BIG improvement!

Chao Khon really impressed me today. I had left a Big Book 'Chicken Rice' on the easel and some of the children were happily flipping through the book and reading it aloud. The kids were supposed to be queuing up to see me individually so that I could check their written work. Then I heard Chao Khon read! He could read ALL the words in the book. Imagine my (pleasant) surprise! Chao Khon is in the Learning Support Programme and he could not read by Semester One last year. He hardly knew any words! He didn't do very well in Semester 2 either. But this month, he seemed to have changed totally! I praised him and asked him who helped him improve so much. He said he had been getting help from his elder sister. I was very touched 'cos I had told Chao Khon that he is a bright boy and he should try to do better in English by getting his sister's help during the December holidays and at home. I also reminded him during target-setting this year that he will do well if he works harder for English (Chao Khon is good at Math). I didn't really expect him to heed my advice 'cos it really requires self-discipline. I am so encouraged by his effort.

Generally, I feel that my class is moving faster this year. I really like my class and enjoy teaching them 'cos they are a responsive and helpful lot. Even though this is just the beginning of the year, I believe I will miss them when they graduate from my class.

Chinese New Year

HI kids!

How did you spend your Chinese New Year? For the Chinese kids, how much money (or how many hong baos) did you collect? For the non-Chinese, what did you do? Were the two public holidays fun for you? Why? Share with me! :)

(For kids who keep checking this blog for new photos...sorry! I've been busy. Will let you know when I upload the pics)

Do you have enough sleep?

Hey, kids!

How many hours of sleep do you usually get everyday ? Do you think you are getting enough sleep? Do you usually feel tired or full of energy when you awake? Do you dream when you are sleeping? Can you remember your dreams? Do share with me.

sssleeeeeep.....not enough

"Mrs Mahimy, you like to sleep right?" Duke came up to me after reading this blog on Monday. For the record, I LOVE to sleep, but I am sleep-deprived. For me, sleeping is a good way to de-stress and re-energise! I can sleep off my problems and sometimes, I dream of solutions to my problems!

But having a toddler means not being able to sleep through the night. Night feeds..fever... flu...cough... nightmares... All mothers looking after their own kids will know what I mean. Since my son was born, I've not had the chance to sleep through the night. If I'm lucky, I get a straight 5 hour sleep. And that's SELDOM.

Self-discipline

Hi, kids!
We talked about self-discipline in class yesterday. What have you yourself done to show that you have self-discipline, either in school or at home?

What the kids say about Compound Words

Did a lesson on compound words yesterday. The kids were VERY GOOD at listing compound words during and after their English lesson. Nellie came up to me and said 'Mrs Mahimy, 'handsome' is a compound word right?' Definitely! Hand + some = handsome! Clever! The kids came up with other words like: postman, playground, HOMEWORK! :) etc.. I was impressed. They certainly understood what was taught! :) :) Then came the ultimate--contributed by various kids...'Mrs Mahimy, what about Woodlands? Queenstown? BATMAN? SPIDERMAN? SUPERMAN?' ;)

FUN FUN FUN at the zoo

Hey, Kids!

Get mummy and daddy to take you to the Singapore Zoological Gardens during the weekends! The new children's world is ONE FUN PLACE to go to! My own little boy (just 2 years old) didn't want to leave because he had fun in the new pool (there are water slides, 'gigantic water guns' and MORE) and also at the animal corner where he got to get really close to animals such as goats and horses. I'm sure you'll love it too! But remember to bring your swim gear and a change of clothes!If you don't want to get wet, there is an animal carousel (merry-go-round) and a fitness corner where you can go 'gliding'. Experience it for yourself! I've been there TWICE in December last year (2008)!

siNg and boOgey!!

this week has been pretty fun... started the STELLAR approach to teach english (using Big books to teach) and i've been making the kids sing, dance and produce lots of 'legitimate' noises. haha.. 'legitimate' cos this week's big book is entitled 'THE UNDERGROUND DANCE' and it is about the various sounds made by all sorts of things, both living and non-living eg. subway trains, drilling sounds made by the miner, sounds made by moles tunnelling underground etc.

i think the kids enjoyed the book. But they were at first hesitant to sing and dance at the same time....it was only until i led them in the song and dance that they really opened up and danced! we all had a good laugh--at me and themselves! Was thinking of getting the kids to choreograph some sort of 'STOMP' -like music, you know, hitting the desks and chairs to produce MUSIC, not NOISE. But don't think it's a good idea 'cos the process might disturb the other classes....It would be ABSOLUTELY fun, but i'm not exactly confident to coordinate a class of 30 potential 'noise-makers' ;) think i'll just get the kids to produce maracas next week...