Hey guys, it's been almost a week since summer school ended and although it may seem like a short period of time, I am certainly missing all my new friends that I have met there. Leaving all the sad stories aside, it has been a fruitful and wonderful experience for me. During the two week stay at Trinity College, I have seen myself rise above expectations to complete certain tasks that I'd never imagine I would be able to complete.
Although 2 weeks in university may sound boring to some, but having experienced it, it was really an unforgettable learning trip for me. For example, the ethics lectures we've gone through, or even the leadership project that was tasked to each mentor group... I certainly feel that I've gain confidence in approaching people. Frankly speaking, I was really shy on the first few days and I hardly spoke up in my group. And i want to take this opportunity to thank my mentor, Ryen, as he tried his best to make us feel comfortable within our group. Despite facing so many students from different backgrounds, and a daunting task of getting us to bond as one, I felt that the mentors had succeeded in their task. From them, I learnt that we have to be prepared before any activities in case of any hiccups and sometimes we have to sacrifice in order to benefit others.
From this, I would be bringing back what I have gained from the mentors back to my CCA and hope that my juniors would follow in my footsteps. Although leadership may have been the focus of this summer school, I have certainly learnt much more. Throughout the 2 weeks, being able to meet new friends has allowed me to improve communication skills. This aspect in leadership is certainly crucial from what I have experienced during the leadership project. Without good communication between the group members, the whole group wouldn't be able to work together.
Lastly, summer school is certainly a programme that I enjoyed through my years in secondary school and I would recommend it to any of my juniors who gets selected for the trip not to give it a waste. I would like to end of my post by saying a big thank you to all the teachers and fellow schoolmates that went for the trip:D
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Final Post - Trinity College Young Leaders Summer School 2009
Hi guys,
It has been one week after a great trip that i had experience in my life. I really like to thank the teachers for letting me have this opportunity to learn and experience how university life is like. Perhaps, this would be my final trip in Ngee Ann and this trip will mark a great ending to it. I'm still thinking of the summer school friends whenever i'm looking through the photos on facebook. How long can this last? Maybe a life-time!
From this two-weeks trip, i had really grown and learned a lot about how to become a successful leader. I remembered this lecturer said "A Leader is a person who change people's thinking." and i totally agree with this statement. Leadership is hard to describe.... Leadership is like art: hard to describe, but you know it when you see it. Leadership does not exist without Follow ship. To be a successful leader you need to respect, listen and know that each follower is following the right person in leading the way.
Other then the leadership lectures, we have also many fun activities that requires team bonding with one another. Through this, it has build up my self-confidences to step out my first step in speaking to the public. I have also learned that we must always be aware of our surroundings and to look out for the good things around us and learn from it. As we were in the Science World, we were attracted to many fun lectures and hands-on activities like Henri Poincare's Million Dollar Problem by Dr. Marty Ross where he share with us many fun ways of solving mathematical problems. And the NASA Space Suit and Zero Gravity Experiments by Dominic L. Del Rosso, Test Director. He share with us how zero-gravity flying can happen in and airplane with the necessary technology needed. Some hands-on activities are the Genetics Laboratory where we conduct science experiments like observing metaphase chromosomes from chinese hamster cells and isolation of green fluorescent protein from escherichia coli. There are still many other fun activities that i will not mention because its too many already.
Finally, to close up this final post, I would like to say a big thank you to this people. Ms Tan, Ms Low, Yan Yang, Wei Jie, Benedict, Dun Kai, Jing Yi, Victoria, Melissa, Germaine and Jia Hui.. Thank You very much! Knowing all of you for just two-weeks had forge down many great memories and friendship that will last forever and being such awesome friends and great teachers in my life. Hopefully next year 2010, all the 10 of us can study hard & play together and striving good results for 'O' Levels and becoming great future leaders.
Final Quotes:
- A Leader is someone who knows the way, goes the way and shows the way.
- Leadership 2.0: Its not who you know-its who knows you
Bye Guys!
Signing off
Gao Qian
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Final Post
It has been almost a week since we left Australia, but it still seemed like yesterday that I was still running on the grass of the bulpadock or chatting with friends. The two weeks that we had in Melbourne can be labelled as one of the best lessons in my life. It has taught me many things and allowed me to learn from others from around the world.
Firstly, let me sum up the two weeks that we had spent there. Right from our first day, as we stepped into Jeopardy( for the girls ), we realised the fact that we had to share bathrooms and that some of our rooms were not what we expected. So naturally, we were like "two weeks in this place?!?! " But as the days passed, we slowly adapted to the place. Having Germaine and Jiahui staying opposite us was awesome as we got the chance to look after one another too. Walking through the corridor every other day, it's nice to gradually have more people saying hi and smiling and I realised how despite our cultural differences, we can still easily make many friends.
From lectures to excursions, we have learnt countless amazing stuffs. The lectures provided me with alot of new knowledge and their way of learning captivated me and made me felt that the two hours were too short. Subjects like aerospace engineering and genetics laboratory were ones we would not have experienced in school. Also, beyond highschool and career lecture gave me a platform to think more about my future. :) The night activities saw us working with our mentor groups to sing and perform and also saw the 10 of us working together to belt out a tune. It has definitely bonded the 10 of us together. As we saw our mentors perform and lead activities, we also got to learn much as they had this spirit that was so influential that everyone would join in too. For example, working with our mentor groups on Trivia night was also fun as we all played our part to contribute to the answers. As the saying goes "two heads are better than one".
From merely schoolmates, we have also become good friends in the course of two weeks. Being there for one another, waking one another up in the morning, to eating our meals together, we have all bonded. I will never forget the time we chill out in one another's room. Everyone would bring along their chocolates, TimTams, etc, and we will chat and talk to pass time before the next activity. Also, when Weijie sprained his ankle, I saw everyone trying to help, such as visiting him in the morning and bringing breakfast. When some of us fell sick, the others constantly reminded them to drink water, or make honey drink for them. Also, Melissa helped me throughout the trip and was a great listening ear, cheering and encouraging me. This has all showed me how small acts of kindness goes a long way to make someone's day.
Of course, the 10 of us who went to Melbourne definitely have matured to be greater leaders. It started with us being shy and reserved, always waiting to be called upon. The welcome dinner, activities, lectures in the first few days saw us sitted at a corner within our own comfort zone. But as the days passed, we have all learned to step out, voice our ideas, participate in activities or even volunteer to do public speaking. It was not just an overnight change but through constant encouragement of each other and Ms Low and Ms Tan. During debrief, we listened to the lessons each other got from the day and the teachers' feedbacks. It was through this sessions which we realised some points we missed out in the day or aspects we could have improved in.
Being split into our respective mentor groups, we got to work with people of other countries. It has really been an eye-opener as different people had their views and ways of doing things, and with so many leaders in the group, we had to learn to give in and be a good follower instead. But through some activities, I realised that they do know alot more things than us, Singaporeans. So talking to them also taught me alot of stuffs. They also showed me that only through constant questioning can I be able to gain more knowledge. The mentors have also been great role-models for us.
As the Valedictory Dinner was going on, two of the students made a speech which I found most touching. As they said, the friendships formed in the two weeks would be ones we will remember for the rest of our lifes. Also, the lessons we learned in the two short weeks will forever be etched in our minds. As we touched back down in Singapore, we have already started missing the place. The two weeks spent in Trinity have of course passed in a flash and we cannot turn back the clock, but the memories only we have, we will keep in mind forever.
Lastly, a great huge THANKYOU to Ms Low, Ms Tan, Melissa, Jiahui, Germaine, Benedict, Weijie, GaoQian, Jingyi, Dunkai and Yanyang! Without them, this trip would not have been as awesome, fun and fruitful. :)
Firstly, let me sum up the two weeks that we had spent there. Right from our first day, as we stepped into Jeopardy( for the girls ), we realised the fact that we had to share bathrooms and that some of our rooms were not what we expected. So naturally, we were like "two weeks in this place?!?! " But as the days passed, we slowly adapted to the place. Having Germaine and Jiahui staying opposite us was awesome as we got the chance to look after one another too. Walking through the corridor every other day, it's nice to gradually have more people saying hi and smiling and I realised how despite our cultural differences, we can still easily make many friends.
From lectures to excursions, we have learnt countless amazing stuffs. The lectures provided me with alot of new knowledge and their way of learning captivated me and made me felt that the two hours were too short. Subjects like aerospace engineering and genetics laboratory were ones we would not have experienced in school. Also, beyond highschool and career lecture gave me a platform to think more about my future. :) The night activities saw us working with our mentor groups to sing and perform and also saw the 10 of us working together to belt out a tune. It has definitely bonded the 10 of us together. As we saw our mentors perform and lead activities, we also got to learn much as they had this spirit that was so influential that everyone would join in too. For example, working with our mentor groups on Trivia night was also fun as we all played our part to contribute to the answers. As the saying goes "two heads are better than one".
From merely schoolmates, we have also become good friends in the course of two weeks. Being there for one another, waking one another up in the morning, to eating our meals together, we have all bonded. I will never forget the time we chill out in one another's room. Everyone would bring along their chocolates, TimTams, etc, and we will chat and talk to pass time before the next activity. Also, when Weijie sprained his ankle, I saw everyone trying to help, such as visiting him in the morning and bringing breakfast. When some of us fell sick, the others constantly reminded them to drink water, or make honey drink for them. Also, Melissa helped me throughout the trip and was a great listening ear, cheering and encouraging me. This has all showed me how small acts of kindness goes a long way to make someone's day.
Of course, the 10 of us who went to Melbourne definitely have matured to be greater leaders. It started with us being shy and reserved, always waiting to be called upon. The welcome dinner, activities, lectures in the first few days saw us sitted at a corner within our own comfort zone. But as the days passed, we have all learned to step out, voice our ideas, participate in activities or even volunteer to do public speaking. It was not just an overnight change but through constant encouragement of each other and Ms Low and Ms Tan. During debrief, we listened to the lessons each other got from the day and the teachers' feedbacks. It was through this sessions which we realised some points we missed out in the day or aspects we could have improved in.
Being split into our respective mentor groups, we got to work with people of other countries. It has really been an eye-opener as different people had their views and ways of doing things, and with so many leaders in the group, we had to learn to give in and be a good follower instead. But through some activities, I realised that they do know alot more things than us, Singaporeans. So talking to them also taught me alot of stuffs. They also showed me that only through constant questioning can I be able to gain more knowledge. The mentors have also been great role-models for us.
As the Valedictory Dinner was going on, two of the students made a speech which I found most touching. As they said, the friendships formed in the two weeks would be ones we will remember for the rest of our lifes. Also, the lessons we learned in the two short weeks will forever be etched in our minds. As we touched back down in Singapore, we have already started missing the place. The two weeks spent in Trinity have of course passed in a flash and we cannot turn back the clock, but the memories only we have, we will keep in mind forever.
Lastly, a great huge THANKYOU to Ms Low, Ms Tan, Melissa, Jiahui, Germaine, Benedict, Weijie, GaoQian, Jingyi, Dunkai and Yanyang! Without them, this trip would not have been as awesome, fun and fruitful. :)
Final Post - For Trinity
Well, half a month sounds like a long way to go. But, if you were to slow down our fun and laughters, you would notice how short that 15 days of joy and experience would be.
That period was basically a fast forward version of our everyday life, only more amazing and fruitful for me.
Through this 2week Summer School, I have definitely learned alot more about life. Pick up many essential skills along the way. Made many powerpacks friends, and learned a whole lot more stuffs outside of Singapore.
Still remember the moment when we touched down on Trinity? Guess you guys do. The amazing castle-like buildings, alongside with the modern swipe card keys. The slit green grass. The big old tree. The wonderfull dining hall. And most importantly, the irritating flies buzzing around us. It was a "Wow" for me. A never-seen-before sight for me personally.
Those recalling flashbacks of Karaoke Night, Trinity's Got Talent, Cultural Night. We had many awesome time with others. Not forgetting the Shopping sprees we had at the Night Market, the Movie we caught, Bollywood Dancing. And lastly, Lygon Street.
For me, I've been engulfed by the amazing times we had, these activities definitely would be hard to forget.
Also, the enlightening lectures we had. The ones I defintely enjoyed are the Climate Change talk, the OxFam presentation, Leadership Lectures, Beyond Highschool, and Career talks.
I've abosolutely learned how to become a better Global Citizen.
Reminisce the mini-parties we had in our room, the amusing games and talks among ourselves. All of that, I will never forget those wonderfull moments. The time we spent together singing along Benedict's mesmerizing notes on the piano.
And also not to overlook, the meaningful debrief sessions we had with Ms Tan and Ms Low. The priceless comments from them. Invaluable.
Recalling the time we spent with our cross-cultural friends. Our global friends from Malaysia, India, Australia and even China! That unforgettable experience. The undying friendships we had. How we called each other "Brothers", "Abang". Precious.
The friendship we had among the 10 of us. How we knew each other so well! However unhappy we are that night. We never bear grudges at each other. Because deep in our hearts, we know we care for each other.
Even simple things like 3 meals a day. 7 Days a week. 2 week. Breakfast Lunch Dinner. Brought us all together. Through very simple things, we bonded, we shared. Thats something really promising.
I would like to thank all of you when a suffered a sprain on my ankle, whenever I'm in need of a certain something or help.
For Germaine, thank you for helping me take my bag and being concerned for me.
For JingYi and Dunkai, for being constantly asking whether I'm fine, and singing Chinese Songs with me in the bathroom, and JingYi for his babies and Dunkai for his soap powder.
For GaoQian, helping me with the SIM card and taking up the duty of taking care of us.
For YanYang, being for straight forward makes you a better friend, and for lending me your soap powder.
For Melissa and Victoria, bringing joy to others and cracking jokes when we have our mini-parties
For JiaHui, how good it is to have someone I know in our Menthor groups! And being understanding!
Lastly for Benedict! Thanks for helping out with my ankle. For always trying to force me to get up on your back(plan failed). For being my buddy and taking care of me
P.S Benedict snores alot and he is one who never wake up to shut his alarm.
Through this 2week with you guys at Trinity. I've learned to become a better person, know more about myself. And I'll defintely apply whatever I've learned when I'm back in school, in camps.
With that, I end my final post.
For Trinity!
Regards
Wei Jie
That period was basically a fast forward version of our everyday life, only more amazing and fruitful for me.
Through this 2week Summer School, I have definitely learned alot more about life. Pick up many essential skills along the way. Made many powerpacks friends, and learned a whole lot more stuffs outside of Singapore.
Still remember the moment when we touched down on Trinity? Guess you guys do. The amazing castle-like buildings, alongside with the modern swipe card keys. The slit green grass. The big old tree. The wonderfull dining hall. And most importantly, the irritating flies buzzing around us. It was a "Wow" for me. A never-seen-before sight for me personally.
Those recalling flashbacks of Karaoke Night, Trinity's Got Talent, Cultural Night. We had many awesome time with others. Not forgetting the Shopping sprees we had at the Night Market, the Movie we caught, Bollywood Dancing. And lastly, Lygon Street.
For me, I've been engulfed by the amazing times we had, these activities definitely would be hard to forget.
Also, the enlightening lectures we had. The ones I defintely enjoyed are the Climate Change talk, the OxFam presentation, Leadership Lectures, Beyond Highschool, and Career talks.
I've abosolutely learned how to become a better Global Citizen.
Reminisce the mini-parties we had in our room, the amusing games and talks among ourselves. All of that, I will never forget those wonderfull moments. The time we spent together singing along Benedict's mesmerizing notes on the piano.
