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Growing Minds Learning Center, Bukit Jalil

by Billy Boey . on 13/11/2026 ...

Highlights

For many parents, a child who struggles to focus, manage emotions, make friends or complete a task may seem to need more discipline, practice or tuition. Growing Minds Learning Center, Bukit Jalil, takes a different starting point: before asking a child to perform better, understanding what is making learning difficult comes first.

Founded in 2026 by Educational Psychologist Ms. Ng Xue Min, Growing Minds is an educational psychology-led child development and learning centre for children aged 3 to 18. Its central philosophy is simple but powerful: build the skills behind learning.

“Every child is unique, and no single approach fits every learner. Every child deserves to be understood, supported, and allowed to thrive,” says Xue Min.

That belief shapes a centre for children who need additional support, as well as those who want to become more confident, independent and capable learners.

Looking Beyond the Behaviour

At Growing Minds, behaviour is viewed as information rather than a problem to correct. A child who “doesn’t listen” may struggle with working memory. A child who gives up easily may feel overwhelmed, while a child who struggles socially may need support with communication or emotional understanding.

This is where Growing Minds’ “Understand → Build → Practise” approach comes in.

First, the team seeks to understand the child’s learning profile and identify the skills or barriers underneath what parents and teachers see. From there, the team builds targeted skills through individualised support before children practise them in real situations.

“When I see my client, I don’t label them. I just look at what skills they are missing. Then I build it up,” Xue Min explains.

Growing Minds does support children with ADHD, autism and learning difficulties, as well as early intervention needs, but it does not define a child by a diagnosis. The centre focuses on what the child needs to develop so they can manage themselves, communicate and participate more effectively in everyday environments.

Building Skills to Thrive

Growing Minds is not a tuition centre, and its goal is not simply to help children obtain better grades. They focus on the foundational abilities that make learning possible: self-awareness, self-management, learning independence, thinking skills and social connection.

Xue Min believes these skills matter in a rapidly changing world “What do we need to achieve our dreams? These are the things that I think are very important for children nowadays,” she shares, highlighting problem-solving, curiosity, flexibility, courage to ask questions and adaptability alongside academic knowledge.

This philosophy is also deeply personal. Xue Min recalls being an average student who struggled to connect information when she was young. Looking back through her own learning journey and her Master’s training in Educational Psychology, she came to realise that academic performance does not tell the whole story of a learner.

“This centre values and celebrates every child. Everyone is unique. Everyone has their own path. When these foundational skills are built, you can shine anywhere.”

Learning Through Real Experiences

Although Growing Minds uses play-based, activity-based, hands-on and project-based methods, the activities have a clear developmental purpose. Children may build, cook, play games, role-play, solve puzzles, create art, move, collaborate and talk through challenges.

The objective is to practise skills in meaningful situations rather than simply completing worksheets, and that’s what is happening in the Weekend Club.

Weekend Club for Social Connection

Growing Minds’ Weekend Club is designed around the idea of giving children a welcoming space to socialise, interact and learn alongside other children in small-group settings. Depending on their age and needs, the sessions focus on social-emotional development, friendship, school readiness and independence through practical, hands-on activities.

Rather than simply telling children how to behave, the club gives them opportunities to practise these skills with real peers; starting a task, taking turns, communicating, working as a team, coping when things do not go their way, losing a game without tantrums, managing emotions and asking for help. For children who may spend much of their time at home or have limited opportunities to interact with peers, the Weekend Club provides a safe and structured environment where they can build friendships, understand others and become more comfortable navigating social situations.

The centre also offers these services:

Kindergarten School Readiness Programme
Primary School Readiness Programme
Brain Booster
One-to-One Support
Early Intervention Programmes (EIP)
Individualised Educational Plans (IEP)
Psychoeducational Assessment

A Place for Every Learner

One of Growing Minds’ strongest distinctions is that it is not exclusively a special needs centre. Children with diagnoses are welcome, but a diagnosis is not required.

The centre also works with children who are developing normally but could benefit from strengthening emotional regulation, attention, confidence, communication, problem-solving or independence. For parents, this means working on foundational skills earlier and more intentionally, improving the child to a higher degree.

Family partnership is also a guiding principle, helping parents understand their children and apply useful and positive strategies at home.

Connecting Families and Schools

Growing Minds’ role extends to collaboration with schools, particularly when a child’s learning profile needs to be understood and supported across environments.

Through psychoeducational assessment, the centre can identify strengths and support needs, prepare a report and communicate relevant information with schools, helping parents and educators work from a shared understanding.

For schools looking to strengthen support for diverse learners, Growing Minds is a great collaborative partner for assessment, learning support, school readiness, parent engagement and practical skill-building.

Growing Minds, One Child at a Time

Growing Minds is building its community extensively in Bukit Jalil, backed by Xue Min’s over eight years of experience with children & families and her training in Educational Psychology. Her aspiration is simple: to help children recognise their strengths, navigate challenges and become more confident in their own learning “I want them to be confident, not defined by academic. I want them to be able to solve problems and not feel helpless.”

From school readiness and learning challenges to friendship and confidence, Growing Minds supports children at different stages of their development. For parents, it offers an opportunity to look beyond academic performance and better understand what their child needs to flourish, while schools can explore meaningful collaboration around learning profiles and student support.

Ultimately, Growing Minds is about helping children know themselves, connect with others and face challenges with confidence & skills that can serve them throughout all facets of life.