Parents' Corner.

Taking Play Seriously

May 15, 2012

It takes just a minimum of 90 minutes every day, yet its compounded effects are profound on a child's development. What is it? Believe it or not: play. Associate Professor Michael Chia is the force behind the PRIDE for PLAY (PfP) initiative, which stands for "Personal Responsibility in Daily Effort for Participation in Lifetime Activity for Youth". This is a whole-school project that sets aside 20 to 45 minutes everyday for free or organised play for all students in school, as well as before and after school.

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Helping Children to Love Mathematics

May 10, 2012

Deciphering sales advertisements in the newspapers, dipping into a stack of playing cards and examining an MRT map for travel distances and fares - these common scenarios were just some of the examples highlighted by Ms Teh Wan, the vice-principal of Townsville Primary School, as opportunities for parents to help their children use basic mathematics concepts in everyday life. Ms Teh was sharing these handy tips at a seminar for parents organised by MOE and the Singapore Indian Development Association (SINDA) on 7 April 2012.

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Mums and Dads, for Education and for Life

April 24, 2012

Parents should not just emphasise and focus on academic results, but put equal weightage on character and values." This was the main message behind Mr Jason Wong's recent presentation at MOE's annual ExCEL Fest. His sharing session, "'Being Mums and Dads for Life", was held on 30 March 2012.

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Helping with Heart and Healthy Ideas

November 24, 2011

Simple gratitude was what got Mrs Susan Tan involved in the Parent Support Group at St Margaret's Secondary School. But this initial dip into a social network of parents and teachers proved so fruitful and fulfilling she has continued to play an active part in the school community even after her daughter had graduated.

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Parents in Action at Temasek Primary

September 15, 2011

For nearly a decade, Temasek Primary School has benefited from an array of classroom programmes provided by its ParentConnection Committee (PCC), whose members teach, coach and cook up various initiatives aimed at supporting the school's progress and strengthening the ties between parents, pupils and teachers.

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Helping Fathers and Children Build Stronger Bonds

April 7, 2011

High obstacles help to build deeper bonds between fathers and their children. Through outings where dads can do things together with their kids and meet fellow parents, Ngee Ann Primary School's Fathers Group is helping to cultivate stronger family ties and encourage more fathers to play a more active role at home and in school.

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Parenting for Resilience (Part 2)

February 3, 2011

Balance is the key to bring up a child with emotional strength and resilience. This was the message shared by Dr Josephine Kim to the audience at the Parenting for Resilience seminar held on 15 January 2011. Part 2 of our report on the seminar focuses on how parents can recognise signs of emotional trouble and nurture a balanced growing-up environment for their children.

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Parenting for Resilience (Part 1)

February 1, 2011

How to raise emotionally healthy children with the ability take the knocks they must face in life and bounce back was the subject of a recent seminar for parents, teachers and principals. 'Parenting for Resilience' offered valuable advice on how to recognise children at emotional risk and help them build a resilient spirit at home and among their peers.

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Parents as Partners in Education

January 5, 2011

In this article, Mr Ngoh Choon Ho, Principal of Hong Wen School, offers his thoughts on how parents can play an active role as partners to support their children's education and progress in school. This requires paying close attention to their child's needs and interests as well as healthy communication with the teachers and school.

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Navigating the New Primary School Landscape

December 24, 2010

On 20 November, 600 parents attended MOE's second Parents Outreach Seminar to learn how to navigate the changing primary school landscape. Held at Holy Innocents' Primary School, the Seminar offered an insight into new initiatives aimed at improving the learning experience of primary pupils, as well as a chance for parents to pose their questions and concerns to a primary school principal and MOE Parent Ambassador.

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A COMPASS for Dealing with Stress, Self-esteem and Sports

November 2, 2010

During the second half of the COMPASS Convention, held on 16 October 2010, Dr Daniel Fung - child psychiatrist and Chief of the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the Institute of Medical Health - gave a talk on building resilience in children and preparing them for the challenges in this century. Local sports legend Mr C Kunalan brought home the importance of sports in character development.

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COMPASS Tackles the Challenge of Technology and Engaging Today's youths

October 21, 2010

The challenges of parenting in the 21st century were tackled at the COMPASS Convention 2010, where educators and parents gathered to share and learn what makes today's young people tick and how families can continue to grow together in an era of greater technology and less free time.

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School bullying?