And also not to overlook, the meaningful debrief sessions we had with Ms Tan and Ms Low. The priceless comments from them. Invaluable.
Recalling the time we spent with our cross-cultural friends. Our global friends from Malaysia, India, Australia and even China! That unforgettable experience. The undying friendships we had. How we called each other "Brothers", "Abang". Precious.
The friendship we had among the 10 of us. How we knew each other so well! However unhappy we are that night. We never bear grudges at each other. Because deep in our hearts, we know we care for each other.
Even simple things like 3 meals a day. 7 Days a week. 2 week. Breakfast Lunch Dinner. Brought us all together. Through very simple things, we bonded, we shared. Thats something really promising.
I would like to thank all of you when a suffered a sprain on my ankle, whenever I'm in need of a certain something or help.
For Germaine, thank you for helping me take my bag and being concerned for me.
For JingYi and Dunkai, for being constantly asking whether I'm fine, and singing Chinese Songs with me in the bathroom, and JingYi for his babies and Dunkai for his soap powder.
For GaoQian, helping me with the SIM card and taking up the duty of taking care of us.
For YanYang, being for straight forward makes you a better friend, and for lending me your soap powder.
For Melissa and Victoria, bringing joy to others and cracking jokes when we have our mini-parties
For JiaHui, how good it is to have someone I know in our Menthor groups! And being understanding!
Lastly for Benedict! Thanks for helping out with my ankle. For always trying to force me to get up on your back(plan failed). For being my buddy and taking care of me
P.S Benedict snores alot and he is one who never wake up to shut his alarm.
Through this 2week with you guys at Trinity. I've learned to become a better person, know more about myself. And I'll defintely apply whatever I've learned when I'm back in school, in camps.
With that, I end my final post.
For Trinity!
Regards
Wei Jie
Friday, December 25, 2009
Final post for Trinity Summer School
Well, first thing i am gonna say is that i miss melbourne a lot and the experience of this summer school. I was very reluctant to leave. For me, i feel that the two weeks seems to be very short as we are having so much fun. I could still remember we were just boarding the plane to melbourne.. I miss it so much. I wish i could stay longer there. I hope santa claus could give me a time machine so that i could experience the whole summer school once again.
To be serious, I felt that all of us had learned a lot from the summer school. For example, we learned about ethics during lectures and we learned how to work together with strangers on a project during our stay there. I really want to thank our mentors as they were there to help us out and get us used to our surroundings. They also pulled us up when we were feeling down even though they are busy or tired. I still remember what one of our mentors said, he said that they were there to show us the way, to open the door for us, the potential to be a great leader is in all of us and they were there to help us realise our potential.
I think the debreifing by Miss Low and Miss Tan helped us out in a lot as we get to share our experiences during the day and talk about our feelings and thoughts. This help me out a lot as sharing how i feel and what i did makes me feel better if i was feeling down on that day. I think they should do this for other leadership camps.
Next, I feel that i have changed a lot over these 19 days. I feel that the invisible barrier around me has vanished and i could talk to people more easily and i could participate in more activities. For example, I suggested singing with Jing Yi for Cultural Night, the old me would not have suggested such a thing. I think his is the best change in me, from now on i can make more friends and speak up and give suggestions easily.
Next, i think i can contribute to my cca more by helping next year's sec three to lead my cca. I will help them out in leading our next year's sec one ccca members. I hope that they can become great leaders and than they could help others to become good leaders and the cycle will never stop.
To finish this final post, I think that this summer school experience is a great way to help us grow mentally and help us learn to be independent and teach us to care and look out for each other. If there is another trip like this, i would jump at the chance to go for it again.
Goodbye people :)
To be serious, I felt that all of us had learned a lot from the summer school. For example, we learned about ethics during lectures and we learned how to work together with strangers on a project during our stay there. I really want to thank our mentors as they were there to help us out and get us used to our surroundings. They also pulled us up when we were feeling down even though they are busy or tired. I still remember what one of our mentors said, he said that they were there to show us the way, to open the door for us, the potential to be a great leader is in all of us and they were there to help us realise our potential.
I think the debreifing by Miss Low and Miss Tan helped us out in a lot as we get to share our experiences during the day and talk about our feelings and thoughts. This help me out a lot as sharing how i feel and what i did makes me feel better if i was feeling down on that day. I think they should do this for other leadership camps.
Next, I feel that i have changed a lot over these 19 days. I feel that the invisible barrier around me has vanished and i could talk to people more easily and i could participate in more activities. For example, I suggested singing with Jing Yi for Cultural Night, the old me would not have suggested such a thing. I think his is the best change in me, from now on i can make more friends and speak up and give suggestions easily.
Next, i think i can contribute to my cca more by helping next year's sec three to lead my cca. I will help them out in leading our next year's sec one ccca members. I hope that they can become great leaders and than they could help others to become good leaders and the cycle will never stop.
To finish this final post, I think that this summer school experience is a great way to help us grow mentally and help us learn to be independent and teach us to care and look out for each other. If there is another trip like this, i would jump at the chance to go for it again.
Goodbye people :)
Final Post about summer school
Hellos:D
Like everybody else I'm missing summer school and everybody there. I have learnt many things that I never expected myself to learn at the summer school. The whole trip was a lot more fun than I thought it would be. I have learnt not just from the lectures but also from the surounding people and things. Like Ms Low always said :"Be observant of your surroundings"
At summer school, I learnt something very important known as friendship and the power of friendship. Friendship is a very important part of summer school. I believe that everyone has a "close friend" other than our own schoolmates. Although 2 weeks may seem very short but everyone as made lots of friends that up till now we still contact one another. One example is Yu Peng, during the 1st week he was extremely quiet and it was very rare to even hear his voice but during the 2nd week due to people that tried to make friends with him he opened up and he was with a group. We could even hear him speak and laughter coming out from him. I think without these people known as friends that reached out to him, he probably would still be very quiet at the end of summer school.
Of course, within our own school, we formed a strong bond through the 2 weeks. Compared to the 1st few days where we just stick the people we knew better, we have formed a very strong bond and friendship within ourselves. In the beginning, during debrief we would still keep some thoughts within ourselves because we are afraid of what others think but as the weeks pass we are more willing to share about what we think and feel because we have became more familiar with one another. There were times where some of us were sick and injured and all of us showed care for one another. We shared laughter and tough times together hence we were are very willing to express ourselves as we do not feel uncomfortable within ourselves.
The main aim of this trip is to learn leadership. Through all the lectures and activities, I learnt a lot about leadership. Things like not neglecting any followers, communication is important and temper gets you nowhere. The mentors are living examples of what we want to learn of leaders. They are very enthusiastic, they involve everybody and never leaves everyone out. When the group feels lost (eg. leadership project) they show us the way then leaves us alone again so that we do not fully depend on them.
Through this trip, I have learnt a lot of things, a lot more things than just leadership and maybe also how to be a good follower. I made lots of friends and I truly enjoyed myself. I never knew learning could be so much fun! And I would like to thank everyone( 9 students and 2 teachers) that went with me on the trip and brought me many fond memories that will last for a lifetime! :D With that, I shall end here! Bye!
Like everybody else I'm missing summer school and everybody there. I have learnt many things that I never expected myself to learn at the summer school. The whole trip was a lot more fun than I thought it would be. I have learnt not just from the lectures but also from the surounding people and things. Like Ms Low always said :"Be observant of your surroundings"
At summer school, I learnt something very important known as friendship and the power of friendship. Friendship is a very important part of summer school. I believe that everyone has a "close friend" other than our own schoolmates. Although 2 weeks may seem very short but everyone as made lots of friends that up till now we still contact one another. One example is Yu Peng, during the 1st week he was extremely quiet and it was very rare to even hear his voice but during the 2nd week due to people that tried to make friends with him he opened up and he was with a group. We could even hear him speak and laughter coming out from him. I think without these people known as friends that reached out to him, he probably would still be very quiet at the end of summer school.
Of course, within our own school, we formed a strong bond through the 2 weeks. Compared to the 1st few days where we just stick the people we knew better, we have formed a very strong bond and friendship within ourselves. In the beginning, during debrief we would still keep some thoughts within ourselves because we are afraid of what others think but as the weeks pass we are more willing to share about what we think and feel because we have became more familiar with one another. There were times where some of us were sick and injured and all of us showed care for one another. We shared laughter and tough times together hence we were are very willing to express ourselves as we do not feel uncomfortable within ourselves.
The main aim of this trip is to learn leadership. Through all the lectures and activities, I learnt a lot about leadership. Things like not neglecting any followers, communication is important and temper gets you nowhere. The mentors are living examples of what we want to learn of leaders. They are very enthusiastic, they involve everybody and never leaves everyone out. When the group feels lost (eg. leadership project) they show us the way then leaves us alone again so that we do not fully depend on them.
Through this trip, I have learnt a lot of things, a lot more things than just leadership and maybe also how to be a good follower. I made lots of friends and I truly enjoyed myself. I never knew learning could be so much fun! And I would like to thank everyone( 9 students and 2 teachers) that went with me on the trip and brought me many fond memories that will last for a lifetime! :D With that, I shall end here! Bye!
final post
Hey everyone!
I miss summer school!!! Even though it has already been a week, I still think about the time I had in Melbourne everyday. I miss the people, the food and especially the fun I had there. Young Leader Summer School (YLSS) was a great experience! I can say that it is the best so far in my 15years. Over the two weeks, all of us grew to become a better leader and also a better person. This camp taught me many things.
I am not too self conscious now. Before, I always think how people will look at me but now, I am mostly being myself! :) I have also learnt to be more participative. When the organizers ask for volunteers to participate in games, I am more willing to volunteer myself. I know I will gain more experience and also have fun at the same time when participating. At the starting part of the trip, I volunteered mostly unwilling. For example, during the opening ceremony, the aborigines invited us to join them for the dance. After much persuasion from Ms Low and ms tan, we went up. It was definitely more enjoyable doing the dance than watching it from the side. So, we should volunteer ourselves at any time.
Also, from the karaoke night, I learnt that we need to do proper planning before carrying out the activity. My group screwed up our performance because there was a last minute change. For anything to succeed, we need good and detailed planning.
From interacting with my group, I have learnt to speak up more often. I voice out my comments. Although others might reject my ideas, but at least I know that my ideas are heard and that there will not be any regrets for not giving my opinion.
From Trivia night, I realized that the other campers from other countries are really good in their general knowledge. For example, one of the questions, they gave the first line of a storybook and asked us to name the title of the book. A girl from India got it as soon as she read the question. We need to really buck up on our general knowledge. We cannot just know things that we learn in school. There are many more things outside the world that we should find out. From this experience, I will try to read the papers everyday to gain more knowledge.
During team skilling, we were grouped into different groups again. I was with Germaine. There were many activities such as group dance, longest sentence formed and many more. My group had the lowest score all the way until the last activity. The last activity would decide the winner and I was very tensed when they were announcing the winner. My group won in the end!! Its like we were last and then suddenly, we won. That’s really amazing! We were all elated!
For the group presentation, we had to present individually- in front of the whole summer school. We were all nervous as we do not have much experience doing public speaking. But after presenting, I realized it’s not so scary after all. If not for this group presentation, I doubt I will have a chance to speak in front of so many people anytime soon.
After two weeks of fun and engaging activities, on the last night, my group was announced winner! We all felt accomplished and rewarded for the effort we have put in. It was all worth while. Although I am not very close to my group, I realized that we can all work very well together. Amazing race, group presentation, miniolympics. These were the activities that showed team spirit within my group. We were supportive towards each other and we never blame each other for anything. That’s the good thing about my group. Winning the best group award was really just a bonus.
This marks the end of summer school. I know it won’t be anytime soon till I experience something like this again. I wanna thank the teachers and all the others who went there with me. I had a time of my life!! :D
Signing off.
I miss summer school!!! Even though it has already been a week, I still think about the time I had in Melbourne everyday. I miss the people, the food and especially the fun I had there. Young Leader Summer School (YLSS) was a great experience! I can say that it is the best so far in my 15years. Over the two weeks, all of us grew to become a better leader and also a better person. This camp taught me many things.
I am not too self conscious now. Before, I always think how people will look at me but now, I am mostly being myself! :) I have also learnt to be more participative. When the organizers ask for volunteers to participate in games, I am more willing to volunteer myself. I know I will gain more experience and also have fun at the same time when participating. At the starting part of the trip, I volunteered mostly unwilling. For example, during the opening ceremony, the aborigines invited us to join them for the dance. After much persuasion from Ms Low and ms tan, we went up. It was definitely more enjoyable doing the dance than watching it from the side. So, we should volunteer ourselves at any time.
Also, from the karaoke night, I learnt that we need to do proper planning before carrying out the activity. My group screwed up our performance because there was a last minute change. For anything to succeed, we need good and detailed planning.
From interacting with my group, I have learnt to speak up more often. I voice out my comments. Although others might reject my ideas, but at least I know that my ideas are heard and that there will not be any regrets for not giving my opinion.
From Trivia night, I realized that the other campers from other countries are really good in their general knowledge. For example, one of the questions, they gave the first line of a storybook and asked us to name the title of the book. A girl from India got it as soon as she read the question. We need to really buck up on our general knowledge. We cannot just know things that we learn in school. There are many more things outside the world that we should find out. From this experience, I will try to read the papers everyday to gain more knowledge.
During team skilling, we were grouped into different groups again. I was with Germaine. There were many activities such as group dance, longest sentence formed and many more. My group had the lowest score all the way until the last activity. The last activity would decide the winner and I was very tensed when they were announcing the winner. My group won in the end!! Its like we were last and then suddenly, we won. That’s really amazing! We were all elated!
For the group presentation, we had to present individually- in front of the whole summer school. We were all nervous as we do not have much experience doing public speaking. But after presenting, I realized it’s not so scary after all. If not for this group presentation, I doubt I will have a chance to speak in front of so many people anytime soon.
After two weeks of fun and engaging activities, on the last night, my group was announced winner! We all felt accomplished and rewarded for the effort we have put in. It was all worth while. Although I am not very close to my group, I realized that we can all work very well together. Amazing race, group presentation, miniolympics. These were the activities that showed team spirit within my group. We were supportive towards each other and we never blame each other for anything. That’s the good thing about my group. Winning the best group award was really just a bonus.
This marks the end of summer school. I know it won’t be anytime soon till I experience something like this again. I wanna thank the teachers and all the others who went there with me. I had a time of my life!! :D
Signing off.
Thursday, December 24, 2009
END OF SUMMER SCHOOL@TRINITY COLLEGE 2009 --- CONCLUSION
hi all, i am missing the friends met in summer school. This trip had let me learned a lot. At first, i don't know any of the people from Ngee Ann going this trip with me, but after this i am sure that we had understand each other better already and become more bonded. We also get to know friends not just from our school and too from other schools and countries.
Not just about making friends from other schools and countries, i had also learned many things about leadership, which is the main objective of this trip. A leader must be able to speak with confident. As to make people follow you, you must be confident in yourselves and when the followers see you, they would then trust you. Eye contact with the person you are talking to is also very important. It is very rude to talk to one without looking at the person eyes and it also tell the other party that you are not confident.
Being a leader isn't that simple, they had to face many kind of problems when they are leading the followers, therefore, they have to make quick and decisive choices in times of situations. Having too much leader isn't a good thing. This cause conflicts among one another because of different opinions. At this moment, if there is one who can step out and resolve this conflict and make others listen to him is the real leader, even though he may not speak up in normal time. As some of the people will do is to listen and see how the things progress and only step out when it is neccessary. There won't be leadership if there isn't any followship. A leader must have followers and some of this followers are potential leaders. This meant that a leader doesn't always have to lead the others but too have to know when to obey.
