Performing Arts consist of a broad range of activities that include any form of artistic expressions that is performed in front of an audience. This field includes the presentation of original works of Music, Dance, and Theatre. Performing Arts take many forms; they can be found in theatres, concert halls, all social media such as television and radio stations and increasingly in education now.

Although there are common elements in all Performance Art, such as acting or singing, each form has its own unique characteristics. The three basic types of Performing Arts are:

1.  Drama – The art of acting out a story, usually through speech and movement. Drama is designed to tell a story and is most often performed on stage. It has been around for centuries and is one of the oldest forms of performing arts.

1. Dance – This art form is characterised by movements rather than images or words. Dancers use their bodies, costumes and props to express ideas about themselves and the world around them through movement alone.

1. Music – The art of creating and performing music is one of the oldest forms of performing arts.

Are performing arts beneficial for children?

As a parent, you may be wondering how Performing Arts can benefit your child and the multitude experiential learning each child can achieve.

Performing Arts offer an opportunity for children to self-express creatively while developing important skills such

as Self-Confidence, Teamwork and Discipline. Below are some benefits from participating in Performing Arts.

Enhanced Creativity and Self-expression

Performing Arts allow children to express themselves creatively and develop good imagination skills. Through

acting, dancing, singing, and other forms of Performing Arts, children can explore different forms of emotions and types of characters.

Building Confidence and Self-esteem

Performing in front of an audience is not an easy task for everyone, but it can also be a great confidence booster

over time. Children who participate in Performing Arts gain self-confidence and self-esteem by developing their skills and receiving feedback from their mentors and peers.

Encouraging Teamwork and Collaboration

Performing Arts also help children develop important social skills such as communication and collaboration by working together on projects and learning how to give each other constructive feedbacks in order to improve their performances.

Discipline and Focus

Learning a dance routine, memorising choral lines, or practising any type of sporting or musical instrument

requires discipline and intense focus. By participating in Performing Arts, children develop the important skills

that can help them in many other areas of their lives, such as schoolwork and sports.

An outlet for emotion

With EQ stationed in place, children are able to use their bodies and voices to translate and express their feelings

through dance or drama classes. They are then able to work through those emotions more effectively. These also provide another opportunity for teacher to do student counselling when needed.

Cultural Understanding

Through Performing Arts, children can learn about different cultures and traditions. This can help them develop a greater appreciation for diversity and a broader understanding of the world around them.

Performing Arts Programme at Kingsley

The Performing Arts Programme at Maple Leaf Kingsley International School encourages children to participate in dance, drama and music clubs as a part of STEAM education.

From boosting their creativity and confidence to developing imagination and empathy, the skills students learnt in our Performing arts programme prepares them for the different stages of life. These set the tone for life-long learning.

ML Kingsley integrates speech and drama into almost every English lessons for our primary school students. Students learn about body language, facial expressions, acting and intonation, enabling them to sit for Trinity College London examinations in drama.

Every year, ML Kingsley opens its doors to families and extended families of our students for events and special functions. Click here to learn more about the extracurricular activities at Kingsley or ask us more about our events!

Have you ever asked yourself what success looks like? How do you measure success?

Success presents itself differently to a diverse group of people – it could be the ability to speak fluently in multiple languages, play musical instruments beautifully, or even score exemplary grades in school.

At Kingsley, we underscore the importance of recognising each individual’s potential. By acknowledging the different potentials, we aim to set children up for success!

“You’ll never change your life until you change something you do daily. The secret of your success is found in your daily routine.” – John C. Maxwell

Being a successful student is not just about intelligence or talent; it’s about developing effective habits that can lead to academic excellence and personal growth.

The popular belief of success being determined by natural abilities contradicts the ongoing argument of “nature vs nurture” – one can be successful so long as the right habits are being developed.

So how does one make these small changes to improve quality of life? It’s important to identify one habit at a time and make it part of one’s daily routine.

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Let’s explore some key habits that successful individuals cultivate, and how these seemingly small changes can have a profound impact on their lives.