October 5, 2010

A child is in low spirits and refuses to go to school; or he comes home crying, and complains of being bullied by his classmates. There are also cases of parents going to school to lodge complaints of how their child was bullied in school. What are these incidents really about? How should parents help their child cope with such problems?

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Developing your Child's English Language Skills

September 27, 2010

Dr Elizabeth Pang - who oversees the Strategies for English Language Learning And Reading (STELLAR) programme that has been implemented in all primary schools - has 3 tips to share on how parents can make a difference in their children's English language learning:

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Gearing Up for Pri 1 (Part 2)

February 11, 2010

Principal Mrs Mary Ngiam (right) and MOE Parent Ambassador Ms Veron Sim (left) fielded questions from parents during the lively Q&A session.

On 30 January 2010, MOE held a seminar "Preparing Your Child for Primary School: A Parent Seminar", which drew over 500 parents. The two speakers were Mrs Mary Ngiam, Principal of Princess Elizabeth Primary School and Mrs Veron Sim, MOE Parent Ambassador. (You can read about their presentations in part 1 of this Schoolbag report.) After their presentations, the speakers fielded queries from parents in the audience regarding selection of schools, registration procedures and the educational framework set out for primary schools. Here are some of the questions that were posed during the Q&A session:

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Gearing Up for Pri 1 (Part 1)

February 9, 2010

Mrs Mary Ngiam, principal of Princess Elizabeth Primary School, explained the framework for primary education to over 500 parents.

If you were one of the over 500 parents who came for the MOE parent seminar "Preparing Your Child for Primary School" on 30 January, you'd have been welcomed by an enthusiastic display of talent by the pupils of Princess Elizabeth Primary School. There were rousing performances by the symphonic band, Chinese orchestra, string ensemble, choir, harmonica band, Chinese, Malay and Indian dance groups and the wushu group - setting the tone for principal Mrs Mary Ngiam's introduction to primary school education as the years of discovery.

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Getting Ready for Pri 1 - A Counsellor's Advice

January 15, 2010

Is your child starting Pri 1 this year? Don't be surprised, but even if your child's first few weeks were tear-free, it may take several more weeks before he or she settles into the swing of things. Mdm Evelyn Khong, who heads the Family Life Department at Fei Yue Community Services, shares her advice on how parents can make the transition to formal schooling easier for themselves and their children.

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Choosing a Secondary School for your Child - A Mom Shares What Matters

November 27, 2009

Isaac (far left) and Gillian (far right) with their mother Mrs Pat Chong and their younger siblings.

One fine day, you wake up and realise that your child's six years of primary school are almost over. All of a sudden, you find yourself worrying about the next important step: choosing a secondary school that would support your child's learning needs and maximise his potential.

Granted, many parents start to think about their options in good time. But the questions are still the same: how do you decide which school is most suitable; how important are a school's non-academic strengths and CCAs; and how much say should you give your child in choosing a secondary school?

It's said that experience is the best teacher. If so, Mrs Pat Chong, a MOE Parent Ambassador and mother of five, should prove a reliable guide for parents who'd like to hear how one parent approached the task with the varying needs of her children very much in mind.

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A Father's "CCA"

September 18, 2009

Mr Tan is a parent volunteer at Kong Hwa School, where his youngest son Keif is now in Pri 6.

Who says students are the only ones with CCAs in schools?

Mr Tan Lam Siong is the father of three children - aged 11, 15, and 17 - and the chairman of Kong Hwa School's parent support group, better known as the VSP for "Very Supportive Parents". Since last year, he has also been an MOE Parent Ambassador, giving talks at public forums to help parents prepare for their children's enrolment in primary school.

A lawyer with his own practice, Mr Tan says lightly, "Work can be boring so we need to find ourselves a CCA, like our children do in school. Volunteering in school is my CCA and it has been extremely fulfilling." This year, Kong Hwa's VSP has held a number of family outings, as well as hosted a Teachers' Day lunch for teachers and school staff. It will also be involved in the school's 10th anniversary celebrations later this year.

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Parents Take Over on Teachers Day

September 11, 2009

Ngee Ann Primary Teachers Day celebration

Form teacher Mr Mohammed Shahied gets a confetti welcome from his form class Pri 5 Honesty.

From 12.30 to 1.30 p.m. on the eve of Teachers Day, the scene at Ngee Ann Primary School was dominated by appreciative cheers and gleeful laughter. In one classroom, a teacher had to dance - his penalty for not guessing the Pictionary word within the given time. A few doors away, another teacher was swaying his hips vigorously in a vain attempt to keep a hula hoop from falling to the ground.

