School updates & Harvynna's PTM

2009 is almost coming to an end and tomorrow will be Havynna's last day at this level in her school. At the beginning of this year, I was considering moving her to another kindergarten which is more academic based but have since changed my mind. Few reasons:

- Rowena will be joining her there next year (small reason only and she is not happy about it)
- The school provides an excellent environment for the foundation years
- Harvynna has received raving reviews from all teachers here
- I want her to enjoy her kindergarten years before she starts the daily grind of Primary
school life

I attended Harvynna's Parent Teacher meet last week and I must say I was beaming with pride when I left. Her class teacher was full of praise for her, saying that she is one of a kind and is way above average. The environment at her school is more like an International school, where the way they teach is very different and they emphasise more on a holistic development. I was very proud when the school presented her with a special award for 'Academic Excellence'.

Academic wise, I would not say, that what they offer is very challenging as compared to some of the other kindergartens out there especially the franchised kindergartens. Her school focuses more on grasping concepts and basic skills that are important to develop. Some of the syllabus offered at other kindergartens look more like what is done at Primary 3 level. At this point in time, Harvynna would definitely not be able to do those sort of exercises.

Anyway, judging from what all her teachers had said, Harvynna can adapt anywhere and she catches things very fast. She will do well in which ever school she eventually goes to during her Primary Years. Just to make sure that she is can compete later, I do give her additional workbooks and exercises at home for her to practise. Plus, I did have a look at the Entrance exam my school uses for Primary one level, and I think Harvynna would be able to do it quite easily.

Where will we be sending her in Primary 1? I dont know yet. We did register her with one of the better government schools, but I hear now that the standard has dropped as the teachers are absent more often than the students! Its actually quite a dilemma as I know she can survive anywhere, but I dont want to kill her enthusiasm by sending her to a school where the teachers dont turn up.

International School? I say NO for Primary as I feel that she still needs some grounding in the Malaysian Education system if she intends to work here later. Plus, once you go to an Internatinal School, there is no turning back.

Private school? - Maybe, but there are so many factors to consider.

Rowena? - just confirmed her spot at Harvynna's kindy. She cant wait for January to start school.

Beaconhouse's got talent

Last Saturday was Harvynna's school concert. It was the first concert for her, so naturally, we were all excited. Last year, the 4 year olds did not participate in the concert. The concert is a combination of the 4 preschools in KL, as well as the graduation ceremony. As it is a combination, I told Harvynna to request a 'BIG' role as they have to combine so many kids into one morning. Dont mean to be so kiasu, but the last thing you want is to see your kid right at the back amongst thousand other kids, holding a tree or something. So she made the request to her principal 'Teacher Helena, I want a big role for the concert. I want to be in front'

So she was selected to emcee the section introducing the 3 year olds. I think she did a great job - no stage fright and the lines came out flawlessly. She held the mic so close to her mouth to ensure the whole Wisma MBSA could hear her!!

Then she took part in the 'Off Schulwerk' performance where she played the recorder. This was one of those were she was like a drop in the ocean. Being the tallest girl in her school, she had to stand at the back!! The perfomance was good.

Then for the Grand Finale, all the kids came out to sing 'Kebemama'. Harvynna and 2 other kids led the performance by standing in front of the mic in front followed by Negaraku. I know all kids at that age sound alike, but i am sure that it was her voice filling the air. Towards the end, she was getting tired, and we could see her looking everywhere and scratching her head!!

The night before the concert, she told me that she was taking part in 3 events, followed by 'Are

you happy now?' Oops. hey, i just wanted the concert to be something to be remembered.

How did Rowena fair during the concert? She got bored after a while, but was excited to see her sister on stage plus she recognized some of Harvynna's friends on stage. She is looking forward to participate in next year's concert when she enrols in the school.

Halloween 2009

This year's Halloween was rather low keyed as I have been so drained and out of energy. But I am fine now as I have upped my caffeine intake to a state of zombieness! It also seems like there were less Halloween parties this year for kids. The one at Kidzsports, Bangsar Village was on a Friday, and I could not take the day off.

Anyway, the girl's dance teacher had promised them a Halloween dance session on the 31st and they had to dress up for that. So there - a cheap, easy Halloween, where I get to dump the girls for 2 hours.

On the 3oth, Harvynna's school had a Halloween costume day -so all the kids got dressed in their best Halloween outfit. Harvynna recycled last year's costume as the teacher said no one else was dressed as a pumpkin. They had a small party and the kids were happy.

Apparently, Bangsar Village was also having a Halloween thingy, which I only found out on the 30th - so went i asked them if the girls could participate (at 10 that night), they told me' sorry, we are full!'

Anyway, we set out for their dance class at Celebrity Fitness on the 31st, all dressed in their costumes - Harvynna as a Hawaiian Princess and Rowena as a witch. They danced to Michael Jackson's hits, where Thriller was the grand Finale. It was quite funny to see all the kids dancing. As Rowena is the youngest one there, she really does stand out - while everyone moves to the left, she would move to the right and when everyone does a turn on the spot, she turns round the class and when everyone else, moves forward 4 steps, she runs forward 10 steps! Luckily, the teacher has not banned her from the class.

Normally, I would let them do their class, while I go to the opposite studio for my own workout. But this time, the moment their class started, I went downstairs to the concourse and asked if they can squeeze 2 lil girls in and they said YES. So when their class finished at 2.45, I told them, No Yoga today, we are going for the Halloween party downstairs which starts at 3.00pm.

So we rushed down, and the contest started. The girls did not win anything although I was very impressed that they did not have stage fright. Harvynna went up the stage and did a Hula dance while Rowena tried to do some witchmanship too!

The afternoon ended with a trick or treat session where all the outlets in BV1 participated. They received heaps and heaps of sweets, chocolates and lollies - which really made their day.

Pictures to be posted soon!