Friday, July 27, 2007
June Holidays Over
With all these plus going back nie for 2 weeks for classical and modern literature, my june hols were over. not a well-rested hol. :(
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Beijing 24-31 may 2007
Right, continue with Beijing trip since i last ended. mood b4 going was apprehensive cos its the first time tt i travelled so far away, for so long and with colleagues and a bunch of kids. lots of stuff to buy n things to do b4 going like buying luggage bag, changing currency and a day b4 departing, i still had to rush thru my wk review and email my RO.
reached the airport at 630am by cab tog with dad--nice and sweet of dad. received sms-es fm colleagues who were supposed to depart tog with me but due to last min change, i hv to depart alone. very blur when and where to check in and i caught no sight of the parents, students and tour agent. caught sight of 2 parents and they were anxious to check in so tt they could walk ard inside. i wanted them to wait for the rest b4 we went in tog, easier for me to take attendance. then, hod came and helped me to make arrangement for them to go in but need to gather at the departing gate by 7.45am or so. he waited outside the gate b4 we departed in case anything cropped up. he went with my dad for coffee and chatted a lot... well, first time taking plane, din know its such a long walk inside b4 reaching departing gate. got quite a lot of forms to fill in. realised that we got different seats. nevertheless, i still got to sit with my student sean and his mum. quite a nice person to talk to. sean usu don talk to me n his teachers but on the plane that day, he talked to me and even taught me how to operate the remote control to watch movie or other functions. i was seated in the middle on the left side of plane. din feel giddy when plane flew upwards. watched 'museum of the night' but din really watched it as i was sleepy and dozed off every now n then. they served breakfast on plane--bun, muffin, cut fruits (pineapples, papaya and grapes) and tea. bun is nice but i din eat the muffin. as for lunch, was given a choice of steamed chicken or fish as the former was more of a chinese food so i chose the former though i prefer fish. had ice-cream stick as dessert. aft hrs of travelling, we reached our destination. as the plane was flying downwards, pilot realised there was no parking lot so waited quite long to alight. felt very giddy when plane flew downwards.
it was a very long queue at check-out custom and there was a tour guide waiting for us there--xiao xue. think she was gd as she made constant reminders about things to watch out for and always made a head count. as we departed early, they arranged to let us go wang fu jing--a place similar to orchard rd in sg where things were sold very expensively and no bargaining allowed. letting us to go xin hua bookshop before we go for our dinner. as i was hungry, i found the food at restaurant quite delicious though it was normal chinese dishes like cabbage and toufu. little did i realise that i had to go thru the days with similar meals.
when we returned to hotel, some parents made requests to change rooms so that they can be with their close friends etc. was tired so aft unpacking, i dozed off till wei ling, my colleague cum hotel room-mate, knocked n pressed the bell.
as memory fails due to the late entry of beijing tour, what was most unforgettable was the climbing of great wall. i was in charge of leading the students to the highest possible point. think we went to the sixth stop. some steps were quite steep and some students followed me to the top, gladys, neng fang, fang rong, walter, ji wei, sean, xin rong... once we reached there, we made a bronze metal souvenir that had our name carved on it. afterall, not as exhausting as i had imagined, just tt the weather was hot. luckily, we changed our schedule to go in the morning.
a day b4 we went back sg, my throat began to give problems. think food was too oily for me and not enough water. they only provided us with 1 bottle of mineral water each day on tour bus but i brought pre-boiled water with me. most often, i still dont have enough.
reached the airport at 630am by cab tog with dad--nice and sweet of dad. received sms-es fm colleagues who were supposed to depart tog with me but due to last min change, i hv to depart alone. very blur when and where to check in and i caught no sight of the parents, students and tour agent. caught sight of 2 parents and they were anxious to check in so tt they could walk ard inside. i wanted them to wait for the rest b4 we went in tog, easier for me to take attendance. then, hod came and helped me to make arrangement for them to go in but need to gather at the departing gate by 7.45am or so. he waited outside the gate b4 we departed in case anything cropped up. he went with my dad for coffee and chatted a lot... well, first time taking plane, din know its such a long walk inside b4 reaching departing gate. got quite a lot of forms to fill in. realised that we got different seats. nevertheless, i still got to sit with my student sean and his mum. quite a nice person to talk to. sean usu don talk to me n his teachers but on the plane that day, he talked to me and even taught me how to operate the remote control to watch movie or other functions. i was seated in the middle on the left side of plane. din feel giddy when plane flew upwards. watched 'museum of the night' but din really watched it as i was sleepy and dozed off every now n then. they served breakfast on plane--bun, muffin, cut fruits (pineapples, papaya and grapes) and tea. bun is nice but i din eat the muffin. as for lunch, was given a choice of steamed chicken or fish as the former was more of a chinese food so i chose the former though i prefer fish. had ice-cream stick as dessert. aft hrs of travelling, we reached our destination. as the plane was flying downwards, pilot realised there was no parking lot so waited quite long to alight. felt very giddy when plane flew downwards.
it was a very long queue at check-out custom and there was a tour guide waiting for us there--xiao xue. think she was gd as she made constant reminders about things to watch out for and always made a head count. as we departed early, they arranged to let us go wang fu jing--a place similar to orchard rd in sg where things were sold very expensively and no bargaining allowed. letting us to go xin hua bookshop before we go for our dinner. as i was hungry, i found the food at restaurant quite delicious though it was normal chinese dishes like cabbage and toufu. little did i realise that i had to go thru the days with similar meals.
when we returned to hotel, some parents made requests to change rooms so that they can be with their close friends etc. was tired so aft unpacking, i dozed off till wei ling, my colleague cum hotel room-mate, knocked n pressed the bell.
as memory fails due to the late entry of beijing tour, what was most unforgettable was the climbing of great wall. i was in charge of leading the students to the highest possible point. think we went to the sixth stop. some steps were quite steep and some students followed me to the top, gladys, neng fang, fang rong, walter, ji wei, sean, xin rong... once we reached there, we made a bronze metal souvenir that had our name carved on it. afterall, not as exhausting as i had imagined, just tt the weather was hot. luckily, we changed our schedule to go in the morning.
a day b4 we went back sg, my throat began to give problems. think food was too oily for me and not enough water. they only provided us with 1 bottle of mineral water each day on tour bus but i brought pre-boiled water with me. most often, i still dont have enough.
