Toy Buffet 2019
Once the year-end assessments ended, our Parent Volunteers kicked back into high gear and as the school called for donations of toys, new and old, they helped to sort and wrap all these as gifts for the children at Toy Buffet 2019, run by Food From the Heart. An annual event, it treats about 3,000 underprivileged children to toys, games and yummy food!
After 3 days of wrapping and sorting, many boys and volunteers turned up bright and early at Nanyang Polytechnic to decorate our booth to the theme of Superheroes! Our other superheroes reported to school first, to help carry, and load all the toys onto the bus to be transported to NYP.
Over the course of the day, approximately 3,000 children were given 10,000 toys by various organisations, of which at least 800 were from us! The smiles the kids gave us and their gleaming eyes when they saw their favourite toys on display were so heart-warming!
Many of our boys commented that the kids they met has such big hearts, choosing toys for their siblings instead of themselves, the boys said they wished they could learn to love more and give more too!
We hope all our boys have learnt how much joy can come from giving and sharing, and are looking forward to next year and more opportunities to share!
Check out the photo gallery here.
Toys Buffet VIA Activity
RWP/MBP Grad Party 2019
I volunteer in many different areas in school, as many parent volunteers do, but one of my favourite activities remains the Reading Warriors Programme (RWP).
RWP is one of ACS Primary’s signature literacy support programmes, meeting the reading needs of Primary One and Two boys. It is helmed by a dedicated group of teachers from the English department and supported by a team of about 50 parent volunteers. Each of whom have to undergo specialised training by our very own in-house teachers before they can coach the boys. The boys come in for 5-10 minutes, every school day, during their recess time, to learn phonics and to read sight words or short stories as they progress.
It is a testament to the effectiveness of the programme, having the boys themselves recognise the benefits of being part of the programme and voluntarily running to the learning centre where the sessions are held each day! At the end of the two-year programme, that starts with basic phonics and ends with reading, comprehension and summary skills, the boys receive their graduation certificates and badges during a mini-graduation ceremony. Many of the graduates remember RWP fondly and often pop by to visit the teachers and coaches after they move on to the upper primary levels.
This year’s graduation party was held on 7th October with a cleverly-coined theme of Star Wars to celebrate our little “star readers”. One of our parent volunteers gamely dressed up as Darth Vader and gave the boys such a treat! The teachers had also prepared a light meal and fun-filled goodie bags for the boys. Our principal, Dr Irene Ng also invited a couple of boys to give an impromptu sharing of what they felt about the programme and both eloquently remarked how grateful they were to their coaches. Seeing the boys all grown up and graduating from the programme gave us parent volunteers such a sense of pride and fulfilment.
The school recently welcomed some trainee teachers visiting from other schools, to observe and learn how the programme is implemented and run. The visiting teachers commented that ACS Primary is very blessed to have such a sizeable group of parent volunteers, who believe in the cause and turn up faithfully to help the boys. We certainly couldn’t agree more!
Library Storytelling
One of the highlights of my time as a Volunteer at ACS(P) is story-telling in the library. I love seeing the P1s and P2s come in, and they are usually very eager to listen to the stories! Inculcating a love of reading is something that I am very passionate about, and I think this programme helps the boys develop that. It brings me so much joy to see their enthusiasm and listen to their predictions, as I stop to ask them what they think might happen next. It truly is a wonderful experience!
After reading the story to them , we guide them to some level-appropriate books that have been placed aside for them to browse and borrow, hopefully growing a love for reading in every boy!
Teacher Aides Appreciation Breakfast
The eve of Teachers’ Day is always a special occasion for a particular group of parent volunteers in ACS(P). They are the Teacher Aides (TA) who spend their days in classrooms, assisting the teaching staff in supporting boys who need extra guidance.
On 5 September, some 20 TAs gathered for their annual Teacher Aides Appreciation Breakfast. Over a scrumptious spread of nasi lemak, cakes, kuehs and more, these parent volunteers ‘talked shop’ and shared ideas on better supporting and affirming students. Over a hot cuppa, these dedicated individuals also got to know each other better and encouraged one another to “sign on” for more years of Teacher Aide duty!
The main highlight of the morning’s gathering was when the group joined the whole school in the auditorium for assembly. Besides catching some of the Teachers’ Day celebration, they also got to cheer on their “seniors” who went on stage to receive tokens of appreciation from our Principal, Dr Irene Ng. These were dedicated parent volunteers who had served as TAs for four or more years, on a regular basis in every year of service.
At ACS(P), we always count it as our great blessing to have dedicated parent volunteers like these, whose contributions are greatly treasured and deeply appreciated.
Children’s Day 2019 Gallery
Children’s Day 2019
The boys were counting down to recess on 3rd October! They had heard the announcement that there would be exciting games and yummy food available in the canteen!
The PSG organised a super fun time for the boys to celebrate Children’s Day! The games included new ones like Football, Golf and Coconut Bowling, as well as favourites like Nerf Gun Shooting and Fishing!
The PVs were exhausted catching flying balls and Nerf bullets, but the smiles of the boys was worth it, as many PVs attested.
Once their hearts were full, the boys turned to the food stations for yummy ice-cream, crispy prata, buttery popcorn and fishballs and siewmai. As many P1 boys said, “all our favourites, and all free”!
The boys were also rewarded with stamps after playing the games that they could use to redeem Snakes & Ladders travel sets and a limited edition ACS(P) keychain! The aim was for every boy to get a gift, and we think most did!
A huge thank you to our amazing parents, who ran the event, from early morning set-up to clean up after the event! Happy Children’s Day to all of us, and let’s not forget that the best is yet to be!
ACS(P) Annual Track & Field Meet and Games Day
ACS(P) Annual Track & Field Meet and Games Day
The 58th Track & Field Meet and Games Day was held at the ACJC sports center. Here, every pupil from Primary 3 to 6 had the chance to participate in either a track event or a games.
The Primary 3s played Captain’s ball, Primary 4s Handball, Primary 5s Ultimate frisbee and Primary 6s Rounders. The competition was fierce and the boys took turns playing and cheering their friends on!
As the Games and Track races happened concurrently at various locations around the school, the execution is massive!
We are thankful to our group of Parent volunteers who braved the sun and heat to help as Competitor Stewards and Marshals.
It was an exciting and fun-filled day and we thank God for his protection over all the competitors, staff and parent volunteers present.