Author: Nadirah Azman

APEX students launch third issue of BRavo!

Posted on by Nadirah Azman
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As part of the English Department's aim to give students a voice to share their thoughts and views through writing, we welcome the third edition of BRavo!, a publication by students for students. Over several months of meetings, our budding writers in the APEX-EL Writing Programme had fun stretching their imagination and writing potential to put this newsletter together. This issue comprises a collection of our students' creative and journalistic works. We hope you enjoy reading it.

 

Read the issue here!

National School Games (NSG) 2022

Posted on by Nadirah Azman

National School Games (NSG) 2022

2022 marks a very special year for BRPS. For the first time in our school’s history, we formed a senior boys team to participate in NSG (Floorball). Floorball is one of the modular CCA introduced at House Practice where our students’ interest in Floorball was piqued.

The senior boys team was formed just 1 month before the start of NSG. In this short period of time, the team trained twice a week. Even though this was the first time we competed in Floorball, we played well as a team and emerged 1st Runner-up in the group stages and advanced to the top 16 knock-out stage.

Our team’s foray into NSG (Floorball) and its resilience was recognized by the NSG officials. A few teacher coaches from other schools commended on our valiant effort. Our outstanding goalkeeper, Rafadil received the NSG Sportsmanship Award in recognition of his sports and character excellence. Well done team!

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BRPS Debate Team advances to Quarterfinals at Wits & Words Competition

Posted on by Nadirah Azman
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BRPS Debate Team advances to Quarterfinals at Wits & Words Competition

Our debaters have once again done our school proud!

Our BRPS debate team has advanced to the Quarterfinals of the Wits & Words 2022 Inter-school Debate Competition. The team of students comprising Primary 5 and 6 students, Richie, Choo Zhi Lin, Mikhael Chan, Gail Lien and Athan Phua beat St. Joseph Institution Junior and Elias Park Primary School at the Preliminary Rounds to emerge one of the Top 8 schools of Division II. In the process, they debated on issues relating to parenting, extrinsic rewards, as well as the production and consumption of animal meat. The team will compete at the upcoming Quarterfinals round on 5 April 2022. All the best, debaters!

Mathematical Minds: Mikhael Chan and Hong Rian

Posted on by Nadirah Azman
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Mathematical Minds: Mikhael Chan and Hong Rian

We are proud that Mikhael Riyo Chan of 6 Topaz and Hong Rian of 5 Topaz have achieved the Bronze award in the Singapore Mathematical Olympiad for Primary Schools (SMOPS) and Annual Mathlympics 2022 respectively.

The SMOPS is an annual event organised by Hwa Chong Institution that sets out to generate interest in Mathematics among students in primary schools and sharpening their problem-solving skills. Mikhael shared that he loves Mathematics and is overjoyed and proud to have won the Bronze award. He enjoys Math lessons and his Math teacher, Ms Genevieve Thong, is the kindest teacher he has ever known. “I am glad that the SMOPS was held in school, so the environment was familiar and not very tense for me. I prepared for the competition by searching up on past Math Olympiad questions online and trying them out,” he quipped. He shared that there was actually one question in the paper that was really tedious and required many steps to solve it. He felt frustrated but he persevered. He was elated when he finally solved it after a good twenty minutes. His advice to all students is, “The question may seem tough initially but do continue trying, never give up. You will solve it!”

The Annual Mathlympics aims to enhance students’ problem-solving skills. Rian is honoured to have won the Bronze award. She shared that she was very excited to take part in the competition. She shared, “During the competition, when seated amongst the other students who had attended the training, I felt really nervous. However, I was grateful that I had practiced hard for it as it helped to build up my confidence for the competition. My strategy was to quickly read through all the problems once and solve the ones that I could do first.” She added that she tried her very best and never once thought of giving up. She quipped, “Always read the questions very carefully. Be focused and never give up!”

Continue to Aim for Excellence in Mathematics, Mikhael and Rian!

LEAPing forward: Ms Munirah receives the LEAP Award 2022

Posted on by Nadirah Azman
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LEAPing forward: Ms Munirah receives the LEAP Award 2022

The “Listening Educator for Advancement and Progress” (LEAP) Award was launched by our late President SR Nathan in 2011 and awarded by the Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan every year to recognise exceptional teachers who have made a positive impact in nurturing students from the heart. This award aims to motivate all teachers in Singapore to strive to be nurturing and effective educators. We are proud to share that Ms Munirah has won the LEAP award 2022.

“Having taught for 12 years in this school, I treat the students like my children and believe they have the potential to excel beyond their capabilities. They, however, must be courageous to come to school daily and face their challenges head on. I often remind them that together we can do so much more and they can always turn to me to be their friend and cheerleader,” she shared. “The key for us as teachers is to have a welcoming attitude and offer companioning to support student’s healing or shame to encourage moral choice,” she added.

Ms Munirah is viewed as a nurturing teacher by her colleagues and students. A colleague shared, “Even with challenging parents, Ms Munirah persevered and reconnected and the child “wins” through her humility”. A student said, “Ms Munirah is a trustworthy, patient and kind teacher who loves her students very much. She makes us want to learn in class. She does not scold us but counsels us when we make mistakes.”

Congratulations to Ms Munirah winning the the LEAP Award 2022!

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TGS Returns with “The Green Snapshots with Pepper Green and Friends”!

Posted on by Nadirah Azman
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TGS Returns with “The Green Snapshots with Pepper Green and Friends”!

