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Magical Marvelous Me! Camp – A review

While we are busy focusing on academics, we must not forget the emotional and character building aspect of our children. Here’s what Charlene, a mum with a P2 boy loved about The Little Executive’s Magical Marvelous Me! Camp.

Like most parents of a firstborn who’s recently entered the formal education system, I have been keeping my eyes peeled for a programme that would foster a positive attitude, an indomitable spirit that would rise to challenges instead of “saying die” and perhaps even some planning and organisational skills. At the same time, I was concerned about burdening my 7-year-old with yet more activities to his already punishing days.
Then I came across The Little Executive’s Magical Marvelous Me! Camp, which was to be held during the March school holidays. This camp is centred around Dr. Seuss’ inspirational book on life “Oh, the Places You’ll Go”.

I was sold – it would be a meaningful holiday activity without burden to his stretched school term schedule. He was thrilled – what a welcoming change to his routine of school!
“Today, you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.” – Dr. Seuss

Let our dreams soar
A Journey of Self-Discovery

The camp kicked off with a series of physical and team activities that seemingly served as ice-breakers but in reality, offered opportunities for the children to explore their personal qualities.

The games over, the children were led through their personal written reflections on their own strengths and qualities. I was pleasantly surprised to see the self-reflection of my 7-year old in his personalised camp journal.
·      Going Places through Goals
The children conducted a goal-setting exercise in their journals, with an added component of thinking and planning through the resources they needed to get there.
This is actually an important life lesson! While people set goals quite readily, even in the workplace, oftentimes they forget to consider the feasibility of these goals by not examining the required resources or what they have already going for them.
Part of goal-setting and the execution includes planning and prioritising which are pre-skills for young kids’ learning and development in other aspects of their lives, resulting in positive behaviours which they also exercise towards their families and other environments.
Taking stock of their resources would probably help the kids set realistic expectations and lessen any potential disappointment. That said, when this still fails and the kids are…
·      Losing track of the way
They learned to conduct self-monitoring first of all by examining and thinking through what would happen if they did not succeed.
Tied closely to this, the children learned how to manage their emotions as well should they not succeed. They each made their very own beautiful calming jar. Filled with glitter in a liquid suspension of their favourite colours, the gradual falling patterns in the jar would help the children to calm down whenever they are anxious or upset.
“Kid, you’ll move mountains! Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting. So get on your way!” – Dr. Seuss

Moving mountains through teamwork

The children were led in team activities like a treasure hunt and constructing and getting through a maze. These taught them invaluable lessons that many minds and hands are better than one, as success hinged on alternative ways of doing things, and splitting up the workload.
Precision and Accuracy

Craftwork such as building a hot air balloon develops their skills of paying attention to detail, planning and prioritising. They learnt to crack codes which taught them the need for precision and accuracy to get it right.
“And will you succeed? Yes! You will, indeed!” – Dr. Seuss  
Parent Presentation

Attending the culminating event for parents in the last hour of the camp – I had 3 indications that the children were taking forward strides to success.
·      Confidence, ownership, leadership
In a show and tell format, all the children – even the littlest ones aged 5 – recounted their experiences and shared what they have learned. And they did it with so much pride and gusto that I felt so proud of each and every one of them!
The children also served as guides, leading and cajoling parents around the maze that they built. There was a lot of joy and satisfaction as the children discussed strategies in handling the challenge of the maze.
Friendships forged

When it was time to leave, the children were all gathered in the doorway, unwilling to go. They took the time to arrange informal play dates. This is surely a sign of how well they got on with friends they had made over the short few days!

Putting it all into practice

When Term 2 started, I noticed my son applying his 3 P’s:

Persistence – He had a more positive attitude towards schoolwork and exams. Even when faced with a deluge of homework, I saw how he staunchly tackled the pile, to the point of falling asleep on the table twice within a week!

Problem-solving – One day he was all excited with his own creativity, telling me that he had organised some personal items by colour for easy differentiation.

Prioritisation – He started to think through his tasks and homework with new eyes and would share occasionally why he chose to do things in a certain manner. I realised then that he was mentally evaluating the worth of each task and putting them through a hierarchy of priority.
I wouldn’t say that his priorities or solutions necessarily align with mine, or that he is always on track with his focus. But I would like to think that all these skills learned could be refined given time and more practice!

