Money and Me

P5 Joy
Tuesday, 20/7/10 issue of LRD Pg 17

Money and Me
I am sure most of you have been told by your parents and elders to ‘spend your money wisely’. This article explains what it means and how you can spend your money wisely.
In our daily lives, it is common to buy things that we either need or want. Before you buy that thing, have you considered whether it is a need or a want? So, what is the difference between a need and a want
A need consists of the basic items that are required for your survival, such as food, shelter and education whereas a want is something that you wish to own but you are capable of living without.

How one can be a wise spender and save some money?

Flooding in Orchard Road

On Page 5 of this week's LRD, we read about the flood in Orchard Road. Amazingly enough, everyone could remember where they had been when they heard about the flood. I guess that shows that we all had been very shocked.

During our English lesson, we discussed about what could have possibly caused the flood. Some people said it might have been litter thrown in the drains while others said that the drains were not big enough. I had never heard of the Stamford Canal until today. That is the name of the canal that overflowed on June 17th, causing the flood.

From the article, we learnt that Orchard Road is known as one of Singapore's prime area. In the article, the writer described the flood as having 'swirling brown water the colour of milk tea'. Some of my friends said that that sounded delicious but I was very disgusted. We also read about how people had to scramble out of their cars and how the submerged road made it difficult to drive through as the flood water rose. There was a nice part about how passers-by helped a shop open its doors by ramming through the grilles as they had been trapped by the floodwaters. Of course, everyone had been caught off guard by this flood, as they had never been rain this heavy since 1984!!

Do you remember what you were doing when you heard about the flood?

For more pictures and videos, go to the link below:

http://singaporeseen.stomp.com.sg/stomp/sgseen/this_urban_jungle/394710/heavy_rains_cause_severe_flooding_along_orchard_road.html

Kallang Slashings

Between May 27 to 30 last month, there was a crime spree in the Kallang area, which resulted in 1 construction worker killed in an open field.

Seven people have already been caught for gang robbery.

When we discussed this in class, we talked about how crazy it all seemed and how important it was to be careful when we walk home. It's hard to belive that this happened in Singapore.

However, a good thing that came out of this was that some Singaporeans were compassionate enough to come forward to help those who had been injured in the attacks. Some helped by donating money while others paid for their bills. I heard that one of them was a construction worker who had had his fingers cut off by the attacks. He cannot continue working now. We all felt really sad by this.

The article about how Singaporeans came forward to help the injured men can be found at the link below:

http://www.todayonline.com/Singapore/EDC100609-0000066



5 Charity 2010

MRT Graffiti

Between May 16 and 17, 2 men, Oliver Fricker and Dane Alexander Lloyd, cut a fence in Changi Depot (the place where they 'park' all the trains at night) and spray-painted graffiti on one of the MRT trains.

However, what was weird about this incident was that SMRT (the people who run the MRT system in Singapore) did not realise what had happened until a teenaged boy, who was part of a trainspotting group--- a group of people whose hobby is to follow trains--- happened to take a video of the train. He had thought that it was an advertisement. When SMRT realised that someone had vandalised the train, they started investigating and caught Oliver Fricker, a well-paid Swiss banker working in Singapore. The other man however, had left the country after vandalising the train.

This incident made the public ask how safe the MRT depots were. Some people said that it would have been very serious if the men had done something more dangerous with the train.

What do you think about this incident? Should SMRT do anything? Should the public do anything to prevent something like this from happening again?

6 Charity - In memory of Dr Goh Keng Swee (6 October 1918-14 May 2010)

The dearly missed ex-Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore not only went on to become one of modern Singapore’s pioneers, but also served terms as the Minister for the Finance, Defence, and Education ministries. In short, it is safe to say that everything we now see around us was due to his sheer brilliance, practicality, foresight and vision for the modern Singapore he aspired to create.

He was usually called in by the Minister Mentor, Mr Lee Kuan Yew, to solve many of the problems that Parliament faced, thus acquiring the nick-name “Mr Fix It”. Among the many things we are grateful to him for are: JTC, MAS, The Singapore Bird Park, The Underwater World and many more. Let us remember him and keep his legacy alive!

