[Bedok/Katong/Marine Parade/Siglap] Preschools

[mightyjo]

Can someone share the contact number for kids n kids please. Much appreciated!

[Dino_Mummy]

I highly recommend "Children’s Vineyard" at 91 Koon Send Road.


I had switched my son from another church kindy during the last term last year.
Within that 1-term, my boy who used to detest mandarin now even sings chinese songs to me happily.

Further, his diction in mandarin has improved (he does not sound like an ‘ang moh’ speaking mandarin now). Of course, he is not at the level where you can compare the diction with a china chinese kid but definitely improved that even my sister commented he sounds so much better speaking mandarin these days.

Judy Yap and Zhang Jing (lao shi) are the founders of this kindergarten. They used to homeschool a small group of kids (children of their friends, through recommendation) and it grew so big with so much more additional requests to take in their children that they started to source for a venue to start up a kindergarten about 3-years back.

Thus, though the kindergarten is ‘new’ at Charis Methodist Church, they are very experienced and of quality teaching. Judy and Zhang lao shi are very devoted in teaching yet strict and care in teaching the children good morale values and manners too. The teachers they have are good – Judy is very selective of the teachers employed.

Children and parents of this kindergarten come together at festive celebration and it’s like a family. Nothing pretentious and snobbish.

I only wished they had open this kindergarten much earlier.

I must stressed i am NOT in any way related to any teachers, founders of this kindergarten. Purely just a mummy (FTWM at that) that is very happy to have found a quality kindy for my son as i believe good foundation is very important prior primary school.

Hope this helps new parents or parents who just shifted to the east.

[Dino_Mummy]

Typo error - it is "91 Koon Seng Road" - the address for Children’s Vineyard Kindergarten.

[phtthp]

Sunnybunny,


a few of my friends told me that your Bedok branch for K1 / K2 does not conduct any Chinese lesson at all. They report that so far, you only conduct English and Maths.

my question to you is :-
are you then operating as a Montessori Kindergarten registered under MOE regulation, or merely just another enrichment centre in Bedok, offering enrichment in only English / Maths ?

if Sunnybunny is a properly registered MOE kindergarten, how can you possibly neglect preparatory Basic FOUNDATION ground work Chinese lessons for kindergarten pupils to prepare them for P1 Chinese, when Mother Tongue is a compulsory P1 subject in all Primary school(s) all over Singapore, for Chinese pupils - unless they've reason(s) to be exempted from taking Chinese ?

fyi - Chinese is a tough subject to tackle!
Many pupils in primary schools find Chinese tough to handle, esp. if foundation is not handled right properly esp. during the crucial, key, foundational kindergarten years esp. K1 / K2.

[jhl]

Hi Parents,


Any more recent comments on Schoolhouse by the Bay? I read all the way back to 2008 and it seems to have lost popularity. Everything seems to be about Kids N Kids. Any parents with kids who are currently there or who have graduated, kindly provide some details on experience and preparation for P1.

Thanks for your time!

[littlemiffy]

Subject : Brighton Montessori at Fort Rd / Frankel


Hi All,

I am currently on the lookout for preschools in the east for my two y/o.

For parents who have visited Brighton Montessori previously, may I know if you still keep the photocopied A4 size info brochure/pamphlet (aside fm the school fees list) fm Brighton? I misplaced all the info sheets during my house move, and when i revisited them, they are now only giving out the price list + a printed official brochure that does not give much details .

Appreciate it greatly if anyone can share a copy with me via email.

Thank you…

[esmummy]

About Schoolhouse by the Bay.....


My daughter was there from N2 till K2 and my boy is there in K2 now.

The school underwent a major management change about 2yr ago. The former principal, along with some good teachers, left to start Childfirst at M Square.

There has been many changes, not all of them good. I'll give you my take on the good, bad and ugly....

