The children had their annual concert on 3 Nov 10. Joann has graduated from K2 while Jayden will be progressing to K1 next year. Seeing how the children love their school and have grown in knowledge and skills, Aileen and I are truly grateful to God for a great team of loving and dedicated teachers that impact the lives of the little ones in LSK. We are proud that the children are part of the LSK family.
The concert was a great success as all children from Pre-Nursery to K2, put in a great performance that night! All parents were beaming with pride when they fetched their children after the concert that night :-)
Last Saturday, Jayden had his performance in class which signified his completion of Yamaha JMC Book 2! The Yamaha Junior Course is a 4-year comprehensive music education, designed for children to start at 4 to 5 years old. Let me give a short overview of the course.
The first 2 years is the foundation stage, called JMC which focuses primarily on building the musical ability to LISTEN, to SING, to PLAY and to ENJOY music in a group-learning environment. During these 2-years, parents' participation are required.
The 3rd and 4th year of the course is the development stage, called JXC where ensemble playing provides a child with a unique experience in music making as many parts blend together to create a beautiful piece of music. Through this process, a child can acquire the basics of music and learn to express their individuality through it. At the end of year 4, the child will sit for Yamaha Grade 9 Performance Examination and the ABRSM Grade 1 Theory Examination.
So, Jayden has just completed his 1st year in JMC. After 1 year in JMC, Jayden is now able to play simple pieces with 2 hands! I'm quite proud of his achievement, considering the fact that he struggled for a period of time during the first 6 months in JMC. During that period, he was not very motivated and was especially resistant when transiting to Book 2 where he had to learn how to play with both hands. His learning difficulty was compounded by the fact that I was not practising with him regularly. The turning point was when I decided to re-adjust my schedule and allocate 15 minutes every evening to practise with him at his keyboard. Every new habit will have its fair share of difficulty but both of us overcame the inertia and started adhering to the daily practice. Five months have passed and the daily practice has became "natural" for us. Being a coach to him at home, I have to learn about the G-clef, F-clef, Do-Re-Me-Fa-So-La-Te, Fa-Sharp-Re, etc as well as to play like him! Being able to play has also allowed me to encourage him to persevere and not give up when faced with difficult pieces as his dad is also not musically-inclined!
I have learnt to enjoy the time spent with Jayden daily at his keyboard as well as to follow him to his classes weekly. Aileen has always encouraged me that these are great father-and-son bonding time and I agreed with her totally! Now, I can't imagine the day when Jayden will progress to JXC in 3rd year where I can't join him in his class anymore. As for now, I just want to enjoy the journey with him together.
As I conclude, here are the 2 songs that Jayden played last Saturday. Enjoy!
Feel great to clock another run @ the SCMS 2010 on last Sunday! Quite motivated to try the half-marathon next year - It will be quite a milestone for me as I have never run more than 10 km in a single attempt yet. Hope to have company next year :-)
A phrase from a book by John Bevere, “Extraordinary” caught my attention and gave some food for thought concerning parenting.
“The parents tell their children to do things they themselves don’t do, or they tell them to not do things they do. Many parents tell their children not to fight; yet they regularly fight before them. Then the parents wonder why their children fight."
This phrase caught my attention as it reminded me of the principle, “Do to others as you would have them do to you” (Luke 6:31). I am reminded of the occasions where I raised my voice or spoke harshly to my children when they were disobedient. These are the emotional moments that I thought I could have done better. I am reminded that our children pick up the habits and manners from us, parents. Hence, the way we relate to our children emotionally and intellectually is especially crucial during their formative years. We are setting the examples for them.
To do these consistently is never easy especially when you could be emotionally drained after a long day at work. Thus, I want to constantly remind myself that I need to:
(1) ensure reserve in my emotion bank daily when I return home
(2) know that my children will make mistakes and need my guidance regularly, just like you and I even when we are adults
(3)know that frustration will breed more frustrations while patience and love serve as the platform for positive growth in my children
For me, parenting is not just a journey of knowing my children and molding their characters, it is also a precious journey filled with self-discovery for me – a deeper awareness of my strengths and weaknesses. I have certainly learnt a lot about myself since I became a parent. Besides my children, I am sure that God is also molding me through this journey.
My colleagues and I have been planning for a durian trip for some weeks. In the end, we decided to abandon the idea of making a trip to Malaysia and try out this durian buffet deal ($25 per pax) at East Coast Road, which was given a good review from one of our friends recently.
This durian buffet deal is offered by a make-shift stall located at 231 East Coast Road (near Ampang Niang Tou Fu)
Eight of us sat comfortably with tables and chairs, by the roadside and were served with a variety of durians, one kind at a time; ranging from D11, D15, Hong Xia (meaning "red prawn"), XO, Mao Shan Wang ("Cat Mountain King"), etc. Although I was told that the "XO" and "Mao Shan Wang" durians were the better and more expensive durians, I have to say that all the durians served were tasty as each type has its own unique taste and texture. It was also an educational tour for us as the store owners shared insights about each type of durian and how to pick a good one.
It was indeed a good durian party for us as we thoroughly enjoyed the durians and the time spent chit-chatting away. The store owners also provided us with mineral water, mangosteen as well as water point for washing of hands.
If you are keen to pop by for the durian buffet, it is advisable to give the stall owners a call in advance (Ah Loon/Ah Teck - 97514828) as the seating capacity is limited and the durian variety may vary from time to time.
