Community Workshops

SACAC offers a wide range of enrichment workshops. Please note that all workshops require pre-registration as early as possible. To be confirmed in a workshop requires payment of fees (check or cash) one week prior to workshop commencement. A minimum of 24 hours notice must be given for cancellation to receive refund.

To pre-register for any of these workshops:

Email: admin@sacac.com
Call: (65) 6733 9249
Fax: (65) 6733-9321
Or drop by the SACAC Counseling and Community Programs office:
The American Club, 10 Claymore Hill, Singapore 229573

SEPTEMBER 2010

How To Work Effectively With Your Domestic Helper: A Guide for Employers
Domestic helpers take care of our children and our homes. Clear, respectful communication and good boundaries are key to maintaining a harmonious and effective household. We will address the impact of cultural differences in training and child care and how to set guidelines that ensure that our expectations are met. Domestic helpers can be a source of assistance or a source of stress. We want to maximize cooperation in an atmosphere of respect and follow through.

Can My Helper Handle My Children? A Workshop for Helpers, Nannies, and Other Child Caretakers
There are many benefits in being an expatriate family living in Asia, such as the availability of domestic helpers to assist us with childcare. This workshop will explore with the domestic helper various issues in understanding and caring for children in the most effective way that will support and assist one’s employer in creating a positive home environment. Some guidelines on healthy boundaries will be discussed. This workshop will cover:

• Understanding children’s behavior and misbehavior
• Encouraging children and communicating effectively
• Knowing how to support rules that your employer has set
• Being effective with a difficult child
• Knowing age appropriate fun play activities

Living in Singapore – The Irks, Quirks and Perks!
Wondering who No-Lah is? Whether you are new to Singapore or have been here for a while, this workshop will teach you about some of the specifics of Singaporean culture and about Asian culture in general. You will find out how things work here in Singapore and why. Bring your questions and come find out more about your host country. Can lah?

OCTOBER 2010

Raising Happy & Optimistic Children
The benefits of optimism have been proven over and over again by research. Optimists enjoy better health, increased longevity, experience less stress, and achieve more in life.

This workshop will cover:

• The importance of optimism
• Ways to encourage your children to lead more optimistic lives
• Practical strategies on raising happy & optimistic children

A New School Year:  Is My Child Settling In?
Whether new to a school or returning to an old school, starting a new school year will be filled with distinct challenges that our children will be facing, especially during critical developmental years. Are we aware of their stressors? Are they ready to handle the stressors without losing self esteem? Is my child happy in school? How can I be an effective parent in handling school issues? This is a skills building workshop with parents taking home strategies to try out with their children. This workshop will cover:

• Building self-esteem: Understanding our children’s difficulties
• Handling parent-child power struggles with daily school routine and homework without ruining the positive home atmosphere
• Making friends, handling peer pressure, and bullying
• Encouraging the uninvolved child
• Coping with school related fears and anxieties

Attachment – Building a Positive Relationship with Your Child
It is widely recognized that the first few years of a child's experiences are crucial in the development of their personality and behavior, and it is a secure attachment that creates the format from which a child can reach their full potential. This workshop will help you to understand the importance of a parent’s relationship with their child, and assist you in supporting your child in developing the ability to engage in relationships with others, to maintain commitments to school or work, and to raise healthy, happy children of their own.

NOVEMBER 2010

Positive Discipline for Teenagers
Adolescence is often a time of great stress and turmoil-not only for the kids going through it, but for the parents as well.  During the teen years kids begin to aggressively explore a new sense of freedom, which often leads to feelings of resentment and powerlessness for parents who feel excluded from their children’s lives. This workshop will help you to:

• Learn Positive Parenting tips
• Find out how to encourage your teen and yourself
• Grow to understand how your teen still needs you, but in different ways
• Learn how to use follow-through—the only surefire way to get chores done

Raising Children with Privilege: Asset or Liability
Many expatriate children living in Singapore grow up with unlimited opportunities: high standard of education, international travel, helpers in the home, and the freedom that comes with living in a safe country. So how is it that children from affluent, well educated families with economic and social advantages can experience the highest rates of depression, substance abuse, anxiety disorders, somatic complaints, and unhappiness according to Madeline Levine? It is natural for parents to desire to raise their children with more than they had; however, it can be the very nature of having less that helps children grow into adults who are motivated to work for more. This workshop will focus on raising healthy expatriate children in an environment of privilege.

Positive Discipline for Young Children
Parenting can be a challenge. As soon as parents master the baby stage, a young child develops and new challenges arise. Designed for parents of children aged 2 to 8 years old, this workshop will cover:

• Understanding positive discipline
• Effective strategies for parenting young children
• Techniques for raising emotionally balanced children
• Alternatives to constantly saying “No” to children
• Help your children respond to requests in a timely manner