fifiyeo:

osim:

Hi fifiyeo,


Pls pm me your lobang also.

Can the robot reach corners and sides of room? Is it noisy?

I am quite uncomfortable about getting appliance that comes with chargeable battery for power because over time, the battery cannot keep the charge well and the item has to be discarded as it is not worth it to change the battery. It has happened to my hand-vac before. Is it the same for the robot? Thanks!

My new Roomba is much quieter than the older one from 2 years back. At least now kids can still watch TV. Scooba (the floor cleaner) however is noisy as it probably need more power to wash and suck up the water.

Roomba will not have much battery problem if you charge it regularly or leave it constantly on the charge when not in use. I schedule mine to work at a certain time everyday so it will simply return to docking station and recharge after work and stay there until it comes out again the next day. So far I have no battery issues after 2+years.

Scooba however runs on an external battery and if you use it regularly, it will last you 1-2years. So I had to buy new ones.

Roomba has a spinning brush sticking out so it can clean the edges and most of the corners. Otherwise if you are particular, can always just wipe the corners to make sure its super clean.

Scooba can't go as close to the edges and corners so just need to mop these places after its done. It does clean the floors better than humans. My hubby and kids can tell when the floor is hand mopped and when Scooba washes the floor!

Hi could you pm me your lobang too. TIA

Just to share, many years ago, my girlfriend was leaving a church in Italy when it started raining. Just as she was leaving, she felt somebody unzipping her pouch. She shouted and the pickpocket ran away.


Sushigal is right. Whenever we are overseas, have to be more alert and careful. It can happen anywhere.

karenmok:

Hi,

Has any Kiasu Parent visited the Ancient Egypt Museum in Marina Bay Sands? How useful/interesting is it for kids of 6 and 8 years?

http://www.marinabaysands.com/uploadedFiles/Common/Company_Information/Media_Center/Journey%20to%20the%20Egyptian%20afterlife%20at%20ArtScience%20Museum%20with%20Mummy%20-%20Secrets%20of%20the%20Tomb.pdf

Thanks, Karen

Any feedback on the exhibition? Thinking of taking my children there over the long weekend. TIA

Thanks for all the sharing:) Will go to popular over the long weekend to look through these books.

Champion:

HAPPYH:

Comprehension cloze - other than Just edu, casco, conquer, is there any good cloze passage assessments? Thank you in advance.

http://i41.tinypic.com/2m437zr.jpg\">
http://www.eph.com.sg/ourproducts.php
http://www.eph.com.sg/edutips.php?id=22

thanks, champion! Bought the P5 cloze for my child

VeryKSMum:

My DD is with Jiang now. Thinking of switching to the busybees 3 hours class. She is P5. Any feedback?

Hi, I am considering between busybee, Jiang and Xue Er You. Any comments from parents? Xue Er You is nearest to my house so tempted to send my child who is in upper primary there. TIA.

starlight1968sg:

May I ask anybody arranged 1 night of farm stay?

Please share or advise.
Thank you.

I think it would be easier to arrange for one night of farm stay in melbourne instead of sydney.

beanbear:

Just came back from KL & brought my kids (8, 12, 13) to Kidzania. They had a fantastic time and can't wait to go back again. In my opinion, the best age group is around 8-14. 4-7year olds will have fun but they are limited by age or height restrictions and the waiting time can really kill the younger ones' patience. Many activities are for 8 and above. I think once your kid hits 14-15 years, they may find some of the activities abit childish and not enjoy being with so many kiddos.


Thought I'll share my survival tips for other parents who are planning to do this:

1. Must book online for your tickets. On weekends & school hols, you could end up in the queue for an hour!! Very importantly, bring your printed invoice. They didn't check our passports for verification as it was very crowded and they just want you to move along. We had 50people in front of us but the queue for the online bookings moved very quickly and we were done in about 20mins. We got our entry validated on this special tag that they put on your wrist. Dur school hols, there are 2 sessions. Its best to take the morning session as the traffic to Curve is SOOOOOO bad in the afternoon and there are no parking lots left.

2. You cannot bring any food or drinks into Kidzania as you can only buy food (at exorbitant prices) at Kidzania itself. Your foodstuff will be confiscated or thrown away at the security check before you enter the grounds. Plain water is allowed.

