Category Archives: Secondary 4

2019 Sec 4 Week 6 Update

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This was a very short school and work week due to the Chinese New Year holidays.

Monday was a half day for everyone and the children were released from school around 10 am and were home for lunch. Tuesday and Wednesday were the CNY holidays and they went back to school on Thursday which was a full day of school.

Surprisingly this year, both didn’t have loads of homework during the CNY break, so the children also had a good break from their studies.

Next week will again become the hectic week they both usually have with the first common tests starting the week after.

Hopefully, I have better updates next week. Happy Sunday folks!

2019 Secondary 4 Week 5 Update

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Month one of Sec 4 is over. Next week is a very short week because of Chinese New Year. Monday is a half day with hardly any school work as the schools will celebrate CNY. They will go back to school only for two days this week.

School has been fine so far, with no major issues coming out. So I am thinking it as no news is good news.

I’ve drastically reduced BB’s computer usage from this month and when he came back saying that his friends don’t study so much, I countered that if he can get as much marks as his Best Friend (who is in the top 5 in the class) then I will back off. So we will make another call after the first common test which will take place at the end of this month.

GG, as part of being her CCA leader, was asked to meet with her school’s vice principal. The VP was meeting all CCA leaders from the graduating cohort to talk about school work and how they are coping with school and CCA pressures. He also asked about future plans and has told them to reach out to their Teachers if they need any help.

So that was our school week. Happy Sunday!!

2019 Secondary 4 Week 4 Update

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We are in the last week of January and I can’t believe that one month is over.

The children are busy with school and their schedules have been quite tight these days. They hardly have time to even go for tuitions and I’ve been quite busy trying to reschedule timings.

We also went to GG’s school for a parents night and I was quite surprised to not see enough sec 4/5 parents around. After all, this is one of the most important years for their children. I didn’t really learn more at the session, but it was good to see the principal and vice principal who are both new to the school.

The school also has been pushing the direct admission scheme to the polys and junior colleges, and while I am happy that the school is doing this, I feel this will increase competition to the courses that BB & GG are applying to.

The week after is the Chinese New Year and will be a short work and school week for everyone. I am for one, looking forward to the CNY break.

Have a wonderful Sunday folks!

2019 Secondary 4 Week 3 Update

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School is in full swing now as the Teachers race to finish the syllabus for the year before the O level exams in October/November.

This week, I got a call from BB’s school, his E Math teacher specifically. She called me about Bb’s handwriting and slipshod work submitted. So I had my talk with him and made him apologise to her with a promise that he will not do it again. He has said he will improve and that’s my hope for him too.

We’ve also been thinking seriously about their Early Admissions to Poly these days. When we went to the open houses last week, we learnt that the course BB is interested in is very competitive and the admission committee even rejects good students because they feel they can get in through merit. So to distinguish themselves from the others, we have been thinking of hooks that they both can use when they start applying. We’ve identified one each as of now, and the children have to research a bit more on the hooks to make sure they speak and write well about it.

Happy Sunday folks!

2019 Secondary 4 Week 2 Update

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The first full week of school has ended and the children are already tired! GG started CCA from day one of school while BB will start his CCA next week.

The 2018 O level results come out tomorrow and now the stress is real! The current Sec 4/5 cohort has to be in school in the auditorium when the results are declared and S and I will be doing this one year on. I don’t know if I can take the stress…

We also went down to a couple of polytechnics yesterday to check out some of the courses that BB & GG are interested in. Both of their schools also took the graduating cohort to some of the polys to check out some of the courses. We will be going to some of the other polys which were not covered by the schools.

The semester load is also increasing as the schools race to finish the curriculum in time so that the children get enough time for revision. I guess this is the case whenever there is a national exam involved.

On this note, have a wonderful Sunday!