Good:
1. True bilingual immersion: one day entirely mandarin, next day entirely English so all teachers and lessons for the day will be in one language or the other. I don't know if any other preschool that has that... Most will have one Eng and one Chinese teacher in the class and if the child is more comfortable in say, English, then he will preferentially seek out the english teacher. In SHBTB, they are forced to use Chinese on alternate days and you can see even expat kids managing conversational mandarin.

2. Most of the teachers are pleasant, caring and responsible. I cannot speak for all.

3. Large enough rooms, a proper canteen, 2 or 3 open spaces/playgrounds and use of the huge CC gym/hall and dance studio.

4. There are observation rooms where you can watch your kids from behind a one way mirror, anytime of day or even the whole day if you wish. This open policy shows confidence and gives a reassurance that mere words lack.

5. Their full day programme has improved in terms of focus and content.

Bad:

1. Class size is huge! My boy's K2 class has 28 kids with 1 main teacher and one assistant teacher.

2. Food provided is usually refined carbs.... White bread, coco pops, juice out of a packet.... But hey, you can always BYO

3. I only share my experience with their teaching, which may differ from other parents' opinions. I cannot give them credit for teaching my kids to read. Their emphasis on phonics is weak and they rely on sight words to teach reading, something I don't agree with. At K2, my girl still couldn't read until I took matters into my own hands.

Maths is passable. No fancy stuff like abacus or speed counting, but no issues there. Did not do number bonds in preparation for P1.

Chinese is good. They do di zi gui, han Yu pin yin, character strokes etc...

I did consider taking my son out this year because they suddenly doubled his class size and some other issues irked me. But since it Is his last year and it would be too disruptive, I decided to stay on. That said, his current teachers are pretty good, and if it weren't for the class size, I'd still recommend the school.

[janeys]

Subject: Shaws @ Katong Post and Treasure Box @ Marine Parade


Hi,

I’m considering placing my 2 yr old son in either one of these preschools. Anyone has any feedback?

I like Shaws for their environment and programmes but a little concerned about their mix of local vs international students. With no offence to anyone, I’m worried that my son will be bullied by the Caucasian kids. What do you all think?

I like Treasure Box for their low teacher-student ratio. But definitely like the environment in Shaws better.

Thanks!

[libran269]

janeys:

Subject: Shaws @ Katong Post and Treasure Box @ Marine Parade


Hi,

I'm considering placing my 2 yr old son in either one of these preschools. Anyone has any feedback?

I like Shaws for their environment and programmes but a little concerned about their mix of local vs international students. With no offence to anyone, I'm worried that my son will be bullied by the Caucasian kids. What do you all think?

I like Treasure Box for their low teacher-student ratio. But definitely like the environment in Shaws better.

Thanks!

Shaws staff are very senstive people. I have not heard cases of bullying.
Lot of my friends kids went there.
Mine went for couple of years too.

[sassyfire]

Hi,


I have actually visited Kids N Kids…
and my boy seems to like the place.
My only concern is the school hrs : 1130 to 430pm.
One of the teachers there seem rather fierce
as opposed to those I have seen at Children’s vineyard.

At Kids N Kids, it makes it impossible for him to nap.
And this boy needs to nap on most days.
That is because he is never asleep way past 815am in the morning.
Like 1% of his 4 coming 5 years…if he ever sleep past 830am
it is very very rare. Most days he is awake before 8am.
Which means by 3pm he is already getting very tired.

I know some moms said can be trained. But I don’t know if it
applies to all kids. I find he functions a lot better and alot healthier
if he has his afternoon nap. I tried before skipping his nap…
he ended sick …like bad for the 1st time in his life…yikes.
So while I won’t force to nap every single day. But I do know when
he is at his max : he cannot reason, he will break down easily
and eyes are very bloodshot. How to skip his nap?
Even if he sleeps at 830pm and wakes up 745am or 8am the next day…
he still gets very tired by 3ish…

Hence I am really really hesitant putting him at Kids N Kids…pardon my long past.
Unfortunately, Children vineyard is full in the morning.