2013 PSLE Discussions and Strategy

[TheAnswer]

JohnYeo:

I'm just wondering if just taking 5 to 15 mins a day to look through DS and DD's homework and understand one to two concepts per day will work equally well too, if not better.


Love to hear from parents...do you prefer your spouse to take one to two FULL days to coach kids or a consistent 5 to 15-minutes block of time everyday to coach kids?

I prefer my DH to concentrate on his work rather than coach DS. DH does not have any patience. We divide our responsibilities.

I coach DS on his academic work and occasionally I teach him to prepare simple dishes. I do not have the habit of going through his homework (school). I encourage independent learning. I go through the additional work (homework from me).


DH coaches him on general knowledge, technology stuff and sports during weekends.

[janet88]

5-15 min every other day is better than taking leave…but from start, last year wasn’t a good time bcos hub worked till 10-11pm and son was tired…so he slept before hubby was done. fortunately, his subjects were outsourced…whew!!!

[Trina]

At P6, it is likely to take more than 5-15 to go through a few questions with your child. We can take up to an hour to go through subjects like Math and Chinese open ended compre. Sometimes I have to do my own studying first to figure out how to solve the question before going through it with my child. Either DH or myself will try to spend 30min to an hour every weekday on revision.

[JohnYeo]

slmkhoo:

JohnYeo:

I'm just wondering if just taking 5 to 15 mins a day to look through DS and DD's homework and understand one to two concepts per day will work equally well too, if not better.


Love to hear from parents...do you prefer your spouse to take one to two FULL days to coach kids or a consistent 5 to 15-minutes block of time everyday to coach kids?

I have a different take - I feel that parents should have a more 'business as usual' attitude towards exams, even major ones like the PSLE. The kids are already stressed, so showing the importance to the parent can add to the stress. Not that parents should ignore the fact that there is an important exam coming, but parents should avoid adding stress. Of course, kids may be less stressed to have parents around more, but I believe it may be the reverse for some. I am a SAHM, so I was always around when my daughter took PSLE in 2011, but we actually avoided mentioning the exam more than strictly necessary, I still took her to the library every week, let her watch TV and play games when she had done sufficient revision (she decided what was sufficient), went out to eat, visited grandparents etc as usual. My husband made sure he could spend about an hour a day at her disposal to help with Maths, but he didn't specially stay at home. He drove her to school as usual, but she came home by public bus even on the exam days. I asked her if she wanted us to devote more attention to her before and during the exams, and she emphatically told us to \"act normal\"!

Hi slmkhoo,

It is interesting that you did ask your DD what she wanted and you and your spouse respected what she wanted. Plus, it seemed to me that whether there were exams or tests, your family still go about your daily activities. Wow, Im impressed. I know of some families who cut the \"normal\" activities to 0 when exams are nearing. It is really not easy and kudos to you and your spouse.

John

[JohnYeo]

wonderm:

JohnYeo:

I'm just wondering if just taking 5 to 15 mins a day to look through DS and DD's homework and understand one to two concepts per day will work equally well too, if not better.


Love to hear from parents...do you prefer your spouse to take one to two FULL days to coach kids or a consistent 5 to 15-minutes block of time everyday to coach the kids?

For our family, daddy and mummy both coached the kids in the evenings or during weekends when they were younger. As the kids grow up and take ownership of their learning, there is no fixed 'coaching time' but they are free to consult daddy or mummy when there are any questions. However, daddy never took leave to coach them in studies, no one expected that. He does take leave for family outings during school holidays though.

Hi wonderm,

Just curious, m in wonderm stands for mother so it means wonder mother?

Sounds like you and your spouse are your children's role models and family teacher...anything just come to papa or mommy?

My kids are still young and I really want to learn from the other experienced parents like yourself. How do you decide which parent to teach what? And how do you decide when is a good time to let go and it is time for kids to take up more ownership and be more responsible?

[sharonkhoo]

JohnYeo:

Hi slmkhoo,


It is interesting that you did ask your DD what she wanted and you and your spouse respected what she wanted. Plus, it seemed to me that whether there were exams or tests, your family still go about your daily activities. Wow, Im impressed. I know of some families who cut the \"normal\" activities to 0 when exams are nearing. It is really not easy and kudos to you and your spouse.

