Newton Kindergarten

[IdoPilates]

edener:

My son is one of the few who has been with NK since N1. This is a good school in terms of character building and imparting right values to a child. He loves the school (especially the school song), the teachers and his friends. However, I am getting a little nervous now if he will be ready for P1 after graduating from NK. The content of his K1 work was indeed basic (too basic actually) and I thought it should be more in depth in K2. Apparently, it is not.


Example of K2 Spelling Words (only 5 words)
1. Scarf
2. Scone
3. Scatter
4. Scooter
5. Scale

Example of his K1 (end of term) Spelling Words from Enrichment
1. antidote
2. anticlockwise
3. binoculars
4. circumscribe
5. convince
6. community
7. extraordinary
8. hypermarket
9. forefinger
10. committee
- All the kids in the class got full marks and according to my boy, only 1 girl failed to get the perfect score.

Kids are so smart these days and to be honest, I do not think my boy will be ready for P1 if he does not attend any enrichment classes. He probably will face difficulties catching up. Other than English, he also attend Chinese & Maths enrichment since beginning of K1. It is really a MUST. Having spoken to the teachers during PMT, I do think there is any kid in his class who does not take enrichment classes.

Dear mummies of NK,

I do get quite alarmed when we all get all worked up about \"preparing our kids for Primary one\".

Let me share with you the week 10 spelling list from ACPS which my older boy is currently attending for some perspective:
1. yellow
2. purple
3. orange
4. black
5. brown
6. The fire engine is red.
7. I have a blue toy helicopter.
8. The small books are on the table.

Apparently Nanyang Pri is also using similar level of words as my niece attends that school and the words are from these books they are reading in class. I'm not sure what enrichment centre gave out that list of really difficult words but I certainly did not know them at age 7, and I still managed to graduate law school later in life!! So don't get your feathers all ruffled so early on. As a psychologist who gave us a parenting talk earlier this term shared: education is a marathon not a sprint - we need to pace our kids so they don't peak too early or lose their momentum and enthusiasm for learning. It is a looooong way to go, as we all know. We don't want burned out kids and parents by Primary six.

With Holistic Assessment replacing exams in Pri 1, I'm glad it is a more wholistic approach to assessing the strengths and weaknesses of our kids in various aspects of learning. I have volunteered as a teacher's assistant during the first five weeks of term during Primary one, and a lot of time is spent helping the children adjust to the new routines, rules, uniforms, going to the toilet, looking after their own belongings, getting along with others, learning to stand on their own two feet .... life skills really, and not book learning. I think that is the one thing to really focus on in preparing your child for the transition to primary one. If our children are confident, independent and love learning, then primary one will be fun and they'll adapt easily and enjoy going to school and learning will happen. Call me naive, but I think Kindy is really all about learning those life skills which will equip our kids to cope with \"big kids\" school later: getting on with others, discipline, working in a group, learning to write, going to the toilet on one's own, making friends, learning about oneself and the world we live in. Being an advocate of Brain Gym (http://www.braingym.org), I truly believe we all learn most effectively through play, and physical activity at the Kindy age is so important. My son has a slight learning and social disability, so he lags behind his peers in some areas, and encouraging his confidence and co-ordination through physical activity has boosted his confidence in coping with primary school and he is now more open to interacting with others and exploring the world around him.

I know not all parents share my view. In our zeal to help our kids (and who doesn't want the best for our kids?), we should also take into account their stages of development, character and the bigger picture.

[IdoPilates]

Dear parents,


Do any of you have any further updates regarding the HFMD situation in school? I find it quite disconcerting that the school has not issued any letter to parents to assure us as to measures being put in place to clean/disinfect the premises. As a result, I’m keeping my son home this week to monitor and avoid risk of infection as he had 3 cases in his class as of yesterday.

I am also a little put out that the school doesn’t have a communication booklet for staff and parents to keep in touch. Being a working mum, I don’t have the luxury of dropping my son off in school or picking him up, so I have no contact time with the teachers/school. I have concocted my own communication folder which I attach to the outside of his bag so the teacher can see it. In my older boy’s previous kindy, the K2 kids were taught to take out their communication folder in school and deposit in the tray if parents write a note in the book for the teacher to see, and also inform parents if the teacher/school has a note in the book for parents to read. Now in P.1, he has a similar system in place, so it’s not an issue since he’s used to this process.

[Shoe]

Why on earth would a kid need to learn the word ‘circumscribe’?

[phtthp]

what is \"circumscribe\" ?


a) Geometry

in Montessori class lessons
========================
children learn geometry, a subject taught in Montessori pre-schools. Pupils learn - what is a triangle, square, rectangle, circle, sphere, polygon? Teacher ask child, \"can you use your hands to touch and feel this 2 dimensional circular globe, or touch this 3D shaped polygon? How does it feel ? can you describe the feeling ? can you feel that the globe is round, that the globe is circular ? can you see that when i spin the globe, what shape is been retained ? Circle ! How many sides do you think a square has ? how about a rectangle ? can you see that the 4 sides of a square are equal ? can you see that the 4 sides of a rectangle are not equal ? 2 sides are longer, and 2 sides are shorter ? \"

objective: to build a strong foundation in geometry, and to help students visualize and develop spatial concept.

after kids learn geometry \"hands on\" via feel and touch Sensorial, teacher may set worksheet exercises drawing for geometry, to reinforce the concept of spatial shapes, objects and dimension imprinted deeper into their mind. They may ask an advanced learner or higher ability K2 child , \"now, can you show me how to circumscribe a circle onto a triangle?\"

in Montessori Maths -
the syllabus taught and covered is equivalent to our Primary 3 Singapore syllabus, because kids get to learn up to Thousands during \"Place Values\" concept taught in class. In Montessori environment, there is no setting of any upper limit to a child. The sky is the limit. If your K1 / K2 child is an advanced learner, Montessori teacher can teach beyond P1 syllabus.

