School

It's my DH's birthday today. We celebrated it this evening with friends and kids. 

When I went to pick up my kids at school yesterday, the teacher told me how much my little man loves to study. This is a turn around from last year. 

He told me that he did ok on his math's test. Math's test? I'm understanding why Chinese students are so strong in math. At about three or four kids start learning math. And by age 5 they are expected to have a hold on basic math, addition and simple multiplication and division.

Students do activities, work books, homework and spend hours each day on improving their math skills. It's an interesting process to watch. My Little Man told us, as he was getting ready for bed, that he had to do his homework. My DH told him he could do it the next day in class.

He looked at us and said, "I have to keep up. I can't fall behind." I am happy that he's motivated. We don't push him with his school work. But we do try to push him in reading and writing in English. 

I try to do some homeschooling before he leaves for school. But some days, I feel like I'm behind. There are always worksheets, writing, reading and so much that we could do. There are always things that we could do... 

Families in China are motivated to get ahead because of the intense competition. Parents hope to give their kids a way out of the system.  They hope that good grades will pave the way for that to happen. 

There is the shame side of things too. Kids who score the lowest on tests and/or who overall don't do well in school are placed in the back of a classroom. When there are 70 kids in a class, the back row is not an ideal place to be. Then grades are posted publically. Students are rarely encouraged. Teachers instead are critical and point out students' faults. This pushes them to do better and learn. And they excel. 

It's getting late. 

These two art pieces are displayed at my kids school. One says "the child who concentrates is extremely happy." It's an interesting phrase to think about.

The other day we thought it was pretty warm. It was 26C or 78 F. Other kids were in hats, jackets and long underwear. Today was much the same. One woman went on about how going out in these temps (it was 25 C/77 F) can result in back problems, arthritis, and lead to severe difficulties later. I probably should have just politely disagreed but I got into it a bit. I told her about my grandma, what our doctors in the west say, and cultural differences. I asked her what she will do when it really gets cold. 

This is a brand new hospital that's about to open. It's huge!

We visited a very special family for a couple of days last week. The kids had a week off school. It worked out with our commitments for me to be able to take them. We rode trains (for very long distances! It was an experience!) The boys all had fun and it was nice seeing them playing with their friends. I loved getting to spend time with their sweet family. Their kids are great!

This post was started a while ago... Finishing up and saying good night. 

Thanks for stopping by and reading:)