It was a short but sweet week as we break early for those who celebrate to return home for Chinese New Year. That doesn’t mean that it wasn’t full of energy, excitement and reflection!
Weekly Updates
Preschool / Spark Studio (PS) Update
Chinese New Year
Dong dong chiang!
This week, in preparation for Chinese New Year, the PS Eagles did three activities that highlighted the culture of the festival.
The Story of Nian
The PS Eagles explored the significance of the colour red, the meaning of the specific house decorations and the reason Chinese New Year is such a noisy festival with all its fireworks, drums and cymbals. One Eagle observed that, “The loud drums are to get rid of bad luck.”
Lantern and Ang Pow (Red Packet) Crafts
The PS Studio became a factory producing lots and lots of red lanterns and ang pows as the PS Eagles practised following instructions to create a result. The Eagles observed a 4-step process and were then challenged to create their own lanterns and ang pows. They naturally fell into 3 levels of mastery:
“I have done this before, I know how to do this.”
“I remember the steps and I know how to do this.”
“I remember some of the steps, but this is new to me.”
Eagles from all levels of competency worked with each other – the beginners asked for guidance and help from those we seemed more confident with the activity and those who knew what they were doing assisted their friends while completing their own tasks. The Guides … stood back and did nothing! It was a true testament to stepping back and allowing the Eagles to figure things out for themselves. There were plenty of temptations to step in at certain points to help them out, but in the end the Guides were more fascinated to observe the magic of a one-room schoolhouse unfold before their eyes. The Eagles functioned as a learning community, learning to learn together. Bravo!
Some of the Eagles ran into difficulty when they cut the paper incorrectly and weren’t able to complete their crafts, but they took the initiative to act and seek guidance from their peers. Soon enough, they were able to complete their challenge with broad smiles. #herosjourney
The Eagles really got into a creative flow and decided to continue this craft the next day. One Eagle created 2 different-sized lanterns using the same 4-step process and was proud to show them off. Some Eagles produced more lanterns because they wanted to practise a new-found skill while other Eagles produced more because … well, the more the merrier!
What a great start to the Sprint! Gong Xi Fa Cai to one and all!
Enjoying the Space
The PS Eagles are really relishing their own space to play and spread out in, as you can see in these pictures:
Elementary Studio (ES) Update
Writers’ Workshop Poetry
This week, the challenge was to create haiku. The workshop began with the Eagles having fun guessing the animals described in some riddle haiku: “I knew it was a sloth!”
They then learnt about the structure of the haiku – 3 lines with a total syllable requirement of 17, broken into 5, 7, 5.
The next challenge was to draft their own haiku. Some Eagles needed time to find inspiration for their haiku, whereas for other Eagles the challenge lay in fitting their thoughts into such a rigid formation: “I need 2 more syllables…”
The overall feeling was of accomplishment when they realised that they had created their very own haiku! “Ah, I actually wrote a haiku!”
Art Quest – Leonardo da Vinci – Sketching and Hatching
Leonardo da Vinci was one of the most influential artists, scientists and inventors in history and the Eagles delved into the original Renaissance Man’s life using the KWL/5W1H method that they picked up during the last Sprint. They were fascinated by what they discovered about the artist and inspired to learn more about him.
The next part of the quest was to draw inspiration from da Vinci’s notebook’s and produce a blueprint of an invention that they invented or of an object that interested them.
Finally, the Eagles practised 2 of da Vinci’s particular art styles – sketching and hatching. Some Eagles were resistant to creating art: “Oh, I cannot draw!”, while others didn’t take themselves too seriously: “I thought I was sketching a banana, and it turned out to be a claw!”
The tone in the Studio during the creative process was encouraging and motivating: “I think your drawing is really good! All you need is to practise.” There was general positivity and many kind words inspired the Eagles to push themselves further. This was also a chance to practise growth mindset language: “I am not that good YET!”
CNY Art and Craft
The Eagles were challenged to make cute rat cards to commemorate the upcoming Year of the Rat. The Guides emailed the instructions to the Eagles and sat back to let them figure it out for themselves. The Eagles had a blast creating the cute craft, and practised self-guidance when they were faced with problems or questions:
“Does anybody have a foot?!?” – This Eagle learned to be organised and keep everything required in one place.
“Do I write a message to my mum?” – This Eagle practised making their own informed decisions and acting on them.
“Oh no … My Rat looks like a Doremon!” – This Eagle learned that practise makes … well, better.
“See!! Jun Hung can write Chinese!” – This Eagle learned a new thing about their friend and highlighted the ‘coolness’ of learning another language.
Middle Studio (MS) Update
Hero Visit
Questions, questions, questions … this week, the MS Studio hosted Dr. Siow Chih Peng and nurse Sunita from Kasih Hospice and were fortunate enough to have their questions about hospice care thoughtfully answered by these 2 amazing ladies. The questions ranged from emotional: “How does one choose to serve people who are approaching death?”, “What are the common wishes of someone approaching the end of life?”, “What emotions do you carry when your patient passes away?” to technical: “How about power backup in ICUs?” showing that the Eagles are really reflecting on the issue.
The Eagles were given many first hand accounts that made things real for them and gained a real-world perspective on hospice care. They realised that there is much respect, care and consideration put into dealing with this aspect of life. One Eagle even commented, “Often it is an honour to be chosen, being the person to pull the plug when someone is brain dead. It means the person and your family trust you.”
Death-Themed Movie of the Week
The movie of the week was “The Farewell” which elicited laughter as well as tears from the Eagles, showing how, like anything in life, death can also have many facets to it. The diamond point taken from this movie was to treat each person as if it is possibly their last day and to show your love in the here and now, don’t wait until it is too late.
Parent Testimonial
An ES parent was very happy to see her ES Eagle pick up a copy of 1,000 Great People Through the Ages and exclaim “Leonardo da Vinci and Vincent van Gogh are in here! Cool!” It’s gratifying to see the Quests spark the Eagles’ interest in the world around them. ¾
