Playeum

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We are a charity that amplifies the voices and abilities of all children through play and the arts. To find out more, please visit www.playeum.com.

Founded in 2009, Playeum is an Institution of a Public Character (IPC) charity in Singapore that focuses on amplifying the voices and abilities of all children, especially children from disadvantaged backgrounds and children with special needs. Through play and the arts, we create a safe space and equal opportunities for children to develop life skills and the foundations they need to thrive – confidence, resilience and creativity to lead their lives and make meaningful contributions. Over the last five years, we partner communities, schools and social service agencies to impact more than 62,000 children and their adults. Playeum is a registered member of the National Council of Social Services and is supported by the MCCY Cultural Matching Fund.

09/10/2026

[We All Matter: Small Moments, Meaningful Connections]

What helps a child feel seen, heard, and truly valued? And how can we weave that same sense of warmth and belonging for the incredible educators who support them every day?

At the Good Start Early Childhood Conference, Playeum had the joy of exploring these questions alongside thoughtful preschool educators and principals during our workshop, “We All Matter”, led by Karen Chin and Veronica Ong.

Together, through movement and openhearted conversations, we explored our prototype Check-in Check-out cards, which invite simple, playful activities that create opportunities for connection between educators and children, as well as among fellow educators. Participants shared candid feedback and sparked creative new ideas. We brought playful avenues to build connection, while educators brought rich classroom wisdom to help us tailor these tools for real impact.

One wonderful suggestion truly touched us: instead of greeting a class pet, why not take turns greeting a different classmate each day? It gives every child a special moment to feel recognised by their peers.

We also shared how meaningful it feels to be heard by a colleague, even though busy routines can make those spaces rare. Caring for children's wellbeing starts with making space for the adults to feel heard and supported, too.

Our shared takeaways were delightfully practical:

• Choice matters. Always make passing a comfortable option.

• Small moments count. Simple check-ins foster deep connections.

• Tools must fit routines. Local context and practical timing guide our card refinements.

We left feeling deeply grateful, inspired, and excited for what we can build side by side. The generosity in the room reminded us that building a culture where everyone matters starts with how we notice and support each other every day.

Thank you to the Good Start Early Childhood Conference organisers and every educator who played, reflected, and collaborated with us! Your valuable feedback is helping us refine these cards so we can improve together.

Would you like to try out the Check-In Cards in your school? We are looking for preschools and educators to join a special pilot list to test them out before they are packaged into our upcoming workshop module! Follow Playeum and reach out to us to stay updated and sign up for the pilot!

21/09/2026

[Free Weekend Playdate at Fernvale CC for Children Aged 6 and Below]

A child looks up and asks, “Will you play with me?”

It sounds like a simple question. Yet between work, meals, school runs and everything families need to manage, it is not always easy to pause and say yes.This October, we invite Fernvale families to slow down, follow their children’s imagination and enjoy being together at Born to Play: A Family Playdate.

Through cardboard, natural objects, paint and everyday recycled materials, children can build, explore and create alongside the adults they love. There are no right answers, fixed instructions or perfect creations to complete. Families can simply come as they are and see where their curiosity takes them.

Together, families can explore:
📦 DIY Cardboard Playground
🍃 Nature Play
🎨 Karang Guni Prints
⛺ The Whispering Tent

The free playdate is designed for children aged 6 and below, together with their parents, grandparents or caregivers. Older siblings aged up to 8 are warmly welcome too.

📅 Saturday and Sunday, 10–11 October 2026
📍 Multi-Purpose Hall, Level 4
Fernvale Community Club
21 Sengkang West Avenue, Singapore 797650

There are 4 sessions to choose from:

Saturday, 10 October
Session 1: 1.30 pm–3.00 pm
Session 2: 3.30 pm–5.00 pm

Sunday, 11 October
Session 1: 10.00 am–12.00 pm
Session 2: 1.30 pm–3.30 pm

Admission is free, but advance registration is required and places are limited.

We would love to welcome your family.
👉 Register at https://BornToPlay.eventbrite.sg
Walk-ins are welcome if places are still available.

