Precocious Youngsters

For those that have chosen the path of school this year, I wish your kids a year of growth and happiness. I’m missing all my wonderful families. Lots of love from Singapore.

This morning I woke up to my news feed filled with photos of freshly pressed uniforms, beautiful braids and signs showing “what I want to be when I grow up”. I visualised these smiley fresh-faced children in doctors’ coats, construction hats, and police uniforms. Behind these photos, I could feel the excitement, dread and hope of the parents behind the camera sending their kids off for their first day of school. My mind started drifting to the end of the day when some of these beautiful innocent smiles wouldn’t return, instead they will be replaced with clenched fists, teary eyes and parents gripping to hope that the whole year wasn’t going to be like this.

The first day of school for anyone, parents and children alike, is not an easy one. We worry about friendships, the teacher who will stand in front of the class for forty weeks, how busy the classroom will be, the work that will be given, the dynamics of the class, the timetable. Parents and children feel these worries and fears. We all hope it will be a good year but there is always a seed of doubt of “what if?”. What if the teacher doesn’t listen to my concerns? What if the learning provided isn’t challenging enough? What if they are not at the same level as their peers? What if my child doesn’t make any friends? What if the class is too overwhelming?

For some, this fear doesn’t subside. It follows us like a dark cloud for the year. We prepare ourselves knowing that we will probably need to fight to have our children’s needs met so they can be happy at school. We are holding onto hope, not expecting, that the teacher will listen and try different approaches. Each day we get our child to school without a meltdown we take as a win. We know from the moment we wake up when we are going to have a tough morning. The screams and pleading follow us down the hallways of our house as we try and pack bags, make breakfast and meet our own needs. The tears, tummy aches, skin picking and withdrawal behaviours start to replace our inquisitive, sweet, and fun child. We’ve tried more parenting approaches than one should try, and in doing so, have blamed ourselves for the behaviours we see in our children. We’ve been criticised by others. We have withdrawn from parenting circles. We feel lonely.

When we succeed at getting them to school we take a big sigh of relief as we say goodbye to our little person. Sometimes we stay back and watch as they sit down for mat time or at their desk for their first lesson. We know immediately if they are uncomfortable. The clenched hands, the fallen head. Our hearts drop but we convince ourselves this is just the settling in phase. We go on with our day constantly thinking about how we can make school easier for them. When it is time for pick up, our hearts thump. We replay scenes of how we will get them in the car before they publicly meltdown in front of new peers and parents. That’s if we haven’t been called in the middle of the day to pick our child up from school. We are ready with food, cuddles and love but also a bit of dread.

The car ride home is quiet. Grunts and groans from prompting questions about their day. The afternoon will be just like the morning as our child’s mask can finally drop in the safety of their home. We are there just like every day. We listen empathetically. We are patient. We offer space to let them decompress from their stressful day at school. We are their person, as hard as that may be sometimes.

For all those that had a difficult first day today, you are not alone. When you see that parent lingering after drop off, or running to the gate before their child chases them down, or the parent trying to soothe a tearful child or the parent crying in their car, ask them if they are okay. Share your experiences. Ask them out for coffee. Build your tribe.

It’s with sadness that I will no longer be running my program. My family is moving overseas in the coming weeks and I will not have the capacity to work from home for several months/years.

I want to thank all the families that have been part of my program over the last 3 years. I have loved seeing your children each week and watching them grow. Thank you Jy for all your help over the year and for supporting the program. I’m so grateful for the work you put in and the rapport you built with the students.

I hope you can all find a new program that will foster your child’s growth and development. I am proud of what I have developed and I hope when I return in a few years I will be able to build something similar.

Goodbye for now and lots of love to everyone,

Melissa

For any students who may want to have some involvement in the advocacy of Gifted and 2E kids in Perth.

Are you a gifted kid aged 5-17? 💻
Would you like to join Gifted WA's Kids Committee?

