River Valley Primary

[mimishiku]

JUSTMOM:

congratulations mimishiku & raynreg! :celebrate: hope our kids can be friends.... then we can share information :lol:

i so look foward to the orientation....

mimishiku, i visited a couple of BASC, and there are still a few more that I still intend to visit, but don't have the time yet.
you can check the MCYS website for the list of before & after school care.
what are your considerations? for me, it's the cost, distance from home & school, as well as the quality of the centre (not in order of priority).
one centre near Kim Seng that i visited have kids running all over the place. i presume the kids have finished their work, but i find it quite disorganised, but the fees are reasonable at $200+. I prefer another near Tanglin where the children are well-behaved, but the cost is $400+. so still considering.... the charges are exclusive of the transport to school, plus extras during school holidays.
where do you stay? maybe we can share the tips from the visits to the BASC.
i suggest you visit the BASC when the kids are in action, (ie not during afternoon nap time), or during their mealtimes. so you can assess how the environment & see if you want to place your child there. also, there are some centres that offer childcare & BASC. for these, i prefer a room where the kids are separated from the rest so that they will not be disturbed when the younger kids are having their lessons.
just some personal thoughts that I thought I'd share with you.
just a thought.... if we can gather enough parents, we may try to request for the school to consider an inhouse BASC. this will save a lot of headaches for parents like us.....

parents of RVPS or nearby schools who have kids at BASC, please share feedback on your child's centre. my brief visit may not justify the opinion i form about the centre, so your input is most precious.

Hi Justmom

Thanks for your inputs... we are all here to share & exchange

Distance, price & the ctr cleaniness/quality are the vital points for me to consider for a BASC... But $400+ for a BASC is indeed steep. considering they are only there for less than 1/2 a day....

I am currently so tight that i cant afford to take as many leave as i want to to check out the BASC as i am new to the job. Gotta source thru the net first, shortlist then go down.

Do continue to share with what u have yeah

[mimishiku]

Oh ya, while passing by, i saw a YWCA BASC (beside Eton School House) , dunno ok anot.... :?

Gotta check that out tho.

Got a fren's coll whose kid is also in RVPS- recommended this, and has good reviews on it :
APPLELAND PLAYHOUSE - 104C, DEPOT ROAD, #01 - 03, SINGAPORE 103104

Justmom, u may wanna check this out too?

[IreneL]

Hi All,


My DD is successful in Phase 2C as well… currently also looking ard for a good BASC She is currently at YWCA Outram (K2)… they do not hv enough kids for before school care yet. There is why I need to source along to see any good one ard.

Pls do share if any mummies come across big & reasonable ones.

[DaddyA]

Hi,


My daugher will be in P1 the coming year, she is now in Metropolian YMCA (Steven), though they have BASC but it is $400+ on the high side.

Therefore I am intereested in knowing what have been BASC considered around RSVP.

I was reccomended by RSVP admin to use Kim Seng CC ($210+), however after reading the thread, I am thinking otherwise.

Hi truffle, can you share more abt the Alphabet playhouse in Dublin road (eg charges, experience, contacts, etc.)

Thanks,

[truffle]

DaddyA:

Hi,


My daugher will be in P1 the coming year, she is now in Metropolian YMCA (Steven), though they have BASC but it is $400+ on the high side.

Therefore I am intereested in knowing what have been BASC considered around RSVP.

I was reccomended by RSVP admin to use Kim Seng CC ($210+), however after reading the thread, I am thinking otherwise.

Hi truffle, can you share more abt the Alphabet playhouse in Dublin road (eg charges, experience, contacts, etc.)

Thanks,

Hi DaddyA,

The charges is $400 a month. (it's not cheap for half day care)
According to parent's feedback, it is quite a good childcare centre. They have trained teacher to provide tuition and assist the kids with their homework.
The location is also very convinient and is within walking distance to RVPS.

You may wish to call them to find out more. tel: 6737 8201.

