Foreword By the Principal

Greetings from the Editor

Hi readers, welcome to the first issue of newsway @ BLGPS. Terms 1 & 2 have been eventful, with many fun-filled activities. We thank you for the support rendered and do hope that you continue to give us your invaluable input, suggestions or comments so that we can serve you better. You might be wondering why is there a change of name for the BLGPS Newsletter and also its presentation and layout. Just as the name suggests, newsway depicts the important channel of news reaching you via publication of the BLGPS Newsletter. It also welcomes new ways to embrace changes for continuous improvement of the Newsletter and providing more information to you, our ever-supportive readers!

Sincerely, Miss Andrea Leong

Editorial Board

AdviserMdm Indrawati Ali

Editor Ms Andrea Leong

MemberMdm Nur Hanum

MemberMiss Sewa Duujong

MemberMrs NadarajanSasikala

MemberMdm Norlaily Ahmad

Miss Lee Joo Lee (HOD/Maths)

Mr Abdul Rahman Marican (SH/I&E)

Miss Evelyn Poon (P3 Teacher)

Mdm Liu Caifeng(CL Teacher)

Mdm Junaidah (Teacher Assistant)

Mdm Juli Anna(School Counsellor)

Mr Koh Chin Siang (TA)

Miss Sinah (IT Executive)

Miss Siti Fauziah Ibrahim (CSO)

Mr Andrew Wong (TA)

Miss Josephine Tay (Contract Teacher)

Mr Pan Zhuo Xiong (Contract teacher)

Miss Chua Geok Pei (Contract teacher)

Mdm Luo Bingyan (Contract teacher)

Ms Nur Azura (Contract teacher)

Welcome New Staff Farewell and Best Wishes

Mrs Cindy Chow transferred to Rivervale Primary School

Mdm Arifah Bte. Ibrahim transferred to Marsiling Primary School

Miss Mariani Bte. Ngahtemin transferred to Lakeside Primary School Mdm Sultan Beevi (Teacher Assistant)

From The Principal's Desk

Friday mornings at Boon Lay Garden Primary School are always abuzz with the sounds of children engaged in co-curricular activities. The sight and sounds of children engaged in any one of our 29 CCAs, such as Wushu, Red Cross, Basketball and Soccer make the school a very lively place.

Since we started CCA on Fridays in 2006, alot more of our children get to participate in activities that complements their academic growth. Such activities will enable them to learn, play, socialise, strategise, dream and do. It allows our children to balance their work with meaningful play.

While we encourage all pupils at BLGPS to excel in their CCA, we will continue our focus of providing them a quality journey in education. We will continue to run learning programmes that will enable all children at Boon Lay Garden Primary School to learn through play and grow into citizens that will be a blessing to their family, community and the nation. Picture taken at Cambridge University, January

2007.

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As part of our school’s National Education effort, Total Defence Day was commemorated on 15th February 2007. Pupils learned about being prepared for emergencies from the assembly talks

and the need to conserve energy when the lights and fans were switched off for an hour during curriculum time. Different class activities helped to reinforce the importance of the five aspects in total defence. Pupils and staff took part in a food-rationing exercise during recess where they consumed only biscuits and water. There was also a display of the ready bag during all the recesses on 14th and 15th February.

EAOS Day Ms Ho Wai Wai

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Total Defence Day Mrs Ada Leong

It was Executive Administrative Operations Staff(EAOS) Day on 2 May 2007. On that day, all non-teaching staff were treated to a mini-concert. A special powerpoint presentation, video clips and song presentation were dedicated to them as a show of appreciation and gratitude for their hard work. P1 and P2 pupils also put on the self-made flower masks during the dedication of the EAOS song. A small token was also presented to every non-teaching staff.

Chinese New Year celebration Ms Sewa Duujong

class based activities and live performances took place between 7.30 am and 3.30pm. All pupils gathered in the hall for a combined celebration. The concert consisted of performances from the various CCA groups and the External Residential Committee. The concert items started promptly at 10 am with a lion dance performance, followed by the Chinese orchestra performance, Chinese dance, martial arts performance and community singing by all pupils. The lion dance performance is a Chinese New Year's tradition. It is believed that the loud beats of the drums and the aggressive movements of the lion will chase away evil spirits and bring about good luck and happiness in the coming year. The Wushu performance was indeed breath-taking, as the martial arts disciples performed the various stunts to the audience. Mr Chow Won How conducted the quiz on the origin of spring cleaning and 13 Primary 3 pupils also put up a play on the legend of the 12 Chinese zodiac animals. For the finale, community singing of Chinese New Year songs was conducted by Mrs Wafei who raised the atmosphere of this festive season to greater heights.

The Chinese New Year celebration @ BLGPS provides the pupils with the opportunity to learn about the Chinese traditions, arts and dance. All pupils have truly enjoyed themselves in this celebration.

Once again the popular and successful Chinese New Year celebration took place on 16th February. The exciting event was organized by the Mother Tongue Department to celebrate and usher in the Year of the Boar.

