，而是这个人的福报到哪里。有些人因为老师一句话的而跳楼了，可是我们要看到的是，这句话只是一个triggering point， 不是主因，如果要追究为什么我们不说如果早知道我就好好装备一个孩子的耐力，如果早知道我们就让孩子在小时候累积多多的福报，让他以后的生命旅程中，有更多的善知识来引导他。每个时代都有每个时代的挑战,我常常记起一个西藏上师在讲解心经时这么说:dont get fantasy by the idea of 'the good old days', there has never been. 

Unschooling spirit

1. JV said she was pretending herself like a train....humming 'choo choo' while she was walking down the stair case of Jing Si Tang. But she stopped humming it and stopped moving her hands like the locomotive trains when there were people coming up from the downstairs. 2. Curry was hot. JV took a piece of ice and tried to ease that spicy feeling. As the ice cube didnt melt soon, she placed her fish meat on top of the ice cube and pretended that she was 'driving' a ice-cube boat....letting the ice-cube boat to move around her bowl. 3. JV refused to let her bolster covered with the new cover i made her for her birthday. Reason: she wanted to learn those words like 'hippopotamus','butterfly', etc which were printed on the inner cover. 'I have learned the word "hippopotamus". But i have not yet spelled "butterfly",'She said. Now that left me dumb founded......how could i resist her learning? That's how she learnt....always learnt from anything and everything around her. No wonder she didnt use much time to adapt to learning of Ejaan when she entered Std 1....though she only started to learn them when she entered primary school. Unschooling spirit seemed to have rooted in her. That's how imaginative she can be.....

Learning all the time

A typical day of breakfast with bread... But not so typical coz we get questions most of the time. JV was asking, "What is C-L-A-S-S-I-C?“ Obviously she was reading from the Gardenia bread packaging... We were surprise though....coz the word was all in TIMES NEW ROMAN and Italic.
-- That's read as CLASSIC. :)

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Having dinner with Nai Nai at Behind 50.
There she started to read from the art piece on the wall again.
"Mummy, is that read as RONI?"
"Oh yes,you are absolutely right! How do you know that?"
"I just spelt it lor."

Talking about Reading.....& Spelling. Did anyone mention that it has to happen in classroom?

---------------------------------------------
”Mummy, i want that paper that comes with the blessing before meal words."
--- searching, searching, searching...
"There you go."
--- writing, writing, writing....
JV was busy making her own notes...transferring and copying these words to her favorite book that Jie Jie has given to her as her birthday present:
"Earth who gave to us this food,
Sun who make it ripe and good.
Dear sun, dear earth, by you we live.
To you our loving thanks we give."

Happily she showed to everyone on her great work.
She said "I have not been writing for some time. I miss writing."
But i would like to say, "Well, you really dont have to write when your little muscle is not ready you know." :)

Talking about writing....who says it has to be in the mundane A for Apple, B for Boy, or even “My father drives car to work."

Writing....involves feelings and emotions....

On homeschooling - art work of an aquarium

Supposed to be knitting/weaving day. But Jo Von... says she dont want to do that today. Thinking...thinking...thinking...aha. She remembers an aquarium....She asks for a box. Paints the box. But she only have 2 sea shells... coz we says better to leave shells at the sea. She says its ok, she asks for the pebbles in my garden. Draw and cut fishes. Pasting...pasting...pasting.... There we have a 3D aquarium. :)

Orange (2)

柔帆又要吃姨姨给的柑了。水果永远是她的最爱。
小手拿着刀时，鬼主意又来了。
今天他想要渣柑汁。把柑切了一半，就挤呀挤呀挤在自己的小杯子里。
挤了一粒柑就有半杯了。
不够，又再切了一粒。
又再挤呀挤呀。呵，有了一杯的柑汁了。我在一旁一边切菜一边静静的‘观赏’她。
有了一杯柑汁，柔帆就开心的在空中拍拍手欢呼。
那个充满满意的样子，就像得了很高的荣誉。
她说叫我先喝一半，把一半留给她就可以了。
我尝了一口。太好喝了。
难怪后来，只见她拿了一根吸水管，坐在椅子上慢慢的一口一口在品尝。

Orange (1)

