This is the time of the year that everyone will be discussing about Primary School registration. A series of "how to prepare your child for primary school" talks, forum chats and articles will surface. This year, MOE even produced a video for parent's reference to consider on selecting primary schools (ie. not based on PSLE results).
Last year, I went through the frenzy accessing MOE website to monitor the take up rate of the choice school at each phase because I didn't volunteer my service at any schools like some of my friends. I haven't been lucky in balloting (including winning lucky draws) so I won't take the chance of balloting for the most popular school in the neighborhood although I'm within 1km.
This year I'm an observer as my son has already enrolled in a primary school. I read the release of info and reviewed if my son was ready for the "big school" (compared with his kindergarten at the void deck). He's fine academically (phew!) but lacked behind in his social and confidence level.
6 months into primary school, I wish i had better prepare him in the following areas:
1. Being organized
He needs to pack his bag based on daily time table. Most parents would help the child pack every night instead of going through the agony. But we thought it is important for the child to pick up some organisation skills. We expect him to remember which are the textbooks and workbooks required for each day. At times, he needs help with filing and sorting. When he forced in loads of books randomly, we would suggested he organized the books according to sizes with workbooks behind and exercise books in front. We could have trained him better in packing and sorting earlier.
2. Run but don't fall
Recess time is something new to a primary school kid. We trained him to buy food on his own including calculating how much change he should be getting back. He's fine with managing his pocket money and even bought stationery and gifts from the bookshop for meimei. He spends his free time after eating and "shopping" playing catching with friends and challenges himself on the monkey bar. But after 5 falls within a month, I thought he may have problem with balancing or motor skills. I could have prepared him better if he was exposed to more sports at a younger age.
3. Speak up at appropriate time
He has been rather quiet in class. In the Reggio-learning environment, we hope he can participate actively in discussions instead of answering only when being asked. He has marked improvements since nursery, but still room for improvement. Once he lost his pencil case and did not have the courage to approach the teacher to ask if there is lost & found items. I had to email his form teacher for help and asked him to retrieve from teacher the next day. We could have "practiced" situational role player at home before school started.
4. Be responsible for your belongings
Primary school children move around the school compound for different lessons. My child has the tendency to misplace his belongings when moving from room to room. We must constantly remind him to ensure he brings along all his belongings before he leaves the room. We could have incorporated this habit earlier at home.
Overall, I'm quite happy with his progress so far, especially having made some friends who have common interests. I think it's the kind of motivating environment that can nurture the child.
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Monday, June 25, 2012
Say People say yourself
I first heard this phrase from my son. He probably heard and learnt it from his classmates. But I soon realize it is a powerful phrase that work both ways. It simply means no double standards!
It is always easier to blame others than to find fault with ourselves. When we "say people", we should first reflect upon ourselves first. That is a constant reminder to "say yourself" before you accuse others.
At a recent training course on supervision skills, "model the way" is one of the technics used to motivate staff. My son's phrase came to mind. When we complain about our bosses, we can expect our staff complaining about us. For staff to be motivated at work, we must be their role model. If we drag our feet to work, we can't blame the kids resisting going back to school after a long term break.
Now I'm mindful how I conduct myself in front of my children. I can't tell my kids off when they are stuck to the tv & iphone when I use them so often. If you are a picky eater, get a family member to model to the child what is a healthy diet. Otherwise, say people say yourself!
It is always easier to blame others than to find fault with ourselves. When we "say people", we should first reflect upon ourselves first. That is a constant reminder to "say yourself" before you accuse others.
At a recent training course on supervision skills, "model the way" is one of the technics used to motivate staff. My son's phrase came to mind. When we complain about our bosses, we can expect our staff complaining about us. For staff to be motivated at work, we must be their role model. If we drag our feet to work, we can't blame the kids resisting going back to school after a long term break.
Now I'm mindful how I conduct myself in front of my children. I can't tell my kids off when they are stuck to the tv & iphone when I use them so often. If you are a picky eater, get a family member to model to the child what is a healthy diet. Otherwise, say people say yourself!
Saturday, June 23, 2012
Characters come alive!
What has Ben 10 and Disney Princesses have in common? They are characters that my kids like. Recently, I picked up a few Ben 10 & Disney Princess activity books from Popular bookstore. At least I don't have to "force" them to do assessment books at this age.