3. What to do when you first get in. Go to the \"CIMB\" bank and get your \"kidzos\" which are your Kidzania special currency. Then you can proceed to play.

4. Fire-fighter, Airline, hospital, Beauty salon, sushi king, cadbury chocolate factory are among the most popular ones. Most sessions only let in 6 or 8 kids at a time and each activity takes average 20-25mins. Fire-fighter queue can be as long as 45mins-1 hour. Once you've decided on the session you want, your kid must stay in the queue until they issue you a number. If your kid disappears, someone else will take your queue. Parents cannot queue on behalf of kids.

5. For the true-blue kiasu parents, you can help your kids \"strategise\" which sessions to go to. Most occupations are educational and kids will have fun anyway. So it's good to try the not so popular ones. For eg TV station for older kids as they take many kids in one session and kids get to be news announcer, sound crew, etc. Water bottling was also not popular but kids have fun finding out about the water purification process. Window cleaning is also not popular but hey, kids must also learn the importance of window-cleaning and who knows you may get a new helper when you get home! For a 5 hour session, if you are not too fussy, you could do as many as 8-10 sessions. If you die die must go to the popular ones, you could end up with just 5-6 experiences. My 8 year old got help from me in the queue strategy so he got his \"lunch\" free for coz he worked at MarryBrown burger stall and got a free burger, worked at Oreo cookie factory & got his free oreo cookie snack and worked at Vitagen factory and got a free vitagen! He was very happy indeed.

6. Finally before you leave, your kids would have earned some kidzos while working and they can use their kidzos to exchange for free gifts at a gifts counter.

Hope these tips help. Have fun!

Thanks, beanbear for the detailed tips

litmuspaper:

strawberrycupcakes:

i'm interested too...want to give my kids a headstart.

I hv good recommendation. Hv pm u. My kids results improved from average to top5. This SA1 scored full marks for comprehension open ended. Compo 16/20. The teacher is very strict with her marking. Only 2 kids scored above 15.

I'm really pleased with their results.

Hi litmuspaper

Could you share with us a little of the teacher's strategies and background? After reading the newspapers and the forum on misrepresentation by tutors and tuition centres, I guess I tend to be a little paranoid. I think it would be good for interested parents if you could share something here with us.

I was actually on the verge of sending my child to a tutor who was raved about in the forum last year. Fortunately, after talking to the tutor, I was not comfortable and did not do so.

After these cases of misrepresentation, I think many parents like myself are more careful now.

xueyan:

Hi Hi


I am organising our first tour with my five-year-old DS. We are going to Taiwan in July 2013. As this is our first tour, I hope it will be a relaxing one. I am actually contemplating between a DIY tour or a package tour. I think package tour is much cheaper and less hassle. I was quoted $378 for adult and $298 for child for a 6D packaged land tour. However I think a DIY tour will be more fun.

This is my itinerary if going on my own :

Day 1 - Arrival
Day 2 - National Museum (故宮), Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Hall (紀念堂), Taipei 101, 士林夜市 (Shi Lin Night Market)
Day 3 - Nanya Rock (南雅), 九份, YeLiu Geopark (野柳), Yang Ming Shan hotspring (陽明山), Pingxi/Shifen
Day 4 - 北投 Hell Valley, 淡水老街
Day 5 - Travel to Cing Jing
Day 6 - Half day tour from CingJing to Hehuanshan
Day 7 - Return from CIng Jing to Taipei
Day 8 - Home sweet home

For hotel, I am thinking of Cosmos in Taipei as I was told it is very near Taipei Main Station. For CingJing, DH has chosen Misty Minsu over Starry Minsu as he feels that the Misty seems nicer in their rooms.

For transport, I will engage a private taxi on Day 3. For travel to CingJing, I will travel HSR to TaiChung. From TaiChung HSR, take another bus to Misty Minsu.

I have the following queries :
1. How long is the journey from Taipei to CingJing?
2. Do we have to pay for all the activities in Misty Minsu?
3. Do I need to get a private taxi in CingJing or the activities there will be enough to occupy us?

I am thinking if time permits, I will sqeeze the sightseeing on Day 2 to Day 1 and Day7/8. So that I could go to Maokong and the zoo in Day 2.

What do you guys think of the itinerary?

I heard that there are many exhibits worth looking at for
National Museum (故宮). Have fun!