MindChamps Allied Care working closely with teachers and families to support a child’s development
Singapore, 6 February 2017 – Figures from the Ministry of Family and Social Development (MSF) show that the number of educators providing learning support to students have increased by three-fold since 2013, thus allowing children with mild developmental needs to seek help. More specialists are working in preschools to help teachers identify developmental delays or needs in children.
MSF stresses the importance of these children benefitting from a mainstream and inclusive learning environment. With early intervention, the child will develop the competencies he or she requires for Primary One.
In most situations, it is beyond a parent’s ability to treat or even detect a child’s developmental delays or needs. MindChamps Allied Care will be organising a series of dedicated events which promote the close working relationship between therapists, teachers and families to support a child’s development.
Early detection is key, for it is the foundation on which therapy can be built upon.
Supporting the capacity of a child to meet the expectations of their school context
School is a context in which children learn how to be strategic learners, treasured friends, valued community members, creative performers and efficient workers. Being a school student comprises many roles that can be appreciated or challenged by the academic and social expectations of teachers and classmates. In the 21st century, students need to be discerning in an information-saturated world, rather than reciters of facts.
For some students, the classroom can be ‘hard work’ and the playground can be a lonely or unhappy place because of executive functioning difficulties. Hence, using an occupational therapy perspective, our Guest Speaker Dr Susan Lowe’s talk will outline executive functioning abilities that support readiness for learning, presenting a strategic approach to promote student’s engagement in learning across academic and social domains.
The talk will also focus on the importance of strong partnerships between teachers, parents and allied health professionals and provide opportunities to explore the following:
How can we identify the strengths and difficulties of a student’s executive functioning abilities during performance in the context of their everyday school activities?
What are some effective cognitive strategies which can support a student’s increased engagement in learning within academic domains at school and social domains at home?
How can teachers, parents and allied health professionals collaborate in a meaningful and relevant way?
Table of Events
Guest Speaker’s Background
Dr Susan Lowe, PHD MAppSc(OT) GradCertHlthSc (OT) is the Owner and Principal Occupational Therapist at Skills for Kids (a paediatric occupational therapy and speech language pathology private practice) in NSW, Australia. She is also Visiting Professor of the Bachelor of Science (Honours), Occupational Therapy degree at the Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT).
Dr Lowe positions herself strategically in schools in partnership with teachers to increase their capacity to teach students who have executive functioning difficulties. By doing so, she aims to increase students’ readiness for learning through more efficient thinking strategies to develop resilience in vulnerable students.
To RSVP for the Event(s) by 15 Feb and/or to interview our therapist, please contact
Caroline Chng
Assistant Manager of Communications
D (65) 6841 7085
[email protected]
About MindChamps Holdings
MindChamps was first launched as an educational research centre in Sydney. The philosophy of the Founder, Chairman and Group CEO of MindChamps, David Chiem, was, and still is, to seek out the gaps that exist in society.
The first gap he identified was in education, while the second major gap that David identified was in health. Specifically, he focused on the mindset that the only time we go to the doctor is when the problem has already risen. In addition to treating conditions, David has always believed that doctors, like teachers, should play a critical role in ‘educating’ society in matters relating to health – nurturing them from young, the mindset that our approach to health should be preventive rather than reactive. MindChamps Medical, a division of MindChamps Holdings, draws together the benefits of education and healthcare to enable families to better understand how to build a healthy overall lifestyle.
The third element that completes the Trinity of the MindChamps vision is its focus on the Arts, the mirror to society.
The MindChamps Trinity of Mind (Education), Body (Medical) and Spirit (Arts) encapsulates the overall vision of MindChamps:
“To foster the power and potential of the human mind, body and spirit for a better tomorrow.”