Kumon Malaysia - Potential 2021 Issue 2

Australia | Brunei | Cambodia | India | Indonesia | Malaysia | Myanmar | New Zealand | Philippines | Singapore | Sri Lanka | Thailand | Vietnam

July - december 2021

KUMON feature

Empower ourchildren with Kumon’s selflearning

parenting tips Activities to build confidence

my life, my dream Danyl Muqri bin Syamsyul Fikri Growing Confidence with Kumon Nik Muhammad Nadeem Aisy Perseverance is the Key to Success

editor’s Note “Self-learning” is the core of Kumon’s learning philosophy.

Here at Kumon, students are taught to independently take on challenges by inquiring into new areas that they want to learn. Through this method, the students gain confidence in their ability to progress at their own level.

This will help create students that are more confident, hungry to learn, and are never afraid of attempting new challenges.

These behavior is something that we have regularly and consistently witnessed from our Kumon students, who have developed that real love for “lifelong learning.” One of our success stories is our first student, Danyl Muqri.

Danyl is twelve years old and is currently attending College UKM, studying physics and additional mathematics.

Another great example is Nik Muhammad Nadeem Aisy from Kelantan. There has not been a day where Nik would not complete his Kumon worksheets, as he really enjoys the Kumon method of learning.

These success stories are a real celebration of Kumon and the positive impact we are making in Malaysia. So do check out some of our star achievers in our Virtual Advanced Student Forum 2021 feature story on page five!

We hope this issue has brought you much joy and inspiration as it has for all of us at Kumon Malaysia. Together, let us strive for another half year with greater passion and confidence!

Take care and stay safe!

Love & Respect, Public Relations Team

Contents

Kumon Malaysia

My Life, My Dream

03 Growing Confidence with Kumon 04

ON THE COVER Jul-Dec 2021 Nadeem

Kumon Malaysia Have something to say?

Feel free to send us your thoughts on the newsletter!

Tel: 1 800 88 1010 E-mail: information@kumon.com.my Website: www.kumonmalaysia.com INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY NOTICE The logos, graphics, pictures, design, and layout (“Contents”) of this entire newsletter are the exclusive property of Kumon Asia & Oceania Pte Ltd. The Contents contained in this newsletter shall not be reproduced or copied without the express written consent of Kumon Asia & Oceania Pte Ltd. © 2021 Kumon Asia & Oceania Pte Ltd. All rights reserved.

Danyl Muqri bin Syamsyul Fikri

Perseverance is the Key to Success

Nik Muhammad Nadeem Aisy

Features

06 Regional Article

Empower our children with Kumon’s selflearning

08 Instructors’ Quotes

Regulars 10

Local News

11

Parenting Tips

Virtual Advanced Student Forum 2021 Activities to build confidence

My life, my dream

Kumon Completer that is five years advanced In Mathematics Programme.

Danyl Muqri Bin Syamsyul Fikri is a twelve-year-old student from Selangor, and is one of Kumon’s “advanced” students in

the Kumon Mathematics programme. Danyl’s passion for mathematics grew quickly when he joined Kumon at the age of seven. Upon reflection, Danyl’s journey of progressing to the higher levels came with various challenges. He faced many

difficulties but was very determined to complete the programmes he was studying. Fueled by determination and grit, Danyl continued to complete his Kumon worksheets while receiving constant positive encouragement from his family members and Instructor.

“We should never shy away from the challenges that falls upon us. We should pick ourselves up and confront it bravely.

With every effort, we will always learn something new,” said Danyl. He also mentioned that Kumon has significantly boosted his confidence. “I always volunteer myself to be the leader of my study group because I love helping and guiding my

friends. This can also be seen as a win-win situation because it helps me understand Mathematics on a much deeper level,” Danyl added.

Danyl’s mother, Mrs Rafidah, first heard about Kumon from her aunt. During that time, Mrs. Rafidah was interested to explore how Kumon could help develop her son. She said, “Since young, Danyl is a fast learner and is able to pick things up quickly.

During his kindergarten days, his teacher would give him newspapers to read as soon as he is done with his schoolwork,

just so that he can occupy his time. For someone like Danyl, Kumon is the right option as it emphasises each individual to learn at their own pace and ability.”

