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Chatting with the seniors

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CEM18 Service Learning at Potong Pasir 2

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Learning from the seniors

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CEM18 Service Learning at Potong Pasir 1

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Engaging the elderly residents

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All for one and one for all

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Reflection on the service learning trip to Potong Pasi

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Reflection on the service learning trip to Potong Pasi

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Prior to the trip, I was worried that I would not be able to reach the venue on time as I'm not really a morning person on a weekend and Potong Pasir is really far away from my place and also the fear of language barrier as my dialect isn't really good.

However, once I reached there and met with the old folks there it really made a change as there were a few elderly that I kicked off well with and learned that they are mostly living alone or with their spouses away from their children and some of them doesn't have any family left.

This really struck a chord in me as they are probably feeling lonely most of the time and this activity really gives them a chance to mingle with folks of their age and also with the younger adults to remind them that there are still people who cares.

Although they may be high up on the numbers, most of them are really receptive and readily accepts and participates in the activities planned by the organisers which is also a learning point that its not the age that matters, its the heart to learn that matters the most.

Some of the elderly are still afraid to attempt as they are afraid that they would not be able to do it but with encouragement from their fellow friends, they managed to break out of their shell and enjoyed throughout the activities and that really made me happy for them.

All in all, it was a great experience for me and the old folks there as it gives them something to look forward to every month!

For me the greatest take-away was the advice they gave me from the small talks between us, it was an enjoyable experience as I tend to enjoy speaking to older folks as they are full of experiences and story to share and learn from!

Most importantly was that the look on their face after the event ends and during the start changes a lot. Most of them seems lost and out of focus at start but at the end they seems more radiant and focused which is something great for them!

Some points for improvement could be that the organiser can set more time for the activities as it felt really rushed and the play time for the elderly were really short!

-Shu Bao

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Shurong

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Reflection On Service Learning trip to Potong Pasir

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Reflection On Service Learning trip to Potong Pasir

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Before i was really nervous for going to Potong Pasir as i was not confident of my ability to communicate to the elderly citizens as my mother tongue was not good. When i arrived there, it was much different than what i had expected before, there were many elderly citizens in that area and many of them are outgoing and quite well-versed in speaking English, this made me more confident as i was able to communicate with the elderly to play games which encourages them to be more social with the other elderly there. I also learnt that many of them is part of a club in the nearby community center which hosts events and activities for them to come together and enjoy, so the elderly already knew each other.
One of the elderly told me that her son also used to study engineering in Ngee Ann Polytechnic, and the different types of countries he visited due to his oversea programs, and told us that we should study hard in order to get this kind of once in a lifetime experiences. I learnt that the elderly are actually really friendly and have really interesting stories to tell, and that we should try to interact more with the elderly as it is enjoyable and we can learn many things from them.
Daniel.

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Spent a wonderful morning with the seniors of Potong Pasir. Most of the seniors were very welcoming and amiable. What I have come to realized was that seniors or not they are still human being like us and in order to break the ice we have to take the initiative an start small talks with them like how you would with a new friend. Before this I thought, as seniors they are the ones who will break the ice as they're more experienced. However, it is my job to make them feel comfortable and be like a friend  to them even if it is for a day. This experience reminded me that Singapore is an ageing population and most of our seniors might feel lonely and it is so assuring and warm to see compassionate volunteers who have invested in a lot of effort in organizing monthly events like this for the seniors. Today is a reminder for me that everyone has a story to tell but most stories are not heard because they have nobody to share it with. In retrospect, I became attached to a female elderly and I was concerned that she might not be able to handle standing up for a long time so I kept checking on her throughout the whole ball game. I think what made me do that is because she reminded me of my grandmother at home. My grandmother has difficulty standing and walking for a long time so seeing her today made me appreciate and care for my own grandmother much more. I'm full of smiles and gratitude today. Henceforth, the seniors are beyond the slow walking, nagging, loud talking and wrinkles, they are gems of Singapore who we, the new generation took for granted.
-Nur Zakirah

