The event acknowledged the achievements of our pupils who have excelled in various fields and celebrated the school’s efforts in cultivating a

learning environment where e v e r y o n e i s g i v e n t h e opportunity to stretch their potential. The event also recognised our staff and partners who have contributed

to our success through the presentation of the Long Service Awards for staff and Friends of YCKSS Awards to recognise the good work put in

by our parents, school alumni and external organisations.

We also celebrated the occasion with stunning performances put up by our Performing Arts groups – the Festive Drums Troupe, the Symphonic Band and the Choir. The Drama

Club and our cultural dance groups closed the evening with their colourful and energetic performances.

z Celebrating Our 47th zSpeech And Prize-Giving Day

We celebrated our 47th Speech and Prize-Giving day on 6th July with the theme “Daring to Do Our Best Work Together”. This year we invited Mr Andy Ong, CEO of ERC Holdings Pte Ltd as our Guest-of-Honour.

P U B L I S H E D B Y Y I O C H U K A N G S E C O N D A R Y S C H O O L

HORIZON�2 0 1 2

the

B Y M S K A N G P O H G E O K

Festive Drums Troupe

Drama

Parade Inspection

Top O Level 2012 student, Ms Zhou Yue

Long Service Award presented to Mrs Mak for 35 years of service

July 2012. Our Hong Kong friends were able to experience first-hand the everyday life of a Singaporean student through their YCKSS buddies. Both the Hong Kong and Singapore students also enriched their educational experience through v i s i t s t o t h e S i n g a p o r e Discovery Centre, NEWater Visitor Centre and the Asian Civilization Museum. They also had the opportunity to visit two vibrant and culturally ethnic enclaves of Singapore - Little India and Kampong Glam.

The 11th Singapore-Hong Kong Exchange Programme 2012 involved 6 secondary schools from Singapore and 8 secondary schools from Hong Kong. This exchange programme aims to prov ide oppor tuni t i e s for students to broaden their perspectives, learn social and language skills, and cultivate respect for the different cultures.

Our school hosted the Hong Kong students from 15th - 29th

11th Singapore-Hong Kong Exchange Programme 2012B Y M S H O O N S I E W H U I

A group photoExamining exhibits at the

Asian Civilization Museum

Viewing Racial Harmony exhibits at Singapore

Discovery Center

The exchange programme c o n c l u d e d w i t h performances put up by both our local students and new found friends. The indelible memories and strong friendship fostered between our students and the Hong Kong students wi l l definitely remain strong in their hearts. We look forward to our visit to Hong Kong in November.

To celebrate the end of the first leg of the 11th Singapore-Hong Kong Exchange Programme, all 120 students and accompanying school t e a ch e r s g a t h e re d together at the Tan Ean Kiam Theatre, Y i o C h u K a n g Secondary School on 27th July 2012 for the Farewell Ceremony.

Ms Ho Peng, Director General of Education, was our Guest -of -Honour. Among the

distinguished guests were D i rec to r o f H o n g K o n g E c o n o m i c Tr a d e Office, Mr Fong Ngai, Te a m L e a d e r o f Singapore, Mr Chia Ke n g H w e e, o u r V i c e - P r i n c i p a l , L e a d e r o f H o n g Kong Delegat ion, Mrs Ada Ng-Chan S u k - y e e , Z o n a l D i r e c t o r s , Superintendents and Principals.

A video of the two-week programme was screened and the guests were t reated to a dinner-cum-bonding session. The evening

ended with a song item ‘Shining Friends’ by the Hong Kong students.

The Farewell Ceremony

Our distinguished guests

Sharing of experiences YCKSS Festive Drums

The Singapore-Hong Kong Exchange Programme committee and participants

Bedok North Secondary School’s

Malay Dance

Modern Dance by Coral Secondary School

YCKSS Choir Performance

After the parade, all Secondary One to Three students departed for their learning journeys to various venues such as the Changi Museum, the Land Transport Gallery and the Marina Barrage.