Joining Kumon has also enhanced Danyl’s time management and leadership skills. He is now able to balance his studies alongside his house chores, academic and co-curricular activities. This is an imperative skill to have as he is currently

studying in Kolej Genius Pintar, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, which caters for children with high IQ levels as they are able to learn academic syllabuses that are beyond their current age.

Danyl is a shinning example of a “balanced individual” as he is a dedicated student, talented goalkeeper in the sport of

football and is also a Taekwondo black belt in Taekwondo. His dream is to be a world class engineer and he firmly believes that Kumon has given him the confidence to ride his life journey with a smile.

Growing Confidence with Kumon

Jul - Dec 2021

3

My life, my dream

Perseverance is the Key to Success

3 Years Ahead In Mathematics Programme The Kumon Method is designed to help children of all

learning centre after just attending his first class. By

ages achieve their highest potential. This method not only

continuously repeating worksheets of the lower level, this

builds the confidence of the students, but also motivates

helped Nadeem progress to the higher programmes with

them to reach their goals by taking on challenges both

more comfort and confidence. Everytime Nadeem tries

in and out of the classroom. A student’s confidence in his

to progress to the next level, he finds it more challenging

own ability can lead to academic success, which will help

because the tasks do become more difficult. But Nadeem

them develop a love for “lifelong learning.” These are one

acknowledges that the challenges are meant to stretch

of the many methods that Kumon practices to help their

his ability to attempt more complex tasks through the

students achieve success.

worksheets, examples and guidance.

A great example is Nik Muhammad Nadeem Aisy who

Nadeem was first enrolled in Kumon for Mathematics, but

was enrolled into the Kumon Mathematics programme at

after seeing his friend’s progress in English, he wanted to

the age of six. His mother, Mrs Fisza, viewed a Facebook

join the English classes as well. By taking both subjects,

video that showed a student who demonstrated the

Nadeem has learnt to be more efficient and disciplined in

ability to calculate high-level mathematics equations. The

finishing his homework and worksheets on time. Whenever

student in that video is a child of Mrs Fisza’s close friend.

Nadeem faces any challenges, he will not give up easily.

After witnessing such amazing learnings, Mrs Fisza then

He would constantly work on the task sheets until it is

brought Nadeem to a nearby Kumon Center to conduct a

completed correctly.

Diagnostic Test. According to Nadeem, he knew he made the right choice by choosing Kumon as his after-school

4 Potential Malaysia

He meticulously follows his timetable, and the Kumon experience has taught Nadeem how to balance his time

between his studies and fun times with friends. Nadeem said, “I always complete my Kumon worksheets because my Instructor once told me that by doing these worksheets, it will only benefit me in the future.”

Nadeem’s confidence has grown and he is very proud of his accomplishments in Kumon over the last four years. As an advanced student, he feels the pressure of needing to maintain his good grades at school. But, with the support and encouragement from his parents and instructors, he believes he is progressing well in his studies.

When he was eight years old, Nadeem broke his arm while playing with friends in the playground. Two days after his surgery, Nadeem insisted on wanting to complete his worksheets on a daily basis. A week later, he requested to return to his Kumon center to attend his classes. Nadeem’s strong will and perseverance has contributed to his development at school where he has also won many Mathematics competitions.

Mrs Fisza has recommended Kumon to many of her family and friends, as she is very pleased with Nadeem’s development. She said, “I can see the difference in Nadeem now compared to how he was before he joined Kumon.

He fully utilises his time by doing different activities and also by completing his Kumon worksheets. Nadeem also participates in Taekwondo and is a black belt holder.

His confidence level has shot up significantly after joining Kumon. I am so proud of him and am very satisfied with the Kumon method,” she added.

As the older brother to his younger sister, he plays the role model figure well. Nadeem takes his time to teach his sister basic Mathematics. His love for Kumon, Mathematics, and wanting to achieve great things has contributed to Nadeem not regularly engaging with his phone or I-pad tablet. For his “fun time”, Nadeem prefers to play board games or work on innovative projects.

Mrs Fisza further commented and said, “As parents, we need to trust our kids. It is alright and acceptable for them to make mistakes. In fact, by making mistakes, they would then learn what is right and wrong as learning is a continuous journey.

We should always be there and support them in every way possible. I am confident he will do well in life and make a positive contribution to our society.”

