International Christian School

bcmum

Anybody has kids at ICS?  Just wanna to know more about the school, e.g.  are the teachers nice, do the students behave...... anything would help!

lenglengma

Dear bcmum,
My two kids go to ICS.  They switched from Hong Lok Yuen Int. School to ICS in December.  So far I have to say that ICS is truly a good school, except for the space.  My older son lost his confidence in HLYIS because his new teacher was Australian.  He couldn't quite understand her because of her accent.  His teacher sorta misunderstood him and thought that he was a bit behind.  My son was a bit upset about it because he used to love school so much and he has always been very bright at school.  Our family speak American English and it was a bit hard for my son to understand her.  Anyways, since we switched to ICS, my son gained his confidence back and he is placed in the "smartest" group with other Caucasian children.  My son says that his teacher now is very patience and kind.  I help out a lot lately at ICS and I have to say that the teachers there are very caring...and ICS is known for very good academic.  Some parents even think that ICS has many homeworks (starting from 5th grade)...and their homework load is pretty much like local school.  I kinda like the idea of more homework.  Also, since it is a Christian school, teachers there pray for your children after school and before school starts.  It is very thoughtful I think.  I also know that their SAT score is the same as rank #13 high school in the state of California.  But for now their school is located in a shopping mall...but in 2007, they are going to have a state-of-the-art new campus with indoor swimming pool, cafeteria, music/art hall etc.
Kids there definately behave better...because a lot of ICS kids go to my international church...and I teach a couple of them...they are just wonderful children.
Hope this helps,
Lenglengma

CherylMum

Re: International Christian School

[ 本帖最後由 CherylMum 於 09-11-16 08:08 編輯 ]

lenglengma

Dear CherylMum,
Another ICS fan!  For K1 class, the interview will last for 1 hour.  It was pretty straight forward.  They asked my daughter colors, shapes, numbers, puzzles....they asked my daughter to draw something to see if she can "draw" and understand.  They also read a story to see if your kid can sit still and pay attention.  If your daughter can speak fluently, then she should be fine.  They have ways to make your daughter feel at ease, so I think she will not be too nervous about it.  I have to admit it was not an easy interview though...I remember for HLYIS, my kids didn't really have to say anything or do anything for the interview.  The teacher just talked to me without really asking them any questions.  So...I was a bit surprise that the ICS spent 1 hour on each kid on the interview.  My husband and I thought it would be just a short talk...but it turned out to be an accessment test!
Umm...I talked to the principle and they did turn down parents with kids who can't understand English.  They think it will be very harsh and frustrated for those kids if they simply can't understand in class.  But like I said earlier, if your daughter can speak fluently, she will be okay.  May I ask where your daughter is studying at now?
No...I don't think it is too academic.  They use activity approach, and I just think that international schools nowadays are just too easy.  Kids learn and catch up pretty naturally at ICS.
Teachers there are very nice...I asked the Sunday school kids whom I teach at church (they go to ICS also), and they LOVE their teachers....and ICS kids are not nerdy at all....ICS stresses so much on extra curriculum, arts, sports, and music.
The kids whom I teach said that their teachers take them for movie during the weekends...and they all think that their teachers are very "cool".
I wish you good luck and keep me updated if she gets in...
Lenglengma

CherylMum

Re: International Christian School

[ 本帖最後由 CherylMum 於 09-11-16 08:08 編輯 ]

lenglengma

Dear CherylMum,
May I know where Boxhill is?
I think at least 60-70% of ICS teachers are Americans or Canadians.  I only know one British teacher so far in Kindergarten.  Other than that, almost all teachers speak perfect American English.
When the principle said the teachers are from different places...I think she meant...although they are different nationalities, but most had been living in the states or Canada.  Like my son's teacher, she speaks perfect American English, but she is Filippino. Same as my daughter's teachers, one is Chinese and the other one is Malaysian I think...but they both speak perfect American English as well.  To tell you the truth, I think English is their first language...because when I talk to my daughter's teacher in Chinese, her Chinese was not good....haha..  I think in Elementary school, teachers are mostly Caucasians.  I know four Caucasian ICS teachers who go to my church....they are very nice and very funny...have to say.
Btw, also want to tell you that parents at ICS are very involved.  Also, the kindergarten campus is open..meaning that parents can drop by to see how their kids are doing in class whenever they want.
PA's speak very good English too.
My children used to go to Tuitortime and Anchors Int. kindergarten too....but teachers speak bad English when compared to ICS.
Lenglengma