After a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, our award-winning heritage trail, The Green Snapshots (TGS) physical trail, has once again returned in July 2022! We once again invited members of the public to join us on our curated nature and heritage trail around our neighborhood. This year’s edition was indeed special as it was adapted from the school’s recent self-written publication, "The Green Dragonflies and Their Swampy Friends".

Titled "The Green Snapshots with Pepper Green and Friends", participants went on a learning journey around Telok Blangah Hill Park and Berlayer Creek at Labrador Park. Berlayer Creek, a mangrove swamp, was the setting of our book featuring Pepper Green, a young dragonflies, and his friends. The inclusion of Berlayer Creek in this year’s edition of TGS reinforces a key message: Everyone, young and old, can play a part in conserving the environment and making it a cleaner and greener place amidst climate change.

Led by our student-docents, participants learnt about plants and animals at the various ‘hotspots’ in the area. The information sharing was also complemented with hands-on activities and food tasting for en even more engaging experience. A participant commented, “I had a wonderful session. The students were confident, both in sharing the prepared materials and in engaging directly in conversations. The hands-on materials were a welcome surprise. Without this, the trail would already have been very enjoyable.”

While the TGS trail ended its run on 23 July 2022, it is definitely not the end to nature education in our school. We look forward to bringing more TGS trails to our community in the future!

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Our P5s head outdoors for the annual P5 Adventure Camp!

Posted on by Nadirah Azman
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Our P5s head outdoors for the annual P5 Adventure Camp!

Our three-day Primary 5 Adventure Camp was held on 20-22 July 2022, in school and at the Boys’ Brigade and Girls’ Brigade (BBGB) Campsite. The camp enabled students to develop lifelong skills such as leadership and problem-solving skills. It was a great environment for students to build their self-esteem in a new but nurturing environment. The students were able to display virtues such as respect, responsibility and resilience. The camp also gave them opportunities to connect with nature and take part in activities that foster camaraderie among their peers.

Led by external instructors and school teachers, our P5 students embarked on a hike on the first day of camp to the Singapore Quarry and Wallace Education Centre. Students got to see animals such as monkeys, monitor lizards and snakes in the wild. George shared, “I was very excited to see animals I’ve not seen animals like snakes and cool looking spiders that were so large in person before. It made me curious, and I decided to learn more about them after the camp. I also found out that I’m a resilient team-player. Even though my legs were very tired and had started to feel sore, I pushed myself to carry on as I could not let my teammates down.”

On the second day, students took part in team-bonding activities which included kayaking and rafting in which students had to try and build a raft together that was able to stay afloat. Justin shared, “I like being in the water and it was even more exciting and enjoyable to kayak when I was able to do so my friends and teachers. I learned how to float together with my group, and it was scary when my feet could not touch the ground. I had to act calm so that I did not frighten my friends and that helped me get stronger.” Nathan added, “It was in water that I realised that I’m good at communicating and handling my teammates. I was able to successfully raft up and meet the objectives together with my group.”

Our students were visibly in high spirits throughout the camp. On day three, the students were taught how to play archery tag. The game instilled the virtue respect into our students as they learned how to be mindful of boundaries and rules. Mardhiah shared, “Archery tag was enjoyable as I get to tag my friends and teachers. It was fun to work with my group and to compete with the other class. The last P5 student standing was a surprise to us and I was happy to cheer a friend from the other class on.”

At the end of the camp, students showed their gratitude by preparing thank-you cards for their camp instructors. The camp was indeed meaningful time spent with their friends and teachers. Through this experience, our P5s were certainly able to explore new skills and discover more about themselves.

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Spotlighting our Staff: Hear from Five BRPS Educators

Posted on by Nadirah Azman
A feature on our BRPS educators

Spotlighting our Staff: Hear from Five BRPS Educators

Our staff is dedicated in deepening their professional practice, in the classroom as well as a teacher mentor. All BRPS teachers are teacher mentors, who coach, cheerlead and counsel our students. Anchored in our educational beliefs, our teachers are committed to innovating in the classroom, and being the guiding light to our students. Hear from five of our staff and their educational philosophies.

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Appreciating our heritage and roots through Mother Tongue Languages: Master Teacher Dr Zheng

Read more about Dr Zheng Ying Jiang, Master Teacher in Mother Tongue Language.

 

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Winner of the Arif Budiman Malay Language Teacher Award: Mdm Azlin

Read more about Mdm Azlin, Winner of the Arif Budiman Malay Language Teacher Award.

 

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Championing Cyberwellness, Digital Literacy and EdTech: Miss Athena Tang

Read more about Miss Athena Tang, Winner of the BRPS ICT Star Award 2022.

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Sparking learning through technology-infused lessons: Mr Dinesh

Read more about Mr Dinesh, Winner of the BRPS ICT Star Award 2022.

 

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Leveraging e-pedagogy to impart 21st CC skills: Miss Seow Wen Yi

Read more about Miss Seow Wen Yi Winner of the BRPS ICT Star Award 2022.

Bronze Award at The Singapore Mathematical Olympiad for Primary Schools (SMOPS)

Posted on by Nadirah Azman
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Congratulations to Mikhael Riyo Chan of 6 Topaz for achieving the Bronze award at the SMOPS 2022! The Singapore Mathematical Olympiad for Primary Schools (SMOPS) is an annual event organised by Hwa Chong Institution that sets out to develop an interest in Mathematics among students in primary schools and sharpening their problem-solving skills.

Mikhael shared, “I am overjoyed and proud to win the Bronze award. I would like to thank my parents for always supporting me in my decisions. I am also grateful for the opportunity that the school has provided, in particular the Olympiad training sessions that taught me problem solving strategies that helped me in the competition.”