All About Learning Tamil

[jacsplace]

Hi Sun_2010, I have replied to your pm, thanks for that.


My children are eight and six, in P3 and P1. They’re good in English, but have no interest in other languages.

Yes, we face an uphill task, which is why I created this topic in the hope that others like me can share their experiences.

[Sun_2010]

jacsplace:

Hi Sun_2010, I have replied to your pm, thanks for that.


My children are eight and six, in P3 and P1. They're good in English, but have no interest in other languages.

Yes, we face an uphill task, which is why I created this topic in the hope that others like me can share their experiences.

Hi jacsplace,

Thanks for starting this.
Does the school have MT activities ?

In my son's school, last month they had MT week . So they had 3 days of activities and then one day of competitions by level. That kind of helped in developing a little more interest in Tamil for my son.

So far he is ok with school work, but refuses to speak at home, so his actual grasp of the language is low. I am trying to develop that for once in upper primary onwards that is what is going to help ...


Still a long way to go.

When I went to the book shop on Serangoon road, the lady there said how the syllabus has been dumbed down for P1/P2s . But even with that our kids are finding it tough to master. Sigh!

[HAPPYH]

Our mother tongue is not Tamil as well. My DD suffers a lot too. But the syllabus is quite reasonable. The easiest way to pick Tamil easily is watch Tamil movies and Tamil channels (make sure they are age appropriate:) It might help.

[jacsplace]

Dear Sun_2010,


My son’s school has an MT week each year. This year, he was given a little badge but when I asked him for details of what happened each day, he just looked away and said "nothing". He’s okay with school work too. He’s very concerned about tests and will study for them.

My daughter’s school doesn’t have such a thing. She’s been fine with school work until P3 this year. Now she fails almost everything, or just passes (6 upon 10, for example).

They both don’t like watch kids’ Tamil TV shows. I wouldn’t mind watching an adult show with them, but most of them are too melodramatic – too much crying! There was a Singapore-made drama set in a school, but I think that’s over now.

If Vasantham showed kids shows on Saturdays and Sundays, I would tune in to those. I don’t understand why they don’t bother. SINDA doesn’t provide any Tamil assistance either. It’s like we’re thrown into the sea and not taught how to swim because the assumption is that we must know how to swim because we were born on an island. But skills need to be taught, right? We’re not born knowing them! Walking, talking – these are all skills that babies need to be taught. They are not taught knowing them. So why should speaking, reading, writing Tamil be any different? Yet this is what my kids’ Tamil teachers tell me. I simply must do it. Even when I tell them I don’t know how to, they simply say I must do it.

[HAPPYH]

jacsplace:

Dear Sun_2010,


My son's school has an MT week each year. This year, he was given a little badge but when I asked him for details of what happened each day, he just looked away and said \"nothing\". He's okay with school work too. He's very concerned about tests and will study for them.

My daughter's school doesn't have such a thing. She's been fine with school work until P3 this year. Now she fails almost everything, or just passes (6 upon 10, for example).

They both don't like watch kids' Tamil TV shows. I wouldn't mind watching an adult show with them, but most of them are too melodramatic -- too much crying! There was a Singapore-made drama set in a school, but I think that's over now.

If Vasantham showed kids shows on Saturdays and Sundays, I would tune in to those. I don't understand why they don't bother. SINDA doesn't provide any Tamil assistance either. It's like we're thrown into the sea and not taught how to swim because the assumption is that we must know how to swim because we were born on an island. But skills need to be taught, right? We're not born knowing them! Walking, talking -- these are all skills that babies need to be taught. They are not taught knowing them. So why should speaking, reading, writing Tamil be any different? Yet this is what my kids' Tamil teachers tell me. I simply must do it. Even when I tell them I don't know how to, they simply say I must do it.

I can understand your situation and we are sailing on almost the same boat. You can ask them to watch chotta beem on friday evenings.

[smartmummy]

Hi Pls find help here

http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/groups/sg.tamil.community/

[jacsplace]

Dear HAPPYH,


I have asked them more than once to watch that show. Their grandmother asks them. Their aunt asks them. They just watch Okto. Their grandmother changes the channel to Vasantham, they change it back to Okto. Why doesn’t Vasantham broadcast such shows on the weekends?

[HAPPYH]

jacsplace:

Dear HAPPYH,


I have asked them more than once to watch that show. Their grandmother asks them. Their aunt asks them. They just watch Okto. Their grandmother changes the channel to Vasantham, they change it back to Okto. Why doesn't Vasantham broadcast such shows on the weekends?

ya, actually Vasantham can increase the intensity of children's programmes. Unfortunately they are moving towards more dramas....Sigh....

[Jinglee]

Hi mummies…

Do you have your DS or DD in Hindi class? Kindly need you views on sending my 4year old DS to a Hindi class. He is currently in a local kindergarten for Nursery and we have enrolled him in an Indian International school for K1 from Jan 2013…means he will be joining the class on the last term. The school has Hindi as subject from K1 onwards and my DS has no knowledge about Hindi as we don’t speak hindi at home. And joining in the middle of the year is going to be even more difficult for him to cope up. So we are thinking about sending him to Hindi class to make him familiarise with the simple words and letters. We stay in Chua Chu kang and there is a hindi class going on nearby in teck whye. Do anyone send your kids there? What are the classes like and the fees? Will they take a kid inbetween? Is there one-to-one class? Or any mommies know any home tutors in hindi ? Any advice is appreciated. Thanks

[mom2girls]

Have you tried the tuition classes conducted by the tamil teachers union at Umar Pulavar Tamil Lang Center. Our MTL is Tamil - My DH can read write as he studied in Singapore. I studied Hindi in India but can speak basic Tamil and read basic also. My K1 DD goes to UPTLC for classes as she learns Mandrin in school. She likes it there. I know they have Sat classes for older children too. Seen many coming for tuition and very reasonably priced. Dunno how she will cope from P1 onwards as I cannot read complex words / sentences. Banking on DH to pitch in then.