Singapore Six

An American Family of Six Serving in Singapore

You are here: Home / Archives for Kids

Kids

Getting Around In Singapore

Some of the adjustments we’ve made in Singapore since we’ve moved to Singapore are a product of adjusting to big city life. One of those adjustments involves getting from place to place across the island.

We don’t own, lease, or rent a vehicle in Singapore which is a big lifestyle change for us. Although we do ride in cars from time to time (mostly taxis) we’ve never driven in Singapore. There are two main reasons that we do not use a personal vehicle in Singapore. First, the cost of owning a car in Singapore is extremely expensive, particularly because Singapore heavily taxes car purchases. In fact, the cost of personal vehicles in Singapore is one of the reasons that Singapore consistently ranks at the top of cities in the world with the highest cost of living. Secondly, Singapore has an extensive, safe, clean, and efficient public transportation system. So, combined with our feet, we have many ways to get around the city without the use of our own vehicle. Generally, Singapore encourages the use of public transportation and discourages the use of personal vehicles.

Public Transportation in Singapore

The MRT (Mass Rapid Transit) is Singapore’s train or subway system. It is comprised of both above ground and underground trains. We live right next to the Lakeside MRT station on the west side of the island which is an above-ground section, and we enjoying watching the trains from our apartment. There are several different colored lines within the MRT system, and there is an on-going expansion of the system. The MRT is quite easy to navigate with easy-to-read maps and clear signage everywhere. For the most part, people using public transportation are orderly and it isn’t too crowded except maybe during peak times (though crowds have been generally reduced due to COVID-19) which also makes using public transportation easier.

  • At the train platform walking to a gate to wait for the train.

Singapore also has an extensive bus system comprised of both single-level and double-level buses. The kids love riding the double-decker buses, especially if we can sit at the front. It is a fun way to explore and view the city.

  • The kids riding at the top of a double-decker bus.

Taxis are also readily available in Singapore including traditional taxi services as well as Grab (the equivalent of Lyft or Uber).

Some Observations about Public Transportation in Singapore

Public transportation is very clean which fits right in with Singapore’s reputation as one of the cleanest cities in the world. The MRT trains are clean. The buses are clean. It is rare to see any kind of trash inside the trains or buses. You don’t have to check a seat before you sit down because the expectation is that it will be clean.

Inside of a train car

Eating and drinking (not even water!) are not allowed on public transportation or within MRT stations. This rule is strictly followed by Singapore residents and certainly helps contribute to the cleanliness of the trains and buses. People regularly carry food and drinks on public transportation that they’ve picked up from restaurants, but you’ll never see anyone consuming either (only once have I seen a group of teen boys defying the rule). One particular food item that isn’t allowed on public transportation is durian, a stinky fruit (descriptions of the smell often include things like rotting flesh and garbage) that many Singaporeans enjoy.

Durian

Riding on public transportation is generally quiet. Most of the time people are not talking much, nor are they talking on the phone. This was a little tough for our kids to get used to, but they’ve become accustomed to quiet rides on public transport. Noise on public transportation has been reduced even further since the COVID-19 outbreak because Singapore has a public campaign for “quiet rides” with a “Hush-hush Hannah” character who encourages riders to mask up and stay quiet to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Public transportation is very safe which also aligns with Singapore’s reputation as one of the safest cities in the world. There is no reason to worry about pick-pockets or really anything else for that matter. It is not uncommon to see children riding on public transportation without adults because it is safe. We’ve been told by a local that there’s a saying in Singapore “low crime doesn’t mean no crime” encouraging Singaporeans to stay alert to help keep Singapore safe.

How do we get around in Singapore?

We use a combination of the MRT, buses, and our feet to get around most of the time. Since we live right next to an MRT station (its about a five minute walk from our condo), we use the MRT as our primary mode of transportation. Trent walks back and forth to the church building from our condo (about a 10-12 minute walk for him, longer if the whole family is walking to the building).

We also use taxis (mostly Grab) from time to time, but taxis are a more expensive option. Using a taxi takes about half the amount of time of public transportation, and there are times that we need to get somewhere more quickly than we could get to the location using public transportation or we have to carry a big load that would be difficult on public transportation.

What do the kids think of public transportation?

Most of the time, I think the kids view public transportation as an adventure. It’s fun for them to watch for the trains and hunt for seats when the train arrives. They love (especially Troy) looking at the maps and figuring out which way we should go. They don’t mind the little inconveniences that sometimes bother me that much. They are good about carrying a bag of their things (water bottles, wipes, books, etc.) that might otherwise be kept in a car that you need to have with you. They love to bring along a book to read on long trips or even play a game some of their friends here taught them called chopsticks. They’ve learned about the responsibility of keeping up with their fare cards. Although they do miss car rides listening to Spotify, singing along, and being able to talk freely, they are flexible and don’t complain. I don’t think any of them have ever even asked for us to have a car. They seem to understand that just like many other things, this change in lifestyle is a natural part to living life in Singapore.

