Monday, March 31, 2008

VS SOAS School Twinning Program 2008- Final Day & Farewell

Today marks the final day of our VS SOAS School Twinning program.

Yesterday, the boys had an informal 'Popiah Party' where they wrapped their own spring rolls and ate Mee Siam before students from both schools had a gift exchange:


Today, it was farewell at Changi Airport where we saw our friends off.
Although, the time has passed by quickly, it has left an indelible impression on us all and I am sure the memories will be with us all for a long time.


So amidst the fond farewells, we made promises to see each other again--- after all Brunei and Singapore are not so far apart:)
Many of the boys will be heading to Temburong for their NS, who knows where we might all meet again.

Till then, take care and God Bless!

Friday, March 28, 2008

VS SOAS School Twinning Program 2008- Visit by Pg Zahari and presentation of ICT Prizes

Today, Mr Low formally welcomed Pg Zahari, Principal of SOAS College to Victoria School.
Principal Zahari came to join his students and teachers here later on the 26th Mar


Both principals were on hand to give out the prizes for the joint group projects that were done. The boys created electronic greeting cards to celebrate International Friendship Day.


When we were in Brunei, our SOAS counterparts gave us a fascinating demonstration of Jawi calligraphy.
Today, it was our turn to return the favour by having some of our talented PRC scholars give them a demonstration of Chinese Calligraphy.



Here we see Miss Jenny Tan with a couplet presented to her by Mr Wang Jun and our PRC scholar, Jing Xing.

It reads "海内存知己,天涯若比邻"- meaning, that as long as when we have achieved true friendship and understanding, even though we are separated by distance, we will be close together in heart and mind.

Indeed, it is apparent from the close ties that are developing between VS and SOAS college that we will be embarking on more common journies ahead.

Thursday, March 27, 2008

Everything you Mom would say to you- The Mom Song

"The Mom" song, sung to the William Tell Overture, by Anita Renfroe.
What a mom says in 24 hours, condensed into 2 minutes and 55 seconds!


Lyrics for "The Mom Song" is given below. (Thank you BelleFlower15!)

"The Mom Song"

Get up now
Get up now
Get up out of bed
Wash your face
Brush your teeth
Comb your sleepyhead
Here's your clothes and your shoes
Hear the words I said
Get up now! Get up and make your bed
Are you hot? Are you cold?
Are you wearing that?
Where's your books and your lunch and your homework at?
Grab your coat and gloves and your scarf and hat
Don't forget! You gotta feed the cat
Eat your breakfast, the experts tell us it's the most important meal of all
Take your vitamins so you will grow up one day to be big and tall
Please remember the orthodontist will be seeing you at 3 today
Don't forget your piano lesson is this afternoon so you must play
Don't shovel
Chew slowly
But hurry
The bus is here
Be careful
Come back here
Did you wash behind your ears?
Play outside, don't play rough, will you just play fair?
Be polite, make a friend, don't forget to share
Work it out, wait your turn, never take a dare
Get along! Don't make me come down there
Clean your room, fold your clothes, put your stuff away
Make your bed, do it now, do we have all day?
Were you born in a barn? Would you like some hay?
Can you even hear a word I say?
Answer the phone! Get off the phone!
Don't sit so close, turn it down, no texting at the table
No more computer time tonight!
Your iPod's my iPod if you don't listen up
Where are you going and with whom and what time do you think you're coming home?
Saying thank you, please, excuse me makes you welcome everywhere you roam
You'll appreciate my wisdom someday when you're older and you're grown
Can't wait till you have a couple little children of your own
You'll thank me for the counsel I gave you so willingly
But right now I thank you not to roll your eyes at me
Close your mouth when you chew, would appreciate
Take a bite maybe two of the stuff you hate
Use your fork, do not burp or I'll set you straight
Eat the food I put upon your plate
Get an A, get the door, don't get smart with me
Get a grip, get in here, I'll count to three
Get a job, get a life, get a PHD
Get a dose of,
"I don't care who started it!
You're grounded until you're 36"
Get your story straight and tell the truth for once, for heaven's sake
And if all your friends jumped off a cliff would you jump, too?
If I've said it once, I've said at least a thousand times before
That you're too old to act this way
It must be your father's DNA
Look at me when I am talking
Stand up straighter when you walk
A place for everything and everything must be in place
Stop crying or I'll give you something real to cry about
Oh!
Brush your teeth, wash your face, put your PJs on
Get in bed, get a hug, say a prayer with mom
Don't forget, I love you
And tomorrow we will do this all again because a mom's work never ends
You don't need the reason why
Because, because, because, because
I said so, I said so, I said so, I said so
I'm the mom, the mom, the mom, the mom, the mom!!
Ta da!!! (less)

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

VS-SOAS School Twinning Program 2008- Morning Futsal

Today the boys from SOAS joined Sec 1D in a morning game of Futsal.
We can see that our SOAS boys definitely have some great Futsal skills. Our Sec 1 boys, although younger and smaller were definitely not to be outdone and played a hard fought game!