One floor up, principal Mrs Cheng Huey Teng was being entertained by a two-person recorder-and-erhu ensemble. Two doors down, a group of teachers was confounded by a pupil performing clever card tricks. In another classroom, a group of four pupils was grooving to loud hip hop music, entertaining their classmates as well as teachers.

Add to that group games, warm hugs for teachers, and song items - and it was a raucous and riveting Teachers Day celebrations for all. The decentralised celebrations not only unveiled the diversity of talents among the pupils, they were also organised entirely by the school's Parents Support Group (PSG).

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Parents Take Centrestage at Canberra Primary School

March 3, 2009

Canberra Primary parents helping with the Chinese Language programme

Mrs Ong demonstrates the right way to greet one's elders during Chinese New Year.

Pri 2 pupils of Canberra Primary School could have been forgiven for thinking Chinese New Year had come a week early. During curriculum time in January, their Chinese language teachers brought them to the school hall - and there, brightly decorated, were six booths featuring Chinese New Year ornaments and goodies.

The booths were manned by parent-volunteers such as Mrs Chris Ong, whose son Axell Ong is a Pri 2 pupil. She was in charge of a booth featuring tidbits associated with the New Year. "We introduced the food to one class at a time, and I enjoyed the opportunity to relate to my son's friends at a different level when I spoke to them about the New Year goodies and their significance," she says. "Those who knew me as Axell's mother saw me as a parent-educator and presenter that day. We could still connect, but on another level."

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My Father, My Hero

February 3, 2009

A little gift for dads who brought their children to school on the first day.

On the first day of school, it's common to see many parents holding their children's hands as they accompany them to school. This year, Ngee Ann Primary School had a little something special for those fathers who showed up: a badge that says "You Are My Hero", which their children could pin on them.

Call it a small way of thanking dads for spending a little quality time with their children before the day's activities whisk their attention away. It was part of the Back to School with Dad project, an initiative of the school's Centre for Fathering. While most people think that mothers take the more visible role in their children's school matters, the Parent Support Group (PSG) at Ngee Ann Primary School has seen fathers stepping up as well - and would like to see more of it.

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Parents for Rugby - and More!

January 6, 2009

Mdm Fathima (pictured here with her family) is the chairperson for the St Andrew's Junior School Rugby Parents Group.

Do you stand by and watch when you see groups of boys pushing, shoving, grabbing one another's thighs and pulling at each other's shorts?

Of course! And it would be even better if you cheer them on with gusto too, especially if it's happening during a scrum in a rugby game.

That's what the St Andrew's Junior School Rugby Parents Group (RPG) did this year with an annual RPG Cup tournament, held to coincide with the Primary One registration exercise. Having an RPG Cup taps into the St Andrew's family of schools' long and proud tradition in rugby. Just as the hookers for each side win the ball during the put-in, the rugby tournament has won the hearts of the young boys as they watch their big brothers duke it out.

But it's not all about punts and passes on the pitch.

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Parents, "Don't Stress" the First Day of School!

December 30, 2008

Mrs Chong and her five children on one of their overseas holidays.

You could call Mrs Pat Chong a mom of many firsts. Many first days, that is. For when it comes to preparing a child for his or her big start to life in primary school, Mrs Chong could claim to know a thing or two. The 40 year-old administrative officer at a local polytechnic is a proud mother to five children aged 3 to 13.

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Pupils and Parents Share A Robotics Challenge

November 25, 2008

The NJRC is an opportunity for pupils to learn teamwork, entrepreneurship and creativity through robotics.

Many kids would spend the mid-term break in September relaxing at home or hanging out in the malls. But not this bunch at Yew Tee Primary School.

Instead, their holiday was a week of teamwork and dedication to train and prepare for the National Junior Robotics Competition (NJRC). Their sacrifice paid off when two out of six participating teams from Yew Tee Primary School made it all the way through the qualifying rounds to compete in the grand finals of the NJRC at the Singapore Science Centre.

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Giving Foreign Students a Home Away From Home

October 30, 2008

Vietnamese student Han Giang (centre) with her Singapore foster parents Mr and Mrs Samuel Tan.

Arriving in a new country means a new school and new friends. But a new family?

