Book sharing by Mr. Siu (7^th March 2023)

Good morning Principal, Teachers and Students,

I am Mr. Siu. Today I am very grateful to have this opportunity to share with you a book that I have been reading again and again for years. However, before I tell you the title, I would like to ask you a question: what is an activity that you do every day at every moment that your teachers and parents seldom, if ever, teach you how to do? The answer is thinking. We think every day and almost every second. We also somehow think in our dreams. However, thinking, being so important, is seldom taught! Therefore, Edward de Bono, being a medical doctor as his original profession, decided to write a book about thinking, and the title is ‘Six Thinking Hats’.

        Let me tell you what those hats are and what they stand for. The white hat is to consider the data, facts, information known or needed. White is a very calm color, so you should realise that we need to see the situation calmly and ‘chew on’ the data and facts. Red Hat is for feelings, hunches, instinct and intuition. Why do we feel nervous or uneasy about something? Actually, we have put the red hat on already. I do not mean we have to be emotional, but we have to listen to our heart and think about why we do not feel good. Black Hat is for defining the difficulties and potential problems. This is a major step. The reason is simple: if we do not know the crux of the matter clearly, then how can we come up with a solution? The solution must be geared towards the problem. Therefore, defining the problem is of paramount importance.

        Having defined the problem, we have to put on the yellow hat, which is thinking about why something may work. This is to make sure that the solution should be feasible. Sometimes we must put on the green hat for creativity as well. This is to think out of the box. The last one is blue hat, which is to come up with the steps of solving the problem.

        I do hope that you will go to the library, head for the non-fiction section, grab it and turn a few pages. Thinking is too valuable a skill that we should never underuse or misuse.

Morning Sharing on 21^st February, 2023

Ms Kan

Good morning, principal, teachers and fellow students.

I’m Ms Kan. Today, I’d like to share with you on the topic about the importance of work, why it matters to us as well as for our society.  Some of you may feel that you don’t want to work in the future because it’s very tiring, while others may think that you don’t need to work because your parents can support your life.  Have you thought about what would happen if half of you or even all of you think in the same way?

Think about what had happened before you arrive here for the assembly.  You got ready to leave home, you took the public transport to school and you had your breakfast, either at home or in the tuck shop.  Calculate how many people have done their job well to enable you to stand here on time.

Let’s take your breakfast as an example.  Quite a lot of you had sandwich for your breakfast.  Where did the ham, egg and bread come from?  There were at least 3 types of farmers who planted the wheat, raised the pigs and raised the hens to provide raw materials for the manufacturers and workers there to further produce the flour to make the bread, meat to produce the ham and eggs for further packaging.  And who transported these raw materials to the manufacturers?  We need the workers working in the logistics industry to transport products between the two points.  If any of them failed to do their job well, the chain would be broken.  In other words, there would be no eggs, ham and bread to make your egg sandwich for breakfast.  Indeed, every person in the production chain worked hard and reliably so we could enjoy the food we need.  Work is important for the workers not only to earn a living, it also provides satisfaction because what they are doing are also helping others as well.  We are all playing an important role in supporting each other in the society through working.  We do not live alone on the planet.  We are relying on one another and are providing each other different services and products in order to sustain our living and to make our society a better place for everyone to live in.

If there were one day, people didn’t work, could you still enjoy the life you are living now?  Could you take the public transport to your destination?  Would you still be able to enjoy your meals, or the clothes you wear?  The answer is definitely ‘no’, because the supply of these items and transportation are no longer available.  That’s why we all need to work.

If we want to work in specific positions, we can get the qualification concerned.  By working in the position that we want, we can get more job satisfaction, meanwhile, we can also help people who need the service or products.  Work isn’t all about money, but it’s about the life of each other and the society as a whole.

That’s the end of my sharing.  Thank you.

Book Sharing on 14th February, 2023

Ms Sek

Good morning, everyone. Today I would like to ask you a question. If the sun is dying, what should we do? Escape to a new planet by travelling on a spaceship? Or should we move the whole earth to the closest new ‘sun’ which is 4.3 light years away?

According to the science fiction ‘The Wandering Earth’, it should be better to move planet earth itself. Why is that so? How can human beings do this? What would happen if the earth were moving away from the sun?

You will find all these answers from ‘The Wandering Earth’, which is written by China’s number one science fiction writer Cixin Liu. He is a nine-time winner of China's Galaxy Award and has also received the 2015 Hugo Award. Even the former US President Barack Obama recommended his work.

Start reading today! See the world in a brand-new way! Thank you.