All About Preparing For PSLE

[JohnYeo]

sea:

[quote]Well, communication with parents is very importan because it should be seen as a team effort (team made up of parent and tutor) to ensure a more sustaining improvement.

I agree with you John. However, there are tutors who don't like the parents to tell them the child's weakness as to them, they think that they know what they are doing. So for this type of tutor is very difficult to work hand in hand.[/quote]hi sea,

Oh dear...looks like it is going to be rough. I always believe in taking two hands to clap for effective learning to take place. I'm just wondering if these group of tutors belong to the older gen. Not being biased here but I kept on getting feedback from some of my parents that they find working with older tutors challenging at times.

[JohnYeo]

janet_lee88:

i strongly believe in working closely with kids' tutors...fortunately they have been very upfront with me esp in weak areas...don't want to hear just the good stuff...so on my part, i work out a schedule such that kids have time to revise after tuition. once a week tuition can't possibly work miracles if parents and tutors do not work together.

Hi Janet, u seem to be a very knowledgeable n understanding mommy. I'm curious about how you plan your kids' revision. Would u be able to share more with us? Cos most kids are swarmed with school work n tuition work n so how do u motivate your kids to continue to revise.

[janet88]

I go with the flow…schedule is not guaranteed to work but something done better than nothing. Hopefully the 10 questions of math or cloze/grammar sticks in her head.

My schedule is always changing…bcos there are days when daughter has more homework and my work for her that day has to be postponed.
Both of them need to nap in order to stretch till 1030pm. 6-7pm is for learning Chinese spelling, then 8-10pm is for school hw (30-45 min) and another subject. Homework is done bcos it is required…reinforcement is necessary.

[JohnYeo]

janet_lee88:

I go with the flow...schedule is not guaranteed to work but something done better than nothing. Hopefully the 10 questions of math or cloze/grammar sticks in her head.

My schedule is always changing...bcos there are days when daughter has more homework and my work for her that day has to be postponed.
Both of them need to nap in order to stretch till 1030pm. 6-7pm is for learning Chinese spelling, then 8-10pm is for school hw (30-45 min) and another subject. Homework is done bcos it is required...reinforcement is necessary.

wow...sounds tough...how do u decide which one must be done first, then second and so on...since the schedule and load of your kids are always changing?

[janet88]

school homework comes first as well as spelling/dictation.

Then comes tuition work which I split into 2 days and then math and science. Sunday is for english only. If kids do not nap, they have no time to revise since bedtime would be earlier…as well as getting quality work done, be it school or revision. I have adopted hand-off approach towards son since he is in sec 1…occasionally i still ask if he has completed his work and give him time to relax.

[JohnYeo]

janet_lee88:

school homework comes first as well as spelling/dictation.

Then comes tuition work which I split into 2 days and then math and science. Sunday is for english only. If kids do not nap, they have no time to revise since bedtime would be earlier...as well as getting quality work done, be it school or revision. I have adopted hand-off approach towards son since he is in sec 1...occasionally i still ask if he has completed his work and give him time to relax.

Thanks so much Janet...looks like more hand-off approach is required as the child gets older....hmmm \"deep thought and wondering how i will cope when my daughters grow up.

[janet88]

Girls tend to be harder to manage compared to boys…think several mummies here will agree. My 13 year old will complain, nag and whine about homework…but he will get them done…just that my ears suffer. My p3 daughter still doesn’t see the urgency of exams and bochap attitude is killing me. I try to break down her work such that it is bite-size but it is not possible now. I do not wish to see her go to another secondary school when her affiliated one is just next door. So, have to start pushing.

[weatherbee]

janet_lee88:

Girls tend to be harder to manage compared to boys..think several mummies here will agree. My 13 year old will complain, nag and whine about homework...but he will get them done...just that my ears suffer. My p3 daughter still doesn't see the urgency of exams and bochap attitude is killing me. I try to break down her work such that it is bite-size but it is not possible now. I do not wish to see her go to another secondary school when her affiliated one is just next door. So, have to start pushing.

Could it be the age? Or that the older child is more sensible? For me, it's the opposite. Daughter will do her homework. She will rant here and there occasionally but still get things done. For son, he likes to drag and waste time.

[weatherbee]

JohnYeo:

janet_lee88:

son attended same tutor as that boy...his mother stormed into the tutor's residence and raised hell...held up the class for 1/2 hour...told the tutor she is not coaching her son in his school work.

wow, can imagine what had happened...im just wondering this might be prevented if the tutor had consistently updated the parent on what had been covered and done with (not for) the child.

After speaking to several parents, I realised most were not updated and they had no idea what was done in the sessions and how effective were the tuitions. Most take the result of any test/ exam to determine the effectiveness.

If there is an improvement, the tuition is considered good.
if there's no improvement or even a drop in grade, the tuition is not good.

Well, communication with parents is very importan because it should be seen as a team effort (team made up of parent and tutor) to ensure a more sustaining improvement.

My 2 cents,
John

Yup, I also think that parents and tutors should work together. It will be more effective. My tutor and I always exchange information. Like if I happen to see/read about one assessment book which is good, I will recommend it to my tutor and get her opinion. If my tutor tells me that my son needs to complete his work faster, I will set a time limit for him. Then sometimes we also exchange information about activities for school holidays.

[SarChar]

janet_lee88:

Girls tend to be harder to manage compared to boys..think several mummies here will agree. My 13 year old will complain, nag and whine about homework...but he will get them done...just that my ears suffer. My p3 daughter still doesn't see the urgency of exams and bochap attitude is killing me. I try to break down her work such that it is bite-size but it is not possible now. I do not wish to see her go to another secondary school when her affiliated one is just next door. So, have to start pushing.

i dont know about boys but my p5 girl is exactly like you said...no urgency at all. It is driving me crazy mad and......sad.....

Its really difficult to deal with tween. If she is not too clever, I can accept. But if she is just plain lazy, I dont know what to do. :scared: