The New Age Parents Aug Sep 14

AUG/SEP2014

Quick Guide for PreGnant

Mothersamniocentesis&

endometriosisWhat Great teachers are made of

Teacher’s DaySpecial

How To EnsurE our CHildrEn do noT BEComE spoilEd

Caring For Your

ColiC BaBY

parEnTing wiTHouT

punisHmEnT: is iT rEally

possiBlE?

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2 The New Age Parents

table of contents

Contents04 Our Experts

08 Editorial Note

10 PregnancyQuick Guide for Pregnant Mothers: Amniocentesis and Endometriosis

14 Your BabyCord Blood Banking: Are There Any Risks Or Complications?Caring For Your Colic Baby

18 DietBig Eater, Small Eater

22 DentalPreventing Dental Injuries In Children

24 PreschoolRaising A Wholesome Preschooler Part 4: Bilingualism

26 Teacher’s Day SpecialWhat Does An Outstanding Teacher Look Like?

Secrets To A Happy And Lasting Parent-Teacher Relationship

What Great Teachers Are Made Of

Keeping Your Teachers: The Need To Show You Care

Feature Interview with Ms. Pooja, Chief Curricu-lum Officer from Nurture Education Group

40 The New Age Parents Coverpage Contest

44 National Day Special 5 Ways To Celebrate National Day With Your Family

46 Growing UpHow to Ensure Our Children Do Not Become Spoiled

48 For The ParentParenting without Punishment: Is It Really Possible?

52 FinanceGrowing Your Money: 5 Different Investment Styles

Awards & accolades for Neo Group:

2011 & 20122011, 2012 & 2013

Awards & accolades for Neo Group:

2011 & 20122011, 2012 & 2013

Baby’s Full Month!

We Neo Garden!

For our Baby’s Celebration,

Since 1992 Neo Garden provides quality food and reliable service.

NO. 1* CATERER IN SINGAPORE


Our ExpErtsOBSTETRICS AND GYNAECOLOGY PAEDIATRIC MEDICINE

Dr Ben ChoeyDr Ben Choey is a gynaecologic surgeon who has been committed to women’s health for more than 10 years. He obtained his Master of Medicine (O&G) and became a member of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists

(United Kingdom) in 2007. He was appointed Clinical Tutor in Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine and Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School. A prolific writer, Dr Ben has also contributed numerous articles on fertility and general gynecological issues. Practice address:sBcc Women’s clinic (clementi) Blk 443 clementi ave 3 #01-53 singapore 120443 tel: 6774 1654email: [email protected]

Dr Ian OngA mother of two children, Dr Ong graduated from the Royal Free and University College Medical School in London. She at-

tained her postgraduate qualifications with the RCPCH, UK. Prior to joining SBCC, she worked as an Associate Consultant in the Children’s Emergency Department at KKH. Dr Ong has special interest in early childhood development as well as infant feeding and nutrition. She is also an active volunteer in the community in her own time, particularly in areas of health promotion.Practice address: sBcc Baby & child clinicBlk 721 ang Mo Kio ave 8 #01-2803/2805singapore 560721 email: [email protected]

Selene Diong Selene Diong is the Principal Instructor of Gymnademics Early Enrichment Centre. The centre focuses on children from five months to five years old. As the Principal Instructor, Selene is responsible for creating a fun and

engaging curriculum, to help young children learn through play. She also promotes a strong engagement with parents, working with them to develop a more meaningful and fun time with their little ones. You can contact Selene at [email protected] more information, go to www.gymnademics.com.

Dr Lim Min MinDr Lim Min Min gradu-ated from the Faculty of Dentistry, National University of Singapore, where she was awarded the Southeast Asia Association for Dental

Education (SEAADE) medal for her clinical and academic excellence in endodontics. Prior to joining T32, Dr Lim worked with the Ministry of Health. She then joined the National University Hospital where she did a specialized posting in pediatrics (children’s dentistry), while concur-rently practicing advanced general dentistry in the Dental Centre. Practice address:One Orchard Boulevard, 17th Floorcamden Medical centresingapore 248649tel: (65) 6733 1388 email: [email protected] dental services: (65) 6398 5578

BRAIN DEVELOPMENT

DENTISTRY

Suzanne KhorSuzanne Khor has been practicing as a clinical dietician for the last 11 years. She obtained her undergraduate degree in Dietetics with honours from the National Uni-versity of Malaysia and postgraduate degree (Masters of Health Science Education) from University of Sydney Australia. Prior to this, Ms Khor was working as a senior dietician in KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital for 7 years. Her special interests are nutrition in feeding difficulties, diet therapy for neurological disorders, eating disorders and weight management.

Practice address:Thomson Paediatric Centre (The Child Development Centre)10 Sinaran Drive #09-04 Novena Medical Centre Singapore 307506Email: [email protected] Tel: 6397 6627/ 6397 6966 (hotline)

Kristie LimPrincipal & Co-Founder of Mind Stretcher Education Group, Kristie is a double-degree holder from the National Univer-sity of Singapore and the University of London. She is both a trained accountant and a lawyer, and holds a Certificate in Early Childhood Education. Since leaving the legal profession, she has immersed herself full-time in Mind

Stretcher. Besides being in charge of operations, she also helps develop the curricula for Science and Mathematics. Her eldest son is the 2012 President’s Scholar and a very outstanding all-rounder and perennial prize winner at Raffles Institution and the very prestigious Wharton Business School. For more information, go to www.mindstretcher.com

FINANCIAL PLANNING

PRESCHOOL

Fiona WalkerFiona Walker joined Julia Gabriel Centre in 1991 as a teacher and is now the Principal of Schools / CEO of Julia Gabriel Education. She holds a Mas-ters in Early Childhood Education and is a qualified Montessori teacher with more than 20 years of experience in providing quality education for young children. She is committed to the ongoing develop-

ment of teachers and curriculum in Julia Gabriel Education.For more information, go to www.juliagabriel.com

Tan Ooi Sim WinstonWinston is a Chartered Financial Con-sultant, with 12 years of experience in Financial Planning. Becoming a Dad in May 2013, his business is focused on Insurance Planning and Retirement Planning for young families and individuals.For any queries, you can email him at tanooisim _ [email protected]

Esther LimEsther Lim is the CEO and Founder of LEAP School House. Born and educated in Singapore, she holds a Master Degree in Education (NTU/NIE), Bachelor Degree in Arts (NTU), Diploma in Marketing – Top student for the year 2000 (Chartered Institute of Marketing). Esther has more than 10 years of teaching experience and

has taught widely in both Secondary and Primary schools. For more information on LeaP schoolHouse, go to leapschoolhouse.com.sg

Ms. PoojaMs. Pooja is the Chief Curriculum Officer at Nurture Education Group. She began teaching in 2001, garnering more than 10 years of teaching experience in preschools. Holding a Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood Education) from University of South Australia (Dean’s merit list), she has taught all levels: from Playgroup through to Kindergarten 2. She is deeply passionate

about pre-schoolers and believes that each child should be allowed to develop at his or her own pace in a supportive environment. For more information, go to www.kiddigroup.com.sg

CREATIVITY

HAvE A qUEStion for oUr ExPErt?

Comment and post your question on our

Facebook, or drop us an email at [email protected] with the

subject title "Question for TNAP Expert".

The New Age Parents 5

The New Age Parents contributors:Dorothea ChowDorothea is a dedicated Christian homemaker, mum to two darling little boys and wife to a wonderful and supportive man. She loves to plan fun learning times with her toddler, read to her sons, and hang out with them at playgrounds, parks and shopping malls, in the company of fellow mummy friends. Baking, writing, scrapbooking and shopping are some of her favourite pastimes. She also runs a small home-business, Dottieshop creating customized paper cards and art pieces for birthdays, weddings and other occasions. Read more of Dorothea’s thoughts and motherhood experiences at www.apancakeprincess.com

Som Yew YaA stay home mother while pursuing a Masters in Counseling course, Yew Ya has returned to the workforce last year. Working in a Swiss pharmaceutical, she enjoys her work in the clinical field as well as being a hands-on mother cooking and planning activities with the family.

contributors

Holistic Pregnancy for Mums

New Age Pregnancy

child ? Expecting your first

Get tips from our experts and be inspired by other first-time mums as they share their stories.

New Age Pregnancy is a comprehensive and holistic online resource portal for parents-to-be and parents of new babies.

Learn more about your pregnancy jour-ney and your baby’s growing years.

T32 Junior Dental Services• Consultation and Examination • First Visit: Appointment and Procedure • Diet Counselling & Preventive Advice • Early Childhood Caries Assessment • Oral Hygiene Instructions for Parents and Children • Growth and Development• Prophylaxis and Topical Fluoride Application• Fissure Sealants• Pulpal (Nerve) Treatment• Tooth Coloured Fillings• Stainless Steel Crowns• Extractions

For more enquiries, please feel free to contact us at 67331388 or email us at [email protected].

T32 Dental Centre (Main Centre)One Orchard Boulevard, Camden Medical Centre #17-00 S(248649)T: 6733 1388 E: [email protected]

T32 Dental Pearl At Jurong2 Jurong East Central 1, J Cube #B1-15 S(609731)T: 6684 3833 E: [email protected]

T32 Dental Pearl At MarinaOne Raffles Link #01-03 S(039393)T: 6238 0268 E: [email protected]

www.t32dental.com

editorial note

Popular wisdom has it that "Those who can, do. Those who

can't, teach". On the country, I like to think the opposite

holds more truth - those who can, teach, those who can’t,

do.

