I write a lot about H in school but not about L cos she doesn't give us any cause for concern. This year, L is attending mandarin preschool twice a week, and another 2 days at her yiyi's school. Her mandarin enrichment teacher is now taking the preschool class so we thought it'd be good for her to stay with the same teacher, hence the transfer. I must say I appreciate the flexibility given by the mandarin centre to allow her to attend only twice a week.
After her first mandarin preschool session, the principal called me. She said L was really good, very independent. It was her first unaccompanied class at the centre and she blended right in with the other children. Not only did she not cry or look for her nanny, she participated actively in all the activities. Mommy's good little girl!
We always knew that L is an independent child. She loves going to school, she loves participating in activities and she wants to do everything on her own. She can also be very bossy. Since her nanny still accompanies her to yiyi's school, I sometimes get feedback from her on L in school. Apparently my bossy little girl will not allow her nanny to join her and the other kids during circle time. "Aunty cannot sing, only I can sing!" She wouldn't even allow her nanny to sit with them "You go sit there!" pointing to some faraway corner.
But Nanny is always full of praises for L. She claims that L is the smartest, the most independent, the most outspoken in class, etc. but of course Nanny can be biased. It's all good if she's everything that Nanny claims she is, but one thing for sure, my little girl do need some lessons on good manners.
Friday, 11 January 2013
Wednesday, 9 January 2013
Communicating with your child's school
I believe it is extremely important for 2-way communications, between parents and teachers and vice versa. I must admit, however, that I'm not very good at doing so since we're pretty much 'outsourcers'. We've never really spoken to H's previous teachers in his preschool apart from the bi-annual progress report day (ok maybe another 1-2 times in addition over the course of one year). His previous preschool was extremely good at keeping parents informed about the kids, i.e. what they did in school, etc. So where am I heading?
In the last week or so since the start of H's new school, I find that parents-teachers communication is somewhat lacking. Although I'm not one for micromanaging, I must say I feel a little out of touch with the school. This is despite the fact that they have this changgih virtual learning environment in which all parents can log in to find out about everything related to the school and their children (but I find it more a public announcement platform than anything else for now).
Here are my big and not so big grouses:
In the last week or so since the start of H's new school, I find that parents-teachers communication is somewhat lacking. Although I'm not one for micromanaging, I must say I feel a little out of touch with the school. This is despite the fact that they have this changgih virtual learning environment in which all parents can log in to find out about everything related to the school and their children (but I find it more a public announcement platform than anything else for now).
Here are my big and not so big grouses:
- We've not been introduced to his teachers. I mean I know who his class teachers are (there are 2 dedicated class teachers for each reception class), but I have no clue who his other subject teachers are. In H's previous preschool, we were introduced to all the teachers taking his class by means of a short introduction in the welcome letter.
- We have no clue what the kids are being fed. In most preschools (or the better ones at least), parents are given a weekly menu so that we can be assured that the kids are fed wholesome food. I wasn't too bothered about getting the menu until I found out from H that they are given syrup as drinks and some purple jelly as dessert. This is really not acceptable since we're paying good money. The least the school can do is to ensure the kids get properly fed.
- We're not kept informed about what the kids are doing in (and outside) class. In H's previous preschool, we get a weekly update on the kids' activities. It is not that I really read them, but it's good to know that the teachers did do their work. Also helps parents to communicate with their child cos with H, whenever we ask him what he did in school, his answer is a definite I don't know.
Monday, 7 January 2013
First week of school
I must say mommy's really proud. H settled in rather well, and he seems happy going to school. Here's an account of how the week went.
Monday 31/1: This was Orientation Day. The kids were asked to go to school in their uniform and they had to bring along all their books (for safekeeping in the classroom). There was no lesson, the session was meant to introduce the kids to their class, teachers and friends, as well as to familiarise them to the school environment, i.e. where the toilets are located, the canteen, etc. I felt that the session was rather badly conducted (i.e. not very organised), in fact, I think H's previous preschool did a better job at running orientation. We also left feeling a wee bit concern over H's class teachers. But perhaps it was too early to judge, so we shall give it some time. H did cry a little during the orientation, and stuck to me during the morning tea break. So I had to give him lots of pep talk. Towards the end of the session, he was ok but I continued to pep talk him even into the next day.
Tuesday 1/1: Holiday, yay!!