Sec 3B Character Education: Presentation of Asian Festivals

Today, Sec 3B presented their group projects on various Asian Festivals.

Kudos to the T&F and X-Country Group that gave us an interest presentation on the Water Festival in Thailand.

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

VS-SOAS School Twinning Program 2008-Welcome!

In June 2007, Victoria School visited the Sultan Omar Ali Saiffudien (SOAS) College in Brunei for our first school twinning program.

Our friends from Brunei have come over this year for their return visit. On Mon, during morning assembly, they were greeted by Mr Low and the entire Victorian family.


The SOAS delegation was comprised of 10 students and 2 teachers. The students are:
Muhd Amirul Syafiq bin Noorazmi
Hj Abd Azeez bin Hj Abd Salam
Abdul Mu'izz bin Junaidi
Nadzuan bin Narawi
Muhd Nadhim bin Hj Othman
Hj Abd Khaliq Ghaffari bin Hj Alias
Bryan Boon Wu Chieh
Andrew Lau Ming Sheng
Geoffrey Vun Yong An
Ahmadi bin Yusmin

They were led by the following teachers:
Miss Jenny Tan Feng Ling
Mr Muhd Azri bin Hj Sulaiman

Here we have Cikgu Muhd Azri giving addressing the school on behalf of SOAS College:


Our Bruneian friends came prepared to share their culture and heritage with us. Immediately after Cikgu Azri's opening address, the boys from Brunei entertained us with 2 dances.

The first dance was the 'Adai-Adai' dance. The 'Adai- Adai' dance has its origins amongst the fishing community. Dancers dressed in traditional fishermen garb dance to the beat of the rabana (drum) and show us a celebration of life amongst simpler times as people work together to make ends meet and join in song and dance to forget about their labours.


The next dance that was presented to us was the 'Alai Sikap'. This is a dance traditionally performed by the 'Puak' of Belait. With a pair of bamboo sticks in hand, the performers hit the sticks against the ground and each other to generate a percussive rhythm while the dancers skip, jump themselves over the opening and closing of the bamboo poles.


It is rare to see boys dancing and our friends from SOAS showed us that even all-boys schools like VS and SOAS can show a strong love for performance and the arts. Through this twinning program, I am sure that the boys from both schools will be able to inspire each other to be as comfortable battling on the field of sporting competition as well as performing on the gentle stage of artistic discovery.

Nil Sine Labore

Thursday, March 20, 2008

Awareness Test

Sunday, March 9, 2008

Sec 3 Camp @ KOREF 2008


The Sec 3 cohort had our annual Overseas Adventure Camp at KOREF: Kahang Organic Rice Eco Farm.

When we arrived at KOREF, some of the more adventurous teachers were led by our Senior Camp Operator for a small tour round the place. Frank was a rare breed, he was part of the first batch of officers in the Singapore Armed Forces and his knowledge of nature and field crat
Here we are at beginning our tour of the various organic farm plots at KOREF:


Have you ever wondered how a dragon fruit is grown? Well, it's actually grown on a concrete post- see here:


We even got to see the ducks that were responsible for the 'organic' fertiliser used in farm:


You can find more about KOREF at Edu Outdoor's website by clicking here.

Having been on a number of overseas camps and trekked up a variety of mountains, I must say that the trek up Mount Lambak during this camp was one of the most challenging. Especially since I had to leave the camp late and had to catch up with everybody after they had already departed.
It was quite unnerving climbing up alone and then realising that the path in front forks into two! Luckily for me, our Victorians made their presence felt even in the huge mountain and from their cheers and songs, I could easily locate them.

Here we are with 3A crossing a suspension bridge at the final stage of the descent:


My Form Class, Sec 3B was also bonding strongly. The raft building session was hilarious with our never say die attititude, as we attempted time after time to launch the rafts and stay afloat on them.


There were many great moments of teamwork and bonding in the camp amongst the students. Unbeknownst to many of you, we teachers, also had our own specific team-building and problem solving sessions.

Problem: How to get coconut from coconut tree
The following video is not for the faint hearted.
It shows our HOD of PE Mr Maran in a most compromising position, aided and abetted by the man with the serious demeanour Mr Tan Chong Kiat and Mr Su Rong Hua, our fresh new-comer of the year.


Problem: Got coconut already, now how to get coconut water
Ever since I brought my military shovel to Mawaii for Veloci-T, I have been teased endlessly by Maran, Sng and gang.

Ah.... but without the shovel, we cannot get coconut water, you know.
and Sng, no the shovel does not bounce back when you chop the coconut with it.

Tuesday, March 4, 2008

GCE PE Weight Training for Fitness (Week 10)

Here in Week 10 of Term 1, We can see that the boys are moving on to more advanced techniques in Weight Training.

In previous sessions, we have seen them performing the clean and squats.
Now in this session, they have moved on to performing the Snatch