Briefing for Parents of P6 Pupils · attitude and behaviour – We expect them to work hard and...

Briefing for Parents of

P6 Pupils

21 January 2014

Overview of Briefing

• School-parent partnership

• HGS Vision, Mission, Values

• How HGS is supporting P6 pupils

• How parents can support the school’s efforts

• Understanding the computation of the PSLE T-

score and aggregate score

• Choosing secondary schools and Direct School

Admission

School-Parent Partnership

HGS Partnership Framework

Why does HGS value

school-parent partnership?

• Our philosophy:

– Parents are our partners.

– A meaningful collaboration with our parents

supports our students’ holistic development.

• Partnership goals: realisation of the HGS vision

and mission, achievement of student-centric,

values-driven education

Principles of Partnership

• Trust

• Respect

• Pupil-centred focus

• Shared responsibility

• Shared goals and values

How HGS

Involves Parents As

Partners in Education

1) School-Parent Communication

• HGS keeps parents informed of

– School expectations, programmes & activities

E.g. letters, Briefing for Parents, emails

– Child’s progress, behaviour and well-being

E.g. phone calls from teachers, Parent-Child-Teacher

Conferencing Session (post SA1)

• Channels of communication for parents: e.g. email,

student handbook, phone call

2) Support for Learning

• HGS provides information to parents and

equips them on how to support their child’s

learning, e.g.

– Curriculum Briefings (P1-6)

– Back to School Day for Parents of P1 Pupils

HGS in the 21st Century

• Vision: Leaders of character striving for

excellence in a vibrant school

• Mission: To develop self-directed learners and

critical and creative thinkers who lead and

serve with integrity and compassion

• Values: Integrity, Commitment, Concern,

Cooperation and Creativity

• Motto: Knowledge is Power

HGS Education

• Values-based, student-centric

• Engaging, rigorous, innovative

• Prepares our pupils for the test of life, not a

life of tests

,,,,

• Gracious,

• Resilient,

• Articulate,

• Civic-minded, Confident, Creative, and

• Expressive

• HGS pupils are well-regarded and sought after

by secondary schools.

Leaders of Character

How HGS is supporting P6 pupils’

learning and social-emotional

well-being

P6 – does it have to be

stressful year?P6 pupils’ worries:

•“My parents will be upset if

– I don’t get the aggregate score they expect

– I don’t get into the school they want me to go to”

•“Will I be successful in life if I don’t go to

[“brand-name”] school?”

•“If I don’t do well for PSLE, does it mean I am a

failure?”

Our School’s Response

• Pupils are held to high expectations of work

attitude and behaviour

– We expect them to work hard and give of their

best.

• Unconditional love, support and acceptance

– We value every pupil for who she is, not her

achievements.

– We will be proud of all pupils who exemplify the

school vision, mission, values and motto.

Our School’s Response

• Creating a memorable P6 year for our pupils –

life still goes on!

– PE, Art and Music

– CCAs

– Events to look forward to: Sports Day, National

Education Core Events, National Day, Teachers’

Day, Children’s Day, Graduation Day

– Integrated Project Work, learning journeys and

other post-exam activities

Our School’s Response

• Re-defining Success

– 1. a successful personal life: healthy, meaningful

relationships with family and friends

– 2. a successful school life: improvement and

growth, being the best that you can be;

– 3. the good that you leave behind: how do you

want your friends and teachers to remember you?

Have you done something positive and

meaningful for others?

How HGS is Supporting

Your Child’s Learning for PSLE

• Learning packages designed by our key

personnel and teachers

• Subject banding and smaller group teaching

for pupils who need more support for Maths

and Science

,,,,

How HGS is Supporting

Your Child’s Learning for PSLE

• Remedial lessons – a more focused

approach; importance of pacing

– EL, Maths & Science remedial lessons on Wed

and Fri

– MT supplementary lessons on Thurs

• Stretch Programmes: Maths Magic, Science Sense

and Let’s Achieve (EL)

• Talent development: Maths and Science D3T2 /

Olympiad training

,,,,

How HGS is Supporting

Your Child’s Learning for PSLE

• Focus Study Camp

– March, June & Sept holidays*

*Dates will be issued in P6 calendar

• Practice papers, PSLE booklet, mock tests

– Gradual increase in number and frequency,

especially from June holidays onwards

– Amount of work assigned may not be uniform

across all classes

,,,,

How HGS is Supporting

Your Child’s Learning for PSLE

•SPaCES - School Provides a Conducive

Environment for Study (Mon-Fri)

– After-school study programme

– Supervised by staff and parent volunteers

– Peer tutoring by alumni who are now in TKGS

,,,,

How HGS is Supporting P6 Pupils’

Social-Emotional Well-Being

•Form Teacher Guidance Period and pupil

journals

•Motivational Talks by school leaders

•Rapport building sessions with Full-time School

Counsellor

How parents can support the

school’s efforts

• Take an interest in your child’s schoolwork

– Ask: “What homework do you have today?”

