(2006/02) Feb 2006 MTB

Hi summer,

i thought Apple Tree is only 1.5hrs for playgroup? the 3hrs class is for 4yrs and above. correct me if i am wrong.

As for kinderland hear is quite good but when i check out the kinderland at CCK (sunshine place) many ppl feedback that the teachers are no good. So not gg to send my boy there.

Currently i am looking at school as well but slowly cos i only intend to send next wk. Am considering Gracefield kindergarten (3hrs but need to take bus) or Apple Tree (1.5hrs but just next blk).

Cherie Heart i not so sure abt that.

BTW where are u staying?
 


Hi jappooh
Yes, apple tree is only 1.5hours. Timing is ok for me. But not sure if it's good. I hear good reviews about Cherie Hearts but it's about 4 hours i find it too long. I called them and find them professional whereas Kinderland not so prof. I'm staying at Punggol but i am looking for one near to parents' place @ Balestier so my dad could fetch her to and fro while i'm at work. Where you stay?
 
Hi Summer,
i have move to Choa Chu Kang..For me i prefer the 3hrs class but look like only Gracefield kindergarten is 3hrs. i dun like the idea of sending him to half day childcare.. Will need to look at the environment b4 i decide.

Cos Apple Tree is so near to my hse.. But i heard alot of good comment abt Gracefield loh..

Currently my boy attending the zoo phonics school at beauty world is once a wk. Every lesson he cry lei.. 1st and 2nd lesson is terrible cry non stop. Now cry the moment he knw reaching school till enter the class. After a few mins he is ok liao.. I also do activities with him at hm. Like counting, painting, matching as well.
 
summer
i also considering to send ethan to apple tree le but hor they can only enrol in june and classes start next year le...think apple tree quite established shd be alright le...

jappooh
zoo phonics. How issit?

Claire
yeah definitely will miss ur girls...
 
Maybe we do a poll here on the enrichment classes or CCs...hee
happy.gif
for infor..

Tods attending CC and name of CC
1.

Tods attending 3 hour enrichment or play group and name of centre
1.

Tods not attending any till 3 years old
1.
 
Tods attending CC and name of CC
1.

Tods attending 3 hour enrichment or play group and name of centre
1. Elvin (Zoo phonics 1.5hrs wkly)

Tods not attending any till 3 years old
1.
 
Hi Jappooh
Where is Gracefield Kindergarten... Christian or Catholic? Actually, sending my gal to a church school is also one option.

Actually I am still wondering if i should re-enrol her for JG in Mar and let her do weekend class only...

Etelle,
Yup, can only start next year. I called y'day to find out. I like it for the short hours, think 1.5-2 hours is enough le.
 
Hi Summer,
Gracefield kindergarten is near to bt panjang. I dunno is is Christian or Catholic school. I am not very particular abt that though i am a buddist.

Etelle,
the zoo phonics quite ok. But the phonics part i myself is learning also.. Though i took eraly childhood course but my phonics is terrible. My boy like the art & craft best. And i do painitng with him almost every alternate days at hm. My boy dun really like musica na movement keep crying for the 1st 2 lesson. Cry for the whole 1.5hrs.. Now start of class still cry abit but it getting better though when we gg to take bus to go he will knw and say wan to go hm.

Need to train him for school environment loh. Usually children is ok when the parents are there. Dunno why only my boy cry till like that though we are there..

BTW, zoo phoincs haev chinese lesson for 1st half hrs follow by 1hr english lesson. I have music and movement, art & craft, story telling and phonics.
 
summer
u called up kinderland? why u say they not pro le? actually for a first timer mummy ah what shd we ask ah?

actually i am okay with apple tree and also considering PCF little steps a newly established program for 30 mths old and above...so...options open though
 
Tods attending CC and name of CC
1. (Tan) Xin Ru - MMI halfday CC 3times/wk

Tods attending 3 hour enrichment or play group and name of centre
1. Elvin (Zoo phonics 1.5hrs wkly)

Tods not attending any till 3 years old
1.

Find MMI not bad, but expensive. if 5 halfdays will have to fork out 7++ a mth.
 
