Task

Choose one topic and write a short story/ description based on the charms available. To help you, a list of possible charms is made, and you may make use of the list to write your short story. Work in groups of 3- 5.

Magic Broom – Write a short description to promote your magic broom features.

Escaping from Bad Guys – Write a short narrative on how you managed to use charms to escape from villians.

Professor at Hogwarts – Write a series of instructions for a new professor who is unfamiliar with how to handle students.

Mischievous Student – Write a short personal recount on how you played a trick on your friends.
Imagine you are a magic broom seller. What spells can you use to make your brooms fly and be comfortable for the person sitting on them?

Possible Charms

Cushioning Charm

Creates an invisible cushioned area. It is primarily used in broomstick manufacture to make the brooms more comfortable to sit on.

Flying Charm

Different to Wingardium Leviosa, which merely makes objects float in the air, the Flying Charm allows them to be maneuvered by the user and turns them into genuinely controllable flying items. The Flying Charm is used on broomsticks (as confirmed by Draco Malfoy when he was criticising Ron's broom in 1995 - "why would anyone put a Flying Charm on a mouldy old log like that?" being the words he chose), and also presumably Flying Carpets. It is clear that Flying Charms can be cast only on objects rather than animals or people, as it is well known that no spell yet exists that allows a wizard to fly unaided.

Unbreakable Charm

Makes an item unbreakable.

Impervius

Impervious means “incapable of being affected”. Used to make an object resistant to water.

Gripping Charm

Allows a person to grip an object more effectively. This was invented in 1875 and is primarily used in Quidditch to allow the Chasers to handle the Quaffle one-handed whilst still keeping a grip on their brooms.

Horton-Keitch Braking Charm

Patented by Basil Horton and Randolph Keitch, this charm aids broomsticks in slowing down in a controlled manner. It is used on broomsticks made by the Comet company.

Imagine you are trying to run away from the bad guys and you need to use some spells to protect yourself. You may use 3 to 5 spells to save yourself. Write out a simple story of how you managed to escape in groups.

Alohomora

From Hawaiian “Aloha” which means “hello/farewell” and Latin “mora” which means “obstacle”. This spell is used to open a locked door or window. While it will not unlock all magically sealed doors, it works well against "Colloportus."

Banishing Charm

The opposite of Accio, causes an object to fly away from the caster.

Bat-Bogey Hex

Maybe the effects of this are best left to the imagination. Causes bogies to grow, become bat-like, and attack the victim. Ginny casts this spell on Draco Malfoy in Order of the Phoenix.

Conjunctivitis Curse

Conjunctivitis is an inflammation of the conjunctiva (mucous membrane that lines the surface of the eyelid and the exposed surface of the eyeball), and is taken from the Latin "conjunctus," meaning "joined together."

This curse is aimed at the eyes of the victim and causes the eyelids to crust together so that the victim cannot see. In addition to loss of sight, it seems to cause pain to the victim as well.

Ennervate

Revives someone, especially someone who has had Stupefy cast on them.

Expelliarmus

Latin for “to expel a weapon”.

This spell is used to disarm an opponent. Although a simple spell, it causes the victim's wand to fly out of his or her hand, depriving its victim of his or her primary weapon and means of defense. When used by many people on a single target in tandem, the spell is powerful enough to knock the target off of his or her feet, as was demonstrated on Severus Snape in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

Fire Charm
When Harry and Dumbledore were attacked by Inferi in the Horcrux cave, Dumbledore created a ring of crimson and gold fire to protect them. This may be simple a Dumbledore-powered version of Flagrate or Incendio, or it may be a separate fire creation charm.

Immobulus

"Immobilise" means to prevent moving.

Stops an object moving. The name of this spell comes from the films rather than the books but is included here as it is very likely to be the "clever Freezing Charm" used by Hermione to immobilise Cornish Pixies in Professor Lockhart's first Defence Against the Dark Arts lesson. See also "Freezing Charm".

Impedimenta

“Impedimentum” is Latin for “a hindrance”. Use to stop or slow down a person or creature (as opposed to an object).

Incarcerous

“Incarcerate” means to shut in. Summons ropes which then bind the victim.

