ACS (Independent) Boarding School Newsletter 20 May 2011

No.2

will mark a new chapter to the history

of the ACS (Independent) Boarding School as it will have available another 300 beds and 24 staff units. Will there be a hall for girls? Will there be a different caterer? Is there really going to be a roof terrace? Will I be moving over? How will the JCRC, SCRC, Admin Office, laundry maids, custodians etc. manage with the increased number of boarders? What will be the new names for the halls? Many questions abound in the minds of all who see the building as it rises day by day to its 14th level today.

CHAPTERA NEW

Ms. Yvonne LimDeputy Warden/Deputy Principal

REVIVED!

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However, even as we look forward to the completion of the extension, we have made improvements to the current boarding school. There are new projectors and new screens as well as roller blinds to darken the dining hall for the many presentations and events that take place there each year. The staff lounge has been renovated to make possible multiple uses given the increased numbers in the boarding school and swings, BBQ tables as well as BBQ sets have been purchased to facilitate interaction amongst boarders.

what this used to be... ...is now this!

Well … for now, it will remain as questions for consideration as we work to put together an Enhanced Boarding Programme for our students.

We are in a very exciting phase of development and we continue to pray for protection on all who work on the construction site and for God’s blessings on all who will be a part of the boarding school soon.

very year scholars from different ASEAN countries and from India and China are welcomed to the Anglo-Chinese School (independent) Family. Needless to say, most are morose and despondent on leaving home as it is a time of new beginnings in a

new land.

In order to dissipate this sadness and gloom, the Junior Common Room Committee (JCRC) organized the Orientation Programme- a tradition as old as the Boarding School itself ! This year’s programme was particularly different from the previous years because this year the event was spread over a couple of days. The Buddy system was also introduced this year where the seniors of the Boarding School who had volunteered were given charge of various groups of juniors belonging to different nationalities during the orientation.

The Orientation Programme, “Clash of the Clans’, was the first in the series of activities organized by the JCRC for the 1st semester. The programme started at 8.30am on 12 February with the opening address by the President, Woo Han Lam. Following the speech was a short video presentation to introduce everyone to the Orientation. Set in the 16th century with the main theme of “The Lost World’, the boarders were divided into 8 clans; each consisted of 3 seniors and 12 to 15 juniors. These clans then competed with one another through various activities devoted to ice-breaking games and team-bonding activities like Inter-group water polo matches, captain’s ball and many more. The orientation finally came to an end with the ‘Fright Night’.

n the evening of 6 March, 2011 a very expectant crowd walked into the CPA 1 which was transformed

into a magical realm by the 16th JCRC for the much publicized and acclaimed FAME Internals 2011. The excitement was palpable as fans geared themselves to raucously support their candidates for the final “Clash of the Titans.”

With the first beat of the drums, the much looked forward to evening was kick started by the 16th JCRC. Eight of ACS (Independent)’s finest music aficionados took the stage by storm. Their performances featured a range of songs from artists like Jason Mraz to Elton John.

With probably the highest standard in years, it was a fierce competition amongst the top four contestants who not only sang mellifluously, but even danced to regale the audience.

The night ended on a high note with encore performances from the winner

eing the only Cambodian in my batch in the ACS (Independent) Boarding

School is a unique experience that I am currently enjoying and will continue to enjoy. I surely

get to learn bits of phrases here and there in different languages

particularly interesting and useful words in Vietnamese, Indonesian,

and Indian, I mean Tamil and Hindi, and Chinese. It is not just

the languages that I’m exposed to; it is also the different cultures and mindsets of people that I get to

know. Being the only Cambodian allows me to observe and learn

with an open mind about people.

Initially, I was inundated by the sea of languages but gradually I made friends. Today, I am proud to boast that I have friends from

many nationalities. This experience is definitely making me a global citizen in the true sense of the

term. This is something not many people can enjoy. It is simple

interactions like these that create a very multicultural setting in ACS (Independent) Boarding School.

Besides the people, of course, I am more than satisfied with the facilities here. I think that it is amazing as I have experienced living in other hostels before.

What I love most about the hostel here are the events that are held

annually. JCRC is very professional in their ways of handling events and, in my opinion, has produced

events rivaling that of well-known student organizations in Singapore.

So there you have it. Fantastic people and facilities in my ACS (Independent) Boarding School.

