Missed our Parenting with Love Seminar? Here are the key takeaways from our Parenting with Love: Preparing Your Child For Primary School Seminar, held on 25 April at SMU Mochtar Riady Auditorium.

Helping Children Excel In English

English is a complex language. As your child enters Primary 1, their vocabulary will gradually expand. How can parents support their language development?

Here are the important elements of English reading and writing in Primary School that was presented by our speakers, Fiona Walker (pictured below, R), Chief Executive Officer and Principal of Schools, Julia Gabriel Education and Lynette Chua (L), Head of School Support Services, Julia Gabriel Centre.

1. Language is caught not taught

Children learn language through social interactions. Learning is most impactful when they feel happy and positive in the process. Catch moments when children are having fun and turn them into ‘incidental’ learning.

Don’t just stop at reading at writing. Teach children how to communicate by engaging in meaningful conversations. Share your experiences with them and encourage them to share their experiences with you. You can also share the latest news with your kids, and tell them your opinions and ask them for their thoughts about it.

2. Read for fun and purpose

We read for various reasons. As parents, Fiona encouraged to do shared reading with their children. Parents can also show that reading is necessary to facilitate play and activities. For example, when playing a board game, you can read the rules and instructions of the games together.

Reading can also be for pleasure. Expose children to the world through books. They may not have been to Africa but they learn so much about Africa through books. Tell bedtime stories, and show them you read for pleasure too at home. Fiona recommended parents to try audio books for kids and to sit down and listen together with their children. However, it should not be used as a substitute for storytelling or bedtime storytime.

3. Make language meaningful

Why do we write? To communicate, express our thoughts, feelings and to imagine and record our experiences with others.

Help your child see that in their day to day routine and give them a reason to write. One example Lynette shared was the little notes she writes to her three daughters. When her eldest daughter was sitting for her exams, she wrote a note to her to cheer her up and not to stress over her results. Now, her three children have picked up the habit of writing notes to family members. They would often write ‘love’ notes to her and slope them under her room door.

4. Positive Reinforcement

Celebrate success and motivate to keep the enthusiasm high. Remember to focus on the language learning and not correcting. Create a reward system for your child and create a positive feedback culture at home. Compliment your child when they have performed well in the subject or when they use a new word in their conversation.

5. Understanding the Primary Curriculum

Lynette stressed that there has been slight changes to the PSLE English syllabus. The Ministry of Education is placing more emphasis on oral skills in Primary School starting from 2015. Students will be assessed on their oral skills based on picture interpretation and how well they can articulate their ideas and opinions in the shared conversation and discussion with the teachers.

For writing, students are expected to be able to generate ideas, sequence and develop a plot, apply the rules and conventions of English. Some activities parents can do with their children to develop content are: listen to audiobooks, watch documentaries and the news together.

Julia Gabriel new centre @ Tampines Mall

This specially designed literacy centre offers programmes for children from Nursery One all the way through to Primary 6. Julia Gabriel’s unique EduDrama methodology incorporates drama to motivate and encourage individual development as children grow to become confident readers and conscious writers. Their program enables fluency in vocabulary, spelling, grammar and supporting literacy skills through a positive environment created by our specialist teachers who understand all aspects of the MOE syllabus.

4 Tampines Central 5, #05-03 Tampines Mall, Singapore 529510
Tel: 6444 6735 | Fax: 6444 6706 | enquiries@juliagabriel.com

For more information on Julia Gabriel Education programmes, go to www.juliagabriel.com

Read our e-book below on how you can prepare your child for Primary One!

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