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Dust....!!!
I find dust, cob-webs etc in this house :p oops, haven't been coming in here for donkey mths... well, some interesting/unforgettable episodes happened but no time to pen down...
Driving
Talk abt driving first. felt very disheartened aft i failed the first practical test. so perfect for circuit yet flung at road, somemore towards the end. not wanting to waste so much money, i decided to learn from pte instructor. cost $30 per hr for off-peak and $32/hr for peak hrs. don't know i hv to pay for registration fee cos the instructor din tell me when i asked him about his rates. only during the first lesson, then i realised that i hv to pay 30 for registration, already discounted as mentioned by him. as i din bring enough money with me, he even asked me to drive and stopped by place where there's atm machine. feel so cheated at tt time. this uncle not too bad when it came to teaching, n he's also very chatty n kept 'flirting' or 'praising' (to put it in nicer term) me.
learnt a total of 5 lessons from him and 5 lessons from comfort, still learnt from the latter as the former needed to pay extra for going into circuit.
for 2nd test, it was raining that day. during warming up, rain has stopped but it began to rain again towards the end of the session. i went for my balloting n got test route 9. tester is a very nice person, instructed and guided me a bit. but, when it came to vertical parking, i dont what happened tt day, i just failed to park. he gave me a lot of chances but i just unable to. i know my key points are wrong cos the time lag between them was long so i ended up too close to the pole. he pointed out tt i positioned too near to the poles--tt's nice of him. i made adjustments but still unsuccessful. haiz... disheartened with the rest of the test stations already. knew i already failed but tester still let me go out to the road. incurred 1 immediate failure n 20 points. out of 20 pts, 14 were devoted to parking. if not for this, would have pass. :'(
wanted to give up actually cos hv spent so much money on driving. also difficult to book for revision lessons with comfort. asked about the earlier driving re-test, got 13 june which is a very favourable date, 1 day b4 my advanced theory expired and during the hols. so i decided to give it a last try. this time round, my membership n PDL expired thus needed to renew. only managed to book for 3 lessons this time round.
3rd Driving test
was told by instructor that tester tend to be lenient to those re-taking for 3rd time. still felt a bit nervous but got the same tester as i got for 2nd test. really fated to see hime again. he rem me and asked how many revision lessons i had this time round b4 test. on the road, a van turned right into my lane which is wrong. it cut in b4 me and tester noted down the van number and said he could give him 'san man'. a taxi driver also cut into my lane without showing signal and there wasnt sufficient space for him to do so. i wanted to horn him but procrastinated. all in all, still managed to pass with 18 points. actually have more but tester cancelled it to let me pass--insufficient acceleration when moving off, which he felt din cause hazard or danger.
Beijing
was told by hod to go for the beijing immersion tour with the kids. put me as stand-by but later confirmed tt i had to go cos of shortage of manpower. thot i could escape from overseas trip this year due to my nie course. however this trip din clash with my nie course so i could go. first time taking flight and going to such a far place. the furthest country i had gone is only malaysia n with parents many many yrs ago.
initially, my flight is in the afternn but only a day b4, i was notified to go early to take 845 am flight. since i have prepared, i was assigned to go with 6 students tog with their guardians. booked a cab in order to reach changi airport at 630am.
(to be continued...)
Driving
Talk abt driving first. felt very disheartened aft i failed the first practical test. so perfect for circuit yet flung at road, somemore towards the end. not wanting to waste so much money, i decided to learn from pte instructor. cost $30 per hr for off-peak and $32/hr for peak hrs. don't know i hv to pay for registration fee cos the instructor din tell me when i asked him about his rates. only during the first lesson, then i realised that i hv to pay 30 for registration, already discounted as mentioned by him. as i din bring enough money with me, he even asked me to drive and stopped by place where there's atm machine. feel so cheated at tt time. this uncle not too bad when it came to teaching, n he's also very chatty n kept 'flirting' or 'praising' (to put it in nicer term) me.
learnt a total of 5 lessons from him and 5 lessons from comfort, still learnt from the latter as the former needed to pay extra for going into circuit.
for 2nd test, it was raining that day. during warming up, rain has stopped but it began to rain again towards the end of the session. i went for my balloting n got test route 9. tester is a very nice person, instructed and guided me a bit. but, when it came to vertical parking, i dont what happened tt day, i just failed to park. he gave me a lot of chances but i just unable to. i know my key points are wrong cos the time lag between them was long so i ended up too close to the pole. he pointed out tt i positioned too near to the poles--tt's nice of him. i made adjustments but still unsuccessful. haiz... disheartened with the rest of the test stations already. knew i already failed but tester still let me go out to the road. incurred 1 immediate failure n 20 points. out of 20 pts, 14 were devoted to parking. if not for this, would have pass. :'(
wanted to give up actually cos hv spent so much money on driving. also difficult to book for revision lessons with comfort. asked about the earlier driving re-test, got 13 june which is a very favourable date, 1 day b4 my advanced theory expired and during the hols. so i decided to give it a last try. this time round, my membership n PDL expired thus needed to renew. only managed to book for 3 lessons this time round.
