All About Preparing For Primary One
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phtthp:
phtthp, I hope you don't mind if I offer a slightly different perspective on affiliated schools for discussion sakethat's why at the end of the day it's still advisable to go into an affliated primary school, because at the end of the day, no matter what, got safety net Secondary school to catch them.
then no need to keep driving inside Right lane all the time - keep pressing on oil to acclerate, keep having to catch up. So stressful!
if go to an affliated school - at least can keep to extreme Left lane.
I do agree that with an affiliation, there is lesser pressure to produce results to go into a \"good\" secondary school. However, if a kid needed the affiliation to enter the secondary school, she/he will actually be at the bottom compared to all those friends who went in on his own merit. And usually secondary schools will rank students in classes in Sec 1, based on PSLE results. Imagine being in the \"last\" class - think this is really demoralising for them and may affect their confidence level? Just food for thought
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phtthp:
phtthp, I hope you don't mind if I offer a slightly different perspective on affiliated schools for discussion sakethat's why at the end of the day it's still advisable to go into an affliated primary school, because at the end of the day, no matter what, got safety net Secondary school to catch them.
then no need to keep driving inside Right lane all the time - keep pressing on oil to acclerate, keep having to catch up. So stressful!
if go to an affliated school - at least can keep to extreme Left lane. I do agree that with an affiliation, there is lesser pressure to produce results to go into a \"good\" secondary school. However, if a kid needed the affiliation to enter the secondary school, she/he will actually be at the bottom compared to all those friends who went in on his own merit. And usually secondary schools will rank students in classes in Sec 1, based on PSLE results. Imagine being in the \"last\" class - think this is really demoralising for them and may affect their confidence level? Just food for thought
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Sharing my thoughts. I'm very KS in thought and outlook, but it's not so much about learning-as-much-as-possible-to-beat-the-competition/be-number-one etc. Rather, I aim to always be prepared in knowing what is expected at every step of the way, e.g. what schools expect the kids to know when they enter P1; what standard of writing they should attain by P3 etc etc. But... for me this is, so far, an academic exercise, purely for my own knowledge.
I don't prepare my kids by teaching them the syllabus ahead, because I feel the most important at lower primary level is to learn how to learn. It's probably not the way many parents think, but I feel that facts and knowledge can always be picked up, if they are found lacking. But the 'right' way of learning can't be taught when you're set in your ways later on. For what it's worth, i believe if kids have skills such as the right attitude towards gaining knowledge, being self-motivated etc, they can benefit from them for the rest of their lives when it comes to learning.
So for my older son (P2), I sat back and watched how he managed when he started P1. I wasn't concerned about how well he did on his numerous (there really were many!) tests. If he didn't know how to spell 'giant' in January, it wasn't important to me. Rather, i was curious about his attitude, how he would deal with managing daily homework, revision on his own (my expectation) etc. I think at this stage he could afford to make mistakes and learn from them. I must say it has been a pretty rewarding expeience for me to watch him from afar. By now, he has figured out many things on his own, such as: (1) if he relies solely on his memory about homework to be completed, he is apt to forget some. Must write down! (2) if he just stares at the tingxie list and commits to memory how the characters look like, it doesn't work as well as writing them! (3) if he plays continuously after school and only takes out his homework at 8pm, he will not be able to finish everything in half an hour to get ready for bedtime (i don't allow him to compromise on sleep mah). He has to face the music the next day.
(4) if he learns his spelling on Wed afternoon for Thursday, he will not recall these in three months when it's CA time. Short-term learning doesn't work! (5) if he doesn't bother to go through his worksheets etc for revision before tests, he will just make the same mistakes again, much to his consternation...
These are only some examples of 'lessons' he has learnt, and i'm happy that he figured out what to do to improve on e.g. time management etc. I'm also happy that i don't have to nag at him to complete his homework, revise for tests etc., because he has the initiative to do so himself. DS told me he's motivated to do his best because he enjoys setting his own goals and doing his own planning instead of listening to, errrrr, me!
Anyway, for me it has worked out fairly well focusing on habit 'training' instead of academic preparations for the first year. I suspect we will be spending much more time to cope with school work from next year, so it's helpful to have good habits and a conscientious attitude to start the more demanding years with. And btw my DS did very well academically too, because, really, P1 work is not that difficult lah. :boogie:
So... When you're thinking about preparing your kiddos for P1, don't just focus on academic preparation, think of some ways you can help them to develop a good attitude towards learning, self-discipline etc. P1 is a good time to start! -
Ymy:
My DD 's school also has a lot of mini tests, show n tell and bite- size assessment. I do like the test because I will know which topic that my child is weak in . Then, I will work on it. Having said that, it can be quite stressful sometimes when I know that she will be having some mini tests.
