Busy As A Bee

Kyle's weekly schedule is even more packed than mine!

KI Class, Mon to Fri 1pm-4.30pm

Iqra Class, Mon to Wed 8pm

Kids Alive Class at Al-Iman Mosque, Sat 11.45am - 3pm

Swimming Class Sat 4pm-5pm

Phew! And this is not counting his daily homework and tuition by me. Lucky Sunday is a free day!

One good thing about my boy is that he hardly complains or protests when it comes to going for classes. He enjoys attending lessons and hardly ever cries.

That's him in his K1 uniform.

And this is his KidsAlive uniform.
So far he is doing well in classes. In his iqra class, he is very diligent and his ustazah always praises him for reading the arabic letters well.

In his swimming class, he is no longer afraid of the deep waters and can swim to the middle of the pool alone using the swimming board :) His coach also says he learns fast and he always practises hard at each lesson.

I hope learning is a fun experience for him and that he will not get bored or worse, daunted by it. I will try to make homework and tuition as interesting as it gets just for my kids.

Kyle's Relationship with Ayah

As my son grows older, I find that his attachment to me lessens. He strives to be more independant and is drawn to his father very much. He like to emulate what my husband does and loves doing stuff with his father.

They do a lot of boy-stuff together, such as playing computer games, play soccer, kite-flying etc. They even like the same kind of songs. As such, their relationship grows and they have a deeper bond than when he was younger.

I must admit I was a little jealous, especially when we go to pick him up from school. He would smile widely when he sees me, but the next second, his eyes would dart all about looking for my hubby. And when he spots him, he would shout "Ayah!" and run to hug my hubby.

Whenever my hubby comes back late from work or a soccer game, Kyle would get anxious and keep saying,"Mama, where is Ayah? I miss Ayah, I want Ayah." Sigh, gone are the days where I am his everything, and where the presence of my hubby do not really mean much to him.

But on the other hand of course I am happy that they have grown closer. Father and son relationship is extremely important to a boy's well-being.

Hubby is very patient with him, whereas I am the more emotional and erratic one, blowing my top whenever Kyle does something wrong. There was one time, when I was scolding Kyle again, and he actually said,"You always beat everyday. Ayah never beat." That really opened up my mind, and from that day onwards, I hardly beat him unless really necessary. Decided that at his age, talking and negotiating works better.

But of course when it comes to sleeptime, eating time, and manja-sayang time, it is still me he wants. He still hugs and kisses me, and says that I am his best friend. And even though he and Kyra fight each night to see who sleeps with me, I smile happily amidst the noise, loving the attention :)

Kyra PTC Playgroup 2009

"Kyra is very intelligent but she is so emotional!"

That's what Kyra's form teacher told me and hubby during Kyra Parent-Teacher Conference for 2009 playgroup kids.

it seems that she is so drama-mama in class. She cries for every single thing. Even a poke by one of her classmates will lead to her wailing. Only after the teacher sayang her, then she will calm down.

Learning-wise, not a problem.She enjoys taking part in any activity and is always the closest one standing with the teacher. Very high confidence level. Love outdoor walks, dancing and singing.

Even the teachers noticed how vain she is. She will insist on choosing her own shoes when attending school. And unfortunately, she would choose her party shoes, glitter and all. And how is she going to take part in any running activity with those shoes, the teacher ask me.

Yes my 3 year old has a mind of her own when it comes to clothes. Only the right outfit, shoes and bag before going out. Pink preferably. If not, the wailing will start. I told the teacher about her being vain, and she seem to understand, and we both managed to convince that little princess only sandels/canvas shoes for school.

Well, now its 2010 and she is in nursery class. Time to really hit the alphabet books, honey!

Kyle at Swimming Class

Here are a couple of pictures of Kyle during his swimming lessons.

He enjoys it very much, and is no longer afraid of deep waters. He listens to instructions by the coach and seems so willing and eager to learn.

He and his classmates belong to the orange cap clan..hehe

He is now still learning the correct breathing techniques as well as how to keep afloat.

Kyle Adjusting Poorly in New K1 Class

A brand new start to a brand new year.

This applies especially for Kyle who is attending a brand new school. It is a big change for him. Totally new environment, new friends, new teachers and new syllabus. And he is having withdrawal symptoms from his old school already. He says he misses his best friends, Claire Lum and Jared Quek. He says he misses his nursery class and he does not like his new school and friends :( It is heartbreaking to hear him say that.

And he shows his disappointment and anxiety in class it seems. He does not focus. The teachers say that he is easily distracted, plays with his watch or hands, hyperactive, and even aggressive towards his new classmates. This is not the Kyle I know, who enjoys school and lessons when he was at childcare. New lessons, such as Malay language are tough for him, being brought up in an English-speaking home. The malay teacher feedback that he was unresponsive towards questions and answered back in English. Even when he spoke Malay, she said he sounded "slang" and sounded awkward.

I suddenly feel regret for changing his school, but I did not really have a choice as his childcare does not offer Malay as a mother tongue. I cannot risk putting Chinese as his Mother tongue as we do not know how to talk or teach him the language.

I think that the reason why he is not paying attention is also because of the size of the class. In childcare, the class size is only about 12, whereas now his class is made up of 22 pupils. Thus, less focus on each child, which leaves him unattended and thus he can be up to lots of mischief.

I told the teacher about the possible problem of readjustment and if possible, to keep him occupied and of course to punish him, whenever he is aggressive to other children. I myself have disciplined Kyle at home and have taken away his favourite racing car game for the moment till I hear no more complaints from his teacher.

The difference in his behaviour is just so great. Teacher Mahesh from his childcare love him so much, always full of praises for him and even said that she will miss him greatly. And yet this new school is full of complaints about him. I am so affected.

Hubby says it is still new, and ask me to be patient. I will wait and see I guess. If after a few months and still no change, I think I may have no choice but to go back to his childcare again.