Any good Christian Nursery/Childcare in the West

[JoyBliss]

Thanks Camon and all the mummies for the great advices and sharing,
I'm more aligned now.

This one, I feel it's the parents' attitude that rubbed off on the child.

A good preschool is very impt. But what's suitable for 1 person might not suit the other. So better to do your own research by asking around, then shortlisting and actually visiting and clariying with the principal. The CCC my gal was in has a 2 weeks paid trial for their transfer students. The transfer student will receive intensive 1 to 1 coaching just to make sure that he/she is on par with the rest of the class (if standards differ in the 1st place). This 2 wks trial also give both sides a chance to evaluate if the child is comfortable to continue on.

Like said earlier, there are many many enrichment classes out there. You need to filter them yourselve and decide what your child really needs. Enrichment classes are really not cheap.

Ai... this attitude has to go when it comes to cultivating their interest in accademic. Last time, it's the end results/scores that matter, now it is enjoying the learning process imo

I have further shortlisted a few CCCs (slightly further but still in the West), and some preschools nearby. They did mention a 2-wk paid trial. Well, I really hope to find 1 that he finds comfortable. Else 2-wk later, he has to re-adjust and go through the separation anxiety all over again

Depending on the CCC standard, the enrichment classes can come later if needed. Yep, these classes are expensive, so I'll better make sure i choose wisely. Thank Camon for the word of cautious I saw a directory on Sg. enrichment classes selling at NTUC few days ago, wow... like said, really tempting! Really have to set the priority right 1st wor...

 

[camom]

Thanks Camon and all the mummies for the great advices and sharing,
I'm more aligned now.




Ai... this attitude has to go when it comes to cultivating their interest in accademic. Last time, it's the end results/scores that matter, now it is enjoying the learning process imo

I have further shortlisted a few CCCs (slightly further but still in the West), and some preschools nearby. They did mention a 2-wk paid trial. Well, I really hope to find 1 that he finds comfortable. Else 2-wk later, he has to re-adjust and go through the separation anxiety all over again

Depending on the CCC standard, the enrichment classes can come later if needed. Yep, these classes are expensive, so I'll better make sure i choose wisely. Thank Camon for the word of cautious I saw a directory on Sg. enrichment classes selling at NTUC few days ago, wow... like said, really tempting! Really have to set the priority right 1st ...

Glad to hear that!

When is the trial starting? For me, I will avoid any short weeks - those with long weekends, & start on Mondays. I find that my child has to readjust again over the weekend and I wld like to minimise that. If starting on a Mon and ends on Fri with no breaks in between, then the child adapts easier.

 

[JoyBliss]

Glad to hear that!

When is the trial starting? For me, I will avoid any short weeks - those with long weekends, & start on Mondays. I find that my child has to readjust again over the weekend and I wld like to minimise that. If starting on a Mon and ends on Fri with no breaks in between, then the child adapts easier.

Not so soon i would think since I'm still on waiting list for Gracefield @ both nearest branches. Meantime, Carpe Diem playskool @ Yung Ho is avail with teacher-child ratio 2:10 or 2:12, offering drama, phonics etc, but... i notice the licence history is 6 month from the MCYS :err: I'm currently checking out their other branches, also Tumble-tots (and price) & Q-Dees

Thanks for the wonderful advice, hopefully after the trial, ds can start his playgroup soon.

btw, if the child is below 18mth, they can still enrol in Playgroup?

 

[camom]

Not so soon i would think since I'm still on waiting list for Gracefield @ both nearest branches. Meantime, Carpe Diem playskool @ Yung Ho is avail with teacher-child ratio 2:10 or 2:12, offering drama, phonics etc, but... i notice the licence history is 6 month from the MCYS :err: I'm currently checking out their other branches, also Tumble-tots (and price) & Q-Dees

Thanks for the wonderful advice, hopefully after the trial, dear son can start his playgroup soon.

btw, if the child is below 18mth, they can still enrol in Playgroup?

Depends on the sch if they allow the child to start slightly earlier than 18 mths.

To me, the license duration is a selection criteria as well. If I am not mistaken, the max license of 24 mths are granted to those with gd track records. Probably those that are new get the 6 mths or 12 mths license.

 

[stonston]

Enroling into ccc before 18mths is for special cases n subjected to mcys approval

 

[JoyBliss]

Depends on the sch if they allow the child to start slightly earlier than 18 mths.

To me, the license duration is a selection criteria as well. If I am not mistaken, the max license of 24 mths are granted to those with good track records. Probably those that are new get the 6 mths or 12 mths license.

Yep, i agree... though nothing official, i reckon there should be a reason behind the licence duration. In fact, a quick sharing... when I asked about the daily program for playgroup, I was told it is largely learning thru play... and when requested for more details, I was told usually toddlers at this age has nothing much to learn :err: .... (not sure if I heard him wrongly???)


