THE FORUM CENTER – WRITING ALL LEVELS

WRITING TASK 2 - DISCUSSION

A/- WARM UP: LANGUAGE TO GIVE REASONS

B/- WRITING TOPIC

Some people think that childcare centers provide the best services for children of preschool
age. Other working parents think that family members such as grandparents will be better
carers for their kids. Discuss both views and give your opinion.

SUGGESTED VOCABULARY
 child-rearing (n): quá trình chăm sóc trẻ em
 facility (n): cơ sở vật chất
 personnel (n): nhân viên
 nurturing (gerund của to nurture): nuôi dưỡng
 be equipped with (expression): được trang bị với
 engage in : tham gia vào hoạt động nào đó
 exposure (n) : sự tiếp xúc
 By and large (expression) : nhìn chung
 amenity (n): tiện nghi
 objective (n): mục đích
 to assure (v): đảm bảo
 undivided attention: sự quan tâm cao độ (không phân tán)
 sheer (adj): chỉ là 
 To monitor (v): giám sát
 shells someone away from something (expression): bảo bọc ai đó

BRAINSTORM
Childcare centers
- Better facilities
- Interaction with peers
- Systematic syllabus
- Scientific timetable + diet
- Qualified teachers (knowledge+ experience)
Family members
- Experience
- Love
- Safe from others
- Familiar with their grandparents
- Monitor more closely
- Cheaper
- Understand the children’s personality and habits

_ Physical growth
_ Cognitive ability
_ Socio- emotional development
SAMPLE ANSWER

In the modern world, families with both working parents are becoming a norm, so the
responsibility of child-rearing often falls on the shoulders of grandparents or day care services.
Many people think the facilities and the professionally trained personnel that childcare centers
offer are the best option, while others prefer the nurturing nature of grandparents. I assert that
the latter is the better choice.

Childcare services are professional in taking care of children and can provide them with a
suitable environment for their development. These centers are usually equipped with facilities
such as playgrounds, labs and gardens that allow their young clients to learn about the natural
world as well as engage in a range of physical and intellectual activities. The exposure to
principle knowledge and activities could help the children to develop their characters and
physical well-being thereby helping them prepare for the world. While they partake in said
activities, their essential needs are taken care of by professional caregivers who are experts in
child psychology and various pedagogical methods. By and large, the facilities and services
provided by such centers are often thought to be better compared to amenities at home.

On the other hand, I would argue that it is better to let a child be taken care of by their
grandparents. The key objective of child-rearing is to assure the children of a place of total
safety to grow and learn. Grandparents could usually provide undivided attention for their
grandchildren. Besides accommodating the essential needs, grandparents could also watch out
for potentially dangerous situations in which the children may injure themselves. In contrast,
the sheer numbers of children at a childcare center makes it difficult for the caregivers to
monitor every child at any given time. Staying at home also shells the children away from being
bullied by their aggressive peers. Therefore, while lacking certain facilities and services, staying
with one’s grandparents is the better option.

In conclusion, childcare centers are best at providing facilities and services that, in theory,
would allow the children to develop to their full potentials whereas they cannot match the
safety at home or the individual care grandparents could accommodate. For these reasons, I
think that grandparents are better caretakers for preschool-children. 

Vocab:

Equally = comparably

Best = optimal