The students benefited from these Learning Journeys – be it to experience the planning of the land or road use in Singapore, to learn more about the housing conditions in Singapore from the kampong days to the vibrant towns of today or witness to see World War II artefacts. The hands-on learning helped

to inject meaning to the students’ lessons in school as the knowledge in. It was a great bonding session between the students and teachers as they captured their happy moments together in photographs.

The Secondary Four and Five students were treated to a talk on inter-religious harmony in Singapore. A guest speaker from the Inter-Religious Organisation (IRO), Mr Harbans Singh was invited to conduct the programme. Mr Singh focused on key events organised by IRO, for example the September 11 observance ceremony and religious rituals at Kranji War Memorial.� It was certainly an enriching programme for the students as they learnt about different religions and how to be sensitive towards religious differences.

National Day CelebrationsOn 8th August 2012, our school celebrated Singapore’s 47th year of nation building. The cadets

from the various Uniformed Groups showcased a stunning march-in parade to honour our nation’s birthday.

By Ms Irene Nai and Ms Fortuna Wong

Mr Gopal inspecting the uniformed groups

Presenting a token of

appreciation to our Guest

Speaker - Mr Harbans Singh

A lovely 3A3 class photo at LTA

The RHD concert started off with

a fusion music performance presented by the school band. This

w a s f o l l o w e d b y p r o j e c t

presentations by our students from the various levels showcasing

different aspects of the RHD theme.

Some highlights of the celebration

include the melodic performances

by our multi-talented students who

sang in different languages. This w a s f o l l o w e d b y a d a n c e

performance put up by our Indian

and Malay dancers.

This year we were treated to a skit

performed by our very own teachers,

‘Celebrating Hari

R a y a , ’ w h i c h challenged their

linguistic skills as t h e y h a d t o

understand one

another in their respective mother

tongue languages. T h e c o n c e r t

conc luded wi th

special prizes awarded to the best dressed teachers.

Racial Harmony Day

Our school celebrated Racial Harmony Day (RHD) on 20th July 2012, with zest and enthusiasm.

B Y M R S I L A N G O

Our Indian dancers in action

Our very own Mr Michael Cartwright performing on the drums

action

Multi-racial singers attempting to sing in another language

Our teachers flaunting their acting skills

Our graceful Malay dancers

Left: Mr Gopal presenting prizes for the inter-class project presentation

Right: Mdm Luar won the best-dressedteacher award

Internationalisation ProgrammeB Y M D M H A M I D A H

The Internationalisation Programme is a yearly anticipated event for our YCKSS students. Each year, students are given the opportunity to be involved in various overseas trips.

TWINNING PROGRAMMESFrom 30th May to 5th June, our students also

visited two of our twinning schools in Japan and South Korea.

10 students departed on a six-day visit to Nagoya International School in Japan. Another 10 students, along with Mr Gopal, visited Youngil High School in South Korea.

They were introduced to the various traditional and cultural aspects of the Japanese and Korean culture. Our students were able to learn how the Japanese and Koreans are able to preserve and uphold their historical culture.

17 students from the various performing arts groups visited The Knox School in Melbourne,

Australia from 1st - 9th September. Our students

had the opportunity to participate in joint arts performances at the school.

EDUCATIONAL TRIPSBandung, Indonesia: Another ten students travelled to Bandung, Indonesia for a cultural immersion and educational trip. They visited volcanic sites like Tangkuban Perahu and tea plantations. They also had the opportunity to visit a local school to learn about the Indonesian education system. Our students not only enjoyed the scenic views but they were also able to apply the concepts that they had learnt in class.

Kuantan, Malaysia : A group of 19 students from Secondary 2 to 4 went on a

3D2N trip to Kuantan, Malaysia from 1st -

3rd June. This trip allowed pupils to be exposed to field work, a key component of

the new Geography syllabus.

Comparative studies of the development of two fishing villages & tourism studies of two beaches were conducted through the use of questionaires. Visits to a mengkuang leaf weaving factory & a batik painting factory were also organised to enable pupils to learn more about the culture of Malaysia. The highlight of the trip was the experience of seeing a ‘real’ waterfall and conducting experimental studies on its water flow. This trip provided students with a learning opportunity to apply what they have learnt in the classroom and be equipped with skills necessary for field studies.

