It is just three days into school and I am happy to announce that Kah Yen is making very good progress.
I still remembered how worried I was on her first full day school when I learnt she did not take her afternoon nap at all. According to the teacher she just lay down on her mattress for two hours without closing her eyes. She did not drink her milk too. Teacher said it is normal since it is new environment, new routine, new bed (if you count the mattress a bed), but I couldn't help being worried.
So when she came back home, I went through her new routine with her again and told her she needs to drink milk and sleep just like all the other children. She said "Okay". I realiz she says "Okay" most of the time when I told her something but is that Okay really an Okay or not I am starting to doubt. Not that I don't trust her, but she is only two-year old, she may not have fully understood all my instructions, and even if she did, she may not be able to remember them when the time comes for her to follow.
Guss what? The next day, which was Tuesday, she drunk her milk and napped for one-and-a-half hour at school! I was way over the moon when I heard the report from the husband. When they came back home, the first question I asked was "Did Kah Yen sleep today?" and while the husband was happily sharing with me, Kah Yen squeezed in between us and looked up to me and very proudly she said "I also drunk milk milk you know?" She knew this was going to be my next question, she knew she'd make me happy because she had followed my instruction and been a good girl. I gave her my biggest hug and the most passionate kiss of all time.
The third day, Wednesday, she did the same. She is almost adjusted to her new routine. This is so much faster than what we and her teachers have expected and all of us are very delighted to see her progress.
Her appetite is increasing too. According to her teacher she finished her lunch everyday, the serving is the same for all the kids, some are even older than her. And when she reached home at 7 o'clock with Daddy, she could wipe away all the food in her bowl within 20 minutes, even before I could finish mine. She seemed so hungry yesterday she practically snatched the bowl away from my hands before I could mix her food ready. She had never eaten so well before and we are just, too pleased. The last two mornings she also woke up half-an-hour earlier than her usual timing and asked for milk immediately. She wasn't a big fan on milk too before that.
I figured one reason could be we had cut down her milk intake from 4 to 3. Other than the morning and evening feed, she used to have two bottles in the day - one mid-morning and one after nap, but now in school they only drink milk once before nap. Another reason could be lunch is too early and afternoon snack is not enough to last her till 7pm. I will observe her for another week before I feedback to her teacher on this. For now, I would like to think it is because she is growing and eating better.
She still goes to bed at 8:30pm in the evening, she still sleeps on her own, she still wakes up a contented baby. Maybe I am biased but she seems even happier than before when she comes back home.
I am really thankful for what's happening. We really did not do much except trusting in her, trusting in her teachers and most importantly, trusting in the Lord and praying.
And we are almost there.
Showing posts with label Childcare. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Childcare. Show all posts
Thursday, 10 January 2013
Tuesday, 8 January 2013
A new chapter for Kah Yen
Finally I can upload some photos of Kah Yen's first day at school. These were taken on the first day of orientation when I was there with her.
Looking calm and steady with her uniform and her school bag, only before reaching school though. Cried at the school entrance, refused to come down on her feet in the classroom, but eventually settled down to play.
Instead of sitting still and playing on her own, she enjoyed taking her toys and passing to others around her. She was trying to interact with other children - without a spoken word though, the typical toddler way.
Music and dance time.
Already making friends?
Despite the initial fear of a new environment, I can tell that she likes the activities and likes to be with so many children.
I hope she will adapt to the school really soon, she will make new friends, she will learn good behaviors and values, she will pick up new things and develop the habit of learning. I hope she will thrive. I believe in her.
Looking calm and steady with her uniform and her school bag, only before reaching school though. Cried at the school entrance, refused to come down on her feet in the classroom, but eventually settled down to play.
Instead of sitting still and playing on her own, she enjoyed taking her toys and passing to others around her. She was trying to interact with other children - without a spoken word though, the typical toddler way.
Music and dance time.
Already making friends?
Story time was her favorite. She sat still through all the books.
I hope she will adapt to the school really soon, she will make new friends, she will learn good behaviors and values, she will pick up new things and develop the habit of learning. I hope she will thrive. I believe in her.
First day of school, ALONE
Before I can even finish writing about the second and third day of oriention, the report of Kah Yen's first full day school alone - which was yesterday - came to me, comforting but making me worry too.
