Education Archives - Page 2 of 2

Preparing for Primary 1 – Part 2

I wrote a post on how I prepared my girl for primary school 2 years ago. Time flies and now I am going to prepare my boy for primary school next year. When I relooked into my list of preparation, I still find them very useful and they shall be applicable to my boy with some adjustment in expectations though. It shall also be more challenging this time round as I will be preparing for XX to wake up early for morning school after 2 years of afternoon school in Primary 1 and 2. YH will be in afternoon school. Hence, I need to adjust for both kids concurrently.

1. Eat a good breakfast

I find this a challenge to implement when I am not at home to ensure this goes through smoothly. I had tried for the past 2 years to prepare nutritious breakfast Continue reading “Preparing for Primary 1 – Part 2”

Rise and Shine Expo – 2 great workshops worth going to + Giveaway #01

In our family, we speak Chinese 90% of the time. As a result, our kids are strong in this language that many kids here are struggling with. However, in Singapore, we have to be bilingual and are taught English and Chinese since young. English, being our teaching medium, is extremely important in getting good grades in schools. Without a good English foundation, students will struggle to understand Mathematics problem sums and tackle English comprehension questions.

Recently, my 8 year old girl is losing marks in her test papers due to her weakness in the English language. She does not have full understanding of the questions. It is not easy to be equally good in 2 languages and I do empathize with her. I take a partial blame too that I do not speak much English at home. I always believe my kids can pick up English in school easily since they interact with mostly English-speaking classmates daily. I read to them since they were babies and am still reading to them. Perhaps they are not reading enough on their own. Despite being worried about their English standard, I have never regretted speaking Chinese primarily at home. I take pride that their Chinese is strong as Chinese is indeed a very difficult language to master. It is important to speak well since it is our Mother Tongue.

So, when I knew about a workshop where the famous speaker Dr Thomas Armstrong is going to share tips on teaching everything from phonics to reading comprehension using brain strategies, I was curious to find out if there are ways for me to help my girl with her comprehension skills. This workshop is held in conjunction with the Rise and Shine Expo which will span across 3 days of exciting kids’ activities, premium brands and workshops for parents from 27-29 Sept 2013. This speaker is an award winning author of “Nurturing Multiple Intelligences in Children”. I have extracted some details to this workshop here:

Workshop with Dr. Thomas Armstrong: The multiple intelligences of reading and writing: making the words come alive!

This workshop will show parents how to help children develop literacy skills by linking words to images, music, logic, emotions, physical expression, social context, oral language, and nature. Dr. Armstrong draws upon recent neuropsychological research in showing how reading and writing skills are whole brain activities, and he provides practical tips and suggestions for teaching everything from phonics to reading comprehension using whole brain strategies.

This workshop is for parents with children from 3 to 12 years old who want to lay strong foundation in their kids in reading and writing using the concept of multiple intelligences.

Speaker:
Dr Thomas Armstrong
Award Winning Author and Advocator of Nurturing Multiple Intelligences in Children

Dr Thomas Armstrong is the author of fifteen books including Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom, In Their Own Way, Awakening Your Child’s Natural Genius, 7 Kinds of Smart,The Myth of the A.D.D. Child and Awakening Genius in the Classroom. His books have been translated into twenty-six languages. He has appeared on several national and international television and radio programs, including NBC’s ”The Today Show”, “CBS This Morning”, “CNN”, the “BBC” and “The Voice of America”. Articles featuring his work have appeared in The New York Times, the Washington Post, USA Today, Investor’s Business Daily, Good Housekeeping, and hundreds of other newspapers and magazines around the country.

Date: Sat, 28 Sept
Time: 2.30pm – 4pm
Venue: Room 305, Suntec Convention Hall

To register for the workshop, please click here.

Price: $20

Early bird discount by 2 Sept: 10% off
Group booking: 3 or more in a group enjoy 50% off
PAssion Card holders: 1 for 1 signup (partner attends for free)

For more details on this Rise and Shine Expo, click here.

I would encourage those parents who are keen to help on their children’s language development to attend this workshop.

Being a Rise and Shine partner blogger, I am entitled to give away 5 pairs of tickets (worth $20 for each ticket) to my readers for this workshop. If you are interested to know how this workshop can benefit the reading and writing skills of your child, please do the following:

1) Like Kids R Simple and Rise and Shine facebook fan pages

2) Leave a comment below with your email address or on Kids R Simple facebook page (If you are not comfortable with leaving your email address, please message me via facebook)

3) The closing date for enrolment of giveaway is on 6 Sept 2013.