"When I first heard about the Foster Parents programme at Nanyang Girls' High School, I could not help but be sceptical," recalls Le Nguyet Han Giang. But soon after the Vietnamese national arrived in Singapore in January 2007, Han Giang was happy to cast aside her doubts and warm up to her new family of foster parents, "Uncle Samuel Tan and Aunty Soon Yin", and her foster siblings, Joshua, Beatrice and Hongjie.

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Family Life Takes Flight with Father's Wing at Montfort Junior School

October 23, 2008

Father-and-son bonding takes place through cybergames at Montfort Junior School's gaming corner.

Sleek racing cars zoom down winding streets. The drivers strain as they go bumper to bumper and narrowly miss the curb. Their intense concentration is broken by random cries of excitement as one car succeeds in overtaking its rival.

Sounds like Formula 1? In fact, all this action took place at Montfort Junior School, where four Xbox consoles let pupils match their gaming skills against their dads. And no matter who finishes the race first, every player is a winner in this hour of paternal bonding that takes places at the MJ iTech :) Corner.

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Educating Junior, Hand In Hand (Part 2)

October 3, 2008

Tune in to the new two-part MOE TV series in Oct.

Want to find out more about how you can be an active partner in your child's school life? Tune in to the next episode of Educating Junior, Hand in Hand to see how parents are playing their part to enrich the learning experience of both their children and their children's schools.

While Episode 1 focused on primary schools, Episode 2 will put the spotlight on students in secondary schools. Catch the show in your preferred language on the following channels: • Channel NewsAsia - Wed, 8 Oct, 9.30 p.m. • Channel 8 - Sat, 11 Oct, 10.30 p.m. • Suria - Wed, 15 Oct, 7.30 p.m. • Vasantham Central - Thu, 16 Oct, 7 p.m.

Here's a sneak preview of what you can expect to see in this installment:

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Thank You Teachers, Says PSG

October 1, 2008

Members of the PSG putting up decorations for the Teachers' Day Concert.

As Michael Jackson's hit song Beat It pounded from the loudspeakers, seven dancers in colourful outfits took to the stage. They quickly got into position and grooved to the music, while the delighted audience roared with loud cheers and energetic applause.

A typical Teachers' Day Concert? Hardly - for the performers were not students but the Dancing Mamas of Ngee Primary School's Parent Support Group (PSG). And this was just one of many numbers lined-up by PSG members to make the concert a memorable occasion for the teachers.

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Educating Junior, Hand-in-Hand (Part 1)

September 23, 2008

Tune in to the new two-part MOE TV series in Oct.

If you’re wondering how your involvement makes a difference in your child’s school life, switch on the TV next month and find out what other parents are doing. Educating Junior, Hand-in-Hand is a two-part series about how parents’ involvement in school affects the learning experience of their children. Episode 1, which focuses on parents with children in primary school, will air on the following channels:

Channel NewsAsia - Wed, 1 Oct, 9.30 p.m.
Channel 8 - Sat, 4 Oct, 10.30 p.m.
Suria - Wed, 8 Oct, 7.30 p.m.
Vasantham Central - Thurs, 9 Oct, 7 p.m.

Here’s a sneak preview of what you can expect in Episode 1.

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Family Bonding on School Fieldtrips

July 11, 2008

Mr Chua Chuan Seng and his daughter Hsien Hui

Mr Chua gets involved in his daughter's school activities whenever he can.

When I was a student, I used to look forward to any day when my parents attended school activities with me. So when I received an email from my daughter Hsien Hui’s school, Yew Tee Primary School, calling for parent volunteers to help with Pri 4 education tours, I signed up immediately. I’ve helped out at many school events before - from orientation sessions for Pri 1 pupils, to open houses or Sports Days, to excursions to the zoo. This time, Hsien Hui’s class was scheduled to go on a learning journey to Oh Chin Huat Hydroponic Farms. I had to take leave from work in order to go with them, but it was well worth the while. Hsien Hui was as excited as I was that we would be going on this trip together.

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Primary 1 Registration Exercise 2008

June 19, 2008

It's time to get next year's Primary 1 pupils registered for school.

The registration of children for admission to Pri 1 classes in 2009 will be open from Monday, 30 June 2008, to Thursday, 28 August 2008. Find out more from the MOE press release. You can also read more about registering your child for Pri 1, choosing a primary school and how to prepare your child for Pri 1.

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Cooking up a Storm

June 5, 2008

With the help of parent volunteers, pupils at Fuchun Primary learn the basics of baking a pizza.