In this trip, we also get to feel the live in college. They have lectures which sometimes require them to walk quite a long distance to their lecture halls and the life of not staying at home for 15 days. In this 15 days trip, i think i have changed a lot to the better and become more independent. I know how to socialise with friends better rather than before which i just keep quiet and 'emo' in one corner.
I would use the leadership skills i had learned in this trip and use it wisely in my CCA, NPCC. Being the assistant training head, i would like to use the leadership skills i had learn and to teach my juniors on how to become a good leader so as to make NPCC a better CCA. Having a group of cadets listening to orders from their respective leader, we as the leaders must not lead them to the wrong way, instead we should try to change them to a better person with discipline and respect and most importantly integrity.
Not just contributing to my CCA, i shall also contribute to the school as well. There are upcoming sec1 orientation camp and KOREF. If i am part of the in charge of these activities, i would use the leadership skill and make the followers have trust and would want to follow me. If i am not part of the in charge of these activity, i will to give advices to my friends who are in charge of this so as to let them also have an idea of some leadership skills which they may need to use it during the trip.
If i could, i would like to turn back time and restart this program again with a more excited mindset or could have a trip with my 9 good friends again and of course with the 2 caring teachers. I felt rather lucky to be chosen as the one of the 10 to go. This trip is very interesting and i could learn many things from it and it is worth going.
Not just about making friends from other schools and countries, i had also learned many things about leadership, which is the main objective of this trip. A leader must be able to speak with confident. As to make people follow you, you must be confident in yourselves and when the followers see you, they would then trust you. Eye contact with the person you are talking to is also very important. It is very rude to talk to one without looking at the person eyes and it also tell the other party that you are not confident.
Being a leader isn't that simple, they had to face many kind of problems when they are leading the followers, therefore, they have to make quick and decisive choices in times of situations. Having too much leader isn't a good thing. This cause conflicts among one another because of different opinions. At this moment, if there is one who can step out and resolve this conflict and make others listen to him is the real leader, even though he may not speak up in normal time. As some of the people will do is to listen and see how the things progress and only step out when it is neccessary. There won't be leadership if there isn't any followship. A leader must have followers and some of this followers are potential leaders. This meant that a leader doesn't always have to lead the others but too have to know when to obey.
In this trip, we also get to feel the live in college. They have lectures which sometimes require them to walk quite a long distance to their lecture halls and the life of not staying at home for 15 days. In this 15 days trip, i think i have changed a lot to the better and become more independent. I know how to socialise with friends better rather than before which i just keep quiet and 'emo' in one corner.
I would use the leadership skills i had learned in this trip and use it wisely in my CCA, NPCC. Being the assistant training head, i would like to use the leadership skills i had learn and to teach my juniors on how to become a good leader so as to make NPCC a better CCA. Having a group of cadets listening to orders from their respective leader, we as the leaders must not lead them to the wrong way, instead we should try to change them to a better person with discipline and respect and most importantly integrity.
Not just contributing to my CCA, i shall also contribute to the school as well. There are upcoming sec1 orientation camp and KOREF. If i am part of the in charge of these activities, i would use the leadership skill and make the followers have trust and would want to follow me. If i am not part of the in charge of these activity, i will to give advices to my friends who are in charge of this so as to let them also have an idea of some leadership skills which they may need to use it during the trip.
If i could, i would like to turn back time and restart this program again with a more excited mindset or could have a trip with my 9 good friends again and of course with the 2 caring teachers. I felt rather lucky to be chosen as the one of the 10 to go. This trip is very interesting and i could learn many things from it and it is worth going.
Final Post....I miss Summer SCHOOL!!!
Firstly, let me say that.... I miss Melbourne, I miss Trinity College and all of Summer School. These two weeks has been highly enjoyable to me, and i really really treasured all the precious memories we shared together, truthfully i did not want to come back to Singapore.. at least not so soon. But apparently as the old saying goes " All good things must come to an end."
In this fortnight, i have seen a lot, heard a lot, learnt a lot and experience lots. I've broaden my horizons and appreciated many other cultures. People all around the world come together in this enriching program that i felt everyone enjoyed and benefited in. I felt that i myself have learnt a lot and as the name of the programme suggests.. I have learnt to be a better leader and i aspire to become one. But at the same time, i hope to improve not just my leadership skills but also my own character and strive to be a better person.
Starting from the first day, prior to alighting in Melbourne, i was extremely excited about the whole thing. In the welcome dinner, we came together as a group to not just eat, but also to interact and socialise with other people who attended summer school, we had some partying game such as the limbo, dances and many other mini-games. I myself tried out the limbo and it felt really good. However i noticed a flaw in most Singaporeans, other than me, there were not many other Singaporeans attempting the activites. Even our neighbours, Malaysians, are much more pro-active than us. Hence i told myself "Since i'm already here, i might as well just participate.". I took on the slogan of Nike and i am happy to said i enjoyed myself, therefore i feel that we should break away from our comfort zone and experience many other things. For there is always a first time in everything!
Thereafter, we were splitted into groups and had lots of fun socialising with everyone. We attended lectures, had a Karaoke Night, A trivia game. Had 3 meals a day together. Participated in events and encouraged one another. Observed and reflected what happened each day in our debriefing with the teachers, Ms Tan and Ms Low. Went to the Museum, the Zoo, hit the beach in Mornington Peninsula. I even got a sand spa there, played frisbee and soccer with many people... Went shopping in town, rock climbing,Leonardo Da Vinci Exhibition, Astrophysics lecture on the Outer Space, a wonderful "Trinity's Got Talents" and Cultural Night. And finally bringing the curtain to a close, the final stroke of a wonderful fairytale... The Valedictory Dinner.
I have grown a lot both physically and mentally. Physically due to the magnificent feast i had in Melbourne and on a more serious note, matured over the two weeks mentally thanks to the many mentors that guided me. In this case, "mentors" do not only applies to the many caring seniors that led our teams and made the programme a success, of course they were endearing,entertaining,helpful and a great role model for all of us young-leaders-would-be. However other educating figures also played their roles as "mentors", such as the many wise lecturers we had, the heartwarming staff of Trinity College, and of course Ms Tan and Ms Low, whose debriefing session was incredibly educating.
I've gain better knowledge as to how to improve myself and the many qualities that a good leader bore. A leader is one who inspire others, not force. A leader guides others and leads by example.
A good leader should respect others, have good perception, be disciplined and assertive yet determined and confident, integrity is a must, they must encourage others, have the courage to make crucial decisions and bounce back from failures, they must take initiative and be pro-active. A leader must take pride in what he or she do, but not proud.
These are but a few of the infinite qualities that brings us up the ladder of leadership, i am sure every single one of us has a little of each of these qualities. What we should do, is identify it, amplify it and achieve it.
Through Young Leaders Summer School, i have better identified my flaws and is currently working to correct them. I am not afraid to say there are a lot of major flaws in my character such as a violent temper, impatience and sometimes insensitive to others. I have been curbing the former for quite some time and are now much more aware to others, it has become my goal to change myself and at the same time strive to be more calm headed, have more empathy and be more aware of what others are doing and feeling. I must put myself in other people's shoes to better understand what they might be going through, for every problem there is a solution.
Linking this back to what i can contribute to Ngee Ann, my first thoughts come in the form of my CCA. As a CCA leader in the Wushu Team, i have already took up the role to lead others during training, but i have noticed certain actions done wrong by me and as i am striving to correct myself, i hope to lead better too. I certainly would try to bond the team better and try to serve as a role model to my juniors, especially since the new batch of Sec 1s are coming and i hope to lead by example and propel Wushu to earn MORE MEDALS!!
I shall also lend a helping hand to people in need at school and hope to aid the teachers and staff to building a better community in the school. I would focus more on my own CCA, however i am willing to help out with other events, such as the Sec 1 Orientation Camp or Sec 3 Koref Camp, if i am still able to apply for it!
Combining this experience with previous beneficial courses such as LEADS for Leaders, Outward Bounds Singapore, being a volunteer for Asian Youth Games, i have truly learnt how to communicate and interact with others and also toughen myself mentally for challenges as in life, there will always be ups and downs, and we need to learn to face it. Young Leaders Summer School has come to an end, but i know i will miss it for i already am, i know i will love it for i already has, and i know i will treasure all the friendships i have forged and all the memories that i have. I love Melbourne, I love Trinity College and i love all my new friends and of course old friends!
Signing off for the last time,
Jing Yi
Quote of the day "A good leader not only lead but also follows."
P.s : I will miss Melbourne food, okay not really but i will miss EVERYONE!!! I WANNA GO AGAIN!!!! Hopefully i can, but theres only a slight chance...
In this fortnight, i have seen a lot, heard a lot, learnt a lot and experience lots. I've broaden my horizons and appreciated many other cultures. People all around the world come together in this enriching program that i felt everyone enjoyed and benefited in. I felt that i myself have learnt a lot and as the name of the programme suggests.. I have learnt to be a better leader and i aspire to become one. But at the same time, i hope to improve not just my leadership skills but also my own character and strive to be a better person.
Starting from the first day, prior to alighting in Melbourne, i was extremely excited about the whole thing. In the welcome dinner, we came together as a group to not just eat, but also to interact and socialise with other people who attended summer school, we had some partying game such as the limbo, dances and many other mini-games. I myself tried out the limbo and it felt really good. However i noticed a flaw in most Singaporeans, other than me, there were not many other Singaporeans attempting the activites. Even our neighbours, Malaysians, are much more pro-active than us. Hence i told myself "Since i'm already here, i might as well just participate.". I took on the slogan of Nike and i am happy to said i enjoyed myself, therefore i feel that we should break away from our comfort zone and experience many other things. For there is always a first time in everything!
Thereafter, we were splitted into groups and had lots of fun socialising with everyone. We attended lectures, had a Karaoke Night, A trivia game. Had 3 meals a day together. Participated in events and encouraged one another. Observed and reflected what happened each day in our debriefing with the teachers, Ms Tan and Ms Low. Went to the Museum, the Zoo, hit the beach in Mornington Peninsula. I even got a sand spa there, played frisbee and soccer with many people... Went shopping in town, rock climbing,Leonardo Da Vinci Exhibition, Astrophysics lecture on the Outer Space, a wonderful "Trinity's Got Talents" and Cultural Night. And finally bringing the curtain to a close, the final stroke of a wonderful fairytale... The Valedictory Dinner.
I have grown a lot both physically and mentally. Physically due to the magnificent feast i had in Melbourne and on a more serious note, matured over the two weeks mentally thanks to the many mentors that guided me. In this case, "mentors" do not only applies to the many caring seniors that led our teams and made the programme a success, of course they were endearing,entertaining,helpful and a great role model for all of us young-leaders-would-be. However other educating figures also played their roles as "mentors", such as the many wise lecturers we had, the heartwarming staff of Trinity College, and of course Ms Tan and Ms Low, whose debriefing session was incredibly educating.
I've gain better knowledge as to how to improve myself and the many qualities that a good leader bore. A leader is one who inspire others, not force. A leader guides others and leads by example.
A good leader should respect others, have good perception, be disciplined and assertive yet determined and confident, integrity is a must, they must encourage others, have the courage to make crucial decisions and bounce back from failures, they must take initiative and be pro-active. A leader must take pride in what he or she do, but not proud.
These are but a few of the infinite qualities that brings us up the ladder of leadership, i am sure every single one of us has a little of each of these qualities. What we should do, is identify it, amplify it and achieve it.
Through Young Leaders Summer School, i have better identified my flaws and is currently working to correct them. I am not afraid to say there are a lot of major flaws in my character such as a violent temper, impatience and sometimes insensitive to others. I have been curbing the former for quite some time and are now much more aware to others, it has become my goal to change myself and at the same time strive to be more calm headed, have more empathy and be more aware of what others are doing and feeling. I must put myself in other people's shoes to better understand what they might be going through, for every problem there is a solution.
Linking this back to what i can contribute to Ngee Ann, my first thoughts come in the form of my CCA. As a CCA leader in the Wushu Team, i have already took up the role to lead others during training, but i have noticed certain actions done wrong by me and as i am striving to correct myself, i hope to lead better too. I certainly would try to bond the team better and try to serve as a role model to my juniors, especially since the new batch of Sec 1s are coming and i hope to lead by example and propel Wushu to earn MORE MEDALS!!
I shall also lend a helping hand to people in need at school and hope to aid the teachers and staff to building a better community in the school. I would focus more on my own CCA, however i am willing to help out with other events, such as the Sec 1 Orientation Camp or Sec 3 Koref Camp, if i am still able to apply for it!
Combining this experience with previous beneficial courses such as LEADS for Leaders, Outward Bounds Singapore, being a volunteer for Asian Youth Games, i have truly learnt how to communicate and interact with others and also toughen myself mentally for challenges as in life, there will always be ups and downs, and we need to learn to face it. Young Leaders Summer School has come to an end, but i know i will miss it for i already am, i know i will love it for i already has, and i know i will treasure all the friendships i have forged and all the memories that i have. I love Melbourne, I love Trinity College and i love all my new friends and of course old friends!
Signing off for the last time,
Jing Yi
Quote of the day "A good leader not only lead but also follows."
P.s : I will miss Melbourne food, okay not really but i will miss EVERYONE!!! I WANNA GO AGAIN!!!! Hopefully i can, but theres only a slight chance...
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Hellos:D
The final day of the summer school. I believe that everyone will at least feel a little reluctant to go. 18th december. In the morning, we were once again divided into groups.
For me, I had a general knowledge quiz and my group got the lowest points. This goes to show that our general knowledge isn's so good. Hahas :D Maybe we could do something about. Then we had the beyond highschool talk and we had to sit in a circle and vincent started off with asking eveybody's ambition when they were 5 years old and now. Almost everyone had different ambitions for when they were 5 and now.
After lunch, it was the leadership project presentation that everyone had prepared for quite some time. For my group, we did not do any rehearsal at all. So when we went on stage it was pretty disorganized and I was stammering most of the tym. Justin knew we weren't prepared and he was willing to stand out to the introduction and the summarizing. He was trying to cover up for the mistakes we did and this is something we should do as a group. Like Ms Tan said before " A team is only as good as it's lousiest person" after the presentation, our group even encourage each other saying that we did our best that's what's important. It is also due to this encouragement over the past 2 weeks that my group has manage to build a very good bond within ourselves. We'll never discourage anyone and I believe this is something every group should learn to do.
For the leadership presentation, Dun Kai mentioned that one of his group members did not want to go up to present and so we should learn to face our fears because everyone has their own fears and speaking up in front of one dining hall full of people sure isn's easy with the fact that there are judges there as well too. But the important thing is to face our fears because we can escape for a period but not always and we might even regret it next time if we didn't go up to present. And for the other group members, I feel that they should do their part to ease the nervousness of the panicking group member and like let her know that everyone's together out there. This is what I feel, a part of teamwork.
For Melissa, she mentioned that she was feeling nervous before the presentation and this shows that they really want to win because they put in great effort. Basically, I feel that because melissa's team worked really hard together they actually felt nervous together and in the end they reaped what they sow and they felt really happy together!
At night, We had the valecdictory dinner. And like what Justin said over the past 2 weeks we had forged a really deep friendship. We may come from different countries and have different culture but we all share common things and like the same things too. This is sufficient for us to be friends. I agreed with what he said and it really summarises the whole summer school to not only learn about leadership but also to form strong bonds with other people from other countries and other people within our own countries too.
