Having your kids win at their school’s sports day is a moment of pride for any parent. Hong Kong actor Kevin Cheng was one such proud dad, sharing photos of his wife, Chinese-Canadian actress Grace Chan, and two of their sons at their kindergarten sports day.
“Recording happy times with my family,” the 53-year-old wrote in a Xiaohongshu post last Monday (March 6), with the hashtags “parent-child time”, “outdoor fun” and “this is life”.
Rafael, four, and Yannick, two, had gold medals around their necks, and netizens discovered from the writing on them that the boys attended Tutor Time International, a prestigious kindergarten and nursery school in Hong Kong with a hefty tuition fee to boot.
Tutor Time was started in Florida in 1988 and expanded to Hong Kong in 2001, now boasting four branches across the city.
According to Hong Kong media, the Braemar Hill branch that Rafael and Yannick attend charges HK$130,130 (S$22,300) a year, which can be paid in 11 instalments.
When young Rafael was first enrolled in the playgroup classes in Tutor Time in 2020, it is reported that fees ranged from HK$3,000 to HK$8,500 a month, with once-a-week classes costing as much as HK$740.
With Grace giving birth to the couple’s third son Carlos in January, the school fees are sure to add up.
The price tag may be hefty, but going to a prestigious school comes with its perks.
In 2021, Rafael celebrated his second birthday with a Peppa Pig-themed celebration at his playschool with family and classmates in attendance.
“You’re turning two, saying that you’ll be in the nursery soon and mum and dad won’t have to accompany you to school anymore,” Grace, 31, shared on her Instagram at the time. “I don’t want you to grow up so fast, but even if you are two, 12 or 22 years old, you will always be our little baby.”
And Kevin and Grace aren’t the only ones giving their kids the best education money can provide.
Last December, Andy Lau himself was spotted at his daughter Hanna’s school performance. It is reported that Hanna studies at the Victoria Shanghai Academy, where yearly school fees are HK$149,600 for primary school students.
Andy was praised by netizens for appearing “low-key”, trying to find his seat and watching his daughter’s performance much like any other parent, without any fanfare.
However, some did recognise that Andy’s celebrity status would not set him apart in such an elite school where other parents weren’t “ordinary” people either, writing: “Even if they recognised him, they wouldn’t crowd around him asking him to sign autographs.”
