reception: half-term
If anyone is checking the frequency of my posts the pattern really shows which weeknights have good TV programmes on and which nights don't! One does need to have something to look forward to after the children have gone to bed...
On Monday evening I went for the first parent-teacher meeting of the year. I first met Madame B, The Bun's French teacher, and we tried dismally to converse in French for the first two minutes before we gave it up as a lost cause. Madame B told me that The Bun seems to enjoy French class because he's always very enthusiastic and often volunteers for activities. She does not speak English to the children unless it is absolutely necessary so apparently The Bun cried in class for the first two weeks of school before settling in. The Bun seems to love French and has picked up an array of vocabulary terms and children's songs, which he sings almost constantly when he's at home. A couple of weeks ago, we were at the supermarket and one of the staff spoke to him and he replied, all in French, and without me translating for him. Just simple questions - how are you? how old are you? is this your little sister? - but he understood and responded easily and automatically, to my surprise.
Madame B is happy with his progress, especially once she discovered that we have only been in the country for four months and before that The Bun had no grasp of French at all. She told me not to pressure him with the language, since the only objective she has for the children at this stage is for them to develop an 'ear' for the language. Let him watch cartoons in French, let him talk to neighbours and friendly people, let him hear it as much as possible. Whew. I don't know how useful French is going to be when we return to Singapore, but if he is picking it up easily right now, then why not?
I then met with Mrs B, The Bun's class teacher. We started off discussing how I thought The Bun was doing, and I told her that he seems to be settling down well and no longer has anxiety about going to school. I mentioned that I was surprised at how quick the academic end of things had begun, especially with reading, and she said that it seems like a lot right now but it is actually integrated into the class day and the children spend their time doing a lot of other things and playing. J and I are more concerned with developing the social and emotional aspects of The Bun right now, rather than academics, and we did wonder if he had friends or played well with others since he sometimes is so obnoxious at home. Apparently he is fine socially, and is quite independent and will help himself to the learning resources in the classroom during free time. He plays mostly with the other boys now instead of the girls and they do a lot of active play (which is a euphemism for fighting, chasing each other, throwing stuff around etc). She reckons The Bun is happy in class because she often hears him laughing and he is quite eager to be included in class activities.
I had a look through his learning journey book, in which the teachers record some of the activities that he has done or drawings he made in class. This always seems like the most fun year in school compared to the hard work that comes later on. They have been reading We're Going on a Bear Hunt and the class decided to go on what The Bun told me was a 'Headmaster Hunt' (because the headmaster's name sounds very much like 'bear'). They walked through squelchy mud, rustled through the dried leaves in the woods, and went all over the school grounds before they 'found' the headmaster - in his office. Hmmm.
Anyway, the overall report from Mrs B is pretty positive and she doesn't have any big concerns about The Bun. She did ask if we were a very mathematically-inclined family because The Bun has been quite obsessed with an activity they call pegs, where small coloured pegs (they look like golf tees) are inserted into a plain white board covered with holes. According to Mrs B, The Bun can spend a long time creating symmetrical designs, letter shapes, and other pictures using the pegs. I have no head for numbers at all but J does so maybe this comes from him, but actually I'm not surprised that he likes playing with this because he does the exact same thing with his wooden blocks.
I'm really glad (and relieved!) that The Bun has settled into school now - he knows the routine, the different teachers, the various parts of the school, and has gotten comfortable. Mrs B summed up his personality quite accurately. She said that The Bun is the sort of child who, when faced with a new experience or a place, stands back first to observe and weigh things up. When he feels ready to participate, he will throw his entire heart into it. That's very true, and it's a good sign that Mrs B has realised this, too.
Today The Bun went on his first class trip - to a marionettes theatre in Versoix to watch a puppet show in French. He didn't tell me much about what happened in the show except that a bunch of mice were getting ready for bed and kept being interrupted by a naughty squirrel. He did tell me about riding the school bus, playing in the playground after the show, and sitting on a pebbled path with the rest of the kids to have their snack. Later on at night, The Bun added that he enjoys school a lot. And why? Because he gets to play outside with his friends, go to parties, and go on class trips like to the theatre. Indeed, my boy. Indeed.
