Recognition Day: Robinson and PSG Character Award

56th Annual Prize presentation ceremony was held on 22 May 2012. Mr Steven Tham Weng Cheong,  guest-of-honour, member of the School Advisory Board Committee, Chairman & CEO, Leedon Limited started the event with a inspiring speech. Here is an excerpt...

"Competition is a way of life and a way to progress. We are challenged to bring out our best through various competitions. At this point, may I refer to the Olympics that will take place in July this year in London. The world's best athletes and sportsmen will come to London to compete with one another to bring glory and honour to themselves and to the countiries they come from. This is to show that "man is endowed with infinite possibilities". At the end of the Olympics, we can see the values of friendship and respect for one another firmly rooted in the competitors, so you can see the value of competition.

The Olympic motto is : Altius, Citius, Fortius. I cannot help feeling the school, directly or indirectly follows this motto: moving higher, swifter and stronger to ensure progress contiues ceaselessly.

Continuous progress is also ensured because TK teachers have a deep interest in sharing their knowledge with young minds, and go the extra mile for their students. The passion they have for teaching makes them great teachers; they are able to make a difference in the lives and future for their students. I am glad that TK teachers are encouraging their students to repeatedly ask questions to promote thinking skills and reasoning. The commitment by TK teachers to be skilful teachers are important as they will be better able to shape the minds and characters of the students. The reward is the satisfaction and pride that their students have turned out well and are contributing members of their families and our society.

The objectives of education were debated in the past, they are debated toady and I'm sure they would be continued in the future.

In recent years, there has been a greater emphasis on values and character development: a holistic education that is student centric. Here is a case for moral literacy.

We want our children to possess the tracts of character we most admire. It is important that while in school, students achieve a minimal level of moral literacy. This enables them to live a life that is well and good and humane.

What are these fundamental tracts of character?

Integrity is one, compassion, courage, perseverence, loyalty and determination. These are virtues which we desire our children to possess. Start nourishing your mind with good habits in the early years of your life. When they are performed often, they become part of your life."

"To the many prize-winners, I have this to say: You've won the respect and admiration of your schoolmates, teachers and your families. They are very proud of you: do not be complacent, keep on moving up the ladder to success ceaselessly: it will be a fulfilling experience!"

Watch your thoughs; they become words.

Watch your words; they become actions.

Watch your actions; they become habits.

Watch your habits; they become character.

Watch your character; they become your destiny.

by Frank Outlaw

Thank you."

The Samuel Robinson Character Award  for displaying examplary behaviour and demonstrated the school values to the highest degree over the 4 years as TK student is:
Poon Wing Bill, Billy

PSG Character Award winners are:
Loh Teng Jie, 4B: Ability to Succeed
Lee Ci En, 4D: Ability to Succeed
Muhammad Nur Haffidz B Abdul R, 4F: Ability to Succeed
Navnidh Bhalla, 4A: Integrity
Wong Sze Ting Rachel, 4B: Ingenuity
Benedict Su, 4E: Ingenuity
Wong Chen Neng, 3D: Integrity
Naufal B. Azman, 2F: Loyalty
Muhammad Amer Hakeem B M N, 2F: Loyalty
Melvin Ong Yew Sheng, 3C: Charity
Gan Nicole, 4F: Charity

Congratulation to the prize winners.

TKSS Sports Day

 Once again, we are celebrating TK Sports Day 2012!  It was held at Serangoon Stadium on Friday, 13 April 2012. We were blessed with fantastic sunny weather even though it was predicted that it would rain heavily in the afternoon.  Thank goodness, everything went smoothly just as planned. The event started at 2.30pm and ended at 5.30pm.

Excitement filled the air – students, teachers, participants and spectators were watching, supporting and cheering for the respective house.  Each house gave their best cheers throughout the afternoon – to encourage their mates on and in the hope of getting the best house cheer for the year! Indeed, it was heart warming to see the spirit of TK students.  As the afternoon went on, more excitement , suspense and anxiety filled the air. Who would get the best house? Who would get the best cheer?

The afternoon programme included the 100 meters race, the 400 meters race, the 800 meters race and relays.  As the gun fired to start the race, the cheers of the students raised the roof! They watched in anticipation to see who would be the first to cross the finishing line! We, the parents that were present, were caught in the excitement as well.

All the participants deserved a round of applause for the hard work and congratulations to all winners!