HOSTINGChina : A group of Chinese students from Binxing School in Hangzhou, China, visited

YCKSS from 6th - 10th August. They had the

opportunity to witness the festive celebrations of our nation’s birthday in school and in the city.

Close bonding

Farewell at Airport

Our cute Chinese

Twinning Programme with Youngil High School Visiting Seoul, Korea

From 1st – 5th June, ten of our students, together with our Principal, Mr Gopal, Ms Chen Shuhui and Mrs Audrey Yip visited Seoul on a twinning programme with Youngil High School. The Korean Principal, teachers and students were very hospitable and kind.

B Y M R S A U D R E Y Y I P

Throughout the five days, we participated in lessons held at Youngil High School and visited many famous attractions in Seoul such as the 63 Building and the Kyeung Bok Palace. We also enjoyed a memorable river cruise along the famous Han River.

Apart from sightseeing, we were also given the opportunity to understand the traditional Korean culture by learning the Korean Hangul language and participating in a tea ceremony. As our twinning programme focuses on cultivating a deeper appreciation for a different culture, we developed warm friendships with our Korean buddies and truly enjoyed ourselves on the trip!

Visiting Singapore

Our Korean friends arrived in Singapore on 10th August. We had such an exciting itinerary planned for our friends! Our students played host and introduced Singapore to their Korean buddies.

We visited many popular at tract ions such as the S i n g a p o r e Z o o l o g i c a l Gardens, Universal Studios Singapore, Sentosa and the Singapore Discovery Centre. We also had the opportunity to showcase our unique culture as we brought the students and teachers to Geylang Serai, Chinatown and Little India. Most of the

students and teachers gave henna a try!

Our Korean buddies were very impressed with the beautiful city landscape and night view of the city area. They commented that they were very proud of the Marina Bay Sands hotel as it was built by Ssangyong. It has truly been an enriching and memorable time for both our students and counterparts.

Health FiestaBy Mr Damon Chu

Our Health Fiesta was held from 21st to 29th August 2012. Our students were exposed to various health-related activities such as reading articles on health issues, creative poster and bookmark design projects and the challenging but fun one-minute recess challenges.

The highlight of the fiesta was definitely the recess challenges which involved all students. The six fitness challenges include skipping, crunches, soccer juggling, netball shooting, basketball dribbling, and hula-hoop spinning. We hope that through these exciting challenges, our students will continue to keep fit and stay healthy after the fiesta.

The top three girls and boys from each game category were each awarded a prize for their perseverance and competitive spirit. Let us look forward to an even more eventful Health Fiesta next year!

Sports CarnivalB Y M R K U S E O W W E E

Our Sports Carnival was held on 30th August 2012. The day started with the ACES Day Workout where everyone warmed up to a creative dance workout. In this fun-filled event, parents, staff and students were engaged in sports competitions such as Skittles, Captain’s Basketball, Floorball and Handball.

For the fringe games, K-Pop Hip-Hop Dancing, Tchoukball, Touch Rugby and Archery were this year’s highlights where students

picked up cool dance moves and learnt new games. Adding to the carnival atmosphere, this year’s event featured Water Soccer where students competed in a gigantic inflatable soccer pitch filled with water.

This event would not have been successful if not for the assistance of our teachers, sports leaders, Red Cross Unit cadets and student volunteers.

Take a Shot at Tchoukball

Wet... Wet... Wet... Water Soccer

International Student Integration Programme (ISIP)Visits to Kampong Glam, Geylang Serai and ‘Army Daze’

B Y M D M H A M I D A H

This term, the ISIP committee conducted a learning journey to Kampung Glam and Geylang Serai

for the lower secondary international students on 17th August 2012.

As this was the festive period for our Malay community, our international students were able to understand the traditional practices and delights of the Hari Raya celebration better. They also had the chance to experience the vibrant Hari Raya Puasa celebration through a visit to Mdm Hamidah’s house.

As for the upper secondary international students, they were treated to a local musical drama ‘Army

Daze’ on 24th August 2012. It was truly a good experience for them to learn about National Service from the perspective of a national serviceman.

