I recently joined other parents for a briefing at our son's kindergarten before the new semester began.

However, a paper handed out by the teacher greatly puzzled us. It was a list of extra-curriculum courses available through the school. As the world becomes ever flatter, Chinese parents want to give their child every possible advantage in any area. And schools are quick to respond to this demand.

Although most parents complain the present educational system is like "feeding a duck" - that is, shoving food right down the bird's throat without allowing any time to chew it - they still eagerly work with schools to keep their kids busy.

One mother said the English lessons provided last year were "too simple" and demanded the type of "systematic English training that other kindergartens are offering".

"This extra English class, I heard, is a Cambridge English course," the teacher said, referring to a very popular language-training program that teaches from primary school level students to senior middle school students. I was familiar with it, because my niece had recently excelled in such a training test.

However, I don't believe it would be easy for a young child to pick up the foreign tongue without living in an English-speaking community.

After all, in just four months, the children will learn 120 Chinese characters in addition to songs and dances.

Many parents pulled out their wallets to sign their kids up for piano lessons, which are incredibly expensive. They cost 500 yuan ($71) a month, and the child must pound the ivories for half an hour every day.

I believe piano is a great guide through the grand hall of Western music and international stardom; Lang Lang is just one of many prodigies who prove this.

However, children taking piano courses need pianos, of course, if their parents are truly to cultivate the talents. And the most basic models go for well over 10,000 yuan. I wondered: What if my son hates it after a few days?

So, what, then, is the ideal course for him to take?

Chinese chess, or, weiqi?

"It develops your logical thinking abilities and lays a solid foundation for mathematics," my husband declared.

However, the course was only available to children of at least 4 years of age. We will sign him up for it next year, because the instructor is a renowned player, who often hosts programs on CCTV's sports channel.

Finally, we decided upon tae kwon do, a martial art form from South Korea. My niece has been studying it for years and has beaten older contenders to become champion of her hometown, Xi'an.

My sister says: "I didn't want to burden her with anything more than her school lessons, and tae kwon do gets a child away from the desk."

While it costs 400 yuan, we figure it's a good investment during winter time, when biting cold winds keep children indoors.

However, the teacher mentioned our son's language skills "are improving amazingly".

So we wondered: Should we find an ancient poetry course for him?"

(China Daily 09/24/2008 page20)