Children of average ability

[shylyn]

Hi Buds


Thks for your insightful comments and pointers!! Definitely useful to many parents out there!! Care to intro yourself? Mum to?? Or a Sch teacher??

[buds]

Heyya shylyn,


I'm mumsie to two girls.
One in P2 and the other in K2.

To answer your question...
Every mum's a teacher ain't it?
A child's first teacher...

Well yes, i am a SAHM (Stay Home Mummy).
*You can view my profile under newbies -
Mummybuds : Heyloo all..

And I still consider myself an educator as I do
continue to teach free lance, ad-hoc, project based,
curriculum developer and workshop provider for
teachers and parents, at my own time when my
kids are at school or when hubs is home with them.

And i also tried volunteering for underprivileged kiddies
with my girls. Most of the students are not prepared for Pri 1.
Very sad (and scared for them) cos they're unable to read,
write and many more... And these students have the most
un-kiasu parents ever! Due to their plight, some of them are
like beyond caring... Its sad.

Here's my CV for your perusal!
Wuahahahahahahahahaaaaa!
I'll share my resume with you..

Having worked in all the early childhood kinds of
set ups - childcare, kindergarten, enrichment, etc
in Singapore and also an overseas stint..
I've settled on teaching my two kiddies on my own
with all that knowledge and experience I've gained
thru the years. Plus, I have no alternative caregiver.
That too was a factor for my resignation...
(On top of a gazillion other reasons of course..)

I have done circular typed kindergarten where teachers
are the sole directors of rote learning. I do have Montessori
background in childcare and also the yummy enrichment areas
where parents are extremely fascinated with... Heheee..

Personally, in my opinion a bit of good from everything like
childcare, enrichment or kindergarten do good
for parents and children alike.
Like the saying, \"Embrace the good, and as for the bad....?
Well you know what to do with it lah.

Just to share....... I have been in most of your shoes
(from posts here), from the ....... (here goes)


bullied wash backside assistant teacher,


to a scrutinized main teacher,


to more confident and trusted senior teacher,


to a reluctant centre supervisor,


to a (very scared) vice principal,
(very 1000000X scared of parents with the responsibilty on my shoulders)


to centre manager (head always first on the chopping block) :?:


and nooowww.....

A-HAH! The powerful kiasu parent ever!

The empowered kiasu parent who
can now do the complaining....
whining.... bossing.... fussing....
instead of receiving!

I ranked and file nicely, so I'm THEE MOST dangerous parent
to entertain when pre-school shopping!! Nothing slips the eye!
Hahaa! And i know a load of crap when an administrator or a
teacher of a centre tries to sell me their programme, so most
times I'm asked to help frenz and family with school visits or
recommendations. I do feel guilty about smiling ear to ear when
newbies in new centres try to sell programmes with limited ability
and knowledge to explain accurately to me - the parent. A little
giggle sometimes slip out too. Not to be rude but at times it does
tickle me how some centres try to pass off maaaaany things to
parents for the sake of an enrolment. That .... to me is kinda sinful.

My decision to join this forum recommended by a friend is to
assist parents where i can... when i can... if i can... So, i hope
i've managed to inspire parents in a way... Inspiration to me is
very important, to not stay dull in the job. Keeps one happy and
cheerful and challenged. Stay home mummies need some form
of stimulation somehow. Being inspired helps us diversify our
teaching and parenting methodologies..... without the screams.
:evil:

I still keep this gift i received from my first teachers' day celebration.
It says.....

A Good Teacher Explains,

A Superior Teacher Demonstrates,

But..............

Only A GREAT Teacher Inspires.

Aaaaawww.. Right?
Hope i can continue to be to be an inspirer.
(Wonder if there is such a word as 'inspirer'?)

So, Shylyn...
hope you understand me better now.
Your turn to introduce yourself okay?

Looking forward to it.

Cheerios.

[buds]

Heyya insider,


I ever got slapped too.

For multiplication.

It was too often that my tears just
couldn't trickle down my cheeks
any more.. Felt no more pain.
But the embarassment...

The teacher meant to humiliate
to make me remember. So, it
made me become a more creative
parent now, when i have to assist my
kiddies at home..