Claire
My coll's gal also attending MMI, he has got good reviews on MMI but expensive.

Etelle
Coz i asked Kinderland about the todd/kids ratio and how many they 'house' in the centre, the person like not too sure and her Eng no good. Unlike Cheris Hearts, the director speaks very well and even offered to send me materials via email and also left down her mobile number to contact her should i need more info. Also, invited me down to view the centre. I usually ask:

- duration of class
- frequency
- fees / baby bonus scheme?
- teacher/students ratio
- when the terms starts?
 
Hi gals,

when u all decide to send must also go down to take alook hor.. And have a feel abt the teacher and environment.

I attached to diff school b4 and all school practise differently loh.
 
Summer
thanks for the infor....

Jappooh
i agree with you though all can be under an organisation but individual centre/teachers standard and quality may be diff....have to personally go check it out...
 
Hi Etelle,
ya loh in later part i will also go and look at the centre b4 decide where to send my boy. Only intend to send him for daily one when he is 3yrs old.
 
jappooh
yeah for me also le i feel 3 years old le he is better able to cope with it lor ...haha so in the meanwhile Ethan be SAHK with me ha ha....you have any website that can share whereby we can find activities for toddlers and learning activities to do at home?
happy.gif


where to get non toxic paints?
 
Hi Etelle,
i dun have website lei.. I use those activities that i learn when i am study the course.

Actually last time use to go library to look for reference book in ngee ann library. but now not free liao so only base on memories. Sometime i still ask my old classmate cos a few of them are teachers and principle of preschool.

I get the non toxic paints from spotlight. There is a arcylic paint which is for children and easy to wash away after that.
 
hi girls,

it s been a long time since i ever post.. have been super busy.. well, both elly and i are doing well..

jappooh,

sorry to hear bout your MC.. rest well and try again soon ok..

for playgroup, elly is now attending a playgroup bout 2 hr daily session at active learner bout 5 mins from home.. this was recommended by oscar.. still waiting for tavis to join elly next year.. actually they only accept children at 2 and half years old but after letting elly join in the class for trial.. the principal say that elly is independent enough for school.. she enjoys school very much and her vocab has certainly grow..the school on the whole is very pleasant.. the principal and teachers are all friendly so elly does nt feel left out at all.. her teacher has commented that she loves music.. i feel that it is due to her kindermusik classes in the past..

it's her birthday today and mummy is feeling nostalgic..

Tods attending CC and name of CC
1. (Tan) Xin Ru - MMI halfday CC 3times/wk

Tods attending 3 hour enrichment or play group and name of centre
1. Elvin (Zoo phonics 1.5hrs wkly)
2. elly (2 hr playgroup daily active learners)

Tods not attending any till 3 years old
1.
 
Tods attending CC and name of CC
1. (Tan) Xin Ru - MMI halfday CC 3times/wk
2. Jarren - Learning Vision CC / full day

Tods attending 3 hour enrichment or play group and name of centre
1. Elvin (Zoo phonics 1.5hrs wkly)
2. elly (2 hr playgroup daily active learners)

Tods not attending any till 3 years old
1.
 
summer,
yep, MMI is really expensive. mil suggested sending her to cherie hearts instead, nearer her place and abt $100+ cheaper/mth.

Now thinking that if I can get my transfer to HQ, I'll enrol xr in the learning vision CC in HQ.
 
Tods attending CC and name of CC
1. (Tan) Xin Ru - MMI halfday CC 3times/wk
2. Jarren - Learning Vision CC / full day
3. Yujie - MMI/ Full day

Tods attending 3 hour enrichment or play group and name of centre
1. Elvin (Zoo phonics 1.5hrs wkly)
2. elly (2 hr playgroup daily active learners)

Tods not attending any till 3 years old
1.

Claire
I feel MMI at my place one is good leh, although is slightly ex then others...
 
