Term 1 Newsletter - Anglo Singapore International School

Anglo Scores Big at the International Crown Diamond Chinese CompetitionCongratulations to our winning Anglo Representatives to the“International Crown Diamond Chinese Competition” which washosted by the Office of Basic Education Commission (OBEC),Ministry of Education (MOE) and Romchatra Foundation for theroyal trophy bestowed by Her Royal Highness Crown PrincessSirindhorn . The prestigious competition had 3,650 contestantsfrom primary to secondary school throughout Thailand andother neighboring countries. It was held on August 15. A specialcongratulations goes out to Beatrice Miu who took 5 th placeoverall! Out of over 3,600 competitors, to place 5 th is amazing!Great job!The Anglo community also extends our congratulations to the Chinese Department headed by Ms. Wang Yingassisted by Mr. Noi, Ms. Jiang, and Ms. Wang Xin Yue.Out of 3,650 participants, our Anglo representatives garnered the following ranks/places with barely twoweeks of preparation:Beatrice Miu 5 th place overallZheng Hong Lee 31 st rankMatthias Enrui Thummachai 44 th rankWattanapon Tunsaringkarn 45 th rankYao Yao 49 th rankAkarachai Chaimaneekarakate 51 st rankJuliana Pang‐Ling Sutanto 57 th rankWithawat Kaeokiatsamphant 85 th rankJasandra Si‐Yi Sutanto 87 th rank1. The electric chair was invented by a dentist.2. You share your birthday with at least 9 million people.3. Cats have over 100 vocal cord sounds. Dogs have about 10.4. In every episode of the American TV series Seinfeld, there is a Superman somewhere.5. No word in the English language truly rhymes with orange, month, silver or purple.Children’s DayBy Ryan RodineOn Children’s Day at Anglo, all the students had a greattime! Everyone was very excited and noisy but remainedorganized and followed the game schedule well.The PSG provided a trampoline to jump and play on andthe school provided us with many activities and games toplay such as soccer (football), basketball, chair ball, andmany other games for the younger kids.There also was a Tug‐of‐War, with children from differenthouse colors competing against each other. When studentsplayed against the teachers, they went by gradelevel. Otherwise, when it was ‘house against house’, theteachers did not play at all.Since the soccer field was wet and muddy, many peopleslipped and fell with a few minor injuries occurring but nobroken bones were seen! Over all, I think basketball, soccerand the balloon pop were the favorites among the students.This Children’s Day, like the last one, provided all theschool children with free food and snacks. Stalls were litteredall over the campus, with most next to the P6.A andP6.B classrooms. As usual, classes started at 8:00 butended at 9:00 – when the fun beganSadly for the secondary students, they had another ordinaryschool day with classes ending at 2:00.Although thesecondary students did not have a formal Children’s Daycelebration; the teachers still prepared little treats forthem. Most primary students felt that this was very nice asthe secondary should have been included in the festivitiesin the first place – they are still children after all.

Anglo Closes Due To Flood DangerBy Nat and Ann‐AnnThailand has been caught in the midst of a naturaldisaster: severe nation‐wide flooding. As a result,the school had to be closed from the 26 th of Octoberto the 10 th of November. Anglo took measuresearly on to safeguard the students and exclaimedthe emergency protocol to all the students; thisincluded practicing a flood drill. In the end, Anglowas forced to close because of orders from theThailand MOE (Ministry of Education).While students were not in school, they had ‘floodhomework’ issued through pre‐assigned lists,emails, Facebook homework groups and MCOnline.We interviewed some of the teachers and foundthat most teachers said that the closing wasneeded for the safety of all concerned and thattheir classes were not really set back due to themissing school days.For example, Ms. Bung said, “Closing the schoolwas a benefit because it was for safety. She will beable to make the students catch up on the work bycancelling some activities.”Mr. Bill said, “The majority of my studentsare exactly on track. We are within a lesson or soof my filed lesson plan. It is as if the school neverclosed.” He continued, “This would not have beenpossible without the students being responsibleand keeping up on all the work that I assignedthem. The students’ homework group of Facebookhelped a great deal.”1. Babies are born without knee caps. They don't appear until 2‐6 years of age.2. An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain.3. A rhinoceros's horn is made of compacted hair.4. Almonds are a member of the peach family.5. . Most dust particles in your house are made from