Until today,
I'll never forget 16 X 2...


Can understand how you feel.
My elder one had persisting phase
of dyslexia. The text for her dictation
i gave her wud be from right to left
entirely! It was a scary experience for
me! and for my kiddie, it must've been
really tough and confusing then.

Well, toughed it out eventually..
In most cases, just a phase.
With parents monitoring (dun just expect
to send kiddies to school and hands off..)
it'll ensure the kiddies get over that hiccup.

Parents must be pro-active.
Be involved in your child's development.
There's a solution to most problems. As
for correcting children, make the correcting
light-hearted, esp for the sensitive kiddies..
It will affect them in a way and hinder progress.

Tamarind,

Can try to be goofy when you realise that the
spelling has mistakes.. then, you act blur blur..
Say like, hey... let's check the spelling for
goat. Hmmmm... You wrote here \"goaf\". Let's
see, g makes the /g/ sound so we're good,
then oa makes the oe sound, thats right, but
ermmm... f somehow goes fffff.. Now which letter
makes the /t/ sound? I'm not sure.. Can you tell
mummy? So, after the sounds been fixed and
blended together to get the accurate sound, read
and write it together. Draw the picture of the goat
and colour together. Lastly, for emphasis on the
correct spelling, you may wanna try this..
Together, you and your kiddie can check the picture
dictionary so it'll seem that you were entirely not
penalising him for the mistake but searching for the
answers together.

Hope this works for you..

Btw, your kiddie is soooo not average for his age..
So, think the thread to the average ability should
end here... Hahahahahaa! Start a new one...
Say, All Children Are Unique post...

..... which, they really are.......


Cheerios.

[shylyn]

buds:

To answer your question...
Every mum's a teacher ain't it?
A child's first teacher...

Hi Buds
Oh yes..i definitely agree w u that e parent is always a child's first teacher..i guess i can see that in my boy, he models my way of speech frequently.

buds:

And I still consider myself an educator as I do
continue to teach free lance, ad-hoc, project based,
curriculum developer and workshop provider for
teachers and parents, at my own time when my
kids are at school or when hubs is home with them.

And i also tried volunteering for underprivileged kiddies
with my girls. Most of the students are not prepared for Pri 1.
Very sad (and scared for them) cos they're unable to read,
write and many more... And these students have the most
un-kiasu parents ever! Due to their plight, some of them are
like beyond caring... Its sad.

wow..impressive..so what do u teach? How do u go abt teaching/preparing the kiddos for P1? I guess there are all sorts of people..luckily, it's the rare few who are not worried abt their kids' future. At least these kiddies are still fortunate to hv people like you who care for them.

buds:

Having worked in all the early childhood kinds of
set ups - childcare, kindergarten, enrichment, etc
in Singapore and also an overseas stint..
I've settled on teaching my two kiddies on my own
with all that knowledge and experience I've gained
thru the years. Plus, I have no alternative caregiver.
That too was a factor for my resignation...
(On top of a gazillion other reasons of course..)

I have done circular typed kindergarten where teachers
are the sole directors of rote learning. I do have Montessori
background in childcare and also the yummy enrichment areas
where parents are extremely fascinated with... Heheee..

wow..u hv an impressive background..definitely still worth if u finally decide to restart ur career! I can imagine how much ur 2 kids hv benefitted frm mummy staying at home!!
Dont mind sharing what r e enrichment areas which u hv ventured in b4??

buds:

I ranked and file nicely, so I'm THEE MOST dangerous parent
to entertain when pre-school shopping!! Nothing slips the eye!
Hahaa! And i know a load of crap when an administrator or a
teacher of a centre tries to sell me their programme, so most
times I'm asked to help frenz and family with school visits or
recommendations. I do feel guilty about smiling ear to ear when
newbies in new centres try to sell programmes with limited ability
and knowledge to explain accurately to me - the parent. A little
giggle sometimes slip out too. Not to be rude but at times it does
tickle me how some centres try to pass off maaaaany things to
parents for the sake of an enrolment. That .... to me is kinda sinful.