One of the po

One of the popular events was the race among the teachers, parent support group, non-teaching staff and the alumni.  I was busy going around encouraging the parents to take part in this fun and exciting race and finally managed to get 5 brave parents to participate. The parents that participated had a good time and would come back again next year! The parents proved their fitness by clinching silver and bronze medals!  Great job parents! PSG is proud to be part of this success. I am sure the children are proud of their parents too!

The final event was the Inter House Cheering Competition. The four houses, Rutherford, Einstein, Da Vinci and Tagore each had a turn in showing off their cheers. They gave all they got – I believed some went home with sore throats.  I was one of the judges and mind you it was not an easy task.  It was a neck-to-neck battle and eventually the award was given to DA VINCI! Congratulations DA VINCI for winning the best cheers! Congratulations to TAGORE for winning the best house!

The event ended with the Prize-giving ceremony. The guest of honour, our very own PSG member, Mr Cliff Hew gave away the prizes to all the winners. 

 It was a fun-filled joyous afternoon mingling with parents, cheering, laughing and snacking (yep, light refreshment was provided). It was a fruitful afternoon getting to know new parents and fostering new friendship.

I personally would like to thank all the parents for their precious time in coming down to support the event and to those brave parents for participating in the race. Well done!  PSG hopes to see more of you in the next TK Sports Day! 

Written by : Norlia Embong

PSG Co-ordinator for Sports Day 2012

DIM SUM FOR THE FAMILY

On 25 February 2012 at TK library, about 50 TK parents including TK PSG & school staff attended the parenting seminar with the theme "DIM SUM". From DIM SUM program to DIM SUM refreshments & DIM SUM book each autographed by DIM SUM author, all went home smiling & satisfied that their Saturday afternoon was well spent at TK!

Our appreciation to Dr John Ng for such an entertaining session whilst dispensing useful tips to the participants. Our gratitude also to EMCC (of which Dr John Ng is Honorary Chair of Eagles Mediation & Counselling Centre, EMCC) for providing complimentary books to the participants.

The idea was mooted by TK PSG Seminar Team based on the interesting content of the book entitled "Dim Sum For The Family" filled with simple wisdom of marriage & family life & practical tips written by Dr John Ng. It was a 7-month period planning to kick off the 2012 Parenting Event in order to secure most sought after trainer like Dr John Ng... all the efforts were worth it!

It was a packed two & half hour program focussing on Managing Parent-Teen Conflict including a video clip, some real life experiences of the author & parents facing day-to-day challenges. The trainer presented the session with humour covering issues like "Worries & Wishes in Parent-Teen Conflicts", "Triggers or Hot Buttons"& "Stategies to Manage Conflicts". Participants also enjoyed the question & answer session with Dr Ng as well as the interaction with other TK parents & TK PSG during the break time whilst savouring delicious Dim Sum selected menu & pastries with hot coffee & tea.

General feedback received clearly demonstrates a good understanding of the subject matter at the end of the session by the participants & their various comments point to the fact that the speaker, being able to relate the subject matter with his own personal experiences (similar to the audience's), has made the overall experience meaningful & helpful in the participants' application back home. At end of session, Overall, it was thumbs-up to TK PSG for organizing the parenting event!

The DIM SUM book gave a good form of follow-up reading for the participants. DIM SUM means "touching the heart" - The author shared from his heart. By doing so, he hopes that it will touch hearts of the readers as he discusses issues & challenges about marriage, parenting & managing parent-child conflict. The beauty in the book lies in the way it was written - in small, bite sized chapters for busy couples & parents, covering topics that range from the easy-to-comprehend "Great marriage: Myth or Reality?" to the more complex subject of "Transforming conflict into opportunity." So for TK parents who'd missed this enjoyable seminar, do get a copy of this book..... hopefully it will equip you with practical tools in your personal tool box of relationships!