That's pretty much what I wanted to say. So good night!
The final day of the summer school. I believe that everyone will at least feel a little reluctant to go. 18th december. In the morning, we were once again divided into groups.
For me, I had a general knowledge quiz and my group got the lowest points. This goes to show that our general knowledge isn's so good. Hahas :D Maybe we could do something about. Then we had the beyond highschool talk and we had to sit in a circle and vincent started off with asking eveybody's ambition when they were 5 years old and now. Almost everyone had different ambitions for when they were 5 and now.
After lunch, it was the leadership project presentation that everyone had prepared for quite some time. For my group, we did not do any rehearsal at all. So when we went on stage it was pretty disorganized and I was stammering most of the tym. Justin knew we weren't prepared and he was willing to stand out to the introduction and the summarizing. He was trying to cover up for the mistakes we did and this is something we should do as a group. Like Ms Tan said before " A team is only as good as it's lousiest person" after the presentation, our group even encourage each other saying that we did our best that's what's important. It is also due to this encouragement over the past 2 weeks that my group has manage to build a very good bond within ourselves. We'll never discourage anyone and I believe this is something every group should learn to do.
For the leadership presentation, Dun Kai mentioned that one of his group members did not want to go up to present and so we should learn to face our fears because everyone has their own fears and speaking up in front of one dining hall full of people sure isn's easy with the fact that there are judges there as well too. But the important thing is to face our fears because we can escape for a period but not always and we might even regret it next time if we didn't go up to present. And for the other group members, I feel that they should do their part to ease the nervousness of the panicking group member and like let her know that everyone's together out there. This is what I feel, a part of teamwork.
For Melissa, she mentioned that she was feeling nervous before the presentation and this shows that they really want to win because they put in great effort. Basically, I feel that because melissa's team worked really hard together they actually felt nervous together and in the end they reaped what they sow and they felt really happy together!
At night, We had the valecdictory dinner. And like what Justin said over the past 2 weeks we had forged a really deep friendship. We may come from different countries and have different culture but we all share common things and like the same things too. This is sufficient for us to be friends. I agreed with what he said and it really summarises the whole summer school to not only learn about leadership but also to form strong bonds with other people from other countries and other people within our own countries too.
That's pretty much what I wanted to say. So good night!
Thursday, December 17, 2009
17 December 2009
Hey everyone, today it's my turn to blog. The two-weeks of intensive Young Leaders Summer School Programme is coming to and end.
To begin the day, we were split into three different groups for lectures. Melissa, Ben, Jing Yi and I was attending the Inner & Outer World Triva lecture. For me it was very interesting, we got to know more general knowledge about the different discoveries and inventions through a short quiz that we never really heard before or learned. But we manage to answer most of the questions correctly through guessing. For the rest, they had a lecture on Ethics. They was split into small groups to argue on a topic given to them and had to present their point at the end.
Next, we went over to the Harold White Lecture Theatre. The talk was about Taking the Fib out of Fibonacci. To me it was very extraordinary because the lecturer showed us many videos that is related to mathematics and how different methods of getting the answer out. He mentions this quote "People lie, numbers don't. But people use numbers to lie." This relates back to leadership, if one leader misuse their authority of doing something that is bad for the group or community. It will very soon be expose to the public and perhaps might cause lots of conflict between the group members. So one leader must stay true to him/her self to get respect from people that follows you.
After the delicious BBQ Lunch, we went down to Leonardo DaVinci Exhibition held at Queensbridge Square. It was slightly similar to the one held at the Singapore Science Center early this year. This was my first time, and i agree with Wei Jie that this exhibition taught us many of his works that inspires us and many people around the world. He was not only an artist but also a mathematician and a scientists and Ms Tan said his imagination comes first before mathematics and the rest of the subjects. I totally agree with this sentence and this is why he is so successful now even he is gone.
The Culture Night was one of the best activities held. All the Singaporeans came together to sing some National Day songs with some dance to accompany with it. When everybody sang the songs it reminded us that we must treat each other equally. Quote from the pledge "Regards of Race, Language or Religious to build a Democratic Society". We cannot take things for granted and appreciate the things around us.
Tomorrow will be the last day of this summer school, hope that many experience and friends were made through this two weeks. Not forgetting that it's the beginning for us to become successful leaders in the future. Good Night!
To begin the day, we were split into three different groups for lectures. Melissa, Ben, Jing Yi and I was attending the Inner & Outer World Triva lecture. For me it was very interesting, we got to know more general knowledge about the different discoveries and inventions through a short quiz that we never really heard before or learned. But we manage to answer most of the questions correctly through guessing. For the rest, they had a lecture on Ethics. They was split into small groups to argue on a topic given to them and had to present their point at the end.
Next, we went over to the Harold White Lecture Theatre. The talk was about Taking the Fib out of Fibonacci. To me it was very extraordinary because the lecturer showed us many videos that is related to mathematics and how different methods of getting the answer out. He mentions this quote "People lie, numbers don't. But people use numbers to lie." This relates back to leadership, if one leader misuse their authority of doing something that is bad for the group or community. It will very soon be expose to the public and perhaps might cause lots of conflict between the group members. So one leader must stay true to him/her self to get respect from people that follows you.
After the delicious BBQ Lunch, we went down to Leonardo DaVinci Exhibition held at Queensbridge Square. It was slightly similar to the one held at the Singapore Science Center early this year. This was my first time, and i agree with Wei Jie that this exhibition taught us many of his works that inspires us and many people around the world. He was not only an artist but also a mathematician and a scientists and Ms Tan said his imagination comes first before mathematics and the rest of the subjects. I totally agree with this sentence and this is why he is so successful now even he is gone.
The Culture Night was one of the best activities held. All the Singaporeans came together to sing some National Day songs with some dance to accompany with it. When everybody sang the songs it reminded us that we must treat each other equally. Quote from the pledge "Regards of Race, Language or Religious to build a Democratic Society". We cannot take things for granted and appreciate the things around us.
Tomorrow will be the last day of this summer school, hope that many experience and friends were made through this two weeks. Not forgetting that it's the beginning for us to become successful leaders in the future. Good Night!
16December2009
It's finally my turn to share and blog today.(sorry bout the late post) It was a enriching yet tiring day for all of us. First was the Genetics Laboratory Experiment, which I found most interesting. We got the opportunity to observe our DNA and cheek cells. I found out that the appratus used here were slightly different from those we used during SPA experiments in school. Also, the lab was new and therefore, we had the chance to use the proper apparatus. From this, I learned how one's action may affect another's. Such as destroying or vandalising on an object may affect the next person using it. Personally, I think that genetics is one the most interesting aspect of science. As the lab demonstrator told us "genetics is a world where infinite amount of questions can be asked everyday." It is one where the learning does not stop and people constantly search for information. Then we proceeded to the Melbourne Zoo and through the talk, we learnt more about ethics concerning the animals. Research done on animals should not inflict harm on them just for the benefits of human as animals also have their rights. Also, the guide brought out a snake for us to touch. It was quite an experience for me as I've always been afraid of snakes after the impressions of them on television shows and others. At first, I was nervous about touching the snake, but throught the encouragement of others, I've learnt to overcome my fear.
After that, we went for the NICA circus training. As Melissa mentioned, we should always be careful and also be spontaneous to do certain things. Yanyang also said that we should have confidence and contantly encourage others during activities. I believe many of us accomplished what we did today through these two factors mainly. Then, Weijie got injured and as Benedict says during debrief, we should be aware of our surroundings and help our partners. Dunkai also talked about taking the initiative to help others and also to be sensitive. If we were not sensitive, minor things that we said might offend someone and cause misunderstandings. Germaine also talked about not having negative thoughts as subconsciously, we would get affected and not be able to achieve certain things or goals. There were quite a number of injured people today and Jingyi mentioned that we should all take good care of ourselves. There's only4 2 days left!! Anyway, get well soon! That's all, goodnight! :)
After that, we went for the NICA circus training. As Melissa mentioned, we should always be careful and also be spontaneous to do certain things. Yanyang also said that we should have confidence and contantly encourage others during activities. I believe many of us accomplished what we did today through these two factors mainly. Then, Weijie got injured and as Benedict says during debrief, we should be aware of our surroundings and help our partners. Dunkai also talked about taking the initiative to help others and also to be sensitive. If we were not sensitive, minor things that we said might offend someone and cause misunderstandings. Germaine also talked about not having negative thoughts as subconsciously, we would get affected and not be able to achieve certain things or goals. There were quite a number of injured people today and Jingyi mentioned that we should all take good care of ourselves. There's only
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Day 16 in Melbourne
Well its finally my turn to blog, time seems to fly when we are having so much fun. I still feel like staying here forever with my friends. Well today sure is an eventful day for me, I am not going to write a lot as I do not feel very well so i will write a short post.
First thing today was the lecture about NASA Space Suits and Zero Gravity Experiments. Well for me it was intersting as I am interested in aerospace and planes. The first interesting thing that i noticed during the lecture is that they use video chat to allow the lecturer from Texas to talk to us about Zero Gravity. NASA use planes to fly parabolic flights at high altitudes to stimulate zero gravity for about 30 seconds. This effect can be used to conduct experiments like knowing how the human body react in zero gravity. They even have a student programme to allow students to know how it feels like in zero gravity. They said that they gave the students this experience so that they can bring back this positive feeling back to their community and inspire others. I feel that we can do the same thing to this trip and bring back our experience so that we can teach and inspire others as we are the only 10 chosen out of so many students to attend this trip. So we should make use of this honour that we are given and share it with as many people as possible.
Next thing i am going to talk about is the leadership lecture. I am just going to write down a few quotes. The first quote is that rest, exercise, sleep help to build good leadership. If we rest and exercise and sleep, we will have enough stamina to continue leading others. The next quote is Leadership does not even exist without followship. I think this further supports that to know that you are a good leader, all you need to do is to turn back and see if anyone is following you. Well during the lecture, i noticed some people are sleeping at the back and not paying attention. I think they should not do that as the lecture came from a long way away and we should at least pay attention to him even though we are very tired as he spent a lot of his time to give us this leadership talk.
Lastly is the Trinity's got talent activity this night. Well I had a lot of fun singing even though i had a headach and was not feeling well. Overall for the performance i think we did quite well but i think we all need to work on our communication as a few of us did not know what song we are performing tonight and we only got to know about it yesterday. I must admit that i was quite upset about it as i felt as if i was not part of the group as i did not noticed we even had a discussion about it and a decision was made without us knowing. This reminded me of my mentor group as they kind of isolate me and do not really care about me being part of the group so i was really scared that you guys are doing the same to me. Yes, i was scared. I hate being pushed aside and being ignored and being alone so i was really scared that i will end up belonging to no group. By the way i said i was upset, not angry so please do not be mistaken.(I do not get angry so easily)So i hope this will help you guys understand why i felt so upset today. I do not really know how to express how i feel so i will work on that and hope you guys will understand and help me if you can. Thanks guys:)Feel so much better now.
First thing today was the lecture about NASA Space Suits and Zero Gravity Experiments. Well for me it was intersting as I am interested in aerospace and planes. The first interesting thing that i noticed during the lecture is that they use video chat to allow the lecturer from Texas to talk to us about Zero Gravity. NASA use planes to fly parabolic flights at high altitudes to stimulate zero gravity for about 30 seconds. This effect can be used to conduct experiments like knowing how the human body react in zero gravity. They even have a student programme to allow students to know how it feels like in zero gravity. They said that they gave the students this experience so that they can bring back this positive feeling back to their community and inspire others. I feel that we can do the same thing to this trip and bring back our experience so that we can teach and inspire others as we are the only 10 chosen out of so many students to attend this trip. So we should make use of this honour that we are given and share it with as many people as possible.
Next thing i am going to talk about is the leadership lecture. I am just going to write down a few quotes. The first quote is that rest, exercise, sleep help to build good leadership. If we rest and exercise and sleep, we will have enough stamina to continue leading others. The next quote is Leadership does not even exist without followship. I think this further supports that to know that you are a good leader, all you need to do is to turn back and see if anyone is following you. Well during the lecture, i noticed some people are sleeping at the back and not paying attention. I think they should not do that as the lecture came from a long way away and we should at least pay attention to him even though we are very tired as he spent a lot of his time to give us this leadership talk.
Lastly is the Trinity's got talent activity this night. Well I had a lot of fun singing even though i had a headach and was not feeling well. Overall for the performance i think we did quite well but i think we all need to work on our communication as a few of us did not know what song we are performing tonight and we only got to know about it yesterday. I must admit that i was quite upset about it as i felt as if i was not part of the group as i did not noticed we even had a discussion about it and a decision was made without us knowing. This reminded me of my mentor group as they kind of isolate me and do not really care about me being part of the group so i was really scared that you guys are doing the same to me. Yes, i was scared. I hate being pushed aside and being ignored and being alone so i was really scared that i will end up belonging to no group. By the way i said i was upset, not angry so please do not be mistaken.(I do not get angry so easily)So i hope this will help you guys understand why i felt so upset today. I do not really know how to express how i feel so i will work on that and hope you guys will understand and help me if you can. Thanks guys:)Feel so much better now.
Monday, December 14, 2009
day 9 :)
hey! :) the day started off with an amazing race in our mentor groups! it was amazing..:D i found that through this activity, we learnt more about ourselves and others as well. Also, we got to interact closer this time round, so it has been a fruitful morning and afternoon for me. :)
After the amazing race, we went on to Direct Factory Outlet to shop for items for our valedictory dinner. I managed to get everything i need within a day here. So i feel satisfied after spending my money on my clothes and accessories. :) hope to spend more on other items.. (if i can find). hahas.
After shopping, we had pizza for dinner at the Junior Common Room. It was quite a nice and pleasant meal. :)
I really really enjoyed the amazing race and i hope to do something like this in Singapore~ :DD
After the amazing race, we went on to Direct Factory Outlet to shop for items for our valedictory dinner. I managed to get everything i need within a day here. So i feel satisfied after spending my money on my clothes and accessories. :) hope to spend more on other items.. (if i can find). hahas.
After shopping, we had pizza for dinner at the Junior Common Room. It was quite a nice and pleasant meal. :)
I really really enjoyed the amazing race and i hope to do something like this in Singapore~ :DD
Day 8
hey all, we went to the beach for the whole day!! whoots! It was really fun and a really nice experience. We buried jing yi and gao qian in the sand. :) hahas. We then had lunch at the pier, which i had difficulty crossing because i'm afraid of heights. But germaine was patiently helping me and asking me if i'm alright, so thank you very much germaine. :)
When we had lunch at the pier, there were some guys diving into the water and throwing balls at each other.
I feel that this is actually very dangerous and can cause serious harm to themselves if they're not careful. First of all, the water is shallow, so diving from a height may cause one to hit the rocks below and injure yourself. However, even if the water level is shallow, that doesn't mean that a person can't drown as well. So its is always better to take extra precautions of whatever it is that you are doing.
But, overall, it was a fun day for me. :D
hope you all enjoyed it as much as i did!
When we had lunch at the pier, there were some guys diving into the water and throwing balls at each other.
I feel that this is actually very dangerous and can cause serious harm to themselves if they're not careful. First of all, the water is shallow, so diving from a height may cause one to hit the rocks below and injure yourself. However, even if the water level is shallow, that doesn't mean that a person can't drown as well. So its is always better to take extra precautions of whatever it is that you are doing.