Manage time

“The key is in not spending time, but in investing it.” — Stephen R. Covey

Time management is crucial in success. It’s a valuable commodity that cannot be exchanged for anything else except for invaluable moments that define the person we choose to become.

What does a typical day look like for a student at Kingsley?

Our children start bright and early – we encourage them to make the most of their time in school and lead by example.

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The children are provided with a timetable, designed to maximise their learning experience which include:

Core subject learning & lessons
Elective subject lessons
Revision time
Extracurricular activities
This curated schedule ensures that each child is given the opportunity to build on their potential while teaching them about the value of time well spent.

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Our students are also encouraged to create their own schedule or to-do list, breaking down assignments and study sessions into manageable chunks. By allocating specific time slots for different activities, they are able to accomplish more and put off less urgent tasks.

They also set realistic deadlines for themselves, completing their work well ahead of time so that they can revise and improve it, while slotting in ample time to rest and recover.

Set goals

“The trouble with not having a goal is that you can spend your life running up and down the field and never score.” —Bill Copeland
Feeling lost? It’s okay.

That feeling is completely normal, but it should not hinder children from achieving milestones and recognition for their accomplishments.

Our teachers and staff consistently strive to ensure that each lesson, activity and interaction with students is significant–by demonstrating the purpose.

The meaningful outcome goes to show how crucial it is for students to create objectives that they want to achieve.

Goals provide direction for their studies and help them focus on specific areas of improvement. Each assignment is broken down into manageable chunks and is scheduled in their agenda for completing each step.

This helps them avoid procrastination and stay on track with their work.

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Learn to focus

“The shorter way to do many things is to only do one thing at a time.” – Mozart

Studies at Stanford University have shown that multitasking is less efficient than focusing on a single task at a time.

In order to be successful, focusing on one task at a time is paramount to productivity and learning. This allows them to complete an assignment without interruption and make the most of their time.

Focusing also has multiple benefits which include:

Improved Quality of Work
Increased Productivity
Better Time Management
Enhanced Concentration
Reduced Stress
Improved Memory Consolidation
Enhanced Decision Making
Increased Job Satisfaction
Effective Communication
Reduced Mental Fatigue
Children benefit from the outcome and learn to understand that distractions can derail them from achieving their goals and must take measures to avoid these distractions.

This might mean turning off their cell phones when they are studying, or taking a break from their routine and going for a walk.

Find Your Motivation

“All our dreams can come true — if we have the courage to pursue them.” – Walt Disney

Apart from a goal, motivation is the fuel that keeps us moving forward. It drives students to continue working on a task even when they don’t feel like doing it.

Children are capable of self-motivation by contemplating the rewards of finishing a task, such as the feeling of accomplishment, getting good grades in tests or the knowledge that something important has been attained.

Self-care and balance

“There’s nothing more important than our good health – that’s our principal capital asset.” – Arlen Specter

ML Kingsley International School recognises the importance of well-being and self-care. We nurture our students by providing them with love, care and guidance, while instilling the independence of self-care within themselves as well.

Successful students recognise the significance of self-care and maintaining a healthy balance between academic commitments and personal well-being.

What does a balanced schedule look like?

The children prioritise:

getting enough sleep
eating well
engaging in regular exercise
These habits all contribute to improved focus, productivity, and overall mental and physical health.

They also make time for hobbies, relaxation, and spending quality time with family and friends, recognising the importance of a well-rounded life.

Enriching the lives of our students

At Kingsley, we believe that academic success is not solely dependent on natural intelligence or talent. It requires a commitment to developing good study habits and daily routines. Our holistic curriculum ensures that each student acquires a range of skills and knowledge, including academic, social and emotional competencies. With a strong foundation in these areas, students are more likely to be successful in school and beyond.

Students can choose from a wide range of subjects, finding ample opportunities to develop real-world skills as they learn and grow in a global community. We design our lessons to be interactive and engaging. We help our students achieve their educational goals by using innovative teaching methods such as discussions, pair work, presentations, debates/dialogues and hands-on activities.