姨姨从泰国带回来的柑，实在是太好吃了。柔帆一面自己切着柑就一面唱歌。她把柑切成一半，但还没完全断成两半时，就拿起来，翻一翻，唱着：“蝴蝶蝴蝶生得真美丽。。。”。 然后又把一半再要切成一半（就是四分一），但还没完全断成两半时,再翻一翻，唱着：“蝴蝶蝴蝶生得真美丽。。。”。
^.^
看着看着，自己就在旁边，一面切菜一面笑了。。。。但不可以大声笑，不然她就会以为我在笑她。
把一粒切成了四片，她说要给我两片。因为之前她已经切了另一粒给爸爸，那第一粒的四片，给了爸爸两片，所以现在也要给妈妈两片。还说她自己总共吃了4片。
呵。在家自学呵。要归类学习的话，应该就是这样子吧：
两粒柑，从切的技巧--是生活技能
把柑变成蝴蝶 -- 是创造能力的发挥吧
把歌儿唱出来 --- 是歌唱节吧
一粒柑变4片 -- 是除的数学
把4片柑分给爸爸 -- 是除的数学，也是学会分享
谁规定一定要把生活技能，数学，歌唱，道德教育分开来教呢？
而这整个过程，爸爸妈妈并没有真正的“教”呵。。。只是用心的参与而已。
在家自学呵。。。。就不过如此，自然。
^.^

Before i forget.....

I must blog about this thought that I having these few days before it faded away.
JV's teacher used to tell me that JV's classmates were fond of her and liked to mix with her for session like sleeping together, queueing up, etc. But the funny thing is JV has never really grow fond of most of them, especially those cheeky ones.... She felt more comfortable and enjoyed the company of elder kids like JE's friends, Fiona, Jia Yu, etc.
If there are same age friends that she is fond of, they will be Jia Xuan and Erica....reasons being that they are rather 'well-behaved' and dont poke each other...which i know she is rather 'pantang' with it... Just like me, i really hate those who tickled me. Not that i like serious stuff, i do make fun of people, but i enjoyed those who are more mature in thinking.

In the process of homeschooling, I came to realize that long long time away, when i was in the primary and secondary, I didnt have many friends who were 'clicked' enough.
During primary days, LY, LL and some were at-one-time close friends, but then deep inside me i knew they were not for me. It became more obvious that when video tape and HK series came into place. Household income was not enough to cover for this part of entertainment and black-white TV was already a luxury thing in the dining hall. I still remembered i was among the last one in the class who has house phone. Friends were exchanging numbers but i dont even know how to dial it. haha! But we have never asked for that coz mom and dad have never let us believe that 'lacking' of material things means lacking in confidence.
我想那个时候开始我已经懂得什么是“我是与别人不一样的”， 而且还是很高尚的那种。不是高傲的那种，而是因为我的圈子的朋友，都是崇拜娱乐圈的，而我就是连看了也没有一点喜欢的感觉。但后来才明白原来，我的圈子的朋友都不是最谈得来的，而谈得来的都是比我大两岁以上的姐姐们。
As i was reading The Element(by Sir Ken Robinson), he mentioned that friends can be of all ages, I began to realize that aren't this is what interaction and learning suppose to be? JV has many friends, from Aunty Lai Choo, Yasir, Fiona， Amanda, Micheal Jackson， the poslaju delivery man and many more. They are not confined to only a particular age group which i think is the most wonderful part. Coz this is what the true side of the world. Being interactive and learned require different experience！
In those days, I learned a lot from those friends who has more experience and they are those who are more mature in age and thinking. They are not the ones who fancied about their outlooks, though they took good care of themselves. But inertly they are well balanced, and more importantly truly happy people. I cant stop denying the fact that those who really care for their appearance where dressing up to is to please others and to gain confidence, and inertly they lack of the self-grown confident, and let alone about being happy in lives. Sorry if this poke someone... but no i am not sorry for saying this, coz this is the true fact! :)

Observing and contemplating living creatures - Crawling down with compassion

We saw a big snail crawling down the wall.
Jo Ee, "will it fall?"
Jo Von, "i wont la, it has legs to suck on the wall."
Jo Ee, "What happen if we touch it?"
Jo Von, "I want to touch it, but i wont touch it, coz if i touch it, it will fall. And the shell will crack."
--- I guess when a kid have more time to be spent with the nature, naturally compassion will grow and they dont have to be taught on being kind to other beings. Compassion, loving kindness are grown inertly through nature and nurture.
Still, having more time, more leisure time to contemplate moments like these is the KEY.

Observing and contemplating living creatures - Looking beyond the compound eye

Not remembering which day was it, we moved out Jo Von table to the balcony so that she could draw at her own pace and space under the big blue sky.
I was cooking and heard her calling out loud: Mummy, mummy, come quickly and see! There is a big fly!
It took me sometime to finish cutting the veges before going out to see what was really going on.
Well, well, it was certainly a jumbo fly came visiting! A size of Jo Von thumb!
On one note: i was saying "We seldom see that kind of living creature flying around."
On another note: i heard my heart murmuring, "Would we be able to observe this little living creature looking at us with its compound eyes IF she is still in the kindy NOW?"
Well, maybe yes, but surely we know if there is any such chance, she may be able to see the fly came flying in but before it flew out, we will be calling her to get going "FASTER", "faster" and "faster". --- get going to school faster, get going to bath faster, etc....otherwise we will be late.
"LATE"? Did i mention about LATE?
"BEING LATE" --- a connotation that build the society to "KIASUism".

