Hong Kong child prodigy, age 5, passes 11 international dance exams in one day
Children are thrown into break-neck competition almost as soon as they can walk. In the first of a series, the Post talks to the mother of a prodigy
At the age of three, she started to learn Latin and ballroom dancing. At four, she became the youngest person in Hong Kong to pass 11 international dance exams in one day.
Now, at the age of five, she has become the youngest person in the city to earn a gold, a silver and a bronze medal from the same body, the Britain-based International Dance Teachers Association.
Soon, when she turns six, she will take another exam, for a pre-associate licence qualifying her to be an assistant dance teacher.
Pearl Chan Pui-yee's is the story of a typical child prodigy. Her mother, who has spent tens of thousands of dollars on Pearl's activities, is one of the many caring and constantly worrying mothers in Hong Kong.
"I want her to go to a boarding school in America or Canada, but the competition these days is so huge," says Selina Lam Sai-yan, Pearl's mother. "Being able to play piano is like being able to type. You're abnormal if you don't learn."
Lam says she once called a prestigious US boarding school and asked if her child could get admitted to the school if she earned a Grade 8 in piano.