At just nine years old, Jahquane Silvera is already proving that age is no barrier when talent, determination and a little faith collide. While his classmates were preparing for their Grade Five Primary Exit Profile (PEP) assessments, the Gayle, St Mary, youngster was also hitting the books for a Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examination. His goal was unusual for a child his age but his mother, Princess Allen, a teacher, believed he was ready. So she entered him for physical education (P.E.) at the CSEC level. When the results came in on Tuesday morning, it was a stunner. He aced it. Allen said she could barely contain herself. “When I tell you I run up and down,” she said laughing. Young Silvera was almost lost for words when he spoke to THE STAR about his achievement. “I was surprised, but mi just happy,” the youngster said. For Allen, who has been a teacher for more than a decade, Silvera’s achievement was not exactly a bolt from the blue. She had spotted his academic ability years ago — sometimes while doing nothing more than marking her own students’ papers. “I am a physical education teacher so whenever I go home with the papers, like the test or past papers I am testing my students with, he would always be completing them.” Then one night, she had an idea. “I said, ‘Jahquane, you know you would do good on CXC, because your answers are well written. I was just comparing him to some of my students, and he just laughed and said, ‘but mommy, I can do it’.” And so, they went for it. The preparation was no joke. Allen helped him with the School-Based Assessment, while Silvera tackled the practical components — an area where he already had plenty of experience. “He is a P.E. person, he loves sport, he is part of a track and field club, he plays football and cricket and everything else he studied for those exams.” The youngster also held his own in the practical examinations. For the internal assessment, football was selected and Silvera was chosen as the reporter. Dressed in a jacket, he interviewed participants as part of the exercise. Then came the external practical, where his track-and-field skills were put to the test. “[I] heard he responded well to the commands, starts and answered all questions on spot, so it was good,” said Allen. When exam day finally arrived, young Silvera journeyed to the examination centre at Tacky High School where he found himself surrounded by students nearly twice his size. “I felt so good to see him among the lot, he was with the Grade 11 there, some Grade 10 and  too, but I wasn’t really nervous because I knew he was capable,” she said. Young Silvera was just as confident. “I saw him doing the questions over and over like a grade 11 child. I have to thank God because I have this little genius here at his age doing this,” said Allen. But CSEC was not the only major examination on his plate. Silvera sat the CSEC examination in May while simultaneously preparing for his Grade Five PEP assessments. “We focused on the one that came first, and that was CSEC,” his mother said. “It did not cause a problem, he managed.”  Meanwhile, behind the impressive academic achievement is a little boy dealing with a painful loss. His father died in his sleep last April, and Allen said the loss hit her son particularly hard because of the close bond they shared. “When I got the results, I thought of him because they loved each other a lot. When he passed, it broke him,” she said softly.  She wished he was around to witness his son’s achievement. “It was bitter-sweet feeling because I was thinking about his dad, and how happy he would have been,” she said. Now, as he prepares to enter Grade Six in September, PEP will take centre stage, but another CSEC subject could be waiting in the wings. “I wanted him to do the English A, I have a teacher who can work with him, and language is part of PEP, so he will have that exposure.” Allen knows some people may question putting such a young child through secondary-level examinations. But she insists she is not forcing him — she is simply giving him opportunities she believes he can handle. “Some told me it’s pressuring, but I told them I am the only parent now, and I know how it can get, so if he can do one, one, it will be very good for us,” she said, adding that she makes sure he enjoys his childhood. As for young Silvera, he already has a career in mind. “I just want to be a soldier,” he said.