Incendio

“Incendo” is Latin for “set fire to”. Creates fire.

Intruder Charm

The wizarding equivalent of a burglar alarm. It makes an audible signal when the area covered by the charm is entered by somebody or something.

Liberacorpus

From "libaro", which is Latin for "to set free" and "corpus", which is Latin for "body". The counter-spell to Levicorpus. It releases someone from being dangled upside-down so that they crash to the floor.

Locomotor Mortis

The Leg-Locker Curse. Causes the victim’s legs to lock together. The incantation for this spell is of a similar form to the “Locomotor” spell but doesn’t seem to sit very happily with it, considering the very different effects.

Imagine you are a professor at Hogwarts. What spells would you use to make sure your students behave?

Stealth Sensoring Spell

Rather like a Secrecy Sensor, this spell detects illicit behaviour and alerts the caster. Professor Umbridge had cast this spell on her office door when Harry broke in to contact Sirius using her fireplace.

Specialis Revelio

"Specialis" is Latin for "special", and "revelo" is Latin for "to unveil". Causes an item to reveal anything that has been hidden by magical means. Hermione used it to make sure there was nothing untoward hidden in the Half-Blood Prince's copy of Advanced Potion-Making.

Silencio

From “silent”.

This charm forces any person, creature, or object it is cast upon to fall silent, unable to make any audible noise.

Anti-Cheating Spell

A spell that teachers at Hogwarts use on quills or exams to prevent cheating.

Anti-Disapparation Jinx

When cast on a person, it prevents them from Disapparating. Dumbledore used this jinx to bind the Death Eaters in the Death Chamber at the Ministry of Magic.

Aparecium

“Appareo” is Latin for “appear” or "to become visible". Used to reveal invisible ink.

Imagine you are a mischievous student at Hogwarts. What spells would you use on your friends to trick them?

Babbling Curse

Causes the victim to babble nonsense. Lockhart once cured someone of this curse on his travels. Or not.

Jelly-Legs Jinx

Makes the victim’s legs shake uncontrollably.

Rictusempra

From the Latin "rideo risi risum," meaning "to laugh at, laugh."

The Tickling Charm. Causes uncontrollable laughter in the victim.

Slug Curse

Causes the victim to burp slugs.

Tarantallegra

The Tarantella is a fast Italian dance. Causes the victim’s legs to dance uncontrollably.

Twitchy Ears Curse

Makes the ears of the victim twitch uncontrollably. Harry suffered a bad case of Twitchy Ears after a particularly rigorous DADA lesson on hex deflection from Moody/Crouch.

Answer the following questions
1. Talk about a time when you forgot all your worries and really enjoyed yourself. 

How did you feel at the time?

How did you feel after the event?

2. What clubs do you belong to or what social activities do you do regularly?
Why did you start doing these activities?
How long do you think you will continue with them? Why?

3. How did you spend your June holidays?
What would you do differently if you could turn back time?
How did you feel about having June holidays?

Talk about a time when you forgot all your worries and really enjoyed yourself.

It was just a few weeks ago when I went overseas to Redang Island. It is located near Trengannu, Malaysia. We went snorkelling at four small islands. The coral reefs were beautiful and the experience of swimming with the fish was fantastic. I even managed to see ‘Nemo’’s look-alike, a clown fish, there. The other fish were swordfish and other brightly coloured fish. I am not very good at swimming, but with the life jacket, it was not a problem.

We spent about half a day swimming with the fish. Some tiny jelly fish stung me, but the pain was momentary. One fish even tried to bite me, but it was more ticklish than anything else. I really enjoyed myself thoroughly and forgot all my worries about school.

How did you feel at the time?

I was extremely relaxed, because I don’t get to do this in Singapore. It was really enjoyable for me. I seldom get to be so close with nature. It was an exhilarating experience for me.

The weather was extremely sunny, so I was rather afraid of getting sunburnt, so I kept putting heaps of sun block lotion. Unfortunately, I was sitting down when I reapplied the sun block, so the back of my thighs were burnt.

How did you feel after the event?

Well, I certainly did not want to go home, but it was really fun. I wished I could stay longer at Redang, but if I were to stay there forever, I would probably get bored. However, I would definitely go for this again in the future.