I should ask u to come & inspect my boy's cc..hahaha..think u can definitely pick out a lot of unsatisfactory areas..hahah..but then again, I'm still w that centre for over a yr cos my boy & I are those who dislike changes..hahaha...but then again, in your opinion, which centre u were still on the whole, pleased w?

buds:

My decision to join this forum recommended by a friend is to
assist parents where i can... when i can... if i can... So, i hope
i've managed to inspire parents in a way... Inspiration to me is
very important, to not stay dull in the job. Keeps one happy and
cheerful and challenged. Stay home mummies need some form
of stimulation somehow. Being inspired helps us diversify our
teaching and parenting methodologies..... without the screams.
:evil:

I still keep this gift i received from my first teachers' day celebration.
It says.....

A Good Teacher Explains,

A Superior Teacher Demonstrates,

But..............

Only A GREAT Teacher Inspires.

Aaaaawww.. Right?
Hope i can continue to be to be an inspirer.
(Wonder if there is such a word as 'inspirer'?)

U hv definitely inspired me!! heheh...ur friends did the correct thing by recommending u to this forum..at least w ur help, many mummies will benefit from your knowledge & experience. Esp mummies like me..who r blur & first timer!! Hehehe...I'm still trying my best to be e Best Mummy to my boy..heheh.. :lol:

buds:

So, Shylyn...
hope you understand me better now.
Your turn to introduce yourself okay?

My turn to intro huh...my resume is not tt impressive as I hv mentioned tt I'm a 1st time mummy to my boy, who's 33 mth old.
When I say I hv no experience..I mean totally no experience as I’m an only child thus no experience when it comes to taking care of kids. So u can imagine the ‘toughness’ I went thru looking care of my boy when he was still a bb..luckily, I still had my hubby & mil’s help so I concentrated on playing with him & teaching him instead of the manual chores. I also read up a lot on taking care of bbs & currently, very interested in ways & mtds to educate, nurture and challenge my boy.
My boy is currently in N1 of MMI & he has been with the centre for over a yr..started with PG class & got promoted to N1 last yr. He is doing well..in fact, I should say, more advanced than his peers. To my family members & I, we felt that he has the mentality & maturity of an older child but of cos, certain matters, he will still act his age. Anyway..that is our personal opinion though many commented that he is very bright for his age.
I’m working in an industry that is totally unrelated to children..however, more or less on person to person relationship. Erhh..my brain come to a stop..maybe it would be better for u to shoot me questions instead. Heheh..hope to hear from u soon as well!

[tamarind]

EN:

Tamarind. At least he writes to you. That's a start. What you can do is to write him a short note. Make it fun, place it where he will see it. Reply to his message & use some of the words that he spell wrongly. If he reads it, he might realize that some of his words are spelt wrongly & will learn from it.

EN, buds,
Thanks for both your suggestions He is only writing simple words now, not messages. A few days ago, he drew a door then try to write the word \"exit\". He wrote it as \"aksit\", which sounds like \"exit\" using phonics techniques. I did not say that he is wrong, and I did not ask him to erase the \"aksit\". I told him to try writing it again as \"exit\", next to his word \"aksit\" so he can see the difference.

insider:

tamarind:

[
The problem is that he writes almost all the letters and numbers in mirror images. My mother just told me, that today she let him trace out \"2\" about twenty times. After he finished, he still writes 2 in mirror image

(

I used to write the number '2' in mirror image and was SLAPPED by my P1 teacher then. She said something like I was stupid that had repeated the same mistake despite being told and shown the correct ones.

I was made to stand outside the class when I handed in a correction page with her big '2' and many boxes of my reversed '2'.

Those incidence were so humiliating that I could remember until now.

I never scold or punish my boy when he cannot remember how to read or write words. I only praise him when he has done well. In fact, I praised him everyday. I also give him rewards when he can reach a certain level. For example, when he completed one level of the Ladybird key word reading scheme, I will bring him out to the ice cream shop or buy him his favourite toy. Reward and praise work well to motivate my boy. Although it still takes a lot of effort to make him focus for even a few minutes. But at least he does not reject learning at all.

buds:

Btw, your kiddie is soooo not average for his age..
So, think the thread to the average ability should
end here... Hahahahahaa! Start a new one...
Say, All Children Are Unique post...

