Showing posts with label Scholarly Kids. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Scholarly Kids. Show all posts

Friday, 16 April 2021

The Littlest Girl's First Weeks at Preschool

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It's my own personal conviction that if given the choice, I would prefer to delay the start of my children's schooling journey for as long as possible so that they can have a carefree childhood at home. Once they start school, it would be a non-stop strive for achievement for the next 20-odd years of their lives! Hence, for the very short first 2 years of their existence, I'd hoped for them to spend it at home. This is the reason why my two oldest only started preschool when they were 2.5 years old (you can read about the Eldest Girl's first day of preschool here and the Boy's first day of preschool here). 

This was what I had explained to the Mum-in-law, who was getting along in years and, drained from having to keep up with my super active Littlest Girl, had requested for us to send her to preschool when she was about 18 months old. 

I struck a bargain with her that we will send her to preschool after she turned 2 years old, which was already earlier than her siblings. Thankfully, she agreed! #bestmuminlawever

Preparation

As you know, I'm no rookie when it came to preschool hunting. If you wanted to send your child to a preschool, you'd need to start the hunt at least 1 year before and indicate your interest before Sep/Oct of each year, which is usually when preschools start their enrolment for the coming year. 

I did my research during Phase 1 of the pandemic and registered my interest for my top 3 choices at ECDA's website. Thankfully, my top 2 choices contacted me in Sep 2020 and invited us for a school visit. 

For context, I live in a very mature estate and there are at least 6 preschools within our budget (which is not high considering we have 3 kids) that are within walking distance of our home. This is one of the reasons why the hubby and I bought our home: the close proximity to many good preschools, primary schools, secondary schools, polytechnics, junior colleges and universities (NUS is right at our back door and NTU a few stations away). Therefore, my experience may be very different from yours, depending on your home's location and the demand/supply in your area. 

School Visit

Both of the preschools we visited were housed in landed semi-detached houses, both with their own playgrounds. I loved that the kids can have play time everyday (unless it rained) as they didn't have to walk to the neighbouring park/playground to do so. 


We liked both schools but eventually chose the cheaper of the two. The school required for us to place a deposit of one month's school fee in order to secure a place; we can decide the actual enrolment month later. 

Even though it was so much in advance and quite a big sum of money, I felt at peace putting the deposit as I had faith that this was the right preschool for my girl. 

It was always the plan for Cousin E to be in the same school as the Littlest Girl so that they can grow up together (since they are born in the same year). When my Bro- and Sis-in-law heard that we placed the deposit at this preschool, they did the same even though Cousin E will only start in July 2021! They didn't want to risk not having a place for Cousin E! 😂

Start of Preschool/Childcare

Day 1: Thu, Eve of Good Friday

We decided on 1 Apr 2021 as the start date. Before we came to this decision, we actually debated on whether to let her start on the eve of a long weekend or on the Monday after. We eventually came to the conclusion that the former would help ease her into school a little bit better. 

The Mum-in-law had a lot of difficulties transitioning my two older kids to preschool, hence the responsibility to bring my girl to and from school lies with me. 

As I would need to walk about 10 minutes to her school, I was so happy to bring out my all-time-favourite stroller: Baby Jogger City Select from storage! Eventually, the Mum-in-law may need to push both girls home so we need a sturdy double stroller to do the job 😊


Before we went to school, I made sure to prepare her for the day ahead. I told her she was going to school, that she'd get to play with all her friends and most importantly, that I would be back to pick her up. It's very important to me that my children be mentally prepared for school even if you don't know how much they understand. Our children are smarter than we give them credit!

Anyway, the school took our first 'Check-In' photo to mark her attendance. They do this at 'Check-out' as well, in order to capture the person who came to drop off/pick up your child. 


All the pictures are uploaded to Little Lives, a website used by the school to help parents track their child's progress. 

As with my 2 older kids, I had expected to be allowed to accompany my Littlest Girl on her first day. But alas, due to Covid-19 restrictions, the school told me that I could not be present in the school. I did manage to take some pictures of her in her classroom before leaving. 



