It’s official. I am now a bona fide Korean mother. Today I broke out the Kumon workbook I bought a few months ago but have felt too guilty/hypocritical about using. For those who are in the dark about Kumon, it is basically after-school tutoring/torture for kids (usually Asian). I didn’t do Kumon, but I did go to the Korean equivalent (Kumon is Japanese), called Hah-gwan. To explain further:
Kumon : Asian Elementary Students :: Kaplan : American High School Students.
See how much I retained? (To be fair, high school students can attend Kumon too. And I just checked online and it seems that elementary students can attend Kaplan now. I don’t think this was the case when I was in grade school or I would have been in school 20 hours a day. And just to note: I did do Kaplan in high school though, in addition to the Hah-gwan.)
I thought the kids would enjoy this workbook, and they did. It’s more for practicing their ‘pencil’ skills, though they used markers instead. But it was obvious that they were proud of themselves for connecting Point A to Point B. To further prove the obnoxiousness of me, a Korean mother, I’m posting their efforts for all to see.
Here’s a picture that The Bean drew after her Kumon lesson. She’s been drawing this same ‘face’ for a couple of months now, over and over on her MagnaDoodle. She labeled this one, Rock with Face. It’s a keeper—just look at that Mona Lisa expression. It watches you wherever you go. Fucking brilliant.