however, in traditional classroom setting non-Montessori, it is different. Here, it involves \"mass education\" environment in a big kindergarten class of around 30 kids (eg: PCF setting). Here, kindergarten teach kids only up to maximum number 100, compliance to MOE Primary 1 Maths Syllabus covered.

b) testing Phonics sounds

to test if a child is able to sound out a particular word phonetically - via \"decode\" the sounds. That means, if a child sees an unfamiliar word, can child still able to read aloud this particular word, even though it is the first time he comes across such word ? if the child can still read aloud the new word correctly, means he has mastered the \"decoding\" or breakdown of sounds, phonetically well.

very often when a child reads a storybook with long passage, comes across any unfamiliar words in the passage, if a child is still able to continue to read, means phonetically, the child is more or less there.

at this point, we're not too particular if the child understands the meaning associated with the word. Of course if the child understands the meaning, that is great! If not, child can always refer to a dictionary later, look up its definition.

another 3 tone sound similar to \"circumscribe\" is \"fantastic\".
Teacher can ask child, \"what sounds do you hear when i say the word \"circumscribe\" very slowly ? can you decode (breakdown) the sounds for me ?\"

child may reply, \"I hear cir is \"c - i - r\", and i hear cum is \" c - u - m\".\"

scribe the child may not know. So teacher prompt child, \"what sounds do you hear, when i say scribe slowly ? then repeat scribe slowly, 3 times. what do you think the sound \"scribe\" begins with ?\"

child reply, \"i think scribe sound begins with ... s - c - r\"

teacher ask, \"Good! That's correct! now, what sounds do you hear, when i say ibe ? then repeat ibe slowly, 3 times ...\"

child reply, \"i think ibe sound is ... i - b -e\"
teacher respond, \"Great! That's correct! now, can you spell for me the sound scribe, by joining scr and ibe together ?\"

child reply, \"is ... s - c - r - i - b - e\"
teacher respond, \"Bravo! That's correct! clever boy! now, can you spell for me the word circumscribe, slowly ? Try!\"

child reply, \" i think it is ... c - i - r - c - u - m - s - c - r - i - b - e\"
teacher respond, \"Fantastic! you got it correct! now you can choose a sticker! \"

[Shoe]

Hehe, thanks phtthp! So it is a term they will use normally in the Montessori school setting huh…

[Mimama]

But Newton is not using Montessori right? Then why "circumscribe"?

[phtthp]

Newton is non-montessori. But there are some parents here who send kids for montessori Maths external enrichment once a week.


as mentioned earlier, a second reason is to test child whether know how to decode the sounds in reading.

[duriz]

IdoPilates:

Dear parents,


Do any of you have any further updates regarding the HFMD situation in school? I find it quite disconcerting that the school has not issued any letter to parents to assure us as to measures being put in place to clean/disinfect the premises. As a result, I'm keeping my son home this week to monitor and avoid risk of infection as he had 3 cases in his class as of yesterday.

I am also a little put out that the school doesn't have a communication booklet for staff and parents to keep in touch. Being a working mum, I don't have the luxury of dropping my son off in school or picking him up, so I have no contact time with the teachers/school. I have concocted my own communication folder which I attach to the outside of his bag so the teacher can see it. In my older boy's previous kindy, the K2 kids were taught to take out their communication folder in school and deposit in the tray if parents write a note in the book for the teacher to see, and also inform parents if the teacher/school has a note in the book for parents to read. Now in P.1, he has a similar system in place, so it's not an issue since he's used to this process.

Hi IdoPilates,

As you may already know from the memos the teachers left in our children's backpacks: between 20 Feb 2012 and 27 Feb 2012, NK has had 5 cases of HFMD - one in PG (playgroup, pre-nursery) and 4 in Nursery classes.

Unfortunately, similar to your DS, my DD has the one HFMD case in her PG class. The same classmate also takes the school bus with her and sits next to her :frustrated:

Having spoke with the bus driver, bus attendant and both of my DD's class teachers, they've assured me that measures have been taken to disinfect the bus and the classroom.

There is a tea session with the teachers next Friday, 9 March 2012. Try to make time to attend as they only allow one parent per child. Let them know your concerns and share your views.

Hopefully things will be fine, take good care :xedfingers:

[IdoPilates]

Thanks for the head’s up Duriz. I’ve kept my son home last week as a precaution as his allergies were acting up too. Will look out for the notices about the tea session, or call the school for info. The last time the school gave me two letters both enclosing the wrong class’ time table, and had to chase them for the right one! Have not received replies to any emails sent to the school in Jan or last week, so I will raise the communication situation at the tea party with the teachers/admin. It’s only me that’s being anal, my DS seems to be enjoying school and is learning to understand Mandarin and actually like it…phew!

[porcupine12trade]

Just seen my son K1 workbooks he brought home last thursday. Compared them to his sisters’ kindy, Maths and english very simple and basic, more like nursery standard. Both kindys are comparable for chinese.


It is quite concerning, I do not expect K1 to learn very difficult stuff, but wondering why are they still learning single letters at K1 (simple blending at least) and just number 1-10 (should be doing very simple addition?) even if it’s T1.

So do children who attend newton kindy need after school enrichment? My 2 elder children certainly did not need them during their kindy years as I find their kindy taught very age appropriate things.