I do not believe in 'sneaking' off when the child is not looking as it breaks the trust they have with you. I informed the Littlest Girl that I was leaving and assured her that I would be back. She cried when I left! 😢

Just in case she needed me, I stood outside the school for about 15 minutes. When I didn't hear anymore crying, I went home. 

Although my girl was on full day preschool, the school recommended for the first week to be half day so as to slowly ease her in. Hence, I went to pick her up at about 12 noon. 


She cried in big relief when she saw me! Her teacher said she had her lunch and did very well for her first day. So far so good! 

Day 2: The Monday after Easter long weekend

We were slightly concerned that she might cry more as she had to go back to school after the long weekend but her cries were only for a moment. I remembered being very heartbroken when transitioning my older kids to school but for the Littlest, I felt very ok. I don't know whether it is because I have grown used to the cries or because she doesn't sob quite as tragically as her siblings (probably the latter 😂). 


When I picked her at 12.30pm, she was happily playing with her friends and only started to cry when she saw me!

Day 3-6:

The days after were pretty much the same. There was some crying when I dropped her off but she was willing to allow her teacher to carry her into her classroom. 

I'm usually the one who picks her up at 12.30-1pm as well but there was a day when I needed to go to the office, hence the Mum-in-law went instead.


Each day, her teacher would report that, other than being extremely active and a daredevil who enjoyed climbing on everything, she was adapting well. 

Week 2:

Since she was doing well the week before, we decided that it was time for her to try joining the rest of her class for their afternoon nap. Her teacher agreed and told me that she would give me a call if the Littlest couldn't sleep. If I didn't hear from her, it meant that I could pick her up at 3.30pm after her nap. 

Her teacher never called because the Littlest had no issues taking her naps in school! Her very experienced teacher knew just how to get her to sleep. We were very happy! We progressed to extending the time that we went to pick her; from 3.30pm to 5.30pm. 

It seems this little extrovert daredevil of mine is the most adaptable of my 3 kids! She could even walk to her class on her own without crying by the end of the week! I was so proud! 🤩

Week 3 and beyond

The Littlest Girl is not the easiest child to look after as she is very determined, fearless and has boundless energy! However I feel that her teachers understand her needs. This is to me the most important factor that I look out for in a school 😊

Now, whenever I tell my girl that we are going to school, she quickly puts on her 'school shoes' (the pair that she only wears to school) and says 'let's go'! 😍

So very thankful for such a smooth transition! 
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Friday, 14 February 2020

My Boy's Graduation Concert & 1st Month at Primary School

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It has become somewhat of a tradition to write about my kid's graduation from preschool and their first time at formal primary school education in the same post as I had done the same for my eldest girl.

Last year, we celebrated the boy's graduation from his childcare in the usual way at his childcare's annual concert. It felt like just yesterday that I was blogging about his first day at pre-school and now he's about to graduate!

Excited sisters in attendance
My boy with his graduating class

Although my boy does not particularly like dancing, we signed him up anyway so that he can learn perseverance and confidence.

One of the dance performances that my boy was involved in



I'm very proud of my boy for doing his best even though performing is not one of his strengths. He has come a long way since his first year in pre-school where he refused to take instructions from anyone. My boy has always been fiercely independent and has his own unique way of thinking. However, he has really improved a lot after going to pre-school and learning to follow rules and routines.

Our family photo to celebrate this milestone!

The boy took a break from school for the whole of December as we were overseas for most of December. I was so afraid that he will find it hard to transit to Primary 1 when the time came.

Although this was not my first time transitioning a child to Primary 1, it is still just as anxiety-provoking as every child is different. The concerns I had for my girl were very different from that of my boy.

For my girl, I was concerned with the fit of the school for her needs and her ability to wake up every morning for school because she is a night owl like I am. After 3 years in this primary school that I've chosen, I am very sure that we had made the right choice.

