Tag Archives: Primary School

Who said primary school in Singapore is stressful?

I’ve come to the conclusion that to have a balanced childhood, is it is almost mutually exclusive of being in the top 5% of any Singaporean school’s student cohort.  I feel it’s near impossible to achieve this level of perfection without compromising on either sleep, recreation, or family time.   Of course, everyone has different priorities and expectations, which explains why the competition is so very tough. But that doesn’t mean the primary school experience has to be stressful! And we all have a role to play to make it more sustainable.

Chinese bridging books for children: What to read after your child knows 1000 characters

This post summarises Simplified Chinese bridging books, arranged by length and character complexity. These are the ideal early chapter books to move onto AFTER your child has finished up graded reader sets like Sage, Le Le, Odonata or 四五快读. Get reading to read, read read!

Is reaching Chinese fluency a realistic goal for non-native children?

This post compares the different schooling approaches to learning Chinese in Singapore (local school vs bilingual immersion), and how this translates into learning outcomes from a native-speaking perspective. It also lists good bridging books to encourage bilingualism and biliteracy.