3rd Driving test
was told by instructor that tester tend to be lenient to those re-taking for 3rd time. still felt a bit nervous but got the same tester as i got for 2nd test. really fated to see hime again. he rem me and asked how many revision lessons i had this time round b4 test. on the road, a van turned right into my lane which is wrong. it cut in b4 me and tester noted down the van number and said he could give him 'san man'. a taxi driver also cut into my lane without showing signal and there wasnt sufficient space for him to do so. i wanted to horn him but procrastinated. all in all, still managed to pass with 18 points. actually have more but tester cancelled it to let me pass--insufficient acceleration when moving off, which he felt din cause hazard or danger.
Beijing
was told by hod to go for the beijing immersion tour with the kids. put me as stand-by but later confirmed tt i had to go cos of shortage of manpower. thot i could escape from overseas trip this year due to my nie course. however this trip din clash with my nie course so i could go. first time taking flight and going to such a far place. the furthest country i had gone is only malaysia n with parents many many yrs ago.
initially, my flight is in the afternn but only a day b4, i was notified to go early to take 845 am flight. since i have prepared, i was assigned to go with 6 students tog with their guardians. booked a cab in order to reach changi airport at 630am.
(to be continued...)
Sunday, April 15, 2007
2nd Virtual Home
Abandoned this home for quite some time already haha cos was setting up a second home--a home for my students to stay in. yes, have set up one after getting feedback from students' parents that we have neglected teaching CL2 where the latter is more important than HCL. However, tt's what our school has been doing for the past 2 yrs or so. 1 book being taught.
Anyway, the second home is at: http://linlaoshi.wordpress.com
Anyway, the second home is at: http://linlaoshi.wordpress.com
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Failed driving test
Failed driving test... sian... lady luck not on my side yesterday. firstly, waited at wrong place for warm-up, thus about 5 mins late. My warm-up vehicle also came back late. Did warm up at circuit first, quite smooth except for vertical parking, i position the car too much to the right. still manage to get in w/o hitting points but a bit nearer to the left. not much time left after i have done the circuit. For road, i only go thru' 1 round before going back to centre. Went to the room for balloting. Was terribly nervous at that moment. When my name was called, i drew from the box and ballot the test route for other candidates. I didn't get into my mind which test route i was going. i wanted to ask the traffic police but afraid that i would get hammered by them for not paying attention. Anyway, i thot the test route number not that important cos i didnt really know all the test routes well and tester may also change the route depending on traffic condition.
It was a malay tester who took me. I don't have to start the engine cos the key was inside the car. Seeking the advice from the instructor on sun to do it slowly, i did well for circuit, except for reversing up the ramp, the left wheel didnt go up so have to reverse and do it.
After that, went out to do test route. need to turn right at gate but instruction was given so early that i turn right towards the petrol kiosk instead. oops, i apologised. Did a lot of turn right and turn left at traffic. Traffic seems ok initially. Till after turning right, i need to keep left. usu during my training, there are parked vehicles so i would keep to the right to avoid them. this time round, no parked vehicles but there are markings, i wanted to turn left but hesitated so i cnacel signal and continue on the right. Aft the markings, i tried to turn left. i was quick to do it so i also didnt check properly. there are motor bike on my left and bmw on my right. i was stuck in the middle. This mistake becomes my immediate failure. :(
aft tt, still committed some mistakes at junction... in total, incurred 28 demerit points plus one immediate failure.
not in mood to go back school to help up with the P5 ge/non-ge camp. skipped my first day lect at nie.
It was a malay tester who took me. I don't have to start the engine cos the key was inside the car. Seeking the advice from the instructor on sun to do it slowly, i did well for circuit, except for reversing up the ramp, the left wheel didnt go up so have to reverse and do it.
After that, went out to do test route. need to turn right at gate but instruction was given so early that i turn right towards the petrol kiosk instead. oops, i apologised. Did a lot of turn right and turn left at traffic. Traffic seems ok initially. Till after turning right, i need to keep left. usu during my training, there are parked vehicles so i would keep to the right to avoid them. this time round, no parked vehicles but there are markings, i wanted to turn left but hesitated so i cnacel signal and continue on the right. Aft the markings, i tried to turn left. i was quick to do it so i also didnt check properly. there are motor bike on my left and bmw on my right. i was stuck in the middle. This mistake becomes my immediate failure. :(
aft tt, still committed some mistakes at junction... in total, incurred 28 demerit points plus one immediate failure.
not in mood to go back school to help up with the P5 ge/non-ge camp. skipped my first day lect at nie.
Saturday, March 10, 2007
2 days counting down to driving test
When my previous ended on last sun, i was anxious cos my instructor said i m still not gd in several items and i also made quite a lot of mistakes. He left his contact no. and consulted him several times regarding whether i need extra lessons and whether instructor m is gd. actually, wanted to book an extra lesson on wed but it was the last session at 8+pm. don't like such timing and after much consideration and consultation with mum, decided not to take. even thot of learning from pte instructors for 1 or 2 lessons but to no avail. time running short and was told by colleague that the pte instructors would also charge me sch rate. ex and don know if they are gd. haiz, leave it to fate. Hence, that left me with 3 more lessons before test.