I was fortunate to have met with many great teachers in

my life. Those who left a positive mark were those who not

only taught well, they also cared deeply. They genuinely

cared for you as a person, not just as a student.

In our Teacher’s Day Special feature how Does an

outstanding teacher Look Like? and what Great

teachers are made of, we asked a few Preschool ex-

perts what is their definition of a great teacher. Can’t seem

to connect with your child’s teacher? Secrets to a hap-

py and Lasting Parent-teacher relationship may

help you make that first step towards a successful parent-

teacher partnership.

Ever heard the saying “Spare the rod and spoil the

child”? How about “Spare the rod without spoiling the

child?” Parenting without Punishment: Is It really

Possible? and how to ensure our Children Do Not

Become Spoiled aims to shed some light on this topic.

Our nation celebrates her 49 birthday. We’ve listed 5

ways to Celebrate National Day with Your Family.

To all teachers and teachers-to-be, here’s wishing you

a Happy Teacher’s Day! Your heart / hard work will be re-

membered and etched in our children’s memories, so

don’t give up! And Happy National Day to all who call this

tiny red dot - home.

Yours sincerely,


Do you have any stories, tips or any feedback to share? We love to hear from you!

DroP uS aN emaIL at [email protected]

CoNNeCt wIth uS at www.facebook.com/newageparents

THOSE WHO CAN, TEACH.

What is the value of keyboard music in the

Kinderland Curriculum?

Keyboard music is a core programme in the Kinderland Curriculum since 1978. Taughtby professional music teachers, it helps to:

develop spatial-visual skills accelerate early literacy build focus and confidence refine motor skills

(Neurological Research by Rauscher, Shaw, Levice, Wright, Dennis & Newcomb, 1996)

Playing Keyboard music enhancesa child’s abstract reasoning skillswhich are important for learningmaths and science.

QUOTE THIS AD TO GET 2 KINDERFIT ATTIRE WHEN YOU ENROL* *T&C apply.

a member of Crestar Education Group, is a leading provider of quality and bilingual infant care, preschool and kindergarten to children 2 months to 6 years of age.

*Promotion is valid for the month of August and September 2014.

pregnancy


What is Amniocentesis?Amniocentesis is an invasive procedure that allows the obstetrician to rule out genetic and chromosomal problems with the baby long before birth. In am-niocentesis, amniotic fluid is withdrawn from the amniotic sac to test for specific genetic disorders and birth defects.

Amniotic fluid is the water that surrounds the fetus, protecting the fetus and providing it with nourishment. Floating around in the amniotic fluid are cells from the baby, pro-viding genetic material for testing. When is it performed? Amniocentesis is usually performed in the second trimester between 16 – 18

weeks. Reasons for performing amniocentesis includes: advanced maternal age (>35 years old); blood test or ultrasound showing a birth defect; family history of genetic disorders; previous child or pregnancy with birth defect. In the third trimester, it may also be done to determine fetal lung maturity, check

Quick Guide For

Pregnant Mothers

Amniocentesis and

Endometriosis

Quick Guide For

Pregnant Mothers

By Dr Ben Choey, SBCC Women’S CliniC (Clementi)

for anemia in the baby and congenital infections. How is amniocentesis performed? Ultrasound is used to create an image of the fetus and identify important structures. A safe place is then cho-sen to insert the needle. The skin is numbed with an anesthetic where the needle will be inserted. A thin needle is inserted into the amniotic sac to with-drawn between 15-20 mls of amniotic fluid. The site of injection is then cov-ered with a dressing.

What to expect after amniocentesis You may experience mild cramping of the abdomen, and you will be advised to avoid strenuous activity for at least 48 hours. An ultrasound will be per-formed to monitor baby’s heart beat What are the risks of amniocentesis? There is a 0.5% risk of miscarriage due to leakage of amniotic fluid from the amniotic sac. Infection is generally rare. Injury to fetus or placenta. This can be avoided by ultrasound monitoring.

How soon will results of amniocentesis take to return? It takes between 2-3 weeks for the full chromosome report. New techniques which allow identification of specific genetic or chromosomal disorders may yield results within 48 hours.

ENDOMETRIOSIS What is endometriosis? It is a very common female condition where cells of the womb lining are


found in the pelvis. Endometrial im-plants may also be seen in the lungs, brain, bowel and bladder, causing vari-able symptoms. Each month during cycle, these tissues shed just as the lin-ing of the uterus. However, there is no system in place for this shedding to exit the body system. This results in inflam-mation and scarring, causing pain and often infertility. What are the symptoms ? Symptoms are very variable, and may include the following: Painful periods Painful sex�Chronic low back pain and

abdominal pain Painful digestion �Painful urination and bowel

movement Fatigue Infertility Bloating Nausea What causes endometriosis ?It is estimated that about 176 million women worldwide suffer from it. The cause remains a mystery. One of the possible theories include reflux of en-dometrial tissue into the pelvis during menstruation. There does appear to be a strong genetic link between families.

It is not contagious nor sexually transmitted. A compromised immune system, overabundance of estrogen on which endometriosis appears to thrive, and displacement of endometrial tis-sue during surgery are other possible reasons. Diagnosis of endometriosis Diagnosis is often difficult as endo-

pregnancy

metriosis has a myriad of presenting symptoms and a disease within, where the doctor cannot see from outside. The gold standard for diagnosis of en-dometriosis is laparoscopic surgery Ul-trasound and other radiologic imaging modalities are not particularly useful. Progression of disease Endometriosis can exhibit slow prog-ress or rapid progression in a short pe-riod of time. The severity of symptoms often does not correlate with the level of disease. Can endometriosis be treated? Treatment of endometriosis is depen-dent on several factors: Age Severity of symptoms and disease Desire for fertility

Treatment has to be individualized due to the different patterns of presentation in different patients. These include use of analgesics, exercise and relaxation techniques, Non-steroidal anti-inflam-matory drugs, hormone medications to control endometriosis by reducing estrogen levels and medically inducing a state of pregnancy or menopause.

Surgery includes laparoscopic sur-gery to ablate or excise endometrial lesions, remove ovarian cysts, recon-struct pelvic anatomy and even hyster-ectomy with removal of both ovaries and fallopian tubes.

Practice Address: SBCC Women’s Clinic (Clementi) Blk 443 Clementi Ave 3 #01-53 Singapore 120443 Tel: 6774 1654


Your BaBY Is one Month old!More commonly known as ‘Man Yue’ in Mandarin (满月), Baby showers can be quite a big occasion in Singapore. Planning for one can be quite a mean feat especially for new parents. Here’s a checklist to help you plan for your baby shower.


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❶ BudgetHow much are you willing to spend for your baby’s shower? The amount you spend will determine the kind of baby shower you would like to have – Are you thinking of a big party or a small cosy af-fair? Food will cost the most so do set aside enough budget for this portion.Great Value for Money: Neo Garden’s Jubilee baby full month promotion, Neo宝宝, allows you to enjoy up to 50% discount on your buffet depend-ing on the size of your party! For a wholesome package, their Baby Full Month Combo and Baby Full Month Thematic Set-up comes together for an add-on of only $200 (on top of their buffet menu).

❷ Who to InvIte After you have allocated your budget, come up with a guest list with your spouse on who you two would like to invite – Relatives, school friends, col-leagues, other groups of friends, etc.

tIP If you are not sure who to invite from your in-law’s

family, you may want to check with your spouse before sending the in-vites out.

❸ venueIf you are looking at a small and cosy affair, home is a good place to start (if you don’t mind to clean and wash up later on). Other venues you may want to consider are: Public function rooms (SAFRA, NTUC Clubhouses), restau-rants and cafes. Suggestion: Want something out of the box? Try your nearby parks or the local museums.

❹ Food Judging from your guest list, what sort of food will suit their taste buds? Are majority of your guests Chinese? Do you have invited guests who are Mus-lims as well? These are a few important questions to ask yourself before decid-ing on the food. Must have items in your baby’s ‘Man Yue’rEd EGGS - Colour red represents luck and blessings. The eggs represent fertility and new life.AnG KU KUEHS – Represent good fortune and longevity.

tIPOutsource Your Items Sleepless nights. Endless

feeding. Round the clock supervi-sion. Taking care of your newborn can be overwhelming, on top of having to plan for your bub’s one month. Why not outsource to vari-ous reliable vendors? That way, you have less things to worry prior to and on the event day itself.

Decide between three of Neo Garden’s best selling menus to enjoy their Neo 宝宝 Jubilee Baby Full Month promotion. With a wide spread of cuisines (Japa-nese, Chinese, Western and more), you


Singapore’s No. 1 Food Caterer A household name, Neo Garden Catering has been given the Singapore Prestige Brand Award for the past three years since 2013. In conjunc-tion with SG50, Singapore’s No. 1 Caterer (AC Nielsen index 2010 & 2011) now offers a wholesome Baby Full Month promotion, Neo 宝宝, to celebrate the Jubilee babies! For more information, visit www.neog-arden.com.sg

advertorial

will be spoilt for choice! Simply add-on the extra Baby Full Month Combo for just $88 which includes -30 pieces of Blissful Red Eggs30 pieces of Ang Ku Kueh50 pieces of Mini Assorted Pastry

❺ themeTraditional? Modern? Or both? The possibilities are endless! There are a slew of ideas and themes to choose from on the web. If you are looking for something more timeless, you may want to go for generic themes such as colour or gender based themes. It’s also important to strike a balance be-tween the modern and traditional, and retain the customs of a baby’s first month. Suggestion: Jazz up your buffet line

and surprise your guests with Neo Garden’s adorable Teddy Bear theme (Additional $150 on top of their usual buffet package).

