The Finland Education Phenomenon

About two weeks ago, I read about Finland's education system through Chuvanesss' blog post Why I don’t pressure my kids to get the highest grades.  The video below shared on the post got my attention.

This got me curious and I did my own research on Finland's graduates and how successful they become. I learned that Finland's education system consistently ranked as one of the best in the world the past years.

 

Here are some key ideas from their education system that are noteworthy for me.

• Very minimal to no homework
• Shorter class hours. In the above video, the school being interviewed only required 20 class-hours per week. That is about 5 hours of class-hours per day, inclusive of one lunch hour.
• Small class size, averaging 20 students per class
• Average starting school age is 7 years old
• Teachers facilitate the class and let the students do the knowledge work. They support the individuality of their students
• Free tuition fees and school materials
• Free lunch for all students
• Free health and dental care for all students

I am happy that a lot of schools in the Philippines are now adapting most of the abovementioned ideas, save for the free tuition fees and lunch, and veering away from the traditional teaching methods fostered years before. I can also see how most teachers are now regarded highly within the communities.  They are now respected by the students instead of simply feared.

 

While I believe that different methods work for different countries, I also believe that we can always learn from our global counterparts and apply ideas locally, where relevant.  Who knows? Maybe we'll see the Philippines on the global educational ranks very soon.

 

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My Introduction to Calligraphy

My handwriting has always been pretty bad. It's true. Even my mom will confirm it. So when the Calligraphy craze hit Manila, I was immediately interested. Maybe I can finally write beautifully.

 

Last Saturday started my journey to better letter writing. My sister and I signed up for a beginners' class with Life After Breakfast. It was a half day class from 9:00am to 12:00nn at the Pipino Vegetarian restaurant in Quezon City.

The class fee was P2,500 which already included two pens/nib holders, 3 nibs, ink, gold leafing glue, gold leaf sheet, instruction booklet and a lot of worksheets.

What sets this class apart from the other classes that i have inquired with is that it does not only cover calligraphy but also introduces the class to gold leafing.

Here are the results of my three-hour workshop. You can finally understand my handwriting! Hurray!

Practice is the key to beautiful Calligraphy. I write a little bit better now compared to the above output. Once you get the hang of holding the pen and positioning the nib, you can start crafting your own style and be creative at it.

 

 

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What Happened to You as a Child? #ChildhoodTrauma

Do you know that a lot of the negative emotions that you are feeling today are old emotions? This was the concept of the seminar Dens and I recently attended on Childhood Trauma by Christine Foong-Wong.

A lot of us think of trauma only as a result of a major event that happen in people's lives.  Near-death experiences, rape, surviving natural catastrophies, etc. But do you know that we (especially as children) can also be traumatized by something as simple as a word spoken to us, growing up with parents who were always busy, or even witnessing our parents fight.

I will use the last example to illustrate. When a child witnesses his parents argue, it can result in several emotions:

• Feeling of Hopelessness - To a child, his parents are his world.  When the parents fight, the child will feel that his world is collapsing and there is nothing he can do about it.
• Insecurity - A child's security is anchored upon a strong family foundation.  His future becomes uncertain even for that brief period of time when parents fight. A sense of insecurity becomes rooted into his DNA.
• Feeling of Helplessness - Psychologists say that a child's natural instinct is to save his parents and they actually did several tests to prove this. When the parents fight, a child will feel that he cannot save his parents from hurting (verbal or physical) each other.

The child will then unconsciously grow up with these emotions. Christine explained that the effects of the trauma are like giant buttons within us, waiting to be pushed by people or events in our adult lives. This is why some husbands and wives argue over the tiniest things. You may think that the your husband or wife is the source of your anger, but the truth is, it may be linked to an underlying trauma that stems from your childhood.

So you see, as parents it is very important for us to know about these things. We need to know what words or actions can cause trauma to our children.  But before that, we must also identify areas where we were traumatized as a child in order to start our healing process and help our own children. This is where Christine and her team come in.

During the workshop last June 27, we were asked to write our Constellation of the Sentence of Intention (CoSI). In other words, what do you want to achieve or correct in your life? Given the limited time in the workshop, we were asked to write our most important intention - ideally the one that has been troubling us the most. It can be as deep as "I want to stop having anxiety attacks" to something as simple as "I want to get rid of all my pimples" so long as the statement has an "I", pertains to a goal and something you have not achieved.

You will then be partnered with a professional (trained) therapist who will help you identify the problem of your intention (i.e. why do you have anxiety attacks? why do you have pimples?). It is all very scientific and though psychology can sometimes feel like voodoo, we were assured that this is all science-based.

