Cultural Immersion Overseas Journey to Penang

(28 May – 31 May 2018)

On 28 May 2018, a group of 25 Primary 5 pupils embarked on a 4 days 3 nights cultural immersion overseas journey to the beautiful Malaysian state of Penang, the Pearl of the Orient. The aim of the trip was to provide pupils with opportunities to practise in real life what they learn about Global Citizenship so that they can be contributing members in the future, display virtues they have learnt through the Virtues Project and to strengthen their critical thinking and leadership skills.

Posing with the Vice principal and staff of

Penang Chinese Girls School

Playing the song “Ode to Joy” with confidence

Key highlights of the trip included the school visit to Penang Chinese Girls School. Our pupils had the invaluable opportunity to interact with the local students who were Primary 5 pupils themselves. Our students experienced a daily Mathematics classroom lesson on Money and Percentage, had their recess in the school canteen and attended a Music workshop on recorder playing together with the Penang pupils. Together with them, our pupils persevered while they practiced the song “Ode to Joy”. They showed good teamwork when they played the song together during the mini competition on the second day of the school visit.

Demonstrating the cup rhythm to Penang Chinese Girls’ school pupils

During the second day of the school visit, our pupils led and facilitated four different Music virtue stations. Their roles enabled them to develop their leadership qualities and understand the importance of teamwork. The four Virtues activities were Name Activity where pupils had to introduce themselves with a given rhythm, Moving Around/ Mirror Mirror where they had to pretend to be the mirror image of the other person, Body Percussion/ Percussion Instruments where they had to come out with different actions for a given rhythm and Cup Rhythm to perform a given rhythm with plastic cups. It was a good opportunity for our pupils to apply, share the virtues they have learnt through the Virtues Project in school and to forge new friendships with friends from different cultural background.

Group photo with representatives from the

Convent Light Street

Sitting in a classroom with names of Prisoners of War scribbled on cell walls

Our pupils immersed themselves in the rich historical culture of the Convent Light Street as they walked the footsteps of the Catholic nuns of the Holy Infant Jesus order, the torchbearers in bringing education to the population. As the tour guide, Ms Ann Cutter was an old girl of the school (Primary & Secondary) as well as a retired teacher, she was able to give her first -hand account of her experiences. Pupils had a close encounter with the Francis’ Light well also had a chance to sit in a classroom where the names of the POWs were scribbled on the cell walls using belt buckles at the time when British/ Australian soldiers were housed as prisoners of war (POW) after the Convent became the naval headquarters of the Japanese. Apart from the school visits, our pupils also explored different attractions in Penang to learn more about its unique heritage and culture.

Posing with Penang Street Art, “Little Children on a Bicycle” Mural at Armenian Street, George

Town

Pupils listening attentively to the tour guide as she shared with them the rich legacy of

antiques and collectibles of the era.

Pupils also gained more insights to the lives of the people living in Penang back in the 1950s to 1970s during the heritage city tour and the visit to Pinang Peranakan Museum. The museum had a re-creation of a typical 19th century Baba home, the elegantly restored museum displays over 1,000 pieces of antiques and collectibles. The exploring of the world-famous wall murals of Georgetown was an eye-opener for the pupils who were fascinated by the beautiful art displays.

See our excited faces before we start our journey at Entopia Penang Butterfly Park!

A highlight of the trip was the visit to Entopia Penang Butterfly Park again. There, the pupils were entomologists for the day. They were amazed at the different species of butterflies at the farm. It was such a thrill to see the butterflies flying around them.

Having fun making tau sar piah

The visit to the Tau Sar Piah factory was also a hit with the pupils. Pupils had the hands-on opportunity to mould and make their own tau sar piah. You could see the delight and sense of accomplishment on their faces.