“You’re off to great places! You’re off and away!”

The next run of Magical Marvelous Me! Camp (for K1-P3 kids) is on 30 May – 1 June 2018, 9am-5.30pm at The Little Executive, 144 Bukit Timah Road Singapore 229844 Tel: 69081889 / 84835354 Email: knockknock@thelittleexecutive.asia www.thelittleexecutive.asia

~ www.mummyweeblog.com – A blog on parenting 6 kids in Singapore ~
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Fun Holiday Camps

Our kids need more than just academic knowledge to thrive in a fast-changing world. They have to learn to work together as a team, be able to communicate their ideas confidently, think out of the box and come up with novel solutions.

 At The Little Executive, we create exciting holiday camps to give them real world learning and lots of opportunities to develop these crucial skills.


Mummy blogger Selena, mum of Asher says, “The kids have so much fun they probably didn’t realize how much they were learning.” Read her full review here.

 This June, the kids (3-10 years old) are spoilt for choice! From going on a Global Adventure, donning Little Chef aprons and whipping up gourmet meals, being cadets on an Astronaut Training mission to going on a Dino Discovery, they will find something to suit their interests.
Globe Trekker Camp

The kids will go on an Amazing Race, discover interesting facts about different countries and prepare for a global adventure. They will make simple maps and learn to read them, have a treasure hunt and solve puzzles using the knowledge acquired. They will also learn to be responsible travelers, including packing their own bags!

 Date: 29 May – 2 June 2017 (Mon-Fri)
Time: 9am – 5pm
Ages: 3 – 8 years old
Cost: $480
Little Chefs Camp

This is no ordinary cooking class, as we open their minds to what it entails to be part of a team of chefs. From the process of proper food storage (do you know why bananas are not kept in the fridge?) to getting them to understand how Math and Science are applicable in everyday life, to empowering them with a sense of purpose as a crucial part of a team where their contribution is important. The kids whipped up gourmet snacks each day such as strawberry cream cheese rolls, Mexican quesadillas and cinnamon rolls and the best part was, they polished everything up. On presentation day, parents were delighted to be served by their lil’ chefs!

 Date: 5-9 June 2017 (Mon-Fri)
Time: 2 – 5pm
Ages: 4 – 7 years old
Cost: $480
Practical P1 Prep

To get them ready for the big transition is not to pre-teach them content. Primary one teachers hope kids came to them prepared in areas such as:

  • Being able to copy accurately from the blackboard
  • Being able to read the timetable
  • Knowing how to pack their school bag properly and bring the right books
  • Being able to manage their emotions
  • Being able to handle money and buy food
  • Having a growth mindset so they are not afraid to take on challenges
We use role-play and hands-on activities to get the kids prepared in these essential skills and by learning these skills now they have ample time to practice them before going on to Primary 1.

 Date: 5 – 9 June 2017 (Monday-Friday)
Time: 9am – 5pm
Ages: K2 only
Cost: $480
Astronaut Training Camp
The kids will have a great time unleashing their creativity while building their own space shuttle, designing jet packs, making space slime and dehydrating space food on a mission to Outer Space! They will learn to work with precision as they repair space equipment and walk the constellation grid, like how mission control guides a team remotely. Lovely to see our cadets proud of their own achievements!

Date: 12-14 June (Mon – Wed)
Time: 9am – 5.30pm
Ages: 5-10 years
Cost: $580 (15% early bird discount before 31 May)
Dino Discovery Camp

 Your mini paleontologist will embark on a dino-dig, unearthing ancient dinosaur fossils and working together as a team to reconstruct a dinosaur skeleton. They will make their own dinosaur bones, discover how a real archaeologist site is organised and learn grid work; strategising in teams to develop skills such as spatial orientation, being flexible while working with constraints and learning to think ahead. Lots of action going on!

 Date: 19 – 23 June 2017 (Mon-Fri)
Time: 9am – 12pm
Ages: 3 – 7 years old
Cost: $480

Parents are invited for the last 30 minutes on the last day to see what the kids have been up to. There are a few slots left for each camp, and a special 10% discount for my readers – just quote Mummywee.