Do share your thoughts with us.

The Plight of Foreign Workers in Singapore

The article "It's a Raid - and Men, Rats, Roaches Scurry About" published in the Straits Times on 18th May 2010 was an eye opener, as it showed us what it is like in the dormitories of some foreign workers in Singapore. Although they are not Singaporeans, the locals owe a lot to these foreign workers who have contributed to the modernisation of Singapore. With most of thenm working in the construction field, they are partly responsible for the new buildings which are erected in Singapore. Some of them are also responsible for the clean and green environment that we experience in our neighbourhoods. Thus, it only fair that we reciprocate kindness with kindness by providing them with bigger lodgings and proper washing facilities. After all, we all belong to the human race and we should treat one another with respect.

P6 Humility

Homeless in Singapore

We read the article on LRD's P4 in class today. The aricle was entitled 'Homeless' Couple in the Spotlight.

This is what it was about:
- A short documentary on homeless Singaporeans was shown by Arabic TV news network, Al Jazeera
- The two-minute clip featured a couple allegedly forced onto the streets by government bureaucracy
- Dr Vivian Balakrishnan (Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports) questioned the accuracy of the report, saying the couple had not been left in the lurch by government agencies
- He said that the man had made about $220 000 from the sale of three HDB flats, and the woman is still the co-owner of an HDB flat with her former husband,
- The couple had been offered a place at a shelter, but they turned it down. The shelter would not let the couple live together too, as they are not legally married.
- MCYS said the couple continue to receive financial and social assistance from various outfits, for example the South West CDC.


To find out more:
Full Report: "Homeless" Couple still in TOC's website spotlight
http://www.transitioning.org/2010/04/30/full-report-homeless-couple-still-in-toc-websites-spotlight-st-1-may/

Al Jazeera responds to Vivian Balakrishnan's accusations
http://theonlinecitizen.com/2010/04/al-jazeera-responds-to-vivian-balakrishnans-accusations/


Think about this and leave your comments:
If people want to live on the streets, should they be allowed to?

Leave a tribute to Dr. Goh Keng Swee

Goh ks 15 may 2010-to be projected17may2010

View more presentations from misswongccps.

Dr. Goh Keng Swee will be remembered as Singapore's architect, a man who left big footprints in many areas of Singaporean life as we know it. Many institutions and ministries owe a great debt of gratitude to his insight, foresight and wisdom.

What would you like to say as a tribute to his memory and life work? Leave a comment below!

My Favourite Television Programme (6 Joy)

This week's Little Red Dot featured an article that traced the evolution of Singapore's television programmes from 40 years ago to the present. Let's see what some of 6 Joy's favourite TV programmes are!

Vishalini
My favourite programme is Wheel of Fortune. It is very interesting because I find it very challenging to predict the answers. I also get to learn some new words in the process. Some of the contestants are so lucky - they win lots of money as well as trips to exotic destinations! I hope to participate in Wheel of Fortune one day and win myself some prizes!

Nabilah
Samayal Samayal is a Tamil cooking show. I love to cook so I get lots of ideas for new recipes from the show. I then cook the dishes for my family!

Sammi
My favourite program is Deadly 60. It is shown every Monday at 8.30pm on the okto channel. I like it because it features animals that are not found in Singapore. I find the information quite useful for Science and it is fascinating to watch them catch sharks and crocodiles. The most amazing scene in the show was one where they showed a giant alligator turtle stuck in a fishing net! I really want to see the turtle in real life. There are other programmes that I like to watch. They are mostly about Science as I love Science.

Whoa... Fierce.

Source: http://missourifolkloresociety.truman.edu/turtleman/alligator-snapping-turtle.jpg

Killer Ash Straits Times Tuesday April 20 (Pg A6) P5 Joy

Since last week, Eyjafijallakull Volcano in Iceland has been spewing ash into the atmosphere. As the ash particles dispersed, it has formed an ash cloud over an extensive area in Europe. This has resulted in aeroplanes being grounded due to the ash in the atmosphere.
Besides causing chaos in the aviation industry, how will the ash cloud affect the environment?