Chiltern House

[kimsdad]

apologies :salute: (bit new to posting), yes i was referring to 2012 intake for N1. they had at that time only 1 or 2 spaces left for afternoon class. we were q'ing for morning class. i stand corrected i think they have 1 morning class and 1 afternoon class only.

[lovecitylondon]

anxious:

Just to share my experience of CH. CH Halifax used to be one of the best - Great teachers and staff.


However, due to their rapid expansion - 2 new branches in 1+ yr, their Head of the centre left for another centre last year and several of the experienced teachers were transferred to assist to build up the new centre.

I do feel the differences now in the overall experience of the teachers in CH Halifax.

Agree with anxious. Especially with the new and inexperienced teachers (and head) , the standard was not what it used to be. Even though the system is in place, the delivery is not great.

Some of the parents met with the school to discuss issues, but they were not taken seriously. Personally, I feel that the school has turned very patronising, which is very discouraging since we are paying premium fees. Fees have been increasing every year, but quality of teachers are not maintained. Sigh. Sigh. Heard that the teachers are not paid that well either, so none of the fees increase went towards retaining staff. SIgh Sigh.

[lovecitylondon]

OH, and CH halifax is moving in 2013, so if you wanna register there, you might like to check where are they moving to.

[lovecitylondon]

makoshark:

Don't send your kids to Chiltern House Mountbatten!

How good a school depends on the branch's teachers and Centre's Head and the Mountbatten branch has one of the worst teacher I have even encountered and the Centre's head as well as her boss doesn't try to help with the situation.
.....
And do you know what?
They managed to send out the year end \"portfolio\" and wrote great things about my daughter. They wrote about how she has grown and can do many things. It was like they were writing about a totally different person.
My believe is that it was a standard report which they just change the names.

Finally, their mercenary ways showed up so clearly that photos of my daughter's field trip were not given to us even though it was out entitlement and the head happily ignored my request because I had withdrawn my daughter from the school. Do note that my request came during the period where we still pay school fees.

Don't waste your money to send your kid to this branch.
The other branches might be good but this one (especially E) is terrible.

personally, i think the Halifax branch is good only for n1s. and guess what, we checked the kids' portfolios at the end of term, and THEY ARE ALMOST WORD FOR WORD!!! So, markoshark, you are damn right.

At halifax, it is also the same. the head and her boss doesn't try to help the situation, it's like, you're in therefore you're stuck in it, withdraw-if-u-dare kinda situation. so if you get a lousy teacher, good luck to the whole class. So there you go - depends on what's your priority for a kindergarten, I guess.

[BabyLiaw]

Any feedback on Chiltern House @Turf Club?

[Mummyjoy]

Hi BabyLiaw,


My DS is starting N1 in chiltern turf club in Jan. I can update u on his experience after that.
But so far, he loves it there each time he went for visit and for his interview. Hope he will adjust well to starting N1 alone without us accompanying him in class.
Are u intending to send ur child there?

[BabyLiaw]

Hi Mummyjoy,


Yes! My girl just started N1 with CH @Turf Club! It's her 3rd day at school and she loves it! Hope your boy is doing well!

My girl is in PM Session in Classrm 1. Are we in the same class?

Mummyjoy:

Hi BabyLiaw,

My DS is starting N1 in chiltern turf club in Jan. I can update u on his experience after that.
But so far, he loves it there each time he went for visit and for his interview. Hope he will adjust well to starting N1 alone without us accompanying him in class.
Are u intending to send ur child there?

[edener]

Hi, I am considering putting my girl in the wait list for K1 at Halifax. Does the curriculum prepares the kids for P1? In other words, without enrichment classes, by end of K2, will they be ready for Pri Sch?

[toddles]

What are the hours like for the AM session?


Is there a difference between class time and the time I can drop the kid off? Does anyone drop their kid off quite early?

[fuchsia]

Edener,


Regarding your query as to whether Chiltern House prepares your child for P1.

My daughter is in P1 this year. She graduated from Chiltern House K2 in 2011. I only have high praises for Chiltern House. Yes, I believe that they do prepare the kids for P1. I believe that it is in K2 that they learn the most and this really helps them in P1, so I will share what they did for K2:

Here are my observations:

1.\tWeekly Show and Tell for both English and Mandarin from N1 helps your child to develop confidence in public speaking. From N1 – K1, your child brings a toy or object related to the theme or letter of the week for Show and Tell. In K2, Show and Tell is replaced by what is known as “news sharing”. Ie, your child brings a newspaper article or book or magazine or anything that is related to the theme that they are discussing in class and shares it with the class. I had fun doing news sharing with my child. Eg we did up a chart showing the various animals of the rainforest and the different layers of the rainforest and she shared it with her class. She also shared with her class the food pyramid (one of the topics in K2 term 1 is health and body). All these “public speaking” experiences help your child to be not afraid of talking. In P1, kids have Show and Tell as alternative assessment. Your child will already have plenty of “show and tell” experiences in kindergarten so when they come to Primary school, they will not have jitters in speaking up in class.

2.\tMath – the children are introduced to the concept of number bonds (which are very important in P1). They learn using manipulatives during math. When the learn “money” they have role play eg pretend to be shopper and buy things at the pretend supermarket. I understand that from this year onwards, they will be incorporating a field trip to the supermarket – so that will be fun for the kids. Having said that, still gave my child bite-sized math worksheets at home to do to supplement what they learnt at school.

3.\tMandarin – they start han yu pin yin and ting xie in K2. I can tell you that their K2 ting xie is even more difficult than what they are learning in P1 . They also do Picture Talk (ie talk about what is happening in the Picture). And in Term 3 they work towards a certification (present a toy and talk about it). Having said that, I still sent my child for Mandarin enrichment at Berries (because I cannot teach her Mandarin).

4.\tEnglish. The kids are grouped according toward their ability. Eg higher level kids get more difficult worksheets for the Oxford Reading Tree-based activities. Kids start writing paragraphs (preparation for composition in P1). They also learn about punctuation, and simple grammar.

5.\tBook borrowing. The book borrowing every day (English books daily and Mandarin once or twice a week) is really good towards cultivating your child’s love for reading. Of course, you should not just rely on the Chiltern House book borrowing, but also read to your child on your own. My child (now in P1) can read chapter books. She just finished Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

These are just some of the things I like about Chiltern House. What I like about Chiltern House is that the kids turn out to be very outspoken and confident individuals, which is very important when they go to Primary school. It should not just be about academic. So, I have no regrets sending my child to Chiltern House (although the fees are very high).