On 16th February,

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Parent -Teacher Conference Ms Turinadevi

The school held its annual Parent Teacher Conference on 9th March 2007. This whole day event aimed to provide feedback to parents about the progress of their child.

Parents had an opportunity to meet their children’s Form Teachers as well as Mother Tongue teachers to gather valuable feedback on their child’s academic performance as well as emotional development in school.

The event was well received by parents as there were more than one thousand parents participated in the conference. The school looks forward to the parents’ continuous support in our programmes.

The Primary One Parents Conference was conducted on the 26th of January 2007. In total, we had 196 parents who turned up for the conference. The conference started off with the screening of pictures of Primary One pupils during their first week of school. It was a delightful sight to catch a glimpse of the inquisitive and innocent looks of the young ones. It was followed by the Vice Principal’s speech, addressing the parents on school’s issues in general. The various Heads of Department shared on the syllabus, enrichment programmes and examination matters. During the Question and Answer segment, many queries were raised pertaining to the new English syllabus- “STELLAR”. Some parents gave constructive feedback on ways to improve the school. It was a meaningful session and a good avenue for better communication and understanding between the school and it’s most important stakeholder, the Parents.

P1 Parents' Conference Ms Sharon Tai

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The P6 Parents Conference, an annual school event, was successfully carried out on 30th March 2007. After a week’s long preparation, all P6 teachers and the members of the working team were there to welcome the parents who graced the event for the night.

The speaker for the night, Mr. Jeremy Koh, with his excellent articulate presentation skills delivered an interesting topic on ‘Raising Responsible Pre-teens’. He highlighted the many growing-up challenges faced by the Primary 6 pupils these days. In addition, he highlighted to parents on the importance of how to give their children ownership of being responsible to themselves in the growing-up stage. After the exciting speech, teachers had interaction sessions with the parents. The conference has certainly provided insights and useful tips for parents on how to give appropriate confidence to a growing child.

The P1 STELLAR Workshop which was held on 4th April received 68 parents who graced the event. The workshop started off with Mdm Indrawati Ali (HOD/EL) giving an overview of what is STELLAR. Mrs Fahmy (P1 Teacher) then demonstrated the Shared Book Approach (SBA) where parents were invited to experience what their children had been going through in class. Our Senior Teacher, Mrs Tow shared with the parents on the Modified Learning Experience Approach (MLEA) where the pupils go through the process of learning through shared experiences and participate actively in class writing, group writing and individual writing. Useful tips on reading were shared by Miss Andrea Leong. The parents had a better understanding that reading takes place anywhere and everywhere and that books are not the only material which can ignite the interest of reading in the pupils.

for English Language Learning and Reading Ms Andrea Leong

P1 STELLAR Workshop Strategies

P6 Parents' Conference Mr Chow Won How

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Teaching Exchange Programme in Wuhan, China Ms Lim Mei Lian

cpdd - curriculum planning development days Mr Abdul Rahman

What's buzzing @BLGPS

Professional Mastery Through cpdd

In our quest to develop a “Learning School”, a new platform was created for the Professional Development of all staff through the cpdd sessions. At present, all staff are encouraged not only to attend sharing sessions but to actually take the lead and engage themselves as presenters or facilitators of future sharing. These sessions are so well received that the school had as many as 21 sharing sessions during the first term itself.

One of our teachers Ms Lim Mei Lian was selected for the Singapore-Wuhan Exchange Programme for a 4-month teaching stint at a local primary school in Wuhan from Aug-Dec 06. Apart from conducting English Enrichment Programme for the school with all the Pr. 5 and 6 pupils. She was involved in helping the pupils and teachers prepare for English Storytelling/Teachers’ competitions organized by the state respectively.

During her stint there, the pupils learnt through different modes: pair/group work, hands-on activities, enhancing their learning through role-play, actions and songs and oral interactions. It has indeed been an enriching experience for her as a classroom teacher.

Everybody smile!! Learning English is interesting!

Pupils work in pairs to complete the assignment

Ms Lim Mei Lian with her class of lovely people.

P5 E - Learning Ms Ho Wai Wai

Let me check my answers again.

This is fun! I know how to complete this assignment!

This Maths problem is tough,I am glad that we areworking on it together.

Great! I am left with a few more questions to complete the entire assignment!

Let me help you out with this question. We will solve it together.

School Closure!!!Primary 5 pupils participated in the school’s first E- Learning Exercise from 12 to 14 February 2007, using the LEAD Learning Management System (LMS) with the assistance from Learning Edvantage Pte Ltd.

The main objective of this exercise was to simulate school closure in case of a pandemic outbreak so that pupils could be kept engaged in learning activities.

Using the LMS, the school’s Instructional Programmes (IP) departments designed interesting lesson packages for pupils to access during the three days of school closure. This was part of the Total Defence activities which made use of E-learning as a platform to deliver lessons efficiently and effectively.

The exercise went on smoothly and on the whole, teachers, parents and pupils found the E-Learning Exercise interesting and useful. It was indeed a very good learning experience for all!