What clubs do you belong to or what social activities do you do regularly?

I go for regular hip hop classes at my gym, so I exercise and meet my friends every week. We will usually take fifteen minutes to warm up and then we spend the next forty-five minutes learning the dance steps and putting all the steps together into a simple routine.

Initially, it was a little embarrassing as I thought I had two left feet, but after being familiar with the dancing style for hip hop, it was easier to get into the groove.

Why did you start doing these activities?

I wanted to keep fit in a more interesting way instead of just running on the treadmill all the time. Besides, joining such classes allow me to meet more people and interact with them. They provide motivation for me to continue with the classes and they are very nice people because they do not laugh at those who are not very familiar with the dance steps.

How long do you think you will continue with them? Why?

I’ll probably continue with them for another six months until I am good enough to dance hip hop on my own. Then, I’ll find another class to go to so that I can learn more types of dance. No matter how busy I am, I will still try to find time to go for classes.

Task: Answer the following questions in your own blog. Write as much as possible. At least a few sentences.

1. What do you think you will be doing when you are 21 years old? (studies, work, NS, location, marital status etc)
2. How different will things be when you turn 21?
3. What do you hope to achieve by the time you turn 21?
4. What do you fear when you turn 21?
5. What is the first thing you will be doing when you turn 21?
6. Which is your favourite stall in the canteen?
7. What food in the canteen do you eat?
8. What is your CCA and what is it about?
9. What do you hope to see in YSS?
10. What do you think of blogging?
11. What would you like to see at the library?
12. What do you think of the library?

From mschua80</b></div>

Yishun Secondary School

Term 1 English Language Test 2

Secondary 3E9/ 4N3

Write between 200 and 300 words on ONE of the following argumentative topics.

Your response will be assessed based on the Rubrics provided in this blog entry.

1.   Examinations are not good indications of one’s abilities and talents. What do you think?

2.   The Internet has brought us more problems than advantages. What are your views?

3.   Students should not wear uniforms to schools. Do you agree?

3E9: There will be an interview with a guest blogger. He is an undergraduate at NUS and some of you may be familiar with him. He is mrweijie and he will be answering some of your questions on life as an undergraduate. 

Take time to think of what questions you will like to ask. 
You may ask about
- studies
- what course to choose
- lecturers and tutors
- activities
- work
- friends
- competition
- hostel life
- time management 
- challenges
- any other relevant questions

Each one of you is to type at least one question in the comments section by end of this lesson on 5 Feb. 
During our next lesson on Tuesday 6 Feb, mrweijie will be online to reply your questions. 
After the session, you are expected to write your thoughts on what being an undergraduate in Singapore means. You may write about some misconceptions you have, and how they have been cleared, and whether you look forward to tertiary life.

Note: undergraduate = student studying in the university for degree.

Write a response in your website on some of the replies, and whether you think you will want to study in the university.

Pocket Money
Write in your own blog in about 150 words. Use the following questions as a guide.

How much pocket money are you given on average a month?
What do you spend on?
How much do you spend?
What do you do when you are short of money?

What do you think of those teens who spend $3000-$4000 a month?
Is it worth spending $1000 on a Gucci bag?
What about going to the salon twice just to wash hair?


What are your thoughts on materialism?

One of my childhood dreams was to have my own magazine. I was thinking more along the lines of a literary magazine, so I was probably one of the first person to produce a pirated magazine as I copied an article about Dr Albert Schweitzer from my encyclopedia. Despite trying my best to copy in my best handwriting, I gave up after a few paragraphs, as nobody would probably want to buy my magazine.

When I was in Secondary Two, my classmate asked me whether I wanted to join her in Student Today, a now defunct newspaper for students. Out of curiosity, and in a half-hearted attempt to revive my ambition, I joined her. We went through training and I had a Filipino editor who was very encouraging. I got to cover the SEA games torch relay in Singapore, and even wrote about my school’s 60th Anniversary. They were published and I was so excited. I also wrote music reviews, and the first album was pretty weird. I had never heard people talking in between songs before that, and the singer was someone I had never heard of before. My editor said that my articles did not require much changes, and they could go to print because I followed the format closely and tried to be as precise as possible. Newspaper articles tend to have many paragraphs of one to two lines, so that readers could read them easily. However, my publishing career soon came to a premature end as the editor went back to his homeland and the cub reporter thing was abandoned.