On Monday evening I went for the first parent-teacher meeting of the year. I first met Madame B, The Bun's French teacher, and we tried dismally to converse in French for the first two minutes before we gave it up as a lost cause. Madame B told me that The Bun seems to enjoy French class because he's always very enthusiastic and often volunteers for activities. She does not speak English to the children unless it is absolutely necessary so apparently The Bun cried in class for the first two weeks of school before settling in. The Bun seems to love French and has picked up an array of vocabulary terms and children's songs, which he sings almost constantly when he's at home. A couple of weeks ago, we were at the supermarket and one of the staff spoke to him and he replied, all in French, and without me translating for him. Just simple questions - how are you? how old are you? is this your little sister? - but he understood and responded easily and automatically, to my surprise.
Madame B is happy with his progress, especially once she discovered that we have only been in the country for four months and before that The Bun had no grasp of French at all. She told me not to pressure him with the language, since the only objective she has for the children at this stage is for them to develop an 'ear' for the language. Let him watch cartoons in French, let him talk to neighbours and friendly people, let him hear it as much as possible. Whew. I don't know how useful French is going to be when we return to Singapore, but if he is picking it up easily right now, then why not?
I then met with Mrs B, The Bun's class teacher. We started off discussing how I thought The Bun was doing, and I told her that he seems to be settling down well and no longer has anxiety about going to school. I mentioned that I was surprised at how quick the academic end of things had begun, especially with reading, and she said that it seems like a lot right now but it is actually integrated into the class day and the children spend their time doing a lot of other things and playing. J and I are more concerned with developing the social and emotional aspects of The Bun right now, rather than academics, and we did wonder if he had friends or played well with others since he sometimes is so obnoxious at home. Apparently he is fine socially, and is quite independent and will help himself to the learning resources in the classroom during free time. He plays mostly with the other boys now instead of the girls and they do a lot of active play (which is a euphemism for fighting, chasing each other, throwing stuff around etc). She reckons The Bun is happy in class because she often hears him laughing and he is quite eager to be included in class activities.
I had a look through his learning journey book, in which the teachers record some of the activities that he has done or drawings he made in class. This always seems like the most fun year in school compared to the hard work that comes later on. They have been reading We're Going on a Bear Hunt and the class decided to go on what The Bun told me was a 'Headmaster Hunt' (because the headmaster's name sounds very much like 'bear'). They walked through squelchy mud, rustled through the dried leaves in the woods, and went all over the school grounds before they 'found' the headmaster - in his office. Hmmm.
Anyway, the overall report from Mrs B is pretty positive and she doesn't have any big concerns about The Bun. She did ask if we were a very mathematically-inclined family because The Bun has been quite obsessed with an activity they call pegs, where small coloured pegs (they look like golf tees) are inserted into a plain white board covered with holes. According to Mrs B, The Bun can spend a long time creating symmetrical designs, letter shapes, and other pictures using the pegs. I have no head for numbers at all but J does so maybe this comes from him, but actually I'm not surprised that he likes playing with this because he does the exact same thing with his wooden blocks.
I'm really glad (and relieved!) that The Bun has settled into school now - he knows the routine, the different teachers, the various parts of the school, and has gotten comfortable. Mrs B summed up his personality quite accurately. She said that The Bun is the sort of child who, when faced with a new experience or a place, stands back first to observe and weigh things up. When he feels ready to participate, he will throw his entire heart into it. That's very true, and it's a good sign that Mrs B has realised this, too.
Today The Bun went on his first class trip - to a marionettes theatre in Versoix to watch a puppet show in French. He didn't tell me much about what happened in the show except that a bunch of mice were getting ready for bed and kept being interrupted by a naughty squirrel. He did tell me about riding the school bus, playing in the playground after the show, and sitting on a pebbled path with the rest of the kids to have their snack. Later on at night, The Bun added that he enjoys school a lot. And why? Because he gets to play outside with his friends, go to parties, and go on class trips like to the theatre. Indeed, my boy. Indeed.