Promoting BoBo Cherax Quadricarinatus

Description:

Last Monday, during the CID lesson, Mr Wong, our CID teacher for this year wrote "BoBo Cherax Quadricarinatus" on the white board. When I saw the word, my first thought was, "What is that?!" Mr Wong did not explain to us what the word was, instead he told us to use our imagination and create a poster to promote this "BoBo Cherax Quadricarinatus". Each group promoted the "BoBo Cherax Quadricarinatus" in front of the whole class for about 5 minutes. Some of the groups' presentation are very funny because the presenters are very entertaining.

Our script:

Hi people. Come and buy the "BoBo Cherax Quadricarinatus"!!! It's a pack of fresh seafood containing four different types: Fish, Prawn, Lobster and Clam!!!. You can get it at the nearest outlet, RVUC. Special Chinese New Year offer, it's only $88.88!!! Don't miss it, while stock last!!! The pack comes with a black bowl (limited edition) which you can keep your seafood, and it will remain fresh. FOREVER!!! Wait no more as we have only 500 sets in each 7 of the outlets: RVUC, ERUC, POUC, SEUC, WEUC, QAUC and MAUC!!! Last but not least, it's never a NoNo when you go with the BoBo as it will make you 发发发发!!!

Reflection on past 3 lessons and the upcoming Chinese New Year

For the past 3 weeks, we have been shown pictures of different things for us to relate to our own lives and for us to reflect on how we are living as compared to the others who have worse lives than us. We have thought that our lives are very bad as all the homework that the teachers give are piling up and we think that the teachers does not understand us and give us so much homework and we still have to do homework during the CNY celebrations and holidays, leaving us no time to enjoy ourselves during celebrations and no leisure time to do whatever we want. Our lives revolves around school, homework, and stress that we are feeling due to the amout of school work that we receive and the fact that we need to have time management skills in order to find time in between to rest from all the work. BUT our lives does not always revolve around school. When we go out to have meals, we come across different people, but we do not actually pay attention to them. We think of ourselves and what we need to do next. There are many people out there with lives that are more worse than ours but we do not know that, thus not acknowledging them. All we care about is ourselves and ourselves only. We complain why the teachers give us so much homework and why they cannot understand us. We say that we also have lives and we need leisure time to relax and take time off all the school work that has been giving us stress. But what about the others? In Singapore or other countries? Do we actually know about them and understand their lives? In fact, NO, we do not. After seeing the pictures of different people and their lives, what they do for a living, and why are they doing that, i feel very compassionate and i want to help them. However, it is not possible without others' help. Since i cannot help them in my situation, i try to understand them and cherish my life. I would not want to be in their situation and i now feel that i am very lucky to be able to have a proper place to live in, proper food to eat, and a proper environment to study in. I hope that i would be able to help them in future and i will cherish my life until then.

Upcoming Chinese New Year:

Colour --> RED. I choose red as during chinese new year, it is believed to be auspicious if we use red decorations and wear red outfits. When everyone wears red, it gives me a sense that we, as Singaporeans, are bonded as one and we follow the tradition that has been passed down from generations ago.

Symbol --> 

I choose mandarin orange as the symbol of chinese new year. During chinese new year, we take two oranges in our hands to show respect and wish our families, relatives, and friends all the best for the new year ahead of us. We exchange the oranges for the ones of theirs so that we can share the luck we have and go through difficult times together.

Image --> 

I choose the smiley face as the image i would have in my mind during chinese new year. During chiense new year, smiles are hanging on everyone's faces and we enjoy ourselves hanging out with fellow relatives that we rarely see. For children, we get red packets and we are very happy as we get money that we can save for future use. 

I feel that chinese new year is a very important and happy event for everyone that enjoys themselves during the festive event. I hope that everyone around me will be happy and that we can share our troubles and enjoy good times together! 

