P1 Orientation Day15 November 2018

Mrs Wang-Tan Sun Sun

Principal

School History

Venerable Sek Kong Hiap

(广洽法师)

School History

Old Mee Toh School located along Race Course

Road and adjacent to Long San Temple

School Vision and Mission

VisionTouching Souls, Challenging Minds

净化心灵, 挑战思维

MissionTo maximise students’ potential and to develop in

them a passion for life-long learning guided by compassion, conscience, purity and

righteousness.

School Motto

慈

良

清

直

Compassion

Conscience

Purity

Righteousness

School Motto & Values

School Motto School Values

Compassion（慈）Care (仁心关爱)

Service (奉献他人)

Conscience（良）Resilience (坚韧不拔)

Excellence (精益求精)

Purity（清）Confidence (满怀信心)

Integrity (正直清廉)

Righteousness（直）Respect (互敬互重)

Teamwork(群策群力)

Buddhist Practices:

• Singing of Triple Gem song and prayer during everyMonday assembly

• Teaching of values through storytelling byVenerable once a term

• Dharmaratna Festival

• Major Events:

• Vesak Day Celebration on Founder’s Day• Examination Blessing

Debunking some possible

Myths and Misperceptions…

“Mee Toh School is only for Buddhists.”

“Mee Toh School is a Buddhist School. When

I send my child to the school, I will expect him

to naturally become good.”

School’s Response

• Like all schools in Singapore, we are secular.

•Character Development is at the heart of our school’s

programme.

•Other than platforms like

- Form Teacher Guidance Period (FTGP);

- Civics and Moral Education (CME) lessons;

- Assembly Programmes, other programmes and

activities which focus on character development are

made possible through partnership with Tzu Chi

Foundation and Fo Guang Shan.

School’s Response

•Tzu Chi Foundation conducts the “大爱妈妈”programme that emphasises positive attitudes and

good habits on Wednesdays for lower primary students.

•Fo Guang Shan conducts Dharma Lessons on

Saturdays for students and parents on a sign up basis.

•Parents role as partners in shaping positive values

and attitudes are just as important, if not more than,

the school.

Aims of Primary Education

• To lay a strong foundation

• To nurture the whole child

“As it [the/our education system] becomes more complex, we need to be clear-eyed that in this matured system,

there are trade-offs within the system, and we

must take sufficient bold steps to rebalance those trade-offs when needed.”

Considerations and potential challenges in balancing rigour and joy:

“There needs to be a balance between rigour and joy, and there is a fairly strong

consensus that we have tilted too much to the former.”

Changes at a Glance

Changes at a Glance

Changes at a Glance

Personal Qualities

School Value Level Personal Qualities

Care P1-P6

o Show care and concern for the environment and

people around me

o Show kindness and empathy

Service

P1-P6 o Appreciate and show gratitude for others

P1-P3 o Offer help to family members, teachers & peers

P4-P6o Take actions to contribute to the common good

of others in the community

Resilience

P1-P6 o Demonstrate the growth mindset

P1-P3 o Keep trying even in difficult situations

P4-P6o Overcome difficulties by exploring alternative

solutions

Personal Qualities

School Value Level Personal Qualities

Excellence

P1-P6o Put in the best effort to produce quality work

o Reflect from experiences and learn from them

P1-P3 o Seek help and guidance when in doubt

P4-P6

o Ask questions, sieve, analyse and evaluate

information to improve understanding of the

issue or problem

ConfidenceP1-P6

o Demonstrate self-awareness

o Demonstrate abilities to build positive

relationships

P4-P6o Think critically and explain view points and

decisions

Personal QualitiesSchool Value Level Personal Qualities

Integrity P1-P6

o Differentiate right from wrong

o Face consequences of mistakes and learn from

the experience

o Do the right thing when no one is watching

Respect P1-P6

o Demonstrate awareness and sensitivity to

different cultures and religions

o Respond open-mindedly to different ideas and

values

Teamwork

P1-P3

o Express ideas and allow opinions and views to be

heard

o Fulfill different responsibilities and complete given

tasks as a group

P4-P6

o Influence peers positively

o Leverage on one another’s strengths and abilities

to achieve common goals

Home-School Partnership

• Parents are our partnersin the holistic education of

the children

• Our common interest is the

child

Partnership between School and Parents

Guiding Philosophy

Quality Relationships

Anchored on Mutual Trust and Mutual Respect

A mindset of partnership, collaboration and mutual support

Guided by MOE and Mee Toh School Ethos

Mee Toh School is committed to deliver quality education to

all our students, provide quality service to our partners and at

the same time, care for the well-being of our teachers and all

who work here.

We will do our utmost to serve you with courtesy and respect

and we expect that you treat us with the same respect

that you would like to be accorded.