The Ben 10 sticker book comes with many scenes for the child to paste the selection of Ben 10 aliens. It is actually too simple for a P1 boy. But I must say the drawings are captivating. Instead of pasting stickers, I suggested we recreate the scene from Ben 10 using tissue box. He chose a scene of a car wreck and narrated the scene in his own words. I helped him cut out the box and he pasted the blue and black paper as sky & road respectively. The fun part was using all his toy cars, crushed paper, chopsticks and Ben 10 alien toys to create the fighting scene.
While gorgor was making his "Ben 10 comes alive", mei requested to recreate a scene from Aladdin's magic carpet ride. We didn't have Aladdin & Jasmine characters. So we made do with hello kitty figurine pens. She sang the song "A Whole New World" while playing with the magic carpet (which was a souvenir pouch from a recent wedding dinner I attended).
That is precisely why mei resisted cookie cutter type art class. We can have a freeplay and not be constrained by the timing of the art lesson. In fact, on the very next day, they each created another craft as a extension of what they have done.
The Ben 10 sticker book comes with many scenes for the child to paste the selection of Ben 10 aliens. It is actually too simple for a P1 boy. But I must say the drawings are captivating. Instead of pasting stickers, I suggested we recreate the scene from Ben 10 using tissue box. He chose a scene of a car wreck and narrated the scene in his own words. I helped him cut out the box and he pasted the blue and black paper as sky & road respectively. The fun part was using all his toy cars, crushed paper, chopsticks and Ben 10 alien toys to create the fighting scene.
While gorgor was making his "Ben 10 comes alive", mei requested to recreate a scene from Aladdin's magic carpet ride. We didn't have Aladdin & Jasmine characters. So we made do with hello kitty figurine pens. She sang the song "A Whole New World" while playing with the magic carpet (which was a souvenir pouch from a recent wedding dinner I attended).
That is precisely why mei resisted cookie cutter type art class. We can have a freeplay and not be constrained by the timing of the art lesson. In fact, on the very next day, they each created another craft as a extension of what they have done.
Thursday, June 14, 2012
The Invisible Ruler
Everyone has an invisible ruler in their heart. We use it to measure and judge everyday. As parents, we influence our children in establishing this ruler when they are toddlers. The child develops this ruler and calibrate accordingly with every situation they encounter in the school and eventual work.
The ruler of values is one of the most important. Integrity and honesty is among the most important values. The child learns by observing how the adults respond to a situation (even without the adult knowing). As parents, we need to be mindful and set good examples for the child to emulate. The child gets the signal that it's ok to do this and that from what they observe. Without good communication, the child will interpret and remember the reaction and react in the same way if they encounter similar situation. If you tell a (white) lie, expect your child to use this technique against you one day.
As we grow up, the boundary between black/white and right/wrong become blurred. The ruler will be benchmarked against different situations, at home, at work or in public. We may not have the time and patience to explain to the child why certain things are done a certain way. So we should try our best to conduct ourselves as the person we want our child to be.
The ruler of values is one of the most important. Integrity and honesty is among the most important values. The child learns by observing how the adults respond to a situation (even without the adult knowing). As parents, we need to be mindful and set good examples for the child to emulate. The child gets the signal that it's ok to do this and that from what they observe. Without good communication, the child will interpret and remember the reaction and react in the same way if they encounter similar situation. If you tell a (white) lie, expect your child to use this technique against you one day.
As we grow up, the boundary between black/white and right/wrong become blurred. The ruler will be benchmarked against different situations, at home, at work or in public. We may not have the time and patience to explain to the child why certain things are done a certain way. So we should try our best to conduct ourselves as the person we want our child to be.
Monday, June 11, 2012
Making Friends
Making new friends is a display of social skills. It cannot be taught. I suppose a child learn by observation, seeing how adults around them interact with new people, they form their own ways of making friends. It's surprising that my 2 children are at north & south poles of the spectrum even with similar upbringings and exposures.
My son has never been the most friendly creature. If you call his name, he will reply with a "what!", not even a "yes" of acknowledgement. I have reminded him repeatedly about this uncourteous gesture hoping that he can reply with a smile, if not a "good morning" to his friend.