For my boy, I was concerned that he is literally 1 full year behind his peers, being born 4 days before the end of the year on 27 Dec. I was also concerned about his proficiency in the Chinese language. Even though he grew up with a Mandarin-speaking grandmother, he does not seem to have acquired the ability nor the interest in the language. We decided to enroll him in Chinese tuition even though I'm usually against sending my kids to tuition unnecessarily. In this case, it was absolutely necessary as he was really behind.

Prepared my boy's bag for school a week in advance

The boy wakes up together with his sister every morning at about 5.45-6am in order to catch the school bus at 6.20am. So far the boy is doing great, sometimes even better than his sister, who has a lot more trouble opening her eyes in the morning. I think it really helps to have a big sister to orientate you to taking the school bus and getting around in school. She taught him how to buy food and where to wait for the bus to go home at the end of school (she is a really great big sister!).



Later that morning, we joined all the excited parents to observe the very first morning assembly of our little Primary 1 kids. I can tell that my boy is still finding it hard to follow the structure of the school system as he is a free-spirit and generally goes 'where ever the wind takes him'! 😂

I'm really grateful to his form teacher, who has had to nudge him in the right direction, help him find his missing library books and patiently correct his misbehaviours.

He is such a free spirit that we almost couldn't find him during recess despite spotting my girl being a P4 buddy to a very cute Primary 1 girl right away. She was right in her element, being a good big sister to her junior. I'm so proud of her!

As for my boy, it turned out that his buddy had brought him around the school to introduce him to the school compound and we only saw him when recess was about to end. He seemed to be doing ok so far and we were happy with his transition.

I observed that my boy does better when he is given a lot of time in advance to learn something. Hence, I made it a point to teach him his spelling (both Chinese and English) at least one week in advance. That really helped him to learn a little by little, with a lot of repetitions to commit them to memory.

Nowadays our routine after dinner on weekdays (and sometimes Sundays) consists of me giving tuition to my 2 kids for at least an hour before they got ready for bed. If you've taught your own kids before, you'd know exactly how challenging that can be!

I usually focus on their weakest subject, which more often than not, starts with A LOT of tears and grumbling. Then it goes into negotiation, more grumbling and then dropping of their pencils repeatedly on the floor. This totally brings out the Tiger Mum in me and I would dish out demands and various consequences until they do what I say. It's tough, but I know eventually it will benefit them at the end.

Bear in mind that I do all this while handling a very active, sometimes cranky, baby and dealing with sleep deprivation due to disrupted sleep at night! I think I only survive everyday relying on God's strength!

It also explains why it took me so long to write my blog posts, including this one! 😩

It's only the first half of the first term of the year. I've still got a long year ahead... Wish me luck! 😐


~~~~~~~~~~

Our memories of past concerts:
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Wednesday, 27 December 2017

My Boy's London Bus 4th Birthday

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The year 2017 did not start out well for my boy in terms of school. He just turned 3 on 27 December but was fully expected to behave as a 4 year old would, like the rest of his N2 class.

I feel bad for him that he always needs to play catch up. However, I'm thankful to God that he has been coping very well.

He was able to read a lot earlier than his sister, recognise the spelled words of numbers and spell simple words. I was amazed that with help, he was able to read a simple book by himself independently! This has really helped him to catch up with his peers in class.


On the other hand, my boy has a long way to go to master the Chinese language! He does not like it as much as English. He also has his moods and would refuse to write or colour if he doesn't want to! *sigh*

Nevertheless, there's still so much to celebrate and be thankful to God for. He recently started to pee in the toilet and we therefore don't have to buy as many diapers (hooray!).

Since my boy loves buses, especially the iconic red London buses, we decided to have a London Bus themed mini party to celebrate his 4th birthday =)

This year I decided to relax and engage the help of my very talented BFF from D'Cor-d to help me with the party.

Party gifts for the kids in his class
Gifts for the kids in the other classes
I really love the wooden vehicles she got! The kids loved it!!
Very simple party for his friends in school

I gotta say, my BFF is really a genius in decorating cakes... Much better than me!

Really love the cake! So pretty!
Singing "Happy Birthday" and getting him to blow out the candle light
Left: The sister and I wanted to help but the boy was like, "noooooo";
Right: Helping him to cut the cake. 


Enjoying his chocolate hazelnut cake
(and I know this because he willingly looked at the camera and took this photo with a smile!) 

In case you are wondering, the kids are wearing matching customised t-shirts that the girl and I designed in London's Primark Oxford Street!

Matching brother-sister t-shirts

After the party, we brought the kids to sit the Sentosa cable car because the boy really loves riding the cable car. This is his 4th time on the cable car because we got the Faber License Membership (which gives us unlimited cable car rides), yet he is still just as excited!

Super excited to ride the cable car again!
With the daddy, who is really only doing this for the kids *laughs*

My dear boy,

I'm so thankful to God for you. You are fiercely independent, insist to do things on your own and can play happily on your own. On the other hand, you also love to cuddle and shower us with lots of kisses. Your delightful, loud and unreserved laughter, which I know you definitely got from me, gives me great joy everyday. I pray that you will continue to be happy, loving and a well-rounded child as you grow up. Mummy and daddy love you very, very much! 😘

Happy 4th Birthday!