  • The older three kids playing chopsticks.
  • Annie sleeping on a long train ride.

-Lisa

The Start of Each Day at Four Seas

Each morning the Four Seas school day begins with a chapel session in which the students and on-site faculty engage in a time of devotion to God. These chapel sessions not only allow the students and faculty an opportunity to begin their day with a focus on God, but also allow the male students to practice in various leadership roles including song leading, leading public prayer, Scripture reading, preparing and giving a chapel lesson, and making announcements. Some chapel lessons are given by faculty, some are given by alumni, and others are given by the male students. When the male students present the lesson they are critiqued by a faculty member to help them build on their lesson preparation and presentation skills.

Rance leading singing during chapel.

The chapel sessions on Mondays and Fridays are special sessions known as “Singspiration.” These “Singspiration” sessions do not include a chapel lesson; instead, extra emphasis is placed on singing and song leading. Most of the male students have an opportunity to lead a song on these days.

Although we’ve recently had to miss a few weeks due to some illness at the school, our family has been blessed to be able to regularly attend the Friday chapel “Singspiration” sessions. We enjoy the opportunity to join in fellowship with the students during the time of praise to God. Most Fridays our boys, Troy, age 9, and Luke, age 6, also have the opportunity to lead a song during this session. We are incredibly thankful for that our family can support the school during these chapel sessions and that the students and faculty can likewise support our boys as we encourage them in future leadership within the church. Some of the boys favorite songs to lead include “This World is Not My Home,” “Seek Ye First,” “There’s a Great Day Coming,” and “Give Me the Bible.” Here’s a couple of clips of the boys each starting a song.

-Lisa

Luke leading a song.
Troy leading a song.

Charting a Child’s Course

Kids are wonderfully resilient; they are ever-adapting, learning, and mastering (in a child-like way) their environment. Lisa and I have often praised our children for their adjustment over the last year. A little over 12 months ago we made the decision to move to Singapore and begin working with the Four Seas Bible College. That decision changed and will change our kids’ lives for the foreseeable future. But, the truth is, any decision we made and every (big) decision we make affects our kids in this way. Going affects them. Staying affects them. Changing schools or careers or even changing from mornings to nightshifts can affect them.

  • Walking to the church building from our apartment.
  • New friends.
  • New friends.
  • Riding the bus.
  • Drinking from a fresh coconut.
  • Riding the MRT.
  • New friends.
  • New friends.
  • New friends.

Granted, our changes lately have been huge for us and the children. They have been with us through driving all over Texas, visiting congregations, saying goodbye to friends and family, seriously downsizing our stuff (including their toys!), trying new foods, and adjusting to life where we rely on our feet or public transportation to get around. They make friends easily, love to play with anyone who will let them join, love to visit to anyone who will listen, and generally love life.

  • Ella eating duck rice.
  • Troy eating wonton noodles.
  • Luke eating duck rice.
  • Practicing Chinese.
  • Creative toothbrush holders.
  • Tents from Ikea boxes
  • Camping out on mattresses until the beds could be put together.
  • Making friends with students in chapel.
  • Making friends at the hawker centre.

Through it all, the four of them, Ella, Troy, Luke, and Annie have been resilient, gracious, patient, forgiving, and adaptable beyond their years. Lisa and I are proud of them and the joy, example, insight, fun, and love they bring to our family.

-Trent

Patience and Passes

Foreign mission work requires patience and flexibility; there is no doubt about it. Trent and I have been blessed with different opportunities in different countries, and each and every unique situation requires its own patience and flexibility. Whether Trent is leading a team in Jamaica, we’re taking our family to work in South America for the summer, or we are settling down for long term work in Singapore, maintaining patience and flexibility is key. When Trent trained teams for evangelistic campaigns, he made up a word that most of them could recall, even today, it was some combination of fluid and flexible…

Even something as seemingly simple as obtaining the right to stay in a country can be quite tedious, draining, and downright frustrating at times. Every country’s requirements are different (as you’d expect them to be) based on why you are in the country and how long you want to stay and more. Navigating through whatever information you might be able to find online can be tedious and confusing. It can be quite difficult to read through a foreign country’s government website (if it exists and is in a language you can read) to determine the steps to take to enter (and stay) in that country. I don’t even like looking at the United States’ (or Texas’) government website for information, and I’m familiar with how things work (for the most part, ha!) there. Once again we were reminded, flexibility.

Singapore Ministry of Manpower Employment Pass Office

Singapore has a strict immigration policy keeping close tabs on who they let in the country and how long they can stay. If necessary, they will remove you from the country if you stay beyond your allowed time. In order for our family to stay in Singapore, Trent had to obtain an employment pass (work visa), and the rest of the family had to obtain dependent passes. 

When we entered the country, the immigration officer had the right to grant us either thirty or ninety days in the country without obtaining further approval. Thankfully we were granted 90 days. During these first ninety days, we had to complete the process to obtain our employment and dependent passes. If the college had not began the process before we arrived, we likely would have had to leave the country for a time to renew our visas.