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At first i was nervous before going to Potong Pasir as i am akward with elderlies and does not know how to start a conversation with them. we were also unaware of the programme process , not knowing what and how things were going to happen later on. Language barriers is also a problem as most chinese elderlies only speaks in their dialect. When we arrive at the place we were given a brief introduction on what we were doing that day , games such as traditional games and bingo will be played. My friends and I also did a impromptu game, which requires us to introduce ourselves when we lost the game. Firstly, we went to greet the elderlies and were encouraged to talk to them. To my surprise some of the elderlies were the one who initiate the conversation and ask us questions about ourselves . Most of the elderlies there speaks both chinese and english language that relieved my concern. They were also unexpectedly open and easy going which makes me feel more comfortable and interact more with them. During the game they participated actively and tried to win the game,they were excited to win the prizes when we were playing bingo. I did not expect that they will be so enthusiastic and friendly . My biggest take away is that age is just a number they can be as healthy and active in heart as the youngsters .

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At first i was nervous before going to Potong Pasir as i am akward with elderlies and does not know how to start a conversation with them. we were also unaware of the programme process , not knowing what and how things were going to happen later on. Language barriers is also a problem as most chinese elderlies only speaks in their dialect. When we arrive at the place we were given a brief introduction on what we were doing that day , games such as traditional games and bingo will be played. My friends and I also did a impromptu game, which requires us to introduce ourselves when we lost the game. Firstly, we went to greet the elderlies and were encouraged to talk to them. To my surprise some of the elderlies were the one who initiate the conversation and ask us questions about ourselves . Most of the elderlies there speaks both chinese and english language that relieved my concern. They were also unexpectedly open and easy going which makes me feel more comfortable and interact more with them. During the game they participated actively and tried to win the game,they were excited to win the prizes when we were playing bingo. I did not expect that they will be so enthusiastic and friendly . My biggest take away is that age is just a number they can be as healthy and active in heart as the youngsters .

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-Zhu Peng

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Before this activity started I was worried that I was unable to interact properly with the elderly as I didn’t know how to start the conversation, what to say and what I shouldn’t say. When we were tasked to interact with the elderly, we were reluctant to start the conversation at first, but we still managed to. Although it was awkward we still managed introduced ourselves to the elderly, managed to know more about them and talked to the elderly until the next activity started.

During the next activity, there were three games for the elderly to play. Together with my friends, we were “in charge” of the five stones games. We got to learn how they play the game in the past and get a glimpse how they play and past time as a kid. Comparing them to the kids now a day, I think that they are having more fun as they can make friends, interact and socialise with more people compared kids staring at an iPad screen, it is much better.
If I were to be given another chance to take part in activities like this, I would gladly participate.
-kaiwen

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When I first volunteered to help out for this event,  I was very clueless on what we were actually going to do.  I had taken part in many similar elderly outreach projects in Secondary school, however I had also been the one planning these events so going to the Saturday programme being completely clueless was very daunting. Another problem that I was concerned about was the obvious language barrier that I would have to overcome in order to converse with the elderly.  During the actual event on Saturday,  eventually though I did eventually face this problem and had to often ask my Chinese friends to translate on my behalf, I was able to gradually converse with all the elderly there be it through actual words or just hand movements. Also,  when Eliza told us that we would also have to handle the other elderly apart from the planned games,  Jay and I were able to quickly come up with a fun version on "pass the parcel" that soon all the elderly were involved in and gained such an overwhelmingly positive response that they didn't even want to stop the game for the tea break.  I also loved just overall interacting with the elderly while playing bingo since they were all so excited and eager to be able to win the prizes.  I was genuinely surprised at how much fun the experience had been since I had always thought of VIA with the elderly as more of a chore than an opportunity to learn and grow but I have really enjoyed myself at the event and I hope that the elderly folk enjoyed themselves to and that they look forward to next month's program as well.
-Raksha