❻ ActIvItIes What are you going to do during the baby shower? If you have the budget, you can consider a photo booth corner. If you are expecting many parent friends with chil-dren, you may consider hiring a balloon sculptor or a magician to keep the chil-dren entertained while the adults mingle and catch up with one another.

❼ gIFts Baby clothes, toys, books, diapers, red packets. Be expected to be showered with many baby gifts from your guests. It would be polite to return the favour

to your guests. Besides the traditional baby shower gift pack for your guests, some novelty gift ideas you may want to consider are:Small bottle of HoneyCustomized sweetsA small bottle of nuts and seedsBaby foot cookie cutterSmall pot of plant

What’s next? Once you have thought through the above items, take a step back and let your baby be the star of the show! There may be one or two hiccups here and there, so it’s good to be mentally prepared and be open to any changes that will happen on your baby’s ‘Man Yue’. Why not look at these changes as stepping stone to pre-pare you for your greatest journey ahead?


Neo Garden’s Teddy Bear theme for baby showers

Catch us at Rise and Shine on 22 – 24 August for great discounts and deals!

Suntec Convention Hall 401-403 | Booth J10-J12


ARE THERE ANY risks OR

COmpliCatiOns?

Cord BloodBanking


Thousands of lives around the World have been saved by Cord Blood Transplant. But are there any risks or complications in the process of storing cord blood? Dr ashish munjal, Chief oper-ating officer of Cryoviva Singapore clears some doubts on Cord blood banking.

Q. How high are the success rates in treating illnesses?Cord blood banking is an option and a good alternative to bone mar-row for transplants related to blood and immune disorders. There have been more than 20,000 transplants worldwide using cord blood. The success rate is dependent on many medical factors and the severity of the disease. However, scientists are working on more effective use of stem cells for curing a variety of dis-orders.

Q. Can a baby’s cord blood be used for his siblings/oth-ers as well?Yes, if the cord blood unit adequately matches with the recipient’s blood. As the chance of a match is higher within a family, the sibling may have better odds of recovery. Your transplant phy-sician will be the best person to advise you on this.

Q. Is there any pain or risk involved in cord blood bank-ing?No. Since the blood is collected from the placenta after delivery of the baby, there is no pain and no risk. An expert who collects the cord blood is trained to take all nec-

essary precautions.

Q. What is the process of cord blood banking – from collecting to storing?After the baby is born and the um-bilical cord is clamped and cut, the cord blood is collected from the re-sidual blood in the placenta of the umbilical cord. Once the blood is collected in a sterile bag by a trained professional (usually a doctor or nurse), it is stored at 8-12 deg C until it reaches the processing lab. As per international guidelines, the blood should be processed and stored (Cryopreserved) within 48 hours of collection.

Q. How long can cord blood stem cells be stored and how long should they be stored?The current practice and recom-mended storage is 21 years. At this age, the child whose cord blood was stored by parents can take the decision legally on whether he/she wishes to continue the storage. The researchers are working extensively in the field of regenerative medicine to see how the cord blood stem cells can be used for better treatment of various disorders.

your baby


Dr Ashish MunjAl

A medical doc-tor and the Chief

Operating Of-ficer of Cryoviva

Singapore, Dr Ashish Munjal has 14 years of experience in

the medical field including 5 years

in regenerative medicine and

stem cell therapies.

About CryovivA singApore pte ltDCryoviva Singapore is

another extension of world-class quality services in cord blood banking and is a joint

venture between Cryoviva International Pte Ltd and

AsiaMedic Ltd. Email: [email protected]

Website: www.cryoviva.com.sg

Tel: 6737 8482

Since storing cord blood is once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, the decision has to be made by the parents for the future security of their family. Usually, the cryopreserved samples can be stored for decades if adequate measures are taken during storage. However, the suggested extension of cord blood storage after 21 years is still not known, nor recommend-ed by global authorities in the field.

Q. How do I tell if a cord blood bank is credible? What are the accreditations to look out for?A ABB & FACT are the most common accreditations that cord blood banks across the world choose to have. That ensures that the protocols being fol-lowed by the cord blood bank are ap-propriate.

your baby


Caring ForYour ColiC

BaBY

your baby


Despite many years of research, we still do not understand what causes colic. The most widely held view is that colic is due to trapped wind causing pain in the infant’s tummy. Colic commonly starts at about 1month of age, particularly in the evenings and night times. This is a transient phenom-enon which the infant outgrows by about 4months of age. Classical symptoms include prolonged periods of crying and fussiness with curled up legs, clenched fists and tensed abdomi-nal muscles. This may last a few minutes to as long as 3 to 4 hours regardless of the usual efforts at comforting. The crying can then stop just as suddenly as it started.Tips that may help to soothe the infant in-clude:Keeping baby in gentle rhythmic rock-ing motion, e.g. gentle rocking in arms or in a sling, taking him/her out in a pram or car for a ride. Don't worry about spoiling your baby by holding him or her too much.“Burping” baby or feeding in a more upright position may help to prevent the build-up of “wind”Trying “anti-wind” medications like Infacol, Rid-Wind drops or gripe water, to

Colic is used to describe the frustrating condition charac-terised by extreme periods of crying in an otherwise well-fed healthy infant. Dr Ian ong from SBCC Baby & Child Clinic shares some useful tips on how to soothe a colic baby.

help reduce or disperse intestinal gasGentle baby massageBreastfeedingUsually, in the case of colic, the infant is oth-erwise healthy and well. The infant should be feeding well, passing normal stools and urine, and should not be running a temper-ature. Since the crying and fussiness can be severe, it is important to exclude other seri-ous causes of inconsolable crying, such as infections, intestinal obstruction, injuries, particularly head injuries and post vaccina-tions. Symptoms that may warrant a doctor’s con-sult include:Changes in baby's eating, sleeping or be-haviourFeverVomiting or diarrhoeaTummy becoming distended or painful to touchPersistent irritability despite above mea-sures

Caring for a baby with colic can be very stressful. Sometimes, you may not be to calm your baby's crying. If your nerves get frayed, remember:

Never shake your baby. If you are feeling helpless and exhausted over your baby's crying, hand your baby to another trusted adult. If you're alone, put him or her down somewhere safe, such as in a crib.

Let someone else give you a break. It's stressful to listen to your baby cry for long periods. It is OK to arrange for someone to help with the baby so that you can have a few moments to yourself.

Stay positive and remember colic is a transient phenomenon!

Practice Address:SBCC Baby & Child ClinicBlk 721 Ang Mo Kio Ave 8 | #01-2803/2805Singapore 560721 Tel: 6456 8874

NEO 宝宝NO. 1* CATERER IN SINGAPORE


Q: My 2 year old child has a big appetite and eats a lot. She al-ways eats two portions more compared to other children. I am worried that she will be overweight. Should I start lim-iting her food intake?

First, you would need to determine if she is indeed overweight. Check her growth curve and weight his-tory. This information should be available in her health booklet. If her weight and height is main-tained along similar percentiles, then she may not be overweight. If you are unsure, it is best to see a doctor or dietitian who can assess if

Is your child eating too much, or too little? Ms Suzanne Khor, Senior dietician at thomson Paediatric Centre (The Child Development Centre) answers some questions on children’s appetite.

diet

Small EatErBig EatEr,

her weight is normal.If a child tends to eat a lot, and is constantly hungry, a component in her diet that you might want to increase is fiber. Include more vegetables and fruit in her diet so that she feels full after a meal. Also, choose whole grains instead of refined grains/ white bread/ white rice.

Q: My child eats very little al-though he is very active. I am worried he is not getting enough nutrients and energy from his food. What can I do?

You can aim to give your child a bal-anced diet for his age. A child who is very active may require more energy compared to his peers of the same age. You can offer your child frequent meals and snacks throughout the day to keep his energy levels up. For young children, you can generally feed according to their appetite.

The Health Promotion Board rec-ommends the 'My Healthy Plate' model to provide a visual representation of a healthy meal:�Fill half your plate with Fruit and Veg-

etables

diet

tivity to complete a healthy lifestyle. It is great that your child is active as physi-cal activity is beneficial for your child's overall development.

My Healthy Plate serves as a moti-vational rather than prescriptive tool for Singaporeans to build balanced meals. Instead of defining a certain number of calories or servings per day from each food group, it emphasises the quality of diet at each meal. Singaporeans can fol-low the important principles from My Healthy Plate and customise them ac-cording to their own lifestyle and eating patterns.


�Fill a quarter of your plate with Whole-grains�Fill a quarter of your plate with Meat

& OthersUse healthier oilsChoose waterBe active

By using My Healthy Plate, Singa-poreans are reminded to adopt healthy eating habits such as choosing water over sweetened beverages which are a source of empty calories or, in other words, calories with little nutritive value. On top of achieving a wholesome diet, it also advocates integrating physical ac-

My Healthy Plate advocates integrating physical activity to complete a healthy lifestyle.

Image source: Health Promotion Board


preventing

in ChildreninjuriEsDEntal

dental


In very young children, their coordination and judgement skills are incompletely de-veloped and injuries to the baby teeth usu-ally result from accidents as they explore the world around them. In older children, sports injuries are the main source of tooth and mouth injuries.