“Are you ready to make this pizza?” “Yes!!” “Is it going to be easy?” “Chicken feed!” “Okay, later I want to try your pizza!” Under the watchful eyes of parents Mdm Doreen Tan, Mdm Norita binte Zainal and Mdm Susan Lee, an excited Pri 3 class at Fuchun Primary School puts on their gloves and spreads out chopped sausages, pineapple slices and mozzarella on a baguette with a base layer of mushroom sauce. An hour later, they’re off in another room, sewing hems on colourful handkerchiefs.

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Parenteers in Action

May 26, 2008

Some parenteers offer free haircuts for financially needy pupils.

Don’t call them a Parent Support Group. At North View Primary School, they’re the parenteers - parents and volunteers, all rolled into one, who work together in their Parenteers Schoolhouse in the school and have come up with all sorts of ways to chip in with what the school needs. They may not be superheroes with superpowers, but these parenteers have energy, ideas and a heart for the school’s pupils. “It aims to be a true grouping by parents for parents,” says Principal Mr Ng Yeow Ling. More than just a supporting role, the parenteers want to organise and spearhead their own projects, while offering networking platform for parents to come together to learn, share and serve.

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Bringing Parents into the Picture

May 14, 2008

The Managing Change for Sec 1s workshop is faciltated by parents.

From facilitating workshops to career guidance, from counselling to being a "praying mom" - these are some of the ways in which the parents at CHIJ St Nicholas Girls' School are involved in the school's counselling and guidance programmes. Programmes such as Managing Change for Sec 1s, ParentsInSync, Emergence and the Job Attachment scheme would not be as rich without the contributions of these parents. "It's a whole-school approach," says the school's Full-time School Counsellor (FTSC) Ms Low Li Eng. "As the saying goes, 'it takes a village to raise a child'. At St Nicholas, we hope that through the school family (village) of staff and parents, we can make the school environment one where every student is able to find motivation, challenge, comfort, joy, encouragement, consolation and strength."

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Registering Your Child for Pri 1

May 12, 2008

Coming soon - MOE's annual Primary 1 Registration Exercise.

It’s coming up to that time of the year again - July and August, when parents with children who are old enough to start primary school have to register them in MOE’s annual Pri 1 Registration Exercise To help guide parents through this process, MOE has published a booklet, Primary 1 Registration Exercise. Parents whose children are eligible for registration will receive the booklet from their children’s pre-schools from May. Here’s a quick guide to the different registration phases.

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Setting up a Successful Parent Support Group

April 11, 2008

Mrs Jane Koe (4th from left) with members of Ngee Ann Primary's PSG.

Mrs Jane Koe was instrumental in forming Ngee Ann Primary School’s Parent Support Group (PSG), which was featured on Schoolbag in January. Currently the PSG chairperson, she shares some lessons on setting up and running a PSG.

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Words, Sounds and Books Give a Boost to Literacy

April 3, 2008

Fun words games keep the LSP students at Yangzheng Primary School engaged in learning.

The word “television” is taped on the TV set, and around the living room, you see identification labels with “sofa”, “book shelf”, “window” and “curtains”. Step into the kitchen and there are more labels for “dining table”, “refrigerator”, “larder” and so on. This is Tim’s home and today he’s able to rattle off each name easily. But the situation was very different when he first entered Pri 1 a year ago. Then, he could barely read, and would stare in silence when a flash card was shown to him. How did Tim improve his reading skills so quickly?

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A Helping Hand for a Child with ADHD

April 2, 2008

Miss Tan Lay Leng worked collaboratively with the parents and teachers of a child with ADHD to help him improve his behaviour.

My journey with a child with ADHD has taught me valuable lessons. His parents, teachers and I walked through helplessness at first. The child’s impulsivity, manifested in behaviour that exhibited a lack of self-control, had escalated in intensity and frequency during the first month in school. He was getting hurt, his peers were getting hurt, and he was losing friendships quickly. He damaged his classmates’ property and took things that did not belong to him. No one wanted to be his friend. As he was attracted to gadgets, he was caught switching on the computers in several classrooms in the mornings. Once, he even cut an internet cable in the classroom because “the computer was not working”. His teachers were challenged. His parents were challenged. As his counsellor, I was challenged.

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Making a Successful Transition to Primary 1 (Part 2)

February 20, 2008

Mr Khoo is actively involved in his daughter’s education and believes that parents play a critical role in imparting life skills.

