I just registered DS at this centre but mine is the easiest level - WWT. I looked at the Enrichment class materials (ting, shuo, tu, xie are included in this class). They seem quite challenging. I am trying out for 5 weeks, will feedback as he goes along with the class

Did anyone with children who did Spers and stop normal school for half year to prepare for Spers - thro intensive tuition. I m thinking of doing that as my friend told me her dd says its as hard as the psle mock papers she tried. at the same time, I feel it’s a bit strange to not go to regular school

Hi playful mom I suppose u r a sas parent. May I know if sas uses the accelerated reader (by renassiance learning) or similar type programs? Also do they do class books at 5th grade? Lastly, what type of state-level or national-level projects do they participate in e.g. Science fair project, national history project. Oh, and what standardized tests do the students take? Thanks a lot.

Frankly, my friend (whose child is in UWC) were discussing with the other parents (of UWC) and they all are, kind of, arriving at the conclusion that the international schools here does not seem to provide the quality education they get in their home countries. I am in agreement. Hence, the consideration for local school.

BTW, did you apply to UWC yet? Their admission policy is not based on 1st come 1st serve. As they have more applicants than vacancies, they use a "holistic" approach to select their newly-registered students.
I find that in the US, the private schools publish the results of the standardized tests, the awards their students receive or the college acceptances - to "prove" their worth. However, in Singapore, I haven’t found an international school that have "proven their worth" in this manner. Instead it is usually how long their waiting list is??
Can’t really help you on the language part. The 2 schools that my son attended these past 2 years, I really can’t boast of their language program. I am comparing these to the US schools that my son attended. I think that checking out the American schools (SAS, ICS) is a good start. Good luck for your search. Hope to hear the outcome of your search

I am glad to hear someone sharing my point of view about PYP. SAIS is pursuing IB PYP, so curriculum is geared towards PYP. However, SAIS does have standardized testing like the schools in the US. They use MAP testing. For "pure" American-based curriculum, there are SAS and International Community School (ICS). ICS is a christian-based school and it seems quite small. I have not tried SAS since it has a long waiting list.

I have friends at UWC whose children are in the lower grades and some are supplementing Math and foreign language. One, in particular, finds the environment limiting as her child is an advanced reader. UWC does not have the MYP, so that might be to your liking, they have IGCSE. I think the Singapore Math is definitely more challenging than any other Math. I believe SJI does Singapore Math. With regards to Science, I have not found a school with a good science curriculum. The science fair project (which is a yearly affair for kids G5 and above in the US) is almost non-existent in any school here.

My child is currently at SAIS (pursuing IB). Prior to that he was in another IB PYP school. The first one that he went to was in pre-school (back then pursuing IB) My son was educated in the US K through 4th. My personal experience is that PYP programs arent that suitable for kids who are not motivated as they seem not to be able to give those kids an extra nudge or push to achieve higher. Also, I find that the PYP classes usually spills over to the other class times and thus the core subjects get pushed home or done in a rushed manner. As such, it may not be the schools but the PYP program. This is the only thing I don’t like about SAIS, other than that, everything is great. With regards to fitting in socially, I think that foreigners in local schools are quite common - don’t know if this helps?. I was also told by the admissions at ACS-Intl and SJI Intl, there is a 50% foreign and 50% local policy. Currently, I am favoring these local-international schools partly because students take the IGCSE and IB whereas local schools take the GCE. BTW, did you visit the singaporeexpats forum - they have more talk on international schools.

My son has gone through 3 international schools in Singapore, although none of those u mentioned. I am beginning to realize that the local system might be better for a child that is average and above. By local system, I do include the 3 local international schools - SJI (I have heard many good things about this school from separate sources), ACS International and Hwa Chong International. If your child excels in Math, all the more u should consider the local system. My son is slightly above average but is not very motivated. He is currently in an international school, which he feels is not challenging for him and I am considering the local system but wonder how he would take to the local school stress level.