As I am writing this, my little boy is answering math drills. He is now in the process of learning division with 2-digit divisors, and to be honest it’s driving ME crazy. I’ve never been friends with that nasty subject called math.
While I have it easier now because I’m armed with my handy dandy pink calculator who does the adding, subtracting, multiplying and dividing for me, I still have to walk the kiddo through each excruciating step until we get to the correct answer.
The thing with being this guys official tutor is it really feels like I’m having to go back to school. I read what he has to read. I solve the problems he has to solve. When he needs pictures from magazines or the internet, I look for them, too. It’s stressful, ha!
Despite all of my complaints, though, I wouldn’t have it any other way. I may not be the best in math (or in Filipino, for that matter), but I want to be the one to teach this kid when he’s at home. I just really try to make it fun for us both. It’s not easy, but it’s worth it.
After these annoying math drills we are moving on the penmanship. This is one of his dreaded tasks, but one of my favorites. The good thing about having to practice writing is that we end up with letters to send his aunt and grandparents in the US. I like that my son is learning to write and send letters on paper and not via email. Anyway, that whole topic is for an entirely new blog post all together.
So, I think my 5-minute mini break is now over because the kid sitting next to me is starting to whistle, sigh loudly, and talk to his pencil and paper. Manang naman lang sa nanay. Back to work, tutor mom!
Do you guys help your kids with homework or school work? What is the tutoring experience like for you?