Wednesday 2/1: First day of school. H was pretty good. I took him to class, he took out his stuff, put them into his desk drawer, placed his bag in the allocated area in the room, and took his seat (he already knows the routine). He also gave the teacher a hug. Since we were early I took him to the canteen for breakfast. Then came the poo-poo incident which reminded me I have to toilet train him. When we got back to class, I gave him a hug and told him mommy has to go to work. He said ok, and went into the class and took his seat without any fuss. Good boy!
Thursday 2/1: Second day of school. Again we were early so I took H to the canteen for breakfast. After that, I took him back to his class and said goodbye. Met a few other moms in the next class and we stood outside talking. When I was on my way out, I looked into H's class and noticed that they have rearranged the seating arrangement. H was seating all by himself. I thought to myself, this is no good since H is a shy kid and I was afraid that if he sits on his own, he may not make friends as quickly or easily. Must have a word with the teacher the next morning (since the class has already started I did not want to interrupt). So being a kiasu mom, I listed down all the things I wanted to discuss with the teacher... haha. Tomorrow is the last day parents are allowed in the school grounds so I'd better make sure I make full use of it. Hey, have to make sure we get our money worth right, since we're paying such hefty fees :-p
I wanted to know how H was in class, i.e. is he participating? Is he eating during the breakfast and lunch breaks? Is he socialising with the other kids? etc. etc. I also wanted to highlight to the teachers what we felt were important, e.g. to encourage him to participate and speak up, to help build his confidence, etc., as well as to highlight to them what H's strengths and weaknesses, etc. so they can understand and deal with him appropriately.
Friday 3/1: Today we left a little later so we were not quite as early (so no breakfast in the school canteen). H went about his usual routine of 'setting himself up' while I spoke to the class teacher. I was glad to hear that H does participate in class, and he's interacting with his classmates. And I was wrong, H is not sitting alone, he's seated with another boy Eugene who's a very active and talkative little boy. Good! That will help H get out of his shy shell. Sometimes all it takes is a little 'motivation' from someone else. The teacher also commented that they do notice that H is a very smart boy, but shy.
Saturday 4/1: Crash course on toilet training (since I didn't manage to do it on Thurs and Fri) and swimming. Luckily Friday's swimming lesson was postponed, will only start this coming Friday so I had time to get H's fear of the big pool out of him. Took H and L to the pool. L as usual refused to go into the baby pool while H refused to get into the big pool. After some coercion, he finally came to the big pool. I must say this is indeed a really big step for him to finally agreed to go into the big pool. He was grabbing on to me so tightly there was no way I could teach him how to use his hands and legs to paddle and kick. The saving grace was the ring floatie we got. Half way through the session, we remembered we bought a ring floatie and told kakak to go get it. H initially refused to use it, still holding on to be really tightly, so we gave it to L. She was a natural. H saw her swimming so effortlessly with the floatie that he decided he also wanted to try. And that was it, he finally let go and was really happy that he didn't need us to hold him. He was proud to be able to swim on his own, and we were happy that at least he's gotten the fear of the big pool out of him.
Sunday 5/1: I registered H in a Sunday school - Dhamma for Kids. Classes are held every alternate Sundays (twice a month). I thought it would be good for him to start learning about Buddhism or at least learn about good behaviour and values. It'll also be good for him to learn how to be more independent and confident. So how was the first class? The class was really good, but H, sigh, very disappointing. He refused to participate! Must pep talk him again. That evening, H wanted to go swimming again in the big pool. At least one of my crash courses worked, the toilet training bit still need some work :-)
Monday 31/1: This was Orientation Day. The kids were asked to go to school in their uniform and they had to bring along all their books (for safekeeping in the classroom). There was no lesson, the session was meant to introduce the kids to their class, teachers and friends, as well as to familiarise them to the school environment, i.e. where the toilets are located, the canteen, etc. I felt that the session was rather badly conducted (i.e. not very organised), in fact, I think H's previous preschool did a better job at running orientation. We also left feeling a wee bit concern over H's class teachers. But perhaps it was too early to judge, so we shall give it some time. H did cry a little during the orientation, and stuck to me during the morning tea break. So I had to give him lots of pep talk. Towards the end of the session, he was ok but I continued to pep talk him even into the next day.
Tuesday 1/1: Holiday, yay!!
Wednesday 2/1: First day of school. H was pretty good. I took him to class, he took out his stuff, put them into his desk drawer, placed his bag in the allocated area in the room, and took his seat (he already knows the routine). He also gave the teacher a hug. Since we were early I took him to the canteen for breakfast. Then came the poo-poo incident which reminded me I have to toilet train him. When we got back to class, I gave him a hug and told him mommy has to go to work. He said ok, and went into the class and took his seat without any fuss. Good boy!