~~~~~

Past Birthday Parties:
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Friday, 17 February 2017

Labels and Stuff from Bright Star Kids

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You know how I love putting names on my stuff so I really like the customised name labels that we got from Bright Star Kids. They also came just in time to label my girl's school stuff for her first year at Primary School.

The set of labels and height charts that we choose

There were many labels to choose from so I'll share those that we liked and therefore ordered. There are other combinations of course so do browse and choose the ones you like.

[1] Pre-School & Daycare Labels Kit (170 Labels)

Although the name says "Pre-School", I found that the labels included in this kit was suitable for my girl's primary school needs. The 170 labels consisted of Large, Small, Tiny, Feet Shoe and Iron-On Clothing Labels.

The process was pretty simple. Just type in your child's name, choose the colour and font and a sample of the label will be displayed on the right.

Choosing a colour from the list of colours
I later changed the colour to baby pink because I thought it suited my girl better
It's added to the cart!

The actual product (Baby Pink) is a lot pinker than what I chose on the website.

The actual label kit consisting of Large, Small, Tiny and Feet Shoe labels

Large, Small and Tiny Labels

Labelling my girl's primary one textbooks
The tiny labels were perfect for her stationery
I also used the tiny labels to label her shoes as the insole was too bumpy for the shoe labels

Feet Shoe Labels

The shoe labels come with a transparent seal that provides an additional protection for the labels
We bought my girl's school shoes from her school's bookshop, which meant almost everyone in her school had the same pair. To differentiate hers from the rest, we stuck the Shoe Labels on her insoles.

Iron-On Clothing Labels

You can also choose the font and colour of the Iron-On labels. My girl chose purple =)
It takes a bit of practice trying to iron something so small but was still manageable for me. I ironed a label for all of her uniforms.

[2] Essential Label Kit (90 Labels)

This kit differs from the previous one in that it does not have the Shoe and Iron-On labels (my boy did not require them). We chose Baby Blue for my boy because this mama loves stereotypical colours for my kids (whatever, I'm the mother ^_^).

Typing the name and seeing how it looks on the labels
I like the Baby Blue of my boy's labels
Labelled his new bag and water bottle

Oh yeah, I didn't just get labels for my kids; I got a kit for me too! I've been labelling all my stuff since Secondary school and I still do it because let's face it, my stationery will not find its way back to me if it's not labelled (people won't know it's mine you see). Besides, I love to see my name on my things! *grin*

My labels in Dark Pink

I was hoping for it to be more fuschia (my favourite shade of pink) but it was darker than fuschia. I still love it though =)

Labelling my work laptop so that I can distinguish it from the rest of my colleagues who have the exact same laptop =)
The hubby and I have the exact same electric toothbrush and we always get them mixed up. My label ensures that we always know which one is MINE!!! *laughs*
The Tiny Labels are perfect for stationery like pens

Love my kit! Why should my kids get all the good stuff and not me? =)

[3] Personalised Height Charts

Although their main business is labels, Bright Star Kids also sells other personalised products such as bags, water bottles, wall stickers, etc. They also have personalised height charts, which I thought was perfect to track my kids' growth without drawing it on the wall like we used to do at our old house.