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We also encourage our students to participate in extracurricular activities, such as clubs, sports, and community service. These activities not only help students develop essential skills such as leadership, teamwork, and communication but also provide them with a well-rounded experience where they can explore their interests outside the classroom.

At Maple Leaf Kingsley International School, we encourage students to think independently and tackle challenges with confidence. This is why we believe in the importance of a holistic education that goes beyond just academics. Our students are encouraged to explore different aspects of their lives, develop their skills and interests and ultimately become well-rounded individuals who can contribute positively to society.

Learn more about our curriculum today!

Nestled in Mont Kiara, Kuala Lumpur, Odyssey’s pedagogy is the belief that every child is unique and has their learning style and pace. 

Inspired by the best practices from the United States, United Kingdom, Reggio Emilia in Northern Italy, and Malaysia’s National Preschool Education system (KSPK), Odyssey The Global Preschool provides a Reggio Emilia-inspired campus fully-equipped for self-directed and exploratory learning.

Odyssey is a true international preschool that offers a curriculum tailored to the needs and interests of each child. We foster a collaborative educational structure that centres around the child as an engaged and capable learner whilst recognising the environment as the third teacher. 

More than a preschool, we serve as a hub for research and education, where we develop innovative and globally recognised teaching curricula to create a distinctive Odyssey experience. This personalised approach ensures that children are engaged, motivated and stimulated in their learning.

What is the personalised approach to education at Odyssey?

The Reggio Emilia approach regards children as essential community members who are active, capable, and valuable. The approach promotes exploration, questioning, and interpretation of the world during the crucial first five years of life. This creates a strong foundation of experiences that will allow each child to achieve their full potential.

#1. Celebrating Diversity

At Odyssey, children learn about different cultures, languages and customs through various activities and experiences. For example, they may celebrate different cultural festivals, learn to cook international cuisine, or participate in language classes like our Chinese Language Immersion Programme. These activities allow children to better understand the world around them and develop empathy for people from different backgrounds.

 

#2. Fitness Fun: Outdoor Learning Experience

Outdoor learning experiences play a significant role in shaping the holistic development of our young children. We recognise that outdoor play and exploration are essential for nurturing children’s curiosity, creativity and physical skills. 

With this in mind, we designed an outdoor learning environment that provides children ample opportunities to explore the natural world and engage in hands-on learning activities. 

Outdoor learning activities at Odyssey, The Global Preschool, are made to support various areas of development. For instance, physical activities such as jumping and running help to promote gross motor skills and physical fitness. 

Meanwhile, exploratory activities like observing insects or watching plants grow foster children’s natural curiosity. These activities might seem simple, but they profoundly impact children’s development. When they look at insects, they learn about the world around them. They might see how ants work together to build their homes or how pretty a butterfly’s wings are. They’ll start to understand how all the different living things, like bugs and plants, are connected and how they help each other to survive.

 

#3. Art Odyssey: Embark on an Artistic Adventure

It’s no secret that young children have a natural affinity for creating art, but did you know just how important these activities are during the early years? Engaging in art encourages children to explore, interact with their environment and learn how things work.

Each Odyssey campus has a dedicated Art Specialist who guides the children to explore their creativity using various tools and media and, often, through the inspiration of certain artists.

But creativity doesn’t just happen in the Atelier. We have many avenues to promote creativity. For example, our Little Chef Day event encourages children to explore their culinary skills and creativity by making their dishes while learning about nutrition and healthy eating habits. 

In Colours of Odyssey, children express themselves through a myriad of media and techniques, including painting, drawing, and sculpting, while exploring the world of colours and hues. These events are showcases where our children express themselves in novel ways and develop essential skills like collaboration, communication, problem-solving and critical thinking.

 

#4. Music Odyssey: Discover New Sounds and Rhythms

More than the joy of music and developing a rhythm, music is an essential part of children’s brain development. When children listen to music, the neurons in their brains make connections, improving their ability to learn and process information.

Designed to introduce children to music and help them develop a love for rhythm and melody, Music Odyssey introduces children to a wide range of musical genres, instruments and cultures worldwide.