Tips to childproof your house to prevent dental injuries:Furniture corners are common hazard areas. Cover all sharp corners with rub-ber / plastic bumpers. Also ensure that the bumpers are attached such that your child cannot easily remove them. Tape down any long electrical cords to prevent your child from accidentally trip-ping over them.

Dental injuries are common in children during their growing up years. What can we do to minimize the risk of such injuries? Dr Lim min min, Dental Sur-geon from t32 Junior shares some tips to mini-mize the risk of your child suffering from tooth and mouth injuries.

Avoid using tablecloth that drapes over the side of the table as children may be in-clined to pull on them. Items on the table-cloth may fall on them as a result.Place safety gates in the house to prevent access to dangerous / high-risk areas such as staircases and the kitchen.Bolt down heavy furniture and bookcas-es to the walls whenever possible. As chil-dren grow and get more inquisitive, they will start climbing and pulling on furniture.

‘Bugs bunny teeth’:In older children, one major aggravat-ing factor for dental injuries would be the angulation of the two front teeth. In some children, their two front teeth may be more protrusive than others (what we call an increased overjet), or more commonly known as ‘bugs bunny teeth’. Due to their prominence, any traumatic injury to the face region will most likely involve the front teeth as well.Prolonged thumb-sucking over the age of 6 can result in an increased overjet as well. Encourage your child to stop thumb-sucking by the age of 4. Do consult your dentist should the thumb sucking habit continue past 4 years of age.Consider braces treatment (ortho-dontics) to correct the alignment of your child’s teeth. By aligning the teeth well, and decreasing the overjet, not only do we im-prove your child’s smile, we will decrease the likelihood of traumatic injuries to those front teeth as well.

tips tO prEvEnt spOrts-rElatED DEntal injuriEs:Encourage your child to wear comfortable, professionally made mouth guards during sports. This is especially important if they play contact sports such as rugby, and in sports such as basketball and soccer.A good helmet is essential for sports such as baseball and hockey.


Let’s Go With Combi NeWest stroLLer meGa ride!

A good qual-ity stroller is one that can support your child’s body weight, ensure maximum com-fort, and navigate terrains. It can be frustrating look-ing for the perfect stroller for your baby. Combi latest Mega Ride Stroller might just be the perfect fit. We list down 10 reasons why.

ready For a Superb ride?

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3. Heads Up! Extra Head Protection Your baby’s head is extremely fragile. With Combi Mega Ride Shock absorbent Egg Shock Head Pad, their heads are fully protected and supported.

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7. Five-point Harness, Five Times the ProtectionA baby who is riding in a stroller needs a safety harness. The last thing parents would want to see is their baby getting injured from falling off the stroller. It is recom-mended to get a five-point harness compared to a three-point harness for maximum safety and protec-tion. On top of having a one-touch buckle that allows for easy releas-ing of the safety harness, Combi Mega Ride comes with a five-point harness.


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8. Open and Close With Just One Hand Do you always struggle to close or open a stroller with one hand, while carrying your baby with the other? Now with one swift move-ment, you can easily open or fold Combi Mega Ride. Plus the back-rest will automatically fold when it’s in a reclining position.

9. Wide Angle BackrestIf you are getting a stroller for your new-born, the backrest should be able to recline to a completely flat position to support your baby’s fragile head and neck. Combi Mega Ride caters to different age levels as it not only has a 170° degree full reclining seat, it can also be adjust-ed to multiple reclining positions; from upright to almost horizontal.

10. From Babies To Walking Preschoolers All strollers have a weight limit and not all can support a child from infancy through preschool. With all the features mentioned above, rest assure that Combi Mega Ride is suitable for continu-ous use from infancy through pre-school. The stroller can hold up to 18kg. Definitely a keeper!

A must-have parenting gear for most, strollers will follow through from your child’s infancy to

their first walking steps. It’s important to invest in a long-lasting stroller for not only maneuvering around, but also to suit your baby as they grow.

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PART 4:

Bilingualism Raising a Wholesome PReschooleR

In this six-part series, Kristie Lim, Principal & Co-founder of Mind Stretcher Education Group shares tips on raising a wholesome pre-schooler.

Though English is the lingua franca of the world, in a time of rapid moderni-sation and globalisation, it has become increasingly important to broaden our perspectives and world views, master other languages, and interact with peo-ple across different cultures and back-grounds. Today, people from all around the world are seeing the need to increase their proficiency in languages used in other markets in order to stay competi-tive. While most only realise this when they enter the workplace, it is undeniable that learning a new language at a young age not only makes eventual mastery of it easier, but also opens up many doors of opportunity for them later on.

Our Singapore government possesses great foresight. The education landscape in Singapore provides opportunities for students to learn the English language and mother tongue proficiently. Be it Mandarin, Bahasa Melayu or Tamil, these will come in very useful on the global stage. China and India are world eco-nomic powers. Singapore is surrounded by neighbours that use Bahasa Melayu as their official language. Being able to speak their language will put us in good stead in business dealings.

When I was bringing up my children, I wanted to enroll them in a pre-school that placed heavy emphasis on the Chi-nese language as we speak English at home most of the time. Unfortunately, there was none then. Immersing my

children in weekly Chinese enrichment classes helped a little. However, the love for the language was not easy to incul-cate in them. Like many children from English-speaking families, learning the Chinese language was an uphill and te-dious task. Exams were hair-tearing expe-riences. Though my eldest son got an A1 in his GCE ‘A’ level examinations, he did it through sheer hard work by memoris-ing model compositions. Getting the ‘A1’ on his result slip was like a ‘mission im-possible, successfully accomplished’. He thought that would be the last he would ever see of the Chinese language. How grossly wrong was he!

When he went to the United States for his university education, he saw that many westerners were scrambling to sign up for Chinese classes. They knew that mastery of this language would put them ahead of their peers when they started work. It was then that he realised it would be embarrassing if he, as a Chinese, is un-able to speak proficiently in his mother tongue. Since then, he has decided that he would read Chinese books on topics that interest him.

Many parents would agree with me that it is difficult to convince our children, from young, of the importance of learn-ing their mother tongue well on the basis that it would come in useful in future. Recently, I spoke to a very experienced Chinese language teacher from one of our top secondary schools. She is from

preschool


China, but has been teaching in Singa-pore for the past 20 years. She shared that the reason our local students do not ap-preciate the Chinese language is that they do not see the need to use it at all. They have this simplistic thinking: “The world is so BIG; I don’t have to work in China at all or I will choose an occupation that does not require me to use the Chinese language.” As seen from my son’s experi-ence, how wrong such thinking can be!

Exposing a child as early as possible to a second language would make them less prone to rejecting using the language as they grow up. In addition, having a con-ducive environment is a very important factor for successfully learning a language. Had I been able to find a pre-school for my children that allowed me to choose the medium of instruction, I believe they would have had a greater appreciation for the Chinese language and become more proficient in it in their later years in school.

MM Lee has recently commented that there is a need for pre-schools that allow parents to choose between cur-riculums that are structured with either English or mother tongue as the primary medium of instruction. Echoing this sentiment, Mind Stretcher will be start-ing pre-school programmes on weekday mornings which allow parents to do just that! This would plug the gap and enable children to be proficient in both languag-es, whether they come from an English or Chinese-speaking background.

Look out for Part 5 in our Oct / Nov issue.


look like?

What does an

TeacherOuTsTanding

One of the key concerns of parents when they sign their chil-dren up for classes is the school’s teacher. So, what makes an outstanding teacher? Selene Diong, Principal Instructor of Gymandemics shares three qualities.

teacher's day special


resourceful There are two important things we need to know about children. First, all children are born with a desire to learn about the world around them. Second, they love to succeed and will repeat activities that they are confident in succeeding in. Parents must be on a lookout for a resource-ful teacher who is able to engage your child appropriately. It is the duty of the resourceful teacher to engage in intellectual and physical activities that will continue to fan their love for learning.

what a resourceful teacher looks like: The resourceful teacher will be able to watch your child engage in play activities and assess their develop-

mental milestones accordingly. For example, when a teacher watches a child play with the xylophone, she may notice that the child does not consistently use one hand and con-stantly switches hand in the middle. She is quick to identify that the child is constantly not crossing his midline and understands that it may affect his reading and writing abilities. A resourceful teacher would be able to take the observation further and en-gage the child in play activities that will encourage the child to achieve the desired milestone.

understanding of Children’s Brain DevelopmentWhile educational qualifications are important, one important quality to

look out for is a teacher’s understand-ing of children’s brain development. Teachers who are motivated to follow ongoing research about children’s brains will have optimism and in-centive to apply their findings in the classroom. It makes a difference when teachers truly understand the neuro-plasticity of a child’s brain and realize the important role they have as edu-cators in changing a child’s brain.

what an educated teacher looks like:They no longer see their role as care-giver or entertainer, they assume the role of life changer and become more aware of how much they can influence students’ brain processing. In Gymna-demics, our teachers recognize parents as the best teachers and make it our pri-

ority to educate parents on the work-ings of your child’s brains. Through a strong parent-teacher partnership, this is how we strive to help your child achieve their brain’s potential.

