[Jurong East/Jurong West] Preschools

[potentialkp]

My daughter is at HAPPY TALENT CHILDCARE CTR since Dec 2007 (PG). When she joined the school, she don’t really know how to talk at the age of 3 (meaning speech delay) and not potty train. I can see her talking more and potty train in less than 6mths after joining the Childcare. She is in K1 now.


I like the childcare :

1. So far, not many case of HFMD. Even when it happen, usually will stop at 1-2 cases. Hygiene is good.

2. Every 1-2 wk, my child bring works that she done at school. Therefore, i know she is learning & improving.

3. The principal will listen to feedback and make an effort to improve the school environment, study material, etc.

Regards,
Kpl

[potentialkp]

Thumbs Up!

[tazzy]

buds:

tazzy:

Hi,


Any comments on the Agape Little Uni at Jurong West Ave 3? I plan to enrol my girl to the playgroup when she turns 18 months old.

Thanks.

I had to assess a girl from there once who wanted to enrol in a writing
programme. The girl at K2 almost few months before graduation wasn't
able to read 3-letter phonetic words nor have the ability to blend them
on her own. Hence at K2 she wasn't ready to make a simple sentence
on her own yet. Mum said she could read the readers bought thru' sch
very very well. Since we had a similar set, we sat the girl down with
the mom and invited her to read for us. She couldn't. Those that she
was able to read were sight words and the words were very few.

Dunno if it's only a one-off case with that experience or mebbe her class
teacher didn't do a good job with reading exposure and emphasis but it
is wise to check with the school how their reading programme is being
taught and how do they ensure children are really reading instead of
memorizing.

Most parents when their children are more or less settled in a centre,
they will want to continue till graduation... but you have to ensure that
your children are P1 ready at the least. Not knowing how to even string
3 letter phonetic words at K2 is quite alarming. Parents should always
take time to be updated on the goings-on of what children are doing in
school. Even if you cannot teach or have no time to teach... at the very
least, enrichment support can come in with early detection. Observe &
monitor children's abilities in school on a regular basis.

thanks bud... i'm still looking for a good cc for my girl in the jurong west area.....

[chrisalloy]

I have placed quite number of waiting list for my son at Jurong West’s childcare centers since last year. Till now , all the centers waiting list are very long and have to wait till next year. I even got a very interesting answer from a center claiming that they will accept girls at the moment due to the high ratio of boys. Is this acceptable? Are boys not human at all? I was very fustrated!!

But it is true that we have to wait at least 2 years before we get a placement? I am desperately looking for a childcare center nearby my place ,does any mum or dad also have the same experience as well.

[ADave]

chrisalloy: where are u staying? there is a new ctr opened at blk 409 jurong west that provides trpt too. Perhaps u may wanna check it out? still got vacancies. do let me know how it goes. i understand ur feeling. its hard to get a good childcare in the west! i share the same sentiments. i need right one to provide the right education for my 3yr old son till k2

[chrisalloy]

Hi Adave,

I am staying somewhere near Jurong Point. I know the new school as I did called for enquiry. But is too far for us and think that it is too young for my son to take the transport. I am looking the childcare Blk 671 , My First Skool. So is your son enroll in a childcare now? It is good?

[ADave]

chrisalloy: well i did called up myfirstskool at blk 671a but its full! plus im working so i prefer to have trpt so that i know that i dun have to rush each morning to work…hehe


well i am going to the new ctr at blk 409 and talk to the principal. as the centre is pretty raw, i have my reservations too. But my SIL who is an experienced childcare teacher and now a supervisor, she said that myfirstskool is good. their curriculum, meals is pretty good. So i am bringing her today to access the place before i made my decision.

my son is now under Kidzone childcare. His principal and form teacher is very good. teachers there are very caring. unfortunately i heard they may be quitting. plus the parents at this centre not very ON. excursion dun want, side activities like cooking, baking also dun want. so its a losing end for parents like me who wish to see their kids explore and enjoy their school time. sighhhh more and more foreigner etc PRC are joining too…

[butterwaffles]

Hello, anyone of you having kids at PCF Jurong blk 404 or 553? Would appreciate some feedback!

[leo26]

hi,seems like quite a few pple staying at floravale…i just shifted in 1 mth ago…my son is almost 1 year old and being a kiasu parent, i’ve starting looking for a cc for him…seems that no one mentioned abt Gracefields at Taman Jurong and Treehouse Kindercare at Westwood Cres??any reviews?

[kiasu_mammy]

Hi,


Thought I'll share my personal experience with Little Wonders Montessori (LW) for other parents' reference as I have been reading a lot from this forum.

My daughter have been in this premise since she was 18 months (then with Treehouse Kindercare) and until now with Little Wonders Montessori-JW branch due to the takeover. We had intentions to move on news of the takeover, however the english teacher suggested that rather than to move my daughter to a new school/ teachers and friends, we might as well stay on and observe before we make our decision. We've been happy with our decision so far

During the 1+ year with Treehouse, she cried a little each time we send her to school in the morning, however the teachers managed to console her and she was participative to the activities in school. After the takeover by LW, we noticed that my daughter hardly cry in the morning, instead, she look forward going to school. This we observed and take it as a good sign. We also thought it might be due to the fact that she's much older as compared to when she just started at 18 months, but then, so long as she is now enjoying school, that's most important to us.

Management
No major changes. In fact, the Principle is acting as a teacher for this centre to ensure that it start well on a good note, which we thought is a good idea. So far, we've got good mutual communication with the management and teachers.

School Premise
I like the fact that it is a semi-d house as it is spacious and part of the outdoor is converted for activities. Well maintained and ventilated. Hygiene in the school is good, so far.

Teachers
I could only speak for the English and Chinese teachers who taught my daughter. So far my daughter have been coming back surprising us with new information, words and things, according to her was what the teacher read to them. Guess children would be the best person to feedback about Teachers and since she is unable to put her thoughts clearly at this age, we take her emotion as guage. So far she has consistently been telling us that school is good and those new words that she say and start writing are good testimonial for the teachers. Both teachers are very candid during our feedback session and even gave me tips on what I can do with my daughter during our free time. The teachers have also been consistently been giving feedback or reminders to the caregiver when she picks my daughter up from school in the afternoon.

I do agree with another forumer who feedback that the PR skills of the staff here is not fantastically good. For us, that is a small part as what matter most is their passion in teaching the little ones and their actions speaks louder than words.

Curriculum
The school provide thematic curriculum for us before the new term start. Apart from the usual classroom learning, we are happy to see from the takeover the different exposure the school is bringing to the children. For example, the waterplay activity within the school once a week and school outing every month. We welcome these variety of exposure the school introduce as we noticed that through this experiential learning, my daughter is happily learning new things without much thoughts about it. Also, these activities does bring newness to her Monday - Friday school routine.