They learn the elements of music, such as tempo, dynamics and pitch, through singing and percussion. As they progress through the programme, they are introduced to new instruments such as ukuleles, keyboards and drums. This helps to broaden their understanding of music and its role in different societies and provides them with an appreciation of diversity and cultural differences.

Ready to enrol your child? Join us for a school tour to discover the Odyssey difference. Your child’s best start in life starts here.

 

No doubt, rapid brain and skill development plays an essential role in the growth phase of children aged below five. A stimulating environment should be provided for young children to play and learn, ensuring optimal development. Thanks to playgroups, toddlers and young children can now enjoy various early learning experiences. Using play as a learning tool has become a crucial approach to enhance student engagement, inclusivity, and overall skill development beyond preschool.

Policymakers, researchers, and educators advocate for learning through play, considering it developmentally appropriate. This approach taps into the natural curiosity of school-age children, making the transition from preschool to school smoother. Vygotsky (1978) emphasised the significant impact of play on child development, fostering speech, cognitive processing, self-awareness, and self-regulation.

Playgroups are an informal set up that incorporate learning basic skills in children. Besides allowing your little ones to gain knowledge about the world around them, playgroups also provide an opportunity for parents and caregivers to exchange childcare ideas and experiences. Here are more reasons why children should join a playgroup in Singapore.

1. Improves social skills

Playgroups offer a safe environment for children to improve social skills, emotionally backed by parents or caregivers. Your little ones are given the chance to interact with their peers when joining playgroups, allowing them to negotiate, share thoughts and resolve conflicts amongst themselves. Through interactive play, children can also gain empathy and compassion. They will learn how to take turns while participating in certain activities, as well as being tolerant with their peers. As a result, children can effectively form friendships and manage their peer relationships. A recent study by Frontiers In Psychology highlighted peer acceptance is positively associated with future academic competence and lifelong satisfaction.

2. Promotes cognitive and linguistic development 

There are a wide variety of tailored core programmes to key learning aspects covered by most playgroups, such as music, literacy, language, etc. Schoolhouse by Busy Bees’s preschool centres provide playgroups involving music-integrated curriculum to promote children’s cognitive growth through categorisation, which covers identification of sounds and grouping of instruments.

3. Develops self-discipline

It is often easy to enforce discipline among children through punishments and rules. However, making children understand the importance of self-discipline is more effective in the development process. This is when playgroups come in handy. Featuring routine activities that instil a sense of familiarity in children, playgroups help your little ones possess a sense of self control, contributing to self-discipline development. In addition, children will be comfortable with the daily routines arranged for their playgroups, allowing them to perform certain activities at a particular time, resulting in good time management. 

Professor Richie Poulton, leading the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study, emphasises a vital skill for kids: self-control. While not the only factor for success, it’s a valuable focus. Recognising self-control in children involves observing their ability to sit still, concentrate, follow instructions, persevere, and avoid impulsive actions. The beauty of self-control is its teachability. Educators can use strategies like modifying common games to highlight self-control elements. Developing this skill, involving regulating emotions and persistence, directly relates to future success, according to Poulton.

4. Develops independence

More kindergartens in Singapore offer playgroups nowadays, fostering greater independence and the development of physical and social skills. Playgroups also promote self-help skills and engage children in play and exploratory activities, empowering them to develop confidence, autonomy and a positive sense of self. 

The Schoolhouse by Busy Bees emphasises on inquiry-embedded play based approach. In this context, children are encouraged to make decisions independently through thought-provoking learning experiences. For instance, they are given the freedom to choose a toy to play with. This develops their decision-making skills from an early age, promoting greater independence. When faced with challenges, they learn to think critically, analyse situations, and find solutions on their own, preparing them for a world beyond the classroom.

In today’s context, the significance of play within social groups is often overlooked, yet it plays a pivotal role in shaping future readiness. The Schoolhouse firmly believes in the profound impact of taking play seriously and approaching it with intentionality. Our commitment lies in preparing children for future success. The meticulous design of our programmes and the facilitation methods are all tailored towards the overarching goal of nurturing children for a successful future. 