My girl, on the other hand, can strike up a conversation with someone new almost immediately. I'm not sure the topic of discussion, but from gestures and expressions, it seems like she's leading the conversation while the other party listens. It's amazing as I find it difficult to talk to someone new at social events. Not sure where she picked it up from.
With mei around, gorgor has improved slightly. Occasionally, they will play with other children at the playground. I'm not close enough to know who initiated the game, but it is a relief that gorgor is slowly opening up to the outside world.
My son has never been the most friendly creature. If you call his name, he will reply with a "what!", not even a "yes" of acknowledgement. I have reminded him repeatedly about this uncourteous gesture hoping that he can reply with a smile, if not a "good morning" to his friend.
My girl, on the other hand, can strike up a conversation with someone new almost immediately. I'm not sure the topic of discussion, but from gestures and expressions, it seems like she's leading the conversation while the other party listens. It's amazing as I find it difficult to talk to someone new at social events. Not sure where she picked it up from.
With mei around, gorgor has improved slightly. Occasionally, they will play with other children at the playground. I'm not close enough to know who initiated the game, but it is a relief that gorgor is slowly opening up to the outside world.
Motivation
As parents, we are looking for ways to motivate our children to learn and improve. As supervisors, we realized that motivation must be staff-initiated. We can only explain to them the importance of their assigned task. The attitude of the staff to complete the task is not up to us. Learning from motivating adults, we must know how the child motivates himself.
It's easy to give up and say "I don't know" as a child. Use examples of how the child previously completed a task. "You didn't know how to count before. Now that you can count, addition is just a continuation of counting" Explain the similarity in graphics or real life illustrations. "1,2,3 + 4,5,6..." The child should be encouraged that he has mastered counting and thus willing to take a small step to learn addition.
Rewards can only dangle a carrot in front of a child like how pay increment works for a staff. Some people work for money but others want other form of recognitions. I know friends who use sticker system to encourage the child to complete her work. After accumulating a certain number of stickers, she can redeem a prize or a bigger reward. It works to a certain extent but I want my children to know that they are learning for their own benefits, not for a toy or a holiday. In fact, I earned my atari game for topping the school in P1 myself. But towards upper pri, I lost "steam" although I passed my PSLE.
If the child has an ambition, help him work towards it. Tell him studies is important for him to attain his goal. He/she may want to be a pilot, air stewardess, chef, artist or even a rock star. Recognize his ambition with a wow. My son wanted to be a famous artist. I brought him to visit museum and interview a local artist. He held his first art exhibition in class with friends giving him encouragements. He's motivated to improve his painting as his ambition has been broken down into baby action plans. It's not important whether he becomes a famous artist eventually. The message we are bringing across is if he works towards it, he is a step closer to his dream and motivated to work even harder.
It's easy to give up and say "I don't know" as a child. Use examples of how the child previously completed a task. "You didn't know how to count before. Now that you can count, addition is just a continuation of counting" Explain the similarity in graphics or real life illustrations. "1,2,3 + 4,5,6..." The child should be encouraged that he has mastered counting and thus willing to take a small step to learn addition.
Rewards can only dangle a carrot in front of a child like how pay increment works for a staff. Some people work for money but others want other form of recognitions. I know friends who use sticker system to encourage the child to complete her work. After accumulating a certain number of stickers, she can redeem a prize or a bigger reward. It works to a certain extent but I want my children to know that they are learning for their own benefits, not for a toy or a holiday. In fact, I earned my atari game for topping the school in P1 myself. But towards upper pri, I lost "steam" although I passed my PSLE.
If the child has an ambition, help him work towards it. Tell him studies is important for him to attain his goal. He/she may want to be a pilot, air stewardess, chef, artist or even a rock star. Recognize his ambition with a wow. My son wanted to be a famous artist. I brought him to visit museum and interview a local artist. He held his first art exhibition in class with friends giving him encouragements. He's motivated to improve his painting as his ambition has been broken down into baby action plans. It's not important whether he becomes a famous artist eventually. The message we are bringing across is if he works towards it, he is a step closer to his dream and motivated to work even harder.
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
No tuition please
I'm praying that my children can be tuition-free at least until PSLE. I didn't attend a day of tuition in my school life and survived this crazy educational system. But I understand that climate has changed over the years. Instead of minority taking tuitions, it's the reverse in today's context.