John

We both feel that we parents can only push up to a point, and at 12yo, the child must also want to study. Of course, in the years up to that point, we had done what we could to enthuse her about studies, explain why studies are important, taught her how to study and manage time etc. Both of us grew up in families where there was minimal change in family routine and activities before exams, and we both managed to find time to study and did well, so we have taught our kids the same. In fact, kids study better when they know they will have time to play and relax in the immediate future, not 'after the exams'.

[JohnYeo]

TheAnswer:

JohnYeo:

I'm just wondering if just taking 5 to 15 mins a day to look through DS and DD's homework and understand one to two concepts per day will work equally well too, if not better.


Love to hear from parents...do you prefer your spouse to take one to two FULL days to coach kids or a consistent 5 to 15-minutes block of time everyday to coach kids?

I prefer my DH to concentrate on his work rather than coach DS. DH does not have any patience. We divide our responsibilities.

I coach DS on his academic work and occasionally I teach him to prepare simple dishes. I do not have the habit of going through his homework (school). I encourage independent learning. I go through the additional work (homework from me).


DH coaches him on general knowledge, technology stuff and sports during weekends.

Wow, different teachers for different subjects! \"Applause...

And you teach your DS to cook too...Nice...I know one SAHM who teaches both her DD and DS to cook and bake. And talking about independent learning, I realise it is not easy like to trust the children 100% that they \"really\" did their work...how do you do that? I feel letting go is one of the hardest thing to do as a parent.

[JohnYeo]

slmkhoo:

JohnYeo:

Hi slmkhoo,


It is interesting that you did ask your DD what she wanted and you and your spouse respected what she wanted. Plus, it seemed to me that whether there were exams or tests, your family still go about your daily activities. Wow, Im impressed. I know of some families who cut the \"normal\" activities to 0 when exams are nearing. It is really not easy and kudos to you and your spouse.

John

In fact, kids study better when they know they will have time to play and relax in the immediate future, not 'after the exams'.

Very true...I realise kids become very motivated when they knew that they can do this or that (something enjoyable and something they like) right after they finish their work (be it school work or homework)

we can really see the sparkle in their eyes and surge in their energy level! >.<

[sharonkhoo]

JohnYeo:

And talking about independent learning, I realise it is not easy like to trust the children 100% that they \"really\" did their work...how do you do that? I feel letting go is one of the hardest thing to do as a parent.

I 'quiz' my kids now and again, but without making it seem like a test (although they probably realise that I'm doing it). I usually ask them what they have been doing, and get them to talk to me about it. One of the best ways to test understanding is to get them to explain something to me, and I can usually tell if they have understood something just by chatting to them. I will also ask what sort of mistakes they made in their work and whether they know why it was wrong etc, or ask them to let me spot check their work now and again. Yes, letting go is hard, but it has to be done some time.

[TheAnswer]

JohnYeo:

TheAnswer:

[quote=\"JohnYeo\"]I'm just wondering if just taking 5 to 15 mins a day to look through DS and DD's homework and understand one to two concepts per day will work equally well too, if not better.


Love to hear from parents...do you prefer your spouse to take one to two FULL days to coach kids or a consistent 5 to 15-minutes block of time everyday to coach kids?

I prefer my DH to concentrate on his work rather than coach DS. DH does not have any patience. We divide our responsibilities.

I coach DS on his academic work and occasionally I teach him to prepare simple dishes. I do not have the habit of going through his homework (school). I encourage independent learning. I go through the additional work (homework from me).


DH coaches him on general knowledge, technology stuff and sports during weekends.

Wow, different teachers for different subjects! \"Applause...

And you teach your DS to cook too...Nice...I know one SAHM who teaches both her DD and DS to cook and bake. And talking about independent learning, I realise it is not easy like to trust the children 100% that they \"really\" did their work...how do you do that? I feel letting go is one of the hardest thing to do as a parent.[/quote]My DS is not P6 yet but I'm treating him like a mini adult. He has been trained since young to help around the house. I'm working full time including weekends. Tuesday is my only rest day. I do not have much time to hover behind him and chase him to get his work done. He has a schedule since he was in K1.

He is the kind who will inform me of any test/exam or any difficulty he has in school. I coach him twice a week.

I started teaching him how to cook since last year. He can now do simple things like making sandwiches, preparing milkshakes, frying an egg and stir fry some veges. Of course, the food doesn't taste awesome but it's good enough for me. He is my only son and I prefer him to be independent. I was brought up this way also.

For my DH, he loves to talk about technology stuff so I leave that to him.

As parents, we need to share the work. I can't do everything.