Didi progress in school.

2.5 months passed since didi started formal schooling. For the record, he's doing just fine (from his own daily report when he comes home everyday). Later on, I found out it was not so fine as his "fine"s. His class teacher, whom I passed by one day and thought it harmless to say a "hi" to, told me he's a pain in the neck, while geleng-geleng her kepala as she described him.

And hence, I set forth to try and straighten things out for him. Make sure he does his homework, make sure he knows the rules and obey them, make sure he does not get kicked out from school. However, I know, at the back of my mind, I do hope that his seemingly "naughty" behaviour is not substituted by one who just go by the books on everything. I know, he needs guidance.

The first few days, I dropped by in his class when I sent him to school and talked to his friend who sits next to him. She's a little girl and she was all too eager to make friends with me indeed. I asked her to take care of him and be friends with him, giving her my number just in case she needs to report to me. She called me immediately that day after school! I talked to her mom and she told me she herself is a foreigner and doesn't know English much, let alone Mandarin. Ah well.

The next few days, when I packed his lunch box, I added in some cookies and asked him to share with his friend, little Miss K. When he came home that day, I had a chat with him on how it went. His story was pretty cute. He said he told her to follow him before recess bell rings and then she stood behind him while he ate his food! What a neat little "gentleman"! Apparently, he told me she has no lunch boxes and no money to buy food. I was wondering about it when later, I got to know that her parents do provide her with food catered from the canteen instead.

Apart from that, his daily routine is modified to a nap-less afternoon and early bedtime, that is 8pm. He was reluctant at first, talk about children so used to routines! Then again, with the easy adaptability nature of children, he got used to the new routine pretty soon, and sleeping for few hours straight, I hope he would be better behaved in school. Afternoons, I spend time with him on his homework and some home tutoring while meimei sleeps and korkor still in school. It's like a personal bonding time between us as well.

After the cny holidays, I decided that I shouldn't be stressing too much over his school "work". I read somewhere that kids could detect the stress parents feel and would feel stressed themselves. In the end, it's just probably appropriate at this time to let him venture on his own and learn how all things work by himself. After all, I learnt that it's not only him who gets to be punished or scolded by the teachers and who doesn't do homework everyday as well.

Anyway, I do let him know that I would punish him in the form of caning if I see any teacher's red big ? on his workbook or a red comment anywhere. With this, hope he learns it's his responsiblity to remember what homework he has and the consequences if he doesn't get it done. I'm so not calling any kids' parents and cross check what homework they have already. Life like this is so much better.

I guess as long as he's not violent and hurting anyone, he should be fine. Getting on the teachers' nerves should be fine too. hmm...

Meanwhile, his performance in the academics part is really not too bad. His strength lies in chinese and maths. The worst would be BM, which both of us dread going through everyday. I hope my patience with him would pay off. Nevertheless, my hub commented that we need not pay too much attention and put that much time and effort in a subject which is not so "critical" when they come out to work next time. I guess I can't disagree more. Other than teaching it to the boys now and splashing some BM words here and there in broken form, I don't see how I use it in my daily life as well. I think I ought to pay more attention to their English indeed, as they are really not very "fine" with it.

So hopefully, I would record his progress on a good note the next time round!