What is this?
At the Little U L.A.D Studio, we guide teens in Competencies in the Creative Industry. Students who finish each module successfully will obtain a credit for their MTC Learning Record. Each module will take up 1 term (or 16 weeks) to complete.
Each module has a Project Cover Sheet (PCS) with appendixed documents. This will be the final evidence uploaded to the MTC portal for the MTC Learning Record. Once accepted by the administrator on the portal, the evidence is equivalent to 0.5 credit or 1 credit obtained for the competency.
Does this fit you?
L.A.D Studio at Little U is best suited for creative, hands-on, and portfolio-focused teens in Singapore, especially those seeking alternative education pathways, preparing for creative tertiary studies, or needing a flexible, inclusive learning environment. It is less suited for students strictly following mainstream academic tracks or those much younger than secondary school age.
Student Profile | Why |
Alternative / Homeschool / Unschool | Competency-based, flexible, non-traditional |
Creative / Design-Interested Students | Modules in design, architecture, art, fashion |
Neurodivergent Learners | Customisable, inclusive, supportive |
Polytechnic /University Portfolio Seekers | Credits, external validation, strong portfolio evidence |
Secondary (13yo and above) | Age-appropriate, skill-based, portfolio-building |

Product Design
Taught by Grace Tan, Program Director of L.A.D Studio
Criterion : Self-Direction
Skills picked up in this module :
User-Centered Design (UCD) : Understanding the needs, preferences, and behaviours of end-users. This involves techniques like user research, interviews, getting feedback.
Prototyping: Being able to create prototypes by various tools and techniques to recreate a 3-dimensional object that represents the proposed item.
Graphic Design: Being able to use good design principles of typography, hierarchy, framing, balance, proportion, colour to create visually understandable content.
Design Thinking : Approach problems creatively by generating innovative solutions and empathising users.
Communication: Being able to use images, text, and information to effectively communicate your idea so viewers can understand what you are trying to say.
Students will learn to make a product for a particular group. They will understand what good design is, and use models to create and express an idea.
Final submissions by students of Little U

View the Project Cover Sheet for the full information about this module.
Access is given only to Little U students.

Architecture
Taught by Grace Tan, Program Director of L.A.D Studio
Criterion : Adaptation
Skills picked up in this module :
Flexibility: Adjusts ideas and approaches when faced with new challenges or changes in the project.
Learning agility: Quickly learns new skills or concepts and uses them in different design tasks.
Emotional intelligence: Builds positive relationships with classmates, and works well within group studio activities.
Anticipation and foresight: Thinks ahead to spot possible problems and plans ways to solve or avoid them.
Scale drawing: We learn to be able to translate real world dimensions into scaled drawings.
3D building: We learn to build models that represent a scaled version of the actual space.
User-Centered & Site-Centered Design: We learn to identify and represent human and vehicular pathways, geographical features, landscape,views, sun paths, buildings etc
Conceptualising: We learn to translate our idea into a building or space.
Presentation and Communication: We learn to explain the purpose and meaning of my creation so that others can understand it.
This is an introduction to architecture and building skills. Students will learn to make scaled drawings and models, learn how to understand a site, and apply structural building principles. All these will translate into creating a space or building.
Final Submission Examples






Final submissions by students of Little U
A Family House | A Castle-Like House | Between the Waterfall and the Stream | A Modern House |
The final submission was externally evaluated by Daniel Pillai, Principal of WOW Architects. As a Principal in WOW Architects, Daniel is actively involved at the intersections of architectural practice, research & academia. His current repertoire of projects spans across high-end luxury private residential and hospitality developments in Singapore, Vietnam and India. Daniel brings over 20 years of experience in interdisciplinary practice, and his ability to pilot and prototype inquiries across product, interior and architectural design has seen him successfully helm projects of varied scales. As a practicing academic, he has co-authored and led both the Interior Design and Product Design programmes at LASALLE College of the Arts Singapore. He has mentored emerging talents via a research incubator programme, designing for impact by addressing social and environmental issues. Talents from his programme have gone on to win prestigious competitions such as the iF Design Awards, Red Dot Design Awards, INDE Awards and Wallpaper Handmade. Daniel’s research interest questions the notions of luxury and sustainability; issues pertinent as we emerge from a post-pandemic crisis. Prior to joining WOW, Daniel was a practicing academic at the School of Spatial & Product Design (LASALLE College of the Arts) and the Department of Architecture (National University of Singapore).