Please let us know if our efforts fall below your

expectations. Your feedback and words of appreciation will

inspire us to continue to deliver our best.

Thank you for working with us, making Mee Toh School

Community a gracious one, and the school a place conducive

for learning, growth and work!

SERVICE QUALITY STATEMENT

1. Always work with your child’s teachers first as they

are the ones who know your child well.

2. Every Child is an unique individual, each teacher

has 30 unique individuals in the class -- Teachers

will take time to know your child, understand how

he/she learns, what excites them, and so on.

3. Train your children to be able to relay information to

their teachers.

Communication with School

Communication with School

4. Modes of communication:Write your queries in the Student Handbook.

Write in via email.

Call the school main line, use the teachers’ extension

numbers.

For non-urgent matters, the teacher will respond within 3

working days.

5. If you need to meet with your child’s teacher, do

make an appointment first before coming to school.

Please be patient with the teachers as they are

teaching many children.

When teachers need to be away from school:

They may

• be sick

• need to attend to important family matters

• need to attend training or briefing

• be away on maternity or paternity leave

Duration of absence may vary

School will need to arrange for relief teachers to take charge of their classes.

Top 5 Questions Teachers Wish Parents Would Ask Them08 Jan 2018

https://www.schoolbag.sg/story/top-5-questions-teachers-wish-parents-would-ask-them

Home-School Partnership

Top Five Questions Teachers Hope

Parents Would Ask Them

Social Interactions

Is he nice to the people around him?

Does he interact well with his friends?

Home-School Partnership

Top Five Questions Teachers Hope

Parents Would Ask Them

Strength Building

What are his strengths?

Home-School Partnership

Top Five Questions Teachers Hope

Parents Would Ask Them

Feedback for ImprovementHow can I grow my child’s interest in (subject)?

Home-School Partnership

Top Five Questions Teachers Hope

Parents Would Ask Them

Home-School Collaboration

How can we work together to help him?

Home-School Partnership

• Parents, you are your child’s first and life-

long Teachers.

• Your actions are the best lessons for

children.

• Don’t underestimate your importance inteaching your children good values,habits and attitudes.

We Cannot Do It Alone

Helicopter Parents

Source: https://www.schoolbag.sg/story/helicopter-parenting

Helicopter Parents

Source: https://www.schoolbag.sg/story/helicopter-parenting

Year Head (P1 & P2)

• Work with teachers, HODs andYear Heads

• Look into providing better supportand integration of learning withineach level

Mrs Jacelyn Ang

First Day of School

• Have a good breakfast with your child

• Arrive by 7.15 a.m.

• Assemble in the school hall and sit according tothe class label

• Note: P1 parents are allowed into school premisesonly on the 1st day of school. Other usefulinformation can be found in the OrientationInformation Handout for Parents

First Day of School

Engagement with Parents:

• Time: 8 a.m. to 10 a.m.

• Venue: School Hall

• Briefing by Heads of Department

Expectations of Student Behaviour

1. Maintain proper decorum and behave in asocially responsible manner at all times.

2. Respect school staff and peers regardless ofcircumstances.

3. Keep the school clean and take good care ofschool properties.

Information can be found in Student Handbook pages 11-13

4. Wear the prescribed school uniform.

Modification to the uniform is not allowed.

Expectations of Student Behaviour

5. Keep your hair neat. Boys must be clean

shaven. Undercut hairstyle, and wearing of

beard or moustache are not allowed.

Expectations of Student Behaviour

6. Be punctual for school and all school conducted

activities.

7. Refrain from bringing expensive personal items or

toys such as mobile phone, MP3 or any other

audio visual equipment to school.

Expectations of Student Behaviour

School Term

• New school term: 2 January 2019, Wednesday

• 4 terms in a year

• All students must attend school until the end of eachschool term. Any request to leave Singapore for familytours or home visits to former countries during theschool terms does not constitute a valid reason.

• Events for the term will be communicated throughTermly School Calendar

School Hours

School DaysReporting

Time

Dismissal

TimeRecess Time

Mondays to

Fridays7.30 a.m. 1.30 p.m. 10 a.m. –

10.30 a.m.

Arrival Arrangement

Arrival during fair weather days:

• Report directly to the parade square on all days,except on Monday.