But, overall, it was a fun day for me. :D
hope you all enjoyed it as much as i did!
Sunday, Victoria.
Sorry bout the late post.
Anyway yesterday was awesome, of course, since it was a Sunday. Amazing race in the morning with mentor group was not fun because of some incidents. But when we went back to be with our friends, I got over it and it was overall a wonderful day. :) After lunch with pizza in JCR, we went to DFO(direct factory outlets). There were infinite amount of things to buy there, but I think that most of us realize that we had been splurging too much which resulted in us not being able buy more items. The guys bought formal tees and we girls bought wallets, dress and ecetera. One amazing stuff was that I was able to find flats of my size, which was one incident that made my day :D Although something happened yesterday that reminds us to always have integrity. In summary, being with friends made the daya memorable one.
Anyway yesterday was awesome, of course, since it was a Sunday. Amazing race in the morning with mentor group was not fun because of some incidents. But when we went back to be with our friends, I got over it and it was overall a wonderful day. :) After lunch with pizza in JCR, we went to DFO(direct factory outlets). There were infinite amount of things to buy there, but I think that most of us realize that we had been splurging too much which resulted in us not being able buy more items. The guys bought formal tees and we girls bought wallets, dress and ecetera. One amazing stuff was that I was able to find flats of my size, which was one incident that made my day :D Although something happened yesterday that reminds us to always have integrity. In summary, being with friends made the daya memorable one.
14th December in Melbourne.
Today was an incredible day, with rock climbing starting off our day, i was energetic for the rest of the day. Rock climbing pushed my physical limits and i reconfirmed my weaknesses in physical terms. I confirmed that i lacked upper body strength and power to push myself over my limits. Rock climbing was an incredible experience albeit trying out many times, i managed to push myself to the top of one of the rock course. The sense of satisfaction was incredible.
After that, we went back to Trinity College, whereby we went for a lecture on Ethics and how it affects our psychology. I agree with Dun Kai's point that some people were being irresponsible by not attending the lecture. That was seriously a morally wrong actions as people took time to plan for this summer school program and due to some people being absent, the talk was delayed by half an hour until most people turned up.
I felt that as leaders we should be disciplined enough to differ actions that are right and wrong, in this case, i am seriously revolted by the behaviour of some of the summer school students. In my opinion, even if we are truely tired, it is only polite that we turn up for a program that was scheduled specially for us. Even in the case where one seriously feel sick, we should let our mentors know and Victor, one of our mentors need not go back to the dorm to call the others.
Finally we ended our day with a Bollywood dancing program, it was rather boring at first however we soon got used to the tempo and i had a hell of a fun time. The dancing was both exciting and tiring, we learnt to better appreciate other people's culture, in this case Indian Culture.
Now i shall comment about what some of us shared during the lecture that i felt was important to point out.
Melissa's point that rockclimbing required determination and i agreed with that. however i wish to point out that not only rockclimbing may require determination. As leaders and normal humans, in our everyday life, a strong determination will allow us to strive to do better and work harder, hence achieving better results. Determination is something that we all have, but what it matters is how much we have.
As for Germaine, she pointed out a fact that trust is important among people as teamwork is essential in the group. In her own leadership group project, sharing burden and working in small groups helps to speed up their progress and help each other to work more efficiently. Therefore as an age old chinese saying goes, trust in those that you work with or do not work with them at all. Henceforth trust is indeed important in bonding and managing relationship. Trust clears your mind, doubts clouds them.
Next up is what Jia Hui said about her leadership project - Too many leaders, too little follower. Too many members speaking their opinion and being stubborn about their ideas, refusing to accept new suggestions from others gave her problems and delayed her group. I think that this caused a significant problem for her team and i wish to point out that as leaders, all the more we should be open minded and try to understand and incorporate others' ideas. This kills two birds with one stone and ensure better communication and working more effectively.
As mentioned in my psot, Dun Kai pointed out that people were irresponsible and disrespectful to the many staff of Trinity College as a good chunk of people missed out on the lecture. I shall not elaborate as i have already mentioned this point. What i wish to say is that respect others and others in turn shall respect you. Basic courtesy is very important as specified by my dear mother since young, and i certainly agree to that. xD
Yan Yang shared that he reached the top for the rock climbing activity and i felt happy for him. He showed us how important having the right mentality is, team work is also another point that he expressed. However i wish to say that the right mentality is indeed essential in the route of success. Only by having the correct values and mindset can we attain success.
Wei Jie allowed me knowledge that a leader must not be self-centred adn should be responsible enough to respect others. He and Jia Hui are in the same group and i think they met with pretty much problem with a particular member of their group which insisted on going her no thbe way, resulting in a birth of conflict.
As for Victoria, Ben, Gao Qian i did have much specific things to talk about. Sorry about that however, i still feel that your reflections are relevant, but by sharing with one another we did gain better insight into improving ourselves in various areas.
As pointed out by Ms Low, a great leader excels in all fields, not just in terms of values, punctiality and such, but also academically. Therefore i wish to point out that i learnt a lot about leadership and inter personal relationships.
Experience as a Liaison Officer in this year's Asian Youth Games also gave me the knowledge to better interact with people all around the world, knowing what to speak at what time is important. But to become a successful leader, there are a whole bunch of values that we still need to attain.
Quote of the Day by Ms Tan, " You do not know what you do now may affect you in the future."
So guys keep a cool head( im working on it!) and good nightz!
Jing, Bollywood-crazy.
After that, we went back to Trinity College, whereby we went for a lecture on Ethics and how it affects our psychology. I agree with Dun Kai's point that some people were being irresponsible by not attending the lecture. That was seriously a morally wrong actions as people took time to plan for this summer school program and due to some people being absent, the talk was delayed by half an hour until most people turned up.
I felt that as leaders we should be disciplined enough to differ actions that are right and wrong, in this case, i am seriously revolted by the behaviour of some of the summer school students. In my opinion, even if we are truely tired, it is only polite that we turn up for a program that was scheduled specially for us. Even in the case where one seriously feel sick, we should let our mentors know and Victor, one of our mentors need not go back to the dorm to call the others.
Finally we ended our day with a Bollywood dancing program, it was rather boring at first however we soon got used to the tempo and i had a hell of a fun time. The dancing was both exciting and tiring, we learnt to better appreciate other people's culture, in this case Indian Culture.
Now i shall comment about what some of us shared during the lecture that i felt was important to point out.
Melissa's point that rockclimbing required determination and i agreed with that. however i wish to point out that not only rockclimbing may require determination. As leaders and normal humans, in our everyday life, a strong determination will allow us to strive to do better and work harder, hence achieving better results. Determination is something that we all have, but what it matters is how much we have.
As for Germaine, she pointed out a fact that trust is important among people as teamwork is essential in the group. In her own leadership group project, sharing burden and working in small groups helps to speed up their progress and help each other to work more efficiently. Therefore as an age old chinese saying goes, trust in those that you work with or do not work with them at all. Henceforth trust is indeed important in bonding and managing relationship. Trust clears your mind, doubts clouds them.
Next up is what Jia Hui said about her leadership project - Too many leaders, too little follower. Too many members speaking their opinion and being stubborn about their ideas, refusing to accept new suggestions from others gave her problems and delayed her group. I think that this caused a significant problem for her team and i wish to point out that as leaders, all the more we should be open minded and try to understand and incorporate others' ideas. This kills two birds with one stone and ensure better communication and working more effectively.
As mentioned in my psot, Dun Kai pointed out that people were irresponsible and disrespectful to the many staff of Trinity College as a good chunk of people missed out on the lecture. I shall not elaborate as i have already mentioned this point. What i wish to say is that respect others and others in turn shall respect you. Basic courtesy is very important as specified by my dear mother since young, and i certainly agree to that. xD
Yan Yang shared that he reached the top for the rock climbing activity and i felt happy for him. He showed us how important having the right mentality is, team work is also another point that he expressed. However i wish to say that the right mentality is indeed essential in the route of success. Only by having the correct values and mindset can we attain success.
Wei Jie allowed me knowledge that a leader must not be self-centred adn should be responsible enough to respect others. He and Jia Hui are in the same group and i think they met with pretty much problem with a particular member of their group which insisted on going her no thbe way, resulting in a birth of conflict.
As for Victoria, Ben, Gao Qian i did have much specific things to talk about. Sorry about that however, i still feel that your reflections are relevant, but by sharing with one another we did gain better insight into improving ourselves in various areas.
As pointed out by Ms Low, a great leader excels in all fields, not just in terms of values, punctiality and such, but also academically. Therefore i wish to point out that i learnt a lot about leadership and inter personal relationships.
Experience as a Liaison Officer in this year's Asian Youth Games also gave me the knowledge to better interact with people all around the world, knowing what to speak at what time is important. But to become a successful leader, there are a whole bunch of values that we still need to attain.
Quote of the Day by Ms Tan, " You do not know what you do now may affect you in the future."
So guys keep a cool head( im working on it!) and good nightz!
Jing, Bollywood-crazy.
13dec, sunday.
hey everyone!
yesterday was a terrific day!! amazing race was fun. team spirit was shown during the race and we were all very encouraging. :) i'm glad that my group cheer each other on, even when things didnt go right, instead of blaming each other and bringing the spirit down. I think that's the reason why we came in second! Felt very accomplished for my group at that time. after that, we hang around to take some group pictures at the field area.
went to Direct Factory Outlet(DFO) after that which was really good as the things there were affordable. germaine bought a dress there. Feel happy for her! :D
okay, byebye!
yesterday was a terrific day!! amazing race was fun. team spirit was shown during the race and we were all very encouraging. :) i'm glad that my group cheer each other on, even when things didnt go right, instead of blaming each other and bringing the spirit down. I think that's the reason why we came in second! Felt very accomplished for my group at that time. after that, we hang around to take some group pictures at the field area.
went to Direct Factory Outlet(DFO) after that which was really good as the things there were affordable. germaine bought a dress there. Feel happy for her! :D
okay, byebye!
Day 9
Hey guys,
I had a wonderful day today. In the morning, we had a amazing race with our mentor groups. My group was very cooperative with each other and tried to over take two groups. In the end we came in 6th Place out of 12 and we were quite happy with the results even though we are not the winner.
The most important thing that i learn from this amazing race is not only about winning 1st place but have the experience to work with your team members and building spirits between each other day by day.
Tomorrow we will be having Rock Climbing, really looking forward to it. Nights Guys!
I had a wonderful day today. In the morning, we had a amazing race with our mentor groups. My group was very cooperative with each other and tried to over take two groups. In the end we came in 6th Place out of 12 and we were quite happy with the results even though we are not the winner.
The most important thing that i learn from this amazing race is not only about winning 1st place but have the experience to work with your team members and building spirits between each other day by day.
Tomorrow we will be having Rock Climbing, really looking forward to it. Nights Guys!
Day 9
Hey all, we kick-start the day with amazing race where my team showed great enthusiasm and support for one another. Through the race, I could see my group working much closer together. Through all the different activities, we could exploit each other's weaknesses and improve on them.
But in the end, we had lots of fun and our group bonded together. Therefore, I feel that more of this activity should be implemented to get the group closer together.
But in the end, we had lots of fun and our group bonded together. Therefore, I feel that more of this activity should be implemented to get the group closer together.
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Day 9: Amazing Race!
Hey guys,
basically, we started the day with the Amazing Race at Triniy.
It was an superb time, encouraging and have fun with our group members, epecially without the guidance of our mentors.
My group had real fun today. We bonded even closer, knowing each and every single one of our physical limits.
In the end, we manage to get a 9th place, not too bad:D
We all learnt that team work is really important over here at Summer School, so keep that up guys!
Regards,
Wei Jie
basically, we started the day with the Amazing Race at Triniy.
It was an superb time, encouraging and have fun with our group members, epecially without the guidance of our mentors.
My group had real fun today. We bonded even closer, knowing each and every single one of our physical limits.
In the end, we manage to get a 9th place, not too bad:D
We all learnt that team work is really important over here at Summer School, so keep that up guys!
Regards,
Wei Jie
9th Day of Melbourne, Amazing Race.
Sunday, 13 December 2009 in Trinity College,Melbourne. We started the day off with an amazing Amazing Race, it required cooperation from all members of my team for us to complete the hurdles set forth for us.
I learnt that a team bonds better by working together, cooperating as one. Although we met some probloms along the way, we managed gto conquer our fears and emeraged 5th among the 12 teams.
A normal weekend picnic was spoilt due to rainy weather concerns, henceforth plans were made for us to go shopping in another nearby district. Sunday is an all day out in Singapore and i had a wonderful sunday in Melbourne too.
Shopping, buying, eating and shopping again. <----- Nice way to destress.
It is a wonderful sunday for me and good night to everyone!
I learnt that a team bonds better by working together, cooperating as one. Although we met some probloms along the way, we managed gto conquer our fears and emeraged 5th among the 12 teams.
A normal weekend picnic was spoilt due to rainy weather concerns, henceforth plans were made for us to go shopping in another nearby district. Sunday is an all day out in Singapore and i had a wonderful sunday in Melbourne too.
Shopping, buying, eating and shopping again. <----- Nice way to destress.
It is a wonderful sunday for me and good night to everyone!
Day 9
Hey guys, today was a great day. We had a great day and i did not expect my group to win the race as we thought we were behind a lot of groups. But we were so desperate to win that we kept on encouraging each other and pushing each other to the finish line. In the end we ended up in the first place. We were so suprised that we won. I think encourage each other can really help you to acheive great things together. Alright thats about it, i need to sleep soon and so have a goodnight and have great fun during rockclimbing tomorrow.
Day 9
Hellos!
Today we had the amazing race and I felt that my team had good teamwork because even though our group knew that we were actually the last group, nobody said any negative words nor blame one another we just kept continuing and telling each other that we are going to win.
And during the billiards game because it required everyone to play and I wasn't good at pooling I have never played pool before and was reeally lousy at it but everyone was really encouraging and in the end even though we took a very long time to end the game but what I felt was that even though we came in last we really had a lot of fun and compared to the 1st day our teamwork had improved a lot and now without the mentor we could happily communicate with each other.
Among ourselves too, I feel that over the past 9 days we had really build quite a strong bond because previously there were certain people that I totally never talk to but now I talk to everyone. And I think we care for one another which is a good thing :)
We are also very much more observant now compared to before.
Hope to have a great day tomorrow.
Good night!
Today we had the amazing race and I felt that my team had good teamwork because even though our group knew that we were actually the last group, nobody said any negative words nor blame one another we just kept continuing and telling each other that we are going to win.
And during the billiards game because it required everyone to play and I wasn't good at pooling I have never played pool before and was reeally lousy at it but everyone was really encouraging and in the end even though we took a very long time to end the game but what I felt was that even though we came in last we really had a lot of fun and compared to the 1st day our teamwork had improved a lot and now without the mentor we could happily communicate with each other.
Among ourselves too, I feel that over the past 9 days we had really build quite a strong bond because previously there were certain people that I totally never talk to but now I talk to everyone. And I think we care for one another which is a good thing :)
We are also very much more observant now compared to before.
Hope to have a great day tomorrow.
Good night!