It was only in JC when I got my essays published. I usually just received passing grades, but because I usually attempted the unpopular topics that few wanted to do, and somehow, my passing grade was the best compared to 2 others who failed. From there, I gained confidence and interest in writing and I also put in more effort to write better.

The next attempt came in the university, where my committee had to produce a guidebook for my immersion programme. All of the students had done research, and produced a few pages. We put everything together without looking at overall coherence, and sent for photocopying and binding. It was unfortunate that the attempt was really amateurish for we did not think of layout, similar font type, and the cover, which was perhaps designed by me, was really ugly. It consisted of a mere border with some words created using Wordart.

Two years ago, my two classes produced Orange Inc Vo1. 1 and it enjoyed a second print. However, due to the heavy workload of 20/20, I was unable to let last year’s classes work come to print despite them typing diligently. I wonder whether anyone out here who is interested in producing magazines will come forward to volunteer to take over this project. It will be fun, and definitely something you can write about (or blog about). For those who are interested in Mass Communication, it can be part of your portfolio.

In fact, Livejournal is great in the sense that someone wrote a script to turn your blog into a lj-book. All you need are your articles and password and it will collate your articles into a book form, and you can print it out, just like a real book. That is my objective for you to complete at the end of the year. That will be a portfolio for you. Hence, do not just write when you are asked to, and do write about anything that catches your fancy. It will help you improve your flow of thoughts and organisation, and hopefully this will translate into a greater interest in writing.

Just one day after writing about my secondary school, my JC sent me an email, inviting me to write something about what I was doing currently, and some well-wishes for the school as it would be celebrating its 30th anniversary. They would be producing a 30th Souvenir Magazine. This was interesting as last year, when the publications embarked on a mammoth project, the 20/20 souvenir magazine and MY3R, it was a steep learning curve. I was glad to be involved in this project, and was glad my students did a lot of hard work as well.

Coming back to my JC’s appeal, they must have either got my email address from my Chinese teacher who loved to tell stories about the origins of certain idioms (she was a really slow driver as her maximum speed seemed to be only 40km/h) or from one of those guest books that I signed when I went back for the official opening after PRIME. It took a really long time for the construction to be completed as the main construction company went bust due to the economic crisis, and they had to find new companies to take over the project.

I also received emails from my secondary school vice principal, who has been in that position for the longest time, about some updates. In fact, I talked to her recently at a Teachers’ Day Rally. I would have wanted to keep in contact with my primary school, but they somehow viewed those who did not go to the affiliated secondary school with disdain, and it was really long ago. I still remembered the menacing look my principal gave me when I went in to submit my application for another school. The school just celebrated its 90th anniversary.

I certainly hope that any student who graduates from Yishun Secondary will take pride in our school and continue to have links with us, and perhaps contribute a line or two in the next 25th or 30th Anniversary souvenir magazine. It is imperative that we have roots with the schools we attend, as these are the places where a lot of time is spent in grooming us to be useful citizens.

 www.youth.sg 


Hey, gal, do you remember lying on their spit in the National Stadium donkey years ago? During SYF? 

---------

Photo taken from ourstory.asia1.com.sg/dream/life/ref/bye3.html 

----------
Pub Date: 03/07/199x Pub: ST Page: 1
Day: Sunday
Headline: 55,000 pack stadium for opening of Youth Festival
Picture Caption:
Riot of colour : Tinselled hoops, dual tone capes and colour co-ordinated
costumes were used by the 888 girls who staged
this display.
PM Goh waving to the National Stadium crowd. At left is the Education
Ministry's Permanent Secretary, Mr Koh Cher Siang.
(I can’t reproduce the article here due to copyright reasons. It costs $700 to reproduce an article!) 

----------
I was trying out an archival service, and was searching for some random articles, when I came across the above article. Almost anyone who had been a youth in Singapore will know what SYF stands for. We have either watched the opening ceremony, acted in a play, or danced to fight for silver or gold, or even participated in the opening ceremony. Tears of joy or sadness had been shed and apart from National Service which is for boys to become men, this is something that many youths in Singapore go through.

