When is the right time to start tuition?

[try]

Jav:

I am in dilemma - between enrichment, home tuition & after school care. My kid in nature is very easily distracted & seems not interested in studying. It's not easy to attract his concentration as his mind is easily wandering around. He currently attends enrichment in group but I don't see the effectiveness. After class, I tested him on his understanding & redo the question he has completed in the class. To my dismay, he cannot do them. The enrichment has good worksheet but if kid is not able to absorb the contents taught, I am beginning to think it maybe wasteful. Therefore, at the end, I am the one that must learn to teach. But I must admit that it takes a great deal from me to teach & I don't enjoy it & have enough patience- with all the shouting - I don't think it's of any good. As a FTWM, come home tiredly still has to take on a second job which end up everyone is unhappy.


He is in P1 & attends after school care too but i am also not sure how effective is the centre. He may complete his hw there but it's not checked on the correctness of the completion so every night I still have to do the supervision.

I therefore wonder whether the home tuition maybe better alternative. But it's not easy to find the right tutor.

Any parents with experiences to share? Much appreciated.

Hi Jav, if you see that your child can understand and produce results when you teach, then that means if you find a good tutor, it will work for him. But if he improves only because you discipline him so that he listens - this goes to show he lacks the self-motivation, then you will need not only a good tutor, but one who can discipline and motivate as well - which is rare.

However, even after you teach him, he doesn't improve, this will mean that he is just still not mature academically. Many P1 students, especially boys, lack behind academically so this means he just needs more time to mature because the requirements of primary school syllabus are really beyond many.

To me, enrichment is only for those who are already scoring 85 and above at p1/p2 level because its just a complete waste of time for the child to go to enrichment when he cannot follow - and it will cause him to dislike studies. Anything lower than that, tuition is required.

But if you can, let your boy learn something like sports or art or ? to give him an alternative outlet so that studies is not everything.

[Jav]

Hi Winnie Pooh, if your kid go to Student care, how to have time for home tuition? And how old are your kids now? How many times of tution every week? If my son doesn’t go to Student Care then he will be not be doing anything at home as the maid won’t be able to discipline him.

[winnie_pooh]

Hi Jav


My kid is P3 now.
He don’t go to studentcare everyday. Because he needs to stay back after school for CCA and extra lesson. If he goes studencare, that will be in the afternoon. After lunch, nap and teabreak, they only begin to do work at about 4pm. I always tell me to try to complet his school homwork there and i will pick him up by 6pm. if that day don’t have schoolwork, then have to do tuition work if not then have to do assement bk which is from the studentcare.

Same thing apply if he goes home after cca. Priority is school homework.

My tuition will schedule on the night time at 7pm. My kid has tuition for all subjects. 3 time per weeks.

My kid grade for P1 & 2 is above 80%. However, due to there is no exam and all on test basis and class work, can’t really see his real standard. As P3 this year, really see a big difference in the standard. Math and science can be tough and challenging.

Boy tend to be more distractive and playful. And their concentration span is short. I face the same problem. Even when i not around, somtimes, he just finished for the sake of it, just anyhow do. We as parents, just have to be firm with them. And of course, keep encouraging them at all.

[J and J]

hometutor:

Hi, I’m a home tutor (google teacherhuihui)

There’s actually no need for tuition, I’m a tutor but I grew up without any tuition at all.
Tuition is only if the child really cannot make it by him or herself and requires additional help.

It is required if your child school's tr is teaching less and expecting your child knows everything. That's the time your child needs help. It is very common nowadays, especially they are tested more than what it was taught in classroom and particularly almost 95% of the classmates already attending tuition. :sad: .

[cherrygal]

You could also choose a student care centre that provides tuition. It would be better than those who only tell your kid to do homework. BTW, some care centres have been instructed by school teachers not to correct the work done by the students. Students learn when they make mistakes.

[Jav]

I have stopped my son from student care as its only provide supervision. The homework was done in the centre but with mistakes & not explanation & correctiOn done. I find that’s meaningless as my helper could just do that too. Somemore with the influence of older boys, these could be real distractions.

[thjeanxu]

Jav:

I am in dilemma - between enrichment, home tuition & after school care. My kid in nature is very easily distracted & seems not interested in studying. It's not easy to attract his concentration as his mind is easily wandering around. He currently attends enrichment in group but I don't see the effectiveness. After class, I tested him on his understanding & redo the question he has completed in the class. To my dismay, he cannot do them. The enrichment has good worksheet but if kid is not able to absorb the contents taught, I am beginning to think it maybe wasteful. Therefore, at the end, I am the one that must learn to teach. But I must admit that it takes a great deal from me to teach & I don't enjoy it & have enough patience- with all the shouting - I don't think it's of any good. As a FTWM, come home tiredly still has to take on a second job which end up everyone is unhappy.


He is in P1 & attends after school care too but i am also not sure how effective is the centre. He may complete his hw there but it's not checked on the correctness of the completion so every night I still have to do the supervision.

I therefore wonder whether the home tuition maybe better alternative. But it's not easy to find the right tutor.

Any parents with experiences to share? Much appreciated.

Hi, same here. Furthermore, I am still studying and also due to far workplace, lesser time with him. But i would spend a day for bonding - e.g. swimming, roller skating with him. . to make him relax. Though now teacher is he is just doing so so due to distraction. but if spend more time guiding him, his result will be quite good. So guessed, may have to quickly complete my studies, change job, to nearer location so can have more time for my children. I have one more 2 yr old girl.

[Edureach]

When to send your kids for tuition depend on individuals, there’s no such thing as the right time.


Preferably, avoid tuition up to at least pri 3 level with the exception of english and mt unless obsolutely necessary.

Must control your budget as there are just too many opportunities later on for you to excercise thru your kids’ academic pursuit.

[LeeTaiTai]

DesertWind:

My boy now 4.5 yo, with speech-delay and needs one-to-one attention according to his kindy teachers. Therefore I have put him for once a week \"tuition/therapy\" now in K1. Mainly so that he gets one-to-one attention and learn something since in kindy he won't get the attention and am afraid he may lack behind in his learning.


However, amazingly, I bought one Kumon workbook to try on my boy to get him to do writing at the beginning of this year and he took one look, second look, tried doing a couple of pages and now he is hooked! He has since completed 4 Kumon workbooks and now working on 3 others concurrently. What brings such joy to my heart is the fact that every morning now at about 10 am, he will pick up the workbooks automatically and sit down at his square Ikea table to do his writing. BTW, I am full time working which means my maid-cum-nanny is the one doing the supervision! And he can actually sit down about one hour occasionally even one and a half hours just doing the writing. I think he is really interested and am glad the Kumon works!

Due to the lack of time, seriously there is no way I could have sent him for tuition/enrichments more than once a week. So the next best thing is to do the teaching myself! Now evening time when I come back I will spend the time teaching him from wall-charts numbers 1-100 and words etc. Now the kindy teacher is telling me to teach him Jolly phonics! Gee...whiz...I feel pressurized already!

It gives me great joy to teach my kid except that he was usually quite uncooperative with me, much to my chagrin! Half the time trying to get his attention, the other half the time trying to teach him and hoping some of it will get into his head. Not easy man!

wow , what time do you come bck from work and how much time do you spend wiht him each day ?

[Laurenwkids]

I try to avoid sending for tuition except for chinese because I could not help until P2. P3 there is a slight jump in the level so I send for math and then around p4 may start for science and English. But it depends on your kids and also how much time you have to spend with your kids. If you have more time to spend teaching them, then don’t need to send for tuition so early.