PROGRAMS

At SGCIS, our playgroup program is catered to babies, toddlers and pre-school aged children. They can be accompanied by mothers, fathers, grandparents, nannies or other carers. Our SGCIS playgroups are inclusive, providing welcoming supportive environments for all families to come together regardless of race, cultural, social or economic backgrounds.

At playgroups parents and carers get together with their young children for a couple of hours each week to connect, learn through play and most importantly, have fun. Essentially, playgroups are one of the first important social networks for children and families.

Our playgroup activities may involve craft, indoor and outdoor play and snack time. At our playgroup, families can learn new ideas for playing at home, make new friends and share their experiences in a relaxed environment.

• Provides opportunities for creative, unstructured learning through play;
• Builds attachments between adults and children as they play together and share time and experiences;
• Helps children develop social skills as they learn to interact with others, take turns, share and make friends;
• Provides experiences that enable them to manage stress and adapt to change;
• Offers opportunities for children to explore, invent, reason and solve problems.

• A place where parents and carers can support each other through sharing ideas, parenting experiences, concerns and information.
• A place where families can build long-term friendships as their children grow and transition to school.
• An affordable and regular opportunity to enjoy a shared outing with your child.

Our Pre-School curriculum stems from the Singapore NEL curriculum framework and includes components from other international curricula from around the world. The approach to our curricula is to adopt the best practices from around the world to give our students the most holistic educational experience.

Nurturing Early Learners is a curriculum framework for Kindergartens in Singapore published by the Ministry of Education (MOE) to guide pre-schools in designing and implementing a quality kindergarten curriculum for children. The framework has been introduced since 2003 and is continuously reviewed to include best practices, new research and findings.

Desired Outcomes of Education

MOE’s Desired Outcomes of Education reflect what the Singapore education system aspires to develop in every child:

• A confident person who has a strong sense of right and wrong, is adaptable and resilient, knows themself, is discerning in judgement, thinks independently and critically, and communicates effectively.
• A self-directed learner who takes responsibility for their own learning, who questions, reflects and perseveres in the pursuit of learning.
• An active contributor who is able to work effectively in teams, exercises initiative, takes calculated risks, is innovative and strives for excellence.
• A concerned citizen who is rooted in their community, has a strong civic consciousness, is informed, and takes an active role in bettering the lives of others around them.

Learning is a complex process that results from the interaction of children’s thinking and experiences. Children learn best when they have opportunities to: 

• Experience and be aware of an event, a situation or a problem
• Explore and discover answers for themselves
• Engage in carrying out tasks that are interesting and meaningful to them
• Apply new skills that they have acquired and new concepts that they have learnt 

At the centre of the curriculum framework is the child and the belief that children are curious, active and competent learners. Based on this belief, the framework advocates iTeach, an acronym for six principles which guide teaching and learning in a quality kindergarten curriculum.

Overview of the Kindergarten Curriculum Framework

The following are the six learning areas outlined in the framework, through which children acquire knowledge, skills and learning dispositions:

• Aesthetics and Creative Expression

Children enjoy creative expression and should be given opportunities to explore their environment and indulge in creative play and self-expression through art and music and movement.

• Discovery of the World

Children are naturally curious and their sense of wonder should be nurtured and sustained. They should be encouraged to observe, ask questions and make sense of the world around them.

• Language and Literacy

Language and Literacy is important in children’s overall thought and learning development. Exposure to language-related activities such as role-playing, singing, rhyming and reading will develop their ability to listen with understanding and to communicate with others. 

• Motor Skills Development

Children’s gross and fine motor skills develop over time and influence their physical fitness, agility and coordination. Children should be given ample space and time for physical play to develop their sense of balance, physical co-ordination and spatial awareness.

• Numeracy

Being numerate enables children to understand and apply mathematical concepts, skills and processes effectively. Thus, children will be able to make sense of their encounters with mathematics in their daily lives.

• Social and Emotional Development

Effective social and emotional development instils healthy self-esteem in children. Children are taught to manage their feelings, thoughts and behaviour which will allow them to form strong and meaningful relationships later in life.