But then, this is just a perspective of a ‘lone’ Cambodian.

of FAME Internals 2010, Alvin Toffler and the winner of FAME Internals 2011, Jesmond Siew. He also has the honour of representing the boarding school at FAME Externals 2011, like Alvin had the previous year.

The sweat, blood and tears of over fifty members of the JCRC did not go unrewarded as was evident from the resounding applause that greeted the performance.

FAME Internals 2011 was magnifique, to say the least, and left the audience in anticipation of a

bigger and better FAME Externals 2011.

THE ORIENTATION 2011 By Kartik Singh & Dinh Quan

By Prashanth Prakash and Siddharth Kapoor

By Heng SonalTay Eng Soon Hall

A ‘LONE’CAMBODIAN

PERSPECTIVE OF

FAMEI N T E R N A L

2011

With probably the highest standard in years, it was indeed a fierce competition.

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All these activities have helped the boarders to understand the Boarding School, the School and the neighbouring areas. These activities have also helped to foster new bonds among them. This monumental effort by the JCRC helped to inculcate boarders to realize the value of teamwork, leadership, sacrifice and selflessness. It definitely helped to make the Boarding School a ‘home away from home.’

By Siddharth Kapoor; TR Doraisamy HallOur very annual ‘makan-makan’ festival! 2011

ednesday, 9 March 2011 may not mean much to the average person, but within the confines

of the ACS (independent) Boarding School, it marked an evening of delectable cuisines from the handpicked Hawkers. For the benefit of the unaware, Hawker’s Fare is only the first in the series of four Boarding School Signature events organ-ized by the SCRC , the rest in chrono-logical order being High Table Dinner, International Nite and Christmas Dinner.

Hawker’s Fare is a celebration of Sin-gapore’s vibrant local cuisine. Those fortunate enough to attend are greeted by delectable morsels that run the gamut of flavours to a uniquely Singaporean palette. From Spicy Nasi Lemak to the dulcet de-lights of Sweet Cheng Tng, to the savoury Hokkien Mee, there is no shortage of tempta-tions to your tastebuds.

The boarders were in their seats by 6.00pm, eager to em-bark upon their gustatory journey. They awaited the arrival of the Guests of Honour and the Senior Administration. Thus I repeat myself, for the GOH were the Senior Admin.

There was a short but succinct speech by Mrs. Fanny Tan, Principal (Acting), who described Hawker’s Fare as “the Senior Admin’s favourite event of all the four”, because of the variety and quality of the food available. Kudos then, to Madam Lydia Ho and the boarders and staff of Runme Shaw Hall, for their collective ef-fort to make this event so successful.

Soon after the cue was given by Masters’ of Ceremony, Joseph Lee and Shawn Chia, the boarders practically rushed to the ‘hawker’ stalls as if it were a sprint to the finishing line for the food. An ingenious plan included was to split up the pre-issued coupons to various members of a “group” and the members would each queue up separately at different stalls to take the food for each other, drastically reducing

the waiting time.

At 7.30 pm came the time to present Angpows to the Custodians of the school. The

Angpows are donated by the charitable boarders of ACS(Independent) Boarding School, as a token of appreciation to the custodians for the diligent service that they provide to the school. Mrs. Fanny Tan presented the Hong Baos.

No good dining event ends without some fun and entertainment, and this time the rehearsals were done by the Finalists for Fame. The likes of Kevin Petra, Sonal, and Tong Minh Quan (an ex-finalist) took lead onstage. There was even an A cappella group! The event ended with a humour-ous video presentation entitled “boom de yadda” by the 17th JCRC Council.

Before we knew it, the event finally came to an end, as all good things do. In the finale, instead of watching yet another blockbusting musical epic onstage, the audience took their turn to perform. The entire boarding school stood up to sing “ACS Forever” in unison. It was a night of eat, drink and be merry, and will be remembered for many years to come.

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HAWKER’S FARE

A celebration of Singapore’s vibrant local cuisine.

“Song of The Island”

Special Coverage

By Siddharth KapoorTR Doraisamy Hall

FAME 2011

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t was the evening of 9 April 2011. As a crowd of over a thousand walked into the doors of CPA 2, they had no idea

what was in store for them. Little did they know that the contemporary ceremonial setting which had known only morning assemblies and tame/domesticated school events would have been transformed into an untamed/feral wilderness of an unchartered island. It was to the surprise of the audience, who were kept on the edge of their seats, that FAME 2011 “took off ”, literally that is, and “crashed” in the aforementioned feral setting, which was to host the musical fiesta.