Looking for quality pre-school curriculum and childcare in Singapore? Contact us now for more information. 

Selecting a preschool is a crucial decision for parents, as a child’s initial 10 years serve as a pivotal period for acquiring essential social, emotional, creative, and academic skills that form a sturdy foundation for their future. Life skills, rooted in executive functions, amalgamate social, emotional, and cognitive abilities crucial for problem-solving and goal achievement.

Providing life skills and opportunities for children to succeed in all developmental fields, kindergarten enables children to become confident learners under a conducive and supported environment.  It also serves as a key learning foundation for your little one in their upcoming academic journey, fostering their growth and development through play and interaction. Wondering what your children will learn as part of the typical kindergarten curriculum? Read this article to gain a better understanding.

1. Literacy Skills

Upon preschool registration, it is best for you as a parent to identify what your child will learn in kindergarten. Letters and sounds are the fundamentals for writing, reading, and speaking correctly, laying a solid foundation for children’s literacy skills. They are usually taught in a fun and approachable way, ensuring that your child can recognise all 26 letters of the alphabet, in both capital and small letters. By the end of the lesson, your child should be able to pronounce each letter correctly.

You may also read to your children at home, further encouraging the adoption of this good habit. During reading sessions, your children naturally encounter unfamiliar words that may not arise in everyday conversations. This exposure plays a pivotal role in enriching their language skills. Furthermore, reading time helps them to grasp basic concepts associated with books and printed materials, including identifying elements such as the title, author, and illustrator of a picture book. This heightened awareness of the formation of words from letters and language structure boosts your child’s language and literacy skills.

On the other hand, writing simple words by understanding consonants and vowels will be taught to your children in kindergarten. As they gain confidence in forming words, children progress to writing short sentences composed of these simple words. These sentences are usually very basic and revolve around everyday experiences. At The Schoolhouse by Busy Bees, our Real World programme empowers children to grasp fundamental reading and writing skills through daily experiences and observations. This establishes a solid foundation, fostering their ability to communicate confidently with both peers and adults. 

2. Numeracy Skills 

Before beginning with simple maths, students at kindergartens in Singapore will first be taught to recognise, count and write objects up to a specific number, for instance, 20. After familiarising with the numerals, kindergarteners will learn simple addition and subtraction with small numbers. Meanwhile, some parents practise counting with their child at home, in order to help them achieve their kindergarten goals. At kindergarten, children are also taught to tell time. It is vital for children to grasp the basic concepts of time through their daily activities, such as going to school at 7am, having dinner at 6pm, and sleeping at 9pm. This enables them to determine the time of day-to-day events to the nearest hour. 

3. Motor Skills and Spatial Awareness

Kindergarten curriculum will also include identification of common shapes like circle, rectangle, triangle and square. Your child will learn to differentiate each shape and be able to describe them. This eventually helps them to sort and classify objects by shape, size, and colour.  Recognising and describing shapes involves activities such as drawing, tracing, and manipulating objects. The process requires precise hand-eye coordination and control, which are fundamental aspects of fine motor skills. Generally, children are encouraged to organise their toys during a lesson. For instance, they may need to collect same-size blocks into a pile, or arrange Legos by colours.

No doubt, lessons taught in kindergartens pave the way for your child’s future learning journey. In addition, the role of “play” at an early age should not be underestimated as well. The Schoolhouse by Busy Bees is well aware of how a good programme should encapsulate opportunities for growth through play and fun activities. That is why an inquiry-embedded play based approach has been established. We believe that through play, children observe, explore, and eventually be inspired to ask, wonder, and find solutions when they encounter a problem, boosting critical thinking from a young age. On the other hand, there are also distinctive learning programmes available at The Schoolhouse by Busy Bees, such as the Maker House and Musical Tankers, preschool enrichment classes, which are equally beneficial for your child.

The Schoolhouse by Busy Bees operates 17 preschools and 5 infant care centres in Singapore. We are always ready to deliver a joyful learning experience for your children to realise their fullest potential. Give us a call today if you wish to nurture your little one to become a global minded citizen in this 21st century.