Saying goodbye at the entrance is still a challenge. She clung to Daddy and refused to go in. Thankfully the teacher at the front desk was both gentle and firm. She brought her in, guided her to the bathroom to wash her hands, and along the way distracted her with pictures of flowers and fish. Hence there was no meltdown.
She finished 80% of her breakfast. But when it came to lunch, her appetite seemed to have increased after attending school. She finished one bowl of Dory fish porridge, and when teacher asked her if she wanted to have a second bowl, she said yes and went ahead to finish it. The first three days she finished her lunch too, and the third day she was also given a second serving. Never at home did she ever ask for more rice! Mealtime was one of my greatest concerns before I sent her to school, but now I am so happy to see that she not only eats on her own, but is also able to finish her food.
There was no meltdown throughout the day. She did not cry much except after shower, the hair dryer triggered it. She had never used a hair dryer before and she was terrified by the noise and the heat. I totally did not expect they will use hair dryer on the children, if I do, I would have reminded the teacher that she is scared of loud noises. At home she wouldn't go near the washing machine or vacuum machine when they are on. She cried for very long but eventually was calmed down and went on with other activities.
What I did not expect is, she did not take her nap. When I called the school at 2pm in the afternoon, I was told by the teacher she did not want to sleep. She did not cry or make any noise though, she just lay down on her mattress the whole time. She had never skipped a single day of afternoon nap before, I really worried if she had the energy to go through the entire afternoon without her nap, but she did. When she came back home with Daddy in the evening, I asked her "Did you sleep at school today?". She said "No". I think other than the new environment, another reason could be she thought we are going to pick her after lunch and bring her back to sleep. That's what I did for the first three days since it was half day. Though we had told her on Monday she will stay there for a whole day and Daddy will only come to pick her up after work, I think she was still not able to fully understand the concept of time yet. I repeated to her again the schedule and told her she needs to sleep together with the other kids, to which she replied "Okay". Hopefully it won't take too long before she gets used to sleep at school.
Sleeping is the only major issue for now. The teacher commented Kah Yen is independent and well-behaved. She is also impressed that Kah Yen can understand and follow instructions both in English and Chinese. She told me she is confident that Kah Yen will adapt to the new environment very soon.
I am grateful for the teacher's comments and for her confidence in Kah Yen. I too believe that she will adapt in no time and she will thrive at this school. These few days I have learnt that there are actually so many details to take note in order to help young kid to adapt to a new environment and a new schedule, we have never known all these. I hope she will be patient with us and her teachers along this journey.
Saying goodbye at the entrance is still a challenge. She clung to Daddy and refused to go in. Thankfully the teacher at the front desk was both gentle and firm. She brought her in, guided her to the bathroom to wash her hands, and along the way distracted her with pictures of flowers and fish. Hence there was no meltdown.
She finished 80% of her breakfast. But when it came to lunch, her appetite seemed to have increased after attending school. She finished one bowl of Dory fish porridge, and when teacher asked her if she wanted to have a second bowl, she said yes and went ahead to finish it. The first three days she finished her lunch too, and the third day she was also given a second serving. Never at home did she ever ask for more rice! Mealtime was one of my greatest concerns before I sent her to school, but now I am so happy to see that she not only eats on her own, but is also able to finish her food.
There was no meltdown throughout the day. She did not cry much except after shower, the hair dryer triggered it. She had never used a hair dryer before and she was terrified by the noise and the heat. I totally did not expect they will use hair dryer on the children, if I do, I would have reminded the teacher that she is scared of loud noises. At home she wouldn't go near the washing machine or vacuum machine when they are on. She cried for very long but eventually was calmed down and went on with other activities.
What I did not expect is, she did not take her nap. When I called the school at 2pm in the afternoon, I was told by the teacher she did not want to sleep. She did not cry or make any noise though, she just lay down on her mattress the whole time. She had never skipped a single day of afternoon nap before, I really worried if she had the energy to go through the entire afternoon without her nap, but she did. When she came back home with Daddy in the evening, I asked her "Did you sleep at school today?". She said "No". I think other than the new environment, another reason could be she thought we are going to pick her after lunch and bring her back to sleep. That's what I did for the first three days since it was half day. Though we had told her on Monday she will stay there for a whole day and Daddy will only come to pick her up after work, I think she was still not able to fully understand the concept of time yet. I repeated to her again the schedule and told her she needs to sleep together with the other kids, to which she replied "Okay". Hopefully it won't take too long before she gets used to sleep at school.
