Preparing for Primary School
It doesn't take one long to realize that Primary school education has evolved (and is still continuing to evolve) way beyond what parents were used to during their own days as students going through the Singapore education system.
It has become quite essential that children are properly prepared for Primary school education in the early years before they first enter Primary school. Failure to do so will result in a high level of stress for both parent and child as early as the first few semesters of Primary school life.
The Ministry of Education (MOE) offers a framework for Pre-schools, and even standards for operators to follow. The framework outlines the objectives of pre-school education for children to:
- Know what is right and what is wrong
- Be willing to share and take turns with others
- Be able to relate to others
- Be curious and be able to explore
- Be able to listen and speak with understanding
- Be comfortable and happy with themselves
- Have developed physical co-ordination and healthy habits
- Love their family, friends, teachers and kindergarten
While kindergartens (catering to 5 and 6 year olds) have to be registered with the MOE, the kindergartens themselves are operated entirely by the private industry and their syllabus and course materials are not regulated by MOE. This flexibility resulted in significant disparity across kindergartens in terms of the level of depth and breadth of coverage of material used for preparing children for Primary One. Not all kindergarten prepare children in the same manner for Primary school. Even within the same chain (eg. PAP's Children Foundation PCF) of kindergartens, the comprehensiveness can be very different depending on the what parents are willing to pay for.
It is therefore important for parents to familarize themselves with the Primary One syllabus in order to know how well the kindergartens are actually preparing their children for formal schooling.
Here is a set of articles which are some of the things you can do in preparing your child for Primary school education.
looking for K2 @jurong west
My son in entering P1 next year and I try to looking for K2 @jurong west,,,,,nearby blk 732,,,
any one know / advice ,,,tks a lot.
primary school fee
ps refer to MOE website for more info.....
http://www.moe.gov.sg/education/primary/files/primary-school-education-booklet.pdf
there is a diff btw S'porean, PRs & foreigner.....
Primary School Fees
Hi,
Me and my wife are PR in Singapore. Can share with me how much is the school fees and other misc fees in SCGS? or any other schools?
Thanks.
Regards
Enrichment Course for P1 Preparation ?
Hi, my kid will be going to P1 next year, could anyone give advise on what enrichment course to take / any quick learning methods teaching at home to prepare my girl to P1 next year within this few months as I'm working mother time is always insufficient for us.
Hi just wondering which
Hi just wondering which preeschool your son is in?
It's about time you change school
I went pass the school once to find some information but was put off by the 'unviting' approach. Any good school should have an 'open door' policy & be open about their methods and notices.
My son is currently attending a very good Preschool. It's bright and colourful and I get to see my son's and other children's work. Because of hygience and hand foot mouth disease concern, parents are asked to drop their child at the butterfly gate but if parents would like to enter, they just have to to have their temperature taken. The meal timetable, the weekly schedules are posted on the noticeboards for parents to view.
When I asked the principal about the curriculum, she was happy to share with me and even gave me some information. They even have free quarterly parenting talk for Parents which i don't know of any other centre providing. All the Teachers and staff are friendly and inviting which is why my son loves going there. it seems like i am advertising but really I am glad I switched school and sent him to this one instead.
Try checking out other centres. Who knows it may be your best decision yet.
Josiah Montessouri
I had 2 kids at Brightstar (suntec 3rd floor) u may want to check it out too. Apparently, the school does practise parents not to step into the centre too due to Hand foot mouth disease and H1N1 recently. However, they allow us for birthday celebrations. I am not saying that Brightstar is better, but since u are around that area, feel free to explore other 'competitors' in the region. There is also GrowingUp Gifted opposite Brightstar.
hello guys, can u
hello guys,
can u recommend me a tutor for chinese language of my son.
thanks
Did I make the right choice to send to Josiah Montessouri???
OverageMum
I am having doubts if I have sent my kid to the right school as I felt that the school seems to be operating behind "closed doors". As a parent, I was so anxious abt my kid's first day of school life. However, when we arrived , the school just wanted us to hand over our kid to them the first min we stepped in, and all parents were not allowed to step close to the classroom. All parents were put in a room to brief only abt what is "Montessouri method", there was no introduction of any teachers at all. As Montessouri method got no time table, till date, we only knew the term "academic" goal of our kid, nothing abt how our kid spent the 3.5hrs daily. For kid celebrating his/her birthday in school, parents are also not allowed to be in the classroom. Are all these pratices normal? Can some parents advise me?
My girl is in P1 this
My girl is in P1 this year. it is indeed very helpful if the child is equipped with the basics in K2 this year before he/she moves on to P1 next year.
My girl's kindergarten focus on hanyupinyin during then (I believe the focus during end K1 and first half of K2 was on hanyupinyin). Aside, her chinese speech and drama class she attends also focus on that last year. It really helps her alot when it comes to her chinese classes this year.
Since your child's kindergarten does not cover that, you may want to look for alternative course that covers that.
Just a suggestion :)