Now, I'm more determined to ask more detailed qns now when I talked to the CCCs. :tlaugh:

 

[JoyBliss]

Enroling into ccc before 18mths is for special cases n subjected to mcys approval

Thanks Stonston,

I found the guidelines from MOE on the kindergarden cirriculaem. The 2 more academically-related key words I found are:
(1) language and literacy
(2) numeracy

How exactly do you define them? What is the benchmark?

so sorry for the endless questions...

 

[camom]

Yep, i agree... though nothing official, i reckon there should be a reason behind the licence duration. In fact, a quick sharing... when I asked about the daily program for playgroup, I was told it is largely learning thru play... and when requested for more details, I was told usually toddlers at this age has nothing much to learn :err: .... (not sure if I heard him wrongly???)


Now, I'm more determined to ask more detailed qns now when I talked to the CCCs. :tlaugh:

I agree with the learning thru play concept but you gotta see how they carry it out. For playgroup, I would presume the skills they learnt will be more foundation based like some basic lifeskills like wearing shoes, taking care of their own belongings, strengthening their motor skills - gross and fine, learning/understanding shapes, colours, literacy skills like the recognising alphabets, 1st letter phonetic sounds, numeracy skills like knowing their numbers, counting, etc. These are reinforced at this stage cos they'll need to fall back on these basics as they progress thru the levels.

I will usually ask the following:

Curriculum
1) What do the children do in a normal day?
2) How do the children learn? - Do they do activities, how and what type?
3) Is there some form of progress report?
4) If my child is faster/slower than his/her peers, how will the sch handle this?

If possible, ask for samples of materials/work they do with the children. They shld have some stuff to show you.

Looking at the timetable will also show you how they schedule the classes and activity times for the children. Is it balanced? Do they have adequate activities of each nature - thinking, creativity, physical, motor? Is the non-curriculum type balanced vs curriculum time?

In this aspect, I like the MMI concept. There is a progress report that follows the child from Playgroup to K2 and this progress report details the curriculum for each level, what they learn and how good they are at it.

They should also be able to let you peek into the class. If yes, then observe:
1) How the children look. Listless? Busy? Active?
2) What is the teacher doing? In the class? Helping the children? Doing her own thing? Observing the children?
3) How does the teacher speak? Proper English/Mandarin? Mis-mash of languages?

Others You might want to ask:
1) Diapers - how often do they check/change?
2) Parent Teacher Meetings - how often?
3) Teacher contact info - If not avail, then call thru' school's mainline?
4) Hygiene - how often do they clean the premises, materials?
5) If my child is sick, what is the arrangement?
6) What type of meals are served?

 

[stonston]

Language & Literacy:
As long as can converse in English properly is the standard for most schools.
Different schools, different standard. I changed my boy's school because of this. His previous CCC is great at learning through play, but I prefer something more academic.

Numeracy:
As long as can recite and count up to 10 by age 3, it's very good. But as mentioned, depends on schools. Some schools will push further.

 

[hope seow]

Actually, learning can be made fun, and this depends alot on the scho & parents. My boy is in a very academic kindy for pre-n and he has tests & homework. We made homework & studying fun for him. He likes doing his homework alot. Learning is not a chore but it's fun!

Regarding enrichment classes, I try to sit in to observe or get my husband/maid to do so. I'm very critical of the programs I enrol him in & if it's not good, I will withdraw him immediately. So far he loves his classes alot and learns alot too.

Hi stonston, I quite new to this forum, just curious which preschool is your son in? Thanks

 

[JoyBliss]

I agree with the learning thru play concept but you gotta see how they carry it out. For playgroup, I would presume the skills they learnt will be more foundation based like some basic lifeskills like wearing shoes, taking care of their own belongings, strengthening their motor skills - gross and fine, learning/understanding shapes, colours, literacy skills like the recognising alphabets, 1st letter phonetic sounds, numeracy skills like knowing their numbers, counting, etc. These are reinforced at this stage cos they'll need to fall back on these basics as they progress thru the levels.

I will usually ask the following:

Curriculum
1) What do the children do in a normal day?
2) How do the children learn? - Do they do activities, how and what type?
3) Is there some form of progress report?
4) If my child is faster/slower than his/her peers, how will the sch handle this?

If possible, ask for samples of materials/work they do with the children. They shld have some stuff to show you.

Looking at the timetable will also show you how they schedule the classes and activity times for the children. Is it balanced? Do they have adequate activities of each nature - thinking, creativity, physical, motor? Is the non-curriculum type balanced vs curriculum time?

In this aspect, I like the MMI concept. There is a progress report that follows the child from Playgroup to K2 and this progress report details the curriculum for each level, what they learn and how good they are at it.