Videos of the activities carried out during the camps can be found here.

Email: knockknock@thelittleexecutive.asia
Tel: 69081889
Website: www.thelittleexecutive.asia
Tea break will be provided for half day camps.
Lunch and 2 tea breaks will be provided for full day camps.

 The Little Executive
144 Bukit Timah Road 
Singapore 229844
(Row of shophouses opposite Newton Circus)

~ www.mummyweeblog.com – a blog on parenting 6 kids in Singapore ~

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How I am preparing Kate to do school

Right from my eldest child, I’ve always believed in real learning, not just drilling them with content or making them good test-takers. I’ve come a long way in envisioning something beyond what our schools can offer and am now able to give kids that headstart at my enrichment centre.

Having Kate go through our programme, my insight into kids and learning has risen a notch! It is amazing how every child has different strengths and giftedness yet even the bright ones have their own unique learning issues.

In Janaury, Kate had The Executive Assessment (TEA) done and I expected her to score well as she speaks fluently and seems smart enough. However, I was surprised that her TEA score was 10 out of 21, and it was an eye-opener to discover her weak areas.

The Executive Assessment

I have sat through countless parent-teacher meetings with my 5 older kids but have never received a holistic assessment of their learning. In pre-school, feedback was usually about whether they were well-behaved (my 4 girls) or mischevious but creative (my son), and I would be updated about their reading and writing progress. In primary school, the focus would shift to their grades, on matters such as if homework was handed in on time and about their general behaviour.

On several occassions, teachers tell me, “Your child is smart, but if he can focus better/be more motivated, he will be able to reach his potential.”

But nobody tells us exactly how to do that!

With her assessment done, Teacher Jim was able to zoom in on her gaps and guide Kate to bridge them so that she can get the most out of whatever she is learning, both in school and in her other enrichment classes.

I found out that despite her chattiness and street smarts, she is not a strong learner and these are the foundational skills she needs to develop to prepare her well to cope with the demanding curriculum in primary school.

Increase her attention span: The most basic requirement to learn well is to have a good attention span to stay on task. She did not manage to complete some of the activities as she gets easily distracted by others or her mind will wander. The demands of K1 is increasing and she needs to concentrate well to absorb what is being taught in class. By disguising our activities as play, Kate happily undertakes them and manages to stay focused longer each time.

Train up her cognitive processes: In the animal stroop activity, they were instructed to say the colour of the animals in time to the metronome beat, but halfway through, she drifted from colour to name. With weekly practice, her processing speed and mental stamina will be enhanced and she can take on higher levels of difficulty.

Improve her working memory: Kate has no problems with her memory and can remember places we’ve been to and recall incidences, but I’ve never tested her working memory. Now that I’m aware it is weak, we need to tackle this if not in primary school, by the time she finishes reading the math problem sums, she would have forgotten what the question was asking for.

Develop her ability to self-monitor: After each activity, they are asked to reflect on how they had done and ways they can improve. Kate would gayly declare that she did fine even if she had gotten most of it wrong. I do love her positive and happy attitude though! Hopefully she will inculcate good habits of being able to check her own work and spot mistakes so that she does not need to constantly rely on her teachers (or me).

Growth mindset?
Develop a Growth Mindset: Sad to say, Kate has a fixed mindset and gives up easily. I assumed that since I have more of a growth mindset, so will my kids! Faced with a difficult activity, she simply said, “I don’t know. I don’t want to do it anymore” and refused to try. When Teacher Jim asked the kids, “Who is ready for a challenging round? Thumbs up if you are!” The other kids enthusiastically raised their hands, except for Kate. Finally she managed a half-hearted thumbs up, seeming to say fine, I will give it a go. Still, baby steps!

Term 1 has just ended and we’re heartened to see good progress in most areas. What’s more interesting is that Teacher Jim has unearthed some of Kate’s deep-seated habits and attitudes and is working on guiding her to un-do them.

She doubts her own ability and often cannot resist giving herself an advantage by peeking at others instead of thinking and being confident of her own answers. So much so that she has honed the skill of being able to copy discreetly. At 4?? Gasp. (And yes, I managed to catch a shot of her in action. I couldn’t quite believe my eyes.)

He also noticed that whenever a question is asked, Kate waits for others to answer and immediately follows and shouts out the answer as her own. No wonder we always thought of her as a smart child! Aware of this, he encourages Kate to think carefully and come up with an answer, to build up her confidence in her own ability.

Her strengths and weaknesses are clearer to me now and with awareness, I can work hand in hand with her teachers to guide her to reach her learning potential.

At times, I will hear her spontaneously chirp, “Don’t give up! Keep trying!” while sticking with a task and I can see the growth mindset slowly being internalised.

It will take time, but I’m glad she’s only 4 and already on the path of closing her learning gaps one by one and building a strong foundation of positive learning habits to excel in school.

Trial classes at The Little Executive are conducted every Saturday which includes The Executive Assessment.

Trials at $48
Suitable for N2-P2
1.5 hour session
Trial classes are parent-accompanied.

The Little Executive
144 Bukit Timah Road
Singapore 229844
(between Newton circus and KK Hospital)
www.thelittlexecutive.asia
Tel: 6908 1889
Email: knockknock@thelittleexecutive.asia

~ www.mummyweeblog.com – a blog on parenting 6 kids in Singapore ~
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Dino Discovery Camp @ The Little Executive

It has been a busy, busy week at my centre with our holiday camps in full swing. Our mini palaeontologists had so much fun learning about dinosaurs while working alongside their new teammates.

 We use themes which interest kids to teach a wide range of skills necessary for school such as cognitive flexibility, creating reasonable hypothesis, conditional reasoning, as well as life skills such as problem-solving, being a team player, and having the ability to communicate their ideas well.
Enthusiastic paleontologists

Several kids who enjoyed our previous Astronaut Training Camp joined us again and were delighted to see their ex-camp mates.

 The happiest little kid was Kate, who could jump into the car with me in the mornings instead of hearing me say, “Bye, mummy has to go to work now.”

Delighted to be in mummy’s school

A wide range of sensory activities are carried out in our camps as these naturally encourage children to explore scientific processes, such as making predictions and observations and developing analytical skills. A further benefit is that children retain the most information when they engage their senses in experiential learning.

Squishy squashy mud

In our Dino grid game, the kids were split into 2 teams, and the carnivores had to catch the herbivores. Similar to a chess game, they have to think ahead and strategize so as not to be ‘eaten’. They make decisions as a team, directing their player on the grid. We had several frightened little herbivores, afraid to be ‘eaten’ by the carnivorous dinos!

Strategy game
We go to great lengths to make learning come alive and everything we do in the classroom has a real world example. For example, by examining the size and shape of the footprints, the children were able to deduce which dinosaur it came from.
Field notes
Our mini palaeontologists learned how fossils were formed over millions of years and had a chance to make fossil imprints in ‘mud’. This enabled them to understand how real life paaleontologists deduce information based on incomplete evidence.
Fossil imprints

There were lots of hands-on activities to keep them engaged and it was lovely to see some of the kids move from being fearful of getting their hands dirty with sensory work to enjoying the experience with their friends. Kate does plenty of baking at home with me and she gleefully dugged in with both hands to shape her dino eggs.

Hiding dinos in their eggs

And… viola! Some tails were peeking out!

DIY dino eggs
In our speculation exercise “If I lived with the Dinosaurs…” they were guided on deductive reasoning and encouraged to use their imagination. This is a fun way for a child’s executive functioning skills to be challenged (critical thinking, flexibility, planning) because they need to figure out their priorities to survive. 

Scenarios were discussed, and they were prompted to think further – “how would you catch your fish?” or “how would you find food if you are not going to come out of your cave at all?” I loved reading the different answers! Simply adorable, what these kids come up with.
Creative writing

The older kids worked together to consolidate the various activities they have been doing by creating a pre-historic scene. Judging by the laughter coming from the rooms, they seemed to be having a great time with their new friends.

Our P1s

Our N2s created their own dinosaur world which they were all so proud of. Kate was the last to finish her work as she was so meticulous. Look at her serious face.

Their pre-historic world

They were taught the grid system, which is a typical way a fossil grid site is organized. This enables palaeontologists to record the horizontal and vertical positions of the excavated fossils and artifacts.

For children, grid work is important in developing their visual tracking skills, spatial orientation and perspective taking, all of which are important for the classroom and beyond. Most of all, they get all excited when they manage to dig up a bone!

Grid work

Parents were invited for the last 30 minutes on the last day to see what the kids had been up to, and it was a first for many parents to watch their kids do a show-and-tell. We had a lot of shy kids this round, and it was wonderful to see them have the courage to stand up there in front of so many parents, even though some of the N2s could only manage a whisper. Great effort, kids!


 It was extremely heartening to see many dads come in during their lunch hour to be involved in their children’s lives. The mums relegated the job of cracking the hardened eggs to the dads and you could see the glee on the kids’ faces when the eggs finally broke!

Daddies in the house

We had such a great time with these little darlings and everyone was sad that the camp has come to an end.

Our graduating Palaeontologists

It has been an amazing few weeks working alongside my team of passionate teachers, with the common goal of making the camp enjoyable and meaningful for the kids. As exhausting as it was, seeing the kids have fun, open up, and learn so well over the 4 days is the reward in itself. Probably something only educators can relate to!

TLE team

1 camp down, 2 more to go. Our P1 Prep camp starts tomorrow and I’m certain the kids will have a swell time running their mini ‘tuck shop’ and learning strategies to get them ready for the big transition.

Our last camp for the year will be the Astronaut Training Camp and there are a few remaining slots so let your little ones join us for a unique space mission they will not forget!



The Little Executive
144 Bukit Timah Road
Singapore 229844
Tel: 69081889
Email: knockknock@thelittleexecutive.asia

~ www.mummyweeblog.com – a blog on parenting 6 kids in Singapore ~


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A new era in Education

Ever since starting my enrichment centre 3 months ago, the focus of my days have taken on a new dimension. Besides seeing to the needs of my kids, I’m immersing myself in rich research and surrounding myself with other people’s children. Life couldn’t be more enriching!

During our September holiday Astronaut camp, I was hanging around making sure everything ran smoothly. Even though I wasn’t teaching them, the kids came up to me with comments and questions.

 I was drawn in and became more and more involved, as it was impossible to resist these innocent faces and incessant questions, and found myself thoroughly enjoying being with them.

As an incidental discovery, I’ve found the answer to a contradiction which had baffled me for years. At every PTM, my daughters’ teachers would tell me how well-behaved they are, what a delight it was to teach them, and all of them won model student awards.

 Yet at home, they came nowhere close to this brilliant picture painted and the hubs and I concluded that they had the Dr Jekyll-Mr Hyde syndrome.

 Now that I’m on the other end, I tell parents what a pleasure it was to have their child with us, how well-behaved and well-mannered they were, and the parents are surprised and divulge that such is not the case at home.

 Ah! I’m concluding that children know how to be on their best behaviour in front of teachers they like. I had some of the P1 and P2 girls coming in half an hour before camp started because they wanted to see if there was anything we needed help with. Such sweet darlings. It is such a joy to teach other people’s children! I’m one of those mums who find it impossible to teach my own kids. Tempers will flare and the relationship risks being ruined, so I don’t even try anymore.

What’s that machine?

When you have a bunch of riveted, absorbent minds watching you (notice how Kate is the only one not bothered with me) knowing that what you say and what you do will have a great impact on them, that knowledge and responsibility is at once astounding yet humbling.

 Of all the sayings I’ve come across about teaching, this one struck me greatly.

 “To teach is to stand on hallowed ground.”

How sacred. We have the potential to mold hearts and minds.

Memory work
Children at every age present so much for us to marvel at. The pure emotions of the little ones, the wide eyes and the quick smiles. The inquisitive minds of the older kids and their desire to do their best. Facilitating them, encouraging them to work together, to go beyond their comfort zone, seeing them grow in a short span of a few days, there was a tangible reluctance all around when it was time to part.

 Besides the holiday camp, Kate has been following me down to my centre and she enjoys the weekly classes. Although I wish our team could churn out curriculum fast enough to include #4 and #5, I’m glad that at least 1 of them gets to benefit from this whole new approach towards learning.

 After 10 years of disappointment at our education system for being mostly concerned with teaching to the test (although now I understand the constrains), and believing that there must be more that can be done to impart real education to our children alongside content delivery, I am finally heartened to discover that there is a way, and we can bring that to a new generation of children.

