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IN AN air-conditioned room gaily decorated with grass green and white floral wallpaper, Ms Grace Khoo stands in front of six babies lying in their bouncers.
She flashes white A4-size cards that bear simple words - 'play', 'shoes' and 'wait' - while reading aloud.
Some of the babies - all of whom are less than 10 months old - look at her while others are distracted by the cries of their counterparts in the room.
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Teaching tots
Don't use baby talk. Use proper English and speak in proper sentences. When your baby starts talking, he will speak in the way you once spoke to him.
Talk to your baby at all times, even if he is too young to reply. Your monologue may go something like this: 'Oh, you've wet yourself. Let's get you changed.' This is to let your baby get used to the sound of words.
Do not use the television set as a babysitter. Engage your child in activities such as drawing and painting. Keep the TV for children's educational programmes.
Do not carry your baby the moment he starts crying. If you pick him up when he cries, your baby will soon register that being carried is the reward for crying. Let the baby calm himself. Carry him once in a while when he is not crying.
Babies can be taught table manners. Seat him in his chair during meal times and make him sit when drinking his milk. He should not be crawling or running about when eating.
Start using flash cards when he is six months old. Give him picture books, sing him short songs and read him nursery rhymes. Don't get disheartened if he does not respond immediately.
Massage your baby often. Being touched makes him feel secure and protected. This will boost his self-esteem and confidence.
Source: Infant school principals
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This is a typical day at Del-Care Edu Centre, an infant school at Fuji Xerox Towers in Anson Road, which takes in children between two and 18 months old. The school, and the parents who send their children there, believe one is never too young to learn.
Teacher Ms Khoo says: 'The babies may not be paying attention, but if we flash the cards to them often enough, they will absorb something.'
Del-Care Edu Centre is among an increasing number of infant schools that go beyond the usual services offered by childcare outlets, such as babysitting and feeding.
There are 111 infant schools that say they incorporate learning into their schedules, up from just 19 in 2003. The number of infant-care places has also increased - from 274 in 2003 to 1,553 now.
Babies are taught through word and picture flash cards, picture books, music lessons, gym activities and by teachers constantly talking to them in proper sentences. It is all about giving the babies an educational edge over their peers, even if it just means they get a head start at kindergarten.
Del-Care's director, Ms Jeanette Tan, says: 'Parents do not expect us to just babysit; they expect their kids to learn something. They want us to stimulate the children's minds.'
Tax accountant Kate Leong sends four-month-old daughter Katelyn to infant school for the 'educational exposure'.
'If I were to leave my baby with a maid or grandparents, she'd lack the learning skills and interaction with other children,' says the 31-year-old mother of one.
The fees range from $1,000 to $1,400 a month. Even after government subsidies, parents can expect to pay $600 to $1,000 for each child.
The Sunday Times contacted 20 infant schools and found that almost all are full, and many have children on the waiting list.
Ms Lina Ong, founder of Babies Inc, says parents are very eager for their children to learn more. Her two schools, which can cater for 214 babies, are usually full by August.
'When we teach colours to 18-month-olds, some parents want us to introduce more colours, such as turquoise, maroon and mustard. But not every child is ready to go that fast,' she says.
Babies Inc follows the Montessori programme, which emphasises learning through discovery. It introduces babies to picture books when they are four months old.
Preschool teachers and principals say they understand where the parental anxiety is coming from. The Primary 1 syllabus is getting tougher, they say, making parents feel they have to prepare their children for formal school earlier than in the past.
Twenty years ago, it was good enough if a child knew his ABCs by Primary 1. Not anymore.
Madam Jane Tan, owner of Greenfield Montessori in Choa Chu Kang, says: 'At Primary 1, teachers expect children to know how to multiply, divide and even work out simple fractions. All this has to be done when the child is in K2.
'So now, even childcare centres are expected to prepare children for school.'
Babies Inc's Ms Ong says: 'We're probably the only country in the world that requires children to know how to spell and count before kindergarten.'
But early childhood education experts think parents are wasting their time and money.
Dr Lily Wong, an educational psychologist and early childhood education consultant, says children are not ready for a 'group setting' until they are five or six.
'Babies and toddlers are naturally self-centred. At such a young age, they cannot socialise yet,' says Dr Wong, who adds that the children would be better off staying at home and enjoying undivided attention from their parents.
But parents remain unconvinced.
Ms Fionna Tay, 32, who enrolled her two children in infant school when they were two months old, says the results are encouraging.
Her daughter, now five, could recognise the letters of the alphabet and colours when she was just 13 months old and could eat on her own at 14 months. Now, Ms Tay's son, who turns one today, can use sign language to indicate that he wants milk.
Housewife M. Mohamed, 36, sends her one-year-old twin boys to infant school for six hours a day, five days a week.
On weekends, the boys attend Shichida enrichment classes and get exposure to other languages, such as German and Korean.
Shichida is a teaching method introduced by Japanese professor Makoto Shichida which claims to train children to use their whole brain efficiently.
Mrs M. Mohamed says: 'I'm not pushing my kids. I just want the best for them. Hopefully, with these classes, they'll learn something.'
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