• Report to the Indoor Sports Hall (ISH) Level 4 onMondays. (Primary 1 to Primary 3)

Arrival Arrangement

Parade Square

Gate 2Gate 3

1

Main Gate

Guard

House

Gate 4

Gate 5

Gate 6

Gate 7

Gate 8

SchoolField

BLK G

BLK E

BLK F

BLK B

5

• Possible venues to drop off students :

Access by Gate 6. Near the basketball court

2. Car Park near Blk 109. Use the service road from:a. Punggol Fieldb. Edgedale Plains

3. Car Park (Blk 131) Opposite the school.

4. Gate 1A to be accessed via Blk 122B.

5. The Main Gate is only accessible during wet weather.

Gate 1A

IN OUT

4

BLK 122B

2

3

3

45

1

2

Arrival Arrangement

Arrival during wet weather days:

• Parents are allowed to drive into the school

• Drop off their children at the layby

• Children will use the covered linkway to go to the assembly area

• No car is allowed to stop at the porch

• This facilitates the fast flow of traffic

• P1 students report in the ISH level 4

On raining days, drive

in and alight students

only at the layby.

On raining days, drive

in but do not alight

students at the porch.

Dismissal Arrangement

Pick up by family members/caregivers

• All P1 students will be dismissed class by class.

• Teachers will bring students to Gate 2.

• P1 parents are to wait outside the Gate 2.Please make way for the students to bedismissed.

Dismissal Arrangement

School Bus

• Teachers will bring students to bus queuesfor the first week

• Students will join the bus queues accordingto bus numbers

• A coloured ribbon indicating the bus numberwill be given

• Indicate bus queue number on temporarynametag

More information is in the handout for parents

Dismissal Arrangement

Meet up with siblings

• Siblings meet each other at designated

Siblings’ Corner near the canteen

• Siblings will leave the school according to

dismissal mode for the elder sibling

• P1, P2 and P3 students will be dismissed from

Gate 2.

• P4, P5 and P6 students will be dismissed from

Gates 1 or 6.

Siblings’ Corner

School Bus Transport

• Bus Operator: Sunday Coach Services ContactNumber: 9873 8227 (Mr Ang)

• Registration for school transport is available inthe canteen today from 3.30 p.m.

• Indicate bus queue number on temporarynametag.

• Your child needs to know the bus numberhe/she will be taking.

Traffic Issues

• School is part of the community.

• Avoid using the multi-storey and service road atBlk 109.

• High volume of traffic in the morning and duringdismissals caused inconvenience to theresidents.

Safety And Security

• Teach and role model by making use of thepedestrian crossings and traffic lights whencrossing the roads.

• Please follow traffic rules and cooperate with ourpersonnel and parent volunteers.

• Show consideration when using public car parksand facilities near the school.

Seatbelt Rules

• Ensure the safety of school children.

The safety of children is a shared

responsibility

• Children need to cooperate with the

school bus drivers.

• Prepare your child mentally and

train your child to belt up for

safety at all times.http://www.lta.gov.sg/content/ltaweb/e

n/roads-and-motoring/road-safetyand-

regulations/road-regulations.html

Buddy System

• P4 buddies will assist the P1 students onthe first 3 days of school during recess.

• P4 buddies will:

- guide the P1 students to queueat the food stalls

- remind P1 students to collecttheir change

- teach P1 students to bring theirfood to the tables safely

- teach P1 students to returnutensils to the receptacles

School Canteen

• Pocket money of about $2.00 each day

Variety of food items sold:

• Chinese food

• Halal food

• Vegetarian food

• Fresh fruit juice, cut fruits

• Hot drinks and snacks

• Some stalls operate from 6.45 a.m. to 7.05 a.m. to allow students to have light breakfast.

Snack Break

• Taken into consideration of students’ well-beingthat some of them may not get to have lunch untilthey reach home after 1.30 p.m.

• Optional for students to bring healthy snacksduring a second break from 11.55 p.m. to 12 p.m.

• Examples are energy bars, an apple or abanana.

General Information

Visitors to School

• For the safety and security of our students, allvisitors are required to sign into the log book at theguard post before proceeding to the General Office.

• Visitors are required to display ‘Visitor’ pass at alltimes.

• Visitors are not allowed to loiter in the school or godirectly to the classrooms

General Information

Permission to Leave Early

• For students who are unwell, parents arerequired to come to school to bring them home.

• Parents must acknowledge in the ‘Permission toLeave School Early’ Form’ in the General Office.

• All parents are required to update the schoolwhenever there is a change in address or contactnumbers.

Student Handbook

• The student handbook is important andstudents are expected to bring it daily.

• The handbook acts as a two waycommunication tool.

• Parents who wish to communicate withthe teachers can do so through thehandbook.

• Parents need to call in advance to makean appointment with the teacher orschool personnel if you wish to meet upwith them.

Important Pages in Student Handbook

• Important book forcommunication

• Student and parentsacknowledge on page 10

• Pages to take special note:• Code of Conduct

• School Attire and PersonalAppearance

• Mobile Phone and Smart DevicePolicy

• School Values and PersonalQualities

• Holistic Goal Setting

Mobile Phone Policy

• The school encourages parents to allow their childlearn independence in the school.

• Strongly discourage students to bring mobilephones to school.

