Character & Citizenship Education

We envision ourselves as a joyful school of confident learners and caring leaders. We have a customized Character and Citizenship curriculum for holistic development of students.

BODY

“Physical fitness is the first requisite of happiness.”

Joseph Pilates

Blangah Rise has many platforms for our pupils to practice a healthy lifestyle through our CCAs, Sports activities and House Sessions. In these sessions, students experience joyful learning with their friends, and they collaborate actively to achieve team goals. SATS, Asia’s leading airline caterer, has been engaged to provide healthy and nutritious school meals for the students. A dietician on the SATS team ensures that all meals adhere to HPB’s Healthy Meals in School Programme and offer the optimal amount of nutrients.

HEARTS

“Plant a seed so your heart will grow”

Hafez

School Environment
To create a school environment that is inviting, affirming and conducive to positive student experiences, students’ works are designed on the walls, decoration trees, class notice boards, and level boards. Student Leaders regularly share and encourage each other through sharing of motivational quotes and stories before the singing of the National Anthem and via various level notice and walkway boards, staircases, Art & NE Heritage Galleries.

Student Recognition
To monitor and nurture students’ growth in the Virtues and 7 Habits, there are multiple recognition schemes that emphasize and encourage students to practice them.

In Blangah Rise, all our students are precious gems whom we lovingly polish to shine and be the best they can be. The termly GEM Class award acknowledges students who work cooperatively and exemplify the Seven Habits and the underlying virtues as a class. The termly GEM Student award recognises students from every level who display the Seven Habits and the virtues in their everyday actions.

Student Recognition
‘GOTCHA! Caught you doing good!’ is a platform for recognising students who exhibit the Seven Habits and the underlying virtues by doing good deeds. Students are caught doing these deeds in their everyday actions and routines by their teachers. We also recognize students that demonstrate good sportsmanship during CCAs and House Practice. The acts are then featured and shared with the rest of the student population, encouraging them to do similar good deeds in their daily actions.

Teacher Relationships
To ensure every Blangahnite has a deep sense of belonging to his or her class and school, it is important to foster trusting relationships between teachers and students. Form teachers meet up with students every morning to speak the language of virtues and also to connect with them. Through these discussions, teachers get to know more about the student’s life, experiences and goals. Renard, a Primary 6 student shares, “I look forward to Connect Time as I get time to share with my Form Teachers my views and opinions on class matters.” Mdm Sa’adah adds, “Connect Time gives me opportunities to get to know my students in my form class better.”

In our House System introduced in 2021, we learn and grow together as a community. Teachers connect with students and provide guidance to them. House members are engaged in games and rapport is built upon a climate of trust, care and respect. To support the students academically, Teacher Mentors guide the students in Self-Study for up to an hour before the physical activities.

Rootedness to SG
Blangah Rise has many meaningful activities to help our students to be concerned citizens and active contributors to Singapore. Other than the 4 major NE events, we also have many customized activities unique to our school. In the Green Snapshots Trail, our students introduce the rich biodiversity of the Singapore’s green areas around our school.

In our LLP, students take care of the green gardens in the school, and participate actively in environmental conservation. From young, our students learn the importance of how they can do their part to conserve and protect the environment in Singapore.

I have learnt how to recycle and make use of old things. Upcycling is when you make something better out of something that is not needed anymore. I like the activity and I am going to use what I made to store my pencils. I like that you can recycle things.

Gail, Primary 5

MIND

"True education does not consist merely in the acquiring of a few facts of science, history, literature, or art, but in the development of character."

-David O. Mckay-

ECG and Decision-making
In Blangah Rise, we nurture our students to be reflective learners who make sound decisions. In our education career guidance programme, we help students understand their interests/strengths and to develop a growth mindset, so they can serve and contribute to society in future.

In the light of the pandemic, most of our engagements have moved to online platforms. Through online conferencing, students are able to hear inspirational stories from how others have built on their strengths to overcome challenges in their lives to find their calling. Julia, a student from Primary 6, excitedly shared that: “A barista showed us how to brew coffee online and it was cool! I also found out about some of the challenges in working in the service industry.”

The school also has a programme starting with introductory FTGP lessons on Career Guidance for Middle Primary students to in-depth FTGP lessons and the introduction of the MySkillsFuture portal for Senior Primary students. MySkillsFuture is a one-stop ECG portal that empowers students to embark on a journey of self-discovery and make informed education and career choices.

Teacher Mentor
In Blangah Rise, Our Character Education Programme is anchored upon the 7 Habits and also the Virtues Project. In all aspects of school life, our teacher mentors speak the language of virtues to acknowledge and guide our students. This is done through catching teachable moments, and also through formal lessons. In our CCE/FTGP lessons, our teachers will engage the students through various scenarios to examine their motives and consider the values and principles they choose to uphold in making decisions.

SPIRIT

"We make a living by what we get but we make a life by what we give."

-Winston Churchill-

Blangah Rise focuses on giving back to the school, the community and the environment. Every class carries out a VIA activity to benefit the school community. School programmes and activities are organised to appreciate our Pioneer Generation. Fundraising for charity takes place during festive celebrations in school.

Students also grow and harvest plants and herbs in our gardens. This helps cultivate lifelong habits such as empathy and responsibility as well as develops self-empowerment and team harmony.

It is through service that students apply their learning of virtues and habits and build connectedness with school and community.

Every month, we bring the students for a wellness activity. As a class, the students discuss and come up with their own activity that lets them focus on self-care. Popular activities include walks in our gardens, picnics and fun games.

Developing good character does not come immediately. The story of the bamboo tree has some lessons for us. In its first four years, we may not see any bamboo growth above the soil at all. But finally in the fifth year, we can see that the bamboo tree grows 80 feet in just six weeks!

This does not mean that nothing has happened to the bamboo for the first four years. It is growing its roots to nurture a strong foundation. Growing takes time. You cannot grow high if you do not grow deep. Virtues are the roots that give us the strength to grow upwards. What we do everyday matters. It is our Habits that define us.

Watch your words; they become actions.

Watch your actions; they become habits.

Watch your habits; they become character.

Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.

Lao Tzu

At Blangah Rise, we believe that every child is important. Every child can grow. Join us in our journey as we grow deep and grow high together!