Hey,

Just want to share about free therapeutic riding lessons (10 lessons) offered by Riding for Disabled Association, Singapore. You may wish to go to the website (http://rdasingapore.org/ride-with-us/) to register your interest. My son's lessons have not started, so I'm not sure how it'd go.

Based on website http://autismsd.com/
The focus of hippotherapy is on the movement of the horse. Horses move in response to their handlers or riders. The child with autism learns to communicate desired movements to the horse, establishing joint attention and reciprocity. These are often key factors that are missing in optimal development and are addressed in the hippotherapy setting. Other benefits from hippotherapy include improved muscle tone, strength, balance and coordination. Sensory processing has also been shown to improve with regular sessions in hippotherapy. Through the interactions with the horse, the child learns to be aware of his body and his ability to use it to communicate. The horse reduces anxiety by responding to the communication effort without the pressure of verbal language. These benefits combine to make hippotherapy one of the most comprehensive treatments available.

BB3:

Hi everyone, I've just jointed this forum after discovering it online. My son just started P1 Foundation and it would be nice to exchange notes with others. I am not sure what to expect for Foundation level since its a \"go between\"; based on the note given by the teacher today regarding the Maths outline for Term 1, it appears to be pitched very low (maybe K1 level?). Am wondering how much to \"drill\" him in subjects since I don't want actual P1 to be a shock to him (although based on elder boy's syllabus in mainstream school in P1, it is very easy but exams are a whole different ballgame).


Appreciate those who have gone through the former PP track to shed some light since I am guessing PP track should be similar to the new Foundation level?
TIA

Hi BB3,
My son was in P1 Foundation last year. It was pretty relaxed, not much homework and the spelling words were not difficult. Towards the end of each semester, they had bite-sized assessments (10-15mins each, for each topic) on English and Mathematics. The more important thing about these bite-sized assessments (to me at least) was that the teachers would take formal notes on the child's behaviour during the assessments- like if he pays attention to the instructions, what does he do after he finishes the paper, etc.

Hope the above helps.

jme:

Hi Arielmermaid,


I have pmed u but it didn't reflect in my account that I have sent . Did u receive it?

Hi,
I didn't receive your message... You can send me again

ImMeeMee:

ArielMermaid:

Hi,


ArielMermaid

I just browsed through the P1 Standard textbooks and workbooks yesterday. Now I am really worried. Stellar handwriting that requires copying of passages, grammar on 'a' and 'an', alphabetical order, comprehension skills, math counting ...

I hope she will be able to cope. Care to share what did the Foundation program go through during the year?

Hi ImMeeMee
I always think that Foundation is like K2. It touches on some of Primary 1 syllabus but not all. The english and math are still quite simple, that's why my son managed to pass.

Not to scare you but P1 Standard is really quite difficult (at least to me, keeping in view my son's abilities). The math exam papers go into 20+ pages.

But don't worry. I'm sure the school has assessed your child to be suitable for P1 Standard, and she will be able to cope and thrive.

belachanbabe:

Can’t believe there wasn’t a thread like this before. Now supporting ImMeeMee since I can’t contribute yet. :rahrah:


My boy will be going to foundation year next year. ArielMermaid, may I ask if the school hours are the same as primary school? Does PL have after school care?

My boy’s school acceptance came very late so now scrambling with logistics, still am so glad he go in so these are minor headaches.

Hi Belachanbabe,
Yes, the school hours are from 7ish to 1. Unfortunately, they do not have after school care. My son is on the school bus and it's been quite reliable.

Hope the above helps.

Hi,

Thanks, ImMeeMee, for starting this thread...

My son is currently in PL, and will be in P1 Standard next year. So far, I've been very pleased with PL, and feel that it is well suited to his learning needs. My son is very average in his academics, so PL is not totally stress-free. (In fact the amount of holiday work, even in December, is ) At least, I don't have to worry so much about social aspects, bullying and abuse while he is in PL.

Hope more of you will join this thread!

Hi,

Has anybody heard of Nature’s Glory? Apparently, they use Nano Energy Booster Patch Therapy which they claim help children with autism. I was skeptical at first, but my colleague told me her friend said it really helps with her autistic nephew.

Do let me know if you have any experience!

Thanks in advance

ImMeeMee:

Hi mummies, I am relooking into the area of social skills group for my doter. Could you share any personal experience at any of the local centers?


TIA.

Hi ImMeeMee,
My son is currently attending weekly social class at Speech Inc. It's a group of about 6-8 students with 2 facilitators. The class lasts about 1 hour, and 5-10minutes before the end of the class, the main therapist will come out to brief the parents about the activities done, the notable behaviour and reactions of the children, the recommendations, etc. She'd also encourage us to let her know any problems which the children experienced so that she can try to work on them during the class.

The activities done are varied- could be games, competition, social events- and the children learn how to behave approppriately during these activities.

Hope the above helps.

First, let me just state for the record that my child does not benefit from any alumni status (he is special needs and I decided to send him to Pathlight)


I used to study in Fairfield Methodist, which just celebrated its 125 years’ birthday. While studying there, I could feel the school spirit and join in the strong sense of tradition and identity. There is just a special … pride. So I can totally understand why alumnis would want to send their children to their schools they studied in and have them share in the same tradition and the joys. And perhaps this is a special feeling only these people can understand.

For popular schools that produce top academic results, if your child can produce the desired results, he/ she can eventually be admitted to these schools on his/ her own merit.

For schools which are popular for other reasons, I think family background and upbringing play a part in shaping the students (elites or elitist, well-mannered or hypocritical, etc etc). If one really wants to be "in the circle", there are plenty of opportunities- secondary schools, junior colleges, universities or even social events.

It seems ironic: in this thread, there is strong outcry to remove P2A for alumni so that more "common" children can be admitted to these popular schools (of which more often than not, their academic results are nothing to shout about); in another thread, people are deriding elitism.

Anyway, that’s just my personal opinion and is not meant to be offensive.

With regards to Yitian from Speech Inc., my son attends her social class for the past 2-3 years and enjoys it very much. She is frank in her feedback and gives us many effective tips on how to improve the behaviour and social skills of our kids in different settings.


Given what we know about her, I can’t imagine her posing as current/ former patients and posting praises about herself.