Looking at six-year-old Henry Ling hosting confidently on stage, his proud mother recalls how he was once too shy to come to school.
“He cried for three months,” says Ms Jenniffey Ling. “Now he’s the first to go and make friends!”
She was among the many parents attending year-end festivities in October at MOE Kindergarten @ First Toa Payoh (MK@First Toa Payoh). The event titled K2 Celebrates marks an important milestone for MK’s K2 children, showcasing what they’ve learnt in their two kindy years.
At MK@First Toa Payoh, the celebrations featured multilingual performances on Singapore’s history and culture that commemorate our nation’s 60th year of independence this year.
Children plan the programme, even the dance steps
“We encourage the children to plan and design what they want to do,” shares Ms Nurul’Ain Farhanah Abdul Halim, one of the MK teachers involved with the day’s events. “They recalled what they had learnt about our country and planned the stage performances together – even designing their own dance steps for the songs.”
By taking ownership of their performance, children develop confidence, creativity, and independence, she adds. Quieter children learn to express themselves, collaborate with their peers, and present in front of an audience – these will be important skills they’ll carry into Primary 1.
Parent Ms Hazel Chiu says her son Josh Chiu “has grown up a lot” these two years at the MK.
“He can express himself more. He used to be very quiet, so seeing him as an emcee for a performance shows me how confident he has become,” she says.
The teachers supported his love for drawing too, finding opportunities for him to “draw as much as he can”.
“As he transitions into P1, the teachers also taught him how to count money so that he can buy food at the canteen himself.”
Advantages of shared location in a primary school
MK@First Toa Payoh sits right within First Toa Payoh Primary School, giving the children the advantage of familiarity with their future school environment.
Ms Ling likes that her son Henry will be showing up at the same campus next year – no tears are expected on the first day of primary school!
There’s another win: Henry’s sister is currently a student at the primary school and could easily look out for him during recess.
“She goes to check on him then she shares with me how he’s doing. With his sister around, I was not so worried,” Ms Ling adds.
The proximity is helpful in other ways. Throughout the year, the K2 children visit the primary school’s library, canteen, and classrooms, getting used to spaces that will soon feel like home. At the canteen, they learn to approach the stallholders, count money and pay for their food. First Toa Payoh Primary School also invites them to join the primary school students for an in-class lesson, so they can have a sense of what Primary 1 is like, Ms Farhanah explains.
These experiences in MK help foster their excitement and confidence for learning, including looking forward to what is in store at primary school.
K2 child Gutierrez Xanthe Jay Espanol says: “I am excited and look forward to learning about science, maths, Mandarin and English! When I go to primary school, I want to see how we do science experiments there.” When asked what she would like to be when she grows up, she says with emphasis, “My mother is a nurse, and I want to be a doctor!”
Developing academic and socio-emotional skills
Children like Xanthe can step into P1 excited to explore a variety of subjects and activities all at once, thanks to MK’s holistic curriculum which builds their love and confidence for learning.
For example, MK’s Starlight Literacy Programme engages children through stories, songs, rhymes, and games rooted in the local context to build listening and speaking skills in both English and Mother Tongue languages, while also introducing early reading and writing skills.
Parents notice the difference. Xanthe’s mother Kristin Gutierrez says, “Xanthe learnt Chinese in class and likes speaking in Chinese. Whatever she learns at school, she brings it home too.”
Meanwhile, Mr Nadaraja Sripragas shares that his K2 daughter Sahasrrah Sripragas now “speaks Tamil very confidently”.
“She has also started to read English books. She likes to go to the library, borrowing one book each week. She can read and pronounce the words correctly, which is an important skill.”
MK teachers also nurture soft skills from the very start. In K1, the focus is on self-awareness, helping children find out more about themselves, their strengths, likes and dislikes and the emotions they have. By K2, they build on this foundation with self-management and social skills, such as regulating emotions and collaborating with peers – abilities that are put into practice when the children plan and execute their K2 Celebrates programme.
When it comes to learning, MK makes it enjoyable by giving the children space to explore what interests them. Each term ends with a Weeks of Wonder (WoW) project, where children explore a topic of their interest in English and their Mother Tongue Language. In the process, they learn to make decisions, communicate confidently, and discover learning on their own terms.
Ms Chiu says, “I believe the teachers have helped my child enjoy the process of learning.”
Watch: Follow our intern as she takes up the challenge to make a friend at the event!
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