Our Preparation for Primary One - Part 1

In Singapore, going to Primary school is a major milestone that not only involves the child but also the parents and a whole lot more for some.  It is no longer a simple procedure of registering your child with the neighbourhood primary school 6 months before year end, wait patiently and excitedly for the school term to open in the new year and start a new journey in the school.

A search on the web and you will come across the Primary 1 registration phrase which is something like this;

Phase 1

For a child who has a sibling studying in the primary school of choice.

Phase 2A(1)

(a) For a child whose parent is a former student of the primary school and who has joined the alumni association as a member not later than 30 June 2011.

(b) For a child whose parent is a member of the School Advisory / Management Committee.

Phase 2A(2)

(a) For a child whose parent or sibling has studied in the primary school of choice.

(b) For a child whose parent is a staff member of the primary school of choice.

Phase 2B

(a) For a child whose parent has joined the primary school as a parent volunteer not later than 1 Jul 2011 and has given at least 40 hours of voluntary service to the school by 30 Jun 2012.

(b) For a child whose parent is a member endorsed by the church/clan directly connected with the primary school.

(c) For a child whose parent is endorsed as an active community leader.

Phase 2C

For all children who are eligible for Primary One in the following year and are not yet registered in a primary school.

Phase 2C Supplementary

For a child who is not yet registered in a school after Phase 2C.

Phase 3

For a child who is neither a Singapore Citizen nor a Singapore Permanent Resident.

Note : There are registration dates for each of the phrase so you really have to take down the dates that you think you fall onto.

When Dinoegg was only 4 years old, DinoPapa already set his mind on which Primary school he wants to enrol him in.  It was one of the better school around our estate that have the right mindset and goals that he is comfortable with.

A year ago plus, while chatting to Catherine, we were discussing about the Primary school topic and she decided to enrol her girl in the same school too.  I was happy as we were neighbours staying in the same block and we always have play dates, I'm sure our kids will have an easier time adapting to primary school when they know they are in the same school.

Frankly, I did not do any research or try to find out anything about the registration because in my mind I always thought that "its still early.".  Until on a certain day in early May 2011, Catherine asked me the Million Dollar Question, do we need to do parent volunteer work in that school?  Seriously I have NO IDEA.  I always thought that PV or Parent Volunteer only applies to popular or elite schools, this being a neighbourhood school, MAYBE we do not need to do that?  Thanks to Catherine, she went searching for the answers on the internet and found out that we need to.  We almost miss the PV registering deadline as it was barely a week before the closing date when we found out.  We quickly download the registration form from the school's website and emailed to the school, keeping our fingers crossed that we will make it on time.

On 20 May 2011, we let out a huge relieve when we received this email from the school;

Dear Parents,

Thank you for your interest to volunteer 40 hours in our school for your child born in 2006 to be eligible for Phase 2B of P1 Registration in 2012.

Please note that there will be a briefing for interested parents. After the briefing, if you would like to volunteer in our school, you will need to sign a letter of understanding.

The details of meeting are as follow:

Date: 24 May 2011 (Tuesday)

Time: 9.00 am to 10.00 am

Venue: CoL Room (Ground level near the school lift)

Please bring along a pen to complete the forms and a photocopy of your child's birth certificate for us to keep.

Please email or call/message me at XXX to confirm by 23 May (Monday) if you're able to attend this Parents' Briefing.

If you are driving, please park at any HDB carpark near the school.

Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

Looking forward to meeting all of you.

Warm Regards,

Mrs Diana XXX

Teacher-in-charge of Parent Volunteers

XXX Primary School

While waiting for the date to arrive Catherine and I wondered what kind of duties we will be doing. We heard some parents did traffic control outside the school in the morning, going along during the school's excursion or camping.  We were both excited, hoping the day would come faster so that we know what is expected from us and be ready to face the challenges.

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For the next few weeks I will be sharing our experience on our preparation for DinoEgg's Primary One.  I hope it will serve as a useful guide to parents when its their time and have an idea how Parent Volunteer works.

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