Social Studies Department

Field Based Learning

P1 FBL to Jacob Ballas Children’s Garden

The P1s visited the Jacob Ballas Children’s Garden this year. They were taught to identify different family of plants and learned about the usefulness of plants in our daily lives. They were given the opportunity to observe the birds and insects in the Gardens. Finally, we hope they have picked up tips on respecting the flora and fauna in nature and our environment.

P2 FBL to Philatelic Museum

The P2 pupils went to the Philatelic Museum. During the one and a half hour that pupils spent at the museum, they gained an understanding of the world of stamps. They learnt about how stamps first came about and its evolution, from black and white to colour and from non-perforated to perforated. They learnt about how national symbols are depicted in stamps as well as the countries that are around Singapore. As stamps are often used to commemorate important events in a nation, pupils worked on a stamp design to depict an important event in their life as a post event activity.

P3 FBL to Land Transport Authority Gallery

The experiential learning journey to the Land Transport Gallery provided opportunities for pupils to understand and appreciate the challenges, solutions and approaches in land transport planning in Singapore. By engaging their senses of sight, touch, and hearing, pupils learn to relate to the various stages of Singapore’s land transport development. Pupils will begin their journey of discovery with memories of the history of transport in our nation. They also learned about the key milestones land transport development in Singapore and the challenges faced during our formative years. Pupils witnessed the changes in land transport since the formation of the Land Transport Authority (LTA) till present. They learned to appreciate how land transport in Singapore has evolved over the years and how LTA faced different challenges at each stage.

P3 FBL to Land Transport Authority Gallery

The experiential learning journey to the Land Transport Gallery provided opportunities for pupils to understand and appreciate the challenges, solutions and approaches in land transport planning in Singapore. By engaging their senses of sight, touch, and hearing, pupils learn to relate to the various stages of Singapore’s land transport development. Pupils will begin their journey of discovery with memories of the history of transport in our nation. They also learned about the key milestones land transport development in Singapore and the challenges faced during our formative years. Pupils witnessed the changes in land transport since the formation of the Land Transport Authority (LTA) till present. They learned to appreciate how land transport in Singapore has evolved over the years and how LTA faced different challenges at each stage.

P4 FBL to Kampong Glam

The P4 pupils went for their Field Based Learning to Kampong Glam. Pupils learnt about the uniqueness of Kampong Glam as a historic district and a culturally diverse locale that reflects Singapore’s multi-racial community. They also learnt about the history and heritage of Kampong Glam by walking around the museum and the vicinity. The pupils had a chance to practise the art of Silat, play some traditional games and taste some Malay Kueh.

P5 FBL to Civic District

P6 FBL to Sungei Buloh with the Science Department

P2 Station Learning

The P2 pupils had their Station Learning whereby they learnt more about the facilities around their neighbourhood and the unique features of the various ethnic costumes. Pupils learnt that they can have family bonding time at the various facilities around their neighbourhood. They build a scene of a family spending time at the neighbouring facilities. They also designed a uniquely Singapore costumes by incorporating the uniques features of the costumes of the various ethnic groups in Singapore. Through this Station Learning, they also learnt more about teamwork and cooperativeness.

P3 Social Studies Station Learning

The P3 pupils had a chance to put the skills they have learnt into use during the P3 Station Learning i.e. map reading and locating places of interests in Singapore, identifying the common trees found in Singapore and planning the MRT route to take from one location to another. The theme for the P3 revolves within Singapore so this activity allows them to learn more about the landscape and infrastructure of Singapore.

P4 Social Studies Station Learning

The Primary 4 pupils had their Station Learning, which allowed them to have hands-on experience on some of the topics which were covered in the classroom. Since the Primary 4 syllabus is about the development of Singapore from a fishing village to an independant nation, they were exposed to various key moments during this period, in particular, the contributions of our founding fathers and our multiculturalism. Furthermore, the pupils were engaged in map reading, enabling them to locate where our early settlers came from. This has given them a clearer indication about the origins of the early settlers, and also the struggles they went through to come and start a new life here in Singapore.

P5 Social Studies Station Learning

The Primary 5 pupils had their Station Learning, which allowed them to have hands-on experience on some of the topics which were covered in the classroom. Since majority of the Primary 5 syllabus is about ancient civilisations, the pupils were exposed to the traditions of these civilisations, in particular, India and Greece. Furthermore, the pupils were also engaged in map reading, enabling them to locate where these civilisations were on the world map.

Exhibitions/Other Programmes

Encouragement Letters to our Soldiers

Our P5 and P6 pupils wrote a letter of encouragement to motivate our young soldiers to do their best for an evaluation test. The military unit prepared some slides for our pupils to view to find out more about what the unit does for the defence of our country. The pupils subsequently pen down their thoughts and well-wishes to the soldiers. The letters were then received by the military unit and handed to the soldiers who were taking the test. The soldiers were touched and found the letters inspiring. The pupils had an opportunity to learn about the background information about our SAF and also to connect to our young men in a meaningful way.