Singapore has serious requirements that must be met to obtain an employment pass. We had to provide copies of many “normal” things such as Trent’s passport and birth certificate. However, we also had to show documentation that Trent was qualified to take the job of teaching at Four Seas by providing things such as his work history, salary history, and copies of his diplomas. Finally, we also had to show that Trent would have sufficient income to provide for a family of six in Singapore (based on data from Singapore’s government). 

After Trent’s employment pass was conditionally approved, we had to apply for the rest of the family’s dependent passes. Obtaining our dependent passes was another tedious process, particularly for the children, because Singapore has vaccination requirements for children staying in the country. Although our children were up to date on their vaccines for a typical U.S. vaccine schedule, Annie was not up to date for Singapore’s vaccine schedule, so she had to receive a vaccine right before we left the U.S. Everything was ultimately approved, and we are thankful to God for that!

Then, we had to appear in person at the Ministry of Manpower’s (an acronym we can all love -MOM) Employment Pass Centre for final approval. Now, we are 100% legal! These passes not only allow us to legally stay in Singapore, but they also allow us to enter into contracts (leasing an apartment, opening a bank account, getting cell phone, etc). Obtaining these passes was a necessary hurdle to working in Singapore. We are so grateful to Sister Chin and the many countless hours (some after our arrival in Singapore) she spent working her way through the necessary paperwork for our family (of six!) to obtain these passes. We also greatly appreciate many prayers offered on our behalf for our family’s transition to Singapore, realizing that going through these legal steps was part of that transition. Once again, we learned patience.

-Lisa

What will the Kids do for School in Singapore?

As far as frequently asked questions go, “What will the kids do for school in Singapore?” is right at the top. It was a big question for us to answer as well! In their few years of school in Texas Ella and Troy have been homeschooled as well as gone to public school. We believe both options have benefits and drawbacks. Our kids have been blessed in both public school and homeschool. Our kids have had difficulties in both public school and homeschool. When it comes to our children’s education, we are open minded to investigate all possible options (even beyond public school and homeschooling) wherever we live, especially knowing that geographic location and even specific schools can have an impact on our decision.

Singapore is known for having an excellent education system, with students who consistently rank at the top across the world. Because of this we were excited to investigate opportunities for our kids to be a part of the Singapore education system. Essentially there are two types of schools our kids had the possibility of attending in Singapore: private (usually international schools) or mainstream (public schools).

International schools, like most private schools, are very, very expensive. These are often the types of schools where companies pay for the tuition of employees’ kids to attend.

Interestingly, the mainstream schools in Singapore are also costly if you are not a Singapore citizen or permanent resident. The cost for our kids to attend the mainstream schools in Singapore is around $1500 per month (three kids in school at approximately $500 each/month). However, when it comes to the mainstream schools in Singapore, there are additional things beyond cost to consider as well. We would have to apply to get our children into the mainstream schools, and as a non-Singaporean and non-permanent resident we are “last in line” to apply. We have been told that the mainstream schools only take a handful of students each year. And, even if our kids were accepted into mainstream schools, there is no guarantee that our kids would be at the same school. In fact, our kids could easily be separated at three different schools by more than an hour across the island (by public transport) from each other and from where we live.

The third option we wanted to investigate was the opportunity to homeschool. When we began looking into working in Singapore, we didn’t know if homeschooling was even an option (legal). Even across the United States, homeschooling regulations vary greatly from state to state (Texas has very little regulation). From some brief googling we had done, it seemed like homeschooling in Singapore might be difficult. According to the Ministry of Education in Singapore, there are many different requirements that must be met to homeschool in Singapore. So, during Trent’s visit to Singapore last August to check out the work, he looked more extensively into the possibility of homeschooling. And, although there are strict requirements for Singaporeans and permanent residents to homeschool their children, as a family here on an employment pass (work visa) we aren’t subject to those requirements.

After looking into these options, we decided that we would homeschool our kids. (I homeschooled Ella and Troy in the year leading up to our move to Singapore.) Please know that cost was far from the only deciding factor when it came to homeschooling our children. I have really enjoyed homeschooling, and I’m very thankful for the opportunity to continue doing it. I love getting to spend time with the kids. I love having freedom to choose curriculums that I think fit the kids, and that teach material that we think is important for them. I love being able to incorporate Bible time into our school routine. I love being able to move quickly past material the kids easily get, and being able to spend more time on material they don’t. Homeschooling also provides a very flexible schedule allowing the family to spend time with Trent and brethren at Four Seas; allowing ease in travel (for furlough as well as travel to areas in the region); and allowing us more time to explore Singapore.

I started homeschooling Ella (5th grade), Troy (3rd grade), and Luke (kindergarten) this past week. We had a great first week! I’ve included their first day of school questionnaires. Ella wrote that her favorite food is something called bao that she first tried in Singapore a year ago, and has had several times since we’ve moved here. She particularly likes pork bao. You might have heard of bao from Disney’s short film Bao. : )

-Lisa

And for those who are interested, here’s some of the curriculum we are using this year: