My girl applied for arts for year 1. No news so far. I thought it would be out by today. Btw, is it through email?

Haha ya. It's stress during registration, and stress after! Even though DD1 did not ballot in 2C 2 years ago, waiting for the results was :scared:

Anyway, I'm spared the ordeal a second time with DD2. Breezed in thru Phase 1! :imcool:

Anyway, I don't see a stepping up of DD1's (P2) workload. Quite anxious about the 'streaming' to P3 though. DD1 always pulls a face when it's time to do home work... I like to ask those whose kids in P2 - DD1 is supposed to do a simple Chinese compo from a given pic. How many lines are students supposed to write anyway? She only managed about less than half the foolscap paper.

All the best for those going thru balloting today! :xedfingers:

And come next week, the last great battle... phase 2c :shock:

RRMummy:

Buckbrick! So you're already one of them.. i kaypoh :oops:


Yes, yes, I heard that balloting is definitely not for the faint-hearted.

Many would be so glad to be in your shoes since both schools are HOT. From the little I gathered, PH is not exactly a 'poor' option Plan B.. minus the affliation of course...

The good ol' saying applies - A bird in Hand is Better Than 2 in Then Bush!

Here's to tough choices in life! :celebrate:

Yep! They're at an unbelievable 1200+ pages now :yikes:

Even there is no balloting, waiting for the results in phase 2C is no walk in the park. Kan cheong like mad! Anyway we discounted MGS long before that, and it proved to be the correct choice.

RRMummy:

Buckbrick! So you're already one of them.. i kaypoh :oops:


Yes, yes, I heard that balloting is definitely not for the faint-hearted.

Many would be so glad to be in your shoes since both schools are HOT. From the little I gathered, PH is not exactly a 'poor' option Plan B.. minus the affliation of course...

The good ol' saying applies - A bird in Hand is Better Than 2 in Then Bush!

Here's to tough choices in life! :celebrate:

Yep! They're at an unbelievable 1200+ pages now :yikes:

Even there is no balloting, waiting for the results in phase 2C is no walk in the park. Kan cheong like mad! Anyway we discounted MGS long before that, and it proved to be the correct choice.

Thanks RRMummy! Haha, yup been to PH network site. it's been quite some time since I posted there or here! There is a reason why it is so active...


Registering DD1 was really harrowing 2 years ago, so I know what parents are going thru here! I realize for some, or most, it all boils down to this choice: ballot for 1st choice school or a confirmed space in 2nd choice school. For us, MGS was our 1st choice, but had to ballot for it. Ultimately, we opted for a confirmed space in PH. But one major setback is that we had to forfeit the sec school affiliation. It was a tough choice, but a good one. Who knows where we would have ended if we went ahead with the ballot?

My DD2 just got into PHPPS under Phase 1 :rahrah: I'm spared the ordeal a 2nd time! Just for curiosity, I looked at this year's statistics and indeed it's getting tougher, more so when schools go single session in the future. For eg, DD1 registered in 09 for PH and there was balloting for those who stay 1-2km from the school. And 2003 was supposed to be a lull in birth rates. But it seems that PH's balloting record proved to be steady and thus predictable. Good luck to those aiming for PH!


Looking back, P1 registration is only the beginning: just like scaling Mt. Everest, this phase is only base camp. You still have the mountain to conquer. Now our great challenge is to ensure that our girls do to the best of their abilities. So again, what's a true definition of a 'good school'?

Seems like there's lots of interest on the Deuter. I bought one for DD who's in P1 this year. So here's a pic review of the Scholar ACT S.


Deuter is a German brand who are well known for their hiking packs. I suspect that the 'ergo' series of school bags are not in their product lineup as they are not in their website or on the web for that matter. In any case, many of the features of their hiking packs, such as the ACT are found here. ACT is acronym for their Air Contact system, where there is a channel between the back and the pack for cooling.

The schoolbag is in its 3rd iteration and comes in S, M, L. The only difference of all 3 is simply the design and pocket placement. Thus I would grab the cheapest - which is the discontinued one.

This is the discon Scholar model - SMALL size - in blinding 2-tone red.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4144/4972747213_ecd7002853.jpg\">

The ACT. Supposed to cool the wearer's back. There is a thin waist strap and no sternum strap.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4144/4972751733_54c7de56e4.jpg\">

As you can see, the Small size fits an A4 folio exactly with some allowance. So for P1/small sized kids, small IS sufficient. This is the load DS carry on any day. No sweat!
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4088/4972740331_3e6e729e00.jpg\">

What I like about the Deuter:
- It's light! Don;t forget you still have books, snacks and a water bottle.
- Minimal padding where it matters. This reduces bulkiness and weight.
- Nylon is similar to the company's hiking packs, adequate for the educational jungle.
- Compact with 2 large pockets in front and 2 elastic ones on the side for bottles.
- Zippers with fabric pulltabs.
- Newer models come with snazzy prints and all the colors in a kid's fav palette. Blue, red, green, orange. But no pink...

Where to buy - cheap.
- OG during sale (like now) at 20% off
- some warehouse sales carry it below $100 especially end of year when school's about to start.

Hope this has been fun to read and helpful. The bag is just a tiny weeny part of the BIG adventure that is P1. :celebrate:

For my P1 dd, I fully agree with Jennifer that she is still young. I am trying to balance schoolwork and play. I have already established the fact that kids this age can't really grasp the idea of responsibility as play was their main focus up till now; so on this note, I'm just going to concentrate on building her foundation and see how she performs for sa1 before I stress myself further.


Oh E3, the encouragement notes is a great idea! I feel we sg parents neglect that when it comes to their school work- hence our and their stress?

katongmum:

We went ahead to use the trolley bag she got as a present. And it is giving way now (only one term). Considering now to get a ergo backpack. Waiting for school holidays next week, hope there will be sale. Anyone know of any already?


So after this term, any new comments on which is a better ergo bag- SPI, Impact, Deuter? I read earlier post seems price can differ a lot from OG and Taka, is that right?

Hi! Check out those bazaar sales at expo by robinsons, metro or others for deuter. You might find it for 89sgd or so for the older models. Newer ones are 100+. Great bargain!

I love the Lego bags but they're just too huge and cumbersome. Just find the smallest and lightest that fits an A4 folder is enough!