Last but not least, 祝大家新年快乐，身体健康，学业进步！

Seow Jia Xuan (15)

2E

Reflection from past three weeks and Chinese New Year

1. Reflection on the past three lessons

From the past three lessons, i have learnt quite a lot of things that cannot be learnt from textbooks. For one, i have learnt how to analyze pictures, also reading past the surface of the pictures and trying to get a deeper understanding of the picture that way. We were showed a picture of a vulture and child, taken by photographer Kevin Carter. At first, i thought that it was a picture to show how many less fortunate people there are out there to show us to be appreciative of what we are blessed with. However, through the lesson, i gradually began to think about how someone was able to actually get that picture, as the picture seemed like the photographer was waiting for the vulture to get close to the child. The vulture was in the background of the picture and the child was in the foreground, implying that the photographer must have waited for the perfect moment to capture that shot. Why did he not help the poor, starving child? I thought of these questions, while i would never have been able to before.

Also, we were shown two pictures- one of a homeless man holding up a board asking for help and another of a woman holding a baby, asking people around for money. If i saw those pictures before the lessons, i would have simply passed them off as two pitiful beggars, but never would i have thought that the woman was from a con organization.

Just from these simple pictures, there are a world of possibilities. It just depends on how you analyze it, how you decided to see it.

2. Colour, symbol and image of Chinese New Year

Colour: Maroon

When it comes to selecting a colour describing Chinese New Year, many people would undoubtedly choose the colour red. However, that is not the case when it comes to me. For me, the colour to describe Chinese New Year would be maroon. Yes, a darker shade of red, that is basically what maroon is. Of course, new year is a time for everyone to get together and have fun celebrating, also, i love the fact that we get red packets. However, since we get red packets, our parents will have to give away red packets too. That basically means that however much we get, however much our parents would have to give away. This is kind of sad as they never get anything in return, since i get to keep my own red packet money.

Symbol: Heart

For the symbol of Chinese New Year, i decided to choose a heart shape to represent love and care for all of the people whom i celebrate Chinese New Year with. During Chinese New Year, people often go around with two mandarin oranges to wish others health, prosperity and other nice things. I think this is a great way to show love and care to our family and friends. 

Image: 福

The symbol of Chinese New Year for me is the Chinese character 福.

It is often hung upside down as a meaning of 福到, meaning blessing in Chinese.

We get to enjoy tons of fun during Chinese New Year, as we get together with friends and family to enjoy thus special occasion. Thus, i feel very blessed to be and spend time together with them.

Zheng Boya (24)

2E 2014

Reflection on past three lesson and feelings, thought or experience about Chinese New Year

1. Reflection on past three lesson

For the past three lessons, I have learnt lots of things. For lesson 1, it is the introduction of the CID lesson as the course will be run differently this year. The course hopes to cultivate critical thinkers who would be able to reflect and draw lessons from different experiences. The main activity will be a class OELP in May where we will get a chance to put learning into practice. When I read this, I was really happy as I never had a chance to go to China/Taiwan before. So I was really excited and looking forward to it.

For the second lesson, it teaches me to understand how to gather meaning and thoughts from what you see adm to understand the importance looking beyond just what is on the surface during reflection. The first activity was to see which beggar sincerely needs help, while the second activity was to reflect on the riot incident at Little India in Singapore. The homework was to elaborate about poverty in Singapore. Maybe it is time we reflect on how we can help the poor in Singapore, our own country. Lastly, the teacher showed us about the vulture and the child, I pitied the child as she was very hungry and she got eaten by the vulture in the end.

For the third lesson, we learn the basics to capture moments and photos and how to make the post on our blog interesting and meaningful. We learnt the Basics of photography, for example: Rule of thirds.

2. Feelings, thoughts or experience of the upcoming Chinese New Year

Colour: Red

I chose colour red because it symbolizes the occasion, Chinese New Year. It is also a tradition to use red for Chinese New Year.

Symbol: Happy Face

I chose happy face because I am very happy when Chinese New Yaer is here as I can get lots of Hongbaos. I also can get to play with my friends and bond with my family.

The Chinese New Year Festival is the most significant holiday for Chinese people around the world, regardless of the origin of their ancestors. It is also known as the Lunar New Year Festival because it is based on the lunar calendar as opposed to the Gregorian calendar. The holiday is a very jubilant occasion mainly because it is the time when people take a break from work to get together with family and friends. 