Unlike the stagnant rendition of FAME 2010 that the audience expected, Fame 2011 was fantastical in its refreshing approach and theatri-cal might. The most anticipated event of the year was back with the most unanticipated drama and excitement, organized and executed to unprecedented acclaim. The JCRC, perhaps having dem-onstrated the epitome of their capabilities, had done it again.

Ironic as it may be, it wasn’t the ‘tribal’ emcees or the virtually unrecognizable set-ting of the CPA, disguised by many leaves and twigs that gave the place a jungle feel that the event was truly untamed; it was because of an audience gone wild with ex-citement, even in contrast to the Masters of Ceremony. Well, that and a theatrical display of enmity and animosity between Captain Gavin Gan and Andrew Widjaya, thanks to both of whom the “flight” had “crashed” in the first place, (no sarcasm intended), and the tribal emcees Kean Lynn and Ngan.

The festivities began with a dance item organized by the JCRC. Subsequently there were performances by eight selected

contestants from various boarding schools like Oldham Hall, Victoria Hall, NUS High Boarding School, Nanyang Girls’ Board-ing School, Raffles Institution Boarding School, Hwa Chong Boarding School, Catholic Junior College Hostel and Na-tional Junior College Boarding School. The contestants sang a variety of songs, rang-ing from Lady Antebellum’s ‘Need You Now’ to Alicia Keys’ ‘Ain’t Got You Now’ to Katy Perry’s ‘I Kissed a Girl’, all of which were hip to say the least, and defini-tive crowd winners for an audience which was composed primarily of the young.

The competition was fierce and the judges baffled, in awe of the fine musical maes-tros that they had witnessed in action, or in performance rather. It wasn’t with ease

that the audi-ence and the judges came to a decision.

Ultimately, it was Oldham Hall’s dynamic duo, Sunny and Kartika, who despite their public denial, post their seemingly romantic performance of ‘Need You Now’, came off as quite the ‘thing’ and clinched the trophy. Anglo-Chinese School’s very own Jesmond Siew came in third, followed by Nanyang Girls Boarding School’s Ma

Xiochi, having performed two Jason Mraz mash-up’s, the second of which titled ‘You and I Both’ was addressed to a girl in the audience in a charismatic and romantic dis-play of showmanship, which evoked much enthusiasm from the crowd, intent gawk-ing and staring from those seated nearby and deep blushes from the impromptu subject of the song.

How could the night be complete without an encore performance from the “Dynamic Duo”, as they were to be known hence-forth? It was no surprise that the demands of the roaring crowd were met. As the duo took the stage one last time for the night, much to the audience’s dismay, there was non-stop roaring, cheering and applause, not only for Sunny and Kartika, but for the other contestants and organizers as well. As the emcee’s and contestants waved goodbye to the audience, the night finally come to an end. The JCRC had succeeded in transforming FAME 2011 into the spectacular, sensational, and splendid ex-perience that it was, in flying colours, well mostly green. To say that FAME Exter-nals 2011 was simply superb would be a gross understatement, but it was simply superb to say the least.

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A spectacular, sensational, and splendid experience!

nother 16th Junior Common Room Initiative, Stingy texting is a competition of its own kind. Redefining the texting principles, it requires you to message the given text in a certain number of lines and characters and the apt number

of lines and characters is governed by an equation given with each text.

The participants are to study the equation intensively and determine how they should formulate their message so as to get the maximum value out of the equation. As random as it sounds, it managed to create a huge buzz in the lives of the boarders and gave them an opportunity to juggle their brains while messaging.

The following were the messages, the equation and the winning stingy texts:

he Geek Show 2, 2010 was one of the most anticipated events of the year. It had brought a new wave of excitement in the boarding school. A mentally challenging game show, it required the participation of nothing less than

eighteen handpicked ‘geeks’.

The Geek Show 2 was divided into three acts which comprised several rounds. Each act was built on a foundation of a very interesting concept. The machine selected a fine lot of mind jamming questions for the ‘geeks’ to make sure only the smarter ones proceeded to the next round. There were a few instances when the machine bombarded questions at the audience. The questions were tricky and baffling but the boarders were also attentive and observant. The spectators thus became a part of the show. This might have annoyed the machine though.

To crown this fantastic show was the arrival of the ‘phantom’ (act 2.5): another tool of the machine, but his target was the wisest of all in the audience, the teachers of course!!! He opened fire on them and rewarded those who managed to answer questions correctly. By the end of this act every hall had won two prizes ‘co-incidentally’.

