學之園(海逸校)06K1

DorisTSL

Lydia,

I have received the invitation card yesterday.  Thank you.

Dear all,

Will you join the school picnic this Saturday?

ljsze

Lydia

Invitation rec'd already with thanks.  Do count us in.

Dear All

We will join the school picnic.  I have to think of what food to prepare tomorrow.  Any idea ?  Or did you order from school ?

LydiaWong

ljsze, Doris,
I will go to the picnic on Sat. However, my hubby is on trip so my aunt will go with us. I order food from school coz I don't want to bring too much stuff since my hubby is not going.

DorisTSL

ljsze, Lydia,

Brian will also join the picnic this Saturday.  In fact, I  have to work this Saturday afternoon.  Luckily, my boss is nice enough that he asked somebody to substitute me.

I ordered the food from school.  Brian is picky on food but I still want him to try.

LydiaWong

Doris,
Actually, I don't think they'll eat a lot. They'll rather play than eat.

Preston still complains of stomach/tummy pain occasionally so I took him to the doctor again tonight. The doctor said he's not eating enough vegetables and fruits (coz he has poopoo every other day). I have to ask my maid to make some veggie for lunch as well. He's picky on fruits recently, he only eats pears and nothing else. I have to make him go to toilet every day now.

ljsze

Lydia, Doris

I just thought that food offered from school was too ordinary.  I'd rather do a little bit of preparation.

Strange enough, Davin accepts more kinds of food now.

DorisTSL

Lydia,

I think Preston can obtain enough dietary fibre even if he refuses fruits.  You may giving him more green vegetables.  Besides that, do try pumpkin and green bean soup.  Pumpkin is a bit 'hot' and green beans can 'neutralize' this.

ljsze,

I did prepare some noodles for Brian for the picnic last year.  However, it turned cold already when we had it.  You may consider preparing some other food like sandwiches.

LydiaWong

ljsze,
I also prepared sauages and macaroni last year and I remembered I shared some with other kids. But I think they're old enough to eat outside food. And of course I'm too lazy to bring by myself.

The weather should be warm and nice and perfect for picnic.

ljsze

Doris, Lydia

I am sick these two days.  Sleepy after taking mediciine.  Hope that I would be fine tomorrow.

Anyway, we will prepare sandwich & macaroni.  Guess that the vaccuum flask can keep food warm.

ljsze

Doris, Lydia

My husband talked to Miss Jill for a while last Sat.  She used to live in a small town in Canada.  Lifestyle in HK is completely different.  And, she knows nobody & no one helped her to find an apartment.  She was really frustrated & that was why she took a few weeks off.  You know what.  She now live in Sham Shui Po.  Poor her.  No one helped her to find an apartment.  Hope that she would get used to the lifestyle here & enjoy the fun part.

I just wonder why no colleague & the school helped her to settle down.

LydiaWong

ljsze,
I was talking to Miss Jill about that too. She used to live in the same province and about 1 hour away to where I used to live. I think the school should help her find a decent place/area to live(at least closer to school). Actually there are a lot of apartments in Hung Hom so she doesn't need to travel that far every day.

ljsze,
I did not see you during lunch time and most of the day at the picnic, where did you have your lunch? The kids had fun playing the bubbles at the playground but I couldn't find Davin. The place wasn't that great (too dusty and not much facilities, no animals and they called it a farm?!). Anyway, the kids had fun, although Preston was a bit grumpy after Chun Hei hurt his face. Miss Cheng just talked to him at his ear and suddenly he was fine. She can really do magic on the kids.

Doris,
Did Brian have a good time? Sorry about Preston being not very friendly to Brian. Sometimes he's like that, a bit moody and emotional. Miss Cheng kept telling me maybe he's a bit different from other kids. I'm quite worried and now seeking where to help him.

ljsze

Lydia

We had lunch somwhere beside the playground where kids played bubbles.  Hei Ching sat close to us & they played.  Though the place was not big, sometimes you couldn't find your friends.  Actually, we played bubbles for quite a while.  Chun Hei was there.  And, we spent quite some time playing the 'bucket car' & the two mazes in which kids could have a short ride of that so-called train.

I also expected there would be farm & some animals.  Anyway, I had no expectation & kids had fun.

I just wonder why Preston always likes to play with Davin.  I know that they have a group of friends but it seems that Preston likes Davin so much.

Lydia, what do you mean by 'different' ?  How different is Preston from the others ?

You're right.  Miss Cheng is really good at dealing with kids.

Davin mentions about Preston & Brian the most.  Doris, how about Brian ?

DorisTSL

Lydia,

Brian enjoyed the facilities there very much, especially the maze and the wooden cart.  I guess the duration of three hours is alright for the kids to play and have lunch.

Brian will also be emotional sometimes.  Miss Cheng and I find that Brian has some strange response in school and at home.  Miss Cheng gave me some valuable advice.  I am now working hard on it and hope Brian can have great improvement soon.

