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Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother QUOTES

Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother QUOTES

21 " That’s why I liked the Suzuki method of teaching piano. There are seven books, and everybody has to start with Book One. Each book includes ten to fifteen songs, and you have to go in order. Kids who practice hard get assigned new songs each week, whereas kids who don’t practice get stuck on the same song for weeks, even months, and sometimes just quit because they’re bored out of their minds. "

― Amy Chua , Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother

22 " Florence saw childhood as something fleeting to be enjoyed. I saw childhood as a training period, a time to build character and invest for future. "

― Amy Chua , Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother

23 " What Chinese parents understand is that nothing is fun until you're good at it[...] Tenacious practice, practice, practice is crucial for excellence; rote repetition is underrated in America. Once a child starts to excel at something—whether it's math, piano, pitching or ballet—he or she gets praise, admiration and satisfaction. This builds confidence and makes the once not-fun activity fun. "

― Amy Chua , Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother

24 " Other studies indicate that compared to Western parents, Chinese parents spend approximately ten times as long every day drilling academic activities with their children. By contrast, Western kids are more likely to participate in sports teams. This "

― Amy Chua , Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother

25 " What Chinese parents understand is that nothing is fun until you’re good at it. To get good at anything you have to work, and "

― Amy Chua , Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother

26 " And that’s how I outsmarted myself, changing our lives forever. "

― Amy Chua , Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother

27 " She refused. I was mortified. Unjustified as Mrs. Kazinczy may have been, she was still a teacher, an authority figure, and one of first things Chinese people learn is that you must respect authority. No matter what, you don’t talk back to your parents, teachers, elders. In the end, I had to go back to the room alone, apologizing profusely and explaining (falsely) that Lulu was angry with me. I then made Sophia—who wasn’t crazy about Mrs. Kazinczy either and who wasn’t even a violinist—take the rest of the lesson, ostensibly getting tips about playing as a duo. "

― Amy Chua , Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother

28 " I had often had trouble with [my mother-in-law] Florence and gotten angry at her; that she and I had wildly different views about child-rearing... The truth is I'm not good at enjoying life. It's not one of my strengths. I keep a lot of to-do lists and hate massages and Caribbean vacations. Florence saw childhood as something fleeting to be enjoyed... She believed that childhood should be full of spontaneity, freedom, discovery, and experience... I saw childhood as a training period, a time to build character and invest for the future. Florence always wanted just one full day to spend with each girl -- she begged me for that. But I never had a full day for them to spare. The girls barely had time as it was to do their homework, speak Chinese with their tutor, and practice their instruments... In fact, it was through butting heads with Florence that I first became aware of some of the deep differences between Chinese and (at least one variant of) Western parenting. "

― Amy Chua , Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother

29 " I think I can do it,” Lulu said. She had a lot of confidence, and, as long as it wasn’t me forcing it on her, she loved a challenge. "

― Amy Chua , Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother

30 " Everyone exchanged alarmed glances. “How about practicing after dinner?” my mother suggested. “No, Mom,” I said firmly. “Lulu promised she’d do this, because she wanted to stop early yesterday. But if she cooperates, it really should just take ten minutes. We’ll go easy today.” I wouldn’t wish the misery that followed on anyone: Jed, Sophia, Lulu, and I cooped up in one claustrophobic room, with Jed lying on top of the bedspread, grimly trying to focus on an old issue of the International Herald Tribune; Sophia hiding in the bathroom reading; my parents waiting in the lobby, afraid to interfere and afraid other guests would overhear Lulu and me bickering, yelling, and provoking each other. (“That note was flat again, "

― Amy Chua , Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother