Sophie Singing the National Anthem

Sophie singing Majulah Singapura

In child development center, besides eating, playing and sleeping, a child do learn social skills that will prepare them to a smooth transition when they enter the normal school in Primary one. Some of the activities I am aware of are the standard learning of the english and chinese languages including story telling, singing, drawing, swimming, outings to farms, gardens and performing in the center's annual "graduation" concert (for the K2 Class).

For singing, there are a lot of materials available, even in "Youtube". Try this Sing Along Trailer with your children.

Growing Up

A controlled Sleep & Play area

Curtis at 6-months (in Singapore)

As a child grows, his/her needs also grow. For a start after birth, a child only needs three things; to sleep, to eat and to feel secured. My last blog described the activities of a 16-month child.

What happens between the time a child knows how to roll-over to the time he/she can walk. We are talking about the period of a child from between 4-months to 12-months. My observation is, first the child will learn to roll-over, then to crawl (body touching or not touching ground), sit-up, walk (aided) then, the moment of truth, walk unaided.....run!

What is the best arrangement to provide for the above-mentioned development?
The simplest is just to allow the child to learn crawling on the floor (padded is recommended). The disadvantage of this simple arrangement is the fact that the child may pick up some small object and put it in the mouth.

A better arrangement is to have a controlled "development" or play area. What I have done is just to take two single beds, put them side by side to a corner (see picture above). These single beds are of low height and there is no problem in training a child to come down on his/her own (legs first) everytime they wake up on their own.

Sophie First Art Piece

Sophie, now at 20 months, is quite an independent child, according to her childcare teachers. One of the means to nurture creative minds in children is to expose them to music and the art. See previous blog. For a start, a child will enjoy any colour markers he/she can get hold on. Give them a piece of paper (A3 size) and they will produce a master piece to you.

Other variations include finger printing, water colour with brushes, etc. Be prepared to clean up the mess if you believe in nurturing your child this way.