Passionate Passionate teachers first and utmost concern is for a child to feel safe and happy. Why? Because it is the safe, secure and happy child that does bet-ter in school. The limbic area of the brain is also known as the emotional center of the brain. This part of the

brain plays a very important role in a child’s learning. If a child is dealing with stress, they cannot focus their energy on higher learning and associ-ate it with a negative experience.

what a Passionate teacher Looks Like:A passionate teacher is one who has an extreme love for children and childhood education. They are not concerned about testing a child be-cause they have a real believe in a child’s deep desire to learn. They also

care deeply for a child’s emotional well-being will help them perceive learning to be an enjoyable experi-ence filled with positive emotions.

who are the Best teachers?While we understand that important role of teachers in our society, we be-lieve that parents are the best teach-ers for their own children. It is impor-tant for parents to be in partnership with outstanding teachers to change the brain of the next generation and with that, the world.





Research shows that successful parent-teacher relationship aids in a child’s learning, development and self-esteem. Jaclyn Smith, Curriculum Specialist at Learning Vision shares four ways parents can build a strong rapport with their child’s teachers.

Secrets To a Happy and lasting Parent-Teacher relationship

How Can I BuIld a Better relatIonsHIp wItH My CHIld’s teaCHer?

1. show Your appreciationParents may not realise that recognizing and giving credit to teachers as profes-sionals, - not as child minders - is often valued and prized by educators. Many times, a simple word of thanks; written or verbal, goes a long way.

2. Forge strong relationshipsInvest in conversations and engagements that promote trust building. Just as in any sustainable relationship, it needs to be built upon trust and mutual respect. For that to be established, open communication and time needs to be invested. Both parties also need to acknowledge that the relationship is dependent on mutual responsibility.Be honest and open to share your exper-tise and experience you’re the teachers. If you feel there is a need for further discus-sions, preschool teachers will work to ac-commodate to your schedule as long as there is a common understanding that the efforts are mutual.

TiP for ParenTS Take advantage of the parent involve-

ment opportunities available at your child’s school. It can be volunteering at a field trip or conducting a show and tell for your child’s class – take some time to be in-volved in at least one of the activities.

3. stay connected and informedTeachers will try to adjust their com-munication methods and styles to suit with yours when they see your efforts to stay connected and informed. Time can be a tough hurdle. Find out what are the most effective ways you can be informed and involved with her.

TiP for ParenTS Teachers appreci-ate when you take


Important Things All Parents Should

Know About The Job Of A

Preschool Teacher

WORKIng BEHInd THE SCEnE

On top of having keen observa-tion skills and a good grasp of language, preschool teachers spent a significant amount of

time working behind the scene. This includes: Planning and pre-paring for class activities, writing

weekly newsletters to parents, constantly reflecting and evalu-ating their teaching practices,

writing children developmental reports... the list goes on. Not to mention organising field trips, year-end concerts and other miscellaneous school events.

EdUCATIng CHILdREn And PAREnTS

Besides seeing themselves as someone qualified to support

children’s growth and develop-ment, preschool teachers also

see themselves as parent educa-tors. Teachers are happy to share and offer what they know with

you.

SAmE gOAL, SAmE OBJECTIvEPreschool educators often share the same goals and objectives as parents although at times it may

not come across explicitly.

the time to share personal happenings at home with your child. It can be as sim-ple as a conversation between you and your child before their bedtime, or a trip to the supermarket. When parents initi-ate such personal sharings that happen at home, teachers are often delighted and happy to hear them as it gives them a better understanding of your child.

4. share Your expertise Just as how teachers are eager to offer advice and resource to support your parenting journey, teachers appreciate when you take time and effort to con-tribute your knowledge and expertise to the school. At Learning Vision, we have had parents who contribute half or a whole hour of their day leave to read to the children in the class or conduct an activity they are good at (e.g. craft, cook-ery, or soccer.)

TiP for ParenTS Your work sched-ule is packed for

the month? Sharing your expertise may not necessarily require your full pres-ence at the school. Some of the Learning Vision centres have had fathers who shared their National Service experi-ences through photographs and videos. Some parents also lent their personal items to the school when the children were learning on a particular theme.

Jaclyn SmITh is a passionate curriculum specialist for learning Vision since 2003. She holds a distinguished

Ba in Early childhood Education, and has over 10 years of experi-ence in working with children aged 3 months to 6 years.


wHat Great teaCHers are Made of



CARING Teaching is not a profession where you can just wing it on auto pilot – ever. A good teacher is never just going through the motions but instead genuinely cares about their students and the quality of experience they are providing. They must care whether or not the children are hap-py, developing skills and making progress. They care about them as individuals and see them beyond the walls of the school.

CALM Teachers should remain calm in the face of what may seem like chaos. It is by projecting an air of calm that classroom dynamics remain stable. Children feel much more comfortable with teachers who are cool, calm and collected and not a bundle of frustrated nerves. Teach-ers who are calm are able to be present and be aware of what is happening in the classroom, to understand the nuances of children’s behaviour. If a teacher is not calm they can be missing much of what is actually happening.

The quality of resources, equipment, curriculum and school environment mean very little if the teacher is not effective. Fiona walker, Principal of Schools & Ceo of Julia Ga-briel education shares with us the 5 C’s of a great teacher.

COURAGEOUSTeachers need to be able to tackle big issues. For example it takes courage to explain to parents that you have a con-cern about something. By being coura-geous in your convictions you can stand up for what you believe is right and en-sure the children in your care get all the support and understanding they need. Sometimes teachers need the courage to make changes to set curriculum and in-dividualise the lessons and learning for each child.

CONNECTED I believe a teacher must be able to make many connections. The first is between a child’s home experience and their learn-ing in school. This shows the teacher’s re-spect for the family and culture the child is from. Within the classroom the teacher can create a sense of belonging and com-munity by encouraging children to make connections with each other.

Second, a teacher needs to be able to connect her students and the communi-ty they live in, this can be done through field trips, inviting in members of the community. Teachers of young children must constantly be making connections between the learning in the classroom and their previous experience. We all learn by building on our experience and making connections between past ex-periences and new knowledge. Good teachers are constantly pointing out connections so that children are bet-ter able to grasp the understanding and learning moves from being abstract to being more concrete.

COMMUNICATIVE A good teacher must be an effective

“the job of an educator is to teach students to see the vitality in

themselves.” J O S E P H C A M P B E L L


communicator. They must be able to communicate positively and understand how important this is. Children respond so much more positively to praise and encouragement than to criticism and negativity. People with positive, strong communications skills are also able to better manage a classroom of children, to be able to better explain ideas to their audience, or classroom in this case, and make better leaders.

A big part of communication is lis-tening and a great teacher is always a great listener. They listen to the concern in a parent’s voice, the stress in a child’s cry and the joy in their laughter. By lis-tening well they are able to understand the needs of their students and plan their lessons accordingly. Children must be heard. By being listened to they de-velop a sense of their own self-worth and there is nothing more valuable a teacher can give a child.

A good preschool teacher needs to be

able to communicate in a way that young chil-dren will respond and

at the same time be able to communicate effec-

tively with their parents, exuding the confidence and knowledge they

have. It is teachers with strong communication skills that are seen as professionals, and not

simply care-givers.


CENTRE

S E R I E S

POSITIVEPARENTING

Julia Gabriel

583 Orchard Road, #04-00 Forum, Singapore 238884 [email protected] www.juliagabriel.com

Like us on www.facebook.com/JuliaGabrielCentreSG

Workshops

29th Aug - 21st Nov | 7.00 - 9.30 pmJulia Gabriel Centre, Forum

Personal organisation is an essential skill for children to meet the demands of education and a full, successful life. Children who understand how to organise themselves are able to plan ahead to manage daily responsibilities, spend less time completing tasks and experience less frustration in coping with the demands of school.

Developing your Child’s Organisation Skills

29th

Aug

Join Julia for learning and exploration about:

• Strategies to develop organisation tools

• How to empower children’s sense of ownership and responsibility

• Developing a home in which organisation skills �ourish

Developing your Child’s Imagination

26th

Sep

Why support the development of imagination? Because children with active imaginations often do better in school, cooperate better with others and are more able to manage their emotions. An active imagination can make all the di�erence to optimism, enhancing our enjoyment of life.

Developing your Child’s Criticial Thinking

24th

Oct

Critical thinking involves a synthesis of four key skills: E�ective analyzing, reasoning, evaluating and creativity, to solve problems and communicate logical solutions. These skills are developed over time with the help of informed educators, parents and families.

What a huge and important area of development this is! Social and emotional awareness encompass our self-awareness, self regulation, awareness of others and what is, and is not, appropriate in our interactions, relationship skills and decision making. All of these mindful and heartful skills develop through and with the example and guidance of the adults in our lives, during our formative years.

Developing your Child’s Social and Emotional Awareness

21st

Nov

Join Julia Gabriel to �nd out and explore:

• What we can do at home to support children’s ability to create mental images

• How to develop the power to see possibilities and situations that will enhance children’s potential for success

• Engaging and enjoying the imaginative process together

In this �nal workshop we explore:

• The di�erence between inter and intra personal awareness

• Development of intuition

• How we can impact our children’s ability to engage with others and to lead happy, well-balanced lives

Join Julia to explore:

• To find out how you can empower your child’s thinking at home

• To explore the process of critical thinking

• To practise using the four steps towards expanded thinking

Please call 6733 4322 to reserve a place.



In a Lien Foundation report released last year, Singapore was ranked 29th out of 45 countries for its early childhood sector. One of the key factors that were discussed were the lack of support from manage-ment and the huge workload on pre-school educators. esther Lim, Ceo and Founder of LeaP Schoolhouse offers some advice on how she keeps her teachers happy, productive and appreciated.

