SINGAPORE - The weekend may be over, but Kindergarten 2 student Mike Liu was excited on the first day of the school week on Monday (Nov 11).
Wearing a big smile, the six-year-old rummaged excitedly through a new school bag he was just given.
It contained items such as new stationery, colouring materials, a water bottle and an $80 Popular bookstore voucher.
Picking out a pencil case, he ran off to show it to his schoolmates.
The bag and school supplies are part of a Pre-school Transition Starter Kit initiative launched by the North East Community Development Council (CDC) and Taoist society Zhi Zhen Tan Dao Xue Hui (Singapore).
More than 70 K2 children from PAP Community Foundation's Sparkletots pre-schools in the district received their kits at the launch event at Punggol Community Club on Monday.
The kit will be given annually to about 1,200 K2 children living in the North East district who are under the Kindergarten Fee Assistance Scheme, to help them in the transition to Primary 1.
North East CDC mayor Desmond Choo, the guest-of-honour at the event, said: "Moving from kindergarten to primary school is a big step for the students and their families. Besides wearing new uniforms, parents and students have to be mentally prepared for the changes that comes with formal education.
"However, for underprivileged families, mental preparation becomes secondary when providing basic items is a challenge," he added.
Madam Khairunnisa Abdull Wahab, 33, said the new items will mean a great start to primary school for her six-year-old daughter Ila Elycia Taufeq.
The school canteen cook, who is married and also has two sons aged 11 and seven, added: "Now she has own stationery, she won't need to share with her siblings."
The Kindergarten Fee Assistance Scheme helps keep kindergarten education affordable and accessible for lower- and middle-income families.
Till the end of the year, families with a monthly household income of $6,000 and less can apply for assistance under the scheme, and different levels of subsidies, up to $170 per month, are provided to these families.
Starting next year, the income ceiling will be raised to $12,000.
