I have no problems to understand that you need to fit the kids to the system but it does not change the simple fact that this is some form of social pathology.jannalin wrote:Childhood doesn't stop at pre-school level, it shld continue all the way to primary level. Sooner or later most kids will need tuition in upper primary level coz the level of difficulty sometimes we parents can't cope too. Wat we can do to give them the God-given childhood is to delay the extra tuition needed as long as possible. This can only be done if we start early and i mean if parents can spare the time is to start early by doing it THEMSELVES.
Mad Scientist wrote:Try Montessori. Or the British Council but I am not sure of the age criteria.
Honestly he is too young and your concern is so much overwhelm by the going perception of "Kiasuism" in Singapore. Relax.. Let him have time to be kids... Kids needs to be kids. Being kids, slow or fast learners are to be expected. They will manage to grasp while playing with other kids.
I am a parent too , my kids have grown up hence I understand your concern.
jannalin wrote:Hi, there's is a reason why parents are in this frantic craze. I'm not sure are you local. But if you are and hv kids in primary school, you will understand why.
There are so many kids having tuition twice a week or more once they enter primary 1, on top of the long school hours they have or even weekends. Do you how tiring it is for the kids and i'm thankful my girl is spared from it. Their childhood seem to end at 6 yrs old. In pre-school it seemed like there's not much pressure but once you enter Primary 1, all the bombastic english and spelling and complicating maths sums will be thrown into your kid's face. Even tho now they are using stella education for english, in the end when kids move to upper primary and ultimate need to face PSLE, they will be tested beyond textbook level. This problem has been highlighted in other forum. Even when i'm doing my diploma course, we notice this big gap btw pre-school and primary school, it's frustrating but this is Singapore education system. So what we can do is to allow our child to learn early yet stress-free. This can only be done at home. Tat's why i encourage parents to be trained in phonics and teach their own kids themselves.
Many parents spoke to me tat at K2, their kids can't read well and had problem doing spelling. And they worry becoz the kids are entering formal schooling which are mostly academic based. Many children learn reading or spelling by memory and when they are in Pri 1 and given a longer list of words to spell plus other subjects, using memory is agonising and Stressful. Tat's why understanding phonics is definitely helpful.
I started my 2 kids early, teaching them phonics in a fun way MYSELF plus lots of reading not the kiasu way of throwing them into enrichment programmes...we have fun, they enjoyed, it's good bonding time in an educational way and both able to read well by 4. Once they are able to read, we can relax and from 4 to 6 yrs old, is the time to expand their non-academic talent like music or arts etc. Once they can read, they will be able to write well by K2, it will be a smooth transition once they enter Pri 1 tat's why my gal now at P2 has a lot of time to play (that's childhood) and academically just do homework, no tuition and very little assessment given to her and still can get good results. I attribute this to early learning in stress-free way.
For parents who are both working, i can understand that enrichment prog is the only means for them as they only hv tat much time and energy after long working hour. However, i'm also strongly agst putting kids into too much enrichment programme coz in the end time with the parents and their own time (childhood) is still the most impt.
I advocate teaching phonics yourself early not kiasu way, coz at 2-4 yrs old, there's no pressure in learning and kids absorb like sponge. But if a child start learning phonics at 5 or 6 and still struggling, it will be a continous struggle thruout primary level with tons of tuition and assessment books. Childhood doesn't stop at pre-school level, it shld continue all the way to primary level. Sooner or later most kids will need tuition in upper primary level coz the level of difficulty sometimes we parents can't cope too. Wat we can do to give them the God-given childhood is to delay the extra tuition needed as long as possible. This can only be done if we start early and i mean if parents can spare the time is to start early by doing it THEMSELVES.
My boys are in the overseas tertiaries, one in US and the other in UK. My daughters are going to join them soon once they finished their degrees and Masters.efrog wrote:Thanks, Mad Scientist. I become Kiasu because this is our first child I totally have no experience with kids. It was said manywhere learning a language should start as young as possible. I donot want my son miss the "good time" to learn second language and turn out difficult to catch up:(
Have your kids grown up in Singapore? Are they doing well with two languages?
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