Sleeping is the only major issue for now. The teacher commented Kah Yen is independent and well-behaved. She is also impressed that Kah Yen can understand and follow instructions both in English and Chinese. She told me she is confident that Kah Yen will adapt to the new environment very soon.
I am grateful for the teacher's comments and for her confidence in Kah Yen. I too believe that she will adapt in no time and she will thrive at this school. These few days I have learnt that there are actually so many details to take note in order to help young kid to adapt to a new environment and a new schedule, we have never known all these. I hope she will be patient with us and her teachers along this journey.
Monday, 7 January 2013
The first day of school
Year 2013 is going to be a year of changes for our family and for Kah Yen. To start with, she has just started school last week for three half days.
It was the first three days of orientation. I took leave to be with her. So how did I feel after three days? - Well, better than what I expected. Though saying Goodbye in the morning may still be a challenge for a period of time, I believe with the good routine in place and the caring of the teachers, she will be able to settle down soon.
The first day, we gave her breakfast at home. She cried at the entrance when the teacher asked her to sit down and take off her shoes for hand, foot and mouth disease check, I managed to calm her down. After saying byebye to Daddy, I carried her to her classroom. I too was a bit anxious for I did not know what to expect. When we went in, most kids had finished their breakfast and were sitting on the floor. Kah Yen refused to get down on her feet till I promised to sit down with her on the floor. To help ease her tension, I interacted with the other kids and guided her to interact with them. We shoke hands to make friends, we gave each other hi-five, and we even played row-row-row-a-boat with them. Soon all the other kids came to join us and it helped, Kah Yen started to run around with the rest of kids, to my great relief. I just sat on the floor and observed her.
There are only three new kids in Kah Yen's class (N1) this year, including herself. The rest of the kids were promoted from last year's playgroup. This is a good thing. It is less chaotic as I expected. No crying, no meltdown. The other two parents were just like me, trying their best to help their kids get used to the new environment.
Kah Yen finished lunch on her own, sat still at story time, went to the toilet with teacher and washed her own hands after that, interacted with the other children and danced, with me around most of the time of course.
We left after lunch and storytime since it was a half day orientation. I asked her if she liked school she said "Yes". I can't take the "Yes" 100% though, for it will be very different when she starts to attend full day and when we are not there with her. I just hope that she will get used to the new routine as soon as possible and starts to enjoy her school.
It was the first three days of orientation. I took leave to be with her. So how did I feel after three days? - Well, better than what I expected. Though saying Goodbye in the morning may still be a challenge for a period of time, I believe with the good routine in place and the caring of the teachers, she will be able to settle down soon.
The first day, we gave her breakfast at home. She cried at the entrance when the teacher asked her to sit down and take off her shoes for hand, foot and mouth disease check, I managed to calm her down. After saying byebye to Daddy, I carried her to her classroom. I too was a bit anxious for I did not know what to expect. When we went in, most kids had finished their breakfast and were sitting on the floor. Kah Yen refused to get down on her feet till I promised to sit down with her on the floor. To help ease her tension, I interacted with the other kids and guided her to interact with them. We shoke hands to make friends, we gave each other hi-five, and we even played row-row-row-a-boat with them. Soon all the other kids came to join us and it helped, Kah Yen started to run around with the rest of kids, to my great relief. I just sat on the floor and observed her.
There are only three new kids in Kah Yen's class (N1) this year, including herself. The rest of the kids were promoted from last year's playgroup. This is a good thing. It is less chaotic as I expected. No crying, no meltdown. The other two parents were just like me, trying their best to help their kids get used to the new environment.
Kah Yen finished lunch on her own, sat still at story time, went to the toilet with teacher and washed her own hands after that, interacted with the other children and danced, with me around most of the time of course.
We left after lunch and storytime since it was a half day orientation. I asked her if she liked school she said "Yes". I can't take the "Yes" 100% though, for it will be very different when she starts to attend full day and when we are not there with her. I just hope that she will get used to the new routine as soon as possible and starts to enjoy her school.