1. Johnson baby milk lotion
2. johnson baby lotion
3. Lactacyd
4. dettol hand sanitizer
5. bath and body works apple body lotion
 
mummies,

Jerry is attending babyplanet montessori at siglap road. Very ex $600 for half day 3x a week. Probably just for 1 year then we will send him to nafa arts kindergarten next yr. I lke baby planet's environment and the teachers are very caring and matured. Jerry has shown improvement though he started in Jan, now he can speak in short sentences and express himself better, most impt he seems to be enjoying sch.
happy.gif


Tods attending CC and name of CC
1. (Tan) Xin Ru - MMI halfday CC 3times/wk
2. Jarren - Learning Vision CC / full day
3. Yujie - MMI/ Full day
4. Jerry - Babyplanet montessori halfday CC
3times/wk

Tods attending 3 hour enrichment or play group and name of centre
1. Elvin (Zoo phonics 1.5hrs wkly)
2. elly (2 hr playgroup daily active learners)

Tods not attending any till 3 years old
1.
 
Hi summer

My boy is attending Kinderland YCK, 3hrs daily playgroup. SO far so good lor. He's adjusting well. His teachers said he loves music and the playground. He's attached to the English teacher and doesn't really fancy his Chinese teacher.

The no on their website is a hotline for all centres and they may not know the details. So it's better to call the centre directly. I spoke with the principal and arranged to visit the school after that.

He's still not talking much, but can't blame it on the school coz he was already like that before. Then again, he also said some chinese words in sentences which i'm not sure whether it's random or he really knew how to say. Thought he was 'potato' boy. He's starting to mouth more words already, and been bossing around. hahaha. He directed his classmates who wanted to go somewhere else back to the classroom and told off my friend's kid who was standing on the piano bench to get off. At least he could say 'down'. hahah. Next time can become prefect.


Tods attending CC and name of CC
1. (Tan) Xin Ru - MMI halfday CC 3times/wk
2. Jarren - Learning Vision CC / full day
3. Yujie - MMI/ Full day
4. Jerry - Babyplanet montessori halfday CC
3times/wk

Tods attending 3 hour enrichment or play group and name of centre
1. Elvin (Zoo phonics 1.5hrs wkly)
2. elly (2 hr playgroup daily active learners)
3. C (3hr playgroup daily, YCK Kinderland)

Tods not attending any till 3 years old
1.
 
etelle

Actually i think choosing a playgroup really depends on what you want your kid to learn there.

I chose YCK Kinderland coz firstly, 'Little Skool House' staff sucks big time (promised to call me back, but didn't, agreed to reserve a place for me but didn't etc), and the big advantage over LSH was it's got a big playground within the school compound (they took over a primary school) and they even have a rabbit who lives in a tree burrow! Thought that it has a nice kampong feel and lots of nature.

I don't expect him at this age to learn alphabets and complex educational curriculum. Just wanted him to learn to share (coz now he's an only child), have some social manners, learn to play with other kids and interact with pp other than his family. He's quite slow in terms of language skills compared with his peers, but i guess all kids are different, so won't be pushing him since there's nothing we can do either. Hopefully, thru his interaction with the kids his age, he'll pick up some language skills too.

He'll be attending K1 next yr, so he can learn all the skills necc for primary school then lor. We've already selected his kindergarten and primary school already. The rest is up to him.
 
mashy
i agree with you le like choosing a playgroup depends on what i want ethan to learn. Frankly i just want him to have some friends and mingle around have some social interaction, to learn sharing and all lor..not so much on education or what la...cuz hor still so young dun want to stress him :p
 
how come so fast all yr kid attending K1? i think it's N1 but u all type wrongly izzit? or i m wrong? i tot is N1, N2, N3 then K1, K2 then Primary school ????
 
