It was some time late 2020 when C came to this decision - she would continue her post-secondary school education in a junior college. Since then, she had been gearing herself up.

We spoke about the challenges she would face - the late dismissal from school, the CCA commitments, the pockets of "free" time from her time table, and the demands of the curriculum. We also advised her about the friends and school mates that she might encounter. It was not all solemn and serious, of course. We also commented that class would be interesting especially for English and General Paper because of the discussions that would take place. We candidly shared that during our time, our motivation to get into jc was as simple and frivolous as us just wanting to go to school in trainers. Haha

It has been about a month since school started for her and she is still acclimating. She is definitely spending more hours online reading up on materials, or watching a film for class but she is enjoying the process. Then there are days where she is grouchy and waking up tired - all part-and-parcel of student life. 

We keep her in prayer. May the good Lord watch over her and guide her.

12 January 2022 -  O level results release

The much-awaited day came and went. Unlike 4 years ago when she received her PSLE results, this time she was alone - parents were allowed in school due to the Safe Management Measures (SMM) so we had our mobile phones close in case her message came in.

A lot of sweat, hard work, and sleepless nights went into the preparation for the national examination so she was anxious naturally. She recounted the friendships she had fostered, the pep talks, and the occasional well-meaning scoldings the class received from teachers. These 4 years hadn't been easy - they went on a month-long of Home-based Learning in 2020 and another short one in 2021, all when they were moved on to upper secondary where the syllabus and work were more demanding. Camps and outdoor activities were suspended, CCAs came to a halt and social activities were very much none in existence. Yet, this lot of students strived and persevered - they adapted and rose to the challenge. 

I was browsing my photo album and saw these photos that I had taken earlier :

The lovely notes of encouragement and gifts from her teachers and classmates when they had their own farewell. Among them was also a letter that she had written to herself.

A plaque from the school for her service.

and the parting gift from school. She loves this bear a lot :) 

God is good - all the time and C knows she is in good hands. 

 

It is an understatement to say that time flies... really.

A photograph popped up on Memories in Facebook and it was on a set of photographs that I had taken of C getting her uniforms and books for primary school. Fast-forward to 2021 and she was sitting for her O level English papers this afternoon.

She was pretty nervous, I must say. Whenever I could, I would get back home in time to say a prayer with her before sending her off for her papers. However today, I did not manage to and gave her a call instead. She had initially said that she would only leave for school at 1.15 in the afternoon but her papers were starting at 1.30! After that correction, I received another text from her that read she had taken the bus in the wrong direction! oh man... 

Luckily C has a habit of giving herself an hour of buffer time so she wasn't all that flustered.

Talk about being stressed. She commented the EL papers were tricky with many inferential questions for Paper 2 but Paper 1 was alright and she didn't feel much anxiety about them. Hopefully the exam would proceed smoothly. 

Precious did well for her second year in secondary school. This year was SYF year and like all students in the performing arts, practice sessions increased in frequency.

Juggling her duties as student leader, choir and music practices, and her school work, Precious still managed to squeeze in time for her videos on YouTube, I think she did okay. 

Of course, in all seriousness, I do think she could devote more of her attention and time to her books than rendezvous with her favourite presenters online but I guess teenagers do what teenagers do.

She was pleased as she got into the class she wanted and this award that came in late last year was quite the icing on the cake.

We will continue to pray for her - for resilience to keep a steady course in her studies, to be abreast with her duties as student leader, and more importantly to know when and how to relax. 

Term 3 is without a doubt, the worst time of the academic year. Not only do we have to deal with all the onslaught of the national examinations, there are also some major events such Racial Harmony and National Day celebrations in school where many hours of rehearsal and preparation are needed. Yet, it is also one of the most memorable because C and I would sit down to discuss the gifts we would do up for her teachers.

After much thought, she decided that it would be a kit: stationery and some necessary perishable. She knows that I often go without lunch at work and asks what do I do then. I told her that my wonderful friends at work leave treats like chocolate and snacks on our desks so she reckoned that we could also get some for her teachers. Then we trooped down to Mustafa Centre to get the items. 

 

The finished product! Hopefully her teachers would find the items useful. :)

Blessed Teachers' Day to all 'Chers out there!

Every year as we draw closer to the season of examinations, it isn't just the students who get jittery, teachers too. But like all previous years, we continue to pray for them. Schools and teachers keep their spirits up with words of encouragement, and little tokens.

It started with an innocent "Girls (my co-form teachers), are you from the era where we made friendship bands?" My extremely obliging friends weren't but they agreed wholeheartedly to learn the art of braiding.