luluonthemoon

CherylMum,

Your little one is going for an interview at ICS! I do wish your child a good luck and I just want to tell you, "Don't worry. She'll be fine."
As for ICS kindergarten, where my daughter is in R1, the teachers' background is kind of diverse. As lenglengma mentioned, at R1 we have 2 classroom teachers and just to remind you, both of them are classroom teachers but neither of them is an assistant. One of them is Singaporian and the other one is Nepalese. But, of course, both of them speak very good English and they do speak their own language as well, like Nepalese. Amazingly, they both speak very good Cantonese as well.  Of course, they never ever slip any other language but English in front of the kids. For R2, there are 2 classes, around 15 children each with one classroom teacher. There are some assistants in both of the classrooms but both R1 and R2 do share some assistants at the same time so they are not always in the classes. Those assistants are just to help the kids to line up, go to the washrooms, wash up and watch out the kids when they play in the indoor play area, etc. So, they "do not" teach the kids at all. R2 teachers are from UK (she also speaks Cantonese)  and the Philipines as mentioned below earlier. To me, it doesn't seem to matter much which teacher your child falls into. One thing I can be very sure about this school is they do have very good, consistent teaching policy, including discipline. They do share the same values in all the classrooms and at the Chapel Time where the principal gives all the kindergarten children a story each week by playing by herself and sometimes getting the kids to play the roles. They do emphasize lots of morals and values through the Bible stories.
I don't really think that you can look into the classroom anytime you want while the session is on. But, if you like, you can do stay at your child's classroom once a week as a helper. That really gives you a good perspective as you see your child in the classroom with her classmates. Like how she deals with others, how she handles her snack time and playtime. And it does open up your eye for that each child is sooooo different!! On top of that, you can be a good friend with your child's classmates as well. I'm actually going to school once a week and now I really have affection for the kids in the class.  Other than this, there are some more "jobs" you can take, like a party organizer, classroom photo arrangement, etc. and the school always welcomes the parents to help the school do more and better for your child.
Hope it helps and, again, good luck for your child!!

lenglengma

Dear luluonthemoon,
Oh...I thought Mrs. G. was Malaysian...hahah...Mrs. W. should be Singaporean Chinese right?  
The principle once told me that they have this "open-door policy" in kindergarten, meaning that we can always drop by to see the kids during class session...oh well...
The U.K. teacher whom you talked about...she is Caucasian right?  I didn't know that she speaks Cantonese?!  Wow...
May I know if your child is in morning or afternoon class?
Lenglengma :

luluonthemoon

lenglengma,

Yep. It seems that all of them (probably, except the principal) can speak Cantonese.... I am not really sure about your son's teacher (Mrs. R......), though. The UK teacher is married to Chinese. You can check out her sirname next time. You'll see.
You can "drop by", in a sense, but I believe they do not prefer you hanging around for some time as the children get distracted so easily. With mommy around without reasonably helping the class, your child as well as other kids may "get lost" about what they're supposed to do. I have seen some children with their mommy in the class like on a birthday party, they began getting fussy and clinging to mommy instead of ongoing activities. But on kind of a special occassion, like Christmas Party, Chinese New Year Party etc., definitely you can do stay in the classroom and have fun with your child.  
My girl is in the morning class, but I've known about your child joining in the afternoon class in Dec. How has she been doing? Looks like both of you and your child enjoy ICS, don't you?

lenglengma

Dear luluonthemoon,
So far my daughter is doing great in her class.  She met many new friends.  She had a good friend in HLYIS before named T.   At the end, T told her that she didn't want to play with my daughter anymore....my daughter was heart-broken :cry:
But on the second day of  going to ICS, my daughter told me, "Mommy, I forgot about T...now I have K...she is my best friend now and she is so nice to me...she even said I love you to me..." I was so happy to hear that she met her many friends and children at ICS seem more caring and loving...may be because of the moral that they teach at school.  They teach them about love, that's why the ICS children seem to treat each other nicer.
I enjoy ICS and I just love to help out at ICS.  I met many kids there, and they are adorable.
Lenglengma

ahk019

lenglegma & luluonthemoon,

Thanks very much for the detailed info about ICS.   I'm looking for a good int'l high school for my daughter.   However, lenglegma mentioned that her son is placed in the "smartest" group with other Caucasian children...

May I know how does the teacher classify a student is smart?   Will they treat differently to smart and less-smart students?

luluonthemoon

lenglengma,

That's what it is all about!!! Good to hear you have happy children at ICS.
I often see the children helping each other, like at snack time, one child came to me and asked, "Can you help me open this?" with a wet towel bottle. Once I opened and passed it to her, she said Thank you and rushed back to other child and gave the bottle back to him! That was not for her, but for somebody else!!! This kind of thing happens all the time. They're more aware of helping others.  Also, one day, one girl was told to keep seated for a few minutes due to her misuse of the slide in the play area. Somehow she began to cry... and instantly some boys and girls ran to her and gathered around. They started saying, "Are you OK?", "That's OK. Don't cry..." Something like that, until her sob finally stopped. You know, what they say is quite simple, but you can see how much they want to care for the classmates.  I do agree with you. They are so adorable.

ahk019,

Regarding the kindergarten section, the teachers never classify any children into any category. They do believe that all the children are unique and special (in fact, this is the first thing they teach to the children), and they even ask the helping parents not to make any prejudgement to the children as they say the children are all given from God. If a child has some challenges to adjust to the school life, they patiently and repeatedly teach them. They do not give up on anyone based on their belief. This is also how I' ve heard about the elementary section.
I'm glad that this has been any of your help to give you ideas about the school.

