This month’s IDEAS activities
Students march in protest against failing governments (page 1)
Why secondary and college students in several places have been taking part in protests to voice their unhappiness with their governments. Take, for instance, in Hong Kong and Sudan.
Say It Differently – For English, level 2 –DOWNLOAD
Pairwork. To practice synthesis and transformation. Given a set of sentences from the article, students are asked to rewrite them using new beginnings.
Myanmar’s battle against malaria (page 7)
How Myanmar is successfully reducing the prevalence of malaria, with the help of thousands of volunteer health workers in the rural areas.
No Tense Like the Present – For English, Level 1 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To understand the use of the simple present tense. Students identify the tense used in given sentences and give reasons for its use. Followed by sentence construction.
Donald Tr*mp shocks with racist words (page 8)
President Tr*mp has attacked four congresswomen with racist insults. This article explains the dangers in such communication from a president.
Role Play: Video Call with Tr*mp Supporter –– For English and CCE, level 3 – DOWNLOAD
Pairwork. To prompt critical thought and oracy. Students role play a conversation with an imaginary Tr*mp supporter to explain why his words are unacceptable.
Only one Singapore, so let’s share it (page 9)
Likening racial harmony to musical harmony, this article wraps up the series “Regardless of Race” by explaining that racial harmony needs us to be more open to differences.
Game: Look Beyond Looks – For CCE & English, level 2 – DOWNLOAD
Whole class. To value diverse others at a deeper level. A guessing game where clues are restricted to words and deeds rather than physical appearances.
Conversations Through Art – For CCE & Art, level 3 – DOWNLOAD
Groupwork. To gain a deeper understanding of casual racism as a social issue. Guiding questions for reflecting on the illustrations used in this series.
Saving turtles from satay and soup (page 12-13)
The ways in which sea turtles are being endangered by human activities, and what we can do about it. Two more stories in this issue focus on caring for all life on our planet: The Amazon’s deforestation crisis (page 14) and Chinese mudflats earn a place on World Heritage list (page 16–17).
Protect Our Forests — For English & CCE, level 2 – DOWNLOAD
Pairwork. To practise persuasive writing and public speaking. Each pair writes and videotapes a speech calling for greater action to protect the world’s forests.
A Bird’s Life — For Art & English, level 2 – DOWNLOAD
Group work. To gain knowledge about migratory birds. Each group prepares and delivers a presentation about a migratory bird of their choice.
A Turtle’s Plea – For Science & CCE, level 1 – DOWNLOAD
Pairwork. To grow in empathy for endangered species. Students are to fill in the blanks in a letter from a baby turtle, using the helping words given.
Songs for Saving Turtles –– For Music, English and CCE, level 3 – DOWNLOAD
Groupwork. To use music to advocate for a cause. Each group composes and performs a song or rap appealing to local restaurants to take turtles off their menu.
Student creates superhero to fight bullying (page 18)
Rizka Raisa Fatimah Ramli tells us about Cipta, the teen superhero she created as a way to call for a stop to school violence. She won an international comic competition as a result.
From First to Third – For English, level 2 – DOWNLOAD
Individual. To practise writing in the third person. Students rewrite given sentences from a third-person perspective.
Screen wars: Disney vs Netflix (page 19)
The high drama of big companies competing for the video market.
Our Entertainment Budget – for English, Level 3 – DOWNLOAD
Groupwork. To practise budgeting. A guided exercise where each group pretends to be a family making decisions about its entertainment budget.
Wakeboarding through Bangkok (page 22-23)
We join German wakeboarder Dominik Gührs as he goes on an unorthodox journey through the bustling Thai city.
Mime Time: Adventure Sports – For PE, level 1 – DOWNLOAD
Groupwork. To discover more about various adventure sports. A guessing game where teams take turns to mime a range of adventure sports.
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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.