They should also be able to let you peek into the class. If yes, then observe:
1) How the children look. Listless? Busy? Active?
2) What is the teacher doing? In the class? Helping the children? Doing her own thing? Observing the children?
3) How does the teacher speak? Proper English/Mandarin? Mis-mash of languages?

Others You might want to ask:
1) Diapers - how often do they check/change?
2) Parent Teacher Meetings - how often?
3) Teacher contact info - If not avail, then call thru' school's mainline?
4) Hygiene - how often do they clean the premises, materials?
5) If my child is sick, what is the arrangement?
6) What type of meals are served?

Thanks for the insightful suggestions :red:
"learning through play"... I wonder how many CCC really understand the rationale behind. But the above lists of qns would really help! Thank you v. much Camom

So far, the basic timetable i came across;
1st half : usually the shower, breakfast, outdoor, nap, arts/music....
2nd half : lunch, indoor playtime, story-telling, nap, ... tea/dinner
Hm... :embarrassed: ... really "play" group

So referring to montessori: I suppose there are more actitivites... like speech and drama/ music movement/ art & craft/ phonics ... etc?? If there are these mentioned, monte i must say quite all-rounded already isnt it? There are so different approaches (thematic, project-base, M-intelligence... )... getting overloaded with info...

My son is very restless in daytime, he just want to play at the expense of sleep even now (<3hr). At 18mth, what is the sleeping duration in CC.

Also, I also notice the teachers (few CC i went to already... not local talents)... Should this be a cause for concern?

 

[JoyBliss]

Language & Literacy:
As long as can converse in English properly is the standard for most schools.
Different schools, different standard. I changed my boy's school because of this. His previous CCC is great at learning through play, but I prefer something more academic.

Numeracy:
As long as can recite and count up to 10 by age 3, it's very good. But as mentioned, depends on schools. Some schools will push further.

Thanks StonSton,

Today I came across an article on nominal, ordinal and operational maths and reading. By this definition, by age 3, it will be at nominal level? When is the better time to start the ordinal level?

 

[stonston]

Due to privacy and security reasons, I won't be sharing which preschool my boy is in.

In SG system, Ordinal level usually kicked off at P1 if I'm not wrong.
I personally won't encourage Montessori Method unless you intend to homeschool your kids in Primary level or are willing to be SAHM just to coach your kids. Most of the kids I've taught who attended a Montessori Kindy or CCC found Primary school boring and did poorly in school. Some did well because they are naturally very smart and their mums are SAHM who drill them, but they complain that school is no longer 'fun' like in kindergarten, which they are used to. And after a while, they lose interest.

To me, school (be it preschool or other) is meant for LEARNING, not fun. You can have fun at enrichments classes (sports or activity based) or at home with family or at playground with friends. School is for learning, period. Don't give the child the impression that school is all fun and play. The teachers should make the learning interesting, but it's not play play play play and more play.
The pre-school my boy is in is very focused. But he loves it there. Why? Because the teachers are caring and he gets showered alot of attention due to small class size (less than 10). They have a reward system in place and can see my son puts in effort to earn his reward points. It's positive encouragement that makes my son enjoy going to school, not because he gets to play.
And they present the learning in a positive and lively manner. My boy is happier in his new school and he's learning alot more. He's only 3yo and he can recognise 20 chinese characters and understand their meaning. All taught in this new pre-school since 4 jan this year cos we don't teach him chinese at home.

 

[camom]

The monte sch my gal was in does not have speech and drama incorporated as basic programme. It wld be offered as optional enrichment instead.

Phonics is an integral part of monte sch. The kids have activity time where they work with monte materials like sorting, spooning, identifying, phonetic sounds, buttoning, zipping, etc.

Ermmm... my gal's presch only has 2 non-SGP teachers. They teach Chinese and are from China.

Actually on the part of acclimatising to pri sch & doing well, I personally feel that it's dependent on the sch. SGP being SGP, there really aren't many full monte sch ard. The child needs to be prepared for P1 by the time they are in K1. I see my daughter enjoying school and learning & experiencing many things - academic & otherwise. She also recognizes the importance of attending school and paying attention in class. For this, I attribute it to the efforts of her principal & teachers.

 

[JoyBliss]

Due to privacy and security reasons, I won't be sharing which preschool my boy is in.

In SG system, Ordinal level usually kicked off at P1 if I'm not wrong.
I personally won't encourage Montessori Method unless you intend to homeschool your kids in Primary level or are willing to be stay at home mum just to coach your kids. Most of the kids I've taught who attended a Montessori Kindy or CCC found Primary school boring and did poorly in school. Some did well because they are naturally very smart and their mums are stay at home mum who drill them, but they complain that school is no longer 'fun' like in kindergarten, which they are used to. And after a while, they lose interest.