How to keep my kids tuition-free? This is my plan. I plan to coach them in their school work when necessary but not over-prepare them ahead of school syllabus. I plan to read and write with them or expect them to read more in their free time when I'm not around to supervise. I plan to bring them out to play more to prevent myopia. This may sound out of point, but I think worklife balance should be cultivated from young. We need to be their role model who play hard and work even harder.
I've heard horror stories of P4 maths and heuristics taking over algebra. I haven't figured out what heuristics is all about. In my era, I always start my problem sum solving with "let it be x" and end with "x=?". At P1, my son is comfortable with number bonds & grasping concept of simple multiplication. I won't be coaching him in heuristics as I have no idea how it works. But I know the importance of reading and comprehension of problem sums starts from P1.
I've heard potato children failing Chinese and memorizing composition to pass. Although we don't fall under that category, reading Chinese books and speaking mandarin should suffice at this stage. I will continue to look for interesting Chinese books to entice the boy to read on his own, which I'm not too successful yet.
Science only comes into the picture in upper primary. I reckon that my son won't have much problem as he likes reading non-fiction books on animals and subscribes to national geographic kids magazine. My girl may have some resistance with science facts as she prefers princessy novels and fairy tales. We will factor in some science experiment activities if the need arises. We will continue to explore parks and zoo to appreciate mother nature.
The journey is a marathon, not a 100m dash. I hope we can smell the roses and enjoy the breeze along the way.
(afternote: I hope all parents have the right mindset when sending children for tuition as mentioned in this article http://sg.news.yahoo.com/blogs/singaporescene/things-consider-sending-child-tuition-classes-102823408.html)
How to keep my kids tuition-free? This is my plan. I plan to coach them in their school work when necessary but not over-prepare them ahead of school syllabus. I plan to read and write with them or expect them to read more in their free time when I'm not around to supervise. I plan to bring them out to play more to prevent myopia. This may sound out of point, but I think worklife balance should be cultivated from young. We need to be their role model who play hard and work even harder.
I've heard horror stories of P4 maths and heuristics taking over algebra. I haven't figured out what heuristics is all about. In my era, I always start my problem sum solving with "let it be x" and end with "x=?". At P1, my son is comfortable with number bonds & grasping concept of simple multiplication. I won't be coaching him in heuristics as I have no idea how it works. But I know the importance of reading and comprehension of problem sums starts from P1.
I've heard potato children failing Chinese and memorizing composition to pass. Although we don't fall under that category, reading Chinese books and speaking mandarin should suffice at this stage. I will continue to look for interesting Chinese books to entice the boy to read on his own, which I'm not too successful yet.
Science only comes into the picture in upper primary. I reckon that my son won't have much problem as he likes reading non-fiction books on animals and subscribes to national geographic kids magazine. My girl may have some resistance with science facts as she prefers princessy novels and fairy tales. We will factor in some science experiment activities if the need arises. We will continue to explore parks and zoo to appreciate mother nature.
The journey is a marathon, not a 100m dash. I hope we can smell the roses and enjoy the breeze along the way.
(afternote: I hope all parents have the right mindset when sending children for tuition as mentioned in this article http://sg.news.yahoo.com/blogs/singaporescene/things-consider-sending-child-tuition-classes-102823408.html)
As easy as ABC
Our kids play with a variety of alphabet toys since they were born. From cloth books, magnets to stamps, they started recognizing letters without realizing they were learning.
Getting to know the letters is fundamental to phonetical reading. Immersing the child in the alphabet world is essential. Once they are comfortable with the 26 letters, you can start pointing the letters to them anywhere you go. From signboards to newspaper headlines.
Don't be too anxious to start with tracing letters until the child is ready to sit down on a task willingly. No amount of assessment books can replace the everyday adventure of exploring the environment. Play it out!
Getting to know the letters is fundamental to phonetical reading. Immersing the child in the alphabet world is essential. Once they are comfortable with the 26 letters, you can start pointing the letters to them anywhere you go. From signboards to newspaper headlines.
Don't be too anxious to start with tracing letters until the child is ready to sit down on a task willingly. No amount of assessment books can replace the everyday adventure of exploring the environment. Play it out!
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