2012 PSLE Discussions and Strategy

[Chenonceau]

Peony:

Am the most hands-off than I've ever been.


Last night she came to me with a geometrical qn and I told her, \"sorry, I can't help you\". It was too tough for me. She looked stunned for a moment and then retreated back to her room. She then texted her teacher for help.

Maybe I'm more hands-off as I see her being more independent and focused. Plus she has awesome teachers this year.

Chenonceau, I taught it was a girl thing until you wrote about your DS.

We've the same Teachers as last year. Sob! We still have to rely on external resources because though the school gives more, it is not enough. We also have to rely on a Home Practice Schedule because the school cannot assign as many practices as are ideal. Teachers will die marking if they gave every student the same volume of practice my son plans for himself.

I think the important thing is that we've come to a stable state. The syllabus is all there and covered. SOP are there. Unless they change the format of the PSLE, it's now just a matter of putting in consistent daily work.

[Champion]

Chenonceau:

I find this year much less stressful too. DS seems to know exactly what to do. Very very independent now. Last year, I had to analyze homework for appropriateness. This year, he has developed a sense. Last year, I planned his weekly schedule. This year, he plans and I approve. Then on a daily basis, he will eyeball his homework load and decide


(1) Which one of Mom's work should I drop? He knows the rules for this. If T gives compo, then delete one of Mom's compos from the Home Schedule.

(2) Which piece of homework do I need an excuse letter for? He also knows the rules for this. If the homework does not value add AND I must stay up after 8pm to complete it AFTER doing Mom's work, then an excuse letter is to be written up.

Last year, I did all his filing. This year, he does all his filing. Last year, he marked everything and I checked his marking. This year, he marks everything and I don't check. I still have to mark Science open-ended, CL Compo&Compre and EL compo&compre though. Last year, we had to cover syllabus. This year, it's only practice. Last year, we had to memorize-recite the Beijing compos. This year, he can read the Beijing compos without the help of the auditapes because instead of 50% unknown words, each compo now contains 5 unknown words. Last year, I had to develop Standard Operating Processes for each different Paper and since I was also feeling my way, this took time to develop. Now, all the SOP are in place. He knows exactly HOW to revise for each section of each paper.

This year is much easier on me compared to last year. Still, the fact remains that if I had left him to the school, he wouldn't have come this far at all.

Dear Mummy Chenonceau :salute: :salute:
:goodpost: :hi5: :celebrate: I admire you for your dedication and :love: for your children. I read all the posts here by you and other parents and all I have to conclude is ALL of you with child(ren) in P6 this year are awesome! :hugs:

:offtopic: wanna to have some chwee kweh for breakfast / tea-break?

[casamia]

frankly, i think all the stress comes from the daddies & mummies… because we are just so worried our child cannot score enough points to get into a good secondary school.


for the child, probably the self-disciplined ones might “self-stress” because they know what they want to achieve… but the rest of 12 year olds? i don’t know. they probably just go along with the "stress” simply because everyone around them start "stressing"…

DH is a non-Singaporean. He is definitely one non-kiasu parent when it comes to education. He feels that children are just children, they should play & enjoy childhood, not stressed over PSLE, T-score or which school to get in. They should simply enjoy learning & the learning journey, after all they are just 12 year olds. How much do they know about the “competitive” world in the adult world and why do we parents (and our MOE system) start gearing them into that “competitive mode” at such young age? They should be entitled to a few more years of childhood before stepping into a more competitive world. Are we gearing our child too early? Is it too late to only start in Sec 4?

After spending a couple of years in SGP and now that our own child is doing the PSLE this year, DH can’t help but got “swiped” into the wave of kiasu parents. It is the environment we parents created.

[Chenonceau]

Champion:

Chenonceau:

I find this year much less stressful too. DS seems to know exactly what to do. Very very independent now. Last year, I had to analyze homework for appropriateness. This year, he has developed a sense. Last year, I planned his weekly schedule. This year, he plans and I approve. Then on a daily basis, he will eyeball his homework load and decide


(1) Which one of Mom's work should I drop? He knows the rules for this. If T gives compo, then delete one of Mom's compos from the Home Schedule.