Author: Sylvia Wandly, organizer of the seminar, PSG

TK1 Nite 2012

“Welcome to one of the most enjoyable events of the year for parents at TK!” Parents who had registered for this amazing event were greeted with this phrase at the registration booth at the foyer by the enthusiastic PSG members. Upon entering the school compound, new parents had anxiousness and excitement written all over their faces. Indeed, they were looking forward to the wonderful event. The event focused on allowing parents to get acclimatised to the school environment and also get to meet the staff members of the school.
After registration, the parents were ushered to the school canteen by Emily and her PSG team as well as Mdm Halilahs efficient and extremely helpful Student Councillors. This was done to initiate the first part of TK1Nite which was the school tour. The parents got to view the conducive school environment and also bear witness to the numerous facilities that the school has to offer. Furthermore, they got to see the classrooms in which their child/children were studying in! The students had an assignment previously to design a table top to beautify their desks and also reflect their targets for the year. Undoubtedly, parents were impressed with this and also wrote down notes to further motivate their children.
In the auditorium, the Principal introduced the subject teachers. This was followed by a short talk to the parents to help facilitate the transition of their child from primary to secondary school. At the end of the auditorium segment, the Principal handed out letters of appointment and appreciation to both the new and old PSG members.
Next came the hall segment. A montage about the school was displayed and our PSG Chairperson, Norsiah gave an insight on how the PSG works and also encouraged new parents to join the PSG family. The parents then had a scrumptious dinner with the Principal and teachers on wonderfully decorated tables. The ideas on how to decorate the tables come from creative new PSG members. Furthermore, Norsiah gave a brilliant idea which was to thank parents by giving them mouth-watering cupcakes that had initials “TK PSG” on them.
After the event, Sec 1 parents gave back feedback forms that reflected very positive results. The feedback showed that the event was a fun, enriching and unique experience for them. Indeed, this was a reward for PSG members, staff members and student councillors for all their hard work to make TK1Nite a success. A big thanks to all and looking forward to next years TK1Nite!Article written by Rinku

Cyber Wellness 2012

This was the third time which I attended cyber wellness workshop in TKSS. The content was kept up to date. Besides gaming, this year included social media perils. It was an eye opener that the trend of kids engaged with computer for non-academic purpose was getting higher and could be worrisome for parents. The library was at full house with parent participants. One of the points which I took away from this workshop was to remind my children to be more wise about social media and also to understand the possible pitfall of silly posting. The workshop aimed to equip the parents with the knowledge to guide their children and appropriately manage the situation before it becomes a strain on the family.

Posted by Hei Tong (PSG member)

CCA day

It was CCA day. Parents brought their children along to help understand the purpose, benefits and participation requirement/ options. Holistic education and leadership development are opportunities not to be missed. After briefing by the Principal and head of CCA, parents accompanied their child to stream through the labyrinth of displays put together by the students of various CCA groups.
At regular intervals, CCA groups performed on the parade square. Precision drills, hip-hop, marches, live band music and first aid demo were eye catching and interesting.

Seniors manning the display booth of various CCAs were on hand to brief the parents and secondary one students and guided them through interactive activities. The confidence of the seniors do give parents a sense of excitement to think their child would, in due time, be molded likewise if the child engages and grow with the CCA.
PSG volunteers were on hand to help ease the visiting parents with their personal experience of managing their child through 4 years of CCA and the joy of discovering the leadership growth and maturity CCA brought.
PSG volunteers were also using the occasion to connect with the new PSG members once more (all parents of TKSS students are automatically PSG members). Response from visiting parents was good to the activities planned by signing up for events at the PSG counter. The events opened for registration were TK1 Nite and parenting seminar “Dim Sum for the Family”. The cheerfulness among the PSG volunteers was a clear display of friendship developed across ethnicity through participation in PSG activities. The PSG volunteers are driven by a common goal … to partner with the school in engaging parents for the benefit of the students. The next four years will be a new and exciting journey for the sec one students and their parents.

Welcome to TKSS.

Reaching out to New Parent

The new cohort of students came to register for 2011 secondary one in TKSS. Parent support group were organized and on hand to simultaneously welcome the new parents who were accompanying their child. The preparation work were put into effect with well thought through brochures and stationaries to help in enagaging the parents. Partnership between the school and parents is forged through engagement, participation and involvement. TK1 Nite is one of the major events for sec 1 parents. Principal and Heads of Departments leverage TK 1 nite to give finer points on collaboration for the benefit of the student.
PSG committee is also organizing a parenting seminar for the benefit of all PSG members to learn more about managing parent-teen conflict. Dr John Ng has been arranged to speak on this topic. He is well sought after for his renowned "Dim Sum For the Family" seminar. 20 copies of his book relating to the seminar will be given to 20 lucky participants. Seminar is to be held on 25 Feb, 2:00 to 4:30pm, TKSS library. This event is supported by school and School Family Education (SFE).