Thursday, 3 January 2013
Preparation for school - Part Two
So while everyone was counting down for the new year and celebrating with family and friends, I was busy preparing Kah Yen to go to school. Or rather, busy getting excited, then anxious, then worried, then all over the cycle again. It's a big milestone isn't it? And having heard so many stories of kids crying for two months before settling down, kids refusing to sleep on their own again after attending school, kids falling sick and having nightmares, to say that I am not worried is totally a lie.
I have read on the internet a list of things to do to prepare kids to go to school, by school I mean childcare/preschool/kindergarten. Here are some of the things I am going through with Kah Yen:
1. Bring her to look at the school before starting school
I brought her to the school two weeks back. She seemed to like the place and was excited about going to school. I was lucky because the concept of school is not something new to her. At our nanny's place, the two Korkors go to school from her place in the morning and came back after half a day, so every morning together with our Nanny Kah Yen will send them to their school bus and pick them back in the afternoon. When I told her she is going to school just like Korkor, she was thrilled.
The only regret is I did not let her interact with her class teachers, because they were busy preparing the year end concert with the kids. I should have let her say "Hi" to them and see if she likes them. However, she did interact with the administrative staff at the front counter and I will say she is a very gentle and loving lady. Kah Yen likes her.
2. Let her know what she will be doing at the school
The easiest way to do this is repeat and repeat. I kept telling her what she would be doing in school in simple terms she can understand. She soon can memorize them all. This was her answer when I asked her what she would be doing at school: "Read books, write, eat, sing and dance!" Hmm. she only remembered the fun things ah. I carefully reminded her she would take shower and afternoon nap at school too, she seemed a bit scared. Hopefully after seeing what the other children are doing for the first three days, she will feel comfortable about the shower and nap part.
Another better way to show young kids what they will be doing at school is to read picture books about school to them, there are many pictures books available. I took a mental note but then with all the activities of the festive season, I didn't even have the time to get the books from the library. So I had to tell her using my own words.
3. Show her the uniform she will be wearing
I am thankful Kah Yen's school uniform is so bright and striking. I can tell she liked it instantly. She commented excitingly "So pretty!" and then refused to allow me to take it off. I knew then I should take advantage of the uniform and get her excited about going to school. This is our repeated conversation for the next few days:
"Kah Yen, do you like your school uniform?
"Yes!"
"Do you want to wear it to go to school?
"Yes!"
Great! I think I am almost there.
4. Ask if there are things she wants to bring with her
I made a mistake at first. I told her she can bring her Baby Pooh to school. I thought it is good to bring since Baby Pooh is her "security blanket" and she can fall asleep better with Baby Pooh. But the school advised us not to bring any toys or beloved items, because other kids may snatch from her and it would cause conflict, also the items might get damaged or lost. Another important reason is also to train the children to be more independent. I totally agree. Hence I explained to her using terms she can understand and promised her that Baby Pooh will always wait at home for her to come back. When I asked her "Is that alright?" She said "Yes". She is really a big girl now. I still remember the times when she'd cry every time we forget to bring Baby Pooh with us when going out.
So instead of asking her what she wants to bring, I showed her the things she can bring. I put name stickers on her water bottle, her milk bottle and her milk container. I also sewed name tags on her uniform and her towel. When I showed her the name tags, she felt might happy these things belong to her.
... ...
There are other things such as telling her which day and what time we will bring her to school, what time we will pick her back, and who will be coming to fetch her etc, we are slowly telling her. I am with her for the first three days of orientation, after which Daddy will be the one to send her and pick her up. Hence I guess it will take her a few days to get used to the routine.
Let's hope all will work out well.
I have read on the internet a list of things to do to prepare kids to go to school, by school I mean childcare/preschool/kindergarten. Here are some of the things I am going through with Kah Yen:
1. Bring her to look at the school before starting school
I brought her to the school two weeks back. She seemed to like the place and was excited about going to school. I was lucky because the concept of school is not something new to her. At our nanny's place, the two Korkors go to school from her place in the morning and came back after half a day, so every morning together with our Nanny Kah Yen will send them to their school bus and pick them back in the afternoon. When I told her she is going to school just like Korkor, she was thrilled.
