Tamil Department
Mother Tongue Languages (MTL) Reading Programme
Our MTL Reading Programme aims to build a strong foundation in the Mother Tongue Languages by exposing our students to different genres of writing and fostering a love for reading. A ‘Reading Passport’ is given to each student to track his/ her reading progress through a variety of activities. The passport also guides them to select appropriate books to read and after each term, they will be able to redeem bookmarks as rewards for completing the activities.
During MTL lessons, our students enjoy a myriad of reading activities, which include storytelling, book recommendations, and the making of animal bookmarks and paper puppets etc. Outstanding pieces of work from our students are then selected and showcased at our Media Resource Library.
To further raise awareness of the importance of reading, the MTL Department organised the Bookmark Design & Creativity Competition last year, which received overwhelming participation from our students.
Learning Journey – Pongal Festival
Our Tamil pupils go on a Learning Journey to Little India to witness the celebration of Pongal Festival, during which Hindus all over the world offer their gratitude to the sun. Though an annual affair for Hindus, in 2014, non-Indian pupils also participated in the learning Journey to Little India as a form of National Education.
Pupils had the opportunity to immerse themselves in Indian tradition, understanding the significance of celebrating Pongal and also taking part in activities like applying henna to their hands and buying Indian sweets. The Learning Journey to Pongal Festival was indeed an interesting and enriching experience for our pupils.
Tamil Fortnight Activities 2014
‘Mother Tongue Fortnight Activities’ is an initiative introduced by MOE with the objectives of educating and engaging our pupils in the Tamil Language and Culture. Over the span of these two weeks, our pupils will be engaged in several cultural activities such as going on Learning journeys, participating in language competitions and attending cultural camps. These activities would serve as enrichment to our pupils’ language learning.
In 2014, our pupils had the privilege to attend a half day cultural camp conducted by external vendors. In this camp, pupils learnt the significance of yoga in the Indian culture. This also helped students with eye, mental and physical health. They also had hands-on activities such as thoranam- weaving, playing of traditional Indian board games and coconut leaf art. It was an informative and fun-filled camp for the pupils. Apart from the cultural camp, our Tamil pupils also had cultural activities in the classroom level conducted by their respective Tamil Language teachers.
Cluster Sharing by Our Teachers
Teachers in our school, not only attend workshops to keep abreast with changes and new development, they also do sharing with their contemporaries in the cluster level on matters pertaining to pedagogy. This year, our teachers will be sharing their pedagogical knowledge with those from the N2 cluster schools. This is necessary as teaching and learning is just as important to teachers as it is to our pupils.
External competitions
Many of our Tamil pupils from all the levels are given various opportunities to participate in Tamil Language literary competitions organized by external organizations such as Bishan Community club, Telok Blangah community centre, Chong Pang community centre and Bukit Batok Community centre. Pupils take part in competitions such as, Story Telling, Essay Writing, Fancy dress, singing and poetry writing. Our pupils are given the opportunity to gain exposure and confidence through these competitions. The oratory components of the competitions aid pupils in developing their presentation skills by delivering information in a vivid and entertaining manner.
Through competitions such as singing, pupils are able to immerse themselves in the culture of the Tamil Language. Lastly, through written components such as poetry and essay, pupils have an opportunity to fully express themselves and their ideas through words. By preparing for these competitions, pupils get to appreciate the vast volumes of literature available in the Tamil Language. Pupils also learn the importance of resilience when the competition results are not in their favor.
