Instil Confidence in Our Kids with Kumon Malaysia

How can we instil confidence in our kids? I'm sure many parents are facing the same problem as me when our kids lack confidence in their lives. Especially when our kids fail over and over again and they don't have the right support to help them to get back on the right track. Resilience does not come from failing alone, but from the experience of learning that they can pick themselves up, try again and succeed.

My Little Angels are from a Mandarin-speaking family background, and currently studying in Chinese school. They have always faced difficulty in communicating with their friends who have high proficiency in English. Thus, they lack self-confidence particularly in social settings. For instance, every time I try to speak to them in English, they share that they do not understand what has been communicated and they do not feel confident to speak in English. As parents, we know and understand the importance of English at school and in their lives when they grow up. Hence, Mommy Jane’s aim is to strengthen their foundation in English and build their confidence in communicating in English with everyone, especially me.  

Kumon Instructor, Ms Jaclyn warming up with my Little Angels to get to know them better prior to class enrollment.

Mommy Jane recently registered them to try out the English programme at Kumon. The location of the centre is quite near to our house and since Kumon Malaysia introduced the Year-End Special ("YES") campaign during the last school holiday, I decided to enrol them to improve their command in English as a supplement during the school holidays. All I need to pay was a month’s fee of RM160 per student for my 2 Little Angels to attend 1.5 months of the English programme at our chosen Kumon centre.

My Little Angel, WH, aged 12, doing the Diagnostic Test to determine his starting level.

Before my Little Angels started their 1st class, they underwent a diagnostic test to determine their respective starting level at Kumon. The instructor, Ms Jaclyn, started my Little Angels with the level that they are most comfortable with, or as how Kumon termed it as ‘just right’ level based on the results from the assessment. The Diagnostic Test assists the Instructors to design a study projection for each student as they begin their journey with Kumon. This study projection would guide students to progress to the next level comfortably.

WT, aged 9, did his diagnostic test too to determine his ‘just-right’ level. 

When I had a brief meeting with Ms Jaclyn and after seeing their results for the test that they had done, Ms Jaclyn said that my 2 Little Angels' level are below  their school grade level but she shared that she aims to guide my Little Angels to improve 3 levels up within 3 months. Given her confidence and assurance, I decided to register my 2 other Little Angels – CW started at C1 and finished at B2 i.e. 3 levels up (13) and WJ started at 6A and 1 level up (6) within 1.5 months during the YES campaign as well!

Ms Jaclyn also shared that Kumon is an after-school enrichment programme that emphasises on holistic learning where students do not only benefit academically but also equip themselves with critical life skills through the Kumon Method. The Kumon Method guides students to acquire self-learning, empowering them to learn independently, while applying concepts progressively. Through self-learning, I believe my Little Angels will have a positive attitude and a sense of curiosity to learn more, as well as perseverance which helps strengthen their character throughout their developmental years. I'm sure all parents agree that character building is important in a kids' learning process as this will help them in the future.

Whenever my Little Angels reached the centre, their usual routine would be to collect their worksheets from the shelves, take their seats and begin to do their worksheets independently. Kumon worksheets have been designed in a manner that enables students to progress in small steps from easy to challenging materials. My kids were guided via sample questions in their worksheets along with guidance from the instructor or the assistants in class. This method effectively nurture our children to be independent, allowing them to develop a good foundation to learn independently which would help our kids excel in the future. 

After each class, they will be given some worksheets as homework. As parents, we need to ensure that our kids diligently complete their homework before their next class. At times, they may find it challenging to handle the amount of worksheets given at the beginning, but with the support from us parents, they will be motivated and disciplined to complete their homework. I believe this practice will help my Little Angels to be more mature and independent. 

Whenever my Little Angels complete their Kumon class and are waiting for us to fetch them, they will begin to pick up a book from the reading corner at the centre to read. Kumon encourages our kids to read and this has helped them develop a love for reading and it is now part of their daily routine! Reading plays an important role in further improving my kids’ command of English as it helps them expand their vocabulary as well.

To date, Kumon Malaysia has over 200 centres nationwide. Why not bring your kids to the Kumon centre near you to understand how your kids can further improve in either English or Maths or both subjects and also build their self-confidence? For more details, do visit their website at https://www.kumonmalaysia.com/ and Facebook page at www.facebook.com/kumonmalaysia or call them up at 1800-88-1010. 

Mommy Jane always believed that early childhood education is indeed critical in our kids' developmental journey as it helps them to grow in all aspects of life be it within a classroom setting or outside. After attending the classes at Kumon for 3 months now, I noticed that my Little Angels’ communication in English, vocabulary and writing skills had shown some improvements. My Little Angels have become more confident about studying on their own and they are also able to tackle the problems themselves and work through the worksheets independently. 

Progress Level for WT. See the different between his starting level and level for him now.

Progress Level for WH. See the difference from when he first started and his current level now.

As their mom, I’m so glad to see that they have improved and moved up 3 levels in a short 3 months and are now able to cope with both subjects in class. After 3 months of Kumon lessons, they started reading English storybooks at home and are now more comfortable communicating in English with their friends and even strangers. I am so proud of their achievements, especially having witnessed their journey from the start. It may have been challenging at first but it was definitely worth it. More importantly, I am very happy to see that they are more confident now.