Good luck!

This is the first part of the Rise and Shine Expo Giveaways.

Stay tune for the second giveaway…

Thank you Letter to My Children’s Pre-School teachers and staff

In 2011, I wrote a thank you letter to all the teachers and staff of my children’s pre-school the day before their last day in the wonderful place they call school for the past 4 years (to be exact, 4 years for XX and 2 years for YH). It was my children’s very first school where they spent 8 hours a day for 5 days in a week, while I spend equal number of hours in my workplace. This was a place of fond memories where they learn their ABCs and 123s formally. This was a place where they learn teamwork, sharing with peers, abiding rules of an institution and befriending little friends. I wrote this thank you letter to the school to show my appreciation of them taking good care of my children. At the same time, I want my children to remember they had these great teachers whom they may not remember as they grow up.

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A thank you letter to Ascension Kindercare teachers and staff

Dear All teachers who have taught my daughter XX and my son YH,

First of all, thank you for the wonderful concert last Saturday. The efforts of the teachers and children let all the parents present bring back unforgettable memories.

It’s with a grateful heart that I am writing this thank you letter. Seeing my girl XX in her Kindergarten graduation robe and mortar board, I am so happy that in her 4 years in Ascension Kindercare, she had been in good care. All the teachers who taught her were wonderful! Each year, from N1 all the way to K2, she loved her teachers and I know she is well-taught and loved by all of them.

When she was in N1, Mdm Chia and Mdm Yong showered her with love such that she was accustomed to the childcare quickly and became their great “little helper” where she was given many chances to help the teachers.

In N2, Ms Chew and 姚老师 (both who already left the centre) were good and caring teachers and they quickly became my girl’s favourite teachers.

In K1 and K2, Mdm Louis and 吴老师 played an extremely important role in teaching and preparing her for Primary 1. 吴老师 taught my girl Chinese and Han Yu Pin Yin so well that I have no worries that she go on to her Primary school where Chinese is very much emphasized in school. And thanks to Mdm Louis in instilling discipline into the K2 children and always alert me to any misbehavior in my girl. She always worked with me quickly to nip the discipline problems in the bud. Even though she is strict in class most times, she shows the children her love and fun side too. With both of them as her K2 teachers, I have totally no worries she is in good hands.

For my boy, YH, I would also like to thank his N1 teachers Mdm Chia and Mdm Yong for handling his fragile emotions during his first weeks in childcare when he was only 3 years old. It took a long time for him to settle and me and my family were really glad that his teachers both found ways to capture his heart. By the time he left N1, he was already a favourite boy to his teachers and he enjoyed being with them.

In N2, YH needed to readjust to childcare in a new class again after his comfortable environment in N1. His N2 teacher, Ms Chew found ways to get him talking and open up to her. She succeeded and YH was once again jovial. This is with great help from N2 吴老师 who showed him lots of attention. Later 张老师 and Ms Myra joined N2 Love class and were able to bond quickly with YH. Even though N2 had many staff changes, I was really happy that the teachers were able to bond well with my boy.

There are many other teachers and assistant teachers, helpers to thank. They all have took good care of my children even though they are not the main teachers in their classes. And I also want to thank Ms De Foe for her good guidance in steering the childcare and her care and love for the children.

Tomorrow is the last day of school for both my children. They may not feel the sadness of leaving a place where they have great memories now, but for sure, as their mummy, I felt it strongly. And also it signifies an end of a part of their childhood. I am happy that this part was a memorable and enjoyable one.

Thank you very much, Ascension Kindercare teachers and staff!

Best regards,

Mummy of XX and YH

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After this letter was sent to the school’s principal, she shared my thanks with all the teachers in the pre-school. Many teachers thanked me for the kind letter and I was equally touched. The funny thing is a month later, after trying to put YH in a new pre-school which did not worked out (we changed to a pre-school nearer our house because we had moved house), we were back in this good, old pre-school again. The wonderful thing is that the moment YH was seen walking towards the pre-school entrance, he was immediately welcomed by the principal, the teachers and the school-mates. YH was initially very embarrassed to have bade farewell to all teachers and friends and to be back in the school again. I was surprised that his little ego was affected by this turn of events, just like us adults. However, I was glad that by the end of the day, he was back to his normal self and was never so glad to be back in the same environment and be with his friends again.