The Need To Show You care

Keeping Your

TeacherS

why Do Pre-school Childhood teachers Leave the Industry?An article I read mentioned that there are only two reasons for a staff to leave an organisation and they are - mon-etary and lack of recognition. In Singapore, the entrance require-ments for teachers include 5 O-Level passes. But as of now, 76 per cent of teachers are being trained or have at-tained a diploma in early childhood. Many of the teacher receive their quali-fication through sheer determination of working and studying part time. The median salary for a pre-school teacher still stands at less than $24,000sgp per annum. Passion over moneyCompensation for work done is im-portant. However, unique to this industry, most teachers stay on for the passion and the love of work-ing with children. Yes, as a business owner to a pre-school there are many monetary incentives that can be put in place to keep our talented people around but fundamentally, our duty is to make them feel valued and to keep them meaningfully contribut-ing. Here’s what I practice at LEAP SchoolHouse: KEEP tHE BorEdoM AwAyHave work tasks kept impactful and challenging. That keeps a teacher’s professional development at an edge. Keeping the teachers who are involved with the projects at hand about some of the permissible macro decisions made does make them feel valued. Do not allow for boredom to seep into the work environment as that will be the start of excuses being made not to stay updated and relevant.

EnCoUrAGE oPEn ConvErSA-tionSMy staff need not make an appoint-ment to speak with me. I take an open door policy to speak to any of them and they know that I am always avail-able whenever I am in town. Giving my staff the option to speak up and dis-cuss matters allow for more options to be explored for a company’s decision making process because there’s prob-ably a lot more that can be achieved from managing human resource if we have better communication. BUiLdinG A CoMPAny CULtUrE Identify the kind of company culture as an employer you seek out for. It’s one thing if the corporate culture just isn’t the right fit for some, but if

there is a perennial high staff turn-over, it might be time to do some soul searching as a company. Seek for work-life balance, acknowledge birthdays and time needed to be with family. Professionally, seek for tal-ent within and give opportunities to grow. The ‘perfect’ job’ is one that al-ways can allow an individual to seek bigger opportunities not magnified from the current position.Most HR consultancy surveys have pointed to one consistent denomi-nator that keeping a good team does not mean paying top dollars ALL the time. Keeping the reason for valu-ing the team both collectively and as an individual is as important, if not more.



Ms. Pooja started teaching 13 years ago after attaining a Diploma in Early Childhood Education (Teaching & Leader-ship) at Ngee Ann Polytechnic. After teaching for a year, she went on to pursue her Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood Education) and attained a posi-tion in the Dean’s Merit List. She shares with TNAP her teaching journey and what kept her go-ing through the years.

with Ms. PoojA, ChieF CurriCulum oFFiCer From nurture eduCation group

feature interview

Hi Pooja, you started teaching when you were… 18! I started as a teacher where it was fun yet daunting duty to work in the Playgroup’s class. I progressed slowly from there moving to a Senior Teacher. I have been blessed with the opportunity to teach across various levels – from PG through to Kinder-garten 2 before becoming a Principal, and having a chance to head the Cur-

interview


riculum Team at Nurture Education Group. The early childhood industry is known for its high attrition rate. What kept you going all these years?It would be the joy of being entrust-ed with a mission so meaningful – I could be nurturing future leaders! I find it both an honour and a reward to be entrusted to not only care for them, but to guide and nurture them too. I also enjoy working with chil-dren and having the opportunity to see the light of wonderment in their eyes. It slows me down, prompting me to enjoy the moment with the children in my class. In addition, my career progression and the expansion of duties keeps me on my toes and adds different dimensions to my ca-reer.

Is passion alone enough? What do you think are some of the push and pull factors that drive teachers out of the industry?No. Alongside passion, I feel you need resilience, perseverance, com-mitment, sacrifice, dedication and hard work. Also, you need to bear in mind these are important lives you are dealing with. As an educator we are accountable of the seeds we sow in children’s lives. As William Butler Yeats aptly puts it “Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.”

Some of the push factors can be workload which can be demanding. Besides teaching, there is also admin-istrative work involved – the writing of progress reports, emails to parents, preparation of learning aids, lesson plans, etc. Also, in Singapore, there

is less recognition of the ECH (Early Childhood) industry and comparative-ly to some other countries, the salary scales may not be as attractive. How-ever, this is where the passion kicks in – there is just so much immense job satis-faction when you see the joy and smiles on children’s faces and you know that you made a difference!

Any one that inspires you or anyone you look up to in this industry?This would be my CEO of Nurture Education Group, Julie Koh. She’s a motivating, caring, encouraging and is always looking at the best in-terest of children, teachers, parents and her staff. Having started off as a teacher herself, she is very hands on and never fails to inspire me with her patience and love for children.

Most memorable moments in your teaching career?The most memorable moment is when the children that I have taught

become top students in schools and they still hold importantly, they still hold the values we have helped built in them even when they are older.

To aspiring early childhood teach-ers or current teachers out there, any words of advice?Work with children, learn alongside with them and rediscover the world they live in through their eyes. Rec-ognise that they are each uniquely different and that we can draw in-spiration from them. Importantly, honour each child as they hold the promise of our future. I would like to leave with all my fellow educators this wonderful quote:

“A hundred years from now, it will not matter what kind of car I drove, what kind of house I lived in, how much money I had in the bank… but the world may be better place because I made a difference in the life of a child. “ Forest Witcraft


coverpage coNTeSTT h e N e w A g e P A r e N T s

Shane Chang Jun Ze

Coverpage Winner


Kiera riley Chan

runner up

ng Yu Ze

SeCond runner up

Follow us @ MindStretcherEdMind Stretcher Learning Centre [email protected] www.mindstretcher.com

Mind Stretcher MultipliesMind Stretcher will be opening its 21st and 22nd centres at SAFRA Jurong and Seletar Mall in the coming months.

Like us on Facebook or check our website for updates on the Academic Schedules for 2015

Mind Stretcher @ SAFRA Jurong Mind Stretcher @ Seletar Mall

333 Boon Lay Way, #2A-02 Singapore 649848

33 Sengkang West Avenue#04-04/05/06/07Singapore 797653

Opening in Sep 2014

(Opposite Boon Lay MRT station)

Opening at end 2014

(Fernvale LRT station)


5 Ways To CelebraTe NaTioNal Day WiTh your FamilyWatch the NatioNal Day ParaDe liveWhat better way to showcase our national pride and educate our

children on the history of Singapore than to be at the National Day Parade (NDP), in the flesh? If you’re one of the lucky few who applied for tickets to this year’s pa-

As we celebrate our nation’s 49th birthday, dorothea Chow shares with us five ideas to make the weekend extra meaningful.

national day special


rade and got it, be sure to treasure every moment of the evening. And with an all-new and exciting variety show format, it looks set to be a very interesting program this year!

Watch the fire-Works for freeIf you can’t watch the parade live, you can still enjoy the

beautiful fireworks that always fill the night sky with their magical light! You need to do a bit of research to find a good location for a picnic spot, that will allow you a decent view of the sky over the ma-rina area. The Marina Barrage and Marina Bay Sands Boardwalk are some of the bet-ter options around. Enjoy the cool night breeze and a satisfying home-made feast, while waiting for the action to begin!

Put together a time caPsule Want to stay at home instead? Stay true to this year’s NDP

theme of “Our People, Our Home” by getting each member of your family in-volved in a simple photo-journalistic project.

Here’s how it works: Each person is to take a photo of somewhere in Singapore that has held special meaning for them this past year. It could be your children’s school, or the garden at Grandma’s, or even the kopitiam near your flat which knows your order by hard. Then, pen a story – journal style – about what this

place means to him or her. Collect all your photos and stories into a folder for safe-keeping, to be taken out and read anytime over the years to come.

PaiNt your faces Be outrageous for a day! Paint each other’s faces in patriotic themes and parade your art-

work about for the whole day. Whether you are going to town or just downstairs to the minimart, wear your face with pride. And take lots of photos to remem-ber this day!

Become tourists for a DayAs the song goes, “You can take a little trip around Sin-

gapore Town in the Singapore City Bus, to see Collyer Quay and Raffles Place, the Esplanade and all of us!” Hop on to the City Sightseeing bus and get ready to see Singapore like you’ve never seen her before! Cam-eras and sun block are a must for this activity.


As parents, we know that our children have good and bad days. Like all normal toddlers, they would also throw tantrums, argue and interrupt when their desires are not met. However, if you noticed that you are consistently caving in, have minimal authority and your children are consistently acting out to get what they want, you may have to question your actions and behavior. What can parents do to ensure that they are not raising spoiled children? Yvonne Chee shares with us six ways how.

What DoES it mEan to BE SpoilED?According to Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, a ‘spoiled person’ is ‘rude and behaves badly because they have always been given what they want and allowed to do what they want’. Most children who are perceived as spoiled are usually described as "overindulged", "grandiose", "narcissistic" or "egocentric-regressed", one who has never had the chance to experience disappointment and delayed gratification.

Set LimitsChild psychologist Sal Severe, author of ‘How to Behave So Your Child Will Too’

how to Ensure our Children Do not Become Spoiled


growing up

believes that it is important for parents to set consistent limits. Giving toddlers clear boundaries and limits will help them feel secure and are less likely for them to act out with bratty behaviours. This will also help your child know who is in-charge in

the family. I know of a couple who sets three simple and clear non-negotiable rules within their household so that their twin toddlers can easily understand and remember, such as “no lying”, “no fighting” and “picking up your books and toys when you are done”.