Today, sat, went to ubi early as the first instructor compensate me for the loss hrs on my very first lesson. thought wouldn't get back my compensation cos this was so long ago, about a yr plus ago. Met him at the overhead bridge and he told me to wait for him at the lobby later. was there early to look ard the circuit.
i started off with parallel parking. oops turn steering wheel to the wrong side without realising it. :p parking was bad today cos of the positioning of car initially. Going up slope also bad cos of my initial positioning. trained in circuit during the 45 mins of make up. went out to the road. warned my instructor ahead tt my road driving is equally bad. hmm, positioning of car wrong when waiting to make the turn. this instructor didnt comment on my filter lane unlike last week's instructor. going back to circuit again to do parking. this time round ok so time to drive back to kovan too. asked me to practise more in circuit and road wise hv to be careful. was under this instructor most of the time previously when i was learning during hols. was quite fearful of him cos his temper quite bad.
oops, time to end off my diary, find myself a pc addict lately. cant survive w/o pc and internet.
Today, sat, went to ubi early as the first instructor compensate me for the loss hrs on my very first lesson. thought wouldn't get back my compensation cos this was so long ago, about a yr plus ago. Met him at the overhead bridge and he told me to wait for him at the lobby later. was there early to look ard the circuit.
i started off with parallel parking. oops turn steering wheel to the wrong side without realising it. :p parking was bad today cos of the positioning of car initially. Going up slope also bad cos of my initial positioning. trained in circuit during the 45 mins of make up. went out to the road. warned my instructor ahead tt my road driving is equally bad. hmm, positioning of car wrong when waiting to make the turn. this instructor didnt comment on my filter lane unlike last week's instructor. going back to circuit again to do parking. this time round ok so time to drive back to kovan too. asked me to practise more in circuit and road wise hv to be careful. was under this instructor most of the time previously when i was learning during hols. was quite fearful of him cos his temper quite bad.
oops, time to end off my diary, find myself a pc addict lately. cant survive w/o pc and internet.
Observation
Observation is a daunting term to me, its a nightmare to me ever since my practicum. Practicum days seem not too much a history to me though in fact it was a yr ago. Had enough of that last year, 11 times of observations by supervisor, cooperating teachers and SCM. After CNY, saw familiar faces coming back. they were the ones who went through thick and thin with us last year. Comparing them with us, I shan't complain, at least my suffering is over. Not really actually as i still have observations twice a yr. initially, scheduled my obs in week 10 mon but they just finished their CA and thus need to go through paper. Postponed to wed but have games day on tt day so postpone to thu 8 mar. (Btw, my glasgow house students have done well in mini tennis, boys got second, while gals got first!)
Students didnt behave well 100%. told them in advance that someone will be coming in obs and some of them seem to forget. they wanted to watch the soccer by their juniors P4 girls. i refused of course! one or two boys misbehaved by shouting their answers out and made unnecessary comments. Even a girl got me into trouble by not paying attention. My mentor talked to her directly. think my classroom management would fail. I let them go for recess and its the end of my mentor's obs too. She commented gd and will talk to me again. Phew... not too bad, i supposed.
Fri was last day of term 1. My mentor came to look for me for post-conference. She said my lesson was very interesting and wanted me to share in the cluster. Mentors, together with 3 BTs, will be presenting that day. We will give feedback regarding the SMP as well.
Students didnt behave well 100%. told them in advance that someone will be coming in obs and some of them seem to forget. they wanted to watch the soccer by their juniors P4 girls. i refused of course! one or two boys misbehaved by shouting their answers out and made unnecessary comments. Even a girl got me into trouble by not paying attention. My mentor talked to her directly. think my classroom management would fail. I let them go for recess and its the end of my mentor's obs too. She commented gd and will talk to me again. Phew... not too bad, i supposed.
Fri was last day of term 1. My mentor came to look for me for post-conference. She said my lesson was very interesting and wanted me to share in the cluster. Mentors, together with 3 BTs, will be presenting that day. We will give feedback regarding the SMP as well.
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Driving
have started practical driving somewhere in nov 2005. learnt for 2 mths and stopped completely as i resumed my nie training and could not make time for it. so far have learnt so many lessons, me a slow coach in learning driving, still not steady and inconsistent. was advised to recap it in mind often when free but i failed to do so until recently. driving test approaching-12 mar. hope to pass at first trial, else more money invested. shall keep driving learning log here...
U-turning
1) When right shoulder reaches tip of divider, full-lock right and stop.
2) When traffic clears, get to left lane of a two-lane carriageway and the right lane or the nearest lane of a wide divider.
Directional change
1) Signal right
2) Check rear and right wing mirror followed by left wing mirror
3) Reverse car till corner of kerb reaches corner of window pane / shoulder in line with marking on side kerb
4) Full-lock right
5) Keep reversing till body of car parallel to side kerb or car
5) Straighten wheel
6) Keep reversing till bonnet of car in line with front kerb.
Vertical Parking
1. Keep car close to right lane.
2. Signal left, R gear and safety checks.
3. Reverse till 1st pole touches corner of rear windscreen (just disappears). Full-lock left.
4. When pole re-appears, turn steering wheel one round to the right.
5. Hold it till pole disappears again, full-lock to left.
6. Continue to reverse, look in front and right wing mirror. When car straightens, turn steering wheel 2 rounds to right (straighten wheel).
7. Check back rear windscreen. Stop until 2nd pole in line with shoulder.
8. When turning out, only steer to the right or the left when the pole in line with shoulder.
Parallel Parking
1. Keep car close to the left side of lane. Signal left, R gear, safety checks.
2. Reverse till 1st pole meets corner of back windscreen.
Full lock to the left.
3. When the inner back pole is in line with side car knob, return steering wheel (2 turns to the right) back to its original position. Keep reversing in a straight line. Check rear poles.
4. Once the left front pole meets the marked red triangle of the wind screen (turn later if the distance of boot and rear pole is further), full lock to the RIGHT till
5. left front wheel is facing out.
