What if you were to picture formal schooling as a twelve-year marathon instead of a 100 m sprint?- Picture by pixabay.
Dear teachers,
If you see this part of the school year as a 100-metre sprint, then the starting pistol goes off in August, and kids are reminded to keep their eyes on the finishing line. All else — especially CCAs, hobbies, free play — are put on hold until that last exam paper is over. But, what if you were to picture formal schooling as a twelve-year marathon? Then, regular life would go on even during final exams. Just as marathoners eat, drink, and even wave to crowds along their run-walk-run routines, students can learn to enjoy life without compromising studies even at exam times. What a valuable skill it is to maintain a balanced lifestyle even when in pressure-cooker situations.
Sincerely,
Mary George
Editor – What’s Up
THIS MONTH’S IDEAS ACTIVITIES
Catching crooks in crowds with cameras (page 7)
A look at the benefits as well as issues relating to China’s new surveillance cameras that, with artificial intelligence, can identify its citizens within three seconds.
Pros & Cons of Camera Monitors – For English, level 2 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To read with comprehension. Students extract from the story three of the mentioned pros and cons of surveillance cameras.
Thieves are breaking into Nepal’s places of worship to steal valuable artefacts. About the global illegal trade in antiques and efforts to return stolen items to their rightful owners.
Fallen Letters – For English & CCE, level 1 – DOWNLOAD
Groupwork. To strengthen visual-spatial processing skills for literacy. A word puzzle that unravels UNESCO’s definition of heritage, followed by a discussion about heritage. *
Pairwork. To grow vocabulary. Given a passage, students replace underlined words with synonyms from the What’s Up story. *
Fake rumours causing havoc (page 9)
Rumours spread through Whatsapp have caused violent mobs and many deaths in India. The story illustrates how social media can be exploited in cruel ways.
The Village Chief Speaks — For English & CCE, level 3 – DOWNLOAD
Groupwork. To use oral persuasion in support of media literacy. Each group delivers a speech for a village chief to convince the villagers to verify facts before believing rumours.
Poster: Say No to Fake News — For Art & CCE, level 2 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To use artistic expression for warning against fake news. Students to design a poster urging vigilance as consumers of information.
The hidden story in these ancient ruins (page 14)
Why the UN has declared the ruins of Göbekli Tepe in Turkey a World Heritage Site. Side bar “Other ancient Religious Sites” is about South Korea’s Sansa, and Japan’s secret Christian sites.
Match these sites – For English, level 1 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To practice reading for comprehension. Students match five descriptions of World Heritage Sites to their photos. *
Towers of tranquility (page 15)
About another World Heritage Site, China’s stunning Fanjingshan mountain, and its rich biodiversity.
Visiting Fanjingshan – For English, level 2 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To practise writing in the imperative mood. Using helping words, students complete a leaflet about climbing Fanjingshan. *
Calling all aspiring ninja! (pages 16-17)
A city in Japan was looking for ninja performers, but attracted serious wannabe warriors instead. The article explores the role of ninja in today’s world.
Everyday Ninja — For English & CCE, level 2 – DOWNLOAD
Groupwork. To see potential value in ancient ways for modern times. Three guiding questions for imagining how ninja training might be useful to some professions today.
New hope for Macau’s homeless greyhounds (page 19)
Over 500 greyhounds have been abandoned in Macau after a dog-racing stadium closed down. Animal rights activists are working hard to find them new homes.
Instagram Campaign: Adopt a Pet! — For Art & English, level 2 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To learn persuasive techniques for social media. Students to sketch a photograph and write a caption for Instagram that encourages people to adopt the abandoned pets.
Listicle: 5 Reasons to Adopt, not Buy — English, CCE, level 2 – DOWNLOAD
Groupwork. To practice critical thinking about choices. Each group creates a listicle of five reasons for adopting pets instead of buying them.
Superhero parents (page 22)
A closer look at the animated movie, Incredibles 2, draws out valuable lessons about the real superheroes in children’s lives.
My Very Own Superhero – For CCE & English, level 1 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To better appreciate caring, trustworthy significant others. From a guiding table, students assign acts of service to people in their orbit. They select one of these people and create a superhero character based on that person.
Thank You, Mom / Dad – For Art and English, level 2 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To express appreciation through poetry. Students create a card to thank their parents/guardians, writing an acrostic poem using the word “superhero”.
*Answers to asterisked 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, or fill the form on the front page of this website.
At What’s Up, we do most of the work, writing stories for students to read every month. But, we know that many of our readers also enjoy writing or want to have their say. Encourage your students to write us a letter. Ask them to visit share.whatsup.sg.
VIDEOS AND OTHER EXTRAS
Our supplementary site digital.whatsup.sg contains videos, puzzles and other extras associated with the articles in our newspaper. Use them in class or ask your students to explore the site on their own.
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We believe values should—and do—count when schools choose resources for their students. Values-driven journalism is at the core of our mission. Find out more by exploring the ABOUT WHAT'S UP link.
