Back To School: Easing the Children into Term 3 of School with Shopee

Posted by May July 03, 2020

Back To School: Easing the Children into Term 3 of School with Shopee

It has been a month since the kids were back to school after our two-month long Circuit Breaker. It also took as almost a month to ease Faye back into Kindergarten, finally without tears. Now that we are in Phase 2, there will not longer be alternate weeks of home-based learning and in-school learning. All students are to return back to school for the rest of the year [crossing fingers the numbers of COVID-19 cases continue to plummet in Singapore].

New school rules were implemented to safeguard the health of our children.

1. Class seating arrangements are changed to examination-style seatings
2. No sharing of stationeries

3. When in class, students are to wear face masks

4. No talking when masks are not worn

5. When eating, masks can be removed but face shields are to be worn

6. Recess is in-class

7. A lot more silent reading during free-time as opposed to previously socialising time

8. Each child is to bring their own personal handkerchiefs to wipe their hands after every wash

I needed to beef up on back-to-school essentials for Ewan and Faye for the rest of the year! Additional Face Shields, Mask Filters, Handkerchiefs and Storybooks. To save time and stay home as much as possible, I turned to Shopee to help me with this task at hand.

To be honest, I've never used Shopee before. I know... I'm so late in the game right? But I'm sure many of you are like me too. When I knew about The Great Shopee Sale, I downloaded the app into my phone and had my account set up right away!

For all new Shopee users, you can get $7 off minimum spend $15 on Shopee with my discount code "SHOPEEXLM", valid until 26 December 2020.

I mean, whatever it is, get this almost 50% off deal first for my first purchase! I'm practical like that. Little savings each day go a long way!

FACE SHIELDS

My children's government-issued face shields were not distributed on the first day when they went back to school. Which meant, they had to go without face shields for a week because I hadn't anticipated in advanced to get our own before school reopened.

When they finally brought home their face shields, we had a little accident and Ewan had one side of his shield's button popped out of its headband. We panicked because that was his one and only shield! Daddy retraced his footsteps and found it in the carpark. We were lucky we had it fixed. Otherwise, he would have to go back to school the next day without a face shield.

That was when I realised I really do need a spare.

Scouring the huge range of face shields on Shopee almost drove me mad *haha* There were so many to choose from! But the kids were clear what they were comfortable with. I showed them pictures of bespectacled and bucket-hatted face shields but they promptly rejected my picks. They said they preferred visors.

I clicked Next Next Next till I was seeing double! Then this one caught my eyes and my heart. The price is good for a two-piece shield visor! It comes with two screens - a clear and a dark. Perfect for learning in school and cycling under the hot sun. Then I got spoilt for choice again with the array of colours they offer!

It comes in eight colours: Pink, Orange, Blue, Black, Green, Yellow, Navy Beige.

I chose Yellow and Green.

Shop Ewan and Faye's Face Shields here: https://shopee.prf.hn/l/6nP5zAe

It is One-Size only but comes with a velcro adjustable band. I wasn't sure if they would fit my kids but I took the chance because I really love the dual-functionality it provides. I was certain that I'll find a solution to get them fit even if they don't.

I received these face shields on the 9th day of purchase and excitedly got the children to try them on [after sanitising and sunning for a day of course]. It was still too big for them even with the velcro adjustable band. The size was actually just right for me [I actually got a small head]! I searched my sewing box for my velcro stash and pasted an additional strip of velcro to the headbands. Wa la! All settled! They fit perfectly now with that additional length!

It is currently on sale at 50% off from S$17.58 to S$8.79. You can still use the New Shopee discount code "SHOPEEXLM" to knock an additional S$7 off if you cart out a minimum of S$15, valid till 26 December 2020!

I might just cart out two more for them because Faye just dented her government-issued face shield today! No idea what other mishaps will befall on their face shields for the rest of this year.

FACE MASK FILTERS

We've gotten the kids some hand-made face masks instead of surgical masks but we do not have any filters. I had been drying wet tissues to use as a sieve; straining out whatever air-bourne nasties there may be. They may not be the best options but those were what I've got until I lay my hands on some PM2.5s!

There are so many in the market, I don't even know who to buy from. I then decided I'll Support Local and searched for kids-sized PM2.5 filters with the "domestic" option in Shopee.

Shop Kids Face Mask Filters here: https://shopee.prf.hn/l/KXRoGA2

Did you know that PM2.5 filters are made from the same advanced materials used for respirators like the N95 and KN95? I did a little bit more research and found out that these filters can be used continuously for 16-24 hours i.e. around one to two weeks of occasional use.

That said, I intend to change a new piece of filter every four days for Ewan and six days for Faye taking into account the number of hours they use face masks in school.

HANDKERCHIEFS

Their school now requires the children to wipe their feet before entering the classroom [Faye] and wipe their hands with personal handkerchiefs after every wash [Ewan]. There will be no more sharing of drying cloths and I needed to get them their own hankies quickly.

These were hard to find. Not that Shopee has a lack of handkerchiefs available for sale, it's mommy me who is fussy about the designs.

When I searched for children's handkerchiefs, mostly wash clothes came up and I really wasn't looking for baby wash cloths in toweled/terryclothed material. I wanted proper handkerchiefs that aren't adult-sized for Ewan and Faye. I had too many conditions tagged to this item and I took a few nights to finally settled with this Made In Japan hankies.

