'Relaxing' - as defined by a tween

The current CBSE system of evaluating a student through continuous comprehensive evaluation (CCE) totally eases the so called examination pressure/ tension/stress or whatever. I’m for it.

Fortunately, I have never faced a difficult situation with my 14 year old who is very disciplined, meticulous and organized with her work, an all rounder every year at her academics and extra-curricular, I don’t have to repeatedly ask or nudge her to study but my 12 year old needs to be told that every time there is an exam, he has to atleast study or open his books or rather check his books for a while.

All my calls for pinning my 12 year old to prepare for his final exams falls on deaf ears or are met with a ‘konjam relax panikkren ,ma’ ( I will relax a while, mom).

I just ask him to sit and revise for half an hour, nothing more, but can I blame him he has so much of work/activity at hand.

He is too busy these days with the other 10-14 year olds building teams for the MCL (our colony cricket league), organizing, shortlisting ,grouping and coding colors for volt eagles, super smashing warriors, venom vipers, and doom demons. They are critically thinking to elect their captain , in case of a crisis how to manage, planning strategically ,knowledge sharing, how to reach their targets, handling teams, collective thinking, displaying leadership skills , group discussions,learning to handle failures and successes etc.,

Not that I'm complaining, I know these skills are not taught in any school and is best learnt amongst peers real time and sports is one of them.

As if all the above distractions were’nt enough there is the world cup matches, cartoons and Wii.

Now, you see where is the time to study for these tweens?

Today was his penultimate exam and he came in telling "the paper was ‘too easy’ and with one more exam down I am an ‘Avuthhu vutta kazhudai’(unleashed donkey).

He is already unleashed, I know with excellent mentoring and tutoring at his school,(I don’t advocate private tuitions) he is very good at the concepts and applications, with his bad handwriting and shabby work he has easily worked through the math to get A+ and with his silly mistakes, an A or B in science, Social, English and computer in his previous CCE’s but what about Hindi?. A 'B' grade comes only with some hard work, there is no formula like math, a spelling mistake is a mistake and they are the foundation of any language. But who's to listen?

The vyakaran, anucheddh, shabdharth, nibandh, prabandh and the big q& a are all fine when orally asked but when it comes to writing he becomes the Ishan of TZP. No amount of tutoring at school will help unless you like the subject.

Now , my real challenge lies ahead when I have to pin him down for atleast two hours before the Saturday exam.

When I call him to study after play, I’m met with a ‘ konjam relax panikkren ma’,

… after a cartoon show when I tell him to study, it’s ‘Konjam relax…………….’,

.... .after a computer game, it’s ’Konjam relax……………….”

If TV watching, playing are not relaxing then what is ?

Relax seems to be having a different meaning in this 12 year old’s dictionary.