 In the process, I have been learning a lot (embracing life-long learning!), reading voraciously, and picking the brilliant minds around me. My dear partner, Michelle, never fails to inspire me with her passion and dedication towards the development of children, and her generosity of mind to share with us her special gift of deciphering every child’s learning needs and identifying how gaps can be closed and potentials stretched, so that as a team, everyone grows along and becomes strengthened as educators.
Patterning activity

Our activities may look random, but each activity is backed by scientific research and careful thought has been put into designing it for the best learning outcomes, while disguising it as play as that is the form kids learn best.

 Take for example this activity at last week’s session, where Kate was developing her sequencing skills. It might look simple, but patterning and sequencing is such a critical skill. By encouraging kids to spot patterns, they can create and use patterns to make sense of the world where there is none; by providing order in chaos.

 All about patterns. Patterns are one of the first ways we see predictability, hence allowing us to make educated guesses. In school, patterns are essential for Math (basic patterns), Science (life cycles), English (reading) and social relationships (cause and effect), to highlight simple examples.

 Do you know that out of all mental skills, pattern recognition is said to have the highest correlation with general intelligence? Imagine that.

Ever wondered why IQ tests and the GEP tests are full of patterning questions?

 Although patterning is taught in school, here it is taught as a skill, instead of being part of a subject.

 Therein lies the difference. As such, our children understand that patterns exist in an infinite number of situations, vis a vis being exclusive to a particular subject. They also come to the realization that their actions can affect and impact patterns, and create or break them. Powerful realizations.

 The problem in schools is that we teach too specifically, hence students are not able to apply theories across subjects and their knowledge does not expand past the classroom walls.

 Mastering pattern recognition requires persistence and practice, and the younger the child starts, the better. Experts go so far as to predict that the younger the child is able to observe patterns in his environment, the stronger their future thinking skills will be. (I’m going to expect great things from Kate!)

Besides that, with each activity, not only are we developing the essential skills, we incorporate positive learning habits and encourage a growth mindset; core tenets of our approach. Kate’s teacher noticed that whenever she is presented with a task which she found challenging, she would use avoidance tactics and ask to go to the toilet or ask for permission to look for me (what a convenient excuse).

 Her teacher makes a conscientious effort to guide Kate to adopt a different approach to facing challenges, and by gradually building up her confidence and sense of achievement by small successes while praising her efforts, Kate will be on the path to a more positive learning attitude.

Analogies worksheet

When Kate moves on to K1 next year, she will work on analogies, which is more than just an advanced form of patterning.

What is analogical reasoning? Analogical reasoning is one of the quickest way we learn new concepts and make sense of things by comparing them to what we already know. It is a core cognitive skill that contributes to general fluid intelligence, creativity and adaptive learning capacities.

 In fact, studies have proven that analogical reasoning is a significant predictor of mathematical reasoning. Thus we can think of these as the building blocks for a strong foundation in academic studies. More compellingly, analogical reasoning may help students become more innovative, adaptive and intelligent; qualities our children require to forge ahead in future.

I don’t know if this fascinates you, but the fact that there are activities which can be done and approaches which can be applied to shape our children’s brains and learning in such a powerful way, simply blows me away.

 It is as though I have uncovered some hidden treasures that I have almost lost hope searching for. The more I am discovering, the more I want to delve deeper, and the journey is doubly exciting with a team of like-minded educators as we deconstruct findings and reflect on the processes.

 Looking back on how my life has unfolded, there were times when I was in two minds about whether to go back to work as an occupational therapist or become a stay-at-home-mum and relatives talked about how my overseas education was ‘wasted’ as I stayed home to care for my 6 kids. Fortunately, my parents were 100% behind me and never once complained.

 On hindsight, education is never ‘wasted’ and coupled with the experience and wisdom gained through my parenting journey, I am where I am today, and although never planned, it feels so right doing what I do, and everyday I am energised and ready to go! Life has turned out marvellously.

I have also had the opportunity to meet some of my readers and work with their children, and that has been wonderful as well.
More: Reviews of our holiday camp.

~ www.mummyweeblog.com – a blog on parenting 6 kids in Singapore ~