I had a problem with the seller though. He/she doesn't state size of handkerchiefs and unresponsive on Chat. I decided to take a chance because I fell in love with this shop's designs. If they arrived too large, I'll have them cut and sewed to the size I think would fit Ewan and Faye's pockets better. Yup! I think I'll do that! One handkerchief split into several more hankies = savings!

They arrived 10 days from date of purchase and they really are very beautiful.

Shop Faye's Puppy Print Handkerchief here: https://shopee.prf.hn/l/6nPRQ88
Shop Ewan's Checkered Handkerchief here: https://shopee.prf.hn/l/6nPo45j

They are 45X45 cm and I found them too large for their little hands. I got them cut in halves and sewn in the sides! The kids now have four handkerchiefs each.

Note: I can no longer find the link to the Goldfish handkerchief and I believe it has been sold out.

STORYBOOKS

Faye came home from school and shared with us that her teacher told them to put a storybook in their school bags from now on. It will come handy in between periods when they are free and what once was spent socialising with friends have now been taken over by silent reading.

Ewan said they hardly have field time any more too. Playing together in school has also become quite restrained from the social distancing rules. "I haven't even spoken much to my good friends this week because we are seated in different ends of the classroom!" he explained. A lot more time had been allocated to reading.

They will need more children books!

I'll be introducing three authors below - E.B. White, Enid Blyton and David Walliams.

E.B. WHITE
Did you know E.B. White first wrote Stuart Little in 1945, Charlotte's Web when my mom was born in 1952 and The Trumpet of the Swan in 1970s? They are such Classics written in an era not known even to me.

I had to get my hands on this box set when I saw it on Shopee. They are wordy chapter books with occasional black and white pictures. If the kids aren't ready for it yet, it'll be for me to relive the stories again. I love storybooks that already have picture films on screen that we can watch as a family after [or before] completing the books!

The books came and I fell in love with the illustrations. It is of a different level from the modern edgy illustrations in Roald Dahl, David Walliams and new-gen Enid Blyton books. Faye fell in love with these books too because they are all about animals. Not to mention beautifully illustrated animals.

She picked up Charlotte's Web and never looked back. I commented, "I think you are too young for these books Faye? Are you sure you can understand what you're reading? These are for older Primary School kids." But her daddy stepped in and reminded me not to discourage what she already started. *nods* Of course.

Shop E.B. White 3-Book Box Set: https://shopee.prf.hn/l/rGqDLYZ

ENID BLYTON
I bought this set because I GREW UP WITH BLYTON! My kids definitely would have to Blyton their way through Primary School like their parents did. It's like a rite of passage!

These 10 fully-coloured short stories are definitely, absolutely, perfectly perfect to transit children from picture books to chapter books. Although there are a lot more text, transitioning kids will find comfort in the coloured illustrations.

My kids devoured five books each in one seating!

Shop A Faraway Tree Adventure: https://shopee.prf.hn/l/rvJakm3

Note: We did not receive our books from this seller above but another who sold it at a slightly cheaper price. The cheaper quality was not quite good with pages falling off. Therefore, I have shared the link to another [local shop and carrying authentic books] who is selling the same 10 books at a slightly higher price.

For all new Shopee users, you can get $7 off minimum spend $15 on Shopee with my discount code "SHOPEEXLM", valid until 26 December 2020.

DAVID WALLIAMS
I first know Walliams as a comedian before an author of children's books. I figured he must be just as hilarious on stage as his writings. It'll make reading so much joyful if our children can laugh out loud in between chapters don't you think?

We went into The World of David Walliams [that's just the name of his website] and listened to some of his audio books during circuit breaker.

As we scrolled through his collection of books, "Fing" stood out for Ewan.

David Walliams says "I wanted to write a story just to make children laugh, and nothing else. I think this is my funniest book, and I hope it will appeal to young readers and reluctant readers everywhere."

"I WANT THIS BOOK!" Ewan exclaimed. "Please please buy it for me?"

I did. Just one; not the box set because I, too, wanted to find out if Walliams writes good.

What's our verdict?

It is such a light-hearted read for a lazy Sunday morning. There were Walliams-Vocabulary [like Roald Dahl] but they were funnier in my opinion. I wasn't sure if I liked the ending though "So you see, Mr and Mrs Meek really did have a monster for a child. Of course, monsters belong in only one place, the deepest, darkest, jungliest jungle. So, children, do make sure you Behave, or you might just end up there."

I don't know. I find that rather daunting. For a [literal/serious] child, would he shiver in fear thinking of the deepest, darkest jungle? Would he be afraid of coming up with mischiefs because his parents may not want him anymore like Mr and Mrs Meek didn't want their daughter?

Their daddy says it's no big deal really and that I am overthinking a simple light-hearted read.

Maybe! I leave this open-ended for parents to decide what reads your child should be riveted to. On a side note, I love the way he uses the most exciting adjectives for descriptions.

Shop Fing: https://shopee.prf.hn/l/reQ8dMd

A last reminder to save more on back to school essentials! For all new Shopee users, you can get $7 off minimum spend $15 on Shopee with my discount code "SHOPEEXLM", valid until 26 December 2020.