My kids' personalised height charts

Initially I thought it was sticky at the back like wallpaper but it wasn't. I had to use 3M tape to affix it to the wall. I thought it could have been better if it was a wall sticker.

Left: Putting up the height charts in my kids' room;
Right: I got the vehicles design for my car crazy boy and a fairy one for my girl.
Marked their heights from a previously used height chart

The height charts can measure up to 172cm, which meant that you can track their growth till adulthood (at least I think I can for my girl.. my boy will likely be taller..). They are a really cute addition to my kids' room.

Do note though that it used to be that you only need to spend S$150 to qualify for free shipping but now you have to spend S$250. Hence, try to spree with a few others if possible to save on shipping.

Overall, I'm pretty satisfied with the quality of the labels and height charts, although I feel there could be more variety in the label design. If you like personalised stuff, why not consider Bright Star Kids' extensive collection? I'm sure you'll find something that you like =)


Disclosure: A gift card was received from Bright Star Kids for the purposes of this review. No monetary compensation was received; all opinions are my own.
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Monday, 16 January 2017

Girl's Graduation & First Week at Primary School

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I can't believe six and a half years passed by just like that. She started preschool four years ago and went through a transition from one preschool to another.

She adapted to her new school very well and made many friends. I was proud of her for being able to do well where ever she is. It was finally my girl's turn to graduate! We attended her graduation and final preschool concert at YMCA.

Tiger year doesn't have that many kids: only 2 kids were from my girl's school, the other two were from other branches.


Looking so cute in her graduation gown! My grown up and very beautiful girl =)
Accepting her scroll from her centre's director when her name was called

Definitely proud moment for us! I couldn't help but visualise that this is probably how she will look, albeit taller, when she graduates from university! What a day that will be for us! (#ifyoucanseeityoucanhaveit) =)

After the graduation ceremony, we watched the kids perform the routines that they had been practising for almost half of the year!

They were dancing to Elvis' rock and roll, hence the outfit
Enthusiastically waving the pom poms
Dancing and shaking
Rolling and swaying

My girl also got the chance to introduce herself and one dance to the audience. She had rehearsed it a few times and nailed it. No stage fright at all! #proudmama (^_^)

My girl with her whole school and her teachers
(it was a really small child care centre with low teacher-student ratio)
Great job girl! We are so proud of you!

A few weeks later, she had to say goodbye to her friends for good as it was truly her last day in preschool. It was just as sad for her to know that she will be leaving her friends to go to Primary One where she now needs to do "big girl stuff" like pee on her own, order food and count coins, all without the privilege of riding a stroller. She's probably thinking, "man, this Primary One thing does not sound fun at all.." I know right.. tell me about it..


I have come up with a longer list of Pros and Cons (couldn't squeeze all in an Instagram post) about how I feel about my girl going to Primary School just so that perhaps I can feel better about it. Well, here goes:

Pros

  • Paying ZERO school fees simply because we're Singapore Citizens 
    • Sorry to say this but we ain't like the rest of the non-SC who can run back to their home country if Singapore is ever in trouble. We're like stuck here for life so yah, we deserve this privilege! *laughs*
    • That's $700++ that we can save every month, which I can now use to send her for enrichment classes that she likes =)
  • Not having to send my girl to and from school
    • Yay for her $60/month school bus! =)
  • My girl learns how to be more independent
    • such as buying her own food, boarding the school bus, writing her homework in her notebook