Artrepreneurship
Taught by Grace Tan, Program Director of L.A.D Studio
Criterion : Resilience
Skills picked up in this module :
Optimism: View setbacks as temporary and believe in their ability to overcome challenges.
Self-regulation: Manage stress, staying calm under pressure, and avoiding impulsive reactions.
Self-awareness: Recognise when you need support and seek help when necessary.
Perseverance: Willingness to keep trying, even when the path forward is challenging.
Self-learning: We learn to find resources to teach ourselves, take ownership of our learning, think critically, and apply problem-solving skills.
Artistic Skill and technique: We identify the skill we want to develop, practice the skill regularly and be able to evaluate our progress to learn
Business fundamentals: We learn the basics of business and entrepreneurship how to develop a business plan
Marketing fundamentals: We learn marketing fundamentals and what is involved in marketing a product. We create a marketing plan and execute it.
Communication: We learn to explain the purpose and meaning of my creation so that others can understand it.
Learn how to turn their creativity into sellable products. Students will learn the fundamentals of art and business, including art techniques, marketing, branding, and entrepreneurship.
Final Submission Examples



Fashion Design
Taught by Elisa Lim, Founder of WillandWell.com
Criterion : Curiosity
Skills picked up in this module :
Exploration: Willingness to venture into the unknown, as it often leads to the discovery of novel ideas and connections.
Questioning: “Why?” and “What ifs?” opens up possibilities and encourages alternative viewpoints, sparking creativity.
Persistence: Overcome setbacks to breakthroughs in creative thinking.
Knowledge of the industry: We learn about the history of fashion, how trends evolve and gain insights of the fashion industry
Proportions and illustrations: We learn to draw the body figure and garments that represents a proportionate version of the design on the body.
Conceptualising: We learn to translate our idea visually into a moodboard, illustrating it and eventually into a product.
Sewing techniques: We learn various sewing techniques and the use of a sewing machine to materialise my design.
Students will learn about the history of fashion, trends and industry, learn proportions and illustration, learn design processes, learn styling, learn sewing techniques, understand fabrics and materials. All these explorations will be documented in a CPJ (creative process journal) and translated into a craftwork.
Final Submission Examples



Textile Design
Taught by Joanna Lim, Founder of JOANNALSM
Criterion : Authenticity
Skills picked up in this module :
Transparency: Learn to communicate your intentions honestly. Express vulnerability through design choices, and reflect sincerely in your artist statement.
Active Listening: Engage in peer critiques and discussions with empathy and active listening to deepen understanding and creative growth
Consistency: Commit to your design process with consistency — from planning and research to final execution and refinement of your textile piece.
Creative Expression & Storytelling: Transform personal stories, emotions, and values into original textile motifs, patterns, and designs.
Technical Textile Skills: Explore techniques such as embroidery, embellishment, printmaking, and digital motif creation with a hands-on, playful approach.
Ethical & Sustainable Thinking: Make thoughtful choices about materials and production, embracing sustainable practices and intentional design.
Explore colour, pattern, printing, and embroidery-learning hands-on techniques. Dive into the world of textiles, create your own unique designs, and build a portfolio piece that showcases your skills.
Final Submission Examples


The full L.A.D Studio Curriculum
Module | Primary Competency and Criterion |
Product Design | CREATIVITY Self-Direction The ability to take charge of your own learning, goals, and actions. |
Architecture | CREATIVITY Adaptation The ability to adjust and thrive in response to changing environments, circumstances, or challenges. |
Artpreneurship | CREATIVITY Resilience The capacity to cope with adversity, recover from setbacks, and thrive in the face of challenges. |
Fashion Design | CREATIVITY Curiosity It fuels the exploration and inquiry necessary for generating innovative ideas and solutions. |
Textile Design | COMMUNICATION Authenticity Being genuine, sincere, and true to oneself while expressing thoughts, feelings, and ideas to others. |
We aim to run these modules throughout the year by Term 2, 2026.
All students may take the modules as many times as they wish. Each student’s experience and assessment will be customised by the educator. This approach deepens both the breadth and depth of the skills learned, as well as overall creativity.
Some things to note:
You do not have to complete everything. Some neurodivergent learners may prefer to focus on a specific module or criterion. We will provide guidance accordingly.
Earning Credits at Little U
There are up to 16 credits that a student may obtain at Little U based on our 4 competencies and 16 criteria.
10–13 credits: The student is prepared to apply for employment, diploma programs, or foundation university courses. This range demonstrates strong evidence of competency through the student’s achievements, validated by teachers and external evaluators.
14–16 credits: A student achieving this level qualifies to apply for undergraduate university programs. The final three credits represent the student’s most recent and challenging work, supported by compelling evidence of competency, validated by teachers and external evaluators.
There are 4 levels of achievements in our Little U assessment rubrics : EMERGING, DEVELOPING, ESTABLISHED, APPLYING.
APPLYING : 1 credit. Strong work for a student applying to a diploma or undergraduate course.
ESTABLISHED: 1 credit. Represents sufficient work for a student seeking admission to a diploma or undergraduate program, such as a university foundation year.
DEVELOPING : 0.5 credit. A credit that is at DEVELOPING requires another piece of evidence to substantiate the claim that the student can earn this criterion.
EMERGING : 0 credits