of latin coffEA, circle and late nights...

Check out the Latin coffEA (pic above) which is available at Seventies Kopitiam located right in front of Momo which is next to SS at Upper Penang Road. It has a nice pleasant coffee taste...not too strong. But if you like 'kau' coffee, then I won't recommend this to you. Besides this, you can also check out the 'nasi lemak' there...

Just a reminder to the 'circle' members...

remember 11 June 09...5 pm...sunset...

It's 3 am (Sunday) right now...and am still wide awake...typing this post...

This is one of the things I like about school holidays...being able to keep late nights without having to feel guilty about it...and of course without having to worry whether I can wake up in time for school or not...

Somehow I just love late nights...it's so quiet and peaceful...and I can really concentrate on whatever I am doing...be it reading, watching a movie, listening to music, marking exam scripts....

Of course there are also many other things that I like about school holidays but I guess I'll have to write about it in another post...

Good night eveyone...

mmm...in another 6 hours will be having my fave sunday breakfast at u-know-where.....

Happy Holidays!

Would like to wish all the students of HSBM especially 4ES, PBA, PBH and PAF
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
Have a great time, enjoy yourselves but don't forget to do your holiday homework...
See you guys in school again on 15 June 2009

Holiday homework Upper 6 MUET June 2009

Question

The Malaysian Examination Syndicate has proposed limiting the number of subjects that can be taken by SPM candidates to no more than 12, in view of the increasing number of students taking up to 19 subjects in the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia examination. Is this a good proposal? Give your opinion, supporting it with specific reasons. You should write at least 350 words.

Holiday homework Lower 6 MUET June 2009

Question

Imagine that you are taking part in an elocution contest. The topic of your speech is
"Why I am proud of my country". Write out the speech in not fewer than 350 words.

Holiday homework Form 4 Eng Language June 2009

LATIHAN CUTI SEKOLAH
BAHASA INGGERIS
TINGKATAN 4
BULAN JUN 2009


In conjunction with the Safety Awareness Week in school, an essay-writing competition was held. Write an essay entitled ‘Dangers Around The House’ to be submitted as an entry for the competition.

In your essay, include the following:

- overloading – many extensions and electrical appliances
- worn-out wiring
- faulty switches
- touching an electrical switch with wet hands
- the kitchen – place where danger is ever present
- leaking gas cylinders
- cylinder heads and hoses that are substandard
- sharp instruments – cuts, bruises due to carelessness
- pot and pan handles sticking out in people’s way
- hot water and oil


When writing the essay you should remember:

- to include all the points given
- to add two additional points of your own
- to write in paragraphs

of 'garbage trucks' and their 'garbage'...

Have shared these thoughts with some friends before so I thought to myself…why not blog it and share it with more people. The thoughts are not exactly my own…came across them in my emails and I feel that they are rather true and useful in helping us to cope with the daily stresses of life.

I used to tell my family that there is so much stress…anger, frustration, impatience, arrogance, ‘kiasuism’ and the list goes on…on our roads today. Encountering impatient and rude drivers (motorcyclists included) on our roads has become a common daily occurrence. And how do you normally react when you come across such a driver? Yep…you want to blow up and do or say something nasty…but STOP…please don’t do that.

Instead just think of these people as ‘garbage trucks’ which are filled with full of …you know what…and who have just dumped some of their garbage on you. Do not pick up their garbage and dump it on other people…your loved ones, friends, colleagues, students, customers, neighbours and even strangers. You know it’s just like having a bad day and you can’t control your emo and let it out on others… Don’t do that cos it just ain’t fair and moreover if you do, you are actually helping to spread garbage around and thereby become one of them…a ‘garbage truck’!

