Problem Solving Evan

Evan is great at Math. He is a natural. But it isn't why this post is titled Problem Solving Evan.

Today is an ordinary day. But after today,  I can worry a little bit less for Evan.

Evan is shy and hesitant by nature. He cries when things are difficult or intimidating.

And he did that today, when he wanted to join Jordan at our neighbour's on a play date but experienced first hand how girls could be mean and exclusive. They told him he couldn't play with them because he was a boy and they were four girls.

He came home sobbing and crying pitifully, rejected. My heart ached when I heard it.

But he stopped after a while, took down a bag full of sweets that I had amassed (all their goody bag sweets go into the bag and when the bag is full, I take it to work and encourage cavaties and sugar highs in my older students) and took it out to of our house.

He didn't return till we went over to get them back for dinner. And he was all chirpy, all previous tears dried up. His sweet bag was also obviously much lighter.

When asked what had happened with the bag of sweets, he gleefully told us that he gave the girls the sweets and they allowed him to play in their tent.

On the one hand, I know I should teach him that he can't go around bribing people to do his biding but at the same time, I can't help but be a little proud. He had a problem, he cried and wailed about it then figured out how to get himself out of it instead of sulking, whining and moping over it.

I also heard from a teacher in his school today that he now walks in from the bus with Chloe (another neighbour of ours). I didn't think much about it till it was contextualised for me. When they first started school, the twins would walk in from the bus together, holding on to each other for dear life. Because they were in different classes, they had to be separated and it was always accompanied with miniature wailing and gnashing of teeth. So the teacher's point was that they were growing up and becoming more independent and confident of themselves. They didn't need each other as much, as a crutch anymore.

Since they go off to Primary One next year, to separate schools, I worry about how they will cope. I worry especially for Evan not because he is a weak or frail but because I know that some boys can be feisty,  thuggish and will overwhelm him in size. But this shows that perhaps, he will figure out smarter, left field ways to outsmart them.

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