Unofficial Singapore Primary School Guide Blog

[momofvegasgirls]

Hi, I am new to this forum. My husband is currently in the running for a job offer in Singapore. Should he get it, we'd be moving from Las Vegas with our two young daughters, aged 3.5yrs and 16 mos.

I have been digging through all past post dealing with the Primary vs. Local School options and getting dizzy with the info .

Anyway, I came across this blog post that I thought I'd share with anyone looking into local primary. It list the top 20 and top primary's by area. I have not had a chance to read through all of it but it looks like a good place to start.

http://unofficial-sg-primary-school-gui ... apore.html

I thought private school here in the States was expensive ( my 3.5 yr old goes to a nursery school that cost me $433.00/mo 9am-12:30pm lunch not included) but when I startied looking at international options my jaw dropped.

My husbands potential employer will not be offering school fees with the package so we're on our own to make the best choices with the resources we've got.

At this point the only international option we could probably swing is Lycee Francais de Singapour, as my husband is a French national and we'd love for the girls to be fluent in french. BUT we need to get the girls their French passports first (they were both born in Vegas) to afford the lowest rates possible. I only speak english but would LOVE for the girls to be fluent in french. However this option still seems to cost oddles, especially the start up cost/deposits.

The middle ground at this point seems to be a local schools supplimented with language course at Alliance Francais and extracurricular swimming and arts, in a different environment.

Well, thanks for letting me introduce myself and ramble a bit! Looking forward to conversing a bit as this situation becomes clearer.

[merichan]

regarding the french school you have to hope for a free slot and it is not uncommun depending on the years to find even french nationals ending up in the canadian school ( if the money is around for it) or in the local system.

[boffenl]

Good research skills--the Unofficial Blog is new to me, but I definitely got a kick out of this:

Top Primary School in Clementi

To find out the ranking method, refer to the post on Top 20 primary schools in Singapore

NAN HUA PRIMARY SCHOOL
QIFA PRIMARY SCHOOL

The rest of the schools in the area are about the same in ranking.

CLEMENTI PRIMARY SCHOOL
PEI TONG PRIMARY SCHOOL

Now that's just funny! Most schools are about the same in ranking!!! My giggle for the day.

But seriously, I've heard the French school is great--and yes, the kids do become fluent. It was an option for us since my husband is Canadian and fluent in French, but we settled closer to my workplace and it would have been a nightmare commute. That community is very close here, and I can hook you up with the Frog group here (yes, that's their real name!) if you can't find them on the web.

But as you can tell from reading the other posts, if you start your girls early, the local schools are amazing! PM me if you need more info not contained in my numerous posts. Good luck!

[momofvegasgirls]

Thanks for the heads up on the French School possibly having no places. I'll see if my husband can call on Monday to suss out the situation. Canadian school is way out of our price range, though!

Boffenl--I will def. be in touch if this job offer comes through. Although, from what I have read, you really have supplied the board with a ton of useful information!

[madura]

Anyway, I came across this blog post that I thought I'd share with anyone looking into local primary. It list the top 20 and top primary's by area. I have not had a chance to read through all of it but it looks like a good place to start.

http://unofficial-sg-primary-school-gui ... apore.html

hah I don't really agree with this list.
There are quite a number of schools on the list that I would avoid at all cost.

[Garden Girl]

Hi- My daughter will be 4 years old in June. We are moving to Singapore and I am trying find (what we call in the States) a pre-school. I am shying away from the International Schools because of the cost. We are strongly considering looking at local schools where our daughter can learn another language. Can some one please tell me if she should be going to Kindergarten or primary school?

[therat]

Primary school is from 7 yrs old onward
Kindergarten is for 5 - 6 yrs old.

Since your child only 4 yrs old. It will be Nursery class

[Garden Girl]

Thank you so very much. That is one less concern I have in my school search.

[therat]

http://unofficial-sg-primary-school-gui ... apore.html

wondering who wrote this blog.

Don't put too much trust on this blog.

Some of the school I don't even bother to shortlist when I enroll my kid.

Want to know which school is famous. Look at the enrollment rate during Phase 2B and 2C. Which school need to ballot during Phase 2B. That school is famous.
Which school need to ballot during Phase 2C within 1 km.

If there is still seat left after Phase 2C, ask yourself. WHY?

[tjwonders]

Garden Girl, Most Kindergartens here have programmes from Nursery to K2 (4 yrs to 6 yrs). Many churches have them too and mosques. there are also many in the housing estates and workplaces. I went to good shepeard kindergarten In the East Coast Area and I loved it! the teachers were very caring and I learnt a lot. The transition to the school was quick and easy because its a very small school and everyone knows each other.I made many friends whom I am still in contact with today! and they had a special class area for Mandarin classes and great play area and they also have school buses for the kids.We also had concerts/graduations and sports days each year. definitely the best days of my school life. I'm 16 now. and that was 10 years ago but I can still remember every bit of it! My 2 sisters went there too. It has a mix of expats and locals and yes, it is still around. I just passed by it recently!