– Check the student handbook & homework file

– Look through your child’s homework:

• Are the answers neat and clearly-presented?

• Are the corrections done?

• What are the teachers’ comments?

• What are the kinds of errors that my child

tends to make?

How parents can support the

school’s efforts

• Reinforce the school’s expectations of the

quality of work expected (PSLE standards:

rigour and neat presentation), e.g.

– Maths captions and answer statements with the

correct units

,,,,

How parents can support the

school’s efforts • Set high but realistic expectations

• Unconditional love, acceptance and support

• Resilience building

– Your children may find the work demanding

and may feel discouraged;

– Provide moral support, but don’t molly-

coddle

How parents can support

the school’s efforts

• Provide a conducive environment for

study and for the attempt of practice

papers within the prescribed time

• Pupils’ attendance, punctuality

• ** Monitor your child’s use of social

media and Whatsapp

How parents can support

the school’s efforts

• Pacing – analogy: running a marathon,

not a sprint

• **Trust the teachers: check with the

teachers and understand their

perspective

• HGS manages pupils’ workload through

its homework policy

,,,,

How Parents can Support

School Efforts

•HGS does not expect parents to provide

private tuition

–School provides a range of

programmes to stretch all pupils

–Teachers will coach pupils who need

additional help

,,,,

How Parents can Support

School Efforts

•However, if parents do engage tutors,

–Schoolwork and practice papers take

priority over homework assigned by

the tutor

–Tutors should complement the

school’s efforts

,,,,

How Parents can Support

School Efforts

• What happens if your child doesn’t know how

to do her homework or practice paper?

– Do not do the homework for the child

– Guide your child and ask her questions

– If you or the tutor provided assistance, indicate

next to the answer, ‘Guided by Parent / Tutor’

– This will enable teachers to know what your child

can or cannot do

Choosing Secondary Schools

,,,,

Choosing Secondary Schools• Choose schools that are a good ‘fit’ for

your child (her strengths, interests, disposition)

• What to consider

– school culture

– school niches and programmes

– school’s PSLE cut-off point

,,,,

Choosing Secondary Schools:

Sources of Information• MOE’s School Information Service

– http://app.sis.moe.gov.sg/schinfo/SIS_index.a

sp

• Secondary school websites

• Secondary school Open House events

• Secondary school roadshows at HGS

• Secondary school information booklets (distributed Sept-Oct)

,,,,

Choosing Secondary Schools• Please do not hesitate to consult school

leaders, key personnel and teachers regarding choice of secondary schools

,,,,

Direct School Admission

– Sec Exercise• participating secondary schools have

flexibility to select a percentage of their students for admission via their own selection criteria

• selection criteria can include diverse academic and non-academic achievements and talents

,,,,

Direct School Admission

– Sec Exercise• secondary schools participating in the DSA-Sec Exercise

include

– Specialised Independent Schools (SIS)

– schools offering an integrated programme (IP

Schools),

– independent schools (IS)

– autonomous schools (AS) and

– schools with niche programmes approved by MOE

(Niche Schools)

http://www.moe.gov.sg/education/admissions/dsa-sec/

,,,,

Direct School Admission

– Sec Exercise• Specialised independent schools that

admit pupils entirely or almost entirely through DSA

– NUS High School of Maths and Science

– School of the Arts (SOTA)

– School of Science and Technology

– Singapore Sports School

,,,,

Direct School Admission

– Sec Exercise• From now onwards: info gathering stage; DSA

schools to publish selection criteria on websites

• June-August: Selection tests / camps /

interviews and outcome of selection

• October: If selected, student submits preference

for up to 3 DSA schools

• November: Student collects result of DSA school

allocated together with PSLE results

HGS Support for Pupils

Applying via DSA

• Letters of recommendation by teachers

• Pupil achievement records

• Advice on portfolio presentation

• Mock interviews conducted by school leaders

**Please give us sufficient advance notice to

support our pupils.

Supporting your child

,,,,

How to Support Your Child

• Take care of her holistic well-being

– Adequate rest and exercise and a balanced diet � a more alert mind and healthy body

• Unconditional love and acceptance

,,,,

How to Support Your Child

•Believe in her

•Encourage and Affirm your child – catch her

doing right, accentuate the positive

•Make time for your child

•BEAM more, compare and criticize less

Thank You

Haig Girls’ School

Established in 1951

Character Leadership Creativity