The only regret is I did not let her interact with her class teachers, because they were busy preparing the year end concert with the kids. I should have let her say "Hi" to them and see if she likes them. However, she did interact with the administrative staff at the front counter and I will say she is a very gentle and loving lady. Kah Yen likes her.
2. Let her know what she will be doing at the school
The easiest way to do this is repeat and repeat. I kept telling her what she would be doing in school in simple terms she can understand. She soon can memorize them all. This was her answer when I asked her what she would be doing at school: "Read books, write, eat, sing and dance!" Hmm. she only remembered the fun things ah. I carefully reminded her she would take shower and afternoon nap at school too, she seemed a bit scared. Hopefully after seeing what the other children are doing for the first three days, she will feel comfortable about the shower and nap part.
Another better way to show young kids what they will be doing at school is to read picture books about school to them, there are many pictures books available. I took a mental note but then with all the activities of the festive season, I didn't even have the time to get the books from the library. So I had to tell her using my own words.
3. Show her the uniform she will be wearing
I am thankful Kah Yen's school uniform is so bright and striking. I can tell she liked it instantly. She commented excitingly "So pretty!" and then refused to allow me to take it off. I knew then I should take advantage of the uniform and get her excited about going to school. This is our repeated conversation for the next few days:
"Kah Yen, do you like your school uniform?
"Yes!"
"Do you want to wear it to go to school?
"Yes!"
Great! I think I am almost there.
 |
| Kah Yen wearing her uniform for the first time |
4. Ask if there are things she wants to bring with her
I made a mistake at first. I told her she can bring her Baby Pooh to school. I thought it is good to bring since Baby Pooh is her "security blanket" and she can fall asleep better with Baby Pooh. But the school advised us not to bring any toys or beloved items, because other kids may snatch from her and it would cause conflict, also the items might get damaged or lost. Another important reason is also to train the children to be more independent. I totally agree. Hence I explained to her using terms she can understand and promised her that Baby Pooh will always wait at home for her to come back. When I asked her "Is that alright?" She said "Yes". She is really a big girl now. I still remember the times when she'd cry every time we forget to bring Baby Pooh with us when going out.
So instead of asking her what she wants to bring, I showed her the things she can bring. I put name stickers on her water bottle, her milk bottle and her milk container. I also sewed name tags on her uniform and her towel. When I showed her the name tags, she felt might happy these things belong to her.
... ...
There are other things such as telling her which day and what time we will bring her to school, what time we will pick her back, and who will be coming to fetch her etc, we are slowly telling her. I am with her for the first three days of orientation, after which Daddy will be the one to send her and pick her up. Hence I guess it will take her a few days to get used to the routine.
Let's hope all will work out well.
Thursday, 13 December 2012
Preparation for school - Part One
Finally Kah Yen is going to school!
I had a full taste of the difficulty of looking for a childcare center in Singapore. Before I had my own child I think people are crazy when they told me they start to hunt for childcare one year in advance, or even before the child was born! Now I think I will do the same for my second child and doesn't matter if you call me a "Kaisu" parent or not.
I only started to look for a childcare this year August after we confirmed we are buying a house in Punggol, Kah Yen was already 20-month old. I couldn't start earlier for I don't know where are we moving to and when. The timing was not perfect but I still have four months to hunt for a school if in order to send her next January. I thought it won't be that bad.
It was! Punggol is a new town. There are too many young families with children, too few childcare centers. After three months of calling, visiting and queueing, I only found two centers with vacancies. For some of the popular centers, my queue number in the waiting list is beyond 200, I think by the time they finally call me Kah Yen is well ready for primary one. For the two centers with vacancies, neither of them is a suitable choice, one is too far, the other one is over-priced. We are not looking for an IDEAL one, we just want a center that is nearby and within our budget.
I wrote a post about my idea of a good childcare center in August, I sounded like I was already an expert and had everything under control, but deep down in my heart, I was worrying, panicking, self-blaming and panicking again. Time is not on my side, AND, there is no plan B.
My panicking finally affected the husband, so much so that one day at work when he saw a center next to his office building, he walked right into it. And he fell in love with it instantly. Okay men don't really fall in love with something instantly like women do, they are not mushy as us, what I mean is, his first impression of the center was very good.