Born to Play is supported by Families for Life, led by Yu Jiarong and presented in partnership with Playeum, with Fernvale Community Club as venue partner.

28/08/2026

[Play can transform the unexpected into something full of possibility]

During a Playeum session a girl accidentally tore her artwork. She looked closely at the tear and she exclaimed, “It’s a fish! The tear is its mouth!”

In that beautiful moment, she turned something totally unexpected into something entirely her own. This is the quiet power of play: it gives children the confidence to try, the creativity to see new possibilities and the resilience to keep going.

At Playeum, we create meaningful play experiences for children, including those from vulnerable backgrounds with fewer opportunities. We also support the parents, educators and community professionals who care for and guide them, so that the encouragement they receive continues even after each session ends. Your support will help more children and families experience moments of connection, discovery and possibility!
Donate for tickets and join us at Playeum FUN-raiser 2026: Monkey Goes West. Together, we can create more possibilities for children through the power of play.

📅 Sunday, 15 November 2026
🕐 1.30 pm
📍 Wild Rice @ Funan
🎟️ Cat A S$250 | Cat B S$180

You may also donate a seat for a child and their family. Eligible donations receive a 250% tax deduction and will be matched dollar for dollar by the NAC Cultural Matching Fund.

Donate to secure your tickets or gift a seat to a child and their family today:
giving.sg/donate/campaign/playeum-funraiser--wild-rice--monkey-goes-west-musical

29/06/2026

Playeum is marking a leadership transition that reflects both continuity and renewal. As part of this transition, Ms Nichol Ng concluded her term as Chairperson and Board Director of Playeum in June 2026, after three years of dedicated service and leadership.

During her tenure, Nichol championed a period of significant organisational growth, helping to strengthen Playeum's governance, expand its impact, and lead our most recent Board renewal. We extend our heartfelt appreciation for her invaluable contributions and steadfast commitment to the organisation.

We are delighted to welcome our co-founder Ms Jennifer Loh back to the Board of Directors and to lead Playeum as its new Chairperson. As we look ahead, Jennifer will guide Playeum in continuing to strengthen our ecosystem of partners and supporters, elevate children's voices, and deepen our advocacy for children's well-being and participation in Singapore.

Alongside this leadership transition, we are also announcing changes to the composition and leadership of Playeum's Board and Advisory.

Playeum will continue to build a world where children’s ideas matter, their voices are valued, and play remains a powerful force for change.

Read our full press statement at tinyurl.com/playeumbt2026

24/06/2026

What keeps someone coming back to volunteer, week after week? For our volunteer Playmaker Chek Liang, it's the relationships, the moments of joy, and seeing how play brings children's interests and strengths to life.

In his interview with the National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre (NVPC), he shares his experience volunteering with our Artful Play programme and reflects on how showing up consistently can make a meaningful difference to both children and volunteers.

Artful Play is a community play programme supporting children in Jalan Bukit Merah, in partnership with SHINE Children and Youth Services.

More about Artful Play: www.playeum.com/post/a-third-space-where-children-feel-safe-to-play-create-and-express-themselves

National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre SHINE Children & Youth Services MSF Singapore NCSS Singapore Community Chest Singapore

11/06/2026

Play is how children participate. Through play, children make visible their ideas, feelings and hopes.

This International Day of Play, children show us the change they want to help create in Singapore and beyond. Take a moment to listen to what they have to say.

How might we create change not just for children, but WITH them?

This video was built with imagination, supported by the LEGO Group, and crafted together with our friends at The Black Sampan. We are deeply grateful to all the children, playmakers, and volunteers who shared their time, creativity, and voices.

29/05/2026

[Open Mind Open Doors Parent Workshop - 20 Jun @ Enabling Village]

We warmly invite parents and caregivers of children aged 12 and below with diverse developmental pathways, to join an interactive workshop exploring how play can support replace with can support and create opportunities for participation, confidence, and belonging within community spaces.