..... which, they really are.......

It is perfectly OK to be average. I myself is of average ability. An student of average ability, who puts in enough hardwork, can also do very well. The key is \"practice, practice, practice\".

It is important that parents understand the ability of their child. A child who is not very bright, will take a longer time to learn, more repetitions, as well as a more effective technique. I don't use the white board, point to a word and ask him to repeat. I don't use flash cards. In fact my boy attended Zoophonics before and he learnt nothing from there. So I decided to teach him at home.

I printed out 2 or 3 letter words, for example, \"at\", \"an\", \"as\", etc each on a small piece of paper. I taught him to read the words once. Then I mixed the words around. I said \"at\", then asked him to pick up the word \"at\" for me. Then I said another word and asked him to pick up that word, until he picked up all the words. For the 3 letter words, I will give him the word and asked him to put under the correct category. For example, \"cat\", \"bat\", \"mat\", go under \"at\". \"can\", \"fan\" go under \"an\". So his itchy fingers always have something to do. Learning phonics is like a game to him. This method has proved to be very effective for him. In fact, I have originally planned to only teach him to read all the 3 letter words from 3 to 4 years old. But after about 12 months he has finished learning all the phonics techniques including the \"silent e\". I attribute this to finding the most effective method that suits him. Now he still likes to bring out the word cards and arrange them to play.

Teaching phonics is not enough. I also started him on the Ladybird key word reading scheme. These books repeat each word many times using different stories. Thanks to this scheme, he is now able to read pages with more than 100 words.

For an average child, if we are able to find an effective method that teach him, he will be able to learn very well. By drilling, I do not mean making a 4 or 5 year old child sit down and do the same thing over and over again for hours. In fact, I teach my boy for only 10 - 15 mins a day. But the same thing is repeated every day until he knows it very well, using the method I described above.

Government schools now require children to know how to read well and write in sentences before entering primary school. For an average child like my boy who needs many repetitions to learn something, I feel that it is important for him to start learning early, so that he has more time to learn at his own pace. It will be very stressful to wait until K1 and K2 and then cramp everything into these 2 years.

[buds]

Heyya tamarind,


When i mentioned that your boy is sooooo not average...
I meant he is already considered ahead compared to peers
his age. So, you are really not cramping his strengths. You
started him out early to ensure no last minute stress learning.

Yes. Primary 1 all words when you open the textbooks.
Very stress if child cannot read. Learning letters before
phonics helps A LOT. It assists in spelling or writing what
child can read or attempts to read from sounds the child
hears/tries to make out, around him.

For the word exit, the next time you go shopping or even take
the bus, show him the sign. He shud remember the next time
and won't make the same error. He's such a bright boy judging
from your posts on his personality. Boys tend to have shorter
concentration span so your daily 10 min to 15 min is soooooo
precious and an extremely conscientious effort on your part.
Pat yourself on the back for that. Having mummy or daddy
assist in home teaching is one-to-one and is way beneficial
than in groups. Esp for active children..

The letter \"x\" in phonics is pronounced as a very brief /ks/ sound.
And not a slow /k/ and /s/ sound put together.. So each time you
wanna blend sounds with /x/, must stress the briefness of it so child
will not be too confused between the two sounds.

Cheers.
:celebrate:

[buds]

Heyya shylyn,


Waaah. U reali virgin mummy!
Ok, good to know i've inspired one mummy here!
Happy... happy!

Enrichment Areas
I can teach are :

1. Phonics
2. Mathematics
3. Creative Writing
4. Speech & Drama

Your child 3.5yrs can introduce Phonics if you like.
But while you're home, coach the 26 letter alphabets
till perfect! Wud reali reali boost his writing skills.

By 4yrs to 4.5yrs, good to do Maths.
If younger than that they can't really grasp concepts.
And its reali tough trying to teach like place values
ie. Thousands, Hundred, Tens and Units to that age
range where the mind is still childish / haven't quite
matured.. But still, its not impossible if i have all my
parents co-operate with reinforcements. I usually try
my best to make effort with home activity stuff that
parents can do with their children. My sadness comes
when the folder is returned the following week with
the exact activity package un-opened / un-touched.