He has since visited the center twice and me once. Both of us liked it. The center has been there for 8 years. It is very near his office. The price is reasonable. The children look happy. They look like they are well-disciplined too. The teachers we spoke to are gentle and patient. The rooms are bright and spacious. It is right at the center of the heartland but yet it is secluded, away from all the noises and the traffic. The big playground in front of it is almost like the center's own. It is also right behind the library, so organized library trips are their pride.
At the start I was totally against bringing Kah Yen to near our offices. I am afraid the daily travelling is too much for Kah Yen, and there is constant pressure of knocking off on time. But after visiting the center, my mindset changed. Maybe travelling half an hour with Daddy each day is not a bad thing after all, a precious time for some Father-Daughter bonding. And while Daddy is in charge of picking her up, I can go back home straight after work to get dinner ready. Nobody needs to rush.
So last week I brought Kah Yen with me to the center to settle the registration, I was lucky they were preparing for their year end concert. With music and dancing going on, Kah Yen was able to relax and walk around the place on her own feet. Later Kah Yen sat on the floor with other kids to watch the rehearsal together, she looked like she is already one of them.
After we said goodbye to the kids and teachers, I asked her:
"Do you like school?"
"Yes!" she said.
"Do you want to go to school?"
"Yes!" was her answer again.
I am not sure if she fully understood these two questions, but I am just going to take "Yes" for a "Yes" and hope everything will turn out fine.
I had a full taste of the difficulty of looking for a childcare center in Singapore. Before I had my own child I think people are crazy when they told me they start to hunt for childcare one year in advance, or even before the child was born! Now I think I will do the same for my second child and doesn't matter if you call me a "Kaisu" parent or not.
I only started to look for a childcare this year August after we confirmed we are buying a house in Punggol, Kah Yen was already 20-month old. I couldn't start earlier for I don't know where are we moving to and when. The timing was not perfect but I still have four months to hunt for a school if in order to send her next January. I thought it won't be that bad.
It was! Punggol is a new town. There are too many young families with children, too few childcare centers. After three months of calling, visiting and queueing, I only found two centers with vacancies. For some of the popular centers, my queue number in the waiting list is beyond 200, I think by the time they finally call me Kah Yen is well ready for primary one. For the two centers with vacancies, neither of them is a suitable choice, one is too far, the other one is over-priced. We are not looking for an IDEAL one, we just want a center that is nearby and within our budget.
I wrote a post about my idea of a good childcare center in August, I sounded like I was already an expert and had everything under control, but deep down in my heart, I was worrying, panicking, self-blaming and panicking again. Time is not on my side, AND, there is no plan B.
My panicking finally affected the husband, so much so that one day at work when he saw a center next to his office building, he walked right into it. And he fell in love with it instantly. Okay men don't really fall in love with something instantly like women do, they are not mushy as us, what I mean is, his first impression of the center was very good.
He has since visited the center twice and me once. Both of us liked it. The center has been there for 8 years. It is very near his office. The price is reasonable. The children look happy. They look like they are well-disciplined too. The teachers we spoke to are gentle and patient. The rooms are bright and spacious. It is right at the center of the heartland but yet it is secluded, away from all the noises and the traffic. The big playground in front of it is almost like the center's own. It is also right behind the library, so organized library trips are their pride.
At the start I was totally against bringing Kah Yen to near our offices. I am afraid the daily travelling is too much for Kah Yen, and there is constant pressure of knocking off on time. But after visiting the center, my mindset changed. Maybe travelling half an hour with Daddy each day is not a bad thing after all, a precious time for some Father-Daughter bonding. And while Daddy is in charge of picking her up, I can go back home straight after work to get dinner ready. Nobody needs to rush.
So last week I brought Kah Yen with me to the center to settle the registration, I was lucky they were preparing for their year end concert. With music and dancing going on, Kah Yen was able to relax and walk around the place on her own feet. Later Kah Yen sat on the floor with other kids to watch the rehearsal together, she looked like she is already one of them.
After we said goodbye to the kids and teachers, I asked her:
"Do you like school?"
"Yes!" she said.
"Do you want to go to school?"
"Yes!" was her answer again.
I am not sure if she fully understood these two questions, but I am just going to take "Yes" for a "Yes" and hope everything will turn out fine.