To me, school (be it preschool or other) is meant for LEARNING, not fun. You can have fun at enrichments classes (sports or activity based) or at home with family or at playground with friends. School is for learning, period. dont't give the child the impression that school is all fun and play. The teachers should make the learning interesting, but it's not play play play play and more play.
The pre-school my boy is in is very focused. But he loves it there. Why? Because the teachers are caring and he gets showered alot of attention due to small class size (less than 10). They have a reward system in place and can see my son puts in effort to earn his reward points. It's positive encouragement that makes my son enjoy going to school, not because he gets to play.
And they present the learning in a positive and lively manner. My boy is happier in his new school and he's learning alot more. He's only 3yo and he can recognise 20 chinese characters and understand their meaning. All taught in this new pre-school since 4 jan this year cos we dont't teach him chinese at home.

Thank you very much Stonston,
Yep, there's always the controversy when it comes to different teaching approaches- when learning is "made too fun". Hence i keep holding back from preschool that weighs heavily on project-base. But thematic wise, it seems the general approach?

There is always this qn in my head that DS is so fun-loving and active, I'm so afraid of "turning him off" from learning... I have PM you some queries. Hope you can share your advice... thanks in advance


Wow!! that's about 5 words in a week, excluding English and Maths... Your DS learns very fast and to understand the word, impressive!! I can see the importance of having a good academic-based curriculum.

A side-track, this preschool, at this rate, are they preparing for P1 or P2 kekeke

 

[JoyBliss]

The monte sch my gal was in does not have speech and drama incorporated as basic programme. It wld be offered as optional enrichment instead.

Phonics is an integral part of monte sch. The kids have activity time where they work with monte materials like sorting, spooning, identifying, phonetic sounds, buttoning, zipping, etc.

Ermmm... my gal's presch only has 2 non-SGP teachers. They teach Chinese and are from China.

Actually on the part of acclimatising to pri sch & doing well, I personally feel that it's dependent on the sch. SGP being SGP, there really aren't many full monte sch around. The child needs to be prepared for P1 by the time they are in K1. I see my daughter enjoying school and learning & experiencing many things - academic & otherwise. She also recognizes the importance of attending school and paying attention in class. For this, I attribute it to the efforts of her principal & teachers.

Thank you Camon,
Yep, of the most importance is having the child to thrive and learn. That's the most important behind the whole education talk, it's about the child isnt it My ds is very active and people-oriented, so the small class size i think is better for him, but he can really play all the way, so cannot be too fun-filled... or maybe most boys are like that hee


By the way, there is a monte said substantiate with extensive teaching materials, but pricey... so dropping this preschool... guess even monte seems to be getting more and more localised? :001_302:

For now, when I'm considering monte, i'm trying to find the likes, but at a affordable price

 

[stonston]

A side-track, this preschool, at this rate, are they preparing for P1 or P2 kekeke

They are preparing them for Primary school. Why go to pre-school if your intention is not to prepare them for primary school?
I've seen the report books of their graduands and most of them got high 90s, lowest was 80+ for all subjects! Impressed!

If my intention is not to prepare for primary school, I would just let him join whichever kindy without researching

 

[JoyBliss]

They are preparing them for Primary school. Why go to pre-school if your intention is not to prepare them for primary school?
I've seen the report books of their graduands and most of them got high 90s, lowest was 80+ for all subjects! Impressed!

If my intention is not to prepare for primary school, I would just let him join whichever kindy without researching

Wow wow wow.... any hint on the "precise" location of this center? Really hope to find 1 like this one, except in the North/West
Well said! ancing_wub:
And they can enjoy the learning process while getting ready for P1 that many preschools are doing or claiming to do. And many parents are simply going the extra miles to make sure they deliver exactly that...

As to how "ready" is 'ready" for P1... guess this is subjective to every parent i think :tlaugh:

 

[stonston]

As to how "ready" is 'ready" for P1... guess this is subjective to every parent i think :tlaugh:

Agree. My requirements are high. Ready for P1 means when he goes to P1, he will be able to cope and do well (at least above 80 marks per subject) without any tuition.

 

[JoyBliss]

Agree. My requirements are high. Ready for P1 means when he goes to P1, he will be able to cope and do well (at least above 80 marks per subject) without any tuition.

:001_302: hee.. I'm going to sound naive here because I have totally lost touch with primary education... >> When I was schooling, my mom kept reinforcing a solid foundation is important, since the next level of syllabus is built on top of the base. The stronger the base, the better. If the child understands his school work, according to her standard is achieving a full mark that seems overly stringent in today's context (more and more cases of sucidal or depressed students)

So stonston, in today context, what is deemed as the "average" scoring/norm, e.g. 70 out of 100 marks in primary school?