Play Me A Book

last week at our playgroup, we explored with little rocks and stones, and saw how each stone is so different in terms of texture, size, shape, and design. I told a story about how the stones are so versatile they could transform into so many different characters (adapted from 神奇的石头. needless to say, their “outfits” were all torn apart by the kids at the end of the session 😂) honestly, I’ve never really paid much attention to these little guys but after this session, I found myself being a little more observant of 石头 whenever I’m out and about 😂

this friday will be my last playgroup for this year. going to take the month of Dec to recalibrate and look at how to run my sessions better. will you guys still be interested if I continue with the Mandarin playgroups? more storytelling? 🤔 will keep this page updated so so check back! 😊

throwback to when I did a storytelling for my nephew’s birthday back in October (guess which one he is in the pic haha). I had so much fun doing this story - creating all the songs and movements and even the storyline. yes I take birthday bookings too! DM for enquiries if you’d like smth a little different for your little one’s birthday party 😊

I also have a crazily talented bunch of cousins, so hit them up for any of your party/ festive needs 🎉

📷:
🎈: .sg

小花朵 包起来 看见太阳 盛开来! this week was all about flowers. we did flower printing, a little flower arrangement to bring home, and a story on 彩虹色的花. and a little song and dance too!

I enjoy going through the sessions at the pace of the children… it’s so nice to slow down and just be present with the surroundings and the activities.

next week we’re exploring something slightly different: 石头~ join me Monday at ECP or Friday at Sengkang :)

always always always look forward to Grub breakfast & story Saturdays. really glad to see familiar faces too - if you guys are reading this, thank you mummies and daddies for joining us!

we went all around the world collecting ingredients to make an apple pie today 🌏 we learnt about the countries’ flags, we got on different modes of transport, and we got to construct and eat an apple pie, topped with vanilla ice cream 😋 yummy!

keep a lookout for what’s coming up in December at Grub! (pssst, it’s the most wonderful time of the year 🎄)

restarted our Mandarin playgroup this week with a blast! we explored with leaves… which saw us dancing with big palm and fern leaves. and oh the possibilities of what we could do with them! 叶子可以用来扫一扫，拍一拍，还可以当成雨伞盖在头上…

I had also brought a friend with me, a very special tiger (no guesses where he came from haha) who has an all-leaves diet. we had to make a leaf soup for this tiger and this was a major hit with the children. tearing leaves, stirring them and pouring water saw one child sit there for a good 20-25mins 😬 loved the focus he had. we also did a little leaf craft, where we went around looking for little wild weeds and leaves.

next week, we’re gonna be playing with one of my absolute favourites, because they are so pretty - flowers! monday session is full but slots still available on friday at sengkang :) DM me if you’d like to join us!

the tiger came to tea at .singapore last Saturday! this lovely story is so full of innocence and childlikeness; I enjoyed looking through the lens of a child as I read the story 🐯

if you missed it, no worries - we have another session running on 22 October. sign up on Grub’s page to join us for another morning of story and breakfast ☺️

hard to get photos of my sessions these days cos my hands (and heart ❤️) are so full. this shot was taken by one of our PMAB mummies (thank you, Amanda!)

I do enjoy this little community where we get to play and interact together over 4 weeks… and my creative juices run wild too when I’m planning for the sessions.

the sessions at Bishan-AMK Park are fully booked this round, and I’m thinking of doing another round of Mandarin playgroups soon… do keep a look out if you’d like to join us :)

看小朋友把手沾满了颜料，然后没有规则地一横一撇涂在纸上，对我来说其实很疗愈。

throwback to our session at botanic gardens last week 🌿🌳🍂 the girls went about painting their cardboard fish, and J generously dipped her hands and fingers in paint and smeared it around… including on mummy 😂 love to see them freely exploring with the activities.

it’s September now! and I’m looking forward to our playgroup sessions this month ❤️ single slots still available for session 2 and 3 if you’d like to join us :)

《公鸡的新邻居》tells the story of how the rooster and owl came to be friends when the owl moved into the house next to the rooster’s. it’s written in such a fun and clever way - the first half of the book kept the kids guessing who exactly was the one who moved in as rooster’s neighbour 🦉

we went through some owl and rooster facts and marveled at how these 2 could be friends when they are indeed so different! 公鸡是白天出来行动的动物，而猫头鹰是夜行动物。you’ll have to read the story to find out how these 2 friends maintain their friendship :)

loved the little houses the boys painted and decorated. they were so proud of their creations :)

till the next story time! thanks for joining me, J and J ☺️

Children are amazing - they naturally acquire language as they get exposed to the words and sounds adults use around them. That's why kids pick up Mandarin quickly when there is someone who constantly speaks the language to them at home. No worries tho, if mummy and daddy struggle with Mandarin too, cos there are just so many resources around to help these days :) and on this note, I'm really excited to run this playgroup in September!

There's going to be music and movement activities, stories, and craft, all conducted in Mandarin. There's no rush to go through the planned programmes. We will observe the children and follow their pace as much as we can! So while each session is planned to run for about 45 minutes, it may go on for slightly longer or end slightly earlier, depending on how the children are during the session.

Drop me a DM if you have more questions and I'll be happy to chat with you. Spaces are limited as I would like to keep this group small. as usual, sign up link in bio 😊

back in action after a month or so! 今天读的绘本是很经典的《彩虹色的花》。很开心看到小朋友们那么认真地听故事，这么积极地参与故事活动!

we dissected some tulips 郁金香 and eustomas 洋桔梗, and made living flash cards of the different parts of the flower stalk: 花瓣、花蕊、花茎 (it’s not supposed to be this jīng but IG doesn’t seem to recognise what I’m typing from my phone!) 和叶子。this was a joint effort between the parents and children and I love seeing our mummies and daddies work together with their little ones 🙆🏻‍♀️

we also had a go at making our own floral sun-catcher - this was why I’ve been collecting flowers the past week. took the opportunity to remind the children that we can only pick up flowers that drop on the ground and not pluck them off the plants.

lastly, a hot day calls for a nice cooling drink 🍹showed the kids that flowers can be used to make tea - so we made a blue pea flower tea 蝴蝶豌豆花茶, added some 柠檬汁 lemon juice and watched it change colour ✨ maaaagic! was a great thirst quencher for the adults too 😅 we also described how the dried flowers had a rough and crumbly texture, and the light subtle smell they had. A couldn’t stop smelling the dried flowers 🌸

thank you parents for bringing your little ones to join me today! I’ll be back at Sengkang Riverside Park in September, stay tuned for the dates :)