Thursday, 30 August 2012
My idea of a good childcare center
I started to look for a childcare center two weeks back, I visited three centers so far, there are good and bad points and I have not made up my mind on which one yet. In fact I have called a few more to check on vacancies. It is indeed a difficult decision to make! In desperation I went online in search for other people’s feedbacks or advises, I ended in some popular local parenthood forums but I had so say the result was not a very satisfying one. Many people are just as unsure as me. Some are overly negative or criticizing, just because they had one negative experience, they talked bad about the center all the time. Hardly I can have consistently positive comments about any one center.
After I became tired from my online searching I decided to quiet down and reflect, what am I really looking for? What are the things that I hold dear to my heart? What’s the ideal environment I want my child to grow up in? After much thinking it became clearer to me. Prices and locations are actually at the top of the list, but before I start my search, I have already narrowed down the options base on my budget and my living location, hence with them excluded, below are the things that are really important to me, in order of priority.
(1) Loving and caring principal and teachers
Before you visit a childcare center, you call the center to make an appointment, and you would have a chance to speak to either the principal or the supervisor on the phone, that encounter pretty much can give you a first impression of how the principal and teachers are like. If I call a center and the principal or whoever is in charge is too busy, too occupied and too impatient to answer my queries, I am already not very keen to visit the center.
I called one center two times and I spoke to the principal and supervisor on each occasion and both of them gave me extremely good impression over the phone. They spoke gently, they were very patient answering my questions, and they are genuinely excited at meeting me up. To tell you the truth, this center is now my top 3 options even though I am yet to visit them next week, and the internet has very little information about them.
This is how important a good teacher is to me. I want to see childcare center teachers loving and caring, they also must be patient and encouraging, and they also need to be firm when it comes to disciplining the children, and they should be happy and passionate about their work and the children.
(2) Emphasize on good behaviors and values
Basically I want to see the teaching not just focus on intellectual development, but also emphasize on children’s character development, especially for the younger age group (Playgroup and Nursery). It is equally important as intellectual development and often it is difficult to correct and un-train later if they are not properly trained from start. Some of the things I would like to see are:
1. Be polite to people (Saying “Please”, ‘Thank you” and “Sorry”)
2. Be gentle, kind and caring to others (Helping others, sharing toys with others, show concern to a sick friend)
3. Be obedient and with good self-control (Be quiet during class, do not play toys when told not to)
4. Be patient (Taking turns for food/snack, taking turns to play a certain toy)
Two or three year olds are in the sense “social morons” because they are self-centered. Hence it is vital the childcare center preaches these values and ensures they are being emphasized in daily activities.
Of course these things are abstract and hence we can’t tell till we ask the teachers how they conduct their classes or we go for the trial lessons ourselves.
(3) Environment
Most childcare centers, at least those I have been to, are bright, cheerful and clean. The rooms are organized and you can see display of pictures and artwork everywhere. That’s great. But I would also like to see the place being quiet and homely. There is one center I visited, it was located at the ground floor of a multi-story carpark, hence the area is really spacious, but they do not have separate rooms for different classes, instead dividers are used to separate each class. Although it looked very pleasant and orderly, I was not keen in the center because I can imagine how noisy the whole place is going to be when class starts, especially from the K1 and K2 group, the children will never be able to learn to be quiet and focus. I prefer each class is in a separate room.
Another important criteria for me is spacious outdoor play area. I can’t imagine my child being confined in an air-con room for 11-12 hours a day. I myself will be bored to death if I do, let alone the little children. The ideal childcare center should have an outdoor playground, with organized outdoor activities daily, for the children to get some sun, to run about and work out themselves. Unfortunately a lot of childcare centers at residential blocks (HDB flats in Singapore context) do not have outdoor facilities; hence I am looking at a few centers at the private estate though they are further and slightly more inconvenient to access.
(4) Curriculum
When you have loving teachers and good environment, the curriculum becomes secondary. Most registered centers do have a well developed curriculum to cover every aspect of a child’s intellectual development, including language, mathematics, arts and craft, music and movement, speech and drama, some even have science and computer class at this young age. Different centers may have different approaches, like I shared before, being it multiple intelligence, or Montessori, or integrated learning approach, holistic approach, child-centered approach, etc.