At the end of the third act one ‘geek’ staggered his way to victory but he got trapped on one tricky question on which the hope of the metallic and the living world dangled. At this point, the living world united and the machine was left alone. This was the machine’s bane. Thus it lost and James Rotansan overthrew the machine and became the ‘master geek’ with the help of his comrades! JCRC had yet again put up a masterpiece!

hristmas Dinner is one of Boarding School’s traditions to celebrate the spirit of Christmas amongst

the boarders. Despite its unusual timing almost two months before Christmas, it has become a much cherished event that everyone ranging from the boarders to the boarding school staff looks forward to. Perhaps this is because this event, which was conventionally meant to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, has come to mean much more in the collage of cultures and traditions over the years. Keeping with the boarding schools theme this year – ‘Living in harmony’- Christmas Dinner 2010 saw the Boarding School family come together for a night of festive celebration.

The night began with some truly inspirational words by Reverend Paul Nga, followed by a word from Mrs. Fanny Tan, the Principal (Acting) of ACS(Independent). Soon after, the Christmas feast began. Based on traditional western cuisine, most common to Christmas time or winter season, the buffet style meal was exquisite to say the least. The feast was accompanied by a few performances to keep the boarders entertained. So what if ACS(Independent) Boarding School was a month or two early in its celebration of Christmas. Would that mean that the celebrations would be dry? Certainly not. Christmas Dinner 2010 saw the boarders enjoying themselves tremendously in a night of brotherhood and fellowship. It was no surprise that even Santa Clause made an appearance with Christmas bells tolling his welcome.

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By Anmol KhuranaTR Doraisamy Hall

By Siddharth KapoorTR Doraisamy Hall

GEEK 2SHOW return of the fallen

By Kartik Singh, Tay Eng Soon Hall

1 new message.

The stingee taxting challenge thingy is so interesting. So please send your message to the nice guy at 82083669 to receive prize next week. Before you decide to send, you may want to consider because you can only send one message. Please also take note of the equation for the point and you’d better be careful because there may be a trap. And remember that competition closes on 1800 hours next Wednesday

Equation for this week: e^(n-m)

Stingy txt supa nice. reply the guy @ 8203669 n gt prize. only one msg al-lowd. consider the eq and be careful. comp end 6 pm nxt wed.

Friday 7:45, we are driving on the highway. Cruising so fast, I want time to past. My friend is by my right and I am by my friend’s left. Sitting in the front seat, kicking in the back seat. Or kicking in the front seat, sitting in the back seat. What should I do?

Equation for this week: -m2-1028n2-22m-744n-64mn

We drive on highway on fri@ 0745. Cruise so fast, I wan time 2 past. My frnd on my right, Im on frnds left. Sit in front, kick in back. Wht shld I do?

Send Send

CHRISTMASD I N N E R 2 0 1 0

Another year in ACS Boarding School had come to an end, with some of the boarders only having started their journeys , while that of many other’s coming to an end. It did bring with itself hope for an optimistic future and another great year ahead for “The Best is (truly) Yet to Be”.

nter-Hall Street Soccer was held as a yearend activity after the final exams for the boarders to unwind

and clear the examination stress. It was as anticipated a huge success. This was yet another successful endeavour by the 16th JCRC, as the event was a virtual tsunami of excitement.

The tournament saw the excitement reach a feverish pitch as the participants from the different halls battled it out on the street soccer court. Amidst the loud music and the cheering of the crowds, the tournament was transformed into a gladiatorial contest. With what sounded like the loudest cheering ACS (Inde-pendent) Boarding school has ever seen, Inter-Hall Street Soccer in its debut attempt established itself as a favourite amongst the boarders.

In light of the largely positive response it garnered, to say that it left the board-ers expectant for another Inter-Hall Street Soccer is a gross understatement.

n the 2nd of March, the boarders assembled for the much anticipated Inter-Hall Water Polo Competition

2011. The night witnessed the clash of the polo players from different halls all longing to be crowned as the Water Polo 2011 champions. After a hard fought battle and display of immense skill and prowess, W.F. Oldham Hall emerged as the champions, with T.W. Hinch Hall and H.M. Hoisington Hall taking the 1st runners up and 2nd runners up berth respectively.