Exhibition on Botanical Gardens by National Heritage Board

The department arranged for NHB to bring in “More than a Garden” travelling exhibition to educate the pupils about our very own UNESCO world Heritage Site. The children found out how the Gardens has changed the world through its contributions to the rubber industry in Southeast Asia. They also learned about the pioneers who made it possible.

Insight – A 3D Monumental Journey Exhibition

The exhibition invited pupils to take a closer look at some National Monuments and admire their features to find out what makes each one unique. Each building has its own story and these combine to tell the grand narrative of Singapore’s development, both as a city and a multicultural society. As pupils examined the images and read the interesting facts, we hope they had gained insights into our history and inheritance. The pupils made use of 3D glasses to admire the 3D stereograms and were delighted to see the buildings come to life.

Current Affairs Programme

The Current Affairs Programme was launched to stir curiosity and create interest in the happenings locally and around the world. The NE Ambassador of each class is in charge of posting up a newspaper article fortnightly. They would then encourage their classmates to read the article and pen down their reflections and comments for the class to read. This is done in their free time and hence meaningful self-directed learning takes place. A platform has been created for pupils to think about and engage in common discussion about the events that impact our society. The department has also collaborated with old girls from MBS who were doing a project on media literacy. They came to school to conduct activities to raise awareness of the importance of media literacy. The department also printed a publication that the girls had crafted on current affairs for the P5s and P6s. The P5s also subscribe to a children’s newspaper called What’s up.

HDB Road Show

The department arranged for HDB to put up a road show in school for the pupils to visit during their recess times. The theme was gracious and responsible heartland living. There were info panels for pupils to read. There were e-games, board games, puzzles, spin-a-wheel game etc. There was even a photo booth for the pupils to take photos with their friends. Through these activities, pupils were engaged to think about how they can be better neighbours.

P5 National Education Show

Since 1997, the National Education (NE) Show has been organised for all Primary 5 pupils to instil a sense of belonging and to bring across the significance of our National Day. The chosen theme for National Day Parade 2016 was “Building our Singapore of Tomorrow”. The theme was a call to action for Singaporeans to build our future together. NDP 2016 marks the first NDP for the next 50 years in our journey towards SG100. It was held at the iconic National Stadium after a ten year hiatus. It was a fruitful and exciting night for the pupils and teachers.

Cultural Festival

Maha Bodhi School held its inaugural Cultural Festival in 2016. Being a SAP school, majority of our pupils are Chinese. The purpose of this event is to expose our pupils to the different customs and practices of the other ethnic communities (i.e. Malays and Indians) in Singapore. Parents of our Primary 1 and Primary 2 pupils were invited to the event for this learning and bonding opportunity. Participants had the chance to have a hands-on experience of Bunga Rumpai, Henna, Ssri Tying, Silat, Traditional Games and Dance. It was a colourful and fun fiesta for pupils and parents alike.

P1 Bird Park Flies to School

The Bird Park Flies to School programme is an assembly talk which enables pupils to learn about the different types of flightless birds and how to take care of them. The theme of birds ties in with a Social Studies reader. Pupils found out about whether all birds lay eggs or fly. They were excited to meet a real life cockatoo that the bird park brought along.

NHB Heritage Explorer Cards for the P3 pupils

The Heritage Explorers Programme by NHB is adopted for our P3 pupils. The programme aims to raise students’ awareness and interest in local and community heritage. By role-playing heritage professions such as curator, educator, designer, historian or ambassador, students can discover and have better understanding of the heritage of their family, the community and the nation. Upon completion of the tasks, each pupil received the Heritage Explorers Badge(s).

NE Ambassadors

Future of us Exhibition

The department arranged a Learning Journey for our P5 and 6 NE Ambassadors to the Future of Us Exhibition at the Gardens by the Bay. The exhibition was an immersive and multi-sensory experience that offered a glimpse into the possibilities of how Singaporeans can live, work, play, care and learn in the future. The exhibition called on Singaporeans to share their hopes and dreams for themselves, their family and the nation, and to participate in steering the Singapore journey towards the future. It is the capstone event to round up Singapore’s SG50 year of celebrations. Objective of the trip was to enhance pupils’ learning and arouse their interest in National Education.

HDB Youthoria Carnival

Heartland Youthoria! is an annual carnival organised as part of HDB Community Week to celebrate our youth’s involvement in community building. The department brought our NE Ambassadors to take part in interactive activities and exciting games where they were inspired to join HDB on the journey in building heartland communities. The exhibition also showcased success stories of youth’s leadership and involvement in the heartlands, and raised their awareness on community bonding in the heartlands. The pupils participated in a workshop where they picked up creative doodling skills and sketched their lively neighbourhood.

Social Studies Department