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To be honest, i did not expect much from this service at the start. I had a gut feeling that it was going to be awkward and unpleasant for both parties participating. To my surprise, the elderlies were very open and friendly. I decided to have a talk with one of the elderlies and had quite some fun doing so, it made me realised that everybody have a unique story to tell. We played several games with them and my favourite game was 5 stones, while playing it, i was bewildered to see the elderlies still being so nimble with their hands while playing 5 stones, they had the game etched in their minds ever since their younger days. All in all it was a unique and fun-filled experience.
-Shao Siang

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Before the activity started, I was not very enthusiastic about the activity as I though that it would be like some other community service that i have done in the past. My initial thoughts were that the elderly would not be very entertained and they would not be interested in talking to us. But boy was i wrong! During the activity, the elderly were very keen in talking to us, with some even initiating conversations with us instead of the other way around. Nowadays we are used to keeping ourselves entertained with technology (mobile devices, laptops etc.). It is really hard to imagine where would our entertainment come from without these devices. On the day of the service learning, i realized that we do not need technology to keep us entertained. Even though we played simple games like bingo and some other traditional games that involved zero use of technology, i found myself and the elderly quite entertained. Also teens nowadays, myself included, would feel awkward speaking to a stranger that we do not know well. However, the elderly was extremely comfortable speaking to us even though we were strangers to them. This goes to show that the elderly/older generation has better social skills as compared to us younger ones. Overall, if given another chance to take part in a different community service, i would love to go again.

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Before the activity started, I was not very enthusiastic about the activity as I though that it would be like some other community service that i have done in the past. My initial thoughts were that the elderly would not be very entertained and they would not be interested in talking to us. But boy was i wrong! During the activity, the elderly were very keen in talking to us, with some even initiating conversations with us instead of the other way around. Nowadays we are used to keeping ourselves entertained with technology (mobile devices, laptops etc.). It is really hard to imagine where would our entertainment come from without these devices. On the day of the service learning, i realized that we do not need technology to keep us entertained. Even though we played simple games like bingo and some other traditional games that involved zero use of technology, i found myself and the elderly quite entertained. Also teens nowadays, myself included, would feel awkward speaking to a stranger that we do not know well. However, the elderly was extremely comfortable speaking to us even though we were strangers to them. This goes to show that the elderly/older generation has better social skills as compared to us younger ones. Overall, if given another chance to take part in a different community service, i would love to go again.

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-Fraser

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Reflection on service learning journey in potong pasir

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Reflection on service learning journey in potong pasir

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Before starting the activity, I was quite ok because I did one VIA( values in action) programme in a old folks home before when I was in secondary school. We made cake for them and sing a few Chinese songs from their generation, though the song part wasn’t that good.

One of my main problems was the language barrier, because I’m very bad at Chinese and I know little to nothing about dialect , thus i may not know what the elderly are talking about. Furthermore I’m an introvert, sooo I can’t really immediately start a conversation with them like when I’m talking to my friends.

However, I do try my best to help set up the location before the event starts and help around during games such as bingo , I’ll look above their shoulders to see if they circled/marked number that was called earlier.

One thing I’m happy about when participating in these type of events is that I get to see the elderly smiles and they also get to spend time with other people of the same generation. ( so that they can talk etc. etc.)

After the event, I feel like I would not mind going for another service learning journey, in fact I’ll try to go for all of it(?) if it doesn’t clash with other events, provided I’m also going there with friends .

-kok hong

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Before going to the place, I thought that we will be doing volunteering work inside a community club or an enclosed area under the block. Also, I thought the elderly will be waiting for us there. However after reaching the place, we had to help bring out the tables and chairs from a nearby community club and had to collect the food and drinks from a nearby bakery. Later the year 3 student committee members explained to us the flow plan of the activities.
I knew there will be language barriers before going to the place and I was right. Most of the elderly were Chinese and they couldn’t understand English so my fellow classmates had to translate for me. I found it awkward as the elderly had to wait until my friend translates to me. So I couldn’t really engage the elderly. There was only 1 elderly who could speak my language so I went and chatted with him for a while. He told me that there was one lady who would always volunteer in these kind of activities but she didn’t come today. I could tell that he was sad and was expecting her a lot.
Overall I enjoyed the volunteering session as I got to see a different side of my classmates. They were so kind and were engaging the elderly as much to their ability. Seeing the elderly smile made me happy and it made me want to do more volunteering work in the near future. I could see myself doing volunteering work like the year 3 seniors as I got a little tatste of what we will be doing in the future.
- Nasreen