6. Change to D gear and move slightly forward to park, adjusting wheels to a straight position.
7. Handbrake up.
Moving out of a parallel parking lot
1. Move forward
2. Reverse and steer wheel one round to the left.
3. Check rear screen.
4. Reverse carefully. Ensure that boot does not hit poles.
5. Signal right, D Gear, check safety. Drive out and quickly full lock wheel to the right at the same time.
U-turning
1) When right shoulder reaches tip of divider, full-lock right and stop.
2) When traffic clears, get to left lane of a two-lane carriageway and the right lane or the nearest lane of a wide divider.
Directional change
1) Signal right
2) Check rear and right wing mirror followed by left wing mirror
3) Reverse car till corner of kerb reaches corner of window pane / shoulder in line with marking on side kerb
4) Full-lock right
5) Keep reversing till body of car parallel to side kerb or car
5) Straighten wheel
6) Keep reversing till bonnet of car in line with front kerb.
Vertical Parking
1. Keep car close to right lane.
2. Signal left, R gear and safety checks.
3. Reverse till 1st pole touches corner of rear windscreen (just disappears). Full-lock left.
4. When pole re-appears, turn steering wheel one round to the right.
5. Hold it till pole disappears again, full-lock to left.
6. Continue to reverse, look in front and right wing mirror. When car straightens, turn steering wheel 2 rounds to right (straighten wheel).
7. Check back rear windscreen. Stop until 2nd pole in line with shoulder.
8. When turning out, only steer to the right or the left when the pole in line with shoulder.
Parallel Parking
1. Keep car close to the left side of lane. Signal left, R gear, safety checks.
2. Reverse till 1st pole meets corner of back windscreen.
Full lock to the left.
3. When the inner back pole is in line with side car knob, return steering wheel (2 turns to the right) back to its original position. Keep reversing in a straight line. Check rear poles.
4. Once the left front pole meets the marked red triangle of the wind screen (turn later if the distance of boot and rear pole is further), full lock to the RIGHT till
5. left front wheel is facing out.
6. Change to D gear and move slightly forward to park, adjusting wheels to a straight position.
7. Handbrake up.
Moving out of a parallel parking lot
1. Move forward
2. Reverse and steer wheel one round to the left.
3. Check rear screen.
4. Reverse carefully. Ensure that boot does not hit poles.
5. Signal right, D Gear, check safety. Drive out and quickly full lock wheel to the right at the same time.
Friday, February 23, 2007
Pre & post-Chinese New Year
Havent been blogging ever since school term starts. rather busy and not much things to write. have been rather heaty, having sore throat, blocked nose etc. it was so bad that my ankle was swollen. thought i had sprained my ankle unknowingly during gym workout and badminton in school. doc diagnosed it was the sore throat that caused ankle infection and i took a day mc.
16 feb (fri)
CNY celebrations in sch. had 2 sessions together with abt half an hr lag. P1 and 2 did new yr card at hall. P5 had calligraphy in canteen. went sch early to do prep but in the end the labels were missing. did last min wk... students seemed to enjoy themselves initially but got bored as it was squeezy and long duration. floor, wall, table and toilet were dirty and messy after that. the red paper intended for them to write new year's greetings after practising on newspaper werent used eventually as they caused much chaotic. hence, whole activity had to end earlier by an hr.
17 feb (sat)--cny eve
went bright hill temple early in morning--49 days after gm's death. was surprised that my cousins (elder aunt's daughters) went tt day cos this's the first time they came after gm's death. don't feel the bond with my dad's relatives as they seemed to draw a line between us and them cos they are richer and daughters are masters and phd holders.
18 feb (sun)--cny 1st day
received sms from friend to go ktv at hougang plaza. sang from 2-7 pm. met up with friends i hv not seen for long long time. enjoyed myself throughout the session but felt that my voice went sore when singing.
19 feb (mon)--cny 2nd day
went jogging in morning and got bitten by insect. hand becomes swollen, painful and itchy. not sure stung by what kind of insect. stayed home to do marking.
20 feb (tue)--cny 3rd day
had driving lessons consecutively from 12.45-4.15pm. learnt parallel parking finally. not as difficult as i hv imagined but lots of steps to remember. like this instructor, feel tt lessons are fully utilised learning under him. had revisions of various stations in circuit.
aft tt, met ZK at kovan mrt to watch movie at plaza sing. wanted to watch protege or follow the law initially but only left 1st or 2nd row so we dont want it. watched ghost-rider instead--quite a nice show but have horrifying scenes.
that's how i spent my cny hols, fun among work. work accomplished too--lesson plan, marking and writing for project 18 degree s... had wed blues on next day, a lot of colleagues were also lethargic after the long break. haha, actually not long, seems so short to us...
16 feb (fri)
CNY celebrations in sch. had 2 sessions together with abt half an hr lag. P1 and 2 did new yr card at hall. P5 had calligraphy in canteen. went sch early to do prep but in the end the labels were missing. did last min wk... students seemed to enjoy themselves initially but got bored as it was squeezy and long duration. floor, wall, table and toilet were dirty and messy after that. the red paper intended for them to write new year's greetings after practising on newspaper werent used eventually as they caused much chaotic. hence, whole activity had to end earlier by an hr.
17 feb (sat)--cny eve
went bright hill temple early in morning--49 days after gm's death. was surprised that my cousins (elder aunt's daughters) went tt day cos this's the first time they came after gm's death. don't feel the bond with my dad's relatives as they seemed to draw a line between us and them cos they are richer and daughters are masters and phd holders.