By now you may probably be asking : “So how should I react?” Well if they look at you, just wave at them, give them a smile and wish them well. (If you feel that you can’t do any of these, then just ignore them. Just tell yourself that the guy is having a bad day. Don’t let such people spoil your day. After all you may not even get to see that guy again for the rest of your life!) Anyway I think I can already hear some of you protesting: “Wa like that also can one ah…?” Well you can actually…it’s not easy as it requires a lot of patience and a very forgiving attitude…but if you can you’ll find less anger in yourself, feel much happier and be more at peace with yourself. Besides that you’ll be helping to spread more cheer and goodwill in this world…which is exactly what the world needs more of these days

Give it a try…really try…and feel the results…

By the way if you are one of those courteous, well-mannered, considerate, kind, patient and law-abiding road users, I SALUTE YOU…keep it up and help make this world a friendlier , happier and better place to live in.

I WISH YOU WELL AND DRIVE SAFELY!

Penang National Park

A National Park in Penang? Yep...we do have one in Penang...and its entrance is located at the end of Telok Bahang Village where the 'End of the World' Seafood Restaurant used to be. The restaurant has since been relocated to a spot facing the roundabout in the village. Actually the park has existed for a long time as the Pantai Acheh Forest Reserve since 1928 (think...Muka Head and Pantai Kerachut) and it was only gazetted as the Penang National Park on 10 April 2003.

Anyway on the 9th of May 09 some friends, my missus and I made a trip to the park. The last time I went there the seafood restaurant was still there but today the place has undergone a 'makeover'. There's a grand entrance to the park (the pic above), the park office (the pic at the bottom) and a beautiful exhibition hall with interesting exhibits of the attractions at the park at that spot. After registering ourselves at the office (foc) we started our hike along the beautiful trail. To cut a long story short my missus and I only made it to the first station that is Teluk Tukun while the rest of the guys made it to the USM Research Station which is supposed to be the second station. The more energetic hikers will of course find their way to Muka Head or Pantai Kerachut where there is a meromictic lake which is unique because it is seasonal and has two layers of fresh and seawater!

The park is a haven for nature lovers because there is an array of beautiful flora and fauna along the trails. The two pics above are typical scenes you can see along the way. Believe me it is a nice place to get away from it all...far away from the hustle and bustle of city life. A good place to de-stress...to be close to nature and should I say to lose a few kilos provided you do not have a good hearty 'makan-makan' at the end of the trip which we unfortunately or maybe fortunately (hehe!) did on our way home.

So if you are looking for a place to relax and get away from the maddening traffic and crowd, why not give the Penang National Park a try? Who knows you may even get to like the place and well...fall in love with it.

The pic on the left is a view of the park office with the sea in the background. The pic was taken from the exhibition hall which is on slightly higher ground.

breakfast at starbucks

Am really getting to enjoy my sunday breakfast at starbucks (auto city). Yep they do have a b'fast set...they call it b'fast pairings comprising a tall brewed coffee and a food item of your choice (costing RM4.80 and below)...u can choose one of these: a croissant, strawberry doughnut, chicken sausage roll or a cinnamon bun...all for RM6.50 plus 5% govt tax. You can change your drink to a tall latte (hot or cold) by adding RM3. The deal is available every day up to 11 am.
Of course besides that you also get to enjoy the starbucks ambience...air-con (a good way to escape from the heat we are experiencing now), soothing music, nice comfy sofa, free wifi, magazines and not forgetting the peace and quiet (at least most of the time) which I appreciate very much when I am trying to read someting there...
Mmm...a nice way to start off my Sunday mornings...
p.s. The muffin in the pic is an a la carte item.
I don't have any shares in Starbucks...in case u r wondering...

Penang in the 60s

a vegetable seller in Penang in the 60s

and of course who could forget the 'roti' man who came every day without fail on his trusty bicycle to sell his bread...

Pictures like these give me a feeling of nostalgia about the good ole days when life was much simpler, slower and more peaceful...

Public speaking competition

the contestants for the Public Speaking Competition
held on 28 April 2009 in conjunction with the
English Language Week

the contestants' co-ordinators

supporters...

the chairperson and timekeeper...

the contestants on stage...