Improvising and making transformation at 5

I remembered i did my first scale transformation when i was doing Grade 5 theory at the age of approximately 14 yrs old. And little did i realize that i could actually improvise and make transformation on songs so that they are a few keys lower or higher. I read notes well and i could sight read, but that lacking of musical appreciation doesn't qualify myself as a music learner.
But being a homeschooler herself, Jo Von, has all the time that she could have with the piano.
She can't read any notes yet coz we have not exposed her to proper piano lesson. We did try once to send her to Miss Ho class when she was about 4 year old but she wasnt that ready and she asked to stop. We agreed and told her she could learn later when she is ready to attend the piano lesson again.
But this morning, amazingly she told us there were many ways of playing Mary Had A Little Lamb. She was actually playing the song with C major, then D major(with the F# key!!) and G major!
It surprised me on how well she had learned herself!
Homeschool works, doesnt it?

Sending a mail to my mama friends

Dear Choo Wei/Mei Yin/Siaw Ling/Juan2/Hwa Siew/Yen/Choon Er/Ying/Seow Ling,
As i stumbled upon this blog of my friend cum customer, i thought of u all. :)
Adelyn;s blog: http://lovengratitude.blogspot.com/

As an ex-working mother, i must say i 'regretted' not having 'enough' time for my elder one.
Now thinking back the time spent with her when she was 3-6 yrs old, i must say it was quite blank.... except for some 'rushing', 'rushing' and 'rushing' and endless 'rushing' time for everything and anything.

It touched my heart to see my friend's words on:
"I am deeply grateful to be given this time to slow down, smell the roses and peer at the earthworms in the grass."

This morning as i was 'cangkul'ing the soil to move my corn to bigger patch, we saw a big slimy earthworm moving around. My 5 yr old told me, if we cut it into 2 will it become 2 cacing? I said i dont know. And then i moved the tomato tree to bigger patch...hoping i can turn my little garden into Cameron.... Just praying that red tomato, no matter how small it will be, will start blooming, coz it was my 5 yr old who planted the tomato in the pot earlier. I was ever so glad to have that no-rushing moment of peace. But looking back at my elder 8 yr old, she was just looking down at us as she is still preparing for her school exam tomorrow.
No high expectation on her, but if there was more time spent when she was younger, how i wished i could give her more moment like this.

We got some tadpoles back from Bodhi Heart today, going to plant some lotus to keep them tomorrow. :)

Nothing much here, just thought, as mothers, perhaps you may be curios over other people lives as much i do. :)

Have a blessed day!

--- Living in the present moment is the happiest moment. :)


with joy & metta, Sin Dee

大自然的疗愈：茅草

和YJ还有两个小瓜回到离我家不到50步的小学母校的草场踢球。
除了爬树，还光着脚赛跑。
叫小柔滚一辊，她就在草地上滚了。还滚了好几圈。想起extra lesson里强调的孩子在硬的地上滚动是很好的运动。
后来玩了一个滚球比赛。
8岁的姐姐还喜欢有竞争的游戏，可5岁的小柔就还没到那阶段玩这游戏。
因为滚得不必姐姐远，所以就嘟起嘴来。
也是劝都劝不来。
她赌气坐在草地上，我陪她坐着。
随手拔起来一根茅草，告诉她小茅草喜欢跟人，喜欢黏在衣服裤子上跟我们回家，也把茅草刻意的黏在她衣服上。随着也把刚才那股气撵走。
前后不到5分钟的僵持，就这么容易降服在大自然的茅草下。^.^

大自然的疗愈：绿豆

小柔柔不懂生谁的气，本来好好的，突然就哭丧着脸在发闷气。
其实换成别天，我肯定又喝她为什么发脾气了。
但今天是我们选择homeschool后的第三天。
对我而言，是让我重新学习与她有更多相处时间的机会，尤其是在早上，因为小妤上课了，就只有爸爸和我和小柔。
爸爸在忙着电脑，我在忙着准备午餐，我们似乎都有充分的不耐烦的理由。但这是一个学习的机会，不是我“骂”或“宠”的时刻。
最后我决定俯下身抱抱小柔，在她耳边轻轻告诉她，“妈咪知道你会不习惯多点在家没去幼儿园的日子，妈咪也还在学习和你多点时间一起的日子。。。来，你要不要帮我采外面熟了的绿豆？”
她点点头，脸也没那么皱了。
我走回厨房。她朝向天台，再进来时脸上只有满满的笑容，“妈咪，你看，我采了那么多绿豆！”
绿豆，都发闷气，好像很管用哦！^.^