BTW, in which way is Preston 'different' from the other kids?  Maybe Preston has such a 'difference', simply because his development is ahead of the others.

ljsze,

Brian mentions about Cheuk Yan and Chun Hei the most and about Preston and Davin sometimes.  He used to tell me something special happened in school about them.  How about Davin?  Will he tell you about what happened in school, or his feeling about them?

ljsze

Doris

What do you mean by strange response ?  Occasionally, Davin has a temper tantrum.  When it happens in public area, it reallys makes me feel very embarrassed.  He will calm down very soon.  Yet, the moment that he suddenly screams & cries is scary to the others.

Davin doesn't talk much about what happens at school.  He will talk suddenly about one classmate, e.g. what one has brought to school or who is naughty (less mentioned now, maybe all kids are good now).  Sometimes, when we reviewed the exercises or worksheet that he has done, he may talk more.

Doris, Lydia

I realised that Davin's drawing skill has improved.  He can draw human face.  How about yours ?  Or any other significant progress that you notice ?

LydiaWong

ljsze,Doris,
Actually Preston has improved a lot esp. at school (thanks to Miss Cheng) and better at home. However, he still acts odd in interest classes. Every time he doesn't want to go in but after a few minutes, he'll settle and very happy afterwards(which is very tiring every time taking him to courses but after class he told you he enjoys it very much). Miss Cheng said he lacks secruity and always like to attach to adults. Also, he's very stubborn and emotional if he is not the 1st one to do something and tiny little things which a 'normal' kid shouldn't behave like this. I talked to Miss Cheng and she suggested to go for some specialist advice and find out the reason (she, Miss Jill and Miss Bai also thinks maybe he's a gifted child and his behaviour matches). Miss Cheng repeated me told me this and now I'm quite worried and frustrated and don't know what to do. I hope he's a 'normal'child and his emotion will keep improving as he grows older.

ljsze,
Preston can draw faces but quite ugly and he doesn't really like to draw faces. But I think it's still a big improvement for him.

ljsze

Lydia

Every one has strengths & weaknesses.  Just accept this & help him to improve.  You should be thankful that Preston is possibly a gifted child.  Like the teachers said, you may seek for professional advice.

DorisTSL

ljsze, Lydia,

What I concern most about Brian is his emotional control and his social skill.  When he asked other kids if he could have something on their hands but the answer was no, he would get mad and might do something that made the adults embarrassed. (kicking, pushing, etc)  Miss Cheng said it will happen occasionally in school.  Although she said it's not abnormal for a kid of his age, I still don't want to see it.

Lydia,

Brian behaves in a similar way as what you described for Preston.  He took an assessment in the Child Assessment Centre about a year ago and he will take the assessment again this year to evaluate his improvment.  You may consider calling the CAC directly and tell them about Preston's situation.  Maybe a referral letter from a family doctor is required.

LydiaWong

ljsze, Doris,
Thanks for your advice. I just hope Preston is 'normal'. I don't really want him to be gifted coz there are more problems and I'm worried I do not provide him with enough. Anyway, I'll do my best.

Doris,
Where do you find the CAC? Where is it and do you have to wait for a long time? Miss Cheng gave me some info about private as well, like the one that came for the talk the other night. I need to find out how much they charge.

DorisTSL

Lydia,

Brian started to speak late.  I talked to Dr. Kwok Suk Kam about this when Brian was two years old (still didn't speak at that time) and she wrote a referral letter and ask me to call CAC.

Brian went to Central Kowloon CAC in Argyle Street.  It took three months to wait for a prelim. assessment by the nurse, and another 6 months to wait for the assessement by the doctor.  The doctor said Brian's development in speech was alright (after waiting for 9 months) but she found that Brian had some strange behaviour.  She will give Brian another assessment when he is 4 to see if any follow-up work is needed.

Does the 'private' one you mentioned mean the one who came for the talk last December?  I lost the handout.  Can you tell me some more about the private one, like the service they provide and the charge, after you contact them?  Thanks

ljsze

Doris, Lydia

We are in the same boat.  Our kids have got quite similar behavioural problem.  However, I agree with Miss Cheng that it's normal that kids at this age cannot manage their own emotions good enough.  It's normal.  What I can do now is that I repeat the correct way of handling each time.

***

Sometimes, I think maybe we are too nervous.  All of us wants our kids to be good at all aspects.  The fact is that it's impossible.  That's why I said we just tried our best to help them.

Sometimes, I think maybe we overprotect our kids.  When I observe Davin playing, I notice that he has been growing up a lot and he can handle different kinds of games in the park.  I had been a bit too nervous.

Traditionally, Chinese keeps close eye on their kids.  Not for the Westerners.  Not even for Japanese (according to my observation during school picnic).

Of course, for some behavioural problems like the ones we are facing now, we should find ways to help our kids.  The above comment is only my thought in general.

Lydia

Is Preston still taking Gym class ?  Do you think it helps Preston ?