Parenting Archives

5 Things Parents Should Know About the Direct School Admission (DSA) Programme in Singapore

March 7, 2023March 6, 2026By ILLAC

Direct School Admission (DSA) Programme is a scheme in Singapore that allows Primary 6 students to apply for admission to secondary schools based on their talent in areas beyond academics. This programme is increasingly popular among parents who wish to secure a spot in a preferred secondary school for their child. Here are five things that parents should know about the DSA programme:

Eligibility Criteria To be eligible for the DSA programme, students need to meet certain criteria, which vary depending on the school and the area of talent. Examples of talent areas include sports, music, art, and leadership. It is essential to check with the individual school to ensure that the child meets the requirements. There are also some schools that accept students purely from DSA scheme. Check out this website for more information: Direct School Admission (DSA-Sec): Explore school choices | MOE
Preparing for the Selection Process DSA selection processes vary from school to school, but they usually include an interview, audition, or trial. Students need to prepare thoroughly for the selection process by honing their skills, building up their portfolio, and practising for the interview.
Balancing DSA and PSLE Preparation DSA applications usually open in May, before the Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE), which is the national examination taken by all Primary 6 students in Singapore. Parents need to strike a balance between preparing for the DSA selection process and PSLE preparation to ensure that their child does not neglect their academic studies.
The Role of the School Schools have a significant role in the DSA programme as they are responsible for setting the selection criteria and conducting the selection process. Parents should research the schools and their respective DSA programmes to ensure that the programme aligns with their child’s interests and talents.
The Importance of Supporting the Child Parents should support their child’s interest and passion in the talent area they wish to pursue through the DSA programme. It is essential to understand that the programme is not a guarantee of admission and that the child’s academic performance remains a crucial factor in securing a place in the school.

In conclusion, the DSA programme is an excellent opportunity for students to pursue their passion and secure a place in a preferred secondary school. Parents should guide and support their child through the selection process and ensure that they maintain a balance between academic and DSA preparation.

For more information on the DSA programme, please visit the Ministry of Education website:

Direct School Admission for secondary schools (DSA-Sec) | MOE

How will the New Subject-Based Banding in Secondary School Affect Your Child?

March 7, 2023March 6, 2026By ILLAC

Starting from 2024, students in Singapore will no longer be streamed into Express, Normal (Academic) and Normal (Technical) classes based solely on their Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) scores. Instead, a new system known as subject-based banding will be introduced to better recognise and cater to students’ different strengths.

Education Minister Ong Ye Kung announced in Parliament that the current Express and Normal streams would be phased out and replaced with General 1 (G1), General 2 (G2) and General 3 (G3) subject bands. Students with ALs of 4 to 20 will be able to take the G3 suite of subjects, which is the highest level and is similar to the current Express stream. Those who score 23 to 24 will be able to take the G2 suite of subjects, while those who score 26 to 30 will take on the G1 suite of subjects.

Students will be able to take a mix of G1 to G3 subjects. Students who excel in certain PSLE subjects can take them at a higher level from the start of Sec 1, regardless of their total AL score. They will also have the option of taking subjects at higher levels progressively in their secondary schools.

This new system aims to reduce the stigma of being streamed as “Normal” and allow students to learn at their own pace while recognising their different strengths. It also provides more flexibility and opportunities for students to explore their interests and pursue their aspirations.

Watch this video to learn more about the new subject-based banding system:

4 Ways to Help Your Child Do Better in Science

October 13, 2022March 6, 2026By ILLAC

Science is everywhere, allowing us to comprehend life, nature, and the universe in which we live. From observing a plant’s growth to understanding how electricity lights up the world, the opportunities are endless. But despite many children having a strong interest in the subject, most struggle to accurately answer the questions posed to them during exams. This can prove to be discouraging for a child as they venture into the world of science. I Love Learning is a tuition centre in Singapore, and we’ve put together some tips on how you can help your child perform in science. Read on to find out more!

Hands-on learning

Incorporating science into everyday life isn’t as difficult as it seems. Help your child make sense of the world around them by highlighting the presence of science in everyday activities. Draw their attention to objects or occurrences to trigger their curiosity, such as the temperature or the timing that the sun sets. Additionally, allowing your child to set up experiments at home under your supervision also promotes hands-on learning that encourages creativity and problem solving abilities.

