10/01/2005 02:54:00 PM
Pre-school environmental Education Advisor Workshop
Pre-school environmental Education Advisor WorkshopI received a call and a sms, informing me of the workshop yesterday. I almost forget about the event. I knew I had something to be done on this lonely Friday.
I reached Newton Mrt at 10am, the time initiated for the event gathering for NYP students. We headed for the Environmental Building. Below:
Date / TIme : Fri 30 Sept 05, 1.45pm - 5.30pm
Venue : Environment Building
40 Scotts Road
Level 25 MEWR Hall
We walked via the walkway to the building on foot, it is not a long distance away. We were registered at the admin counter at level 1, and then being issued a pass (a sticker) to put on for the admittance into the building premises.
We went up to level 17 or 19, forget. We were shown the washrooms, because some only for visitors and the rest for staffs which needed key.
We were led into a room, the conference room I should think, there is a huge rectangular tabletop with dozens of office chairs, those with comfortable cushions. So were the goodie bags ready for us. Inside the bag, one can find a piece of handout of what is going to happen that day. Among the items, there is a notepad ,a post-stick,a pen and a folder bearing the words ”Habitat Forum”. Yah! All are Extra items left behind from previous events, even the t-shirt we were forced to wear in the later part of the day also.
Anyway we were told to bring items before we come for the briefing. Yes, the first part of the day is briefing for volunteers and then the actual event will start at 1.45 till 5.30pm. We did some handicrafts with the items we brought, tissue boxes with glue, scissors, old magazines, markers, straws and strings. The items to make were a hand-carrier bag and then a shopping bag, Both are made from a tissue box and construction paper respectively. I was very bored then, because I had nothing to do as I was not assigned the task of teaching the pre-school teachers how to do for the arts. I sat there feeling lost and then I took out my paper-cutting knife to do cutting of characters from the magazines. I was shocked because I lost touch of paper-cutting since secondary 3 when I was involved in a cross-secondary exchange program between CHIJ SJC and MFSS. I tore some magazines papers into shapes of square shapes. I started to do my profession, it includes folding several layers of the papers and then cutting certain shapes to form beautiful structures not easily found today. Yes this is up to individual mood and creativity and the surrounding atmosphere. I did a great job, but the paper I used had too much fanciful colours that it does not portray the aim I wanted it to be, I was then back to a daze again, nobody bothered about me. I was thinking of taking a nap then, I was like the odd one out of the students that came to this event because there were 13 persons. I think I was the odd one out. Maybe I was too tired then.
At noon, we went to the Far East Square to have our lunch, and told to report back by 1pm. We got separated for a reason simple enough since they were so many food stalls around. I went with a group that headed for the Scotts Shopping centre, there is a food court at basement, we went there. There was this girl that took notice of me throughout the event, her name is Tabitha, she is a year younger than me. While walking to the destination for our lunch, she asked me why I am so nostalgic. And then we conversed quite a while. And thus we got to know each other. At that point of time, I am still not very familiar with her, it is just that I have seen her somewhere but I cannot remember where and when. I had fried chicken rice. Then as time was not on our side, we had to head back. And guessed what, we walked back together with those that did not ate lunch together. I think it is just the time that we met at the traffic junction.
We went back through the same door that we came in this morning. By then we had our fill, we were ready to do work. Then I knew some of them as we started talking to each other on the way for lunch and back. We started to joke after there was this two joker by the name of Irene and Norman. We were given tasks of being at the register counter and then we were roaming around due to the organisers poor planning, as it was a first time. So we had time to joke around and that is after we have changed our shirt, because we went back early to change, into the “Clean and Green Week 2004”.
At 2pm, guest were still coming in, Then, we had been issued another sticker, a sticker to represents who we are, our real name. We were told to usher people into the place, because people were late for one reason or another. Of course, there are those that came early and saw our flaws in the planning of the whole event. We were chit-chatting then. Happily we walked around. At 2.10pm, the address started and then the program follows. We were supposed to guide them, the pre-school teachers. I should say we should not be teaching them, or rather we are being coached, their self-introduction was superb, they get along well. When it comes to art and craft, the table I am in-charge of had no problem doing things, they were far more creative than I thought. Maybe that is what they are, pre-school teachers. Now I know why they say that kids are more creative than adults, because they got no restrictions and they do not have much things to think of, just do it. Yeh! That is why the teachers of those pre-schoolers are learning from these teachers. In the early morning, the arts my friends do were merely following instructions. But these teachers think out of the box, they cut the boxes into strips and then start weaving them manually with papers, construction papers. And then for the handle of the carrier bag, they weave straws to become a manual string, then weave together, stapled together to become a handle. They also made a tissue paper rose from their experience and gave to one of the volunteers. But I also noticed some things, maybe not all the teachers are so happy with the arrangements as to come to this building to learn kiddy stuffs, these can be seen from their attitudes towards the stuffs they did. Nothing more than ordinary.
One thing I noticed, they are so involved into doing things their body size grows sideways. They are very caring people.
There are talks by external people, the green captain series. Okay then there we are chatting around a table among ourselves and I think sometimes disturbed the speaker when we talked a little too loud.
Overall, there is a camera man who goes round taking shots. He is also a working colleague of the organising committee. At the end of the event, we were giving out t-shirts to the pre-shool teachers and some captain green series to them. They were also each given a goodie bag each. At 5.45pm, we got the permission to be dismissed. We were thanked for. And the camera man came looking for us after we changed back to our clothes, he talked to us about the events coming up and ask if we are happy to join him as an environmental envoy.
Predatory Instincts; Bestboy STunts. NSF->PLAB-AMS-AOF, NYAA-GAHA