Pei Chun Public

[bridesep]

Tks, Callie. There is a briefing this Friday at 7 pm. Do attend for more info as well.

[Callie Tan]

denisepby:

Hi, I've registered for Parent Volunteer next year for my girl born in 2008. Just wonder how's the interview goes. Anything need to get ready for the interview. 20-30 over 102 only will be selected. I really hope I can pass the interview because we purposely bought a 'very expensive' house there hope that my kids will have a good school.

sorry cant help regarding the PV... my girl went through an interview when she was given a place in Pei Chun 2 years ago. We were on the waiting list but I didnt do PV... The interview was done by the previous principal... so I really not sure what the current principal will look out for.

[Callie Tan]

bridesep:

Tks, Callie. There is a briefing this Friday at 7 pm. Do attend for more info as well.

Yes I am aware of the briefing this friday but I didnt receive any official letter so am not sure whether I can attend or not...

[kin]

Hi bridesep and Callie,


Firstly, congrats on getting selected to enter the Sports class…PCPS niche volleyball is top 3 in the National school teams.

My girl knows of some friends, who have both CO and volley ball or tennis as their CCA. ie both niche. However, that is v taxing on the child as that means double time spent on CCA.I am not sure if it is allowed. During the meeting, if you are in a niche CCA, they discourage you to take another niche.

When my girl was in pri 3, volleyball is just once a week after sch hrs. The other volleyball practice was during PE. Sports class has one extra PE class. In terms of taking up a lot of after school times, that happens in P4. The regular sessions will be stepped up slowly. In P3 , there is no Saturday classes until second half of the yr(I think). There is still time to do homework and everything. The down side is because the training can be quite vigourous, so your child must be in gd health and can take physical training. I remember my girl coming home and crying on days she has volleyball training because her muscle ache in her legs were v bad. I told her that she has to slowly acustom to it and after some time its ok. Oh yes, sch holidays, trainings increase not only for VB, but for all other Niche. My friend’s child in Wushu trains on normal days twice a week nightly from 7:30-9pm.

Just to inform you, not every child in the class gets to be in the school team. End P3 and P4 all have competitions, Junior boys and girls. IF you ask me, if your child is outstanding in his volleyball, he will enjoy the competitions and the trainings. Currently, the top girl in the daugther’s class is also one of the 2 selected to be in the school team.

One thing is that volleyball training teaches the kids about discipline and about pushing your limits too. To me that is good training. Pros and cons. Your child must learn to play in a team. In the sports class, there are many students who excel in the exams too. Not too bad. If your child’s results are not so good, they will not put them in the sports class too. So,its just a choice that we parents make, together with the child.

For me, my girl has to "retire" early from volleyball because she suffers from quite bad asthma. So she was unable to take all the vigorous training. She is rather upset about the matter but has come to accept it already.

At the end of P4, there is an important streaming. If your child is outstanding in both VB and academics, the child will be streamed to the top 3 classes. So no worries about getting the best teachers and being in the best environment.

Hope this info is helpful!

[Callie Tan]

Hi Kin,


Thank you so much for your sharing…

I am having slightly better idea now… and have spoken to another parent too… Yes I agree that taking 2 CCAs is going to be taxing on our children. I think the entire system of choosing a CCA is not "friendly" at all. We were asked to choose a CCA in July from Chinese Dance, Chinese Orchestra and Choir. At that point of time I have no clue whether my girl is selected for any sports yet so thinking that it is a must to pick at least a CCA for her, we picked CO. Practises have started and my girl is enjoying the sessions with her close friends. Now that this volleyball thingy pops up, it is disruptive and we are caught in a dilemma. I can’t possibly tell my girl to quit CO to switch to volleyball, which is also something she enjoys. So now how??

[999happygolucky]

Hi Yellowbelt


I am trying to recall from memory as my DD is already Sec 2 now. Like what Yellowbelt said, volleyball training for school team members will step up after 2nd term in P3. Remembered her going for extra training on Sat afternoon (including 1 afternoon training on weekday).

I don’t send my kid for tuition, so it did not affect the time she spent on studying. But definitely she felt more tired as they trained real hard. The girls’ team are always the top three for zone and national championship, so the tough training.

My DD was in P4H (Sports class) but in P5A and not P5H eventhough she is in the school team. They will stream you according to academics from P5 onwards. So there were times when she had to miss lessons and did lots of catch up when she went for competitions. She was the only volleyball player in her class, so a lot depended on her own to seek for help. Competiton starts from Feb and last til April (if you get into National).

As long as your child knows how to juggle between sports and studies, I am sure she will like it.

happygolucky

[Callie Tan]

Hi 999happygolucky,


Thank you for your sharing too…

Honestly, the other reason why I am caught in this dilemma is because I heard that some students from PCPS managed to opt for DSA through CCAs such as basketball and volleyball. If my girl is keen in volleyball and there’s this open opportunity/option in time to come, I don’t see why I should give up the choice of taking up volleyball as CCA… the only qulams I have is whether my info is accurate/true… Is it too kiasu if I were to analyse this whole CCA issue in this manner? According to the teacher I spoke to, Chinese Orchestra is also the niche sport in PCPS?

[minty2000]

The volleyball training is even tougher when the kids DSA into the secondaries school which really stress the importance of training… my nephew won’t be home till 10pm and the training sometimes in sentosa beach !!! I faint when i hear that, where got time to revise and won’t they be tired out totally ??

[ijul]

Hi.

I’ve a son in P3 volley ball class. No doubt to have a chance in volley ball team is excellence however i thinking to try other CCA for him.
Any advice how to do it ? Does he need to complete 2 years ?

Thank you

[kin]

Hi Callie,


You know, I entered also with that kind of thinking - DSA. IF and if your child is a star player, she probably be invited to the secondary sch -there is one in Bukit timah Rd that is excellent in VB and Academics, the other is near Macpherson, Another should be in AMK.

But as the other mummy said, it is really really tiring. And at the end of the day, the child is not coping well. So I would say, if you want your child to enter through DSA, that means you will push your child for both studies and CCA. Incase, she dont make it with studies, she can use CCA. DSA application starts early. A VB team consist of 5 players. From my understanding, My girl said that there is only ONE VB team in the class, the rest, are either the reserves(not sure how many). My girl can spend the entire VB training playing/ or even just doing drills. If competition draws near, the coach only focus on the team. If not, there will be 2 teams plus reserves. So, can be quite demoralising. The rest of the classmates are table tennis players. Currently, 4I is basketball class and 4H is volleyball class.

As much as I said, that is how it is run. There is no unfairness. The fittest survives. To me, now, is for my girl can get in to 5A, B or C ( my goal for my girl now.)So If your girl is really gd in her studies, she will naturally be streamed into 5A, as with the rest of the niche CCA players who are gd in studies. You can call up the head in charge of the CCA and talk to them. In any case, please dont let them know that you know so many details.I believe there is more or less changes to the schedules year after year. So better to check with them if you want a fuller picture.