Have you watched The Lorax?

One of Dr.Suess’s most beloved books hit the big screen again. The Lorax came out on March 2 and has made $158.4 million in the box office. I personally went to see this movie that has everyone excited, and I must say, I was impressed. Not only did The Lorax impress me with 3D, but it was also a lesson of moral and global values.

In The Lorax, a young man named Ted wants to give the girl of his dreams, Audrey, a real tree. Sadly though, there are none. They live in a city called Thneedville. In Thneedville, everything is plastic and metal. There isn’t any dirt, trees, plants, or even clean air. The people of Thneedville BUY clean air. Factories have made the air terrible, but the people don’t really notice.

                Ted set out to find the Once-Ler. The Once-Ler, as we learn by him telling the story, is the reason why there are no more trees. The Once-Ler found the trees, and began to make his new invention, the “thneed.” The Once-Ler cut down one tree. The Lorax came down in a flash of lightning into the tree. The Lorax said he “speaks for the trees.”  The Lorax yelled and scolded the Once-Ler for cutting down the tree, but greed and success overcame the Lorax’s warnings.  Soon, the thneed became popular; more was in demand from these miraculous trees called “Truffula” trees. The Truffula trees were fluffy, colorful, absorbent, and useful. The Once-Ler soon became rich, and had a factory. Eventually, all the trees were gone; the “thneed fad” had failed.

The Once-Ler, feeling bad about his mistake of ignoring the Lorax, believed that Ted could change the world, and fix his mistake. Ted was given the last seed of the Truffula trees, and was told to plant it in the middle of the town. After much controversy about the seed, the town’s people wanted the tree to be planted.

This movie spikes many questions about the environment; to me it did, anyway. What would happen if all of the trees were gone? Would we be buying clean air? Many people think that it isn’t realistic but really, our trees are sacred. Rainforests are diminishing, and every day, our air gets dirtier. Dr. Suess had the right idea of putting big problems like this in to minds of younger people, our children. Maybe some kids after seeing the Lorax will have the initiative to go plant a tree. I hope many of us will, not just children.  

Your Task (To be done in your writing Journal):

Answer the following questions.

(a) How many characters are mentioned in this article?

(b) Who are they?

(c) Which character do you like most? Why?

**(d) From any print materials (eg. poster, newspaper, magazine, brochure etc.) cut out and paste a picture of The Lorax to accompany your writing :)

This article is taken from http://my.hsj.org/Schools/Newspaper/tabid/100/view/frontpage/articleid/510925/newspaperid/3327/The_Lorax_Plant_a_Tree.aspx

An Article a Day - Goodbye East Coast Park McDonald's 29.2.2012

SINGAPORE - It was a (1)___________where many Singaporeans had their first dates, break-ups, and birthday celebrations.

Today, after more than 30 years and over 25 million customers, the McDonald's (2)____________ a place where food is served, which opened on Jan 20, 1982, at Marine Cove in East Coast Park will roll down its (3)___________ metal covers that can be closed or opened for the very last time, at the stroke of midnight.

The landlord, National Parks Board, will be redeveloping the area.

For many - football fans, chalet-goers, campers, and fitness buffs (4)___________ adv. in a very similar way- the popular restaurant's closing is a rueful occasion.

Said sales executive Jason Seah, 35: "I have many wonderful memories of the place - from when I was a child, through my (5)__________ between 13 and 19 years old years, to now. I'm really sad to see it close."

Mdm Siti Rahim, 40, added: "It's been there for so many years, it'll be strange that it will no longer be there."

On the restaurant's Facebook page, some 370 people have (6)____________ put up comments, many saying they will miss the place badly.

To mark the outlet's (7)_____________ the situation when a shop is closed and its move to East Coast Seafood Centre, some 1.5km away, a McDonald's spokesperson said it will hold a fun walk for customers and staff at 8.45am. There will also be games and other activities. Teo Xuanwei

Part One:
Leave your answers as comments.

Part Two:
Have you been to this MacDonald's outlet? Ask your parents if they had been to this MacDonald's outlet when they were in their teens. Would they miss this place after its closure? Why?

Kai Kai and Jia Jia

You may want to read this article and decide again if the duo will live well in Singapore when they arrive in about two months.

Say Hello to Kai Kai and Jia Jia

Below is an extract:

The Anticipated Arrival

Giant pandas are among the rarest bear species in the world with less than 1,600 left in the wild. They are classified as endangered under the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) Red List of Threatened Species. The population of giant pandas in the wild continues to (1)_____________ (reduce in numbers) due to the loss and destruction of their natural (2)________________ (a place where a particular animal is found).

Kai Kai and Jia Jia will be (3)_____________ (placed to live) at Wildlife Reserves Singapore’s upcoming attraction, the River Safari, Asia’s first river-themed park when they arrive next year. Visitors at the River Safari will be able to (4)____________  (watch carefully to learn more) the giant pandas up close in an environment similar to that of their natural habitat. The specially (5)______________ (drawn and built to make something work) habitat will be naturally landscaped with a lush bamboo forest, shallow streams, trees and boulders for the two black and white furry envoys to explore and play.

And that would be something Kai Kai and Jia Jia, the newly named giant pandas, can definitely look forward to!

An Article a Day - Thank you, Natasha 7.3.2012

We bundled up everything, including the two sleeping girls in our arms, and took the routine walk home from my mum's place yesterday evening only to find that it was drizzling. Hands fully laden, we were unable to use an umbrella to keep away from the rain even if we had one.


"How ah?" I asked the girls' father.