Jul Jul--Dec Dec2020 2021

5

Regional Article

Empower our children with Kumon’s self-learning From the day they are born, our children are constantly learning new things, crossing one milestone after another.

From infants learning to lift their head and toddlers learning to walk and learning the alphabet and numbers, everything happens so quickly with our children learning little and little, gaining confidence in themselves.

In the same way, our Kumon students learn in small steps and become more confident of themselves. Before children enrol in Kumon, our Kumon Instructors administer a diagnostic assessment to gauge what the children’s ability is. When the children enrol in Kumon, they start off at a suitable starting point. By doing so, the children gain confidence in their own ability to complete something without having to be taught. This way, the children will also enjoy the process of learning.

What differentiates Kumon from many other programmes, is that Kumon Instructors do not teach uniformly in front of the class. Every student learns a level that is “just-right” for them, and at their own pace. As they are allowed to navigate through the level at their own pace, they gain better understanding on the concept and become more confident through self-discovery.

How do the children learn if the Instructor does not teach? You might ask. The students learn from worksheets, which are constructed to facilitate self-learning, in small incremental difficulty. Hints and examples are also included at the start of a new learning focus to help our children understand the concept better, and to refer to when they run into challenges. Through this learning process, not only do children grasp the concepts better, they develop lifelong benefits far beyond the confines of the Kumon Centres – self-learning ability.

6 Potential Malaysia

When students learn at the “just-right” level according to their ability, they will be motivated and enjoy learning.

And they can advance their study or things that they are interested in at their own without being taught everything.

Being able to self-learn is an important factor in getting students to enjoy studying and learning.

As student progress to a new milestone, no matter how big or small, they feel more confident about their selflearning ability. Examples of new milestone can be progressing to a new learning focus or the next level, getting full marks for a set of worksheets well done, progressing to doing more worksheets, taking up a new subject or successfully finding and correcting their own mistakes.

The self-learning ability developed in Kumon gives our children the confidence to take on new challenges and learn new materials or subject-matter on their own. Takeshi Kumon, the eldest son of Toru Kumon, founder of the Kumon Method, and the first Kumon student, had the self-learning ability and confidence to study German and the abridged version of the Six Japanese Legal Codes.

“The Kumon Method is not a method to gain knowledge. I think it is a method to learn how to gain knowledge. I think the most important thing for me was the mental independence that was fostered by advancing beyond grade level,” Takeshi said when he addressed the new students at the first entrance ceremony to Kumon Kokusai Gakuen Junior High School.

The self-learning ability will empower our children to take on future challenges, take charge of their own learning, and aid them as they attempt to solve their problems, be it in life or academically.

Jul - Dec 2021

7

Kumon Feature

Kumon empowers students to build self-learning ability and realise their potential. Read these quotes from Kumon Instructors throughout the Asia-Oceania region to learn how.

Instructors’ Quotes

8 Potential Malaysia

“

Nurturing self-learning ability among our students is at the core of Kumon Method. It is the most essential part of Kumon learning whereby our instructions and worksheets are structured as such to provide students the opportunity to develop self-learning ability throughout their learning.

Self-learners have demonstrated strong level of confidence to learn and try something new, to learn from mistakes, and to conquer fear of failing. This belief has helped shaped their attitude, mindset, and motivation to succeed at every stage of their life’s journey - in academic or non-academic undertakings.

Indeed, confidence greatly empowers self-learners to excel and stretch their potentials and become contributing members of society.

Mr Toru Kumon, our founder, once said, “There is a limit to how much one can teach but there is no limit to how much one can advance through self-learning”. Observing young, self-learners being nurtured at Kumon centers the world over is both inspiring and satisfying.

Ms Elani Kassim Kumon Malaysia

“

While each individual has unique potential, no one is born with skills. We develop skills through structured daily action. Kumon aims for all students to develop the skill of self-learning.

This is why Kumon Mathematics and English are programmes of daily study, whereby students have to

independently and thoughtfully work out solutions to the problems in their worksheets on a regular basis.

With time and perseverance, these students become highly skilled self-learners who are capable of solving advanced and complex problems independently … empowering them to realise their full potential.