The article reminded me of the times I spent under the hot sun at least twice each week for six months at the school field. It was probably the only time I was tanned. I was one of the 888 performers, a figure none of us knew until it appeared in the papers. My batch of schoolmates was performing with the capes, which they performed for my school’s 60th anniversary at the Singapore Indoor Stadium the year before. I was not part of them as I was one of the guides to get the audience to sing Michael Jackson’s Heal the World, when he was still cool, and wave their fans during the finale and some other performance, which I cannot remember. Hence, I was ‘relegated’ to using the tinselled hoops, which turned out to a blessing in disguise as it was lighter and I did not have to develop huge arm muscles.

Students from other levels were in the tinselled hoops contingent so I made friends with them. We were in groups of fours, and we needed each other for different formations. We soon got to know each other very well, although I cannot remember any of them except for one now. Trust was very important, as we had to hold on to each other and support one another, and even lie on each other. It was really amazing how my teachers managed to teach us all the dance steps.

It was also at the height of the football fever, similar to now, when Fandi Ahmad, V. Sundram Moorty, Malek Awab, Nasri Nasir, Jang Jung (the current coach for YSS, if I am not wrong) and my favourite Lim Tong Hai, were worshipped. Sometime this week, Maggie and Hossan in Power98 Morning Jam mentioned that they had released an album during that time, which I vaguely remember. We had to practise at the National Stadium, and I managed to get either a real autographed list that showed which 11 players were fielded, or a photocopied one. It was so long ago that some parts were slightly fuzzy. One horrible habit of the players was spitting, and I could never understand why they had to spit, so it spoilt the image of the players. We had to lie on the field when we had our rehearsals, so we kept joking about lying on which player’s spit. It was really gross.

Apart from these football stars, we also spotted other young sports stars, mainly swimmers, who were there for physical therapy as they all had some kind of injury or other. It was really exciting. I am sure there were other famous people I saw at the stadium, but they did not make a huge impression.

It was also a time when I first saw how military bands performed, and I was very impressed with how the drum majors threw and spun their maces. I still remembered the three schools performing there. They were Tanjong Katong (Tech) Secondary School, The Chinese High School (now known as Hwa Chong Institution) and Bowen Secondary School. The drum major from TK had a strong following, and all of the performers gasped when he missed catching the mace during the actual day performance. It was probably due to nerves, but he still won the best Drum Major award. Bowen Secondary School walked away with the best band title. Up till now, these schools still have strong rivalry when it comes to military bands, and they have now included pyrotechnics and other party poppers in their performances.

When it came to our turn to perform, I could only remember running from one place to another. Our formations included spinning circles on an axis, and we threw our hoops with vibrant coloured cloths into the air. My partner sprained her ankle, but that did not deter her from running around. I appeared briefly on TV, but I was too small to be seen properly. Maybe I did appear on the Chinese newspaper as well. Ok, so much for my less than 15 minutes of fame.

One thing that I’m doubtful about is the identity of the guest-of-honour. All these years, I had thought that he was the then Minister of Education, Mr Lee Yock Suan. I remember jumping and waving our hoops as he made his way round. However, this newspaper article mentioned that it was attended by PM Goh instead. This is so strange. Maybe there is a mistake somewhere.

Even though it had been so long, I still remember many things vividly, including the song we practised with, which suddenly became a medley of national songs when it was near the performance day. I am glad some of my students are also able to take part in the SYF opening ceremony, as this enriching experience is something that will last in our memories for a long time.

Total Defence Day Blogging Competition

All Secondary 3 Normal (Academic) and Express students are required to complete this assignment.
Total Defence Day falls on 15th February as it commemorates the Fall of Singapore to the Japanese in 1942. Our school is hosting a number of activities to remember this day and the importance of having a strong defence to protect our young nation.

You may choose the following suggested topics to write about or what your English teacher requires you to do.