 So we started. We did them in the evenings, in-between classes, and of course, while on those marking breaks and managed to complete the task in time.

Each band was placed into the pouches, complete with a note Ms Fatin wrote for them and they were handed out to the girls in class when we celebrated Teachers' Day. Really thankful and grateful for these wonderful friends / co-form teachers making this come true. :) 

Why friendship bands? Some of the friendships forged during secondary school days would last our lifetime and we wanted the girls to know that. Each band was braided with different colours - to let them know that individually, they are beautiful, but together they become magical. We want them to know that they could always count on each other, to look out for one another.

 Daddy helped too - he faithfully held on the knots in one hand while watching television in the evenings while I braided away. I promised C that she could have 1 too when she asked for it but only after I had completed those for the class. 2 days ago, we went down to a craft shop where she picked out her favourite colours. I made the band into a key holder as her old one was coming apart.

We were set from day 1 that this would be the school that C attends and in a blink of an eye, this 6-years journey is nearing the end. Over the years, C has been blessed with dedicated and caring teachers. They have nurtured and guided her, reprimanded, and praised her too.

Many a times, C comes home with little gifts like a stationery set, or markers, or stickers. Gifts that her teachers had given to the class as tokens of encouragement. This year alone, C has been given 2 personalised pencil cases, complete with pens and the necessary writing materials. I guess, in preparation for the exams as children are only allowed to use transparent pencil cases to hold their stationery. How very thoughtful!

Yet the School, and the Parents' Support Group surprised us with this parting gift:

Each class has its individual photo book. The teachers have taken pictures throughout the year, capturing events the class has celebrated, crystallizing the special moments the girls have experienced. They were also given a mug with the words "Be Bold, and Shine". C loves the mug very much indeed and she drinks her Milo out of it every day now. 

Really, the School, the teachers, and the parents - they think of everything. :) We want to say "thank you."

This is C's final year with her teachers in the primary school. 

Previous years, we would fuss over what to get for her teachers but this year was relatively "easy". C is taking her PSLE this year and the pace has slowly but surely quicken. The work that she has to do each day is considerably more too. I told her that her teachers are also working just as hard, to prepare the children for the exam.

Thus explains our gifts to her teachers this year. 

From instant udon noodles, we have moved on to savoury oats. After some research and discussion about what kind of ingredients to use, we took the plunge and like what they say, "the rest is history."

We started with this first: dumplings, fishballs, and frozen vegetables. We added egg for that extra flavour. 

Then went on to experiment with other kinds of vegetables. Here we used mushrooms, cabbage, and carrots. When we become more confident, we added meat like sliced pork.

This is our favourite! Cherry tomatoes, caixin, fish and cheesy fishcake. Now that we have gotten the hang of it, we are more willing to try different types of (uncooked) ingredients which are of course healthier choices compared to the processed sausages or crab sticks. 

3 tablespoons of oats, with these ingredients - it keeps us filled yet doesn't make us feel bloated or sleepy. :) An additional plus: there is no need to pre cook any ingredients as the microwave can settle that easily.

C's final year in the primary school and we were once again invited for the annual Parents' Night. Both Principals ; the primary and secondary schools spoke to us. We learned of the programmes that the secondary school has. More importantly, we saw that both schools have structured their enrichment to see the girls through their 10 years of education. I was pleased that C has set her heart on continuing her education there. :) It was indeed heartening to hear the principal of the secondary school telling parents that she welcomes all the girls from the primary school, and that she hopes to see them next year.

Next we had our chances to meet with C's form and Mother Tongue teachers. I always marvel at how efficient primary school teachers are. It has only been 2 weeks yet the classroom was nicely decorated with their work.

Positive talk! There are always a more positive manner to express one's thoughts and C's form teacher worked with the girls to come up with each encouraging phrase. The girls take ownership of their learning.

My favourite corner of the classroom: the class library. The girls were encouraged to donate their old books and their English teacher too, bought some for the little corner. There is a good mix of narrative books and Science magazines so the girls have a fairly good selection to choose from.

The school took their feedback sessions online 3 years back. It was a very quick survey and we called it a night. 

I would say the highlight of Term 3 every academic year would be Teachers' Day.

Handwritten notes - she took a while to finish notes she had for each teacher. I left her to do much of the work and saw that she was careful and even had a scrap piece of paper where she tried to work out the spelling of words she was unfamiliar with. 

This year, we bought for her teachers, the humble fountain pens. She mentioned that her teachers have lovely handwriting and the fountain pens would definitely enhance their writing experience. That was a sweet thought on her part. :)

We do hope her teachers and coaches like the gift. 