Cons

  • When my girl has homework, it's like I have homework
    • her teachers send all the parents a message every time the kids have homework or spelling and I'll have to make sure that it is done
  • Having to give free tuition to my girl after I'm tired as hell from working the whole day
    • Granted, this does not change since I've been getting her to do Primary One assessment books since she started K2 but NOT because I wanted her to get a head start and be better than other people. No, I wanted her to start earlier so that this lazy mum can take it easy and not be stressed out so much when she actually starts Primary One.
    • It's really not easy being a Full-Time Working Mum, a Part-Time Blogger and a Part-Time Tuition Teacher *sigh*
  • Travels with my girl can only be done during school holidays
    • when everything is more expensive!
  • Having to wake up early
    • Ok scratch that. 
    • This one is only applicable to my girl and my mum-in-law as my mum-in-law is the one who sends my girl to take the school bus and fetch her back. She knows my girl will be late for her bus if I was the one who sends her to school. I'm a night owl and can't wake up before the sun is up! 
    • I know, I'm terribly spoilt (^_^)


Well, well, what do you know.. it's a tie! *laughs*

~~~~~

Anyway, from here on, I'll be talking about our Primary One experience without any photos as I would like to protect the privacy of my girl so please bear with me.

On 3 January, my girl woke up at 6am for school for the first time in her 6.5 years of existence. She had worn part of her school uniform, comprising of a collared T-shirt and P.E. shorts, to sleep the night before so that the mum-in-law has one less thing to get my girl to do in the morning. The girl is exactly like me you see; our brains don't wake up until 9am and even then, they're not fully awake.

If you know what it's like to dress a drunk person, you will know what it's like to dress a half-asleep, almost-like-drunk 6.5 year old weighing 22 kilograms. It's so much easier to just get her to put on her skirt (yeah, I get her to wear shorts underneath like the rest of us chor lor girls did back in the day. Some of you girls know what I'm talkin' about..). And thankfully, she doesn't even need to wear the skirt on days when there's P.E., which also means less ironing for me! Woohoo! *fist pump*

I mean, how great is her school uniform?! Especially her BLACK school shoes. I mean, no need to do white polishing like ever? Yeeesssss!! *more fist pumps*

Possibly one of the main reasons why I chose this school over another more popular, all white uniform, top school in the vicinity (not like we could get in or bothered to try to get in anyway).

The mum-in-law walked my girl to board her school bus while the hubby and I drove to her school to meet her there. All parents were allowed to observe the kids going through the school assembly for the first time. There were cameras and flashes everywhere, even during the national anthem and the pledge! Like hello, what kind of example are you setting for your kids?!?! *shakes head*.

The Assistant Head of Primary One was this young but very stern teacher who looked very sweet but talked like she meant business. She called out instructions to all the students and they all looked genuinely frightened of her. It turns out that she was my girl's Form Teacher, which made me really happy because I know my girl does better with strict teachers =)

The kids were then led to their classrooms and parents were not allowed to follow. We were to attend parent workshops and wait till recess before we were allowed to observe the kids again.

My girl was paired with a Primary 3 buddy who helped her to buy food. My girl was munching on her slice of pizza when she spotted us and came over to say "hi". Seeing that she was doing well, we told her that we would be leaving and will see her later when she's back from school.

While all the parents were anxiously watching their kids, we left for our date (we're chill like that), just the two of us, in an almost empty JEM where we had free flow wagyu buffet lunch. It was the best lunch ever! =)

The girl came home from school still pretty cheerful that she managed to survive her first day. I didn't want to douse her excitement but I knew it was going to get less cheery as the days go by. But well, we'll just take one day at a time...

I have to say that I do appreciate that her two Form Teachers make it a point to communicate with us parents either via Whatsapp or the app ClassDojo. They send us regular announcements and updates on homework. One of the two even send us photos and videos of the kids enjoying the lessons in class. I enjoy and appreciate all the photos she had sent.

The school's Principal shared with us that she has approximately 30 years of experience in education and has four kids of her own, proving that she is more than capable to lead this school. I sensed that she has a genuine love for children, which was very reassuring.

I am quite happy with everything so far and felt beyond a doubt that I had picked the right Primary School for my girl. Let's hope that years down the road, we would not regret this choice =)
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