ACTIVITY IDEAS
for the April 2020 issue of What’s Up
WORLD’S LARGEST REFUGEE SETTLEMENT NEEDS HELP (Story 5)
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A snapshot of Bangladesh’s Kutupalong refugee settlement: the hardships endured as well as the resilience of residents who volunteer within the community of displaced Rohingya and locals.
New Life Skills – For CCE, level 2 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To enjoy acquiring practical knowhow. Students try their hand at learning a life skill at home from examples of those that displaced people might use in their daily living.
Puppet Show: Happily Ever After – For Music & Drama, level 3 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To experience hope-filled storytelling. Steps for making and using spoon puppets to enact for family members an imaginary Kutupalong scene with a happy ending.
FOUNDER OF MICROSOFT QUITS TO FOCUS ON CHARITY (Story 06)
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Why Bill and Melinda Gates do their homework and even go on learning tours before they make donations. How the endowment fund of the Gates Foundation is a goose that lays golden eggs.
Golden Eggs Crossword – For English, Level 1 – DOWNLOAD
WEB VERSION: Students can also do the crossword online. The online version is interactive and tells the player whether the answers are right or wrong. If you would like your students to use the online version, share this link with them: https://digital.whatsup.sg/2020/04/wu169-story06-billgates-activity01/
Individual. To engage more deeply in the story. Puzzle of 30+ words with easy clues. ⭐
POSTPONING THE TOKYO OLYMPICS IS A BIG DISAPPOINTMENT (Story 10)
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While it was the right decision, postponing the Games has serious consequences for both athletes and the host country, Japan. A closer look at likely scenarios panning out.
Know, Want, Learn – For English, level 3 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To learn the KWL (Know, Want, Learn) strategy for reading comprehension. A written exercise in filling a KWL table before and after reading the story. ⭐
Sorry for the Bad News –– For English & CCE, level 2 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To grow empathy and be more comfortable with euphemistic language. From the standpoint of the Olympic committee, students write an apology for the postponement.
FOREST WATCHMAN HELPS KEEP TIGERS SAFE (Story 11A)
DOWNLOAD Story 11A / DOWNLOAD Story 11B
About a dedicated tiger watcher, Sreenivasan K, whose expertise has contributed immensely to tiger conservation. “Efforts to protect tigers are making an impact in India” (Story 11B) gives us cause to celebrate as the tiger population in India gradually recovers.
Sightings from Home – For Social Science, level 2 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To sharpen observation skills. Using the foresters’ grid method, the student plots sightings of life as seen from a window at home and writes a reflection about them.
Active or Passive? – For English, level 3 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To understand the difference between active and passive voices. An exercise in identifying active and passive voices in given sentences, and then constructing new ones.
ANCIENT EGYPTIAN MUMMIES ARE MOVING HOME (Story 13A)
DOWNLOAD Story 13A / DOWNLOAD Story 13B
At long last, several museums around the world are returning Egyptian mummies to Egypt. Meanwhile, recent discoveries prove that “Egyptian mummies are not the world’s oldest” (Story 13B). South American Chinchorro were the first to mummify people.
Mummy’s the Word – For Social Studies & CCE, level 2 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To gain knowledge about ancient cultures. Through multiple-choice questions, students discover interesting facts about mummification.
A Message to the World –– For English & History, level 3 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To explore the concept of cultural ownership, and to strengthen persuasive skills. The student enacts the role of an ethical historian urging countries around the world to return artifacts to their rightful owners.
SINGAPOREAN ACHIEVES CHESS GRANDMASTER TITLE (Story 15)
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We salute Singaporean Kevin Goh who became a Chess Grandmaster last month. Read about how a teacher at his primary school gave him a head start, and his own sheer determination.
Break It Up – For English, level 2 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To practise synthesis and transformation. Students break up given complex and compound sentences from the story into simple sentences. ⭐
Checkmate! – For Math, level 2 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To apply mathematical abstraction and generalisation. Students label the coordinates of a chessboard and solve problems based on it. ⭐
K-POP STARS WANT TO TEACH THEIR FANS KOREAN (Story 16A)
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South Korean group BTS has such a large international fan base that they are launching a web series to teach Korean. Other superstars have reached out to their global audiences by singing in several languages. Both spread languages through their music.
Lyrics Teach Language! –– For English and Music, level 2 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To learn about a language and culture through song. An exercise in deciphering the story and emotion behind a non-English song, with the help of online translators.
Lost in translation –– For English and Music, level 3 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To appreciate linguistic nuance. Steps for reflecting on why a non-English lyric within an English song would not be as meaningful if it were in English.
WHY IN THE WORLD ARE THERE SO MANY LANGUAGES? (Story 16B)
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A fascinating look at three ancient stories that attempt to explain why all human beings do not speak just one common language.
Speaking through Icons – For Social Studies & Art, level 2 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To experience iconography. Students create artwork using their own symbols for things at home, and then play a guessing game using the artwork.
Same but Different – For CCE, level 3 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To reflect on the evolution of dialects. Using helping words, students match the different words used in America and Britain that describe the same things. ⭐
⭐ Answers to these activities will be emailed to teachers on the IDEAS mailing list. To join the mailing list, please email your name, designation and school to ideas@whatsup.sg.
