MY GYM @ Westgate

Kate has been bugging me for weeks to send her to school. Every morning, she gets into the car with #3 and #5 and nods her head enthusiastically saying, “Kate school?”. And after the other 2 are dropped off and we arrive back home, she will start crying and repeating forlornly, “Kate schoooool… Kate schoooool…” So when I told her she could finally go to ‘school’ at MY GYM, she was extremely excited. She wore her shoes, strapped on her bag and stood at the door waiting for me.

“Peace, mum”

She joined the Gymster class which is for kids 19 months to 3 years old. The class commences with about 5 minutes of free play for them to warm up and get settled in. Then everyone sits around the red circle for circle time. Teacher Liyana prepped me beforehand that on the first session, it is normal to expect any of these 3 reactions from the kids.

  • Crying
  • Clinging on to parent
  • Exploring the gym
I was quite certain Kate wouldn’t do the first 2, but was expecting her to wander around for most of the first lesson. I was pleasantly surprised to see that she wandered around only a little bit and participated fully the rest of the time. 5 minutes of free play wasn’t enough for her to finish exploring, so when Circle time started, she promptly ran off to have her own fun at the slide. Teacher Javier went over to her and gently guided her back.
Circle time
Next up was Practice skills, where we are shown skills to practice at home. Today teacher Liyana demonstrated how to facilitate their headstand. Kate was in the midst of walking towards the action and she stepped right up to the blue mat and became the model for today’s headstand.
Demonstrating a headstand
The following segment was Explore and Adventure. The tots walked on an intersection plank to work on their balance and to learn to wait and take turns.
Balancing
The next station was the trampoline, which helps to work on their agility. And of course, it is always heaps of fun for kids to bounce around.
We jump, jump, jump and we stop!
Next, they rigged up this really cool ‘flying carpet’ and the kids were assisted in walking across it.

The magic flying carpet
They also took out these portable swings which Kate absolutely loved. This is to get the kids used to the swinging motion and so that they won’t have a fear of heights. She kept asking to go “higher, higher” and squealed when I pushed her really high. Finally when it was time to say “bye bye” to the swings, she was upset and kept standing at the door to the storeroom and asking me to get it back out. I explained to her that she has to wait for next week, and teacher Javier distracted her by carrying her over to the ‘flying carpet’.
“Wheeee!”

We were almost at the end of the session and it was time for ‘Separation’. Parents were instructed to stay as far away as possible or even hide from the kids to gradually get them to reduce their separation anxiety. The kids sat on the blue mat and played with toys and sang songs.

“The babies on the bus go Waahh, Waahh, Waahh”

This boy is so adorable. He was really into it. For a moment I thought he was really crying. Then he suddenly burst into a giggle.

It was time for Manipulatives. Today’s object was the playground ball and they had to clench the ball between their thighs. Their imagination was stimulated by asking them questions, for example, “Is this a hat?” And Kate nodded! Haha.

The hour passed so quickly and soon it was time to sing the ‘bye bye song’. There was no doubt about it. Kate absolutely loves her school and can’t wait for next week!

MY GYM is a U.S. program with 30 years of experience in children’s fitness. Their classes are suitable for children from 4 months to 10 years. Classes are 1 hour long and fees are $468+GST for a 10-week term + $60 one time registration fee. If you are thinking of what to do for your child’s birthday, why not give them a call and find out more. Their Birthday Bash looks really exciting, and are specially catered to kids all the way from 1 month to 10 years old.

Sane tip: As I am home with Kate, I don’t want to enrol her in a full school program, but she needs some stimulation. So this is perfect for her. After her 1 hour class, she is all tired and goes home and has a nice long nap! Time for mummy’s siesta too 😉

Save tip: All gym programs come with 1 Free Open Gym per week during their term of enrolment. They are quite flexible with their make-up policy and up to 2 make-up lessons are allowed per term.

To see how Kate has progressed, here’s my review at the end of the 10 lessons.
Outlets islandwide:

Jurong East (Westgate)
Tel: 64659205

Tampines
Tel: 67897061

Marine Parade
Tel: 64409916

Rochester
Tel: 66849220

River Valley
Tel: 67335168

Ang Mo Kio
Tel: 65562145

Disclaimer: Kate was sponsored one term at MY GYM. All opinions are my own.

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