CherylMum

Re: International Christian School

[ 本帖最後由 CherylMum 於 09-11-16 08:09 編輯 ]

lenglengma

Dear CherylMum,
Umm...I really don't think ICS is "strict" at all.  They are just trying to teach kids about manners...don't worry about it.  During class session time, kids have fun with their teachers and the teachers there are gentle and kind.  
I heard that ICS is going to reform their Chinese department, probably hire more Chinese specialists and stress more on Chinese in the year 2007.
luluonthemoon, have you heard anything about it?
I want my kids to be able to speak fluently, read and write like other local 6th graders....that's all.  I think 6th grade level should be okay.  My Chinese is primary six level too..and I do fine.  
Lenglengma

lenglengma

Dear ahk019,
I should say "more mature" instead of "smartest" group.  In my son's class, there are three groups.  My son is placed with the more mature children who can handle tasks by themselves.  Children in the other group require more attention, but can still do things by themselves.  However, children in the last group need more attention, meaning that during task time, snack time etc...these children really need adult / TA /Teacher to "look after" them.  When they are doing their works...most of the time, the Teacher needs to do it with them.  They just can't really work independently.  It is just an co-incidence that those Caucasian children are placed in the more mature group...only because they are really mature, can handle tasks themselves, and very focused..not because they are Caucasians.
I don't really think high school is the same.  I know that children are divided into small "teams".  There, they work together as a team and it ensures intimate learning environment and can also gain support from their team members.
My auntie's friend has a son who is now 13 years old.  He was accepted to Shatin College, but his mom preferred ICS.  Her son was very shy and were so afraid to speak in the public.  He had problems in class because he felt pressure when teachers asked him questions....after he switched to ICS, he gained his confidence back and is now feel at ease to speak in the classroom because of his team.  He is supported by his team members and they don't make fun of him.  And also because of the intimate learning environment, their bonds are so much closer.  He met many good friends at ICS too.
Lenglengma

lenglengma

Dear luluonthemoon and ahk019,
Yes...teachers there are very nice and patience and kind.  I just admire their patience.  Sometimes I think a couple of unbehaved kids in my child's class are very difficult to handle...but the teacher and TA always show love and patience and continue again and again to guide them, explain to them and teach them.  Have to say again that they don't catagorize children, the teacher place them in groups because they want to make sure the "less mature" ones are taken good care of.  
Have to share a little incident with you guys...one day a little girl at my son's group forgot to pack her snack for snack time....me and the teacher were quite concern about her snack habbit....because she only brought in unhealthy food, like chips, candies and candies....She was upset that she didn't have things to eat and I asked her if she wanted half of my son's wheatbread sandwish, and she said yes....(wow..probably the first time she ate "wheat" bread, and of course we made sure she was not allergic to it).  Anyways, my son immediately splited half of his sandwish to her...and the kid sitting next to my son said to the girl, "You can have my muffin too.." And he passed that to the girl, and another kid went, "You can have one of my Oreo too." Another one went, "You can have one of my cookies too..." The last one went, "You can have some of my fruits too."  So...this girl had nothing to eat ended up having 5-6 different kinds of snack...healthy combination too...It also provided this girl a chance to try new and healthy varieties too.
It was just touching to see the kids learned to share and how generous they were.  
Lenglengma

luluonthemoon

CherylMum,

To tell you the truth, I had a same kind of impression when I stayed in to help the class for the first few times. But once you get closer to the teachers and the children, you may know how it works. As lenglengma put down earlier, the teachers are very, very patient and they are doing their best to help the children understand "how" they should behave "when". They don't simply push the children by telling to do something they want the children to do, but the reasons always come first. The reason why they need to line up quitely and nicely, never to run.... there's always the reason behind it and that's what the teachers keep on telling the children. I believe they are not trying to mold the children into so-called "good children", but to train them up to be reasonable with proper social skills. In fact, the children, of course, do have lots of fun by running around in the play area and singing aloud with actions with a full of joy, laughing hard with the stories at Chapel Time and so on. I've heard some positive feedbacks from other moms about how independent and confident their children has become since they joined the school. So has my child! I do admit that this school is more moral-inclined than others based on their Christian belief and that's really how they are. I don't really feel that they are a bit too strict but I do understand that CherylMum has got such an impression when you went to the school, as that's where they have pulled off with the children so far.

For Chinese classes!!! That is what I'm concerned about as well. Yes, lenglengma, I have also heard from the elementary principal about the upgrade in Chinese curriculum, but we still don't know when and how it happens. I must say, they've been committed to the new school project right now, this Chinese thing could be put on the back burner even though there's ongoing high demand from the parents.....  and this is actually the reason why at the moment my hubby and I would like other primary schools for my child.

lenglengma

luluonthemoon,
Hope that the Chinese curriculum thing will happen soon....
Lenglengma :wink:

CherylMum

Re: International Christian School

[ 本帖最後由 CherylMum 於 09-11-16 08:09 編輯 ]

Stockinette

Hi all,

My kid will have an interview for R1 class shortly.  I have heard many good comments on ICS from this forum and also my neighbours whose kids are in ICS.  

However I have a small concern, we do not have any religion believes and would like our kids to choose their own path when they grow up.  Can you tell me how much emphasis ICS put on religious studies?