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Last Friday marked the fourth Good Start Conference, a gathering that reminded us once again why early childhood education matters so deeply. From the start, the heart behind the conference has always been simple: to provide teachers with a space for growth, inspiration, and connection—not glamour, but genuine learning. This year’s conference carried fresh energy. Leaders from across the early childhood sector joined us, alongside interactive booths that allowed participants

On 30 July, Little Olive Tree @ Ang Mo Kio welcomed a team from the Hong Kong Education Bureau  — two educational psychologists and an inspector currently working on a School-based Teacher Development Project  aimed at enhancing teachers’ ability to support young children’s social-emotional growth and positive behaviour.   Their visit to LOT was part of an international learning exchange, focused on understanding how inclusive education can be meaningfully integrated into dai

On 23 April, our Little Olive Tree (LOT) leaders had the privilege of meeting Rev Dr Caleb Soo , Moderator of the Presbyterian Synod, for a heartfelt time of sharing and encouragement, reminding ourselves why  we do what we do.   He reminded us that the Synod stands firmly with us—and that what we do in early childhood is crucial to shaping not only individual lives, but entire generations. At the core of his message was a powerful truth: “Christian education stems from us be

Today, when you observe Dhil Tay in class, you will not notice any stand-out behaviour from him. Although often seated apart from the...

Today, when you observe Dhil Tay in class, you will not notice any stand-out behaviour from him. Although often seated apart from the other children, he is usually comfortably engaged in his classroom activities with Educational Support Teacher (EST) Ms Diana Tok. However, this was not always the case; things looked vastly different when Dhil first stepped through the doors of LOT Woodlands. Dhil’s first year in his previous preschool was uneventful -  he was quiet in class b

This story is shared by Peggy, mother of Mattias, who is part of the Educational Support Programme at LOT Jurong West. Finding the right preschool for Mattias has been a long journey. Initially, we considered enrolling him in a regular school, but there were many conflicting thoughts and concerns. The most crucial question was whether these schools had the resources to support his learning, given that he has a rare neurological disease Pitt Hopkins Syndrome (often characteris

This story is shared by Peggy, mother of Mattias, who is part of the Educational Support Programme at LOT Jurong West. Finding the right...

She was struggling to teach and handle the children at Sunday School in her church, along with the rest of the team. They were clueless and out of ideas – that was when she decided to take a step further and take on an early childhood diploma in search of answers and solutions. That was how May Ten’s preschool journey first began. With encouragement from those around her, she then took a leap of faith to start her career in the early childhood industry. Fast forward to now, s

She was struggling to teach and handle the children at Sunday School in her church, along with the rest of the team. They were clueless...

Last month, LOT Tampines hosted a Special Education learning journey for teachers and lecturers from Vietnam through our partner,...

Last month, LOT Tampines hosted a Special Education learning journey for teachers and lecturers from Vietnam through our partner, Singapore International Foundation (SIF). They were in Singapore on a study trip to reinforce key concepts and approaches in working with children with Autism Spectrum Disorder through first-hand exposure and introduce the Vietnamese delegates to the intervention approaches and practices in Singapore’s Special Education ecosystem.    They were surp

“Theoretically, there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to teach special needs children... I want to equip teachers with the skills they...

“Theoretically, there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to teach special needs children... I want to equip teachers with the skills they need to feel empowered and competent." We would like to congratulate Ms A.Susila (Manager, Development and Care) who is a newly appointed Pastel by ECDA – pedagogists and specialists in teaching and learning – in the area of inclusive practice. She works tirelessly to ensure that children with added needs have a place in LOT, through the E

Mdm Harpreet, a mother of our student, stepped up to share her story at a workshop "Opening Hearts and Minds: Embracing Disabilities...

Mdm Harpreet, a mother of our student, stepped up to share her story at a workshop "Opening Hearts and Minds: Embracing Disabilities through Inclusive Education" conducted by the Educational Support Programme Team for our staff. It was one riddled with struggles and helplessness, but also about a journey of courage, progress and gratefulness. She started off talking about two contrasting experiences of two families who were each navigating the challenges of raising a child.

In this series of chats with our staff, we get up close and personal. They share about things like their favourite drinks, to their experiences and motivations at work. Hi there! Could you introduce yourself? Hi, I’m Joed Che, I’m 29 this year and I’m an Education Support Teacher working with children who have developmental needs. I am usually stationed at Jurong West Centre. What did you study before you started your career? I studied Child Psychology in Ngee Ann Polytechni

In this series of chats with our staff, we get up close and personal. They share about things like their favourite drinks, to their...

Daniel* is currently 4 years old and was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. When Daniel first started school at PPS 9 months ago,...

Daniel* is currently 4 years old and was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. When Daniel first started school at PPS 9 months ago, he was having difficulty adapting to the new environment as he is non-verbal and faces multiple sensorial challenges. This pushed the team at AMK to experiment with modifying the environment in small ways that would invite him to be more comfortable and accepting of the school environment. For example, he was given a chair with a resistance b

Mithran's premature birth caused him to be born with a condition called Retinopathy of Prematurity, which means that he has an underdeveloped retina. This resulted in him being visually-impaired, which denied him the opportunity to attend school like every other neurotypical child. Given that he is also a non-Singaporean citizen, he was not able to enrol into the existing inclusive programmes recommended via SG Enable. Unlike Mithran, his twin sister did not suffer any compli