I absolutely hated school because aside from the small competitions that I won from time to time, they were not ‘recognized’ as anything that amounted to any importance……and I was still dealing with failing grades despite burning the midnight oil, and being made to stand on the table after I find out that I’d successfully flunked my exams with flying colors……again.

As soon as I got out of school, I was determined to become the teacher that I never had. I wanted so badly to help children and students like me. So the most sensible thing to do was to get certified as a Montessori teacher. Back in the 1990’s, Montessori teaching certification was extremely hard to obtain and being certified as a Montessori teacher meant that we were the cream of the crop and were deemed as the ‘experts’ in the field. This training gave me the solid foundation to be the teacher that I’d always needed. FYI, I also used the Montessori approach to help me make sense of reading (face palm) and it was then that I realized that this is something that could help a lot of children (and grown ups too).

I love teaching young children! I love their creative energies that mirror mine! Most importantly, I love how children respond to me, especially those who have had a tough time in other teacher’s classes. I love children whom my colleagues call ‘the difficult children’ because I was able to connect with them…..it almost feels as if it takes one ‘difficult’ student to understand another!

One thing that I love as much as teaching…….is learning. Every time I’m lost or confused or struggle with anything, my insatiable quest to learn kicks in. And as you guessed, this awareness began soon after I started teaching and was starting to meet more and more children with different learning needs and styles. It didn’t take long before I was enrolled in a Bachelors in Education and after that, in a Masters in Education programs, specializing in early childhood education.

This journey was clouded with uncertainty (no amount of preparation and research can possibly prepare you for doing something so different from the norm) but it was well worth it. I wasn’t exactly sure how it would unfold but the one thing that I was certain of was that I can’t possibly mess up as badly as the school system, and my skepticism was met with a huge sense of satisfaction when my boys thrived in this new environment. They were able to take charge of their learning, be immersed in it and be motivated to go on their own learning quests.

My wish for every parent is to teach them how to increase their Parenting Intelligence so that they are able to:

1. Identify their children’s strengths and to use them to help them overcome their challenges so that they will never be stifled by their shortcomings,
2. Personalize and customize learning for their children so that its best suited to their learning needs and styles so that they can thrive and work on their strengths and gifts,
3. Develop important life skills in their children such as character development, soft skills, EQ, resilience…..and everything else that schools don’t prioritize.

I am trying to empower parents with the ability to say that they are the best teachers of their children and the one who understands their needs the most. With this in mind, I have put together my bespoke parent mentoring programs as well as a Mastermind group so that I can provide continual support (yes, it’s a learning journey rather than a final destination) to parents efforts to grow their Parenting Intelligence, I have also created communities of like-minded parents so that they can provide each other with support and I’ve recently started running retreats for parents and families so that I can better address the needs of both parents and children.