dead skin.Ms Kelly said, “I think that this whole thing inall news reports is a political game.”This school term was extended and the examinationshave been set back one week nonetheless.There seems to be some governmentrules that say this must be done, but some internationalschools do not seem to be doingthis. As of this writing, there seem to be conflictingreports as to what different schools aredoing in regards to making up any days.We interviewed students too, and every primarystudent said that it was very good toclose the school as they could stay at home.They liked doing the work at home, and it wasfor safety. Many said that their teachers werevery helpful online and assisted every day. Mr.Bill’s students said that he posted HistoryChannel documentaries to help them withtheir research and biography writing and wasonline every day to answer questions.Secondary students, however, DIDNOT ENJOY IT!!! They had tons of work andloads of confusion because some of them didnot understand the homework and did notknow what to do.In short, it all did cause most of thestudents some confusion and stress but thanksto responsible students and good teachers, theschool was ready to face it and we managedwell!Anglo Cancels Christmas PartyBy GuyThe annual AngloChristmas Party andInternational FoodFair were cancelledthis year. In lieu ofthe traditionalevent, the Anglocommunity is involved in an ongoing communityoutreach program and donation drive tobenefit families and schools affected by theflooding. Although the headline of this articleseems negative, we newsletter staffers feelthat since this is the season for giving thatsuch a project is indeed an honorable one.Many people in Thailand were hurt a lot becauseof the massive flooding across the entirecountry and this is our way to do our part,however small, tohelp some ofthose in need.As of this writing,Anglo studentsand teachers haveraised moneythrough two casual days where donationswere given in exchange for wearing casualclothes to school. Details of the communityoutreach program and its results will be reportedin the upcoming issue of the newsletter.Aside from the Christmas Party and InternationalFood Fair being cancelled, due to theflooding and school days being made up andthe exam timetable set back one week, allAnglo field trips for Term 1 have been put onhold and will be taken at a later date.The Bookmark: Literary ReviewBy JinnawatARTEMIS FOWL written by Eoin ColferIn this novel, a 12‐year‐old Irish crime lord takes onthe realm of Faerie to recoup his family fortune inthis madcap story that seems to somewhatemulate the popular Harry Potter series of books.Having done his homework,thanks to a fairy manual extortedfrom an alcoholic sprite inHo Chi Minh City, young ArtemisFowl and his competent butler,Butler, not only seize the equallyaptly named Holly Short, feistymember of LEPrecon (an eliteunit of the Lower Elements Police)for ransom, but are well prepared when herpointy‐eared compatriots rush to the rescue with acombination of old magic and futuristic high technology.In the ensuing battle, fought as much with wits asweapons, Fowl proves himself a brilliant strategist,if not quite as dastardly or self‐confident as hewould like to be, and thanks to what amounts to amagical technicality, he comes out of the dustupalive, with a half‐ton of fairy gold, and even a wish(which he puts to good use).Though the violence occasionally turns brutal, Fowland Short make splendid, well‐matched rivals, supportedby an inspired cast that includes huge roguetrolls, malicious goblins, an irreverent techie satyr,and kleptomaniac dwarf, Mulch Diggins. Readersfamiliar with Sherlock Holmes, as well as an array ofmodern fantasy writers from Roald Dahl on to themuch more modern will find plenty of homage paidin this entertaining page‐turner. I highly recommendit.Pub Date: May 1st, 2001Page count: 288 pagesPublisher: Hyperio

Anglo’s Updated LibraryBy Ann‐AnnThis year, Anglo has added many new books to the library. Many interesting, fun and absolutelyenchanting books are there just waiting for you to read them.The new books are usually on the first shelf you see when you enter the library. Besides themainstay of English titles, there are new Chinese books and books in many other languages.Believe it or not, there are 6,706 books in thelibrary this year, and I have chosen a few to recommend to my readers. Whether you are akindergartener, a primary student or a secondary student,I am certain that you will find something to feed your literarycraving.Secondary BooksI Am Number Four – by Pittacus LoreThe Throne of Fire – by Rick RiordanPrimary BooksP1‐2Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You? – by Dr. SeussOn Beyond Bugs: All About Insects – by Tish RabeLucky Bamboo – by Katherine SullyMonkey