18 feb (sun)--cny 1st day
received sms from friend to go ktv at hougang plaza. sang from 2-7 pm. met up with friends i hv not seen for long long time. enjoyed myself throughout the session but felt that my voice went sore when singing.
19 feb (mon)--cny 2nd day
went jogging in morning and got bitten by insect. hand becomes swollen, painful and itchy. not sure stung by what kind of insect. stayed home to do marking.
20 feb (tue)--cny 3rd day
had driving lessons consecutively from 12.45-4.15pm. learnt parallel parking finally. not as difficult as i hv imagined but lots of steps to remember. like this instructor, feel tt lessons are fully utilised learning under him. had revisions of various stations in circuit.
aft tt, met ZK at kovan mrt to watch movie at plaza sing. wanted to watch protege or follow the law initially but only left 1st or 2nd row so we dont want it. watched ghost-rider instead--quite a nice show but have horrifying scenes.
that's how i spent my cny hols, fun among work. work accomplished too--lesson plan, marking and writing for project 18 degree s... had wed blues on next day, a lot of colleagues were also lethargic after the long break. haha, actually not long, seems so short to us...
Sunday, January 14, 2007
New School Term
New year start, new beginnings, new classes assigned... this is the first time i'm going to take the classes for 1 whole yr. during my contract teaching in july 2004-june 2005, i only took the classes for half a yr. this time round, it's somethg diff, can be gd or bad cos no matter what, must 'suffer' with them for 1 yr.
my fears aren't unfounded for teaching P1. so far they havent pee in class but they seem wanting to frequent the toilet and it's usu one aft the other. their attention span also limited, very much wanting to play, walking ard in class, playing with visualiser. behaviour aside, their academic knowledge also differ a lot. some knew the stuff i m going to teach cos they have tuition outside, while others seem unable to learn what i hv taught. one had a problem with pronunciation.
as for my P5 class, it's the first time i m teaching HCL. a lot of vocab to teach for each topic. some are quite talkative and class gets noisy when they are enthusiastic to shout out their ans. cant really reprimand them for doing this cos at least they get so enthusiastic over my lessons.
another first is first time floating in sch. long hrs. still prefer to be in am session cos i m early bird and can go hm as early as 1 plus... but didnt dare to take up the challenge of teaching all upp pri. unless they are gd classes, then it's a diff story...
hope everything runs well and smoothly in sch. my passion for teaching is still there :)
my fears aren't unfounded for teaching P1. so far they havent pee in class but they seem wanting to frequent the toilet and it's usu one aft the other. their attention span also limited, very much wanting to play, walking ard in class, playing with visualiser. behaviour aside, their academic knowledge also differ a lot. some knew the stuff i m going to teach cos they have tuition outside, while others seem unable to learn what i hv taught. one had a problem with pronunciation.
as for my P5 class, it's the first time i m teaching HCL. a lot of vocab to teach for each topic. some are quite talkative and class gets noisy when they are enthusiastic to shout out their ans. cant really reprimand them for doing this cos at least they get so enthusiastic over my lessons.
another first is first time floating in sch. long hrs. still prefer to be in am session cos i m early bird and can go hm as early as 1 plus... but didnt dare to take up the challenge of teaching all upp pri. unless they are gd classes, then it's a diff story...
hope everything runs well and smoothly in sch. my passion for teaching is still there :)
Monday, January 01, 2007
End of Year 2006
2006 has become a history. the last day of 2006 is an unforgettable day as it also marks the end of my grandma's journey. was told tt she passed away peacefully...
Friday, December 22, 2006
Sam Li Sheng Jie Music Videos
Li Sheng Jie--1 of my fav singers.
Ni na me ai ta
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QnNVF0qdRNA
Chi xin jue dui
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U45oasklRPE
Ni na me ai ta
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QnNVF0qdRNA
Chi xin jue dui
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U45oasklRPE
Thursday, December 21, 2006
Singapore Garden Festival
Went to the first garden and flower show at suntec city convention hall yesterday afternoon 20th Dec with mum. Was expecting not many people there since it's a weekday. to my surprise, quite a no. of pp went there, mainly grandmas and children.Going in at level 6. this floor is dedicated to designer gardens around the world. very creative and beautiful designs, ranging fm festive themes, fairy tales themes etc.
had our exit stamp on hand and went down to level 4. what's eye-catching here is the Singapore Orchid show that shows many hybrids of orchids. there are also winning entries of flower decoration, from primary sch students to parents. in fact, i find the children's work better, they were more creative. then, had a quick walk of the marketplace that sold flower and accessories cos not keen to buy any. they had a talk on orchids at 3pm but it's only a video talk.
by then, we got ready to go home...
Sunday, December 17, 2006
Sentosa tour
Went Sentosa yesterday with ZK. Met early at 9am in order to have enough of 'play' for whole day. our first stop was butterfly park and insect kingdom. it is mainly exhibits of butterflies, beetles, spiders, scorpions. spent the entire morning examining at it before heading for lunch. nice and filling pizzas. aft tt, continued our journey. disappointingly, the outdoor butterfly park is just a very small place, unlike what they have described in the guide.