"Excuse me, do you need an umbrella?" came a man's voice from behind.


"Yes, I need it but my hands are tied," I replied the man who offered his umbrella. Standing next to him was his pretty daughter about the age of four.


"I'll shelter you," came his reply without any hesitation, "Where are you heading? Natasha, come, we'll shelter the baby."


"Two blocks away from here. Thank you very much," I could not believe my luck in meeting such a kind soul at the right time.


"We are going there too," Natasha's father replied. Along the way, he painstakingly made sure that Tessa was sheltered completely, not forgetting to urge Natasha to follow close enough to keep the drizzle out.


ZH carried Zelda, who was sound asleep, and hurried through the light drizzle to our block.


At the void deck of our block, I was profuse with pouring my gratitude to both the father and daughter. Being parents, we understand how important it is to keep the very young ones out of the rain. They are most susceptible to falling ill for their weaker immune system. We would have been trapped in this very light drizzle if not for the umbrella which appeared so timely!


I used to brave drizzles, rains, heavy downpours without a second thought. It has since changed after stepping into motherhood. The rain is not allowed to get them no matter what. It's worrying to see the little ones ailed. I make sure I keep myself dry even when I am alone for I cannot afford to fall sick. For the sake of their children, all mothers need to be in their pinkest of health.


We realised our Samaritans are our neighbours! In the lift, we exchanged polite smiles and Natasha hid coyly behind her daddy's legs, stealing glances. I could not help being generous with my 'thank yous' when they got out of the lift.


Speaking to Natasha, "Thank you for sharing your umbrella."


"It's not ours," said she honestly.


Warmed by her pristine innocence and her father's kind deed, I thanked them again, "Thank you anyway."


Children who are brought up by parents who demonstrate kindness will be nothing but kind. Hence, Natasha's father is kind, Natasha will be kind.


Thank you again, kind Natasha. I will tell Tessa about the lovely gesture of yours and your father the day she can understand.

An Article a Day - Panda's Arrival from China may be delayed by two months 6.3.2012

Can you locate this article in today's Straits Times?


The eagerly awaited arrival of two VIPs (very important pandas) - Kai Kai and Jia Jia - from China may be (1)d_____________by two months.


The cuddly (2)d___________ on loan for 10 years from the China Wildlife Conservation Association (CWCA) were originally expected to move into their home at the upcoming River Safari attraction in Mandai by this month.


Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS), the parent company for the river-themed animal attraction and Singapore Zoo, said it hopes to welcome the pandas before the June school holidays.


WRS (3)d__________ not say if the (4)d___________ will affect the public (5)d____________of the pandas, which was slated for October, when the entire River Safari opens.


All the missing words begin with the letter 'd'!


Do you think Kai Kai and Jia Jia will be able to adapt to living in Singapore?

An Article a Day - Student attacks his classmate with penknife 2 March 2012

SINGAPORE - An argument that broke out in the middle of an English lesson yesterday ended with a student injuring his classmate and leaving him with eight stitches on his arm.

The Secondary 3 student at Anderson Secondary School is (1) b____________ to have injured his classmate with a penknife and was yesterday (2) a____________by the police.

The police said the boy is being (3) i______________for causing grievous hurt.

According to the victim, his 16-year-old classmate was asked a question by their teacher during the class.

In (4) r____________, the classmate had shouted at the teacher, saying he did not know the answer.

This prompted the victim, 15, to ask the classmate to speak politely to the teacher, but the boy told him (5) o____________.

The victim told TODAY that the quarrel had (6) c____________ in the school corridor after the lesson ended but was broken up by a teacher and the victim returned to the classroom.

However, he came out again when he saw the boy appearing to charge towards one of his friends outside the classroom.

The victim attempted to block the path of the boy, and, in the process, (7) s___________ injuries to his arm from a penknife the boy had apparently been holding.

The school called for an (8) a__________and the victim was taken to hospital.

The school's principal, Mr Mark Lo, said the victim was discharged after receiving (9) t______________.

"The other student involved in the incident is (10) a______________ police with the investigations," said Mr Lo.

"The school will render the necessary support to the students involved and any other students who may be affected by the incident."

He declined to comment on whether the 16-year-old boy has been suspended, noting that the police are still investigating the case.


Article taken from TODAYonline


Task 1
What are the missing words? Fill in your answers here.


Task 2
Write an account of the above incident from the perspective of
- the English teacher (index numbers 1 to 6)
- the assailant (index numbers 7 to 12) 
- the classmate who told the assailant to be polite to the teacher (index numbers 13 to 18)
- the teacher who broke up the quarrel in the corridor (index numbers 19 to 24)
- the victim (index numbers 25 to 30)
- the principal (index numbers 31 to 36)
- the police (index numbers 37 to 42)


Complete your Task 2 here. For those who prefer to do the writing task on fullscap paper, please indicate in the form that you will be submitting your work to me on Monday.

Red Packets for Joy

It's Chinese New Year in less than a week! Can you smell the festivities in the air? Read this article about red packets. After reading the article, share with me about your thoughts about Chinese New Year here.

Road Safety

Hi all, following up on Ms Chua's talk during her assembly about the nine-year-old boy who died in a tragic car accident, please read the following articles.

1. Dead boy's parents want road made safer in Sembawang 

2. New Car Seat Rule

In your writing journal, share your thoughts about why we need to ensure safety on the road all the time.

- Have you had any terrifying experience as a pedestrian, a passenger or a cyclist?

- How do you think the dead boy's parents feel?

- Do you think many accidents can be avoided?

- What do you learn from these two articles?