Makes Havoc in Heaven – by Sanmu TangThe Lantern Forest – by Wan YoubuP3‐4Alice in April – by Reynolds NaylorThe Chronicles of Avantia – by Adam BladeKindergartenThe Inch Prince – by Russell PunterPrincess Polly and the Pony – by Susanna DavidsonThe Monster Gang – by Felicity Everett1. Thomas Edison was afraid of the dark.2. The sound of E.T. walking was made by someone squishing herhands in Jell‐O.3. Bird droppings are the chief export of Nauru, an island nation in the Western Pacific.4. A sneeze zooms out of your mouth at about 600 miles per hour.Soccer is perhaps the most elemental team ball sport.Two teams, each with 11 players (includingthe goalkeeper) work to push a ball into the opposingteam's goal using any part of their body other than theirhands or arms. At the end of two 45 minute periods,whichever team has scored the most goals wins the game.Direct physical contact (pushing, checking, grabbing, etc.)is not allowed.Matches are played on a field (often called a pitch) markedoff on all four sides with white boundary lines. A typicalfield is 100 yards long and at least 50 yards wide, althoughsome fields are larger. If the ball goes across the line onthe sides of the field, it is returned to play via a twohandedoverhead throw‐in, the only situation where a non‐goalie player can use his hands. If it goes out of playacross an end line, it's returned to play by the goalie kickingit (if the offensive team played it out) or by a cornerkick by the attacking team (if the defenders played it out).The goal is eight yards long and eight feet high. The ballmust completely cross the end line between the goalposts to be counted as a goal. Directly in front of each goalis a large rectangle called the goal area. If a defendingplayer commits a foul within this area, the attacking teamreceives a penalty kick. This is a free shot at the goal withonly the goalie to defend it, from a distance of ten yards.Fouls committed anywhere else on the field can result in avariety of penalties. Minor offenses, such as inadvertentlytouching the ball with the hands, tripping or holding anopponent or kicking at the ball while it's up in the air anddangerously close to people's heads results in a free kickfor the other team. This change of possession usually happensquickly and keeps the game moving along.More flagrant fouls can result in cards. Severe or repeatedfouls, fighting, disrespecting the officials and intentionalfouls give the referee the option of issuing a yellowcard to the offending player. This is like a warning ‐ the reftakes an actual yellow card out of his pocket and holds itin the air to let everyone know it's being issued.He then writes down the player's number in a notebook. Ayellow card has no immediate effect, but if the sameplayer receives another yellow card in the same gameSports Talk: The Basics of SoccerBy Yanjie(and sometimes within the same tournament), he getsan automatic red card. A red card results in ejectionfrom the game, and that player's team can't replacehim, forcing them to play short‐handed for the remainderof the match. Extreme offenses can result in an immediatered card, whether or not a prior yellow card wasissued.The goalie can freely use his hands to catch, block andthrow the ball within the goal area. He can move beyondthe goal area, but must use his feet to move the ball.The clock in a soccer game is continuous. If play stopsdue to an injury or other delay, the referee keeps trackof the lost time. At the end of each half, the referee willadd on this extra time, known as injury time, after theclock has run out.If a game ends in a tie, the decision will depend onwhere and why the game is being played. In friendlymatches and regular league games, the game simplyends and each team is credited with a tie, worth onepoint in league standings. In some tournaments, teamsplay two games against each other (several days apart)and the winner is determined by total goals scored. Thatcan make a tie as bad as a loss for a team already behindon goals. In some tournaments, a tie is resolved witha shootout. This is a series of five penalty kicks, withteams alternating kicks. The team that scores the mostgoals with their five kicks wins.The soccer ball itself is an inflated sphere made of syntheticleather. Real leather was used in the past, but hasa tendency to absorb water, making the ball very heavyin wet conditions. Most balls are covered with stitchedpanels. Inside is a fabric liner and a rubber bladder whichholds the air.Soccer players wear minimal equipment. Shin pads andcleated shoes for traction on natural grass make up thegear needed by most players. Many goalies wear glovesfor padding and grip, and goalie pants and shirts mayhave padded panels sewn in for protection when divingonto hard ground to make saves.

