Comparing Chinese Enrichment (Primary/Preschool)

[iLoveChubby]

Just curious, are most TH teachers Singaporeans / Taiwanese?

[Dino mummy]

iLoveChubby:

Dino mummy:

[quote=\"sembgal\"]Let me share my Bishan Berries vs Sembawang Tien Hsia experience with all of you. 2 years ago, I put my child on waitlist at Berries and Tien Hsia. My child's Chinese standard was not good at that time. I enrolled my child in Tien Hsia when there was a vacancy in the Nursery class at that time. I did not wait for Berries. My child started at Tien Hsia and stayed on till year end learning Chinese. She liked her teacher and looked forward to attending the class every week. Berries offered a vacancy for the following year K1. I went down to Berries to look at the classroom, worksheets, books, materials, teachers, classrooms and even the toilets outside the school in the CPF building. The teachers were mostly from China, some with very strong accent. Children sat on the floor with crossed legs to do writing on the small portable table. Children whose parents were late in fetching them were rowdy and teachers had difficulty managing them. The toilets stink beyond imagination. There was no stool provided for children to wash hands and the sink was so high. My child was brought along and I asked her if she wanted to study at Berries and give up Tien Hsia. She told me no because she liked Tien Hsia teacher. I continued to let her study in Tien Hsia for K1 last year and this year in K2, she is still with Tien Hsia and enjoying her lessons. I can tell you that good teachers will make a big difference to children's learning. The Chinese preschool level teachers in Tien Hsia are dedicated and loving to the children. Learning Chinese is no longer a torture and it's a breeze for me to guide my child for her Tien Hsia Spelling. Chinese Spelling is 2 times per term. The first Spelling list for this term is 1)老师 2）我在写字。Spelling list for K1 and K2 will be given on lesson 3 and tested on lesson 4 and given on lesson 6 and tested on lesson 7. Lesson 9 is usually term test and rehearsal for open house. Week 10 Parents are invited to watch the child do group and individual recital, sing songs and read Vocabulary words. I would say it's money well spent on Tien Hsia for providing my child with a good classroom environment. The only thing I like about Berries is their Chinese readers which are colourful. Other than that, I think it's up to individual child to show their preference, be it Tien Hsia or Berries.

I agree..i oso believe diff centres gv their own strenghts. We likes berries bukit batok..the envirnonment, staff and the teachers r good. And the toilets r in good conditions. The toilets r locked and u hv to get the keys from berries staff to open it. We hv no experience w TS so we cant comment. But so far, we r sticking w berries...my ds1 has been w berries since k2, he is p5 now. The teachers hehad so far. Ds2 is in his 3rd yr w berries, he is p1 now. I hv to thk his teacher as his chinese has improved a lot. His current teacher has been w him since k1.

Hi Dino mummy
I have heard that Berries is not very academic for upper primary kids (as compared to lower pri/preschoolers), what do you think?...since your DS1 has been there for so many years!
Does Berries cover lots of compo writing for upper primary?[/quote]They have compo practices and compo handbook..but it is not a compo class afterall..so i wont say a lot of compo writing practices.I tink most importantly is they help to make them \"erase\" certain fears on chinese.
Maybe, my expectatn is not high..so far, i am fine with Berries. The teachers are mainly from China and I can see they are v concerned with the kids as well as committed to centres. Very often, I saw teachers helping out in taking tempertures when the admin staff is busy. I also saw teachers giving out adv worksheets cos the kid is having exams eariler than Berries' revision period...Altho there is no formal meet the parents session, the teachers were seen feedbacking to parents on what did the kids did well or din do well..etc...DS1 teacher offered to help me mark the comprehension assessment books that I let him practice when I told her his compreh and compo is weak. I am not promoting Berries...but I do thank the centre for helping my kids.
I believe not all Berries are the same cos I heard not v good feedback from others...Likewise, not all TS are good too...it depends.

[sweetjam]

Church kindergarten Chinese lesson 25mins to 30mins a day. PCF kindergarten Chinese lesson 40mins to 45mins. Take away 10 mins for toilet break and water break. Please calculate the remaining time left for Chinese lesson a day. Supplementing Chinese enrichment is a must if the child does not speak Mandarin in home environment.

[Ah Girl]

Hi AdonciaTang,


I’m staying at the East too. Can share which centre you send?

[AdonciaTang]

Ah Girl:

Hi AdonciaTang,


I'm staying at the East too. Can share which centre you send?

Pmed you

[kangks]

Hi,


Any enrichment classes to help primary schooler, especially using innovative and fun ways e.g. using pictures/drawings to associate with the chinese words.

I am staying at east.

Thank you.

[Supernova]

Hi, I’m trying to decide between Berries and the ChengZhu language learners programme for my 3.5 year old daughter. She needs to be prepared for P1 higher Chinese and we don’t speak Mandarin at home. I would be grateful for any views.

[Supernova]

Hi, I’m trying to decide between Berries and the ChengZhu language learners programme for my 3.5 year old daughter. She needs to be prepared for P1 higher Chinese and we don’t speak Mandarin at home. I would be grateful for any views.

[Callie Tan]

Supernova:

Hi, I'm trying to decide between Berries and the ChengZhu language learners programme for my 3.5 year old daughter. She needs to be prepared for P1 higher Chinese and we don't speak Mandarin at home. I would be grateful for any views.

at 3.5 years old I feel it's more about cultivating interests in the laguage... Heard that Berries are pretty fun for learning chinese, and I have not heard of ChengZhu...IMO, do make some effort to speak the language at home, which will definitely help a lot a lot compared to just depending on enrichment classes which might be just 1-3 hours a week...

[Supernova]

Callie Tan:

Supernova:

Hi, I'm trying to decide between Berries and the ChengZhu language learners programme for my 3.5 year old daughter. She needs to be prepared for P1 higher Chinese and we don't speak Mandarin at home. I would be grateful for any views.

at 3.5 years old I feel it's more about cultivating interests in the laguage... Heard that Berries are pretty fun for learning chinese, and I have not heard of ChengZhu...IMO, do make some effort to speak the language at home, which will definitely help a lot a lot compared to just depending on enrichment classes which might be just 1-3 hours a week...

Thanks Callie!