iMatter Learning Centre: Latest News and Blog Posts on Education

06May 2020 by Principal

Join our Crash Courses during the May 2020 School Holidays!

Biology, Chemistry, Chinese, COVID-19, Crash Course, English, Math, Online Teaching & Learning, Revision, Science

Prepare your child for PSLE and 'O' Levels with our online Crash Courses Does your child need an intense revision of what he has learned previously? Our online Crash Courses reinforce the knowledge and understanding critical to preparing for the coming examinations. Crash Courses are available for the following subjects. Check our schedule here. They are open to both our centre’s regular students and any other students of the right academic level. PSLE ‘O’ LevelsEnglishMathMathChemistryScienceBiologyChineseChinese Call or WhatsApp us at 8768 6497 or email us at info@imatter.com.sg to find out more and register. Hope to see your child in our Crash Courses!

18Apr 2020 by Principal

5 Lessons for a Small Business Owner in the COVID-19 Crisis

COVID-19, Online Teaching & Learning

First, we are apprehensive about using the word “crisis” in the title because it conjures up images of fear and destruction in our minds, in short, nothing but bad news. This is a crippling rather than an empowering mindset. We would have preferred to call the “crisis” a “New Normal” as it simply means a new way of doing things. Nevertheless, for an easy frame of reference to the current situation, we have stuck to the term commonly used in the media – “crisis”. If you are reading this, you probably already have the right mindset to seek out the lessons in this “crisis” and make good on the opportunities that arise. Lesson 1: Acceptance In any survival situation, accepting the reality we find ourselves in is the first step.…

14Apr 2020 by Principal

A New Era of Online Tuition brought about by COVID-19?

COVID-19, Online Teaching & Learning, Tuition

We are into the 3rd week of the closure of tuition centres and the question many parents and students ask is when are things returning to normal. Hey, even we ask ourselves that question! No crystal ball here. We simply can't predict how well the currently tightening measures are going to work. Tuition centres, schools and other non-essential businesses are supposed to close till 4 May 2020. Will the restrictions and closures continue? Perhaps, if the COVID-19 situation worsens and the casualties pile up. But one thing we do know is like other pandemics, COVID-19 will last for at least more than a year till it burns out by itself or a cure or vaccine is made available. Even if Singapore manages its situation well now, COVID-19 is still out…

03Apr 2020 by Principal

Adapting to COVID-19 through Online Teaching & Learning

COVID-19, Online Teaching & Learning

Bad Tidings 24 April 2020 Tuesday evening was supposed to be a time to relax after completing all work for the day. Well, at least it was till one of our tutors messaged us about an announcement on the news that all tuition and enrichment centres must close shop from 26 April 23:59 to 30 April to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in the community. Our first reaction was disbelief. Was that fake news? We had to read the news article a few times to be sure we got the message right. It was not long before more messages poured in - some from concerned tutors and others from anxious parents. The die was cast. No doubt about it - we indeed had to close our doors as stipulated. The…

03Mar 2020 by Principal

Join our Crash Courses during the March School Holidays!

Biology, Chemistry, Chinese, English, Math, Revision

Prepare your child for PSLE and 'O' Levels with our Crash Courses Does your child need an intense revision of what he has learned previously? Our Crash Courses reinforce the knowledge and understanding critical to preparing for the coming examinations. Crash Courses are available for the following subjects. Check our schedule here. They are open to both our centre’s regular students and any other students of the right academic level. PSLE ‘O’ Levels P5-6 English Creative WritingMathMathChemistryScienceBiologyChineseChinese Call or WhatsApp us at 8768 6497 or email us at info@imatter.com.sg to find out more and register. Hope to see your child in our Crash Courses!

18Feb 2020 by Principal

A Small Class Size in the midst of the COVID-19 Situation

News, Tuition

With the current outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus in Singapore and the world, we are grateful that our classes are kept small (no more than 6 students per class) since we first opened our doors. In addition to other measures practised in our Tuition Centre - regular sanitisation of premises, monitoring of body temperature for all staff, students & visitors, use of hand sanitiser and declaration of travel history etc., a small class significantly reduces the chances of catching an infection. This applies not just to COVID-19 but also includes the common cold and influenza Though the intention of having small classes is to enhance learning in our students, it is fortuitous that such an arrangement becomes an added advantage in the current COVID-19 situation. We take the health and…

17Nov 2019 by Principal

Science Tuition Class Practical Hands-on: Do you need a Potato for a Potato Battery?

Chemistry, Science, Tuition

What better way to ingrain in our Science students the application of Science in actual hands-on work! The potato battery has been used in school experiments for a long time. While commercial kits are available, we decide to get our hands wet and dirty to make one from raw materials and bits and pieces of electrical apparatus as described a previous post. Today, we revisit the potato battery and attempt to make one out of fruit/vegetable other than a potato. Theory of Our Battery For a good discussion of how a potato battery works, refer to our previous post which mentioned the Reactivity Series or Electrochemical Series. It also talked about the potato acting as an electrolyte to conduct an electric current within the battery. For this experiment during our…

08Nov 2019 by Principal

Join our Enrichment Programmes in Nov/Dec School Holidays!

Cognitive skills, English, Enrichment, Math, News, Non-cognitive skills, Revision, Science

Our Enrichment Programmes are designed for students to be away from their studies and learn new knowledge and skills, both academic and non-academic. They are open to both our centre’s regular students and any other students of the right academic level. The following programmes are scheduled to run on the given dates. Click on each of them for fees and further information. Call or WhatsApp us at 8768 6497 or Email us at info@imatter.com.sg to register. English Creative Writing for Upper Primary Students (23-24 Nov)Secrets of Studying Smart for Secondary Students(11 Dec)Design Thinking for Solving Problems in Real Life for Secondary Students (2 Dec)Water Quality Monitoring Field Trip for Secondary Students (12 Dec)Biodiversity Survey Field Trip for Upper Primary Students (11 Dec) Primary 6 PSLE Math Preparatory Course (17-19 Dec)…

05Oct 2019 by Principal

Science Tuition Class Practical Hands-on: Making a Potato Battery

Chemistry, Science, Tuition

What better way to ingrain in our Science students the application of Science in actual hands-on work! The potato battery has been used in school experiments for a long time. While commercial kits are available, we decide to get our hands wet and dirty to make one from raw materials and bits and pieces of electrical apparatus. Common Misconception Most students (and some adults) believe that the energy of a Potato Battery comes from the potato. But no. Its energy comes from the 2 different metals inserted into the Potato Battery. They differ in their reactivity according to the Reactivity Series or Electrochemical Series - a concept which is only covered in Upper Secondary Chemistry. In our hands-on experiment, we at first tried a copper strip and a screw. The…

05Jul 2019 by Principal

Make your narrative and descriptive writing in English come alive with these insights

English, Tuition

In this video, we would like to share some insights derived from teaching English continuous writing to our students at iMatter Learning Centre. Consistency of tenses - time machines do not existUsing figures of speech - breathing life into your writingDeciding on a highlight for your writing - the spice in your writingSenses and emotions - the bread and butter of narrative and descriptive writingDid you remember to tie up all loose ends? https://youtu.be/blFr487_Tzs Find out more about our tuition programmes, including English.