Review mistakes from past exam papers

Reviewing mistakes from past examination papers is an effective way to see improvements. Go through past worksheets and exams to assist your child with identifying consistent mistakes. Placing emphasis on practising terms and concepts that are regularly forgotten empowers greater understanding of the material. Alternatively, you may also consider engaging a tuition centre with tutors who can help focus on specific areas your child struggles in. This ensures that an overall comprehension of science is developed.

Avoid cramming

Consistent studying helps retain information much more effectively compared to cramming for long hours in just a single day. As such, creating a schedule that will allow your child to space out their study sessions is key. It’s also important to encourage breaks in between their studying. Taking short, purposeful breaks once every hour can work wonders with keeping your child focused and productive.

Get sufficient sleep

Getting an adequate amount of sleep is not just essential for physical and mental health, but also for cognitive performance. This is because insufficient sleep lowers our level of alertness, making it difficult for us to focus. Prolonged sleep deprivation can also lead to serious health issues like memory loss and weakening of the immune system. Make sure your child gets ample quality sleep in the nights leading up to their exam to secure the best chances of academic success.

Parents may sometimes find it a challenge to guide their children in science due to the technicalities and concepts involved. We hope these tips will be helpful in supporting your child to score and do better for their next exam paper.

I Love Learning is a leading tuition centre that takes pride in fostering a love of learning with our award-winning programs. Reach out to us to learn more about our enrichment lessons if you feel like your child could benefit with some extra guidance from primary science tuition.

How To Help My Child Score Better In English

September 7, 2022March 6, 2026By ILLAC

Studying for an English exam can be stressful and may seem like a daunting process, especially for children who mainly converse in Chinese, Malay or Tamil in Singapore. Language subjects also tend to be more subjective in nature, so children might find English difficult to master and score well for. However, there are some strategies that can help with obtaining better results in your child’s English exams. I Love Learning provides a range of enrichment lessons from phonics classes to primary English tuition, and we’re here to share some study tips that can be used to ace that next exam paper.

Read the comprehension passage thoroughly

It is crucial for students to fully understand the passage before answering questions when tackling the comprehension section. Start by making it a practise to first read the passage from beginning to end. It would also be worthwhile for your child to reread any sections they might not have understood. Doing so can enable them to contextually make sense of the meaning of any unfamiliar words and phrases. They can then move onto the questions after that has been done and your child has made sure that the text has been completely understood.

Be immersed in the language

Another way to improve your child’s English is for them to be immersed in the language. This can include doing a wide range of reading, such as newspapers, online articles, books, and magazines. It can also mean doing things like watching TV, listening to English language music and so on. These are fun and enjoyable activities to help prepare them for studying the subject.

Frequently speaking the language with friends and family is one other technique that can be used. That is because communication is an active process, with the brain constantly having to think and actively choose the best words and phrases that get imprinted with time.

Engage an English tutor

Challenges of helping a child prepare for their English exams sometimes occur when parents themselves are non-native speakers of the language. Hence, one option would be to enrol your child for primary English tuition so that they are learning from an experienced and professional tutor. Tutors work with all kinds of learners, so they would have the expertise to customise their lessons according to different learning styles. Engaging a professional also ensures your child gets guidance, and the best methods to effectively take on their exam paper with a better understanding of the school syllabus.

Focus on their well being

It is important to focus on your child’s well being as examinations could be an anxiety-inducing experience for some. A healthy state of mind is vital for them to do their very best, so give your child a preparatory regime that focuses on positivity, mindfulness and staying healthy. It is also strongly encouraged that they get sufficient sleep, eat well, stay hydrated, exercise, and take time away from their studies to relax.

We hope these tips will be useful in helping your child score better in English. Combine them with the expert guidance of an English tutor and your child will be on their way to achieving academic success.

I Love Learning strives to help students reach their maximum potential on their learning journeys. Reach out to our team to find out more about primary English tuition today!

How to Choose the Best Tuition Center for Your Child

September 17, 2021March 6, 2026By ILLAC

With the myriad of tuition centers out there, what are the few considerations you’ll need to take in order to pick the best tuition center for your child?