Learning dispositions are positive behaviours and attitudes towards learning. They are important for children in their journey as life-long learners and they support children’s learning and development in the various learning areas. There are six learning dispositions (PRAISE) that pre-schools will seek to develop in every child:

• Perseverance

Children with perseverance keep working at a task to complete it. They do not give up even though they find it challenging.

• Reflectiveness

Children with the ability to reflect can think about what they have done, seen, heard or felt in their daily experiences. They generate alternative ideas and gain new knowledge.

• Appreciation

Children with a sense of appreciation recognise that everyone has different and unique qualities. They listen to the views of others and show respect for them.

• Inventiveness

Children who are inventive are flexible in their thinking and can do things in different ways. They explore various ideas and possibilities and generate different solutions to challenges.

• Sense of wonder and curiosity

Children with a sense of wonder and curiosity are interested in the world around them. They confidently ask questions on why things happen and how things work. They like to explore and discover new things.

• Engagement

Children who are engaged are immersed in learning and enjoy what they do. They proactively seek new opportunities for learning. 

Our Farm to Table program allows our students to experience hands-on learning about food and nutrition by growing various types of vegetables. Besides learning how to plant the vegetables, our students also observe the changes when vegetables grow, learn how to harvest and prepare them for eating. The program also integrates with the six learning areas of the NEL curriculum.

At SGCIS, learning takes place both in and out of the classroom. We introduce our students to an array of physical activities such as swimming, sand play, ball games to develop their motor skills. Our character development program instils traits such as respect, responsibility and empathy. Most importantly, we believe that learning should be fun!

Throughout the year, our students will have exhibitions or performances to showcase what they have learnt. Performing on stage provides students with the opportunity to develop their individual talents and confidence.

Our Primary curriculum is deeply rooted in the world-renowned Singapore curriculum which is ranked top in the world of Mathematics and Science based on the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) global benchmarking test. We then incorporate best practices from international curricula from around the world to provide our students with a holistic educational experience.

While the Singapore curriculum is often known to be academically rigorous, the intent is to stretch and challenge children at their own pace. It is vital that these subjects are taught properly by professionals who understand the framework and its purpose. SGCIS was founded by educators who have decades of experience delivering the Singapore curriculum to students from both Singapore and around the world. Together with a team of qualified and experienced teachers we provide our students a supportive environment to stretch and grow their abilities at their own pace.

Students in SGCIS achieve academic excellence by having fun while learning. At SGCIS, learning takes place both in and out of the classroom. We introduce our students to an array of physical activities such as swimming, sand play, ball games to develop their physical and motor skills. Our character development program instils traits such as respect, responsibility and empathy. We also have our own unique programs to allow students to find joy and purpose in their learning while preparing them for wherever the future takes them.

Students will be able to collaborate with other schools from around the world while embarking on a research project to learn more about their different culture and way of life. At the end of the project, students will produce a written report and also present their work to their new friends from across the world. IPW exposes children to cultures which are different from their own and gives them an opportunity to experience public speaking during their presentation.

YEA is a collaborative community initiative between SGCIS and businesses to help inspire and mentor the next generation of entrepreneurs. By collaborating with business, we are able to create fun and interesting lessons and projects to give our students a hands-on learning experience about money, planning, management and innovation.

In their Secondary years, students will get to experience internships in various industries with our YEA partners.

Our Farm to Table program allows our students to experience hands-on learning about food and nutrition by growing various types of vegetables. Besides learning how to plant the vegetables, our students can observe the changes as the vegetables grow, learn how to harvest and prepare them for consumption.

Throughout the year, our students will have exhibitions or performances to showcase what they have learnt. Performing on stage provides students with the opportunity to develop their individual talents and confidence.

SGCIS aims to provide a comprehensive one stop pre-tertiary education experience for our students. We are currently expanding our school and expect to open our Primary and Secondary campus in the near future.

During their time in Secondary, students will be able to decide what subjects they are interested in pursuing and will be supported by our career guidance counsellors to find the most suitable path towards their goals.

Our internship program gives our students many opportunities to experience working in various industries.