Takes 2 to tango..
In this case, takes 2 to math. Heehee..

Parents are usually sceptical of new teachers so i
personally find that if the lessons can be offered
in modular levels, parents have the freedom to
decide whether they wish to continue with me.

Even my parents / teachers workshop, I'll co-ordinate
the areas to cover in modular aspects so that if they
are return participants, i know where to resume the
next workshop from.

Errmm.. btw, which MMI your child enrolled in?

[tamarind]

buds:

Heyya tamarind,


When i mentioned that your boy is sooooo not average...
I meant he is already considered ahead compared to peers
his age. So, you are really not cramping his strengths. You
started him out early to ensure no last minute stress learning.

Yes. Primary 1 all words when you open the textbooks.
Very stress if child cannot read. Learning letters before
phonics helps A LOT. It assists in spelling or writing what
child can read or attempts to read from sounds the child
hears/tries to make out, around him.

For the word exit, the next time you go shopping or even take
the bus, show him the sign. He shud remember the next time
and won't make the same error. He's such a bright boy judging
from your posts on his personality. Boys tend to have shorter
concentration span so your daily 10 min to 15 min is soooooo
precious and an extremely conscientious effort on your part.
Pat yourself on the back for that. Having mummy or daddy
assist in home teaching is one-to-one and is way beneficial
than in groups. Esp for active children..

The letter \"x\" in phonics is pronounced as a very brief /ks/ sound.
And not a slow /k/ and /s/ sound put together.. So each time you
wanna blend sounds with /x/, must stress the briefness of it so child
will not be too confused between the two sounds.

Cheers.
:celebrate:

buds,
I think that you are one of the most understanding person I have met in the forums, and also one of the nicest Thanks for your valuable advise.

[buds]

Geeee, tamarind..

:oops:

That's sweet. ( Gushing )

I'm happy if it was of any help to you at all...
You're most welcome and it is MY PLEASURE.

[shylyn]

buds:

Waaah. U reali virgin mummy!
Ok, good to know i've inspired one mummy here!
Happy... happy!

hi buds
hee..u r cute! I can see that u hv a lot of Passion in improving the lives of many young children.

buds:

Enrichment Areas
I can teach are :

1. Phonics
2. Mathematics
3. Creative Writing
4. Speech & Drama?

hmm..just curious, what are the educational certifications one must take b4 one is qualified to teach in each of this area? I'm actually thinking of taking some 'courses/workshops' to know/learn how to teach my boy..i know this is unnecessary, esp I'm only teaching my boy, but then again, I'm really keen to know more loh..

buds:

Your child 3.5yrs can introduce Phonics if you like.
But while you're home, coach the 26 letter alphabets
till perfect! Wud reali reali boost his writing skills.

By 4yrs to 4.5yrs, good to do Maths.
If younger than that they can't really grasp concepts.
And its reali tough trying to teach like place values
ie. Thousands, Hundred, Tens and Units to that age
range where the mind is still childish / haven't quite
matured.. But still, its not impossible if i have all my
parents co-operate with reinforcements. I usually try
my best to make effort with home activity stuff that
parents can do with their children. My sadness comes
when the folder is returned the following week with
the exact activity package un-opened / un-touched.

How do u suggest teaching e alphabets till they r perfect? My boy knows all his alphabets & phonetic sounds when he was 19mths . .my concern now is to improve his writing only..have been trying to encourage him to write but depending on his mood & whether he wants to cooperate. At least I'm seeing some improvements in him trying to control the pen.

As for Maths, I didn't actually plan on how to teach him..just basically counting whatever we see..hee..u hv given me a gd idea..I can try to teach him the unit placing..hee..honestly, I hv forgotton abt this since so long never touch on 'ones, tens, hundreds etc'

I can understand ur point..tt's why, for whatever homework my boy's teacher gave him, I will try to let him complete it. Hee..though it is not exactly 'pleasing' to adults, at least it is an effort by him. Though most of the time, I hv to try my best to make him do it..heheh

buds:

Errmm.. btw, which MMI your child enrolled in?

He's currently in MMI Jurong West (extn). Hee..u hv any opinions on this centre?