Consider these factors:

1. Teacher-Student Ratio

The reason why you are looking for a tuition programme for your child is either because you want your child to get that extra help, or you want your child to reach his/her potential. Either way, you want your child to be given extra attention. Therefore, try looking for classes with not more than 8 students. The bigger the class, the less attention the teacher can render for your child. That being said, a very experienced teacher with excellent classroom management and high energy will definitely be able to handle a larger class.

And that leads us to the next point.

2. Qualifications of Teachers

The experience and qualification of the teachers employed in the center are very important too. The best player may not be the best coach. The same goes for teachers. A scholar may not be the best teacher unless he/she is a scholar in pedagogy (teaching methodology). It is therefore, very important to enrol your child in a center that emphasizes teaching methods and child psychology because such a center will surely produce teachers and a curriculum that really help to develop your child.

However, most centers focus instead, on employing teachers who are MOE-trained and/or scholars. Having experienced teachers who are also trained in child psychology will be the most ideal. ILLAC is one center that focuses on employing not just teachers who are MOE-trained, ILLAC also develops and trains their teachers in child psychology so they are equipped with the knowledge of helping students overcome their weaknesses and develop their strengths.

3. Who Manages The Center

Tuition is a billion-dollar industry in Singapore. It is inevitable that centers are run by profit-oriented people who are inexperienced in education. When looking for a center, pay attention to the management team. A profit-oriented management team will focus more on profiting than on developing your child to reach his/her potential. i.e. A huge classroom is a result of trying to profit rather than teach optimally.

4. Curriculum

Singapore’s curriculum for the primary level is actually very unique. The PSLE is entirely developed locally, unlike the O Levels or A levels that are developed overseas and used internationally. Therefore, when choosing a tuition center for your child, ensure that the curriculum is designed by and developed for locals.

For example, some may think that we should send our children to native speakers of the English language to learn proper English. If the objective is to learn proper pronunciation and intonation, yes, that is agreeable. However, if it is to learn proper grammar and sentence structure, a native speaker will not be the best teacher because they grew up speaking the language without such difficulties. They will never understand why our children cannot understand the difference between “I have done my homework” versus “I had done my homework” because the difference is obvious to them.

Another example will be imported centers. A foreign curriculum, even when translated, will not teach Mathematics the same way we do in Singapore. Singapore’s Mathematics emphasizes a lot on model drawing and these techniques are not commonly learned in other countries. Therefore, a foreign curriculum will unlikely cover model drawing as a problem solving method in their curriculum.

The Best Tuition Center

To summarise, the best tuition center for your child should have a low teacher-student ratio of less than 1-8. Secondly, the teachers should be experienced not just in teaching, but trained in child psychology to be able to develop your child to reach his/her potential. The management team that manages the center should be trained in pedagogy to be able to make the best decisions for their students. Lastly, the curriculum that the center uses should be developed by locals.

Good luck in finding the best tuition center for your child!

3 Reasons Why You Should Install Google’s Family Link (Post-PSLE)

September 9, 2021March 6, 2026By ILLAC

PSLE is over! Yes!!! However, please set some limits to your children’s access to personal devices! The internet is wild and dangerous when used without limits. From my personal experience, Google’s Family Link can really help control device-access and maintain peace in the family. Here’s how.

Google’s Family Link is an app that helps you take TOTAL CONTROL over your child’s screen time:

Functions in a nutshell:

– full view of their activity online

– full control over what they download

– set limits on the amount of time they spend on-screen

– set limits on the amount of time they spend on each app

– award Bonus Time for good behaviour

– set bed-time so that the device locks itself when it’s time for bed

– control their devices remotely using Parents’ own handphone. i.e. Need them to come to the table for dinner immediately? Click “Lock now” (the button that sends exhilaration down my spine) and see them walk to the table reluctantly.

Still not convinced? Here are 3 main reasons why you should install the app.

1. Control Till 18 Years Old.

You might think this is only necessary for young kids where you need to control screen-time to prevent hyperactivity and over-stimulation. However, from my experience of dealing with teens whose parents bestowed them with a device right after PSLE, the device is exactly what damages well-behaved kids.