After a hearty tea break, parents returned to the auditorium for the second part of the seminar, “Transition to Pri 1 - What Every Parent Needs to Know”. Next up to speak: Mr Gary Khoo, the Senior Advisor of the Parent Support Group (PSG) in CHIJ Our Lady of Good Counsel. As MOE’s parent ambassador, he shared with the audience his experience of “Choosing a Primary School and Supporting Your Child in Primary School”.

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Making a Successful Transition to Primary 1 (Part 1)

February 18, 2008

Humorous anecdotes and useful tips from the various speakers helped to alleviate parents’ concerns.

While the streets of Shenton Way were almost deserted on a lazy Saturday afternoon, the DBS Auditorium was abuzz with excited murmurs and chattering. A crowd had turned up for the seminar, “Transition to Pri 1 - What Every Parent Needs to Know”, and they were all eager to glean insights and tips from the speakers. Over the next four hours, this crowd of more than two hundred parents was given a lot of food for thought. Experts in pre-school education, a primary school principal and a parent himself were on hand to share their thoughts on how to help children prepare for primary school education.

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What Being a Parent Volunteer Has Done for Me

February 1, 2008

Mdm Kannagi Ibrahim has been a parent volunteer at Evergreen Primary School since 2004.

Research by the National Parent Teacher Association in the USA has found that students whose parents are actively involved in their education do better at school, regardless of their family income and background. Specifically, students with involved parents have greater academic success, better attitudes about school and fewer behavioural problems. Sounds too good to be true? Not at all!

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Primary Assurance for New Pupils from Parent Volunteers

January 23, 2008

Parent volunteer Mr Simon Teo directs traffic at the school entrance.

Come rain or shine, Mr Simon Teo and a few other parents are at the Ngee Ann Primary School entrance every morning, where they direct traffic and ensure the safety of the pupils entering the school. Mr Teo has been at the task for two years now and is just one of the many dedicated parents in the Parents Support Group (PSG) at this school. This year, the PSG members took on a new task: helping the Pri 1 pupils settle into the school when it reopened on 2 January.

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The First Day of School for My Children

December 26, 2007

Mr Abdul Rahim B with his wife and children.

The first day of primary school must be a big day for children - or so we thought! But try asking them and you'll be surprised by what they tell you. After all, most kids in Singapore would have attended playschool, nursery or at least two years of kindergarten before they enter Pri 1. Nevertheless, I have "prepared" not one but three daughters for the first day of primary school over the last seven years; they attended Pri 1 in 2007, 2003 and 2000. Let me share my experiences.

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Let’s Talk About Sex

December 5, 2007

A distinguished panel of experts offered advice at the COMPASS Convention 2007 on topics ranging from teenage sexuality to the risks of cybergaming.

Could a girl who has not yet had her first period get pregnant? Are two condoms better than one? Is it safe to play with a schoolmate who has HIV? These questions and more were posed to the audience at the COMPASS (COMmunity and PArents in Support of Schools) Convention 2007 on 3 November.

Raised during a presentation on “Love Them, Talk About Sex”, the Health Promotion Board (HPB) tackled the topic of teenage sexuality and parents who worry that telling the truth could open the way to youthful temptation.

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CCA Choices - A Parent’s Perspective

November 21, 2007

Mr Faezal Ibrahim spends time discussing with his children about their CCA.

“I like CCA because we study very hard and after school, it helps me get away from my studies,” says Mohamad Farezal Fadli Bin Faezal Ibrahim, who took up silat, a form of Malay martial arts, as his co-curricular activity (CCA).

His father concurs. “It’s an outlet for him to relieve stress,” says Mr Faezal Ibrahim.

As the 12 year-old boy is entering secondary school next year, both father and son have been discussing what CCAs Mohamad Farezal should take up. Some of the options they’ve explored: Silat, Air Rifle Club and uniformed groups. How did they narrow down their selection to these CCAs?

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Choosing the Right Secondary School

October 15, 2007

Secondary schools offer diverse programmes for students with different talents.

Still remember your child’s first day in primary school? Maybe you were initially worried about his ability to cope, then as he settled in, you began looking forward to his many firsts: first exam, first report card, first overnight camp, first school performance, first full marks for a test the list goes on. But before you know it, he’s waving goodbye to six years of primary education and moving on to a secondary school. As your child faces this new milestone, you must be eager to find a school that will continue to nurture and bring out the best in him. Short of gazing into a crystal ball, here are some things you can think about while deciding which six secondary schools you will choose in the coming Sec 1 posting exercise.

