Ee is now in his 3rd year at KPPN. He is doing well in his studies and extra-curricular activities. Who would have known that this seemingly quiet young lad had his hands full last year? He is a very different person at school. He shines in charisma. At home, he sloths.
What surprised me most was that he volunteered (as in sent in an application) to become an Emcee for the annual dinner. He was selected. I mean, he doesn’t really talk much at home. Always on the phone playing his game, and suddenly, he WANTS to become an emcee.
No, wait.
Another surprising thing was that he provides ‘ironing services’. As in RM3 for a shirt, and if it is a full set, the combo is priced at RM5. On average, he is able to get RM15 per week. He said, that is ‘harga satu kemalasan’. He has his eyes on another side venture already. I am not going to tell you what it is yet. But I did say to him that he has got to be kidding. I can’t believe kids would actually pay for that.
Surprises like these are ok. I hope not to hear of horrible ones.
This year, apart from his studies, he is a member of the volleyball team. That is also new. He was into badminton before. I don’t really know what made him choose ‘botam’ instead. I am sure he has other goals in mind. How time flies.
SPM 2024 results are out. For both my husband and I, the attention is towards the performance of SBP (STF) and MRSM (Taiping). Now we have a new interest in mind, which are the schools under the Permata Programme.
Despite the hu-ha surrounding the current rankings, there’s actually a Permata school enjoying their own success in Quiet Mode. Akademi Sains Pendang. Better known as Sekolah Menengah Sains Pendang. Their GPS is 0.38 and their SPM candidates are aged 15 and 16 year old. I had no idea that there is an option to sit for SPM early if the student is ready. As a parent of a student who is studying under the Permata programme, this is an interesting point to look into. Especially since the students are also juggling for their High School Diploma (HSD).
I have also come to understand since the past year that schools under the Permata programme is not included in these rankings of SBP as they are not categorised as such. Hence, the reason why KPPN is never listed alongside STF, MCKK etc. I was ranting about it before. I am wiser now. Forgive me. Anyway, parents of Permata will be looking forward to enhancements in the current programme as brought up in the petition to the institute. Hoping for a fruitful journey with Permata and the students in the future.
I realised that at KPPN, Ee’s learning methods hugely adopt the use of digital technology and presentations. Laptops are super useful. My husband bought him a Dell that is useful for coding works considering that Ee is in the Digital Innovator Programme (DIP). The subjects are slightly different from the Pure Science Programme. Printers are nice to have. Ee does not have a printer but Ee has his A4 papers. So if he needs to print something, he will use his dorm-mates printer and pay him based on what they agree on (for using ink).
Ee has been exploring how to use Canva and other website-building tools. I’ve noticed his vocabulary improving through his WhatsApp conversations with friends, especially during group work discussions. During the last school break, he asked for my help in shooting a video for their group presentation. He already had a clear idea, and I simply assisted with the execution. Ee explained that he needed to create the video first as an example or template for his team members. He was also supporting his friend, the team leader, who is naturally a bit quieter. Interestingly, the tutor intentionally selected quieter students as leaders this time, so Ee stepped in to lend a hand. He’s also learning to navigate disputes among team members—a tricky skill, but I’m letting him figure it out on his own. It’s all part of the learning process.
It’s the exam season at the moment. His last paper is next Monday. I hope he has been keeping up with his studies. He only has himself and his friends to remain disciplined in his studies. It’s easy for a 13-year-old to be enticed by the freedom to do whatever they want such as gaming or watching movies, considering they have access to laptops and internet access. I cannot wait to see him for the upcoming end-of-year school holidays.
My son is lucky that his place of study is relatively near to his home. So much so Mr Husband can make a visit every fortnight to help him with his laundry. On weeks when there is no outing, the husband would grab the laundry basket, shoot it at the nearest laundry mat and then return it to him with an outside meal. They would usually spend a father-son moment in the car, eating junk food while watching movies. On weeks when Ee has an outing, we would take him out to Aeon Seremban or someplace nearby, also do his laundry and send him back safely.
The students also have outing bermalam. So, those who stay nearby could use this privilege to go back home and spend the weekend with the family. Parents are allowed to fetch these students on Friday after 1230pm but they must return to their hostel by Sunday before 6pm. Once they are done with their outings, they have to return their outing book to their wardens. Ee being Ee, has forgotten to return his book twice resulting in him being punished. Thankfully parents can still visit during normal visitation hours on the weekend. So, that would mean another meal on wheels at KPPN. I told him to set the alarm on his handphone every time we send him back nowadays.
On this particular weekend outing, Mr Husband scheduled Ee for a Scrabble competition. The tournament was at Shah Alam and Ee participated in the game with his cousin, Echa. Ee secured 4th place while Echa was the first runner-up. He said he was unlucky because he had 2 rounds with the champion. Honestly, I think he should try harder and stop making excuses. haha.
The next time he’ll come home will be in December for the final year of school break. Then, he will be in Aras 2 in 2025 welcoming his younger fellow students on board.
My son came back home for the school holidays just a week ago. While I was in Kuching attending a wedding, Mr Husband brought the kids to KL for a staycation. They stayed at Silka Maytower.
The kids enjoyed the pool and they sent me pictures of their adventures at KLCC and Ikea Cheras. Most importantly my son had a wonderful sleep throughout the school holidays. So much so that he missed handing in one of his assignments that carried 6 marks. I was obviously crossed. I had to remind him to finish his coursework before putting his head on the pillow. He is like his father, mata ayam. Easily dozes off when the day becomes dark. He learned his lesson.
I noticed that he is getting taller at an impressive speed. Despite not taking his meals regularly because he prefers to charge his social battery more, he seems to be having growth spurts. Again, I have to tell him to at least take one main meal during the day and at best all main meals. He usually skips dinner but he will have a heartful lunch. I dislike the idea of him having too many snacks in the dorm. His father keeps buying him those packet drinks which are full of sugar as well. I get him Bright Cow milk instead for his skin, teeth and bones. I just hope he drinks it.
He is picking up badminton as his sports choice in the evening. I did not see that coming. He never seemed like he enjoyed it before. Come to think of it, we’ve never exposed it to him. With us, he has only known chess, scrabble and ping-pong. He did join the sepak takraw club at school but they haven’t been practicing much. So his interest waned.
We paid him a short visit today as we were coming back to Melaka from Putrajaya. He was alone in the dorm because his dorm mates are from Seremban, so they tend to sleep in their own homes during the weekend. This leaves him as the only one in that room of 3 students to participate in the gotong royong where they clean their rooms every week. Seems a little unfair but it’s already towards the end of the year to be raising this issue. Plus, I think that it’s good that he gets his movement on the weekend. Maybe if they reshuffle next year (do they?), he would have roommates who could keep him company over the weekend. Anyway, the flu bug has caught up with him as well. He has been having shivers and sniffles. Mr Husband bought him some paracetamol and cough syrup. As usual, the motherly advice is to shower regularly, brush your teeth, wash your face, eat regular meals and drink lots of plain water.
Looking forward to bringing him back in another 2 weeks for his outing bermalam.
Minci Moss 