To be honest, I’ve met so many parents of post-PSLE kids losing complete control over their once-obedient little angles due to handphone addiction. Therefore, I highly recommend that Family Link be used on all devices handed over to children under the age of “mature-enough-to-handle-devices-responsibly” year old.

They are never too old for some form of control over devices. Admit it, even we ourselves, can be addicted to the phone, not to mention our own children.

2. Amazing Control You Can Have Over What They Can Access

I find these functions extremely useful because my son is into pop music yet not everything is suitable for him. Family Link not only allows me to control the music he can stream but also lets me:

Set limits on movies and TV shows based on the same familiar rating systems used in theatres and by TV stations
Set limits on the types of books my child can download
Control search options (Google SafeSearch is on by default) and limit the websites my child can visit in Google’s Chrome browser with the option to 1) allow all sites, 2) block mature sites (default), or 3) only allow for certain sites on a list you approve. As the app says, “no filter is perfect” but the default settings should help hide sexually explicit and violent sites
Control my child’s ability to share photos (it’s on by default)

3. Set a Time for Every Activity

Here are some screenshots of what you can set and control.

I allow 2.5h on days he has zoom lessons. The device is otherwise always locked.

On days when he wants to be rewarded for work done or good behaviour, I’ll use this function to unlock the tab momentarily. This is a very effective negotiation tool when we want him to do homework 😉

Being able to set time limit is perhaps the most important reason for installing the Family Link! Even though the big exam (PSLE) is over, doesn’t mean the kids can be on the phone the entire day, watching Youtube videos after Youtube videos. It also doesn’t mean they can be chatting on the phone with their friends until daybreak! What’s worse, you will not even know who he/she is chatting with!

Bottomline

This app has definitely taken away my worries of introducing a device to my son. I love the amount of control I get over his usage and prevented many tussles we could potentially have over his uncontrolled usage when we are not at home. Highly recommended! Try it!

How to maximise your child’s online learning

July 7, 2021March 6, 2026By ILLAC

Advancements in technology coupled with the pandemic has led to an exponential shift towards online learning. We are increasingly seeing children having Zoom lessons with their teachers and even co-curricular activities being carried out on screen. With more time spent looking at their devices, it is inevitable that children may end up being distracted rather than being focused on their studies.

For you to maximise your child’s online learning, here are tips you can utilise!

1.Set online rules with your child.

Have a talk with your child before online lessons to come up with some rules they can adhere to during their screen time. Have them write it down on paper and even decorate it to leave a positive impression. Afterwards, paste it up somewhere visible. Some rules can include – “Give your teacher your fullest attention”, “Answer questions”, “Listen to teacher’s instructions” etc. Reward your child with praises and even little stickers when they follow the rules they have created! These rules help sharpen their self-regulation and inhibitory control as well!

2. During lessons, be close by.

Being in the vicinity of your child during their online lessons can help you monitor their progress. You do not necessarily have to be constantly supervising them, frequent check-ins on how they are doing should suffice. During the check-ins, observe if they are paying attention and aptly engage them on what they have learnt by asking them questions related to their lesson. Your looming presence will also encourage your child to stay focused.

3. Ask your child questions after the lesson.

Building on the second point, you can also have your child tell you about what they had learnt during their lesson. Add onto it as well with your own knowledge whenever possible to encourage mental flexibility! Displaying a positive interest in your child’s learning will motivate them to wow you every session, guaranteeing heightened attention during their learning.

4. Check if they have additional work on-line or off-line.

After a lesson, your child’s teacher/instructor may give them work to do. Check if they have any and if they do, encourage your child to finish up their work diligently within a given duration (memory of fresh knowledge tend to slip out of mind without practice after the 3rd day). This trains your child to stick to a fixed routine and develop the beneficial habit of completing their work first before partaking in other recreational activities. This can help your child better retain the information during their lesson as they can apply it immediately to their work while the memory is still fresh (within 3 days!).

It can be tough having to juggle between your child’s learning and other pressing commitments. Knowing that you have done the absolute best for both you and your child is the way to go! Moderation is key, pace yourself and your child to avoid burning out while learning or working from home and stop to refresh and energise when needed.

Home Practices to Improve Working Memory of Children Ages 3 to 6

April 28, 2021March 6, 2026By ILLAC

With society’s increasingly high standards in education and academics, it is without saying that we are in a relentless rat race to provide the best education for our children. Whilst having enrichment lessons may suffice, why not go the extra mile to practice at home by honing your child’s executive functions.

