Growing Up Gifted=any moms with babies/kids there?

[pkshl]

any mummies here who had enrolled yr baby/children in GUG program? how r the lessons? i was thinking of bringing my coming 9mths boy there for their trial lesson($50) but im not sure if he is able to concentrate for 1.5hrs cos lately he had started screaming for attention when he's outside my hb said our boy is happy thats y keeps screaming & laughing. but i find it weird for my son to act this way..

 

[cmeilim]

hubby and i took our 9-month-old son to check out the GUG at United Sq last weekend. just look-see, not attending class. the environment looks fun. i like the fact that kids' temperatures are taken before entering the classrooms. but i am really not sure how babies so young can pay attention for 1.5h. the reception lady said the duration includes snack and water time. i heard that other centres which also run 1.5h long lesson give time for toilet breaks (for the older kids) and self-play time as they want to give some parent-child interaction time (esp for working parents).

anyway, we took our boy to another trial class at Colourful Hearts yesterday, 1h only, so the programme is more intensive and fast-moving (but good for holding the attention of active babies like my boy). It's also very fun and the class size is very small, 1 teacher to 3 babies in my session. But at the end of the class, i think at least for the next year or so, i can provide the same type and quality of enrichment activities at home myself on weekends - story-telling, puppetry, singing, dancing, art and craft (simple finger-painting to start off), foundation phonics (jolly phonics, montessori and letterland), other learn-thru-play activities - as i know the stuff myself (i am not a teacher; i just read up a lot =)). we give our boy swimming time every weekend in our inflatable tub and have started taking him to Fidgets indoor playground once every month. so i'd rather save the money to buy montesorri resources, art and craft materials, and so on.

sorry, i guess i didn't really answer your question. but just want to share some of my views....hope u don't mind. =)

having said all the above, i think GUG does provide a good curriculum, esp for the older kids, esp incl science. so i dun rule out the possibility of sending my boy there when he's older and the range of activities increases beyond what i am capable of teaching or doing with him at home.

by the way, i dun think your boy was wierd lah. my boy was the youngest at his trial class and the teacher called him little mr sunshine because he was babbling and laughing a lot. He kept looking at the teacher and trying to 'talk' to her, hahaha, maybe cos teacher is younger and prettier than mummy. a refreshing change of scene!! ;p

 

[edy]

My son has been with GUG for the past 2 years and he seems to enjoy it very much.

For the details i guess i will get my wife to post later :tlaugh:

This year my younger daughter will be attending Julia and Gabriel

Edy

 

[cmeilim]

I forgot to add just now that the teacher at Colourful Hearts used to be from Julia Gabriel. =>

 

[edunloaded]

I tried both GUG and Julia Gabriel:

and I think I prefer JG.

I think the teacher to student ratio is just better, and they have better teachers.

Just my 2 cents worth.

Julia Gabriel and Growing Up Gifted | ED Unloaded