Image: The legendary Nien

The origin of the Chinese New Year Festival can be traced back thousands of years through a continually evolving series of colorful legends and traditions. One of the most famous legends is that of Nien, an extremely cruel and ferocious beast, which the Chinese believe, eats people on New Year's Eve. To keep Nien away, red-paper couplets are pasted on doors, torches are lit, and firecrackers are set off throughout the night, because Nien is said to fear the color red, the light of fire, and loud noises. Early the next morning, as feelings of triumph and renewal fill the air at successfully keeping Nien away for another year, the most popular greeting heard is kung-hsi, or "congratulations." 

Even though Chinese New Year celebrations generally only last for several days, starting on New Year's Eve, the festival itself is actually about three weeks long. It begins on the twenty-fourth day of the twelfth lunar month, the day, it is believed, when various gods ascend to heaven to pay their respects and report on household affairs to the Jade Emperor, the supreme Taoist deity. According to tradition, households busily honor these gods by burning ritualistic paper money to provide for their traveling expenses. Another ritual is to smear malt sugar on the lips of the Kitchen God, one of the traveling deities, to ensure that he either submits a favorable report to the Jade Emperor or keeps silent. 

Next, "spring couplets" are hung up around the house. Spring couplets are paper scrolls and squares inscribed with blessings and auspicious words, such as "good fortune," "wealth," "longevity," and "springtime." The paper squares are usually pasted upside down, because the Mandarin Chinese word for "upside down," tao, is a homonym of the word "arrival." Thus, the paper squares represent the "arrival" of spring and the "coming" of prosperous times. 

On lunar New Year's Eve, family members who are no longer living at home make a special effort to return home for reunion and share in a sumptuous meal. At that time, family members hand out "lucky money" in red envelopes to elders and children and stay up all night to welcome the New Year. Chinese people have long believed that staying awake all night on New Year's Eve would help their parents to live a longer life. Thus, lights are kept on the entire night--not just to drive away Nien, as in ancient times, but also as an excuse to make the most of the family get-together. Some families even hold religious ceremonies after midnight to welcome the God of the New Year into their homes, a ritual that is often concluded with a huge barrage of firecrackers. 

Cr: All photos from Google

Malvin (27)

2E

Reflection on past three lessons

1)From the past three lessons, I have learnt to analyse pictures. Through the exercise on deciding to help which beggar, I have learnt that we can not only believe in what we see and observe in the picture. The lady had easily passed off as a beggar when she was, in actual fact, a con artist that specially try and gain sympathy from naive tourists.

The exercise on the vulture and child affected me greatly. At one glance, I would just simply conclude that the picture was about a vulture waiting to eat a poor starving child. However, if you think deeper, you would start to question, why didn't the photographer help the poor child? Why did he spend time taking picture of the scene instead of getting help for the poor child. 

This also got me thinking, what is the purpose of taking this photo? Perhaps to greater emphasize to the world that there are many people starving in some countries while some of us are just wasting food? Focusing on this issue, I thought, did someone actually make a move to help these people?

From just a simple picture, many thoughts can be generated. Through analysis, we can understand the situation of the scene depicted in the picture and perhaps reflect on similar circumstances in Singapore, just like relating to the pictures of the two beggars. We can reflect on how poverty is like in Singapore. Maybe we don't see as much beggars in Singapore as compared to some countries, but there are definitely beggars and poor people in Singapore. Maybe it is time we reflect on how we can help the poor in Singapore, our own country.

2)my feeling/thoughts/experience of the upcoming Chinese New Year:

Colour: red~I have selected red colour as it symbolizes the occasion, Chinese New Year. It is also a tradition to use red for Chinese New Year.

Symbol:

 ~I always feel happy during Chinese New Year as I receive many red packets. I also get to eat traditional food that is only prepared during Chinese New Year. Celebrating Chinese New Year also means getting to wear new clothes. It is also when I get a break from doing homework. During Chinese New Year, I get to go back to Malaysia and visit my relatives that I see once a year. Hence Chinese New Year is a very special and enjoyable occasion to me.

Image:

In this image, the word "福" is shown. "福" also means happiness. I believe this word is often pasted in our homes during Chinese New Year. For my family, we believe that by doing so, we can pray for happiness for the whole family in the new year. It is a tradition for us. Hence, I think that this, in a way, represents the coming of a new year.

By Jia Rong