(2) Which piece of homework do I need an excuse letter for? He also knows the rules for this. If the homework does not value add AND I must stay up after 8pm to complete it AFTER doing Mom's work, then an excuse letter is to be written up.

Last year, I did all his filing. This year, he does all his filing. Last year, he marked everything and I checked his marking. This year, he marks everything and I don't check. I still have to mark Science open-ended, CL Compo&Compre and EL compo&compre though. Last year, we had to cover syllabus. This year, it's only practice. Last year, we had to memorize-recite the Beijing compos. This year, he can read the Beijing compos without the help of the auditapes because instead of 50% unknown words, each compo now contains 5 unknown words. Last year, I had to develop Standard Operating Processes for each different Paper and since I was also feeling my way, this took time to develop. Now, all the SOP are in place. He knows exactly HOW to revise for each section of each paper.

This year is much easier on me compared to last year. Still, the fact remains that if I had left him to the school, he wouldn't have come this far at all.

Dear Mummy Chenonceau :salute: :salute:
:goodpost: :hi5: :celebrate: I admire you for your dedication and :love: for your children. I read all the posts here by you and other parents and all I have to conclude is ALL of you with child(ren) in P6 this year are awesome! :hugs:

:offtopic: wanna to have some chwee kweh for breakfast / tea-break?

Hey hummy mummy... you're sweet. I've been keeping tabs on YOUR posts too and you are just as dedicated and in love with your kids as I am, if not more. I only wish I had started EARLIER, then P5 would have been much less stressful too. You've got a good headstart with your kids. Hopefully, by PSLE year, you'll be in stable cruise mode too.

Aaaargh! Chwee kueh? Now you've gone and put suggested something to my stomach (and I haven't had breakfast yet leh...)... :faint:

[Chenonceau]

casamia:

frankly, i think all the stress comes from the daddies & mummies... because we are just so worried our child cannot score enough points to get into a good secondary school.

Stress comes from the school too. Schools like to fail our kids. We have to do a great deal to temper the unpleasant Wake Up Calls from schools.

[august24]

Chenonceau:

Stress comes from the school too. Schools like to fail our kids. We have to do a great deal to temper the unpleasant Wake Up Calls from schools.

My P5 dd teacher stressed out too. DD says her teacher almost cried when asking them to work harder after last CA... quite a lot of them slide in marks and some with failures, and they are supposed to be in the better class.

[Drama Mama]

Life is tough! Not easy to be a teacher …tough for the kids and stressful on the parents. My DS’s teacher has a son doing PSLE as well. PSLE both in school and home! I am glad I am not in her shoes …

[Chenonceau]

august24:

Chenonceau:

Stress comes from the school too. Schools like to fail our kids. We have to do a great deal to temper the unpleasant Wake Up Calls from schools.

My P5 dd teacher stressed out too. DD says her teacher almost cried when asking them to work harder after last CA... quite a lot of them slide in marks and some with failures, and they are supposed to be in the better class.

Yeah... T are stressed too by their KPIs and these difficult exams that must be difficult because higher ups say must set high standard. But T has no time to teach to the standard. How?

How to love and nurture when you are yourself stressed?

[Chenonceau]

Drama Mama:

Life is tough! Not easy to be a teacher ...tough for the kids and stressful on the parents. My DS's teacher has a son doing PSLE as well. PSLE both in school and home! I am glad I am not in her shoes ...

My DS' T had a son in PSLE last year. She had no time for her own child. She had no time for my DS. Spread so thin... so many students... so many classes... textbooks so lousy that T must write their own notes (as good as writing own textbook).

[Peony]

My DD and I absolutely refuse to be stressed by PSLE!


I keep checking if she’s stressed this year and she keeps saying no. Am not sure is she’s just saying that because it’s what she thinks I want to hear.

As Chenon says, plan & strategy are in placed. It’s up to her to enjoy her last year in P6 too as I don’t want the year to just be about PSLE.