I am not smarter than my 5th grader

I was smart in my 5^th grade.  It was the best school year of my life.  I only received 2^nd honors, which is not that hard in public school.  But I also won 2^nd prize in an On-the-spot poster making contest, I was a contestant in Elementary Agriculture quiz bee wherein I qualified in DECS District II.  I almost became Mandaluyong’s representative for the grand finals.  I was also in a spelling bee, although I am not sure if it was grade 5 or the grade level earlier.  I think I was in 3 competitions, not including those inter-school competitions together with my classmates.  It also paved the way for me getting included in the baseball team the following year.  And I was 2^nd over-all, not bad for a class that had the cream of the crop, two new transferees that were very intelligent and direct competitors in the honor roll, a son of the assistant principal who is also gunning for awards, and I have an adviser in which her son was being harassed  by no less than my own bully cousin!

 

Recognition day came and a lot of my schoolmates from all levels were awed by what I have achieved during that year.  I was being greeted by parents are students I do not even know, basically commending how good I did during that year.  It was just like sweeping the major awards at the Oscars.  Oh, I was the envy of each parent who wanted their son or daughter to excel…

 

Today was the recognition day in my son’s school.  It is his 5^th grade, and with basically the same results.  He’s 2^nd at his class, including other awards.  He was smarter than me.  He’s in private school, the standards are higher.  Although there are fewer students, competitions are tougher when most of the classmates are mix breed of Filipinos and foreign smart blood which makes it even harder to compete.  Imagine having a half Pinoy half foreign classmate who had almost all the resources available for learning.

 

I am not smarter than my 5^th grader.  He was happy in school, always playing around with classmates, yet still almost at the top of his game.  While I was dealing with pressures from my father to excel and be the best, I did the opposite to my son, I just let him do the best he can without any added pressure. 

 

I am not smarter than my 5^th grader.  He knows a lot about things that I don’t know yet during my time.  Or perhaps because of the difference in available technologies and resources that are useful in their learning, wherein within my generation you are considered lucky if you have colored TV at home.

 

I am not smarter than my 5^th grader.  I did not have the nerve to pose with a V sign on recognition day...