Etelle,
Some of my friends' kid are attending Nafa kindergarten, good comments on their curriculum which incorporate art and music. I know most CCs have that, but according to them, the lessons are very comprehensive so no need to go further enrichment lessons.
happy.gif
It is located along east coastr road, so near my place. For me, top priority is proximity to home, I cannot imagine driving all over Singapore to ferry my 3 kids around. No. 2 is teachers and environment. I like schools with lots of space and clean, teachers must be caring and well spoken.
 
mashy, C is 1 Jan so u can choose to enrol C the batch b4 him or join our kiddos' batch one, right?

u let him join the earlier batch, u not worry too stressful for him? last time I did discuss with hubby bcos that time gynae keep say i will deliver early then we agreed if our kid is 1 Jan, we will let him join the 2006 batch instead of the 2005 one.
 
bulma

by default, the MOE will enrol him in the 2005 batch. If I wanna enrol him for 2006, I still need to write letter to MOE. I not worry lah. At most, if he can't make it, repeat 1 yr lor. Hhahaah. If u don't try, you won't know right? even if I enrol him in 2006 batch also doesn't mean no stress. Stress will always be there. Even at my age.

Think if he needs to repeat one yr or need to take 5yr Sec education next time, he also won't feel so 'pai seh'. He'll be same year as those in the later batch. Better that than later repeat and join the 2007 batch, then he'll be 2 yrs older than the rest. Hahaha, I'm thinking too far already.
 
mashy
yeah yeah u r certainly thinking too far...oooh so those born on the 1st of jan have the option to go to the batch in the year before them...that's good le...but actually to certain extend what bulma said is true too he may not be able to catch up with the batch 1 yeah ahead of him but to the same year kids he has an edge over them....hmmmm....i also thinking too much ha ha
 
For those moms that have opened bank accounts for your kids, which bank did u choose and why? I need to open one for my younger one quite urgently coz my mom gave her a cheque for her full mth, and it's already been in my safe for 2 mths. worried it'll expire. thx for your inputs
happy.gif


Bank chosen/reason:
1.
 
Bank chosen/ reason:
1. Bulma: POSB kids / link to my POSB account. easier to manage
2. Siewlng: POSB kids / link to my POSB account. easier to manage Plus got $5 or wat from bank at opening of account... hehe! Cheapo me.
But overall I heard OCBC like not bad for kids account, but i lazy to change le
 
Hello morning mummies!

Bank chosen/reason:
1. POSB kids / link to my POSB account. (UOB doesn't have the savings books only online statement)
 
Bank chosen/ reason:
1. Bulma: POSB kids / link to my POSB account. easier to manage
2. Siewlng: POSB kids / link to my POSB account. easier to manage Plus got $5 or wat from bank at opening of account... hehe! Cheapo me.
3. POSB kids / link to my POSB account. (UOB doesn't have the savings books only online statement)
 
re: savings account
i am choosing OCBC Mighty Savers. Looks interesting and can inculcate saving habits with my gal. Gives stickers once you sign up and every dollar your child saves she gets a sticker and when she complete 20 stickers, you can bring her to the bank to get a gift (pencil case) as a reward. And if you open an account with $500 or more, you can get a Mighty Savers photo album and some others, can't remember. Had wanted to open accounts for them last fri but queue was too long.
 
Claire
I chose UOB haha for no apparent reason. Cuz on the day we went to open account, their queue was much shorter than the intended POSB. And the service from UOB was good too but like what i bless you said it does not have savings book but its okie for me cuz i prefer everything online ha ha
happy.gif
 
thx ladies
happy.gif

in the end went to ocbc.

summer
if you have spare funds and ok with taking up endowment plan with savings account for your girls, can go ocbc coz they got promo now.

just share what i took up with them yesterday:
opened 2 accounts, 1 for each girl.
Took up the school plan. (pay $2500/yr for 6 yrs, take out abt $19K at 12th yr. can pay this 'premium' with anything, credit card(no need ocbc), cash. I paid with their ang pao $$ and top up extra.)

this comes with a school account (savings acc with no passbook/card. linked to my ocbc joint acc) and with the stickers and mighty savers gifts of plush dolls, stationery and plastic zip bag

bcoz took up this plan, can take their promo. placed $xxxx in FD for 1 mth at 10%pa.

each girl also gets $120 cash gift credited into their ocbc school account.

quite a lot of goodies but ends 29feb
happy.gif
 
Claire
Thanks for the info. Already have endowment plans for the gals. But sounds good, will check it out this Fri. Hope the queue is short.

Happy Birthday Bulma!
 


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