Although the travelling from our new home to the old pre-school is some 20 minutes away by bus, we were nonetheless happy that he was comfortable in the old learning environment. It wasn’t easy for anyone to let go of friendship and bonds with teachers after spending 2 years together, let alone for a 4 year old (that’s half his lifetime then!). When the end of the year comes, it will be YH’s turn to put on his little mortar board and graduation robe in the year end graduation cum concert event. I’ll be shedding tears of joy once more.

Have you ever tried to thank someone who took great care of your kids? Maybe you should! The feeling is great!

My little princess’ score card – progress in Primary 1

It’s been half a year that my dear princess goes to Primary 1. Her score card in my eyes has been almost perfect so far. And how happy am I to give her a near perfect score. Taking into consideration that her Primary school is a well-sought after SAP (Special Assistance Plan) school (which means they place high emphasis on Chinese and it is mandatory for all students to take higher Chinese), she manages well with her school work and enjoys school so far.

She relates happenings in school to me and I am too glad that her teachers seem to be very passionate teachers especially her Chinese teacher 黄老师. They tell interesting stories and crack jokes in the fun of learning to capture the children’s interest. And her school makes sure parents are involved and know what their children are learning by making us sign on their assignment and textbooks frequently. Academic-wise, I have totally no worries on her school’s model of teaching and guidance.

It’s a relief and “gift” for me that she does her homework after dinner on her own without any nagging from me and Kel. She shows independence in passing me her school letters and making sure I sign on her worksheets and books without fail. As a working mother, I could not spend time with her in the morning before school. Hence, I mark out pages on her assessment books for her to complete in the morning so that I can mark and go through with her at night. She did the assignment I gave her with no adults reminding her. It saves me from what I would have otherwise experience stress and worries on her academic learning.

In XX’s first MA (Modular Assessment) test for English, she got full marks. For Mathematics and Chinese, she got 23 and 24 out of 25 marks respectively. I couldn’t ask for more. Now in the second semester, her 2nd MA test, she got full marks for English again but careless mistakes and lack of focus on the questions cost her marks and she got 17 out of 25 for Mathematics. Well, so to say, she has lots of room for improvement in her focusing skills and practising patience to read questions carefully before jumping to write answers.

XX’s first parent-teacher meeting has the same response from both teachers (Form teacher and Chinese teacher). She day-dreams in class. This observation has long been commented by her Yamaha teacher. I feel attitude is extremely important for learning and doing anything well. I know it will take lots of effort by herself and time to correct this day-dreaming problem, but I will help her and by her character, I am pretty sure she will improve sooner or later. As for her attitude, if you were to read my earlier blog on “Learning Piano – from dread to love“, you will know that she has come a long way in improving her attitude. Sometimes, if she seems to be relying on me to feed clues to questions in assessment books, I feel I have a guilty part to play. I may be too obliging to give clues too quickly and just last night, I realize that XX seems to be lazy in reading music scores. She has a good memory and for new song pieces, I spoon-fed her on correcting her fingering and wrong notes by reading the score to her while she focuses on memorizing what I say and what she remembers on the positioning of fingers on the keyboard. That was a wake-up call for me to not be too involved and let her have a free hand and time to figure things out on her own! It all points to the fact that this mummy is too impatient. My girl must have picked up this bad trait from me.

XX had just experienced a long one month June school holidays. I signed her up for a 3 day academic camp which she says it’s boring. Kel sent her to her cousin’s house to play for a day every week. I took leave on and off to keep her company and brought her to my gynae check-up in June as well. Places we’ve been to during the June weekends includes the National Museum of Singapore for the Children’s Seasons, Yakult factory, taking part in the Safra Sprintkids Competition, Marina Barrage for kite flying with their cousins, Wild Wild Wet and Madagascar 3 movie screening. Since we are not going overseas for the holidays, I thought this holiday for her must be boring. But she seems to prefer boredom than to go school even though she enjoys school and she did not have much to do except to read books to finish her many book reviews homework.

Now that the holidays are over, she is back to school. She asked to be signed up for Wu Shu （武术）and she has to wake up early every Saturday for this class. It was tough on her to wake up early since she sleeps late at night and her school is in the afternoon. Even then, I praised her for being such a good girl to fight sleep and wakes up without much violent protest.

Xuanxuan, mummy is so proud of you. Keep it up my dear princess!

Preparing for Primary 1

XX is going to Primary 1 (P1) next January which is less than 2 mths to go.

Many parents around me have been preparing frantically for this BIG day.

Some ensures daily one hour “homework” to accustomize their kids to this “habit” of doing homework when P1 starts.

Some decided to stop nap time.

Some send their kids to Preparation class for P1 where such classes drill P1 exam papers onto the pre-schoolers.