Second stop was underwater world. didn't bring along my i/c to enjoy $6 discount. at the touch pond, get to touch the sting rays. they are slimy and soft. some splashed water out of pool! it was very very crowded there.
at dolphin lagoon, it was just a purely dolphin show. nothing too amazing. also, went down to see an animal show at palawan amphitheatre. female monkey picking coconuts and the emcee mentioned that female monkeys are better coconut pickers despite their weaker strength compared to male counterparts as they would choose the best few coconuts to pick. after the show ended, had photo-taking with the eagle, hawk and snake.
next is dinner at foodcourt nearby. last stop is musical fountain. reached there an hr earlier and it was already seated with audiences. laser shone on fountain to create images. wow amazing and spectacular!
tour around for close to 12 hrs and set our journey back home. the last 2 stops are foc but turned out to be gd! on the whole, enjoy my trip :)
Second stop was underwater world. didn't bring along my i/c to enjoy $6 discount. at the touch pond, get to touch the sting rays. they are slimy and soft. some splashed water out of pool! it was very very crowded there.
at dolphin lagoon, it was just a purely dolphin show. nothing too amazing. also, went down to see an animal show at palawan amphitheatre. female monkey picking coconuts and the emcee mentioned that female monkeys are better coconut pickers despite their weaker strength compared to male counterparts as they would choose the best few coconuts to pick. after the show ended, had photo-taking with the eagle, hawk and snake.
next is dinner at foodcourt nearby. last stop is musical fountain. reached there an hr earlier and it was already seated with audiences. laser shone on fountain to create images. wow amazing and spectacular!
tour around for close to 12 hrs and set our journey back home. the last 2 stops are foc but turned out to be gd! on the whole, enjoy my trip :)
Exam over
NIE content upgrading course IAL5006: Textual analysis and writing analysis is finally over! Went back nie from 7-14th Dec and had exam on the last day. It was a 2hr paper, followed by 1.5 hr of essay writing. Didn't have much inspiration when writing. Sat there blankly for about 15 mins b4 starting my writing. All in all, find it a tough paper. just hoping and aiming to pass only...
Well, NIE didn't change much since my last visit there (teachers' investiture day), except a new building in front of lib/canteen in place of museum has completed its renovation and the building is actually a cafe and named "Unity". sold western food, price abt 3+. went there with classmates on 12th (tue). food is so so only but was rather cold tt day so didnt really enjoy the air-conditioned cafe.
After that, decided to co-operate with classmates by analysing 2 stories each and exchanged the info the next day. what a concidental tt the 2 stories i analysed came out as exam qn. by right, would say i m lucky but actually, cos i wasn't too gd at analysing in details, it didn't turn out well. it would be better if the classmates did the analysis, haiz...
was really down aft the exam but went vivo with 2 classmates. walked ard a bit and had tea at starbucks.
left 2 weeks of hols to enjoy and relax...
till we meet again, nie and fellow classmates, next yr mar...
Well, NIE didn't change much since my last visit there (teachers' investiture day), except a new building in front of lib/canteen in place of museum has completed its renovation and the building is actually a cafe and named "Unity". sold western food, price abt 3+. went there with classmates on 12th (tue). food is so so only but was rather cold tt day so didnt really enjoy the air-conditioned cafe.
After that, decided to co-operate with classmates by analysing 2 stories each and exchanged the info the next day. what a concidental tt the 2 stories i analysed came out as exam qn. by right, would say i m lucky but actually, cos i wasn't too gd at analysing in details, it didn't turn out well. it would be better if the classmates did the analysis, haiz...
was really down aft the exam but went vivo with 2 classmates. walked ard a bit and had tea at starbucks.
left 2 weeks of hols to enjoy and relax...
till we meet again, nie and fellow classmates, next yr mar...
Sunday, December 03, 2006
Staff Party 30 nov 2006
The year-end party is finally over! A lot of hard work has been put in--from brain-storming, shopping on our official hol, going back school on sat, staying back till 8+pm on the eve (first time staying so late in sch and had packed dinner--wanton noodles in sch and i couldnt lock the lock pad tt i need to seek colleagues' help...)... Glad tt some teachers really like the party, show their appreciation and even stay back aft the party to help us take down the deco...
I'm the official photographer for tt day but some photos don't turn out too gd, either blur, too dark or too bright. Was wearing the arabian costume tt we went to rent at PA. cost us abt $(27+8+gst) but i didnt wear the pant cos the size (M) was too big for me and i look like clown in it. thus, i decided to wear jeans instead and orange sleeveless top with costume over. feel a bit wasted to rent the costume just for 1 night but what to do cos we r the organiser so must set an 'example' for the rest.
guess tt the food for tt night must be delicious cos it was almost wiped out b4 the end of party. Ate the sushi and cod nugget only b4 rushing to take photos again.
lots of hard work but gd experience... think i would like to organise it in my own way if i have the opportunity... don't have a lot of ideas in the midst of organising this event cos i m ignorant of all these themes, be it arabian, western, retro... guess i m more into cost-saving, free and easy style...
I'm the official photographer for tt day but some photos don't turn out too gd, either blur, too dark or too bright. Was wearing the arabian costume tt we went to rent at PA. cost us abt $(27+8+gst) but i didnt wear the pant cos the size (M) was too big for me and i look like clown in it. thus, i decided to wear jeans instead and orange sleeveless top with costume over. feel a bit wasted to rent the costume just for 1 night but what to do cos we r the organiser so must set an 'example' for the rest.
guess tt the food for tt night must be delicious cos it was almost wiped out b4 the end of party. Ate the sushi and cod nugget only b4 rushing to take photos again.
lots of hard work but gd experience... think i would like to organise it in my own way if i have the opportunity... don't have a lot of ideas in the midst of organising this event cos i m ignorant of all these themes, be it arabian, western, retro... guess i m more into cost-saving, free and easy style...
Friday, November 24, 2006
Personality Test
Have taken this personality test from www.personality100.com (like to take these sorts of personality tests, and read up abt astrology. believe tt i m not too superstitious in all these but sometimes they are so true to certain extent)
Key Areas of your Personality
Your personality stands out from the average person's particularly in the areas of:
Your High Curiosity Level
Your Low Emotional Reactivity Level
Your Low Distractibility
Your High Need for Control/ Predictability
Your Interaction Style:
You scored 10 in the area of extroversion/ introversion, which means that your energy is directed primarily inward, rather than outward. You prefer to have one or two good friends instead of a large group of superficial friends.