Open Minds Open Doors Parent Workshop (OMOD) is a programme developed by Playeum in collaboration with Dr Esther Joosa (PhD Founder Arts of the Earth) to support more inclusive and welcoming play experiences for children and their families. Supported by the President's Challenge, OMOD has worked alongside parents, caregivers, and children since 2019 to explore research-in-practice approaches to how open-ended play nurtures self-directed engagement, communication and critical thinking.

In this workshop, drawing on observation, reflection, and shared experiences with families, Dr Joosa will explore the ideas, experiences, and insights that have shaped the design and evolution of the OMOD programme and are informed by her publication Pathways Through Play.

Together we will reflect on:

• How children communicate and participate through play
• How materials and environments shape engagement
• How adults can better observe and respond without taking over the play experience
• How everyday moments can become opportunities for connection, confidence, and belonging

📍 Enabling Village, Singapor
📅 20 June 2026
⏰ 2.00pm – 5.00pm
💵 Registration Fee: SGD 5 per family (up to 2 adults)
🗓 Registration closes on 18 June 2026

Register here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/u/2/d/1WLpLquySGcv7yspM98BPoHTBenWx5-CqPspFrVIilT0/edit

Places are intentionally limited to support meaningful conversation, shared reflection, and connection among families.

26/05/2026

📢 Update: Applications for this position have now closed.

Thank you to everyone who applied. We appreciate your interest and will be contacting shortlisted candidates in due course.

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Playeum is looking for an artist-facilitator to co-create and co-lead Artful Play, a weekly community programme for children aged up to 12 at SHINE Children and Youth Services.

If you’re passionate about child-led, creative practices, and enjoy working alongside children as co-creators, we’d love to hear from you!

Programme Location: Bukit Merah
Dates and Timing: Selected Fridays, 3–5pm

Applications are open until 8 June 2026. Please submit your portfolio, a short statement sharing your facilitation approach, and your rates to [email protected].

For more information, please visit playeum.com/artist-artfulplay

16/04/2026

Meaningful engagement with children and families often begins not with knowing what to say, but with noticing, listening, and responding with curiosity.

Alongside our parent-child play sessions for KidSTART Singapore families, Playeum also ran volunteer training sessions to help volunteers connect more thoughtfully with parents and children.

The training highlighted the different roles volunteers could take on, such as greeters or playmakers, each with suggested prompts and strategies to ensure interactions offered families choices and supported children’s voices.

Volunteers, including SP Group employees and members of the public, learned to observe family interactions, start conversations with curiosity, and support parents in joining their children’s play.

By approaching interactions with genuine interest, volunteers built rapport and encouraged parent-child exploration. Through these experiences, they became part of an enabling environment that nurtures play, reflection, and encouragement - skills they can carry forward in supporting families beyond the sessions.

💡Read more about the impact of PowerUP Playtime and how it has made a difference for families and volunteers in our blog post: www.playeum.com/post/powering-up-play-for-connection

15/04/2026

Calling all young changemakers in Singapore! With the support of the LEGO Group, Playeum builds on the voices of 201 children in Singapore who shared what matters most to them in 2024.

This May, we invite children aged 5 to 12 to deepen the conversation with us through “What Matters to Our Children?” — a playful Build the Change workshop where their voices take centre stage.

Through hands-on building with LEGO bricks and other creative activities, children will express what matters most to them and share how adults can better listen and support them. The workshop will be filmed, capturing their ideas and the process of play as part of our 2026 International Day of Play campaign.

This campaign aims to amplify children’s voices and bring their perspectives to a wider audience, including more children and decision-makers.

Workshop Details
📅 Sunday, 3 May 2026
⏰ 9.30am – 12.45pm
📍 Common Ground Civic Centre (near Bedok MRT)
💛 Free participation

If your child is interested in joining the workshop, please complete the indication of interest form here: tinyurl.com/wmtc0305

More details about the workshop can also be found in the form.

We’re grateful to continue learning with and from children, and to create spaces where their voices are heard in ways that matter to them.

Address

Bedok

Website

http://www.playeum.com/

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