The annual Parents' Evening at C's school.

Moving into Primary 5, we were prepared for the increased in school work and the staying-behinds. In fact, the School prepared us last November with the announcement in their monthly newsletter. What was new was this time, the principal of the secondary school had some air time to talk about the programmes offered should the girls choose to continue their education with PL. I guess this was necessary for the parents of the Primary 6 girls who were also involved in the session. I would say that moving on to PL Secondary would be one of our options as we liked what the school has put in place. 

The next part of the session took place in the classrooms.

Though only having spent 3 weeks in school, we saw that C's teachers and the class had done up the important stuff like class rules expectations. Values and class work were prominently displayed and the class was neat and tidy. There was even the mobile carts in class; they hold lap tops and for lessons which require the pupils to do some online work, this means that the girls do not need to shuttle between the computer labs and their classrooms.

C's teachers were warm and they took time to explain the syllabus and how as parents, we could help. Like in the past, we left the place assured and knowing that the year would go well.

Although only a mere 5 days, this was probably one of the longest week for me. It was getting the engine started again after the break from work. It was returning to waking at 4-ish in the mornings and rushing around in the evenings. Nah, I am not complaining; I know the dust and anxiety will slowly but surely settle.

Now that C is older and more independent, we have made some (drastic) changes to her daily routine. She no longer travels on the school bus. We started training her towards the end of the last school term and after several times of getting back on her own, she became more confident. C has to stay behind in school for lessons too so her being able to travel independently helps. When she is home, she gets her lunch ready. I would prepare it the night before and all she has to do is heat it up or she has the option of getting lunch from the coffee shops near home.

A typical breakfast:

When it's lunch at home.

C has been good with time management. She finishes her homework before dinner and manages to squeeze in some time to chat with her Dad before bed time. :) Waking up in the mornings is also not a problem for her. She doesn't give us the "5-more-minutes" speech.

It has only been week 1 and it looks good. I know we will do fine. :)

Staff-bonding is always an enriching time; we get to do things that aren't really related to work and we get to have fun with colleagues and friends. It was a tough choice to make this time round - there was ukulele playing, calligraphy drawing, terrarium making, and a jamming session to choose from. Oh, one of our friends even brought his own set of (8) laser-tag guns and the staff room was transformed into a battle field for a good 1 hour.

I picked terrarium making in the end.

The kit that we were given. Simple enough but they were sufficient for whatever we had in mind.

We had a briefing on the types of plants we could use and the materials we would need. Then, we started on the session and 30 minutes later, we came up with our masterpieces.

My colleagues had put together a Learning Journey for our CCA groups and I decided to take C along since she had a day off from school. The earlier part of the morning was spent at the Peranakan Museum and we were given a guided tour around the place.

The highlight of the Learning Journey was definitely the trip to Kampong Glam at Bukit Merah where the girls got to flip roti prata.

 It was lunch to settle the hungry stomachs before the session started.

The girls were given a brief history of the origins of roti prata before they started.

There was a master chef who went around ensuring that the girls had flipped correctly.

The teachers got their hands dirty too. :)

To end it all, a prata buffet! These were not the prata the girls flipped just now. They tried prata of different flavours; some were pretty exotic like durian prata, chocolate prata and prata bomb.

Needless to say, C had a wonderful and enriching time. My students took care of her and she chatted with them like they were old friends. :)

It is always exciting to hunt for gifts and every year, we do it with much gusto especially when the gifts are meant for C's teachers. We brainstormed and came up with several options.

We always prefer practical gifts, like red pens - for the endless marking that they do, honey jars - to soothe that throat of theirs, stylus - for iPads / tablets, over ornamental ones. This year, decided that they would be these:

Book marks! These bookmarks are so pretty! The characters featured in the bookmarks are from the many legendary Chinese folktales like Madam White Snake 白蛇传, the Mandarin version of Romeo and Juliet 梁山伯  祝英台.  C loved them the moment she first saw them and were intrigued as I told her about the characters. 

  

 Here she was on the floor and writing her "thank you"s to her teachers and was pleased with herself after she was done. Anyway, we do hope that her teachers like the gift. We have been blessed with dedicated teachers; C has had responsible, thoughtful, and caring teachers - teachers who go an extra mile. 

For these 2 years, she has Mr. Chong as her form teacher. He updates us regularly with emails on what has been covered for lessons and he also sends messages over the phones to remind us of special events. He lets us know how C is faring, how we can help her measure up, and of course, the good things that C has done too. We thank God for Mr. Chong. :)