Day 9
Hi all, today we had amazing race and shopping. I will just focus on what happen in my group during the amazing race. There were two boys who had sprained their legs during the amazing race and therefore they could not run fast to the checkpoints. There was one girl who was telling us to hurry up and run although knowing their situation. After one of the checkpoints, the girl told the guys who are injured to report injury and not participating in this race. I feel that those words that come out from her mouth was really hurtful to them as she was like indirectly telling them not to be a burden of the group. At that point of time, the boys agreed to stay behind and not participate in the race but the mentor disagree. I regretted of not helping them when the girl said that to them as they were in a very uneasy position to tell the girls that they want to continue. I think I should have helped them instead of sitting down there seeing how things progress. I hope I would not allow this to happen to my friends again.
Day 8
Hi all, we went to the beach the whole day. We get to play games on the beach and do what we want to do there. We 'buried' Gao Qian and Jing Yi in the sand. It was quite difficult for one person to 'bury' them as we have to use lots of sand to cover the surface area of the body. After that, we have our lunch at the pier eating our sandwich. After which, we went together to shop around the town area nearby. We didn't buy anything except for ice-cream which too me years to finish it.
Around 4, we had to go back to trinity and had our dinner there, then we went to Melbourne central to shop for souvenirs, but which many shops had closes by the time we reached there. However we still manage to get some souvenirs in Chinatown. That day was the most enjoyable day i ever had...
Around 4, we had to go back to trinity and had our dinner there, then we went to Melbourne central to shop for souvenirs, but which many shops had closes by the time we reached there. However we still manage to get some souvenirs in Chinatown. That day was the most enjoyable day i ever had...
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Day 8, 12 Dec
Today, we spent the whole day out at the beach and a little shopping. I would like to add on to what Germaine has said about the guys ‘swimming’ in the water near the pier. There were quite a few guys throwing balls around and one of them accidentally threw the ball and hit a guy. I didn’t notice what happened but from what I heard from ms low, Alex was very forgiving. Although he was hurt, he knew that the guy did not do it on purpose, and did not blame him at all. We should learn to be forgiving and not take things to heart.
Day 7, 11 Dec
Hey all! It is my chance to share with you all today.
I have always been dozing off during lectures but I have found a solution to keep me awake! Yesterday morning, I went for a jog with dunkai, germaine, jingyi, jiahui, gaoqian, yanyang and Victoria. It’s a good way to start the day! After that, I felt awake for the whole day which was really good as I could pay attention during lectures.
For the first lecture, it was on Intellectual Property. Intellectual property is something that you create with your mind. It is not a physical property. Major types of Intellectual Property Rights are copyright, trademarks, registered design, trade secrets and patents. Basically its about protecting your ideas and preventing others from copying them. Like what weijie and benedict said, we should also credit people for the things they have done.
Next up was another lecture. This time, it was about Art and Science Materials Conservation. The objective is to stabilize and preserve culturally significant materials. Problems might be faced. Solutions to them are to understand the composition and behaviour of original materials, define mechanism of deterioration and to be able to observe all materials used. When we have a problem, we shouldn’t see just the surface of the problem but investigate deeper into it.
For the last lecture of the day, we had a talk about Global Warming. I find that what Victoria pointed out was right. We should set goals that are harder to attain so that we challenge ourselves and do our best to achieve it.
After that, we went to Chinatown by tram for dinner. For my group, we settled down in an Asian restaurant. Other groups had dinner at different places. Then, we walked over to Melbourne Central for chocolate desert at Max Brenner. It served very good chocolate. There’s one in Singapore at the Esplanade. So yeah, we can always eat them again back home. :D
As I was walking pass a shop at Melbourne Central, this quote caught my attention and I found it really meaningful. “We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give” Winston Churchill. I find the quote really true. In life, we have to contribute so that we will get something good in return which can improve your life.
Lastly, yesterday, when gaoqian lost his camcorder, those of us who were in the same room as him neglected him. I guess all of us loss things here and find them very quickly in awhile so we did not take him seriously. That was our bad. We should learn from Aaron who helped gaoqian look for his camcorder. Caring is one of the key points in becoming a good leader.
That’s all, everyone! Goodnight. :)
I have always been dozing off during lectures but I have found a solution to keep me awake! Yesterday morning, I went for a jog with dunkai, germaine, jingyi, jiahui, gaoqian, yanyang and Victoria. It’s a good way to start the day! After that, I felt awake for the whole day which was really good as I could pay attention during lectures.
For the first lecture, it was on Intellectual Property. Intellectual property is something that you create with your mind. It is not a physical property. Major types of Intellectual Property Rights are copyright, trademarks, registered design, trade secrets and patents. Basically its about protecting your ideas and preventing others from copying them. Like what weijie and benedict said, we should also credit people for the things they have done.
Next up was another lecture. This time, it was about Art and Science Materials Conservation. The objective is to stabilize and preserve culturally significant materials. Problems might be faced. Solutions to them are to understand the composition and behaviour of original materials, define mechanism of deterioration and to be able to observe all materials used. When we have a problem, we shouldn’t see just the surface of the problem but investigate deeper into it.
For the last lecture of the day, we had a talk about Global Warming. I find that what Victoria pointed out was right. We should set goals that are harder to attain so that we challenge ourselves and do our best to achieve it.
After that, we went to Chinatown by tram for dinner. For my group, we settled down in an Asian restaurant. Other groups had dinner at different places. Then, we walked over to Melbourne Central for chocolate desert at Max Brenner. It served very good chocolate. There’s one in Singapore at the Esplanade. So yeah, we can always eat them again back home. :D
As I was walking pass a shop at Melbourne Central, this quote caught my attention and I found it really meaningful. “We make a living by what we get; we make a life by what we give” Winston Churchill. I find the quote really true. In life, we have to contribute so that we will get something good in return which can improve your life.
Lastly, yesterday, when gaoqian lost his camcorder, those of us who were in the same room as him neglected him. I guess all of us loss things here and find them very quickly in awhile so we did not take him seriously. That was our bad. We should learn from Aaron who helped gaoqian look for his camcorder. Caring is one of the key points in becoming a good leader.
That’s all, everyone! Goodnight. :)
Day 8 - fun at beach
Hellos! :D
TODAY WAS FUN! There was no lecture and we had fun at the beach.
What I noticed was that Ms low actually takes care of all the students here no matter whether it is her student or not and to me that is something worth learning.
And today, the girls went looking for dresses and of course with my size and height i couldn't find one that suited me. Hahas :D
And yup, I felt sad and started crying and I had negative thoughts like:" Why am I the only one like that. " Then Victoria, Melissa, Jia Hui and Ms low all came to console me and like Victoria said simple words of encouragment actually helps a lot and may make a great difference. So, I feel that as a leader sometimes we should put ourselves in others shoes and when people are feeling upset we should console them and show that we are concern because it may mean little to us but it might mean a lot to other ppl.
That's pretty what I wanted say. Hope we have a great day tomorrow! Good night! :D
TODAY WAS FUN! There was no lecture and we had fun at the beach.
What I noticed was that Ms low actually takes care of all the students here no matter whether it is her student or not and to me that is something worth learning.
And today, the girls went looking for dresses and of course with my size and height i couldn't find one that suited me. Hahas :D
And yup, I felt sad and started crying and I had negative thoughts like:" Why am I the only one like that. " Then Victoria, Melissa, Jia Hui and Ms low all came to console me and like Victoria said simple words of encouragment actually helps a lot and may make a great difference. So, I feel that as a leader sometimes we should put ourselves in others shoes and when people are feeling upset we should console them and show that we are concern because it may mean little to us but it might mean a lot to other ppl.
That's pretty what I wanted say. Hope we have a great day tomorrow! Good night! :D
Victoria, Day8
A week has passed in a flash and I'm sure all of us have learnt tons of things. Anyway, today's excursion was to the beach and it was plenty of fun. The team of us tried to bury Jingyi and GaoQian in the sand. Well, back to the previous week. In the few lectures that we attended in the week, I've gain much knowledge and insides and learnt to see things in a new perspective. There are many things such as the confidence to speak up, perserverence, controlling of emotions and many more. It has been a wonderful experience to learn such leadership values that we will never get to experience anywhere else. This trip has been a wonderful platform for us to learn from other students and mentors, and for us to build up courage so as to be better leaders! :) It has been a really wonderful time with these few friends around and other new friends, with their encouragements allowing me to constantly challenge my limits. I'm sure next week would be as fruitful and fun!
Day Eight, Saturday in Melbourne
YO GuyS...and Girls! Today rocks to the core man except for the bus ride to the beach. I was afraid of getting sick in the bus during the 2 hours bus ride and it boring and i had nothing to do. But it was worth it for the beach. I ending up swatting flies and singing songs on the bus. I killed 11 flies today! It was quite an acheivement.
When we reached the beach, it was like the most beautiful beach i ever seen. We played with the sand and buried Jing Yi and Gao Qian. After playing with the sand, we had our lunch at the pier and it was the best lunch i ever had even though the food was not the best. The feeling was awesome as you can feel the cool sea breeze blowing in your face as you are eating your lunch.
After than we went shopping, we went back to the college and after than we had even more shooping and i bought souveniers and food for my family. Well thats about it and i hope we will have a day as good as today tomorrow.
When we reached the beach, it was like the most beautiful beach i ever seen. We played with the sand and buried Jing Yi and Gao Qian. After playing with the sand, we had our lunch at the pier and it was the best lunch i ever had even though the food was not the best. The feeling was awesome as you can feel the cool sea breeze blowing in your face as you are eating your lunch.
After than we went shopping, we went back to the college and after than we had even more shooping and i bought souveniers and food for my family. Well thats about it and i hope we will have a day as good as today tomorrow.
Day EIGHT of Melbourne, BEACH!
Hello everyone, today was FUN! We hit the beach today and it was more of a day off for the whole of summer school. A two hour bus trip to Mornington Peninsula rewarded us with not just a near-perfect sea view, but also one of the most memorable day in the fortnight.
We started by playing ball games and taking wonderful pictures of the sea, followed by a fun time by the sea. A first try at a "sand spa" was relaxing which resulted in a sunburn to only my face. Lunch by the sea was pretty cool as we enjoyed the view and the sea breeze.
Later on we went for a simple shop around Mornington and another trip to ChinaTown. Souveniors and other relatively " cheap" items were bought and we had a wonderful experience.
Today really helped the group to blow off some steam, and i think we managed to get some idea of Australia's nightlife. They seemed to have their late night shopping on Friday and weekends for them are to just chill and hang out.
A truely memorable exeperience today, one of the best at the Summer School yet. With that i end my post today. G'night everyone.
We started by playing ball games and taking wonderful pictures of the sea, followed by a fun time by the sea. A first try at a "sand spa" was relaxing which resulted in a sunburn to only my face. Lunch by the sea was pretty cool as we enjoyed the view and the sea breeze.
Later on we went for a simple shop around Mornington and another trip to ChinaTown. Souveniors and other relatively " cheap" items were bought and we had a wonderful experience.
Today really helped the group to blow off some steam, and i think we managed to get some idea of Australia's nightlife. They seemed to have their late night shopping on Friday and weekends for them are to just chill and hang out.
A truely memorable exeperience today, one of the best at the Summer School yet. With that i end my post today. G'night everyone.
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Day 6
Hi all, its my turn now... i would try to summarize all the points and make it short and sweet. Basically today we did some gender and cultural narrative lecture. I didn't quite understand this lecture but i could see that the when the speakers ask a question, there is always people answering those question. But to my disappointment, I didn't see any Singaporean answering the questions and mostly were Australian and Indian. They participated actively in this program whereas Singaporean were stoning down there. I think it is because some of us do not understand the topic or they have no opinion or shy.
Second activity was a talk about trinity academic programs. It briefly say about trinity college and the curriculum. I think that the Australian could ask question and answer back the speaker from the previous lecture so fast was because of what they had learned in their English. In their English there is drama which teaches people to be more confident and ask questions if they don't know instead of just keeping the questions to themselves.
Third activity was the leadership project planning which we are to be in our groups and discuss what we are going to do if we are the UN general secretary for one day. At first, we chose increase of population as most of the members(3 boys 7 girls) agree with it and there is many things to talk about. The girls, stand a majority, was discussing and about the effects of increase in population. Boys was kind of left out in that discussion. One of my friend(male), was trying to tell the girls that it was impossible to do this topic in detailed in 5 -7 minutes, however everyone ignored him and staying in their conversation. He repeated again but he raised his voice and one girl was unhappy with him saying that there is no need to raise his voice. After that, he was getting more and more stress as maybe he is aiming for perfect, i guess. This discussing continues and we cut down to two sub topic of it and it cant get to any where. My friend get pissed and left the place. After he left, i tried to get the group to listen to me and cut it down to one specific topic. From my view, as a good leader, you might not need to participate everything actively but you must participate when it is time to to control the group and make it continues on. Mainly, a leader should not get their emotion to control us as it would bring us to the wrong track. A quote from Solon, "learn to obey before you command" how i interpret this quote was that everyone had to be a follower at first before becoming a leader and when we are leader we must also learn to listen to others instead of insisting your way and commanding through the followers.
The forth activity was to watch a movie called zoolander. It was a entertaining show and thats all for tonight. Good night friends...
Second activity was a talk about trinity academic programs. It briefly say about trinity college and the curriculum. I think that the Australian could ask question and answer back the speaker from the previous lecture so fast was because of what they had learned in their English. In their English there is drama which teaches people to be more confident and ask questions if they don't know instead of just keeping the questions to themselves.
Third activity was the leadership project planning which we are to be in our groups and discuss what we are going to do if we are the UN general secretary for one day. At first, we chose increase of population as most of the members(3 boys 7 girls) agree with it and there is many things to talk about. The girls, stand a majority, was discussing and about the effects of increase in population. Boys was kind of left out in that discussion. One of my friend(male), was trying to tell the girls that it was impossible to do this topic in detailed in 5 -7 minutes, however everyone ignored him and staying in their conversation. He repeated again but he raised his voice and one girl was unhappy with him saying that there is no need to raise his voice. After that, he was getting more and more stress as maybe he is aiming for perfect, i guess. This discussing continues and we cut down to two sub topic of it and it cant get to any where. My friend get pissed and left the place. After he left, i tried to get the group to listen to me and cut it down to one specific topic. From my view, as a good leader, you might not need to participate everything actively but you must participate when it is time to to control the group and make it continues on. Mainly, a leader should not get their emotion to control us as it would bring us to the wrong track. A quote from Solon, "learn to obey before you command" how i interpret this quote was that everyone had to be a follower at first before becoming a leader and when we are leader we must also learn to listen to others instead of insisting your way and commanding through the followers.
The forth activity was to watch a movie called zoolander. It was a entertaining show and thats all for tonight. Good night friends...
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Day 5
Hey all!:) Well, it's my turn to blog today and I'll just try to make it snappy but detailed. Firstly, we had 2 lectures in the morning again. Though it may sound boring, but it surely was a fruitful one as it gave us an insight of the possibe courses. The first lecture today was about aeronautical engineering. Basically, we had an overview of how airplanes had developed over the years and how many of the founders of aerospace. Through an example from the wright brothers, as a leader, we should have the determination to persevere after failures. I felt that instead of taking the failure as a unsuccessful experiment, they were right to take it as a learning point to try and improve on their design.
Secondly, the lecture on physiology was rather boring though. We were introduced to medical study and had a brief insight of how injuries develop and their cures. During the lecture, even though many of us seem restless, I could see that the lecturer was trying his very best to get our attention back. This was a good point to take as a leader should always try to get the audience to interact more.
Moving on to the last activity, we were taken to the Queen Victoria Market where we had some free time to shop. During which, we were slightly unreasonable to a shopkeeper as we ordered something from the shopkeeper and only to cancel the order. We eventually felt guilty and decided to continue on with the order. From this, we can learn that a leader should be decisive as any slight mistake may lead to unthinkable consequences.
