SEHARI BERSAMA SJK(T) TRONOH

On 4^TH of April 2009, Rakan Masyarakat 2 of Secretariat Rakan Muda University Technology Petronas (SRMUTP) had successfully organised a program done every semester called Sehari Bersama at SJK (T) Tronoh. Besides wanting to teach students in the school English and Mathematics, we also wanted to instil vital moral values into the students so that they will grow up to well-rounded children.

The day started with our arrival at 7.30 am to set the registration booth. Registration includes the checking of students’ names and the giving out of files to each student for their use throughout the program. It took about 10 minutes for all the students to register and settle down according to their age group. The school’s principle and a number of teachers also attended the simple opening ceremony. There was no speech given by the principle, just a simple introduction of what SRMUTP is all about by two of the Master of Ceremony who used both the Malay and Indian language and the Head of Program gave a short thank you speech to the school for their cooperation before all the facilitators introduced themselves one by one.

At exactly 8.25 am, the program was taken over by the facilitators by asking them to settle down in their places and to turn their attention to the file that was given to them during the registration. The students were asked to write down their date of birth, their favourite colour, actor and actress on the back of the file for the first module titled “Ice Breaking”. Facilitators assisted a few of them who had some difficulties in determining their month of birth, especially when it came to spelling it. After that was done, the students were asked to get into groups according to date of month. And then the facilitators took their designated groups of students and conducted the ice breaking session by asking the students questions on each other. Students with correct answers were given prizes in the form of candies.

Around 9.10 am, students were once again asked to gather according to their age group to start the next module called “Happy Maths”. As the title have revealed, students in their respective groups are given mathematic questions based on their level during the session. Each group was handled by 3 facilitators and they assisted the students to answer those questions. There were a few students who were struggling, thus special attention are given to them. Extra questions were also asked by the facilitators and those who answered correctly also managed to get candies.

Then morning break was served at the school’s canteen at 10 am. All the students, facilitators and teachers gathered for the morning break and we were served with two traditional Indian delicacies and coffee. The next session started half an hour later with the next module called “Tense Master” where the students were taught about the different tenses in the English language. The facilitators provided them with examples of tenses. Then, the group was given a picture and the students were asked to create sentences with different tenses. Off course students of standard three were asked to fill in blanks of sentences because they were still not familiar with tenses just yet.

Next on the list was “Bang Bang Boom”, a module that requires each student to write one adjective on a piece of paper and was kept in a small box. Music was played and the box was passed around among the members and when the music stopped, the person who was holding the box was asked to act out the adjective. This is done so that the students know the meaning of each word and also to instil teamwork among them.

Module 5 is called “Fuse and Tell”. In this module, each group was given a puzzle of a picture. When they have successfully completed the puzzle as a team, they were all asked to create sentences based on what they see in the picture. It lets the students practice critical thinking and to generate creative idea. Around 1 pm, the program took a lunch break provided by the school. We were given curry rice and syrup drink. All of us took a 45 minute break for lunch.

The program resume at 1.45 pm with the “My Destination” module. During this session, students were asked to draw their future of 10-15 years from now; what do they wish to have, their ambition and anything else they want. The facilitators then made smaller groups of three students per facilitator. This module is all about sharing experiences with the students and to give the best advice for each of them to pursue their dream.

Last but not least is the “Cahaya Hidupku” module. During this module, everyone was gathered on one side of the hall to listen to Nagen, one of the facilitators. They were all given a lecture about respecting and loving their parents. During this session, a song called Kalaiyil Dhinamum was played. This song is about parents. This is to show and make the students realise that the most important people in their lives should be the parents - role models of their lives. The day ended with the students thanking all the facilitators. Everyone enjoyed themselves, especially the students who went around asking all the facilitators for their signature and contact number.