Primary 5 pupils experienced a 3 day-2 night Adventure Camp from 9 April to 11 April at Jalan Bahtera MOE Outdoor Adventure Centre. Pupils had fun and meaningful moments of gathering together to learn more about teamwork, responsibility and had the chance to rough it during the camp. Campers in their assigned groupings attempted high elements such as high ropes, abseiling, zipline and rockwall. The campers also had the opportunity to enjoy activities such as multi-level captain ball, outdoor cooking, campfire preparation and night games. After the pupils returned to school, they still continued with their cheer as if they were still in camp! It must have been an impactful experience for all the pupils.

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P5 Camp@ Jalan Bahtera Ms Ng Yick Kit

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P5 Malay Language Malacca Trip 2007Mdm Noraida Rahmat

A week after the March Holidays, 56 pupils embarked on an experiential learning journey to Malacca. The pupils were accompanied by Mother Tongue teachers. It was the first time that the Malay Language Department organized an overseas trip for P5 pupils. The trip was designed to give pupils the opportunity to experience the authentic cultural diversity of the Malay and Chitty community in Malacca.

Apart from getting a chance to visit both kampongs and experience the rich Malay lifestyle, pupils were also involved in hands-on activities during the trip.

Some of the activities were squeezing juice out from latex rubber to make rubber sheets, different ways of wearing a kampong-style sarong, making garlands using fresh flowers. The pupils from the different classes prepared a video presentation and shared their experience with their friends.

I hope I am doing it the right way

Our first time at making garlands

Let's wait for the final product

This is fun! Q and A sessions

International Friendship Day Mrs Leong Hwee Peng

The pupils celebrated International Friendship Day on 4th April 2007. On the day of celebration, the highlights of the assembly programme planned for both morning and afternoon sessions were slide presentation cum quiz session and a mini costume parade. Primary One pupils were selected as models for the costume parade as it was a good opportunity to help them to build confidence on stage. Meaningful classroom activities were organized for the pupils, such as creating posters using the flags of different countries and their currencies for their art forms. It was indeed an eventful celebration.

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Learning Journeys Gunung Datuk Climb - 13th to 14th Mar 2007Ms Ng Yick Kit

10 Primary 6 pupils from the different classes were selected to take part in a 2 days 1 night outdoor expedition, “AIM HIGH!” This event was organised by the Outdoor Education Team from the W3 Cluster. Prior to the expedition at Negri Sembilan, the pupils had 3 sessions of physical training at Juying Secondary School, which were led by the school’s student leaders. Besides mountain climbing, the pupils had to purchase ingredients and prepare their own meals for the 2 days of the expedition.

Flashback sessions were arranged for the pupils to reflect on what they had gone through and how they could apply the challenges they faced in their daily lives. It was indeed a remarkable experience for both teachers and pupils! Thumbs Up!

Before we set off! Let us prepare a great meal for ourselves!

Hard work , but it's a great experience!

Let's take a break! Meal Time !

Victory!

Heritage TourLittle India

Kampong Glam

P6 pupils went to Little India on 29th Mar 2007 for a heritage trail. The pupils learned to appreciate and understand the culture and customs of the Indian community.

Mrs Ada Leong

P5 pupils went to Kampong Glam on 22nd Mar 2007 for a heritage trail so that they had a better understanding of the Malay community in Singapore and their culture. Mrs Ada Leong

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Achievements

Do you have any feedback or comments about the Newsletter? We would be happy to hear from you. You may contact us at : 20, Boon Lay Drive Singapore 649930.Tel: 63160998 Fax: 63160209 Email: blgps@moe.edu.sg

Chinese Orchestra Performance During March Holidays Ms Irene Ng

On 17th March 2007, 23 Chinese Orchestra pupils from Primary 4 to 6 performed at Asian Women’s Welfare Association Ready Care Centre in Ang Mo Kio. The performance was part of the post Chinese New Year celebrations organized by Nanyang Technological University Welfare Services Club-Regular Service Project Elders. They reported to school at 5 pm for their final rehearsal and left for their destination at 6 pm. A total of 12 solo and group musical pieces were performed. After their performance, the pupils mingled with the elderly and distributed biscuits to them. The pupils reported back to school around 9 pm with tired but satisfied minds. It was a meaningful holiday indeed for them!

Eight pupils from P4 and P5 went to the Singapore Science Centre on 22nd January and 29th January 2007 for 2 workshops. The pupils used their imagination and creativity to make toys to demonstrate scientific principles.

Sony Creative Science Award Workshops Mrs Ada Leong

Two pupils from Primary 4/7, Moshik Seetloo and Low Jia Hui,took part in the 1st National Spelling Championship on 3 Mar 2007. Moshik Seetloo went on to the semi-finals which took place on 14 April 2007 at Nanyang Girls' High School's auditorium. Three cheers for the great performance!

National Spelling Championship Mdm Nur Hanum

Chinese Chess competition Ms Ng Yick Kit A total of 14 pupils from the Board Games Club took part in the "12th Char Yong Cup" Chinese Chess Competition during the March holidays. The pupils were glad that they had the opportunity to participate in the National Competition. Four of our pupils managed to get into the final rounds. Jonathan from P3/7 bagged the 3rd prize for the age 9 and below category. Congratulations!