DS too has so many minitests , quizes.
And the teacher doesnt inform in advance - and that to me is a blessing.
Only after 2-4 weeks he brings home a stack of sheets for parents signature, i realise they had these tests. :boogie: -
1amber:
Very true. Train them to have the right people skills and also how to lead. Age gives you perspective. I can learn a thing or two from you and the way you see things. :celebrate:
Hello glendt
Thanks for your compliment.
When your spouse and your age adds up to almost a century old, your perspective of life is different. When your only child currently at only 5, dances around you, will you have the heart to wipe the smile off her face and rob her of her childhood? She is our gift at our old age and we just want to spend the rest of our lives enjoying her, cherishing her.
Our education dept should learn a thing or two from the old Chinese emperors/warriors. You don't have to be the smartest. Instead learn to lead. You should be the leader of the smartest. Assemble a team of smart people in their various fields and make them work for you.
We are preparing our young daughter to survive without us at a young age. God willing my DH will live to see his DD graduate from uni. The greatest skillset she should acquire is to leadership skills. Good grades are important but not enough to survive in this world. Just my opinion. -
CayennePepper:
So... When you're thinking about preparing your kiddos for P1, don't just focus on academic preparation, think of some ways you can help them to develop a good attitude towards learning, self-discipline etc. P1 is a good time to start!
Yes, definitely. Besides academic, attitude to me is of utmost importance not just in studies but in life.
Wanted to share this based on what we went through. I used to be the take it easy mum when my kids were in preschool. Iso of some academic EL lessons, I sent them to speech & drama classes as JG as I wanted them to be confident. It was only when my eldest was K2 then panic button sort of hit when teacher said she can read but alot of her friends are more advanced. So enrichment classes started then. As my 1st and 2nd child only has 1 yr gap, so when my eldest started enrichment in K2, my 2nd started in K1. That year, we started maths, english and chinese.
Even then, I was not very on the ball when my eldest was P1. Thinking that sending them for enrichment classes is good enough. Actually, it is not effective to just send kids for enrichment programmes. These need to be reinforce at home after lessons so that kids retain what they learnt and you get most out of it. So sometimes, when we say we \"outsource\" the teaching to enrichment class teachers, actually we cannot outsource fully but we end up with more things to monitor.
However when I have 2 kids in primary 1 and 2, panic sets in. I started to enforce nightly homework and revision time. It was difficult initially for us, the working parents. Iso going for long dinner or shopping after dinner, we have to make it home by latest 7.30pm. So that we can sit with the kids to ensure they do their work, etc... This means no tv watching for us too since we've to set a good example. But as usual, it's mum who does most of the work. Nowadays, I usually do my work while they do theirs but I make sure I sit in the same room as them. To show our level of commitment.
The kids also have their withdrawal symptons. Where they used to be able to watch 9pm channel 8 drama.... tv is a big NO NO at night. This was the house rule that i set. I would get very stressed too and phase business travels to school hols. 2 years down the road, I am glad that we still strictly enforce this. They are used to such schedule. There are times when I am alittle late, they would ensure they start work by 8pm otherwise they will get into trouble with me. :pokeeye: Despite all these efforts + enrichments, my kids are not top of level type. They are around the 30 percentile within their cohort. But it all voice down to expectations. I think I am happy as both were made monitors this year, passionate about their CCA and academically though not the best but still above average. We just need to work harder to improve their weaknesses and maintain their strength... Like a SWOT analysis. Also, sometimes when I think about it, the target is PSLE. If they are able to get decent scores and make it to a decent school, I think the target is met.
Having gone through what we did with the 2 older kids, I started preparing my youngest earlier. But it was a challenge given that I've 3 kids and a FTWM. I cannot give her all the attention. She started the academic enrichment at K1 Eg. EL, CL and maths. If I were to compare her to her siblings, her literacy skills is definitely higher than the 2 older kids as we spent time to revise her enrichment centre work with her. She also need to spend evenings without TV and she must sit in the same room to do her work that I assigned to her. With her going to P1 next year, I think there is no culture shock for her when I start to enforce stricter requirements.
But I feel that the difference between a top performance and a average child is their desire to do well. This part is hard to cultivate as it very much depends on character. Parents can drill their kids again and again and yes, child might do well academically initially. But if they do not have the desire to be best in class, etc... it becomes very difficult to sustain. On the other hand, we try to \"brain wash\" the kids about their future, etc... but they do have a mind of their own.