Thursday 2/1: Second day of school. Again we were early so I took H to the canteen for breakfast. After that, I took him back to his class and said goodbye. Met a few other moms in the next class and we stood outside talking. When I was on my way out, I looked into H's class and noticed that they have rearranged the seating arrangement. H was seating all by himself. I thought to myself, this is no good since H is a shy kid and I was afraid that if he sits on his own, he may not make friends as quickly or easily. Must have a word with the teacher the next morning (since the class has already started I did not want to interrupt). So being a kiasu mom, I listed down all the things I wanted to discuss with the teacher... haha. Tomorrow is the last day parents are allowed in the school grounds so I'd better make sure I make full use of it. Hey, have to make sure we get our money worth right, since we're paying such hefty fees :-p
I wanted to know how H was in class, i.e. is he participating? Is he eating during the breakfast and lunch breaks? Is he socialising with the other kids? etc. etc. I also wanted to highlight to the teachers what we felt were important, e.g. to encourage him to participate and speak up, to help build his confidence, etc., as well as to highlight to them what H's strengths and weaknesses, etc. so they can understand and deal with him appropriately.
Friday 3/1: Today we left a little later so we were not quite as early (so no breakfast in the school canteen). H went about his usual routine of 'setting himself up' while I spoke to the class teacher. I was glad to hear that H does participate in class, and he's interacting with his classmates. And I was wrong, H is not sitting alone, he's seated with another boy Eugene who's a very active and talkative little boy. Good! That will help H get out of his shy shell. Sometimes all it takes is a little 'motivation' from someone else. The teacher also commented that they do notice that H is a very smart boy, but shy.
Saturday 4/1: Crash course on toilet training (since I didn't manage to do it on Thurs and Fri) and swimming. Luckily Friday's swimming lesson was postponed, will only start this coming Friday so I had time to get H's fear of the big pool out of him. Took H and L to the pool. L as usual refused to go into the baby pool while H refused to get into the big pool. After some coercion, he finally came to the big pool. I must say this is indeed a really big step for him to finally agreed to go into the big pool. He was grabbing on to me so tightly there was no way I could teach him how to use his hands and legs to paddle and kick. The saving grace was the ring floatie we got. Half way through the session, we remembered we bought a ring floatie and told kakak to go get it. H initially refused to use it, still holding on to be really tightly, so we gave it to L. She was a natural. H saw her swimming so effortlessly with the floatie that he decided he also wanted to try. And that was it, he finally let go and was really happy that he didn't need us to hold him. He was proud to be able to swim on his own, and we were happy that at least he's gotten the fear of the big pool out of him.
Sunday 5/1: I registered H in a Sunday school - Dhamma for Kids. Classes are held every alternate Sundays (twice a month). I thought it would be good for him to start learning about Buddhism or at least learn about good behaviour and values. It'll also be good for him to learn how to be more independent and confident. So how was the first class? The class was really good, but H, sigh, very disappointing. He refused to participate! Must pep talk him again. That evening, H wanted to go swimming again in the big pool. At least one of my crash courses worked, the toilet training bit still need some work :-)
Thursday, 3 January 2013
toilet training masterclass
I'm not referring to toilet trainning L although it's about time she gets toilet trained. This is about toilet training H. Now that he's in a big school, I doubt the teachers help kids clean up after they use the loo the way they do in kindy. Small business he's fine as long as he can pull down his pants, but when it comes to big business I doubt H knows how to clean himself.
This morning we arrived early in school again so I sat down with H to have breakfast in the canteen. Great mommy-son bonding to have breakfast together. Anyway, right after breakfast when it was almost time to go back to the classroom, H said Mommy I want to poo poo. Gosh! I knew I had to teach him how to go poo poo on his own but have been procrastinating since he usually does it in the evening or at night. But thank god his urge came when I was still around so I took him to the toilet. Problem is the school does not have dedicated toilets for the reception kids. The boys toilet is for all boys, young and old. Oops, no choice, mommy had to go in. Luckily there weren't any other boys in the toilet else it'd be embarassing for everyone.
I must remind myself to teach him how to wipe his a** tonight. It'll be a toilet training masterclass!