• All personal smart devices (e.g. smart watches,and google glasses) are strictly not allowed inschool.

• Mobile phones are:• To be switched off during lessons and/or other school

activities.

• Only allowed at the canteen and must be switched offafter use.

• Restricted to only voice calls and messaging. Capturing ofsounds or videos is not allowed.

Mobile Phone Policy

• Refrain from uploading videos/photographs donned inschool attire.

• Mobile phones and/or unauthorised electronic devices arenot allowed during tests or exams.

• Mobile phones will be confiscated for any misuse andreturned to parents after an appropriate time intervaldetermined by the school.

• Public phone is located near the bookshop.

• The phones at the General Office are only for use incases of emergency.

(Reference from Student Handbook page 14)

Bookshop Operating Hours

Day Operating Hours

Monday - Friday 9 a.m. to 4.00 p.m.

(for students)

• Location: Near Gate 2

• Train your child to make purchases from the

bookshop on his/her own

• Parents who need to make purchase from the

bookshop will enter from Gate 2 only from 2

p.m. to 4 p.m.

• School holiday opening dates are in the school

website.

School Uniform & Name Tags

• You may purchase your child’s uniformafter the briefing from 3.30 p.m.onwards

• Name tag is part of the uniform, andto be sewn on the school uniform andPE T-shirts

• Place orders for name tags duringpurchase of school uniform. Each childwill need about 8 name tags throughoutthe 6 years.

Important Advice

Lightening Students’ School Bags

•Health Promotion Board advises that:• Students should carry weight of no more than 15% of

their body weight

• Weight of bags carried by P1 to P4 students shouldrange not more than 3.5kg to 4.0 kg

•Parents can:• Select bags of lightweight material with few

compartments and straps that are adjustable andcushioned. Do not use trolley bags for safety reasons.

• Let your child carry some items in a separate bag todistribute the load where necessary.

• Check that only relevant materials are brought.

Financial Matters

• Financial Assistance

• Student Insurance

Financial Assistance Scheme (FA)

• Students with financial difficulties may apply forFinancial Assistance Scheme (FAS).

• Eligible Income Criteria: ≤$2750 Gross Monthly

• Household Income: ≤$690 Per Capital Income

• You may approach Administration Manager (AM)in the General Office if you need assistance

• Forms for MOE FAS can also be obtained fromMOE website:

https://www.moe.gov.sg/education/financial-assistance/moe-financial-assistance-scheme-(fas)

Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS)

Benefits under MOE FAS may include:

Standard Miscellaneous Fees

Full waiver of $6.50 per month

Textbooks Free textbooks

School Attire Free school attire

Transport

Students taking School Bus:50% of school bus fares

Students taking public transport:$120 transport credit per annum

School Meals Programme

Subsidies for seven meals per school week. Students in primary schools will receive subsidies of $2 per meal.

Student Insurance

• All students will be covered under Group Personal Accident (GPA) by MOE.

• Information of the coverage will be given in Term 1.

• Parents are encouraged to top up with their personal insurance if they feel the need to.

Health Matters

• Health services are provided to your child freeof charge in school

Dental Health CheckImmunisationHealth Assessment

Health Matters

• Parents must give consent before your childcan receive the services

• Enrol your child in the school dental service viathe:

Child Consent Portal

http://childconsent.hpb.gov.sg

Getting Your Child Ready

Build some habits at home• Display good manners – taking turns, saying ‘please’,

‘excuse me’ and ‘thank you’

• Sleep early – having 8 – 10 hours of sleep to keep an alertmind

• Toilet etiquette - closing toilet doors, flush after use anddrying their hands

• Handwriting - write his/her name right with appropriatespacing and capital letters

• Bring the plates to the sink after meals

• Keeping the study table neat after use

• Start visiting the National Library to build the habit of

reading

Getting Your Child Ready

Build some habits at home• Have a neat haircut (Note: Undercut hairstyle is not

acceptable)

• Communicate the mode dismissal for your child

• Label your child’s stationery, books and learning materials

• Share your own school life experiences with your child

• Introduce basic school rules, like asking for permission, taking turns

• Distributed to students in the classrooms

• Parent-Child Activity Booklet

• Primary One (2019) Orientation Information Handout for Parents

• Booklist for 2019

• CDAC programme booklet

• Slides will be uploaded onto the school’s website before 26 November 2018.

Orientation Package

Parent-Child Activity Book • To promote parent-child bonding

• Prepare the child for first day in school

• Activities planned are more meaningful when

parents do it with the child

• 10 tips for parents – help you and your child

adjust smoothly to primary-school life

• Focuses on setting good routines, inculcating

values and building social emotional skills

• There is no fixed order in completing the

activities

Parent-Child Activity Book

Thank you for

your attention!