Allow me to share a little story about my own experience. During the workshop, I witnessed a lot of tears and realization with the other participants. When it was my turn, I felt that we were not able to fully uncover the root of my trauma. Christine's team from Singapore was kind enough to schedule me for another free 1:1 consultation two days later. Unfortunately, my schedule was full on their free day and they were set to fly back to Singapore the day after. The morning after the workshop, I started to pray and asked God to help reveal the underlying trauma to me. And guess what? He did! I had that 'tears and realization' moment while brushing my teeth.  It was such a great revelation to me.

The workshop was truly an eye opener for me. Learning about Trauma, identifying my CoSI and finding out what happened to me as a child are life-changing experiences. Though my realization came a day later through my conversation with the Lord, I also believe that God can use tools such as the workshop to help you uncover your past. This is just the same way God can either grant you healing through doctors and medicine, or He can heal you wherever you are - just like that.  Either way, acknowledging that the healing comes from the Lord is key for me.

Christine and her team will be back in Manila on August 21, 2015 for another workshop. You may register or inquire with Tin Dychiao at +63998 9711449. As parents, it would be great to bring your spouse to join you on this journey. 

I encourage you to check it out and discover for yourself. A lot of people have shared how the workshop has made them better husbands/wives and better parents. I can imagine why. Try it out and let me know how it turns out for you.

God bless!







 

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Travel the World in 8.5 Minutes

This video is Uh-may-zing! It's currently #1 on my playlist. Check it out and share with your kids.

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Sacrificial Love

I have been sick the past week. I stayed in bed for four whole days and it was just awful most of the time. I say most of the time because I have to admit - this forced rest can be good for me sometimes. I slept for hours guilt-free and spent my waking hours watching the kids play on one side of the room, catching up on the telenovelas that i've missed and reading my Bible. But the stomach cramps and the endless throwing up was just a pain (literally and figuratively).

During those 4 days, I saw how my two little kids went out of their way to take care of me. My 5-year old diligently got me water, answered phone calls, and fetched things for me from all over the house since i can barely stand most of the time. My 2-year old is a little too small for chores but she did something that also melted my heart. If you have been reading this blog the past week, you would have read about my clingy little girl whose daily plea was to stick with me. On Day 3 of my house arrest, my daughter contacted fever. Since we knew my immune system was down, we didn't want to risk contaminating each other with whatever virus each of us had.  After waking up from her nap and discovering her high temperature, my daughter called me from her brother's room. This was how our conversation went.

Me: Hello?
Dawn: Hello, Mom?
Me: Hi Dawnie!
Dawn: Mom, i have fever so i can't go to your room.
Me: Aww...okay anak.
Dawn:  I'll just drink medicine so that i will feel better, okay?
Me: Okay
Dawn (almost in tears): I miss you, Mommy!

If you know my daughter, you will know how much of a sacrifice this was for her. When she woke up middle of that night (usually to breastfeed), i went to her bed. Then i told her i cannot feed her tonight. She just said 'Embrace only, Mommy'.  And embrace her i did. In tears.

Looking at all the things my two kids did for me during my 4-day confinement made all those days sacrificing my own enjoyment for them oh-so-worth it.  As young as they are, they understood the meaning of sacrificial love.

This made me think of a lot of Christians these days. A lot of us go through life without appreciating the sacrifice that Jesus Christ did on the cross for us. We know it happened. We know what it was for. But the level of appreciation it commands just isn't there.  I have been reading the book of Matthew the past weeks and it was just a wonderful eye opener for me. I cannot imagine how God would sacrifice His own son to die a harsh death just so people who have yet to know and love Him will be saved. Such unconditional, extravagant, sacrificial love.

Think about it. For what the Lord has done for us, how much have we been willing to sacrifice for Him? That 10 minutes of your day to read your Bible and morning devotion? That 5 minutes of prayer time before going to bed? Skipping that telenovela once a week for prayer meeting? Or even the 'humiliation' of raising our hands when we worship Him in church. Remember, the humiliation that Jesus went through for us goes way beyond just raising those hands up.

John 3:16 says "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son. That whosoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life"

On this day of love, i pray that our appreciation of God's sacrifice goes beyond words. May our actions reflect the gratitude in our hearts. He deserves all honor, glory and praise. Thank you, Lord. We love you!