Executive Functions are mental skills which include Working Memory, Mental Flexibility and Inhibitory Control; which the lack thereof can have detrimental impact on our daily lives and potentially, academic performance. Executive functioning skills develop exponentially in early childhood and into adolescence, therefore it is paramount to prime our young ones early.

To start off, let’s focus on Working Memory, where the brain is engaged to hold multiple information at the same time while simultaneously processing it (Miller, 1960). An active stimulation of working memory helps reduce irrelevant information that interferes with the task at hand (Brogaard, 2020) which will be extremely helpful when your child enters Primary School.

Here are some simple home practices you and your child can do to improve Working Memory:

Games

Memory games such as Spot the Differences can be fun and interactive ways for your child to improve their working memory. Show your child 2 similar looking images side by side and have them describe the differences they saw. Amp up the difficulty level by showing them just one picture for a few seconds, reintroduce both pictures and then have them describe the one they saw.

Why not get creative as well with different items in the house, by removing or swapping items around, ask your child if they see anything out of place.

Another game would be Card Matching! Use any deck of cards you have on hand such as Uno or Old Maid that has pairs of identical cards. Flip them around and have a mini competition with your child to see who can match up all the cards first! For an even greater challenge, have them place the cards back at their original positions after the game ends.

Apply Memorisation Tactics

Such tactics can come in the form of active reading, visualisation, and making connections.

When reading, encourage your child to read out loud and ask questions related to the material to prolong the retention of information.
Prompt your child to create images of what they have read or seen in their head so that they have a mental picture which they can refer to.
Help your child make fun connections to better remember information. This can be done through the use of Mnemonics (e.g., Abbreviating the Colours of the Rainbow into a made-up name Roy. G. Biv) or associating a tune to the spelling of a complex word.

Chores

Yes, you heard me right. Chores are fantastic ways to improve working memory. Do keep in mind that working memory is not just about cognitively solving arithmetical problems, it is also evident in whether one is able to bake a cake without forgetting the steps.

Have your child build up the good habit of writing down what they can do to help at home and guide them in organising this information into smaller pieces. Simpler exercises can include giving them instructions on which of their toys go into the box first and have them pack it in the correct arrangement. You can also have them assist you with preparing meals by reciting the quantity of ingredients without constantly referring to the recipe.

Simple multi-sensory methods like these go a long way and you are also building up a sense of responsibility in them!

At the end of the day, do observe your child and understand what appeals to them and keeps them willing to do more. Every child has their own pace when learning thus as adults, we should provide them with the adequate tools to do so. The list of at-home practices is inexhaustive, like and follow us for many more such recommendations for you.

How to kickstart the love for learning from a young age?

August 28, 2019By illac_admin

You must have heard of the old adage, “If you love your job, you wouldn’t have to work a day in your life” and it applies to children too! The love for learning can make them love every single activity, every single subject, and every single learning opportunity. Imagine your child being bright-eyed and bushy-tailed about learning, would you ever need to worry about their academic performance?

What are needed to kickstart the love for learning?

1) Strengthen their working memory

Working memory is used to hold multiple information at the same time. For example, I gave you 3 apples, you ate 1 and bought another 4, how many apples do you have? Your working memory is actively engaged in order to hold and process the information given.

Children who have good working memory are able to handle complicated tasks like “picking up their shoes, putting it onto the shoe rack, before queuing up to enter the classroom” all as per instructed by the teacher. These may sound easy but children with weak working memory might “line up immediately without picking up the shoes”, or, “pick up the shoe and queue up without going to the shoe rack”.

Children with good working memory therefore excel in the classroom and are more motivated for new challenges ahead.

2) Enhance their Mental Flexibility

With so many things to learn and so many stimulants to handle everyday, it is stressful and taxing to the little brain. Enhancing on the mental flexibility of the child can help them learn to handle different situations using different “gears”, therefore, maneuvring safely and confidently around “obstacles”.

A child with poor mental flexibility might find it really hard to share, because he is used to playing with a toy his way. When another child comes along wanting to play together, he gets all uncomfortable, not able to process the new situation nor come out with a new playing method, thus cries out loud.