They all look fine to me and I can hardly tell which is better than the other. Important thing is, I prefer childcare center to do more reading to children and to encourage a love for books. A love for reading will almost lead to excellence in study when the kids are in school. That’s what I believe. And I strongly believe in multi-linguistic, in this aspect, most childcare centers are doing very well. An equal amount of effort dedicated to both English and Chinese, is what I would love to see. Enrichment classes are good but I am most likely going to enroll her only from K1 onwards.
I am still looking and it seems so difficult to find one that meets all the criteria and expectation. Good luck to myself.
Wednesday, 22 August 2012
Flower expert
I have not done any research on childcare curriculums before I start to search for a childcare center for Kah Yen. It seems there are many different methodologies out there. Multiple Intelligence – heard about it from my own community involvement last time; Montessori – kind of know what it is about yet can’t fully comprehend it; others like integrated learning approach, thematic approach, holistic teaching, child-centered teaching etc all sound like the same thing with a different name to me.
Anyway, the fact is, every childcare center seems to adopt a different way of teaching, and since I am not an early childhood education expert, I decide to choose childcare center base more on location and environment and price, and as for the curriculum, I let my first impression guide me.
I went to visit this childcare center yesterday. The distance is a bit far from where we are going to stay but the environment is lovely. It is a three-storey bungalow located in a quiet private estate, with big outdoor play area, which is definitely a draw for me. Every classroom is bright and full of display of children’s artwork. I met a principal who is young and passionate and extremely friendly. I went there after a long day’s work and more than an hour of traveling but meeting her kind of made my day. Back in my mind I have already decided this childcare center is going to be in my top 3 list.
Everything seems to be perfect. Now it is time to find out more about the curriculum. I was told their approach is integral. They don’t have separate classes for Language or Math or Science, all these will be integrated into one single lesson. That sounds perfectly all right to me. Then she went on to explain that their teaching materials is also theme-based, which means each term there is a theme and all the teaching will resolve around the theme. For example, the theme for this term is Flower & Plant, and the next may be Transport.
I don’t know if other childcare centers also adopt the theme-based approach. From a layman’s point of view, I just feel that it might be too restrictive and the children’s exposure will be limited - spending a term of three months studying about one subject. Okay I am not a flower expert but how many things you have to teach them about flowers which can last you 3 months? Different species of flowers, different colors of flowers, flowers grow in different continents and seasons, how does a flower grow? How to grow a garden? … The list may go on a bit longer but you see, I have no intention of my child becoming a flower expert at two years old.
I am not an early childhood education expert but I did read books like “Magic Trees of the Mind: How to Nurture Your Child's Intelligence, Creativity, and Healthy Emotions from Birth Through Adolescence” (Okay, I did not read, I flipped through, ‘coz the book is too thick and too full of research and data for an ordinary parent like me to read it in detail.) I knew how powerful a child’s mind is. They can understand and absorb information much faster than they learn to talk. At two years old, they are learning 10-20 new words each day. And I can’t imagine they spend three months hearing only words like flower, garden, roses, violet etc everyday.
And talking about transport, Kah Yen at the age of one-and-a-half, already knew scooter, bicycle, motorbike, car, bus, train, truck and airplane (though she may not pronounce all of them accurately yet), in fact her interest in transport has grown further to lorry and forklift and even excavator, thanks to the new building project right behind our block. Just last week I borrowed from the library this book “Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site” – a delightful read-aloud picture book for the truck-loving toddlers and preschoolers, and she won’t get her eyes off the pictures.
I personally believe that our children should be exposed to more variety of reading materials at a young age. My idea of a childcare center should have different themes for different day of the week, and then repeat the same for every week. For example, Monday we can have flower or garden theme, from there we can also teach colors and weather. Tuesday we can have animal theme, from there we can teach numbers and also virtues such as kindness to animals. Wednesday we can have transport, from there we can also teach about sizes, for example scooter is small and motorbike is big, train is long and bus is short. Thursday we can focus on manners and behaviors by reading books on them. Friday we can be slightly flexible, we can even expose them to feelings and emotions. How does that sound?
So that I don’t have a toddler coming back from school asking me what a “Bouvardia” is. I knew nothing about flowers you see, I just googled that up.
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