K has completed a term at KidStartNow, and we’re glad that she’s really enjoying it… so we signed up for her to continue!
She likes to ask, “Is there Chinese class this week?” And is happy when the answer is “Yes”! What more can a parent ask for? Haha.
I am glad that she has been steadily progressing. Kidstartnow really offers a very comprehensive package. Apart from the 1 hour 45 min session every Saturday that features a variety of activities such that children do not find the lesson dreary or tiring, they also offer a complimentary hour-long midweek revision class, for kids to revise the words learnt on Saturday.
They also make it a point to send out the little cartoon story that was screened on Saturday, sometime during the week, so that parents can watch it with their kids, and revise the new words introduced within that story.
As with all languages, consistent practice and immersion is key. Hence, I think such frequent reinforcement is valuable indeed! One can’t fault the centre for not providing many opportunities.
Fees-wise, I believe that they are very competitive, as compared to other offerings out there. So if you are interested, there’s really no harm in calling them up to arrange a trial lesson.
K has gotten very comfortable with the environment, her lovely teacher and her little classmates there, such that she will tell me what she learnt that week, what her classmates ‘acted as’, and how many gold coins she has accumulated in her little treasure hoard.
Another aspect that I appreciate about the centre(which I hadn’t mentioned in the previous post) is the “live streaming” of class proceedings (with full audio!) on a TV screen at the waiting area, which is designed like a cosy living room. If you wish, you could observe the entire class whilst being outside, how your child is responding, and how the teacher is interacting with the class.
I guess this also shows how confident the centre’s owners and teachers are in the classes they offer. It’s pretty rare these days for centres to offer such full transparency, in showing parents what goes on in class.
We observed how K was behaving in the classes through this facility, once or twice when she was still getting used to the place and wanted us to be outside. These days we gladly drop her off and go for breakfast with the rest of the family, heh.
At the end of the first 10-week term, we were pleasantly surprised with a very comprehensive term report. It was great to note in such detail what she was doing well in, and what she is making improvement on.
K has just started having 听写 at her kindy, once every three weeks, since this is her K2 year. There were only 6 characters each time, and relatively easy words, which I am very thankful for. K loves seatwork, and so it hasn’t been difficult preparing her for 听写 . I think it will get more challenging once she enters primary school, so I’m really glad to have KidStartNow as a partner in building up her love for and competence in the language.
Coupled with surrounding her with ready access to good mandarin story books at home, speaking the language to her when I can, as well as reading to her and B a mandarin story book almost every night, hopefully she’ll cope decently with, if not enjoy, learning mandarin in primary school next year. 🙂
Disclaimer: We received a blogger discount on fees this term, and no other form of compensation for this post.
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