The event started with the eight halls being divided into two groups of four and the four halls playing against the other halls in their respective groups. The halls were then arranged according to their points tally in their respective groups. The top scorer of each group played for the 1st and 2nd position, the runners up of each group played for the 3rd and the

By Siddharth Kapoor, TR Doraisamy Hall

Don’t think the balls are the right ones, or are they?

By Anmol Khurana, TR Doraisamy Hall

WATERPOLOINTER-HALL

March 2, 2011WATER POLO

SPORTScorner

Champion:2nd place:3rd place:4th place:5th place:6th place:7th place: 8th place:

Oldham HallHinch HallHoisington HallLee Kong Chian Hall Thio Chan Bee HallRunme Shaw HallDoraisamy HallTay Eng Soon Hall

INTER-HALL

INTER-HALL

STREETSOCCER

4th position, the second runners up of each group played for the 5th and the 6th position and the hall with the least points from each group played for the 7th and the 8th position.

In the series of matches held earlier, Oldham Hall and Hinch Hall eased their way to top their respective groups. In a tight and an electrifying final, Oldham Hall proved to be slightly better than Hinch Hall and emerged as the overall champions for the night. After a heart-throbbing night, it was heartwarming to see everyone display the sportsmanship spirit as they shook hands, celebrated their wins and didn’t let the losses ruin the uplifted mood and forged the bonds of friendship.

Here’s to another successful event!! To God Be The Glory, The Best Is Yet To Be.

Siddharth:Who am I? Well, POD’s been messing with my head lately. So, I’ll tell you when I sort that one out myself. For the meantime, I’m Siddharth from Doraisamy Hall . Although I love to draw Chinese characters (yes, that’s right – “draw”!!!), sarcasm is my favourite language. I listen to music in my free time and am the biggest Taylor Swift and Parachute fan. ‘The way that I loved you’ and ‘the mess that I made’ are among my favourite songs. Clive Cussler and Andrew Motion are my favourite modern day authors and poets. However, Pride and Prejudice is my all-time favourite book. I have an academic pull towards science but am fascinated by Language Arts and Literature.

Kartik Singh:I’m Kartik Singh from Tay Eng Soon Hall.. You probably know I’m quite the dramatist. Needless to say whether I’m

Since there are mostly guys in this boarding school, here are some geeky trivias a guy ought to know. (impressing girls/parents/ teachers is not guaranteed)

onstage or in the classroom, I’m always overdramatic. Being random is my forte. I’m intrigued by jazz. I love Japanese food and would like to travel the world someday.

Dinh Quan:“A Vietnamese, from Ha Noi. An amateur guitarist who enjoys various kinds of music. I joined the Newsletter group as I am interested in a journalist’s job. I also like hanging out with friends, watching movies, playing games, reading books, or strolling around the track and gazing at the stars at night.”

Anmol Khurana:I am Anmol from T.R. Doraisamy Hall. I’m in class 5.10. I have a good sense of humour and an undying respect for lameness and sarcasm. I like to play basketball and soccer and I am a diehard Manchester United and Los Angeles Lakers fan. =)

THE PENHOLDERSSiddharth Kapoor / Kartik Singh / Dinh Quan / Anmol Khurana

A Trivial Corner by Julian FutantoTR Doraisamy Hall

The team of writers behind The Courier have their own stories to tell, too

staff :

JUNCTIONGEEK

When Luke Skywalker and Han Solo escort Chewbacca to the prison cells in “Star Wars,” Luke says the Wookie is a prisoner transfer from cell block 1138, a reference to director George Lucas’s first film, “THX 1138.”

Sonic the hedgehog is not only a fast hedgehog in a video game. Sonic Hedgehog is also a name of a gene on chromosome 7 of a human genome. Biologists!

Since the release of Mario Bros in 1983, tens of thousands of American children have been named Mario.

Doctor Who travels time and space in a TARDIS (which stands for Time and Relative Dimensions In Space).

It took three different talents to portray Darth Vader in Star Wars: each for his face, voice, and body.

CONGRATULATIONS!Level up! INT+3

Editor-in-Chief: Dr. Kiranjeet Kaur; Sports Editor: Mr. Thou Reaksmey; Student Editor: Siddharth Kapoor Associate Editor: Anmol Khurana, Dinh Quan, Special Correspondents: Heng Sonal, Prasanth PrakashGraphics and Layout Editor: Mr. Julian Futanto; Publications and Photography In-charge: Mr. Danny TohManager: Ms. Yvonne Lim, Deputy Principal & Deputy Warden ACS (Independent) Singapore.