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Preparing and Supporting Your Child in Primary School

October 12, 2007

Primary school can be a fun learning experience.

Entering primary school is a milestone for many children. It marks the beginning of their formal education and can be a huge leap from the more relaxed setting of a kindergarten or pre-school. For some children, this change can be scary, especially on their first day in a big school building surrounded by unfamiliar faces. What can you, as a parent, do to reduce the level of anxiety and stress for your child and make it a pleasant and happy experience?

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Choosing the Right Primary School

October 10, 2007

The right primary school environment can help a child take his interests and talents even further.

How do you choose a suitable primary school for your child? Before you decide to pour in 40 hours of voluntary service, here are some other factors you could consider to help you in choosing a school that best fits your child.

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Tamil Website a Hit with Pupils

October 8, 2007

Colourful graphics welcome students to the Namnaadi website.

“Can everyone win a prize please? “How about different prizes? We’ve had the same one for two months already!” Feedback like this has kept MOE Tamil language website Namnaadi buzzing since its new look was launched in May this year. It has a huge following among its target audience of Pri 4 to Pri 6 pupils, while teachers have asked that the interactive games section be updated only bi-monthly instead of monthly, so that their pupils have more time to enjoy each game before a new one takes its place.

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Happy Learners in Happy Town

September 25, 2007

Blog, forum, e-magazine or educational tool - whatever way you call it, the revamped MOE Chinese language portal Happy Town is pulling in the visitors, with its cute and bubbly community town look.

Re-launched in 2007 after a revamp, the six-and-a-half-year-old site is now more interactive and has drawn an overwhelming response from its target audience of primary and lower secondary school students. In fact, in May 2007, a Lianhe Zaobao report listed the portal’s average monthly hit rate as 4.05 million, up 17 per cent from the 3.46 million it used to receive before its makeover.

But Happy Town’s new look is much more than skin-deep.

Continue reading “Happy Learners in Happy Town”»

Trekking the Himalayas with My Sons

September 7, 2007

Mrs Soh made it to the summit, with the help of her sons.

Crisp mountain air, magnificent scenery like something out of a National Geographic magazine - and 30 of us screaming for joy when we reached Dharva Top, a peak 4,150 metres above sea level. No, it wasn’t quite the typical family vacation, not when I was travelling with my sons on a school expedition to the Himalayas, organised by Whitley Secondary. While I was the only parent in the group, I thought the trekking trip would be a golden opportunity for me to bond with my sons, who are in Sec 2 and Sec 3. In fact, our bonding opportunities started well before we left Singapore, as I had to join the group for training sessions. But first we had to get there.

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Learn a Language, Build a Bond

August 28, 2007

Finger puppets bring Malay words to life.

If you happen to pass by a Woodlands Primary classroom on a Saturday morning, don’t be surprised to see pupils enjoying a language lesson - together with their parents no less! Besides simple things like saying “hello”, “goodbye” or introducing themselves, they also learn how to count, how to address people appropriately and even how to order food. All the better to interact with people of other races, we hope - and maybe even to score a bigger helping of food at the hawker centre!

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Sec 1 Posting Exercise - The Electronic Way

August 22, 2007

Parents, are you thinking about taking leave from work to submit the secondary school choices for your child? Here’s some good news: Come year end, you can submit those options on your own time, in the comfort of your own home.

This year, MOE is introducing the Sec 1 Internet System website, which will allow parents to submit online the secondary school choices for their child. What’s more, parents can also find out the posting results through this new system.

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Parents Get into the Thick of Things

August 15, 2007

Parents played timekeepers at the finishing line during the school's Sports Day.

From individual tutoring and counselling, to fun school events and even family-oriented Co-Curricular Activities, there’s a little bit of something for everyone; we’re not referring to teachers or school counsellors, but parents, and the many avenues they have to get to know our school better!

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Helping Children to Navigate Cyberspace Safely

July 26, 2007

The panel was on hand to answer to all queries.

What happens when a parent spots his Pri 4 son viewing a pornographic video on the Internet? “I was too shocked to react and didn’t know how to speak to him about the negative effects of watching such videos or viewing undesirable websites,” said a parent at West View Primary School.

Continue reading “Helping Children to Navigate Cyberspace Safely”»

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