After the debrief, we have learnt that we should really be able to make decisions fast as a lapse in concentration can lead to a big mess. Therefore, we have to make quick and decisive moves in times of emergency and not panick during such situations.
That's all for today... Good night guys and girls:)
Secondly, the lecture on physiology was rather boring though. We were introduced to medical study and had a brief insight of how injuries develop and their cures. During the lecture, even though many of us seem restless, I could see that the lecturer was trying his very best to get our attention back. This was a good point to take as a leader should always try to get the audience to interact more.
Moving on to the last activity, we were taken to the Queen Victoria Market where we had some free time to shop. During which, we were slightly unreasonable to a shopkeeper as we ordered something from the shopkeeper and only to cancel the order. We eventually felt guilty and decided to continue on with the order. From this, we can learn that a leader should be decisive as any slight mistake may lead to unthinkable consequences.
After the debrief, we have learnt that we should really be able to make decisions fast as a lapse in concentration can lead to a big mess. Therefore, we have to make quick and decisive moves in times of emergency and not panick during such situations.
That's all for today... Good night guys and girls:)
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Day 4
Hi all!
It's my turn to do the blog post about today. :D
First off, we ate our breakfast and quickly moved off to the harold white lecture hall for a session on topology, the science of place and geometry, the measurement of Earth. We learnt about how the rectangle is the map of a cylinder, and how games make use of the different dimensional worlds of different shapes.
Secondly, we attended a lecture session on the ethics of using humans in research at the same venue. We were taught the meaning of psychology, which is the scientific study of how people think and behave. We were also shown the guidelines for investigations or experiments carried out by psychologists.
1. Participants must be informed of the nature and purpose of the investigation.
2. Participants must be informed of what they are expected to do.
3. Consent must be given voluntarily. (not forced)
4. Participants can feel free to withdraw from the investigation without having to face a penalty.
I think that what we were taught of at this lecture session can be applied to the situations that occur when we lead. It is crucial to understand how your followers think, behave and react to what we say and do. As Melissa has mentioned during debrief, the above four guidelines can be used in leadership as well. I feel that when we as leaders make a decision or facilitate an activity, we must take note of the 4 guidelines above. However, they are not exhaustive.
Moving on, people from the science world went on an excursion to the Melbourne Musuem to view an exhibition on the Mind & Body. The exhibition actually included real body organs and substances, nudity and disturbing images. Despite that, the musuem did not barr specific groups of people to view the exhibition. I felt that the musuem trusted in how mature people are and that they would gain and understand something out of it. I'm extremely supportive of what the musuem is doing and i believe that our group of 10 people can understand what the exhibition was about. There were a lot of other exhibitions available for viewing at the musuem as well. All of them fascinating and educational in one way or another. Overall, i had a lot of fun at the musuem today. :)
Lastly, we had our dinner, then moved to Lygon Street for a movie, Where The Wild Things Are. It was about a boy that had problems with his mother and sister, and decided to run away after a bad incident with his mother. He then sailed in a boat and reached an unknown island which some creatures live on. The boy then decided to lie about his background, proclaiming himself as a king and ended up leading the creatures to building a nicer home for themselves. The movie was mostly about confronting your problems and how to react and behave as an effective leader. During debrief, we had alot of comments about the movie and i find that some of the comments made are those that i would have never thought of and i find it very interesting to hear about the different points of view.
And at every debrief session, i realise that i will always remember something that ms tan or ms low says. So for today, the one i remembered the most was "If it's not broke, don't fix it.". By ms low. :) hahas.
I'm looking forward to the astro tour at Swinburne University tomorrow. :)
With that i'll end my blog post.
Gd night to everybody and sleep well! :D
jiahui
It's my turn to do the blog post about today. :D
First off, we ate our breakfast and quickly moved off to the harold white lecture hall for a session on topology, the science of place and geometry, the measurement of Earth. We learnt about how the rectangle is the map of a cylinder, and how games make use of the different dimensional worlds of different shapes.
Secondly, we attended a lecture session on the ethics of using humans in research at the same venue. We were taught the meaning of psychology, which is the scientific study of how people think and behave. We were also shown the guidelines for investigations or experiments carried out by psychologists.
1. Participants must be informed of the nature and purpose of the investigation.
2. Participants must be informed of what they are expected to do.
3. Consent must be given voluntarily. (not forced)
4. Participants can feel free to withdraw from the investigation without having to face a penalty.
I think that what we were taught of at this lecture session can be applied to the situations that occur when we lead. It is crucial to understand how your followers think, behave and react to what we say and do. As Melissa has mentioned during debrief, the above four guidelines can be used in leadership as well. I feel that when we as leaders make a decision or facilitate an activity, we must take note of the 4 guidelines above. However, they are not exhaustive.
Moving on, people from the science world went on an excursion to the Melbourne Musuem to view an exhibition on the Mind & Body. The exhibition actually included real body organs and substances, nudity and disturbing images. Despite that, the musuem did not barr specific groups of people to view the exhibition. I felt that the musuem trusted in how mature people are and that they would gain and understand something out of it. I'm extremely supportive of what the musuem is doing and i believe that our group of 10 people can understand what the exhibition was about. There were a lot of other exhibitions available for viewing at the musuem as well. All of them fascinating and educational in one way or another. Overall, i had a lot of fun at the musuem today. :)
Lastly, we had our dinner, then moved to Lygon Street for a movie, Where The Wild Things Are. It was about a boy that had problems with his mother and sister, and decided to run away after a bad incident with his mother. He then sailed in a boat and reached an unknown island which some creatures live on. The boy then decided to lie about his background, proclaiming himself as a king and ended up leading the creatures to building a nicer home for themselves. The movie was mostly about confronting your problems and how to react and behave as an effective leader. During debrief, we had alot of comments about the movie and i find that some of the comments made are those that i would have never thought of and i find it very interesting to hear about the different points of view.
And at every debrief session, i realise that i will always remember something that ms tan or ms low says. So for today, the one i remembered the most was "If it's not broke, don't fix it.". By ms low. :) hahas.
I'm looking forward to the astro tour at Swinburne University tomorrow. :)
With that i'll end my blog post.
Gd night to everybody and sleep well! :D
jiahui
Monday, December 7, 2009
Day 3: Public Speaking!
Yeps, first up for the detailed blog post.
The day started off with breakfast, soon after we were divided into different groups according to out course. For us, its Science world.
Began with the Oxfam presentation, a non-profit charity organisation.
Next up was the Leadership Lecture by Barbara Cargill, a well known leadership workshop lecturer. The talk was really interesting.
She mentioned some stuffs about being humble, being confident, moral values.
A quote GaoQian shared with us during de-brief today.
"A Successfull Leader is one who sleeps less than 10 hours a day."
From past experience, the lecturer was spot on about it.
But, Ms Tan also mentioned something about Leaders need to have a lot of energy and stamina, you don't sleep less to off track to do other stuffs, you sacrifice that time to do things which are important and crucial. Dosen't mean that sleeping less makes you a leader. A point to note
Next up was this open ceremony. Not till the de-brief session, I wasnt really sure about what the "Kangaroos" were doing, what has it go to do with open ceremony and stuffs. Like Ms Low mentioned earlier on, its all about learning Australia culture, knowing each others' history. Likewise when others visit Singapore, we also would hope to show them our unique culture, our multi-racial society, applies to the Open Ceremony too.
After a short break, some of us did Public Speaking while some did Team Games instead. Im sure majority of us did both. I'm going to start of with the public speaking.
Really fruitful, another opportunity for us to stand up in front of the miniature size audience and giving a speech. Other than getting a chance for us to showcase our public speaking skills, it was also another space for us learn how the students all over the world overcome this obstacle, what kind of speech they gave, the language they use. Just for this example, theres this guy called Josh, an Australian.
2 words to describe him - Absolute Confidence. We could tell he didnt do any notes. He just went out there, gave a great speech. Total awesomeness.
Earlier on, during our de-brief, a few of us mentioned about what they had learned about public speaking, some overcomed their fear, some gain more confidence. I'm pretty sure everyone of us learned something from this workshop.
Basically, we were suppose to form our own groups, no help from menthors, under certain requirement. One of them I really liked was
"4 Different International Race in each group"
As global citizens, racism is something all of us must overcome, move on towards racial harmony.
The games was really entertaining, not a single minute was bored or "sian".
Every single game is categorised into different themes, some was Physics, Mathematics, Geography and History.
ALSO! Must Read! An Add-On I forgot about it.
I'm sure all of us participated in this mini-competition. Any noticed the host?
He was one of the very inspirational people I met till now in Melbourne.
He was just funny, entertaining, and he isnt afraid of people laughing at his lame mistakes.
*this is really something we should learn from, let ourselves go, dont be over self-conscious.*
After taking short breaks, some of us went to play soccer with the rest of the summer school guys. Though different culture, different accents, a common sport.
It was really engaging, especially playing with non-asians. In fact, it was challenging, put our communication skills to a test.
Later on,Trivia Night started. YEA!
My team was totally terrific, superb bonding going on.
Everyone was just busy participating, looking for answers.
Nice.
Soon later on, de-brief. Ms Tan said something about how she plan speeches, which I would like to share here.
A few important notes she shared, such as observing whats going on everyday in our lives. And use these examples and stories as the materials in our speech. Definitely worth a point taking down.
Ending off, I hope tomorow will be going to this Mind and Body Museuem.
PS. to those taking doing the bloggin soon. You might wanna try my method. Bedies jotting down notes. A recorded version really helps alot. After spending 2hour plus listening, while listening, we can do some personal reflection on ourselves, in case we missed out any point.:D
Plus!, if you want to record, permission! You heard it for yourselves, by right, its illegal
Regards,
Wei Jie
The day started off with breakfast, soon after we were divided into different groups according to out course. For us, its Science world.
Began with the Oxfam presentation, a non-profit charity organisation.
Next up was the Leadership Lecture by Barbara Cargill, a well known leadership workshop lecturer. The talk was really interesting.
She mentioned some stuffs about being humble, being confident, moral values.
A quote GaoQian shared with us during de-brief today.
"A Successfull Leader is one who sleeps less than 10 hours a day."
From past experience, the lecturer was spot on about it.
But, Ms Tan also mentioned something about Leaders need to have a lot of energy and stamina, you don't sleep less to off track to do other stuffs, you sacrifice that time to do things which are important and crucial. Dosen't mean that sleeping less makes you a leader. A point to note
Next up was this open ceremony. Not till the de-brief session, I wasnt really sure about what the "Kangaroos" were doing, what has it go to do with open ceremony and stuffs. Like Ms Low mentioned earlier on, its all about learning Australia culture, knowing each others' history. Likewise when others visit Singapore, we also would hope to show them our unique culture, our multi-racial society, applies to the Open Ceremony too.
After a short break, some of us did Public Speaking while some did Team Games instead. Im sure majority of us did both. I'm going to start of with the public speaking.
Really fruitful, another opportunity for us to stand up in front of the miniature size audience and giving a speech. Other than getting a chance for us to showcase our public speaking skills, it was also another space for us learn how the students all over the world overcome this obstacle, what kind of speech they gave, the language they use. Just for this example, theres this guy called Josh, an Australian.
2 words to describe him - Absolute Confidence. We could tell he didnt do any notes. He just went out there, gave a great speech. Total awesomeness.
Earlier on, during our de-brief, a few of us mentioned about what they had learned about public speaking, some overcomed their fear, some gain more confidence. I'm pretty sure everyone of us learned something from this workshop.
Basically, we were suppose to form our own groups, no help from menthors, under certain requirement. One of them I really liked was
"4 Different International Race in each group"
As global citizens, racism is something all of us must overcome, move on towards racial harmony.
The games was really entertaining, not a single minute was bored or "sian".
Every single game is categorised into different themes, some was Physics, Mathematics, Geography and History.
ALSO! Must Read! An Add-On I forgot about it.
I'm sure all of us participated in this mini-competition. Any noticed the host?
He was one of the very inspirational people I met till now in Melbourne.
He was just funny, entertaining, and he isnt afraid of people laughing at his lame mistakes.
*this is really something we should learn from, let ourselves go, dont be over self-conscious.*
After taking short breaks, some of us went to play soccer with the rest of the summer school guys. Though different culture, different accents, a common sport.
It was really engaging, especially playing with non-asians. In fact, it was challenging, put our communication skills to a test.
Later on,Trivia Night started. YEA!
My team was totally terrific, superb bonding going on.
Everyone was just busy participating, looking for answers.
Nice.
Soon later on, de-brief. Ms Tan said something about how she plan speeches, which I would like to share here.
A few important notes she shared, such as observing whats going on everyday in our lives. And use these examples and stories as the materials in our speech. Definitely worth a point taking down.
Ending off, I hope tomorow will be going to this Mind and Body Museuem.
PS. to those taking doing the bloggin soon. You might wanna try my method. Bedies jotting down notes. A recorded version really helps alot. After spending 2hour plus listening, while listening, we can do some personal reflection on ourselves, in case we missed out any point.:D
Plus!, if you want to record, permission! You heard it for yourselves, by right, its illegal
Regards,
Wei Jie
Day 3: Videos
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Coming Soon!
Part 6
Part 7
Coming Soon!
Part 8
Part 9
Coming Soon!
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Coming Soon!
Part 6
Part 7
Coming Soon!
Part 8
Part 9
Coming Soon!
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Day 2
Hey, it's the second day in Melbourne and everything going pretty well. Today, we had been split into different groups and we had the opportunity to interract with the different students. My group had students from several countries such as australia and it was a really good time for us to get to know other people's culture. My mentor, Ryen, was really friendly as he tried to bond the whole group together. Even though we were complete strangers, he did his utmost to allow us to feel comfortable in our own group. The events that we went through included, mini olympics and a tour around Melbourne university. During the mini olympics, I had the confidence which i did not have yesterday to take the initiative and volunteer for the games. And today was really a day where confidence was a major improvement for me, and I am really looking forward to tomorrow to further build up my interaction and confidence in my group!
Day 2: Reflection + Videos
Day 2 of summer school is great. Today all of us were separated into our own groups, we made a lot of new friends from different countries like INDIA, AUSTRALIA, MALAYSIA and also SINGAPORE.:) The first activity that we had was coming up with a names for your own group and also discuss leadership project. After lunch, our mentors bought us on a tour around the university and trinity college. It was quite a tiring tour as it was a EXTREMELY HUGE university, but it was worth a good exercise. The third activity was the Mini-Olympics that all of us was looking forward to. There was a number of games that all of us will have a chance to participate in and my group came in 3rd position overall. YAY! After dinner, it was the time that all of us show our singing talents at the Karaoke Night. All the 12 groups went up and perform a song + dance for the judges to vote the winner with creativity and team spirit. Tomorrow will be another long day with exciting activities. Okay, signing off with the videos below. Bye!
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6
Day 2
Thoughts on day 2. Well today was fun and tiring. We were seperated into groups and i met new people from Indonesia, India, Korea, Malaysia and a few fellow Singaporeans. Well i think my group was nice and everybody wanted to participate. After splitting into groups we discussed the leadership project. After than we had lunch and than went out for a tour of the melbourne university. After of was the mini olympics. As i said the previous post, i took part in a lot of the games and had a lot of fun even though eating the cerial bar competition was horrible but it was worth trying it out. After that we were given one hour break and we had dinner and than we had the karaoke and i sang a lot for the first time. I think i was the only guy singing in my group but i had fun and that was the point of the whole thing. At the end of the day i learned that we must participate or we will miss out in a lot of things and eat tomatoes. I also know that i have to speak more English instead of Singlish or others in my group will not understand what i am talking about and they would not be able to take part in our conversation and they will be left out. I will learn from my mistakes and strive to do better onwards.
