Tzu Chi Great Love PreSchool’s Self-Help Skills Challenge
Tzu Chi Great Love PreSchool held a three-day Self-Help Skills Challenge for its students aged three to six years old. Instead of testing their academic abilities, the students were tested on their self-care skills and etiquette. The patient guidance from the teachers helped the children to remember the steps of each skill better.
（Background song）We start with washing palm to palm. Between each finger let us rub.
Preventing germs from spreading starts with washing our hands. Can you remember the right steps to wash your hands? Let us see how these 3- and 4 year-olds wash their hands.
Preschool Teacher, Au Foong Yee: Although they are only 3- and 4 year-olds, if you give them a chance and guide them as they practise the skills every day, they can do it.
Preschooler, Sim Jian En Ethan: We need to wash our hands when we cough, wear shoes, go to the toilet, sneeze and eat food.
During these three days, the Great Love PreSchool conducted a test that was non-academic; instead, it tested the living skills and etiquette of its students.
Teacher : Fold it over. Do you know how to fold it over? Just fold it by half. There you go.
Preschool Teacher, Gan Wen Shan: We usually teach them the skills and let them practise these skills in class each day. By holding this test, we will be able to see which child has mastered the skills and who are the ones that need improvement.
Children need to develop good living habits starting from a young age. The Great Love PreSchool aims to nurture the whole child through teaching character building and self-help skills. These are also an important part of early childhood education.
