February 2008 Archives

Parents Spread the Chinese New Year Cheer

February 29, 2008

Lo hei at Temasek Secondary

The students who lo hei together - will do well together!

It was the usual Chinese New Year lo hei good wishes, but with a twist: foreign scholars at Temasek Secondary School were tossing raw fish and vegetables - some for the first time - at a special Chinese New Year lunch organised for them. Their hosts: the school’s Parent Support Group (PSG), which was stepping up to play surrogate parents for a few hours and share some Chinese New Year cheer with the scholars.

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Helping Children in Thailand

February 27, 2008

Bowen Secondary trip to Phayao Centre

Children at the Phayao Centre were greatly cheered by the visit of Bowen Secondary School students.

While many visitors to Thailand have taken part in the Loy Krathong festival, our group of 20 upper secondary students from Bowen Secondary School had a somewhat different experience. We were the guests at Phayao Centre, a home for abused children in Thailand, and as we made traditional krathongs (floating candles) with the children, we gained a whole new perspective on the hope that this festival can represent.

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Special Techniques for Special Kids

February 25, 2008

Mrs Tracy Lee in class

Mrs Lee has special classroom strategies to help students with special needs.

Did you know that children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may have such short attention spans, that all the important information in a lesson must be taught within the first five to ten minutes? Specialist knowledge like this is what helps Mrs Tracy Lee, a teacher trained in special needs at Seng Kang Primary School, to help students with special needs in her mainstream classes.

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Inter-connectedness through Integrated Humanities

February 22, 2008

St Margaret's Secondary Integrated Humanities

Miss Karen Chao uses a diverse range of history and geography resources to teach Integrated Humanities.

At St Margaret’s Secondary School, if you can’t find History and Geography in your daughter’s timetable, don’t worry. While History and Geography are still part of the school syllabus, the two subjects have been taught as one subject called Integrated Humanities (IH) at the school since 2005.

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Making a Successful Transition to Primary 1 (Part 2)

February 20, 2008

PERC Seminar

Mr Khoo is actively involved in his daughter’s education and believes that parents play a critical role in imparting life skills.

After a hearty tea break, parents returned to the auditorium for the second part of the seminar, “Transition to Pri 1 - What Every Parent Needs to Know”. Next up to speak: Mr Gary Khoo, the Senior Advisor of the Parent Support Group (PSG) in CHIJ Our Lady of Good Counsel. As MOE’s parent ambassador, he shared with the audience his experience of “Choosing a Primary School and Supporting Your Child in Primary School”.

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Making a Successful Transition to Primary 1 (Part 1)

February 18, 2008

PERC Seminar

Humorous anecdotes and useful tips from the various speakers helped to alleviate parents’ concerns.

While the streets of Shenton Way were almost deserted on a lazy Saturday afternoon, the DBS Auditorium was abuzz with excited murmurs and chattering. A crowd had turned up for the seminar, “Transition to Pri 1 - What Every Parent Needs to Know”, and they were all eager to glean insights and tips from the speakers. Over the next four hours, this crowd of more than two hundred parents was given a lot of food for thought. Experts in pre-school education, a primary school principal and a parent himself were on hand to share their thoughts on how to help children prepare for primary school education.

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Walking the Talk by Taking to the Shops

February 15, 2008

Millenia Institute Ignite!

Testing a geography theory meant going to the neighbourhood centre to interview shop owners and their customers.

Last month, a group of Millennia Institute (MI) students headed for the neighbourhood malls during school hours. No, they were not skipping classes; the Pre-U 1 students were investigating how businesses in heartland shopping zones devised strategies to attract customers. Meanwhile, their seniors were scouring Bukit Batok Central to learn whether there was a correlation between rental prices and a shop’s location and accessibility. Having studied a principle in Geography called "Bid Rent Theory", the students found that the textbook theory rang true in explaining neighbourhood shop rental trends. Such encounters with real-life models that verify concepts taught in textbooks are an integral part of the curriculum at MI, which recently received MOE’s “Teach Less Learn More (TLLM) Ignite!” package. TLLM Ignite! schools enjoy a plethora of MOE support: research activist training, consultants, customised workshops and training for teachers, access to a network of fellow TLLM Ignite! schools, and a grant of $15,000.

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Learning about NE through N.E.mation! and the Total Defence Exhibition

February 12, 2008

N.E.mation! II

Students learnt about NE by producing an animation clip on resilience.

Learning is increasingly going beyond the classroom, and it is no different for National Education (NE). For the second year in a row, students have had the chance to research on an NE-related topic and produce an animation clip for N.E.mation! II. In addition to the competition, students can also learn about Total Defence through the Total Defence Exhibition. The exhibition starts on Tuesday, 12 Feb - the same day you can start voting for your favourite N.E.mation! II clips.

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Junior Sports Academies Seek Smashing Results

February 11, 2008

Lim Jie Han

Lim Jie Han from Henry Park Primary School will enter the school's Junior Sports Academy for badminton.

You could say the ball is in their court - for student athletes, that is. Come February 2008, they will have new avenues to bring out the best of their abilities. Take Lim Jie Han, a Pri 5 school badminton player at Henry Park Primary School, for example. Under a pilot Junior Sports Academy (JSA) programme to be launched by MOE in February 2008, Jie Han will have the opportunity to train with top coaches and spar with the best of his peers.

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Helping Teachers to GROW

February 6, 2008

Teachers

Grow 2.0 unveils new incentives to boost the number of teachers.

To keep the teaching career attractive to both new and serving teachers, the Ministry of Education has unveiled Grow 2.0 - a new package of incentives that offers teachers greater rewards, career advancement, professional development and well-being.

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Experiencing the Pre-U Seminar

February 4, 2008

Pre-U Seminar 2007

Pre-U Seminar participants came from junior colleges, polytechnics and Integrated Programme schools across Singapore.

What does Singapore and being Singaporean mean to you? For some, it is “the place where I grew up”. For others, national stereotypes like “being kiasu” come to mind. Starting with these mindsets, students from junior colleges (JCs) across Singapore set off on a learning journey at the 2007 Pre-University Seminar. From 21 to 25 May 2007, the students stayed at the residential halls of Nanyang Technology University (NTU) to explore the theme of “iSingapore: Challenge, Create, Connect”, which looked at the challenges facing Singapore and Singaporeans in this era of a globalised economy and borderless communities.

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What Being a Parent Volunteer Has Done for Me

February 1, 2008

Mdm Kannagi Ibrahim

Mdm Kannagi Ibrahim has been a parent volunteer at Evergreen Primary School since 2004.

Research by the National Parent Teacher Association in the USA has found that students whose parents are actively involved in their education do better at school, regardless of their family income and background. Specifically, students with involved parents have greater academic success, better attitudes about school and fewer behavioural problems. Sounds too good to be true? Not at all!

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