Mental Flexibility helps a child adapt to new situations and pick up new knowledge readily.

3) Heighten the Inhibitory Control

“Naughty”, “Hyper”, “Not focused”…

If these phrases sound familiar to you, no worries, they are used extensively on most children. It’s not their fault, children are meant to explore, play and be active. All that they need to learn are rules and boundaries. As soon as they are able to self-regulate their behaviour and manage their emotions according to the rules, they will be able to enjoy school and look forward to a great learning journey every day.

A heightened inhibitory control will allow your child to focus in class, capture teacher’s instructions and learn effectively. Imagine the praises they will get because of that.

Want to know more about how to improve your child’s working memory, mental flexibility and inhibitory control? Join us at our parenting workshop!

Date: 12 Oct 2019, Saturday
Time: 3 to 5pm
Venue: Westgate, #04-09 (beside Jurong East MRT station)

GEP or Not?

November 7, 2017By Clarice Lim

Congratulations! Now that your child has been selected for the GEP program, what’s next for him/her?

It might be an extremely straightforward answer for some parents but not so for some others. My opinion is, go for it. Reasons being:

PROS:

It’s a great confidence-booster.
- Your gifted child knows what “gifted” means and there is no better way to inform your child that he/she is really good at what he/she has been doing than being identified as the top 1% of the cohort in Singapore. A generally high self-confidence can lead to higher competency in everything else that the child attempts and an even stronger love for learning.
It’s a label that will follow your child for life (in a good way)
- We are always cautious about having labels put on our children but this is one label you want stuck to your child. With the label of being the top 1% of the cohort, your child can potentially find him/herself in more favourable situations in his/her adult-life, starting with the choice of secondary schools such as Anglo-Chinese School, Dunman High School, Hwa Chong Institution, Nanyang Girls’ High School, NUS High School of Mathematics and Science, Raffles Girls’ School (Secondary) and Raffles Institution which offers IP programs for GEP students.
- (Source: https://www.moe.gov.sg/education/programmes/gifted-education-programme/development-and-growth)
Life is more than English, Mathematics, Science and Mother Tongue!
- Not only will your child be changing school (if he/she is not already in one of the assigned GEP school), he/she will be experiencing more than the main-stream curriculum has to offer. The GEP program is administered under an enrichment model where the curriculum:
  - extends beyond the basic syllabus in depth and breadth
  - covers more advanced topics whenever necessary
  - caters more to individual needs and interests
  - makes interdisciplinary connections
  - encourages the investigation of real-life problems
  - promotes the examination of affective issues in the various subject areas

(Source: https://www.moe.gov.sg/education/programmes/gifted-education-programme/enrichment-model)

CONS:

GEP students are not necessarily top PSLE students
- GEP students are very busy. Not only do they attend mainstream lessons and continue mainstream work, they have projects, camps and out-of-the-classroom programs to participate in. Their PSLE results may not show their intelligence since PSLE preparation requires much drills and regurgitation which are not in the interest of GEP students.
Danger of complacency
- We all know and have heard of children who think they are too smart for their pants and end up failing in life. And yes, these are true/real stories that will happen if left unguided. Some GEP students end up doing really well but unfortunately, some will slide off the grid and end up in mediocre vocations just like any others. The key that parents need to remind themselves is to psychologically support their children in continuous hard work and effort so as to ground them in thoughts of continuous improvement of themselves.

For those parents who think that the GEP program will be extremely beneficial for their children, they are right. The program will bring children beyond what they are capable of and help them reach their peak potential.

However, you are NOT advised to “train” your child for GEP by signing up for GEP-training classes at centers that claim to “create” GEP students because talent, although can be groomed, cannot be “naturalised” into a child. Meaning, if your child is not naturally prepared for the high demands of the GEP program, you will only do more harm than benefits by artificially fitting your child into the GEP program. Think of the stress the child has to go through just to remain in that GEP class you have planted her/him into. If it works out, good for him/her. If it doesn’t, the poor kid suffers the repercussion for life.

Once again, congratulations for being the parent of a gifted child, embrace the learning journey with your child, support her/him throughout the program and remind them of the importance of effort to achieve great success in life.

Parenting