Wait It Out Even though many look at tantrums as a sign of being a bad parent, it is not. It is normal for a child to have tantrums. What is important is how parents respond to these tantrums. A child would usually stop his tantrum when he realizes that he will not get his desired attention regardless of the crying and fussing he does before his parents. If your child throws a tantrum because he didn't get his way, try waiting for the tantrum to be over before you re-spond. Remain as calm as you can while being firm and clear in your response to the child. Tell him why he is not given his choice in that circumstance, and try as best as you can to validate his emotions. For example, “I love you very much and I am sorry if you are mad. But we really have to

go home now, because it is almost bed-time. You cannot hit or throw things when you don't get your way.”

Divert AttentionSometimes redirecting their attention could be one of the more effective ways to manage their tantrums. Get them inter-ested in something else, such as one of his favourite activity before you plug them out from the play session at the playground or providing another toy if he upset that he has to stop playing the toys at his friend’s house. It may be tough to be consistent in your rules and constantly thinking about how you can manage his tantrums. But the payoff will be huge. Your child will learn how to wait and have self-control, to man-age his feelings and to cooperate with you. These lessons are necessary and beneficial to help your child learn to be responsible as he or she grows up.

Provide Options To ChooseI find that my firstborn displays more cooperative behaviours if he is given an option to choose – such as the snacks he wishes to take for tea or the activities he wants to do at home. It seems like he feels happier doing that activity when he owns and makes his own decisions. There will be lesser acting out and tantrums. Of course, only offer choices that you can live with. If there is something that is non-ne-gotiable that has to be done, such as going to school, provide him with options that he can choose such as the shoes he would like to wear that day, or the snacks he can bring to school.

Gratitude and Responsibility Encouraging your children to be thankful will help them to be appreciative of things that are provided for them and also not

take things for granted. They can be taught to say ‘thank you’ for little things such as receiving food or gifts. At the same time, we can also model the same behaviour by saying ‘thank you’ to them when they have rendered help to us at home or outside.

Secondly, helping them build a habit of saving for the things they want instead of indulging them readily, will help them to responsible and appreciate the things they have. By doing so, it grants them ownership to decide on the items they wish to buy and to save for – to consider what they already have, and if the desire is a need or a want. Through that, our children may learn to appreciate their parents more, for working hard to earn the money to meet their basic needs such as food and clothing.

Caring For OthersEducating our children on how their ac-tions will affect another person, will help them to become less egocentric and to consider others during their play time. Children who are often overtly indulged at home, may become possible bullies or spoiled kids at the public playground. As these children are so used to having their ways at home, they will continue that be-haviour outside, even at the expense of the others. Modeling compassion and kind-ness to your family and friends will give your children clues on how to behave too.

Do not set too many rules, as it can be over-

whelming and confusing for the child to remember

and follow.

Surrounding our chil-dren with people or role

models who are kind and caring will help them to

model compassion.

tip

tip


Is It Really Possible?

Parenting Without Punishment

Non-punitive parenting may be a whole new planet for most par-ents. The punitive approach is so pervasive especially in Asian cul-ture that it is almost natural be-haviour. Som yew ya explores this parenting method and clari-fies what does parenting without punishment really means.

What is non-punitive parenting?Non-punitive parenting uses posi-tive parenting to teach and guide children. It focuses on under-standing development and guiding through play, role-playing, mod-elling, equipping the child with resources to do better based on a strong relationship between par-ent and child. It is important who the parents are to the children and what the parents do to them. The most effective way to teach is to treat the children the way we want them to treat others. Hence non-punitive parenting steers clear of time-outs, spankings and conse-quences. This is not to be confused with limits.

What about time-outs, spankings and conse-quences?The above are surely effective in getting the child to respond the way you want one way or another. How-ever positive parenting offers some radical thoughts to them. Rather then leaving your child in a corner feeling angry and emotional (time-out), do time-ins by removing chil-dren from the situation and help to process emotions. With spanking, it may teach that it is ok to hit people. Through taking away things and giving consequences, what is being taught is that the children need to be ‘taught a lesson’. If you don’t lis-ten to Mummy, you deserve to not get this or that…

The basis of non-punitive parentingAccording to neuroscience, especial-ly before the age of six, children do not have full access to the frontal re-gion of the brain which handles logic, sequential thinking, self-awareness and self regulation. This is impor-tant information as neural pathways which are still being developed will affect the level of a child’s reaction to situations and management of a problem. Research shows that chil-dren who are punished misbehave more. They get angry and defensive and the reason for compliance is not due to understanding but to avoid

the consequence. Punishment dis-engages parents from their children. Therefore non-punitive parenting en-courages a focus on the mindful rela-tionship with the child; setting limits while being connected so that he or she can feel secure and accepted. This encourages the child to be in touch with his or her emotions and to inter-nalise what is being lived.

So how can we guide children without punishment? Here are 5 steps to ensure how:

1REGuLATE YOuR OWN EMOTIONS.

Don’t act out when you are upset –


for the parent


for the parent

usually you will end up doing some-thing you regret. If you need to calm down give yourself space.

2 HONOR FEELINGSWhen your child is fuelled by

something and very upset, refrain from lecturing (“Everyone is look-ing at you, shame shame!”) or rea-soning at this time. Don’t ask her to shut-up or lie ( “The policeman will come and take you away”) In-stead try to provide a calm bay for your child to express herself in your attentive presence. Express-ing emotions with a safe and ac-cepting parent helps the child to move through her feelings and learn to self-soothe. When she is calm, she will be more open to your guidance.

3 CHILDREN LEARN DIFFERENTLY

Routines help to give structure for a habit or learning something new. Start little by little, role modelling, showing how to do it, giving your child more and more responsibility each time. Make it fun with room for failure. Yelling or giving more work due to a failure simply teaches the wrong lessons.

4 CONNECT BEFORE YOu CORRECT

Nothing will go through if you are correcting without being connected to your child. You can squat down to the child’s level, encourage the child to express his kicking or biting in words, show empathy etc. “You are mad at Mummy because….”

5 SET LIMITS WITH EMPATHY

This means no “because mummy says so” kind of language. Be firm on lim-its but with acknowledgement of her perspective, this will facilitate the child’s understanding.

“You are very mad right now be-cause it’s time for bed, but we don’t kick or throw things when we are sad

or mad.”There are many more ways to par-

ent without punishment beyond the scope of this article. This may be a new school of thought for many and not easy to say the least, considering it is much easier and faster to pro-nounce a time-out or mete out a pun-ishment. How do you want your child to respond to you?


GrowinG Your MoneY

5 Different investment styles

1. aCtivE vS paSSivE managEmEntAn active management style means ac-tively selecting the stocks in the portfolio. Actively managed unit trust funds typi-cally have a full time staff of financial re-searchers and portfolio managers who are constantly seeking to gain larger returns for investors. This style typically incurs higher investment expenses.

Passively managed investors argue that many passive investments, over the long term (some empirical evidence suggests), outperform actively managed invest-ments. Passively managed unit trust funds, which do not require researchers, typically have a lower investment expense.

2. groWth vS valuE invEStingAfter deciding between actively or pas-sively managing your portfolio, the next question would be: growth investing or value investing?

Growth investing looks for compa-nies or stocks that have high earnings

growth rates, high return on equity, high profit margins and low dividend yields. These companies are often innovators in their industries and making lots of mon-ey (quickly). These companies typically reinvest most or all of their earnings to fuel their continued growth in the future (thus a lower dividend yield, as they are reinvesting the profits back into their own companies for more growth).

Value investing focuses on buying strong companies’ stock at a good price. Thus, we should look for low price to earnings ratio, low price to sales ratio and a higher dividend yield. Warren Buf-fet is a well-known proponent of Value Investing. He once said, “I'm 85% Benja-min Graham.” Graham is the godfather of value investing and introduced the idea of intrinsic value, the underlying fair value of a stock based on its future earning power. To understand more about the way Buffet invests, you may read this article at Investopedia.

So you have decided what you want to invest in, set aside spare funds and equipped with the ba-sics of investing. What’s next? Should you invest to build your portfolio? Which funds, stocks to choose? How much should you invest in bonds, equities, exotic investments? All these questions point to one thing - investment styles. financial Consultant tan ooi Sim winston shares with us five different styles.


finance

DiviDenDis a distribution of a com-pany’s profits to its share-holders. It is normally quoted in terms of dollar amount for each share an investor holds, e.g. 50 cents per share. Price to earnings Is a ratio to determine whether a company’s stock is “cheap” or “expensive” relative to its industry’s peers and historical ratios. A low price to earnings ratio means a better buy. The formula for the ratio is Stock Price divided by Earnings per Share. Earnings per share can be calculated by Past Year Profits divided by Num-ber of Shares.

Price to sales Is a valuation ratio that compares a company’s stock price to its revenues. A low ratio typically means a com-pany’s share price is underval-ued. The formula is Market Capital-ization divided by Total Sales. This ratio should be compared with other industry peers as well.


3. Small Cap vS largE Cap CompaniESAfter deciding the investment style from the above, next will be deciding if you should invest in small or large cap com-panies.

Some investors like small cap com-panies for their potential to deliver better returns as they have more room for growth and are more adaptable to change. However, these potential for greater returns also equal higher invest-ment risk. Also, the share prices of small cap companies are typically low but more volatile.