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Somewhere Over the Rainbow

Our kids are more intuitive than we give them credit for. With all the things they see on the news regarding the recent events concerning Typhoon Yolanda, how we address their questions is very important as well. For my kids, i want them to learn empathy while also making sure that they do not develop a fear of storms. I don't think we can shield them from knowing what is happening in the world but we can take part in teaching them how to react to these situations. 

Last December 1, Make Believe Productions partnered with Fully Booked to create an event especially designed to teach children how to take part in relief efforts and also express love and compassion to other people.  

If you missed the first event, you may still sign up for the upcoming December 8 event at the Children's Section of Fully Booked Bonifacio High Street. There will be an interactive story telling by the Make Believe storytellers, a short discussion and sharing of the calamity, and other educational art activities for the kids.

You will need to send an email to Nini Torres (nini.torres@makebelieve.com.ph) if you would like to join the December 8 activity. Please refer to the poster below for the event details.

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Train Them While They're Young

My husband practically grew up with no household help. They would clean the dishes by themselves, wash their own clothes, and help tidy the house regularly. American-living lang ang peg. It's not that they cannot afford it but their parents thought it was the right thing to do as soon as all 5 of them (siblings) were old enough to help with chores. 

Though i have always admired my husband, brothers/sisters-in-law for their independence, I honestly cannot imagine going completely help-free at home. We usually go out sans yaya on weekends or during family trips. But after 3 weeks in Canada, i was really missing them already. Yes, i  am referring to the yayas.

Dens has always told me that he likes the kids to be trained on household chores the same way they were trained before.  On a regular school day, Dens would do laundry before doing his homework. After school work is done, all of them had to help set the table and do other chores.  It wasn't such a big deal for them since they've gotten used to the routine. I'm sure my family and friends abroad who are reading this are also thinking the same. But for those like me who have grown up with helpers at home, the shift would rather be difficult.

Our kids are still very young so it's really not practical to go help-free at this time (whew!). But that doesn't mean they cannot start helping out with chores at home. For now, our rule for the kids is to just pack-away their own mess. Whether it's toys or unfinished snacks, they need to put them back in their proper place. Dawn has been quite an expert on this and would sometimes even pack other peoples' things - yes, sometimes stuff that we are still using like the remote control.  Another thing that we're teaching them is to clean their own mess. Like if they spill something, they have to wipe the mess themselves. We still do not expect them to clean-up perfectly but it's a step to becoming more responsible.

Cleaning up Dawn's baby powder mess

One thing that i really love about this is that they help each other out. Whether it's Troy or Dawn's mess, the other would help (at least most of the time) to clean up. They don't really see it as a chore but just something they need to do. On good days, i don't even need to tell them to clean up. They just do it by themselves.

Truth is, we don't need to let the helpers go just for them to learn. I love that i married a man who is constantly teaching me to be more independent. I pray that my kids will learn to be self-sufficient and not have to always depend on others to do work for them. They're never too young to learn.

Proverbs 22:6
"Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it."

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Walking Wings

Back in 2008 when Troy was just learning to walk, I heard a lot of comments about not letting the baby use a walker since some research shows that it may have some negative effects on the baby's legs. I am not sure how true but i did not want to take any risk it so i tried other ways to teach him how to walk.

One of the most common step training method was to hold baby's hands up high and guide him to wherever he wants to go. The problem with that method was that after a while, the baby's arms might get tired of being held up for too long, not to mention the back-breaking position you'd be in while reaching down to hold him up.

Another method i've frequently seen was to loop a cloth diaper ("lampin") over the baby's chest and under both his harms and hold it like a leash. I never tried that because i didn't trust myself to hold the "lampin" tight enough for the baby to be 100% secured. Besides, that method still did not address the backpains for the parent or holder.

Finally, one of my friends recommended a solution. Walking Wings!

I started using this when Troy was one year old.  After only a week of use, Troy learned to walk without assistance. I was amazed at how easy it was for the baby and the parent. All you need to do was to wrap the main body of the Walking Wings around the baby's chest and fasten it tightly at the back. Then hold the two long belts which would allow you to walk straight while training the baby how to walk.

When Dawn started showing some interest in walking at 9 to 10 months, i borrowed my friend's Walking Wings again. I thought i'd start early and see how it goes. True enough, after only a few weeks' use, Dawn can now walk confidently walk on her own! The only problem now is for us (parents) to gain the same confidence in letting her do it without assistance. Dawn can easily walk around inside her crib but still needs some guidance when walking on the floor just to ensure she doesn't hurt herself in case she falls.

Dawn on the go

Walking Wings is available at all Rustans Department stores and costs around P1,200 each.  Check it out. It's worth the investment. Your back will thank you for it!

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