[moonsun]

Puffer:

Many RVPS parents are no less kiasu. I have 2x DS in P3 and P2. Qtownmum, which class is your DS in?

hi qtownmum & putter,

i also have a child in P2. he is in 2f. is yours in the same class too?

[Puffer]

moonsun:

Puffer:

Many RVPS parents are no less kiasu. I have 2x DS in P3 and P2. Qtownmum, which class is your DS in?

hi qtownmum & putter,

i also have a child in P2. he is in 2f. is yours in the same class too?

My DS2 is in 2C. We might have met. I fetch my kids to and from sch everyday.

[raynreg]

Just received a letter from the school that they are open on 23 & 24 October to allow parents to buy all the schooling stuff, except school textbooks, instead of having a mad rush on orientation day.


Would like to find out what would be the minimal set of uniform that is required. I observed that students are on their PE attire most of the time :? .

As for school stationery, is it necessary to get the full list of items? Could parents whose kids have gone through this share your views.

In addition, they have included a \"catering service\" to provide set meals for P1 students. The school is implementing this for Term One from 4 to 29 Jan. Was there such scheme previously? When would the kids be allowed to make their own purchases and how make does your kids spent on food per day.

[Puffer]

raynreg:

..Would like to find out what would be the minimal set of uniform that is required. I observed that students are on their PE attire most of the time :? .


As for school stationery, is it necessary to get the full list of items? Could parents whose kids have gone through this share your views.

In addition, they have included a \"catering service\" to provide set meals for P1 students. The school is implementing this for Term One from 4 to 29 Jan. Was there such scheme previously? When would the kids be allowed to make their own purchases and how make does your kids spent on food per day.

There are 3 periods of PE (spread over 2 days) and CCA (usually half of schday every Fri during sch hr), plus play time etc. You may judge for yourself. For me, I bought 3 sets each of PE attire and uniform (3 shirts + 3 shorts). My DS wear newly-washed set daily. If your kids are the type who perspires alot, then you may consider 3 sets of PE attire. I bought one more set of PE attire during the middle of the year. Don't forget kids grow and clothes turn old over time.

They are only allowed to wear PE attires on those days where there are PE. And this applies only to lower primary students. If your DS has PE on Mondays, then he will have to wear PE attire and sch uniform + sch tie so you should teach him how to change, how to wear tie etc.

For items under stationery in the booklist, you need not get all the items listed - infact those art materials/tool sets you should get only if you do not have them. I get most of the stationery items from Popular instead. Go apply a student membership for your child and you find you have discount & more choices getting outside. My advice is get good reliable stationery, but need not be expensive - kids tend to lose/spoil them. For books - Textbooks and Activity books you must get, but be prepared to be told some are not ready yet. So bring along a pen to mark out on the spot. You must try to get hold of more exercise books (esp single-lined) as they tend to get out of stock fast, and anyway your DS will need them over the 6 years. Be prepared for long queues during orientation days at the bookshop. If you intend to get all in a day, then one of you should be queuing for books, while the other queuing for uniforms with your DS (to test size).

I signed up for 'food-catering' scheme for the past 2 years for both my DS1 and DS2. I find the scheme quite good as it frees us from worrying about our 'blur' child having to scurry for food/drink during recess on their first week of school. We parents will be allowed to 'watch their recess from a distance' on the first 3-4 days if I remember correctly. Your DS will have to make his own purchase of food thereafter. An upper pri level pupil and the form teacher will be with them to guide/help them. I give my kids $2 each on a normal schday and they usually saves half or more of the amount given cos they are not 'big eaters' and they bring along their water bottles.

Hope this helps.[/url]

[raynreg]

Hi Puffer


Thanks. Could i check if P1 students are allowed to use schoolbag with rollers for them to drag along since the classrooms are on level 1? If my DD has to carry a backpack with all the books in…I wonder which is heavier?

There is also lockers outside the classroom, P1 & P2 students are sharing them since they are in different sessions. I was told that the keys are kept by the teachers. Does ur kids use them? Does it help to relieve the number of books they need to bring to school everyday?