1. Recount of Total Defence Day programmes in YSS
2. Reflection on Total Defence Day in YSS
3. What Singapore means to me
4. Threats that Singapore face
5. Thoughts about the Fall of Singapore
6. How we can have total defence in Singapore
7. Review the animations made by SJC students for Total Defence at http://home.totaldefence.org.sg/TD_ani/TD_ani.html
8. Any other relevant title

You may choose to blog about any of the topics (minimum length: 150) or make a 1 minute video clip (post it to Youtube and share the video on your blog).
You may take pictures or videos of Total Defence Day in YSS, interview people, or have a monologue, dialogue or talkshow for your video clip.

Download the Total Defence icon right at the top of this entry and put it up together with your journal entry to indicate that your entry is meant for the competition.

Closing Date: 23rd February 2007
Winning entries will be displayed either at the library or through EZ-announcer and prizes would be awarded.

Today’s agenda

1. Sign up for user account.
2. Post an entry.
3. Include a picture.
4. Add friends. Edit groups.
5. View Friends’ page.
6. Join community.
7. Post entry to community.
8. Design a poll.
9. Customise journal style.

Poll #906855 How I feel about the rain
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 31

How do I feel about the rain?

Assignment: Write about how the incessant rain has affected you, and any other comments about the rain situation. 
Minimum: 250 words
Please remember to write in Standard English. 
Completion: 3E9 15 Jan by 12.15pm

Fo’ty days fo’ty nights when de rain kept afallin’
De wicked clumb de tree, an’ for help kept acallin’,
For they heard de waters wailin’
Didn’t it rain, rain, didn’t it rain
Tell me Noah, didn’ it rain.

Oh, Didn’t it Rain
Gen VII.4
Arranged by H.T. Burleigh

http://community.livejournal.com/yishunsec_eng/

Join this community.

Stuck in a Desert

After spending so much time on the comprehension on Gobi Desert, take this time to reflect on what you will do if you were stuck in a desert. Use your imagination and some basic knowledge about life in the desert.

Word Count: 250 minimum 

This is just a guide.

Para 1

Why on earth would you be in a desert?

-         plane crash

-         left behind by tour group

-         went on an expedition to check out the pyramids

-         find somebody

-         war

-         escape

-         etc.

Explain the circumstances that brought you there. Why were you stuck there?

-         accident

-         lost

-         camel ran away

-         no fuel

-         etc.

Para 2

Feelings: fear, excitement, dread, hopeful, pessimistic etc.

Some details about the desert

Weather conditions, terrain conditions

Para 3

Things you would do

-         Seek help

-         Find water

-         Entertainment

-         Find way out

-         Plot directions

-         reflect

Para 4

How you think you may get out?

How long did it take before you got out?

How did you managed to get out

Other comments?

Feelings when you managed to get out

There is an icon that is has a tree, an animal, blue sky and the moon. Click on that. Upload your photo by browsing on the computer, or from another URL. 
If you are using a photo from friendster, save the picture onto the desktop first before uploading.

Date:	2007-01-08 10:39
Subject:	How to create an account?
Security:	Public
Mood:	cheerful

Make sure you have a valid email address.
Click on the link at the top of my journal to create your own account.

Simply follow the steps to sign up. 
To post your first entry, you have to click on an email sent by Livejournal to activate the account. 
You may upload any pictures. For more information, click on FAQ. 
Remember to add me as a friend, so that I know what your userid is.
Just take your time to explore all the functions available. 

After everything is ok, write your first entry about yourself in Microsoft Words, to prevent the entire entry being lost, just in case there is failed connection. In addition, use the spell checker to reduce the number of errors.

Sec 3E9: You are supposed to choose any topic to write about. Of course, you may choose to write more if you have the time. Remember, there should not be any personal attacks on anyone. In addition, no vulgarities should be uttered in your journal. As this is an English project, make sure you write in complete sentences.

1. Myself
You may include the following points:
- Physical Appearance
- Family and Friends
- Home
- School, Class
- Favourite Things/Places/People/Hobbies/Habits, Least Favourite Things/Places/People/Hobbies/Habits
- CCA, committees
- Personality
- Character
- a lot more

Welcome to the community for Secondary Three students in Yishun Secondary School!

You will be able to read the rules and regulations for blogging, various information and contests in this community. Check out the community regularly for updates.

We hope you will have fun blogging and reading your schoolmates' blogs.