Upbeat MusicBy Sirijung… ZZZzzz ...By CC ZumaHi, my name is Sirijung and I am a Primary Six student. As some of you may know, Upbeat is a musiccolumn that first appeared last year in the newsletter and when given the opportunity to write this column,I jumped at the chance because music means a great deal to me. In my opinion, music makes lifecome alive!Although most girls my age are listening to songs by boy bands or artists like Justin Bieber, I really likeAmerican country music. I know that this is somewhat unusualfor a young girl growing up in Bangkok, Thailand but countrymusic simply speaks to me and somehow touches my soul likeno other musical genre.One of the things that has attracted me to country music isthe ‘real life stories’ in most of the song lyrics. The songs arealmost like short stories and I find that makes the music speakmore personally to me.Because I would like to share my music interest with my readers,I have included a list of the top ten best country songs (asof the time of this writing) and I hope you will find the time tolisten to them. You can find all of them on YouTube so that you can see a video along with the audio. Ireally hope you enjoy them!This Week’s Top Ten Country Music SongsLONG HOT SUMMER by Keith UrbanMADE IN AMERICA by Toby KeithTAKE A BACK ROAD by Rodney AdkinsLONG HOT SUMMER by Keith UrbanHERE FOR A GOOD TIME by George StraitJUST FISHIN' by Trace AdkinsBARE FOOT BLUE JEANS by Jake OwensCRAZY GIRL by The Eli Young BandYOU AND TEQUILA by Kenny ChesneySPARKS FLY by Taylor SwiftThe Number 1 Country Music Download This WeekKEEP THE CHANGE by Hank Williams, Jr. (Over 150,000downloads in the first 24 hours after the song was released!)"I like a teacher who gives you something to take home to think about besides homework. Those arethe real educators." -- Lily TomlinWhat does sleeping mean to you? Would yougive it up for a few hours of gaming? Or wouldyou give up your gaming time to rest? From mypersonal perspective, sleep is the most vital activitythat I must have as a student. As a Year 4student, it was not easy to be able to go to bedearly. There were so many tasks to complete. Ontop of that, we could not neglect revision for ourexaminations. Most students should have alreadyexperienced the accumulated fatigue and frustrationat not being able to get enough rest,whether it is in the form of sleeping, leisure readingor even gaming.Research has found that poor time managementhas negative impacts on our physical and mentalhealth. University of Pennsylvania researchersfound that students who were limited to only 4.5hours of sleep a night for one week reportedfeeling more stressed, angry, sad, and mentallyexhausted. When the subjects resumed normalsleep, they reported a dramatic improvement inmood.In the long run, our studies will also suffer due toa lack of sleep. A research experiment has shownthat a sleep‐deprived person cannot focus attentionand therefore cannot learn efficiently. Weare less likely to perform well when we are tiredall of the time.Learning to manage time well is not an easy thingto do. With so many distractions around us, it issometimes difficult to hold on to our goal. I havelearnt from past experiences that no one canhelp you to manage your time well other thanyourself. Only you can tell yourself how muchyou want to achieve that goal you are workingtowards. If you can see why you need to achievethat goal in the midst of all the distractions,managing your time well will be an easy task foryou.I learnt to manage my time well by sittingdown and thinking about how much I want tohave leisure time after I finish my work.When I truly understand the importance ofcompleting my task before doing anythingelse, I will then get to work and try to finishall my work as soon as I can. If I still havesome time left, I would either do a bit of revisionor use that time to do things to help meto de‐stress after a long school day.So you see, everything we do involves achoice. We are the ones that make thedecision, not our parents, not our friends, notour teachers, but ourselves. Managing timewell is not easy, and we cannot learn it in ashort period of time, but I can promise youthat the results are more than worth theeffort.Anglo Newsletter StaffMr. Bill – Editor‐in‐ChiefMatthias (P6) – PresidentGuy (P6) – Vice PresidentJinnawat (P6) – Assistant EditorSirijung (P6) – SecretaryYanjie (P6)Zen (P6)Nat (P6)Ryan (P6)Prab (P6)Bryan (P6)Joshua (P6)Jonas (P6)Sol (P6)Dee Dee (P6)Ann‐Ann (P6)Gin (P6)Son (P6)Ing (P6)Linya (P5)Angel (P5)Taisei (P5)