You are somewhat less outgoing than the average female is. Most
females like to keep themselves busy with continuous interaction,
conversations, and the company of others. You also enjoy these
things, but having some time on your own is equally important to
you. This is one of the guiding parts of your personality.
The average male and the average female differ slightly in their
extroversion level. The average male tends to be less extroverted
than the average female is.
Key Areas of your Personality
Your personality stands out from the average person's particularly in the areas of:
Your High Curiosity Level
Your Low Emotional Reactivity Level
Your Low Distractibility
Your High Need for Control/ Predictability
Your Interaction Style:
You scored 10 in the area of extroversion/ introversion, which means that your energy is directed primarily inward, rather than outward. You prefer to have one or two good friends instead of a large group of superficial friends.
You are somewhat less outgoing than the average female is. Most
females like to keep themselves busy with continuous interaction,
conversations, and the company of others. You also enjoy these
things, but having some time on your own is equally important to
you. This is one of the guiding parts of your personality.
The average male and the average female differ slightly in their
extroversion level. The average male tends to be less extroverted
than the average female is.
Researchers have discovered that extroversion levels come from the sensitivity of a part of the brain called the amygdala. People who are low in Extroversion have a very sensitive amygdala. As a result, you notice things that other people don't notice.
Social patterns: You are left-brained when it comes to interacting with people and recognizing emotions in other people.
What does this mean? Since there is a 'cross-over' in the human brain for visual information, it means that you tend to focus on the right side of a person's face when you want to figure out what they are thinking and feeling. This is a unique way of viewing the world. You are likely to be sensitive to 'micro-expressions' - the tiny movements of the muscles in the face that occur, for example, when someone is telling a lie.
Hearing preferences are an interesting exception to this left-right crossover. For example, if two people were talking behind a closed door and you needed to put your ear on the door to hear, you would tend to use your left ear instead of your right.
Emotionality
You are more relaxed and calm than the average female and male
are when it comes to stress and feeling intense emotions. The average
female and male are more reactive to their feelings and mood
swings than you are. Your balanced way of dealing with emotions
is a guiding part of your personality.
The average male and female are similar in their level of emotionality.
Women, however, tend to talk about their feelings and emotions
more than men do. Starting in early childhood, girls are encouraged
to express their feelings more than boys are.
Thoroughness
You are more relaxed and calm than the average female and male
are when it comes to stress and feeling intense emotions. The average
female and male are more reactive to their feelings and mood
swings than you are. Your balanced way of dealing with emotions
is a guiding part of your personality.
The average male and female are similar in their level of emotionality.
Women, however, tend to talk about their feelings and emotions
more than men do. Starting in early childhood, girls are encouraged
to express their feelings more than boys are.
Thoroughness
You are similar to most females and males in how organized and
focused you are. Like you, most females and males are organized,
but not too organized, focused, but not too focused. They prefer to
finish one task before moving on to the next, but are flexible enough
to concentrate on more than one thing at a time.
Openness
You are more interested in patterns and predictability than most
females and males are. You prefer to have a set routine in the way
you go about your activities. You are more loyal to the things you
believe in than most people are. This is one of the guiding parts
of your personality.
Agreeableness
You are similar to most females in your level of agreeableness. Like you, most females are caring and empathetic, but also know how to keep some space between themselves and other people's problems. Males and females differ slightly in their levels of agreeableness. The average female is more agreeable than the average male is.
Your Thinking-Mode Preferences and the Average Sensing vs. Intuiting
You follow a brain path that is different from the one most females follow. Most females are more interested in the connections between the facts than in the facts themselves. In this way, your style of thinking and being attracted to information is more like that of the average male. You are interested in the information that is in the 'here and now' rather than the information that can be inferred or speculated on.
focused you are. Like you, most females and males are organized,
but not too organized, focused, but not too focused. They prefer to
finish one task before moving on to the next, but are flexible enough
to concentrate on more than one thing at a time.
Openness
You are more interested in patterns and predictability than most
females and males are. You prefer to have a set routine in the way
you go about your activities. You are more loyal to the things you
believe in than most people are. This is one of the guiding parts
of your personality.
Agreeableness
You are similar to most females in your level of agreeableness. Like you, most females are caring and empathetic, but also know how to keep some space between themselves and other people's problems. Males and females differ slightly in their levels of agreeableness. The average female is more agreeable than the average male is.
Your Thinking-Mode Preferences and the Average Sensing vs. Intuiting
You follow a brain path that is different from the one most females follow. Most females are more interested in the connections between the facts than in the facts themselves. In this way, your style of thinking and being attracted to information is more like that of the average male. You are interested in the information that is in the 'here and now' rather than the information that can be inferred or speculated on.
Thinking vs. Feeling
You make decisions in a way that is different from the way that most females make decisions. Most females follow their gut instinct or heart when making decisions, even if it may seem illogical to do so. For you, however, clear thinking and rational explanations are important. Males are an interesting case when it comes to thinking vs. feeling: 50 percent of males are 'thinkers', making decisions based mostly on logic, while the other 50 percent are extreme 'feelers' - making decisions based fully on their heart.
Sunday, July 23, 2006
Virgin Post
This is my virgin blog and posting. Have read a few of my friends' blog and have this urge to start one myself but i procrastinated due to lack of time. Hopefully this will be a gd place for me to reminise sweet memories, pen down thoughts and vent frustration etc...
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