There are some touching moments for me. Eg. when my eldest got complacent and did not do well during P2 SA1, she cried and felt sad about it. But she went on to do well during SA2 and she felt proud about it. So my message to her is, how do you like to feel??? Sad or proud? If you want to feel proud, then you know you need to put in effort. Also this year, when my P3 came in 2nd best for his chinese CA1, I was surprised. He told his teacher that I have expectations of him to do well. It goes to show that my \"motivational talks\" with them did not go to waste
But I am looking forward to the day that I can wash my hands off and let them run by themselves.
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phankao:
:goodpost:Better just let them do whatever they enjoy. Just support them in what you see can enhance their ability, whether academic or non-academic. Do not hope that any can gain DSA entry. My ds1 had DSA under general domain. My ds2 is a national prizewinner in his musical instrument and leader in his CCA, but we also not sure if have any hopes for DSA - he's now in p6. Best to also keep up in school lah. If they enjoy other pursuits - well and good. If they can excel - good too! Shows they have a life apart from academics.
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MMM:
:goodpost:Besides academic, attitude to me is of utmost importance not just in studies but in life.
But I feel that the difference between a top performance and a average child is their desire to do well. This part is hard to cultivate as it very much depends on character. Parents can drill their kids again and again and yes, child might do well academically initially. But if they do not have the desire to be best in class, etc... it becomes very difficult to sustain. On the other hand, we try to \"brain wash\" the kids about their future, etc... but they do have a mind of their own. -
CayennePepper:
:goodpost:Sharing my thoughts. ....
So... When you're thinking about preparing your kiddos for P1, don't just focus on academic preparation, think of some ways you can help them to develop a good attitude towards learning, self-discipline etc. P1 is a good time to start! -
CayennePepper:
:goodpost:Sharing my thoughts. I'm very KS in thought and outlook, but it's not so much about learning-as-much-as-possible-to-beat-the-competition/be-number-one etc. Rather, I aim to always be prepared in knowing what is expected at every step of the way, e.g. what schools expect the kids to know when they enter P1; what standard of writing they should attain by P3 etc etc. But... for me this is, so far, an academic exercise, purely for my own knowledge.
I don't prepare my kids by teaching them the syllabus ahead, because I feel the most important at lower primary level is to learn how to learn. It's probably not the way many parents think, but I feel that facts and knowledge can always be picked up, if they are found lacking. But the 'right' way of learning can't be taught when you're set in your ways later on. For what it's worth, i believe if kids have skills such as the right attitude towards gaining knowledge, being self-motivated etc, they can benefit from them for the rest of their lives when it comes to learning.
So for my older son (P2), I sat back and watched how he managed when he started P1. I wasn't concerned about how well he did on his numerous (there really were many!) tests. If he didn't know how to spell 'giant' in January, it wasn't important to me. Rather, i was curious about his attitude, how he would deal with managing daily homework, revision on his own (my expectation) etc. I think at this stage he could afford to make mistakes and learn from them. I must say it has been a pretty rewarding expeience for me to watch him from afar. By now, he has figured out many things on his own, such as: (1) if he relies solely on his memory about homework to be completed, he is apt to forget some. Must write down! (2) if he just stares at the tingxie list and commits to memory how the characters look like, it doesn't work as well as writing them! (3) if he plays continuously after school and only takes out his homework at 8pm, he will not be able to finish everything in half an hour to get ready for bedtime (i don't allow him to compromise on sleep mah). He has to face the music the next day. (4) if he learns his spelling on Wed afternoon for Thursday, he will not recall these in three months when it's CA time. Short-term learning doesn't work! (5) if he doesn't bother to go through his worksheets etc for revision before tests, he will just make the same mistakes again, much to his consternation...
These are only some examples of 'lessons' he has learnt, and i'm happy that he figured out what to do to improve on e.g. time management etc. I'm also happy that i don't have to nag at him to complete his homework, revise for tests etc., because he has the initiative to do so himself. DS told me he's motivated to do his best because he enjoys setting his own goals and doing his own planning instead of listening to, errrrr, me!
Anyway, for me it has worked out fairly well focusing on habit 'training' instead of academic preparations for the first year. I suspect we will be spending much more time to cope with school work from next year, so it's helpful to have good habits and a conscientious attitude to start the more demanding years with. And btw my DS did very well academically too, because, really, P1 work is not that difficult lah. :boogie:
So... When you're thinking about preparing your kiddos for P1, don't just focus on academic preparation, think of some ways you can help them to develop a good attitude towards learning, self-discipline etc. P1 is a good time to start!
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