Day 2: Karaoke!
Hey guys,
Day 2, everythings awesome, fantastic.
We got split into groups, my team name's called 7-11
Basically, its made up of a couple of malaysians, 2 australian and one from india.
Its actually a good thing, as we would get the chance to say what we really want to say.
We did a few rounds around Trinity College. Scott, my menthor brought us around the school, showed us a little history about Trinity. They have a common room over here!
Next up was the mini-olympics, my team tried to did some forms of structures. Though slightly slower, it was quite fruitfull. The activities really got us bonded and gave us the opportunities to interact with each other.
Following, we had a karaoke session, my group sang Mamamima, ended great. wasnt too bad. Watch more perfomances. was really hyped up.
Looking forward to tomorow, we will be attending the Science world activity, sounds pretty fun. With plenty of physics workshops going on.
Hope tomorow will be a better day.
Day 2, everythings awesome, fantastic.
We got split into groups, my team name's called 7-11
Basically, its made up of a couple of malaysians, 2 australian and one from india.
Its actually a good thing, as we would get the chance to say what we really want to say.
We did a few rounds around Trinity College. Scott, my menthor brought us around the school, showed us a little history about Trinity. They have a common room over here!
Next up was the mini-olympics, my team tried to did some forms of structures. Though slightly slower, it was quite fruitfull. The activities really got us bonded and gave us the opportunities to interact with each other.
Following, we had a karaoke session, my group sang Mamamima, ended great. wasnt too bad. Watch more perfomances. was really hyped up.
Looking forward to tomorow, we will be attending the Science world activity, sounds pretty fun. With plenty of physics workshops going on.
Hope tomorow will be a better day.
DAY 2
Hi, today we just had a few bonding session with our mentor and people from other countries or school. After a few ice-breaker games, I met some singapore students from SRJC and ACS. We started chatting among ourselves and did not bother to interact with those who are from other countries. In order to let us know each other better, the mentor came out with games and actively playing it with us. In this, i could see that in order to be an leader, we must 'break the ice' between the followers. We must have confident in what we do and have to share our opinion with one another.
Day 2
Day 2. We got splitted into groups. Other can Wei Jie and Jia Hui, all of us separated into different groups. Its a good thing in my opinion, we are here to experience the college life, we should be more pro-active and interact with people all over the world.
In most of the groups there seem to be a dominant Southeast Asian cliques in them, however my group has a lesser amount of Singaporeans/Malaysians. In my group there are a total of 4.. its quite a big group and pretty much has the most influential power, however the other 6 members are also nice people and of course we gelled almost perfectly with one another. Theres a good mix of people from all around the world, Australia of course, Malaysia,India,Peru and Singapore.
Our mentor is very friendly and enthusiastic, forming the backbone of our group and bonding us together with one another, she makes sure nobody gets left out and is always happy to give us a push in the right direction. She makes a good role model by exuding a type of presence that concur to a healthy atmosphere for learning,bonding and discussion. All the mentors are indeed very warm (not literally) and a definite learning example.
The events today are pretty hyped, Mini Olympics and a Karaoke Session...which i sung my first english song "Im Yours"(excluding national day). An achievement indeed, next i shall aim for Malay songs... Our team underperformed for the Mini Olympics however we scrape ourselves back by earning one of the two honorable mention in the Karaoke Session. A positive result indeed.
Today i have successfully interacted and got to know at least 15 more people,appreciated cultures all around the world. I exercised my limbs in soccer with people around the globe, playing left wing first then right back and finally a well-appreciated goalkeeper position.. okay i'll stop here or else it'll be another long winded paragraph that is quite irrelevant.
Basically i had a great day with my group and i love my performance in goalkeeping despite a long break from the sport. My objective for tomorrow is to get to know everyone, both in my group and out better and enroach my circle of friends. Make it bigger, make it better.
Quote of the day : "Do you know I'm Yours? ( By my group friend, Afiq,a guy, to me. Funny in another context haha~)
In most of the groups there seem to be a dominant Southeast Asian cliques in them, however my group has a lesser amount of Singaporeans/Malaysians. In my group there are a total of 4.. its quite a big group and pretty much has the most influential power, however the other 6 members are also nice people and of course we gelled almost perfectly with one another. Theres a good mix of people from all around the world, Australia of course, Malaysia,India,Peru and Singapore.
Our mentor is very friendly and enthusiastic, forming the backbone of our group and bonding us together with one another, she makes sure nobody gets left out and is always happy to give us a push in the right direction. She makes a good role model by exuding a type of presence that concur to a healthy atmosphere for learning,bonding and discussion. All the mentors are indeed very warm (not literally) and a definite learning example.
The events today are pretty hyped, Mini Olympics and a Karaoke Session...which i sung my first english song "Im Yours"(excluding national day). An achievement indeed, next i shall aim for Malay songs... Our team underperformed for the Mini Olympics however we scrape ourselves back by earning one of the two honorable mention in the Karaoke Session. A positive result indeed.
Today i have successfully interacted and got to know at least 15 more people,appreciated cultures all around the world. I exercised my limbs in soccer with people around the globe, playing left wing first then right back and finally a well-appreciated goalkeeper position.. okay i'll stop here or else it'll be another long winded paragraph that is quite irrelevant.
Basically i had a great day with my group and i love my performance in goalkeeping despite a long break from the sport. My objective for tomorrow is to get to know everyone, both in my group and out better and enroach my circle of friends. Make it bigger, make it better.
Quote of the day : "Do you know I'm Yours? ( By my group friend, Afiq,a guy, to me. Funny in another context haha~)
Victoria, Day Two
Hey.
Second day today. Food here's awesome and i guess i'm gonna gain pounds. Today, we finally went into mentor groups. I think that was really cool and there were awesome people in my group. As mentioned during debrief, my mentor, Yunn Shin was there to guide us and a great role model too. We had ice-breaking games and we got to learn more about other teammates. After tour of the university, we had the mini-olympics. It bonded my team real well and we showed team spirit during the games. Our mascot was torn apart, which demoralized us a little. :( I've also learned that we have to step out and dare to do things so as to learn and benefit more from this trip. During the karaoke session, my group did really well as we cooperated. :D Overall, the mentor's planning was essential in making the karaoke successful. Well, there hasn't been much activities today but I've also benefited largely. So that's about all till next week, i suppose. :)
goodnight :D
Second day today. Food here's awesome and i guess i'm gonna gain pounds. Today, we finally went into mentor groups. I think that was really cool and there were awesome people in my group. As mentioned during debrief, my mentor, Yunn Shin was there to guide us and a great role model too. We had ice-breaking games and we got to learn more about other teammates. After tour of the university, we had the mini-olympics. It bonded my team real well and we showed team spirit during the games. Our mascot was torn apart, which demoralized us a little. :( I've also learned that we have to step out and dare to do things so as to learn and benefit more from this trip. During the karaoke session, my group did really well as we cooperated. :D Overall, the mentor's planning was essential in making the karaoke successful. Well, there hasn't been much activities today but I've also benefited largely. So that's about all till next week, i suppose. :)
goodnight :D
Day 2
Hello!:D
For today... I felt that it went quite well because everyone was really participative and they were willing to provide suggestions. But of course there were also times where it just went quiet and we just look at each other so it was pretty awkward but that was the beginning at the later part of the day everyone opened up to one another.
During the mini olympics we learnt about team spirit. It doesn't matter whether we lose or win. It's just more about team spirit. We cheer for one another and if we don't come in first it doesn't matter we don't blame one another, we would still tell one another:'Hey, great job!"
It was also the same thing for the karaoke night actually the guy that was singing didn't really know the whole tune so he just kind of changed it but I don't think much people noticed except for our group. At the end of the performance we still praised one another.
As for the mentors, I find that they do not leave anybody out. Not one.... Even if the person does not look like the type that will speak out and is the type that will always hide they mentors will actually get them to join in. And... I feel that they are very nice as in... Well, I lost both my keys yesterday and when I told them I expected them to be angry but they did not even show any expression of anger. They were very understanding and they were like telling me not to worry. So that's basically what I think...
Yup, so I'll end here. Looking forward to a better tomorrow. :D
Germaine
For today... I felt that it went quite well because everyone was really participative and they were willing to provide suggestions. But of course there were also times where it just went quiet and we just look at each other so it was pretty awkward but that was the beginning at the later part of the day everyone opened up to one another.
During the mini olympics we learnt about team spirit. It doesn't matter whether we lose or win. It's just more about team spirit. We cheer for one another and if we don't come in first it doesn't matter we don't blame one another, we would still tell one another:'Hey, great job!"
It was also the same thing for the karaoke night actually the guy that was singing didn't really know the whole tune so he just kind of changed it but I don't think much people noticed except for our group. At the end of the performance we still praised one another.
As for the mentors, I find that they do not leave anybody out. Not one.... Even if the person does not look like the type that will speak out and is the type that will always hide they mentors will actually get them to join in. And... I feel that they are very nice as in... Well, I lost both my keys yesterday and when I told them I expected them to be angry but they did not even show any expression of anger. They were very understanding and they were like telling me not to worry. So that's basically what I think...
Yup, so I'll end here. Looking forward to a better tomorrow. :D
Germaine
day 2, 6dec
hey everyone again!
on a whole, today was a fun day! mingled with my team mates quite a bit. My team members are all asians! Mainly from singapore and indonesia? there are 4singaporeans, including me. I find that i have more common topics to talk about with fellow singaporeans. And, coincidently, one guy in my group knows a NASIAN. okay, offtrack. anyway, for the earlier part of the day, we discussed about the presentation that we are going to do. We all have to do a little research for to during our own time. After that, we had mini olympics. Had a great time! I took part in the kangaroo jump, human pyramid, wheatbits contest and the toothpick-and-rubber-band game. For the human pyramid, i went onto one of my teammates' shoulders. Never thought i would do that! haha. it was a great experience though kinda scary. Then, the karaoke night. We screwed the thing up but i guess we are gonna make up on talent night or something. Hopefully we will do it well the next time. So, today, i really tried to make an effort to talk to everyone in my team. More fun tomorrow, please! :D okay, thats all. Rest well!
on a whole, today was a fun day! mingled with my team mates quite a bit. My team members are all asians! Mainly from singapore and indonesia? there are 4singaporeans, including me. I find that i have more common topics to talk about with fellow singaporeans. And, coincidently, one guy in my group knows a NASIAN. okay, offtrack. anyway, for the earlier part of the day, we discussed about the presentation that we are going to do. We all have to do a little research for to during our own time. After that, we had mini olympics. Had a great time! I took part in the kangaroo jump, human pyramid, wheatbits contest and the toothpick-and-rubber-band game. For the human pyramid, i went onto one of my teammates' shoulders. Never thought i would do that! haha. it was a great experience though kinda scary. Then, the karaoke night. We screwed the thing up but i guess we are gonna make up on talent night or something. Hopefully we will do it well the next time. So, today, i really tried to make an effort to talk to everyone in my team. More fun tomorrow, please! :D okay, thats all. Rest well!
Day 2
hi all! :D
Today was another splendid day of activities at the university.
First of all, i woke up this morning shocked to find that the time was 6:50 am. Then i realised that i dumbly set the time of the alarm to be 6:30 in Singapore time. I'll have to remind myself not to do that for the next day. hahas.
We finished our breakfast, then we seperated into our mentor groups for ice breakers, the discussion of our leadership project and settled on a song for a karaoke night event.
We played mini olympics as well and i honestly find it extremely fun. The activities really got us to interact with each other better :D
I've made many new friends today and they were all great people.
We'll be attending the sessions for Science World tomorrow. I'm looking forward to experiencing their teaching methods, which differ from singapore's, as well of the contents of the sessions. I hope i'll have as much fun tomorrow as i did today. :D
Have a gd night's sleep everybody!
Jiahui :)
Today was another splendid day of activities at the university.
First of all, i woke up this morning shocked to find that the time was 6:50 am. Then i realised that i dumbly set the time of the alarm to be 6:30 in Singapore time. I'll have to remind myself not to do that for the next day. hahas.
We finished our breakfast, then we seperated into our mentor groups for ice breakers, the discussion of our leadership project and settled on a song for a karaoke night event.
We played mini olympics as well and i honestly find it extremely fun. The activities really got us to interact with each other better :D
I've made many new friends today and they were all great people.
We'll be attending the sessions for Science World tomorrow. I'm looking forward to experiencing their teaching methods, which differ from singapore's, as well of the contents of the sessions. I hope i'll have as much fun tomorrow as i did today. :D
Have a gd night's sleep everybody!
Jiahui :)
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Victoria, Day one.
Bonjour!
As the clock reaches 12am, I feel really exhausted. Looking back, it seems like years
when i alighted from the plane. As the plane ride was rather uncomfortable, I was
not able to get much rest. As we settled in, we found the place a little different
from our expectations. Having a common bathroom in a residential college is a little
of an inconvenience as we have to accompany our buddies just to use the toilet. Then
again, the cupboards in my room was alittle dirty, resulting in us having to live out
of the suitcases. From this trip so far, I've learn to apprecaiate my parents' hardwork
in packing everyday. Haha. Well as everybody has realised, our group lacks self-
confidence to stand infront of an audience unlike the other campers. It is certainly a
quality which we can pick up from this camp in becoming a better leader. I hope that
after today, I can pluck up more courage to be able to be that relaxed infront of an
audience. That's about all, hope tomorrow's gonna be fun! Goodnight mateys! :)
As the clock reaches 12am, I feel really exhausted. Looking back, it seems like years
when i alighted from the plane. As the plane ride was rather uncomfortable, I was
not able to get much rest. As we settled in, we found the place a little different
from our expectations. Having a common bathroom in a residential college is a little
of an inconvenience as we have to accompany our buddies just to use the toilet. Then
again, the cupboards in my room was alittle dirty, resulting in us having to live out
of the suitcases. From this trip so far, I've learn to apprecaiate my parents' hardwork
in packing everyday. Haha. Well as everybody has realised, our group lacks self-
confidence to stand infront of an audience unlike the other campers. It is certainly a
quality which we can pick up from this camp in becoming a better leader. I hope that
after today, I can pluck up more courage to be able to be that relaxed infront of an
audience. That's about all, hope tomorrow's gonna be fun! Goodnight mateys! :)
hi everyone! today was a long day. for almost the whole day, it was just leisure time. Time for us to adapt to this place and trying to mix with the other campers. The highlight of the day was the welcome dinner which was held outdoors. We had some kinda rice for dinner ( ms low told me what it was but i forgot haha). and then, there was this drink with chilli and onions. i find it kinda weird. but i tried to finish it anyway. After that, we had some entertainment, all related to dance stuff. The other campers were really brave and expressive while we stood around to watch them. We all wanted to join them but were too shy to say it and in the end, we didnt really join the dance much. It was awkward but it's a lesson learnt. In future, if i want to do something, i guess i will give it my best and not be too self-conscious. We got to know this girl who came from thailand alone. I think that it is very brave of her to come to a foreign place all alone. Also, we got to know two girls from Peru. We did not communicate much. However, i hope that tomorrow will be different-that we will all socialise more and get to know more people as well. Rest well, everyone! Tomorrow will be a better day! :D
Melissa. Temporarily using victoria's acc.
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