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This trip has definately taught me many meaningful lessons. To communicate with the elderly is actually so enriching and rewarding because of their rich experiences and hardworks ij their lives. Sitting down and talking to them rly helped bring more sociable. Somehow talking to them felt so much at ease as there is no need to hide anything and they will always here me out. Also, seeing them reminds me of my own grandparents. Realising how much I’ve neglected them due to my heavy schoolwork and hectic student life. This Rly allows me to self reflect and to amend my mistakes this holiday when I’m more free. All in all, this trip to interact with the elderly taught me many lessons and helps me understands more towards the elderly.
-zhengting

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This service learning project was definitely one to remember. I went into it with the mindset that it would be a little awkward to interact with the elderly because of language barriers as well as the age difference, but all of that prove not to be an issue as most of the elderly were able to understand and speak the common tongue, this made it a lot easier to interact with them and conduct the various activities planned for the day without any hiccups. We started off by getting the chairs and tables from the organisation's office and arranging it at the the block where the event was to be held. After that, we were briefed about the activities that were planned for the day and how to carry them out. These activities were, a sing along session, a chitchat session and lastly a fun and games session. During this event, I realized that the elderly were really excited for the event, it really does put a smile on their faces. One of the elderly said that, she has lots of time but very little things to do to keep herself entertained, so this event really means a lot to her as it is a way for her to find joy at her age. To conclude, I would say I picked up a few life skills from this service learning project and really had fun that day, it might not seem much to us but it really means a lot to the elderly and with that in mind, it makes this whole event worth while and I would gladly volunteer again.

Zu Liang.

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Before going for today’s volunteering work i was actually afraid that language barriers would get between me and the elderly as most of them might only know how to communicate in their dialect which i am unfamiliar with. At the beginning, i was a little reluctant to approach them. I started communicating with them through the game stations where i had to explain the game rules to them. As i explain the rules to them i realise that they are friendly and approachable. That’s when i started to open up and get comfortable with them. Through this volunteering opportunity i learn that the elderly actually lead a simple and quite routined life. The elderly i talked to shared with me that they would either be home reading papers or watching television shows. I then realise that when there are events planned for them, that is when they would get to interact with the other elderly in the same neighbourhood to bring them closer so they can hang out together instead of staying at home all day. Personally, i like to take part in such volunteering events if given the chance again, i would definitely volunteer again as seeing the elderly enjoy themselves i also feel like i have done my part to help keep them entertained so they would not feel lonely.

Jolyn

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Before the trip i thought the service would be just helping with arranging tables and chairs etc and putting things,moving objects from tables.However, after the trip I found out that we also get to bond with the elderlys and interact with them on an emotional level. Before the trip i also did not know service learning would be as fun as the experience we had. Through fun and games i have overcome my emotional obstacle of being shy and have thoroughly enjoyed myself at this service learning.Though meaningful conversations and social interactions,I have also learnt to be a more socialable and approachable person in real life.I hope throgh such activities i will develop people skills and learn how to be more friendly to others and learn to talk to people without being awkward or overly self-conscious once i have joined the workforce.This has been an eye opening experience for me as i get to see how year 3 students would organise an event all by themselves and develop administrative skills.However thouh some friendly conversations with he elderly i have also found out that the organisers did not change the event activities much and much of the activities remained unchanged and boring to the elderlys.I was also told that the songs were not changed at all and they sung the same songs,making me believe there is some room for improvement for the organisers.Nevertheless,I have learnt much and have thoroughly enjoyed the service learning.I hope to take part in such activities again in the future.

Chang Tyng