ABOUT OUR EXPERTS
ECDA Fellow and Principal, Far Eastern Kindergarten
ECDA Fellow and Executive Director, Catholic Preschool Education (Singapore)
Founder, Preschool Market
Every Wednesday, K2 children from Little Shepherds’ Schoolhouse (LSS) @ Church of the Holy Trinity (Tampines) look forward to a special date — time spent with seniors from Apex Harmony Lodge.
At first glance, they may seem unlikely playmates. The seniors are living with dementia, which affects memory and communication, and some move around in wheelchairs. But these differences melt away quickly. The six-year-olds happily join them in simple mindfulness exercises, play games like adapted hockey and enjoy sharing lunch together.
Over the years, this one-hour activity has grown into four hours each week, simply because both young and old have enjoyed their time together. Beyond the joy, the K2s have also learnt empathy, respect and responsibility in the most natural way through relationships and shared experiences — a great example of imparting values in action.
WALKING THE TALK
This partnership was started in 2015 by Ms Shirley Tan, an ECDA Fellow and Executive Director of Catholic Preschool Education (Singapore), which manages LSS. Having noticed some children taking their grandparents and helpers for granted, she wanted to help them grow in empathy, respect and responsibility. She knew, however, such values cannot be taught through lessons or worksheets alone.
By bringing children and seniors together regularly, Ms Tan hoped to transform abstract values into real-life practice for the children. “Preschool is an important window to instil these values,” she shares. “When taught at this age, when children are most impressionable, the values become part of who they are.”
Children from LSS look forward to their weekly catchups with seniors at Apex Harmony Lodge, fondly calling them ‘auntie’ or ‘uncle’.
Ms Tan loves seeing the children connect with the elderly. “They hug the seniors, hold their hands, and walk and talk patiently with them. Parents have also shared that the children have become more patient with their grandparents at home.”
Such values-based learning builds children’s character and is embedded within the LSS curriculum. In many ways, it also exemplifies ECDA’s ‘Start Small Dream Big’ (SSDB) movement, which brings preschools, educators, children and families together to nurture values such as empathy and compassion through community projects.
TO SSDB, AND BEYOND
Launched in 2015, SSDB has grown into a nationwide movement for doing good and is now a key platform for home-preschool-community collaboration. Over six months, preschools work closely with community partners on meaningful projects that support worthy causes, with parents encouraged to take an active role alongside their children.
One such project this year involved Far Eastern Kindergarten and two community partners, Christian Outreach to the Handicapped and Rainbow Centre. The preschool invited families to set aside part of their Teachers’ Day gift budget for caregivers of persons with special needs. Parents led this initiative, choosing to channel the funds into care packs for these caregivers.
On Teachers’ Day, about 40 parent representatives joined children and educators at the preschool to put together 120 care packs for the beneficiaries. Each care pack included honey, tea, nuts, scented candles, shower gel, moisturiser, towels and a card. As the children helped pack the items, they asked questions to better understand the needs of caregivers.
Far Eastern Kindergarten’s SSDB 2025 project saw strong parent involvement, who joined children and educators in putting together care packs for caregivers to show their appreciation for these unsung heroes.
“What touched me most was how the community came together,” shares Mrs Ang-Oh Chui Hwa, another ECDA Fellow and Principal of Far Eastern Kindergarten. “With parents involved, I know they will continue nurturing positive values in their children and reinforcing the importance of giving back to the community.”
Her centre also champions values-in-action beyond SSDB. For example:
- Mrs Ang-Oh introduced an annual Children’s Day tradition where each child receives $10, to uplift someone else. Some buy gifts for their family members or helpers, while others use the money to grow plants or bake goods for a charity sale.
- Educators organised a classroom project to appreciate cleaners. The children prepared thank-you cards and goodies and, during neighbourhood walks, surprised street and coffeeshop cleaners with these tokens of gratitude.
- Every day, children practise environmental responsibility whether by using recycled materials for their craft projects or reducing food wastage at lunch.
IT'S IN OUR DNA
Dr Cheong Su Fen, founder of Preschool Market, a social enterprise and long-term SSDB supporter, hopes more centres will follow the lead of LSS and Far Eastern Kindergarten in integrating character education into their daily practices. This helps children grow into responsible and respectful citizens who contribute positively to the community — the foundation of a flourishing society.
“These activities are not just add-ons to the schedule, but part of the preschool’s DNA,” says Dr Cheong. “They give children a voice — showing that they can care for the elderly, protect the planet, and raise funds for people and causes they care about. This shapes their character and mindset for life.”
Seemingly simple actions like tending to the preschool garden can foster lasting values, such as respect for all living things.
Embedding values-based learning into the regular curriculum has another benefit: It creates more opportunities for busy parents to support their children’s learning, without needing to take leave or time off from work to attend preschool activities.
For example, if the curriculum theme focuses on caring for the environment, children could compose a song about coral conservation in preschool and then sing it to their parents at home in exchange for a small donation to a nature group. Alternatively, families could participate together in a weekend beach clean-up, which then becomes the child’s Show & Tell topic in class.
“Make character development a way of life, not just a project,” says Mrs Ang-Oh. “Whatever children do or learn, the goal is to help someone. That is values-in-action.”
