Friday, June 20, 2014

Mid-year Post-Exam Activities 2014

8:03 PM Posted by Anonymous No comments
On the 26th May, the post-exam activities for the Secondary 1 and 2 students commenced. It lasted for one week and was enriching for the students to reduce their stress and at the same time, learn something new. Firstly, for the secondary ones, they had a service learning camp and a chance to program a game via Game Salad. For the service learning, the Secondary 1 students went to nursing homes such as Orange Valley Clementi where they had a chance to interact with the elderly there. They talked to them and entertained them. They were able to listen to various stories and experiences from the elderly people. For the GameSalad activity, they were to program a simple application. No doubt it was difficult for some as they were not familiar with the application. Nonetheless, the guidance of the instructors helped them complete it! Now, on to the Secondary 2s. There were various activities lined up for the Sec 2s, to prepare us for the outdoor expedition at the end of the year. On the first day, we attended the Integrated Humanities briefing for the learning journey that was to be held on Wednesday. We then proceeded to a talk by Mr Lam regarding what OE (Outdoor Expedition) was all about and how it would benefit us. Shortly after that, we went to our respective venues. Pitching the tent and learning how to tie knots were the first two activities. We were divided into groups (our camp groups) and learnt how to pitch a tent. There was some standard of difficulty but most teams managed to pitch it up perfectly. There were also some who needed assistance but managed to do it in the end. Well done! Following that, we went into the ISH to learn the art of tying knots. These were important in securing the tent! On 27th May, the Sec 2s went to the I&E room to have a talk on RAMS. This stood for Risk Assessment Management System. We were divided into groups and discussed on the factors that affected a certain activity and how safe it was for the participants. This geared us for the outdoor cooking session that would happen later in the days. Outdoor cooking had risks as students could sustain minor cuts and injuries when opening the tin cans or when setting up the fire. Compounding that, another talk was coming up! The 'Hygiene talk'. This talk basically briefed us on how to keep clean during the camp and the specific items we were supposed to bring. To ensure our understanding, Mr Dennis Lam tasked the class to come up with a list based on the categories, 'Clothing', 'Equipment', 'Personal', 'It's nice to have' and 'Do not bring'. Other than that, teams were tasked to put shoes, books and umbrellas into the bags so that Mr Lam could check whether it was placed appropriately to avoid the straining of the back. Lastly, the Secondary 2s had to attend the Rio Tinto competition, which tested them on their general knowledge for Science. Now, onto the third day! The activity was the Integrated Humanities Trail. Before it started, students were to report to their classes to fold the Poppy Flower. The Poppy Flower was a tribute to the soldiers who died in the Kranji War Memorial. Other than that, the Poppy Flowers were also used for the IH Booth for SST's Open House! The classes then went to Kranji War Memorial and Labrador/Kent Ridge Park. At the Kranji War Memorial stood the graves of more than 24,000 soldiers who died in World War II. The ages ranged from 6 weeks old, all the way to around 88 years old. Next, we proceeded to Labrador Park, where we saw the cannons used by soldiers and the bases they used to hide in during the war. It was truly great and touching to hear about their stories. On 29th May, we participated in the Maps and Scales activity. In this activity, we were to walk around the school, measuring the steps walked and the bearings of the compasses. We were also required to take a selfie to prove that we went to the places. It was a rather fun and enjoyable time as we got to explore the school a little more than usual and had team-bonding with our friends. After that, First Aid came in. We learnt how to bandage an arm, elbow, leg and head within the span of 1 hour! We tried different types of bandages, including the roll and triangular bandages. Other than that, we also took the opportunity to learn more about the severity of the wounds and how we can prevent them. Some of them were gruesome but we were glad that it was taught because, if an incident were to happen, we were prepared. Lastly, on 30th May 2014, it marked the last day of school. Did you know what other day it was? The answer is Kindness Day! The students proceeded to their respective classrooms and the teacher preached about kindness to the class and how we can make a difference. A kindness card was issued out to every student and they were require to write a note to a elderly, thanking them and showing their appreciation. Right after that, the time had come! Outdoor cooking. First of all, we were given the apparatus and instant noodles. It was not the modern stove but it was the old-fashioned portable ones. As we cooked the noodles, we had to watch the fire. We had to be careful to avoid getting burnt or scalded. In the end, the food turned out great and tasty! To end off the school term, students then cleaned their classrooms and cleared their lockers. That marks the end of SST's post-exam activates! Written by: Johanna Lim (S209)

0 comments:

Post a Comment