I decided to take a break this term but I am back up and running for term 3. The Tuesday class will operate from 9.30-1pm from The Hub 6163. I’m so excited to see familiar faces and some new faces as well. Please contact me via email if you have any questions.

This will be a great event for those looking to meet some like-minded parents and peers for your children. Last year we met other people from our school and my children bonded with other kids. It was a joy to watch.

Save the Date!
Our annual Gifted WA and Mensa joint picnic will be held on Sunday 22nd May to launch Gifted Awareness Week!

Note: Registrations will open once Level 2 restrictions have been eased.

It is difficult to explain the skill-development program because everyday is different but I am going to try and explain the average day. We are flexible and try our best to go deep into every child's questions. We also work with each of the parents to make sure what we are offering is meeting their needs. This means that some days we go deeper into projects, test out other ideas or work on new ideas that have surfaced during the week.

We start the day with board games and the art or STEM project. I'm super excited about the mosaic pots this term and STEM creations that will focus on force. After their creative block, they move into their independent projects where Jy and I guide them through the research process. Students then have the choice to do math, persuasive writing, Chinese or continue with their art or STEM creations. We like to focus on their learning goals at this point and move to pairs and individuals who need support in different areas. The students all participate in a collaborative project at the end of the day where we look at real-world problems. This term we will come together to create a podcast or plan and deliver a debate.

It is so wonderful seeing the students come together with like-minded peers. We go off on tangents and explore topics I have limited knowledge in. In two years I have learnt about muscles in different states of tension, kayak speeds, uses of drones, how to care for axolotls, building an aquaponics system, making video games, diets of tropical fish and even some Japanese. It is wide and varied and I'm always looking forward to the big ideas that will come with each new year.

I'm so excited for Monday! I can't wait to see all my families and hear their stories from the holidays. I have spent the last few weeks preparing, clearing shelves, buying resources and planning differentiated projects. I have had my COVID booster, purchased an air purifier, and hired a cleaner to try and keep all my students safe. I have designed a maker shelf so students can find all the materials they need for their STEM creations and organized the stationary cupboard and art shelf so everything is easily accessible for all types of projects. My website is "coming soon". I'm positive about having an online program, portfolio and community for my families soon. See you next week.

Parents this is a great opportunity for your school to get some free PD in gifted education.

To celebrate the festive season, Gifted WA have decided to give away 100 new school memberships over January and February!

School Principals or Administration, email Brooke at [email protected] to enter!

*Note: This applies to new school memberships only. Existing members cannot apply.

Next week, I will be contacting families who have reached out about the program and hopefully offering an available spot. I have added a Thursday session for younger children and extended the Monday session for older students.

At the moment, my Tuesday and Wednesday groups are full but I am in the process of trying to move some of my older students to the Monday session to offer places to new children. If you are interested in the Monday or Thursday group, please contact me now to book a consultation.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! I am back in action after my two-week break with my family. It has been incredible sinking into the couch and taking time to be present for my family.

I wanted to share with you the results of the survey and I thought this question gave the most insight. It was great to see what you value in an education program and gave me a positive feeling knowing that we are incorporating a lot of this into our program successfully. It also highlighted areas where we need to put more focus and this will help us to plan and deliver programs this year. Thank you for taking the time to fill in the survey.

After several problems with outlook, I have decided to move my email account. For all enrolment enquiries, please contact us at [email protected]. For existing families with individual student enquiries, please contact us at [email protected]

Thank you to everyone who has filled in the survey. I have started my first course through Future Learn; Coping with Changes: Social-Emotional Learning Through Play, The LEGO Foundation. I'm hoping having a subscription with Future Learn will help me to build on a wide range of skills that will help the little people in my program. Please have a look at some of the courses and share any that you think would be helpful to the children in your life.

Browse Free Online Courses - FutureLearn Starting learning for free with a wide range of free online courses covering different subjects. Discover free online learning from top universities and organisations.