No, not me, but that was what little D said to me last week.
You see, we have introduced her to the game, since her siblings play it. We thought that it would be a good CCA (co-curricular activity) for her to take when she goes to school given her medical condition - a brain game which the docs had said would be what she has to use as most sports would be a no-no for her.
But having "experienced" chess since the age of two, she doesnt seem to appreciate it. She has "sat" thru' full day tournaments, 10 day tournaments, rapids, blitzes as well as four hour games!! At one stage, whenever we went to a chess tournament, she would freak out and demand to leave the place immediately. Now she wants nothing to do with it.
I have tried explaining to her that chess would be the best choice for her when she starts school, and if she plays it well, there would be the possibility of Direct school admission for her when it is time for secondary school.
But being a little on the young side, she doesnt fully understand it, and her reply was: Nah, I dont want to take exams, and I dont want to go to 'BIG' school. I just want to stay home with you!
How? Now I do not know whether to make her continue with chess or not. Yesterday she took more than 30 mins and she only made 4 moves on the chessboard. Hmmmmm... maybe she has the makings of a Kasparov, and she saw something on the chessboard during those 4 moves that I didnt!
4 comments:
Oh little D...
What does she like to do then? Is there time for exploration, to understand what's she good at, and enjoy doing?
Hi Stardust
She loves to dance ...but that unfortunately is also a no-no for her. Sigh. She just has to do something that uses brains and not her limbs (nothing physical) in any way.
o, i think part of the reluctance has to do with D being the youngest and "dragged everywhere" to the older sibs' activities, and esp all the chess events (the way i bring Ben n now Kait too for ball games, etc, the school here doesn't play chess competitively tho'). maybe D has a real talent for chess, and will grasp it faster than u think. kinda leave her to just enjoy it at her own time, own leisure, no pressure? i guess u must be doing that already.
doesn't D like to draw also? she draws n writes really well for a 5yo :) maybe there's something along those lines... art appreciation classes, speech n drama, so there's also some song n dance element to it, what else is there in primary school? something like that will interest her in the meanwhile? and then give her some time to let u know if she will like to do chess seriously?
ben will play a lil chess too, but at his "afraid to lose/lose out" stage, n jon is still not past this (sigh), it takes more patience than i have to try and referee a game between the two. older boy needs to learn to play it at younger one's level, not be competitive. hmm... just thinking out loud, or maybe S or N can play casually with D if they are able to pitch it at her level?
is D learning to play the piano or some musical instrument? does she like that? school has a band, or music club maybe that can spur that on?
i hope u n D find something she really likes that she can do n excel in!
Here's hoping that your gal finds an inspiration, I'm sure something shows up along the way. Meantime, I'm praying little D gets really physically strong, yeah, almost macho ( joking lah ) so as not to worry you out. ;)
My family called me 'glass legs' as I often dislocated my knees throughout childhood and teenage. Super painful. My parents didn't allow ballet of course. My instructors often thought if I had undergone training earlier, a good posture and strengthening of muscles could have helped the development. Soft and slow physical moves are good for everyone. =)
Blessed Good Friday and Easter there, bless your family.
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