For me, I have not done anything yet, and I think I should… but based on a few principles:

a) nap time – since my girl will not get to enjoy this anyway from January next year, I shall let her enjoy for 6 weeks more

b) homework – since my girl will bound to have homework from school from Jan next year, I shall let her enjoy more play time for 6 weeks more. However, I will still give her fun worksheets to play while at the same time reinforce some academic basics.

c) preparation class for Primary 1 – since my girl will get to know how it will be like in P1 next year, I shall not expose her 6 weeks earlier.

With the above principles in mind, I will prepare my girl for Primary 1 in the following ways:

1) Eat a good breakfast

This is initially difficult as the time gap between wake up to out of the house is really short to cramp in milk plus breakfast. My kids are not used to eating breakfast immediately when they wake up, except for milk. I started implementing this 1 year ago and I learnt that I have to have good variations in breakfast every morning to entice their appetite. I believe a good breakfast is essential to a good start of the day. Kids do well in school and have better concentration when they have breakfast. This will be important when my girl starts school.

2) Earlier bedtime

This is tougher to implement than the first. There are so many activities to do with my kids that I find it extremely hard to off the lights at 10pm. And not to mention, all these activities do not include any one hour homework time. Hence, I need to work hard on this one, and I know 6 weeks is a bit too late to start this routine, and what makes it worse is that we’ll be travelling for 3 weeks in a 7 hour time difference country just prior to school starts. That brings me to the next preparation – to have a good time-table and FOLLOW IT!

3) Follow a fixed time-table

I have drawn up a clock time-table which my kids have drawn in the picture here.

Having drawn up a time-table together with my kids help them remember and let them refer to it whenever we exceeded our time in any activity. There will be little protest on this agreed routine since they are involved in the process. With this, my kids will be able to know how to follow the time stated, train them in reading the clock, and hopefully it will help my girl in transition to homework time when I incorporate it into her time-table next year. In this case, I need not purposely start her in doing homework daily in order to get her into following a fixed routine.

4) Reinforce her academic basics

I have printed some fun activity sheets for my kids (in separate difficulty levels). I take these sheets out, explained how to do in game rules style, so that they will not feel like it is a boring homework. Even though I don’t stress too much academic activities on my kids, but I still think my girl has to know some basics to not feel overwhelmed in Primary 1 classes. I need to prepare her moderately especially most kids will be much more “advanced” from their P1 Prep class from the first day of school. She just needs to know the basics and learn the rest in school so that she will not feel bored or switched off when the teacher starts to teach something she already know too much about.

5) Take down notes, write faster

My girl has a habit to day dream, and write slowly. I am glad that her Yamaha teacher, Ms Tan has taught her to take down notes quickly in her music class. Also, the Yamaha fast paced lesson forbids her to day dream too much and she is forced to listen attentively to not miss an instruction. However, at home, she still reverts back to old self and I have to constantly remind her to write faster. This will be very important in Primary school and I am training her speed in writing. I have yet to train her by the clock and I will not do so for fear of stressing her too much. So what I have been doing is constant reminders and also correcting her way in holding the pencil.

6) Independence

Independence is extremely important for any kids, and not only to prepare for Primary 1. Kids are easily trained in independence if we start them young. I want my girl to be responsible for her own books and what to bring to school. I shall only do the checking and not pack her bag for her. Again, her Yamaha Ms Tan taught her before I do, to pack her bag and ensure pencils are sharpened, erasers are in the pencil box, her Repertoire and Solfege and Ensemble books are in her bag. All these to be checked every Friday night before the Saturday Yamaha lesson. I shall take a leaf from here and make sure she does this everyday when she starts school. We have started to let the kids, including the young one, the moment they step into the house, to put their shoes on the shoe rack, bring the dirty uniform from the childcare bag to the laundry basket, put school letters in the letter holders, and put their school bags into the cubby hole.

Independence applies to learning for spelling tests. I used to remind my girl endlessly on whether she has learnt her spelling. Soon after, it seems to become my responsibility! But recently I have tried to cut down on my reminders and told her it’s HER responsibility to remember when she has her spelling tests. Parents should not be the ones to be responsible for everything including learning for tests. Kids have to learn their life skills too. The only way to encourage independence is that parents trust their kids and let go, with some checks along the way.

Nowadays, parents are so involved in their kids’ lives, we seem to be the ones attending school.

Whatever we do, I feel the element of fun learning and enjoying childhood should always be the fundamentals in parenting.

How do you prepare for your child’s first day of formal school?