Apart from learning journeys, a Drama for Communication Workshop was organised for 21 selected lower secondary students to help improve their spoken English and build their confidence in interacting with others in Singapore.

In front of Malay Heritage Centre

Geylang Serai Hari Raya Bazaar

Cookies anyone?

Watching how Putu Piring is being made

Kampong Glam, Sultan Mosque

SMRT Community Emergency

Preparedness Programme

During the first week of August, our students took part in the Community Emergency Preparedness (SCEP) Programme organised by SMRT. The SCEP is a hands-on training programme designed to

B Y M S I R E N E N A I

encourage and train our community to play a more active and effective role in enhancing safety and security in the public transport system.

The SMRT staff explained patiently to our students what they should do in times of emergency and how to be vigilant on SMRT’s transport network. Our students even had the opportunity to

evacuate from the MRT train using the detrainment ramp at the Bishan MRT train depot. At the end of the programme, our students were certified volunteers

equipped with the knowledge on what to do in the event of an emergency.

It was certainly an enriching experience for our students!

The four-day camp was organised by nine student leaders from the different UGs and they learnt to work together despite their differences.

The cadets were divided into groups where they learnt teamwork through various activities. They were put through challenging games which tested their physical and mental strength. On the last day of the camp, the cadets 'graduated' from the camp with a victory parade with Mr Chia, our Vice-Principal, as the Guest-of-Honour.

Through this camp, the UG cadets were able to embrace the core values of the school, especially teamwork. The memories of this camp will definitely remain with them throughout their stay at YCKSS.

Uniformed Groups Combined CampThe combined Uniformed Group (UG) – NPCC, RC and NCDCC - camp was held during the June holidays.

B Y M R B R I A N P H U A

This semester YCKSS has been very fortunate to be one of five Singapore schools selected to trial a new music pedagogy. The Secondary One & Two Foundation classes were selected to participate in this workshop and were f i l m e d a n d o b s e r v e d b y representatives from STAR and the National Institute of Education.

As part of this trial, we were very fortunate to host a one-day workshop for local music teachers and invited guests featuring Mr Paul Griffiths, a teacher in the Department of Creative Learning from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London. Mr Griffiths conducted the workshop through fun-filled activities such as singing, playing percussion and musical games.

The highlight of the day was observing Mr Griffiths in action with our students. He took them through a series of games and warm-up activities before moving to body percussion and finally concluding with the creation of an original piece of music. Many students commented on how much they enjoyed the class!

Music Workshop Conducted By Mr Paul GriffithsB Y M R M I C H A E L C A R T W R I G H T

Working together to create an original composition

Everyone playing together

The composition delvelops as teachers look on

Ice breaker activity for teachers and students

Friend of Singa Project 2012B Y M R M A T T H E W N G

A group of 8 Kindness

Ambassadors embarked on a project to help

spread the message of

kindness and empathy to t h e s c h o o l . T h e

Ambassadors spent one week collecting second-

h a n d

items from the school. When

they received a

donated item, h e / s h e w i l l

write a small note to brighten

up the day of

the person who would eventually buy the item. The Ambassadors then sold the items at a Garage Sale. This project would

not have been a success if not for the generosity of the YCKSS staff and students who supported the project, as well as the hard work put in by the Ambassadors!

Mummy : Mdm Chen HuijunDaughter : Shayla TingDate of Birth : 31 May 2012

Daddy : Mr Edwin TieDaughter : Elizabeth TieDate of Birth : 19 June 2012

New Additions to The YCK Family

EDITORIAL TEAMADVISORSMr Saminathan GopalPrincipalMr Chia Keng HweeVice-Principal 1Mdm Cheryl TanVice-Principal 2

WORKING COMMITEEMdm Katherine ChuaMrs Vijaya ManiMrs Janice GanMdm Nirmala DeviMrs Doreen ChuMiss Teo Su-Lin Jacqueline

Lelong! Lelong! Everything must go!

Some of the sale items during the Garage Sale

The two presenters were Zavier Ng of 2E2 and Hariprasad of 1A2