Photography session

Pupils of 4ES getting ready for their class photo shoot...notice Megha smiling away:)
All the best to you guys in the coming Mid-yr exam!

Another random post...

Blue skies and everything nice...that's what a popular DJ used to say during his radio show many years ago. Glad to say that the DJ is still very much alive and kicking today. Anyway it was a beautiful day with blue skies when I took this photo at auto city from where I was sitting...at one of my fave cafes there. I'm sure you can guess the name of the cafe :)

Just a random post...

For those of you who have not been to the school for some time...this is how the facade of block C now known as Bangunan Abdullah Badawi looks like. I'm sure it brings back a lot of memories especially for those of you who studied in that block.

English Language…how to improve your proficiency in the language

My students have often asked me: “Sir, how can I improve my command of the English Language?” and my answer has always been this: USE…yep use the language every day…listen, speak, read and write in English every day. Language is a set of habits…so if you want to be proficient in it, you have to use it habitually. An analogy…if you want to be a good badminton player, what must you do? Play badminton every day! The same goes for the language.

Here are some of the things you can do to improve your language skills:

LISTEN to the radio (there are lots of English radio stations you can tune in too), the English news, the dialogues in movies (reading the subtitles is not the same as listening), English speeches, everyday spoken English as often as you can.

SPEAK in English every day…with your family (I know some of you are saying…sir, my family members don’t use English at home!), then with your relatvies, friends, classmates, teachers, salespersons, people manning service counters, over the phone, when ordering your food at McD, KFC, Old Town, Manhattan Fish Market, Starbucks, Coffee Bean, Subway (how can I not mention it…hehe) and the list goes on…

READ English materials every day…newspapers, magazines, journals, story books (fiction and non-fiction), online materials, etc.
Reading can actually be a joy. To quote someone from an article I read the other day:
“Words soothe when you are sad; stories thrill when you are bored; knowledge clarifies when you’re in doubt.” So well said.
You don’t have to buy all the materials I have mentioned as some of them are available in the school or public library. You can also borrow or exchange books and magazines with your friends.

And of course…

WRITE in English every day! Ya, I know some of you are already saying “sir, but how?”
This is probably the least used skill among a lot of students. So how can you practice your writing skill on a daily basis? Well for starters, you can keep a journal or a diary and jot down something in English in it every day. It could be something that happened to you or your friend, an interesting observation, a nice quotation that you came across, a new word that you have just learned, anything actually…as long as you take the trouble to write it down in English. If you are unsure about the spelling of a word, please look it up in a dictionary. You can also write emails or even blog to sharpen your writing skill. Or you can even write poems (I know…I know some of you are already smiling or ROFL) but actually I do know some students who actually do that during their free time…and these are the guys who normally score in the English Language papers during the examination.

Well I have shared with you some ideas on how you can improve your language skills. So it’s now up to you to put them into practice. Remember: PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT

And I would like to end this post with this useful reminder:


To learn how to LISTEN well in English is to LISTEN to it
To learn how to SPEAK well in English is to SPEAK it
To learn how to READ well in English is to READ it
To learn how to WRITE well in English is to WRITE it
In other words if you want to be proficient in English,
USE IT EVERY DAY

To all the students of PAF SMK Tinggi Bukit Mertajam 2009

All the best in the MUET Speaking Test

Just a few reminders:

• Arrive punctually for the test
• Remember to bring along your I/C and MUET exam slip
• Stay calm and be cool during the test
• You all can do it!

Good luck!

Hi everyone!
Have set up this blog to enable the exchange of news, views, ideas, thoughts and opinions on the teaching and learning of English. Besides that, as the name of my blog suggests, I may also do random posting of anything that may or may not be directly related to the teaching and learning of English. Anyway feel free to share your views and thoughts but kindly observe proper decorum when leaving your comments. Thanks.