Dominic Chua & Sarah Tan Kumon Australia and New Zealand

“

A silver lining of the pandemic is that coordination and communication between parents, students and Instructors is better than ever before. Since parents are also part of online sessions now, they observe their As an Instructor, more often than not, I get to witness the excitement shown by my students when they understood the concepts on their own. The Kumon Method continues to build the students’ confidence through self-learning. Over time, it also improves their critical thinking skills as they are constantly engaged and challenged with new ideas. As home-based learning becomes more common, I believe our Kumon students will likely have less of a learning curve than others as they are already practising and reinforcing their self-learning ability daily through their worksheets. efforts with the Instructor in real-time. This strengthens the connection between student, parent and Instructor for the benefit of children’s learning.

Ms Brigitte Yeow Kumon Singapore

“

The Kumon learning method aims to help students develop self-learning habits and Kumon worksheets are designed around this. We, as Instructors will train our students to study the examples from the worksheets. Once they get the answer correct, we will praise them or put a star on the question they

were attempting to encourage them. Afterwards, we can see they become confident and are willing to challenge themselves in the next learning topic. In the next class, we would see the student get excited

about their new learning focus. When asked about how are they doing at school, they would confidently tell us that they found it easy.

Ms Liang Kumon Brunei

Jul - Dec 2021

9

Local News

Virtual Advanced Student Forum 2021 Kumon Malaysia was ecstatic to have the opportunity to organise our annual Advanced Student Forum (ASF), which

was postponed from 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The ASF Forum took place on April 24th 2020 and this was the first time the forum was conducted virtually via an on-line format. We are appreciative of the feedback from parents,

which were positive and constructive. Many parents shared that the event was very accessible, simple to navigate and engaging for the students.

This year’s ASF saw a total of 440 students who have successfully advanced 5 years ahead of their school grade as

well as 176 students who are programme completers in the Kumon Mathematics or English programme receiving their

recognition from Kumon Malaysia. The youngest programme completer award recipient is a nine-year-old boy from the Kumon English programme. Amazing!

We at Kumon, are always inspired by the success of our students. Due credit must accord to all the parents and

Instructors, as their hard work, persistence and perseverance makes the learning journey an enjoyable and purposeful experience for the children. So to all our parents and Instructors, we thank you for your continuous contribution and support towards the Kumon method!

For the Kumon programme completers, this marks the beginning of a new chapter. We are certain that their learning

experiences gained from Kumon will form a solid foundation in their pursuit of their goals and dreams. We will continue to

nurture and guide the rest of our Kumon students along the learning path, with the hope and aspiration that they can join our next Advanced Student Forum 2022!

We are determined and passionate to help our Kumon students achieve their limitless potential!

10 Potential Malaysia

Parenting tips

Activities to build confidence When our children learn something new, it requires a lot of effort on their part and they don’t always succeed easily or on their first attempt. As parents, we should always remember to

give appropriate praise as they make their little milestones, and encourage them when they

fail. Showing signs of disappointment is unhealthy for their self-confidence, and are counterproductive to their learning journey.

Playing sports Not only is playing sports healthy for the body, it is a good way to strengthen our children’s minds and build confidence. Through sporting activities, children learn that they cannot always be winners; it is also normal to lose.

When they win, they feel more confident, and when they lose, they learn not to feel discouraged. As they achieve their little sporting goals, they become more confident of themselves, and value the effort they had to put in to achieve their goals.

Helping with cooking or simple chores Letting our children help with cooking and simple chores is a fun way to engage our children in activities, and to help them learn. From simpler acts of whisking eggs or folding clothes to more advanced chores, our children can appreciate the fact that they have new accomplishments and hence feel better and more confident about themselves.

Learning to play a new musical instrument, or a new song Children can learn to play a new musical instrument, or a new song if they can already play an instrument. Learning to play a simple tune will encourage children to continue learning. They learn to appreciate the effort and consistency required to master the instrument, and can be immensely rewarding to their mental health.

Jul - Dec 2021

11

The Origins of the Kumon Method

After more than half a century, his philosophy still continues to help many children develop the ability to reach for their goals and dreams.

Kumon offers learning opportunities in more than 50 different countries and regions around the world.

Handmade materials created

by Toru Kumon for his son (Takeshi) in 1954.

Toru Kumon (Founder of the Kumon Method)