Large cap stocks are more suited for more risk-averse investors. They prefer

caP (Market caPitalisation)This is a measure of a company’s size. The number of shares or stocks a company has, multiplied by the share price. Large cap companies include Apple, General Electric, Exxon Mobile, Google, Microsoft.

these companies for their stability and size. Investors should expect lower re-turns, less risk and a higher but more sta-ble share price. Large cap stocks are also sometimes referred to as Blue Chips.

4. aSSEt alloCationThis style dictates that a certain percent-age of your investment portfolio must go to 3 asset classes: equities, bonds and cash equivalents over the long term


finance

to achieve a desired return. The portfolio asset classes (i.e. equities, bonds and cash) differ between dif-ferent risk appetites. Lower risk in-vestors will be asked to invest more in bonds, less in equities, and vice-versa for higher risk investors.

Proponents for this style quote that this style can provide stable long term returns.

This style is further subdivided to Strategic and Tactical Asset Al-location.

Strategic Asset Allocation is to take up a fixed-percentage of asset classes, based on your risk appe-tite and rebalancing your portfolio when some asset classes are out-performing others. Strategic Asset Allocation is also a Passive Invest-ment Style, i.e. “Buy and Hold”.

Tactical Asset Allocation is to allow for a range of percentages in your different asset classes, e.g. 40% - 50% in bonds. This style allows a small amount of market timing, since the investor can easily invest more of an asset class to maximise the asset class’ upper range of the allowable percentage if he feels that asset class is “cheap”.

5. Dollar CoSt avEragingDollar Cost Averaging, is an invest-ment strategy, that says you should invest in unit trusts or stocks of your choice on a fixed regular basis, e.g. monthly, quarterly, half-yearly or yearly, so as to maximise the upward and downward trend of the invest-ment market. Since investors will never know whether the price is high or low when they invest, this method works best to quell these fears.

The best form of Dollar Cost Averaging is daily! But in reality, daily averaging will not work. Fund management houses and stock ex-changes will probably give the in-vestor a weird chuckle if you ask them to invest daily. Reasons being high administrative costs, high en-try to invest (fund houses will typi-cally require you to invest at least S$1,000 per transaction). One can buy shares on a daily basis, but typi-cally it will be restricted to low cap stocks with low share prices, in the long run, this may be detrimental to that investor’s overall investment portfolio.

Hence, the next best form of Dollar Cost Averaging is monthly, which is why most fund manage-

ment houses have a monthly invest-ment plan available for retail inves-tors.

WhiCh iS thE BESt?Some clients have asked me, so which style is the best? There is no one best investment style in the world. If there is, everyone in the world will be following that style, and fund managers and I will be out of business. And I would like to re-iterate that investment and specula-tion are two different things.

Investment is defined as a mon-etary asset purchased with the idea that the asset will provide income in the future or appreciate and be sold at a higher price. Hence, investing is for the medium (5 - 10 years) to long term (more than 10 years). My advice for my clients typically is to invest for more than 10 years.

Speculation is typically for short term, typically less than a year, and is defined as an act of trading in an asset that has a significant risk of losing most or all of the initial capi-tal, in expectation of a substantial gain. Speculation typically has no long term strategy.

Most importantly, seek a pro-fessional financial planner’s ad-vice. They will be able to guide you through the investment styles and find one that suits you the most.

Got a question? Email Winston at [email protected]:http://www.investopedia.com/Chartered Financial Consultant Module 4: Investments and Invest-ment Planning

Every individual is unique with a different risk ap-

petite. Choose a style that suits you most, tweak it accordingly if it’s not

working and stick to it. In fact, some of my clients

even choose a mixture of styles - e.g. invest in more big cap companies and a few small cap companies

or vice versa.

The Largest Parenting Event to Raise Brighter and Happier Kids!

Rise & Shine 2014

Venue

Suntec Singapore

International Convention

& Exhibition

Centre Hall 401– 404

Date

22 – 24 August 2014

Time10.00am – 9.00pm

(22-23 Aug), 10.00am

– 8.00pm (24 Aug)

Websitehttp://2014.riseand-

shine-expo.com

Free admission


By: CryStal tan anD miChelle ang imageS: riSe & Shine

On a look out for fun workshops or engaging events your whole fam-ily can attend together? Rise & Shine is back this year - bigger and bet-ter than before! Don’t miss this one stop event of exploration, learning and fun. Here are 5 reasons why you should be there.

#1The ONLY parenting event and children fair

that caters to your child’s holistic development

Intellectual, physical, social, men-tal and medical - Rise & Shine 2014 covers it all. Find out more about your child’s growing years from 1 to 12 during the three day event.

#2More than 8,000 Premium Children

Education Programs and 180 Exhibitors

With 180 exhibitors showcasing more than 8, 000 premium educa-tional and enrichment programmes, toys, books, fashion, organic prod-ucts, and other services, you will be spoiled for choice!

#3 LEARN Something New

Not sure if junior will take a lik-ing to dance, yoga, music or the arts? Sign up for trial classes offered by the enrichment centres and allow them to explore and experience.

For parents, learn a tip or two from the experts - world renowned speaker, Dr. Peter Sears, together with education professionals from Modern Montessori International and Lorna Whiston Academy.

Details Parenting Workshops Friday, 22 Aug 201412.00pm – 3.00pm Suntec Convention Hall Room 300

What if my child is gifted?(Sold out!)By Ms Pamela Lim

Friday, 22 Aug 20143.30pm – 6.30pm Suntec Convention Hall Room 300Price: Single rate $15, Couple rate $20

The Benefits of montessori Education in the 21st centuryBy Mr Stephen John Dale & Ms Vicky Peng [Mod-ern Montessori International]

Saturday, 23 Aug 201410.00pm – 12.00pm Suntec Convention Hall Room 300Price: Single rate $15, Couple rate $20

The art of critical Thinking – how to raise critical thinkers By Anita Wilks & Helen Marjan

Saturday, 23 Aug 201412.30pm – 2.30pm Suntec Convention Hall Room 300Price: Single rate $25, Couple rate $35

mastering the art of attachment parenting: Bring out the best in babies and the best in the parentsBy Dr Peter Sears

Sunday, 24 Aug 201412.30pm – 2.30pmSuntec Convention Hall Room 300Price: Single rate $25, Couple rate $35

Raising smart and alSO well-behaved childBy Dr Peter Sears

Sunday, 24 Aug 20143.00pm – 4.30pmSuntec Convention Hall Room 300Price: Single rate $25, Couple rate $35

Raising smarter child: from birth to preschool (Sold out!)By Dr Peter Sears

events


#4 Meet With Disney Junior Stars

Expect lots of screaming and pa-parazzi moments as your children meet their favourite onscreen Disney Junior stars - Sofia and Jake in person!

#5 Up To 80% Worth Of Discounts

Shop at Rise and Shine 2014 to enjoy exclusive deals from top pre-schools and enrichment centres. PLUS! rSvP now and stand a chance to win an iPad mini and other great prizes when you shop at rise & Shine 2014. to rSvP, go to www.facebook.com/riseAndShineExpo/events

Register here today! to check out and register for children’s trial classes: htt p://2014.r i seand shine- ex po.com/trial-classesto register for parenting work-shops: htt p://2014.r i seand shine- ex po.com/parenting-workshops/

events


contest


+ 1 monthlY iSSuE Worth $129!

Attend a play session to find out more on how your child learns through play.

When: 12.00 noon | Every first Saturday of the month (2 Aug 2014,

6 Sep 2014, 4 Oct 2014)Where: 170 Upper Bukit Timah

Road, Bukit Timah Shopping Centre #03-17, Singapore 588179

To register or find out more, visit www.littleexplorers.sg/gameplayreg-

form.htmlemail: littleexplorers@seedinghut.

sg | Tel: 9843 3540

17 aug Queenstown Public Library Prog Zone2-3pm3-4pm

20 Sep Bukit Panjang Public Library activity room2-3pm3-4pm

Win a little Explorers Starter Kit

Want your child to be more culturally aware?

Little Explorers will be at the following library

book launches. Catch them there to find out

more!

If you would like to attend the above book launch and workshops, please register with the respective NLB libraries.

To take part, go to http://thenewageparents.com/contests/Contest ends 24 August | Terms and conditions apply.


Editor: Michelle Ang

ExPErtS: SBCC Baby & Child Clinic, SBCC Women’s Clinic, Thomson Paediatric Centre

(The Child Development Centre), Cryoviva Singapore, T32 Junior Dental Centre, LEAP SchoolHouse, Julia Gabriel Centre, Gymnademics, MindStretcher

Education Group, Nurture Education Group, Learning Vision & Tan Ooi Sim Winston

rEGULAr ContriBUtorS: Dorothea Chow & Som Yew Ya

ContriBUtor: Yvonne Chee

Art & Design

Art dirECtor: Michelle Ang

Marketing & Advertising

BUSinESS dEvELoPMEnt MAnAGErElaine Lau

Web Administration

wEB dEvELoPMEnt dirECtorSeow Poh Heng

If you wish to contribute to the magazine, we will love to hear from you.Do email us at [email protected]

For advertising enquiries, email us at [email protected]

While every care is taken in the production of the magazine, the publisher, editor and its team assume no responsibility for any inaccuracies and omission, which might arise. Opinions by the contributors

and advertisers are not necessarily those of the publisher and the editor. The articles in the magazine are for references only. If you have any queries on any health condition for you and your child, you should seek

professional medical advice.

editorial team

Documents

The New Age Parents Aug Sep 14