This morning we arrived early in school again so I sat down with H to have breakfast in the canteen. Great mommy-son bonding to have breakfast together. Anyway, right after breakfast when it was almost time to go back to the classroom, H said Mommy I want to poo poo. Gosh! I knew I had to teach him how to go poo poo on his own but have been procrastinating since he usually does it in the evening or at night. But thank god his urge came when I was still around so I took him to the toilet. Problem is the school does not have dedicated toilets for the reception kids. The boys toilet is for all boys, young and old. Oops, no choice, mommy had to go in. Luckily there weren't any other boys in the toilet else it'd be embarassing for everyone.
I must remind myself to teach him how to wipe his a** tonight. It'll be a toilet training masterclass!
Wednesday, 2 January 2013
H's first day in school
H is finally in a big school. I'm still not sure if we made the right decision, he's still such a baby and we're putting him through the stress of a big school.
Woke him up at 6:30am to beat the morning traffic. Left the house at 7am. The traffic was clear, not sure if this is normal or everyone's still having their break. Will try leaving a little later tomorrow. Since the traffic was clear, we arrived at 7:30am. H was the first one to arrive in class. As we walked towards the school from the parking area, I made it a point to show him where he'll be dropped off (mommy can't be walking him into class every morning, he has to learn his way), where he'll be picked up (you need to wait for po-po here after class, don't run around everywhere), and how to get to his classroom from the drop off area (remember yah this is the way to your classroom).
Amidst his calm appearance, I could sense that he was still a little terrified of being in the big school. I could almost sense him holding back tears although he didn't cry. As soon as one of his other classmates arrived, I told him I'll be waiting around in the canteen (oh here's your friend, mommy will be waiting in the canteen, you stay here and play with your friend ok). He seemed fine with the idea. Sat with another parent in the canteen till about 8am, then I went to check on him. He was doing colouring while waiting for his other friends to arrive. I went in and told him I had to go and that po-po will take him from school later. I then gave him a hug and left.
I hope he's coping ok. Unfortunately I have a lunch meeting today so can't pop by to check on him during lunch. Hopefully once the lessons start, he'll feel much better since he loves learning. It must be hard for him to be in class and not knowing anyone especially since he's not the proactive type in making friends. My poor little boy is forced to grow up. There's so much (living skills) he needs to learn, like eating and going to the toilet by himself, changing, etc. During orientation on Monday, he did not go to the toilet cos he didn't know how to take off his pants. He's so used to wearing pants with elastic band which he can just pull up and down that he doesn't know how to unbuckle his pants. Poor thing. I had to give him a crash course on buckling and unbuckling his pants. Then of course there's PE and swimming lessons, so he'll also need to know how to change into and out of his PE shirt/pants and swimsuit. Sigh... I guess we'll just have to take it one step at a time.
Woke him up at 6:30am to beat the morning traffic. Left the house at 7am. The traffic was clear, not sure if this is normal or everyone's still having their break. Will try leaving a little later tomorrow. Since the traffic was clear, we arrived at 7:30am. H was the first one to arrive in class. As we walked towards the school from the parking area, I made it a point to show him where he'll be dropped off (mommy can't be walking him into class every morning, he has to learn his way), where he'll be picked up (you need to wait for po-po here after class, don't run around everywhere), and how to get to his classroom from the drop off area (remember yah this is the way to your classroom).
Amidst his calm appearance, I could sense that he was still a little terrified of being in the big school. I could almost sense him holding back tears although he didn't cry. As soon as one of his other classmates arrived, I told him I'll be waiting around in the canteen (oh here's your friend, mommy will be waiting in the canteen, you stay here and play with your friend ok). He seemed fine with the idea. Sat with another parent in the canteen till about 8am, then I went to check on him. He was doing colouring while waiting for his other friends to arrive. I went in and told him I had to go and that po-po will take him from school later. I then gave him a hug and left.
I hope he's coping ok. Unfortunately I have a lunch meeting today so can't pop by to check on him during lunch. Hopefully once the lessons start, he'll feel much better since he loves learning. It must be hard for him to be in class and not knowing anyone especially since he's not the proactive type in making friends. My poor little boy is forced to grow up. There's so much (living skills) he needs to learn, like eating and going to the toilet by himself, changing, etc. During orientation on Monday, he did not go to the toilet cos he didn't know how to take off his pants. He's so used to wearing pants with elastic band which he can just pull up and down that he doesn't know how to unbuckle his pants. Poor thing. I had to give him a crash course on buckling and unbuckling his pants. Then of course there's PE and swimming lessons, so he'll also need to know how to change into and out of his PE shirt/pants and swimsuit. Sigh... I guess we'll just have to take it one step at a time.
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