The Beauty of Nature Project - May 2017

At Horne Learning Services, we love to engage our students' creative side by holding projects each year. The first project of 2017 was titled "The Beauty of Nature" and we received 132 entries. We divided the project into three age groups:

Age 6-9

Age 10-12

Age 13-17

All projects were judged on the following five criteria, each area carrying 20% marks:

- effort

- creativity

- appearance

- explore the topic

- writing

Here are the trophy winners of The Beauty of Nature Project:

The champions of The Beauty of Nature Project at Horne Learning Services

The 2nd place awards for The Beauty of Nature Project at Horne Learning Services

The 3rd place awards of The Beauty of Nature Project at Horne Learning Services

More photographs of the top ten in each category will be available on our facebook page HLS English Classes Kuantan

Parents feedback on our English speaking presentations

As we discussed previously, our English class presentations week was extremely successful. Our focus is on building confidence in speaking English. Learning English with Horne Learning Services (HLS) will be a different experience for students both young and mature. 

Mr. Duncan prepares his own syllabus each year and tries to include at least one speaking exercise for every single class. Class presentations are a great way for students to use their creativity to prepare a speech and present their results to the class. It represents a good public speaking practise and will prepare them well for the future, whether that be furthering their studies at university or moving forward into the workplace.

HLS was delighted to receive feedback from parents of our students regarding the August 2015 English Class Presentations:

"Thank you. I hope they can do it again."

"[She] was happy and enjoyed it."

"I can't believe she can do it. Thank you so much. At home she memorised it all, but at class I think she was scared already. Next time I hope she can be even better. Your class is so interesting. Thank you."

"Thank you. [His] father said if you can, always conduct this kind of speech. Train them to speak to the public. Very good."

"Thank you Sir. It is not easy to stand up for presentation or public speaking. I feel nervous to do so at my workplace. In a meeting when all the bosses are in front of you, the words get stuck in my throat. Maybe Sir can arrange more of these activities in the future, it's good for the children. Thanks for the effort."

"It's a very good idea. I totally agree. You're really a good teacher, thanks for your effort."

"Your class is really awesome. Makes me feel like joining too. I saw that all the students brought their favourite things to present. That makes it a lot of fun and interesting. Keep it up!

Circles In Everyday Life Project Winners

The Circles In Everyday Life project has been completed. We are thankful to all students and parents who supported their children throughout the two weeks of the project. Following will be a presentation of the winners in both the Children and Adult categories. We judged each project based on five criteria:

1. Creativity

2. Uniqueness

3. Effort

4. Aesthetics

5. Writing

Full list of the marks awarded for each student at HLS who participated in the Circles In Everyday Life project

WINNER, CHILDREN CATEGORY: YONG CHUAN

Yong Chuan and Mr. Duncan pose for a photo with his winning project, certificate and trophy in conjunction with the Circles In Everyday Life project at HLS

A closer look at Yong Chuan's Circles In Everyday Life Project

Yong Chuan had a clear vision of what he wanted to do from the moment the Circles In Everyday Life project began. A wonderfully creative piece of work depicting the Solar System was coupled with a great piece of writing showing how he personally loves space and the planets. His work scored high on all the marking criteria and we thought it was the stand-out project. Congratulations Yong Chuan!

2ND PLACE, CHILDREN CATEGORY: ETHELIND

Ethelind and Mr. Duncan pose for a photo with her project, certificate and trophy in conjunction with the Circles In Everyday Life project at HLS

A closer look at Ethelind's Circles In Everyday Life project

A closer look at Ethelind's Circles In Everyday Life project

Ethelind produced a fine, creative book on various circle shapes in life. Everything was done neatly with excellent written captions. 

3RD PLACE, CHILDREN CATEGORY: ISAAC

Isaac and Mr. Duncan pose for a photo with his project, certificate and trophy in conjunction with the Circles In Everyday Life project at HLS

A closer look at Isaac's Circles In Everyday Life project

Isaac is a consistent performer at HLS and was rewarded for his unique and creative style along with very well written explanations and an essay in the booklet.

4TH PLACE, CHILDREN CATEGORY: KUANG YEE

Kuang Yee and Mr. Duncan pose for a photo with her certificate in conjunction with the Circles In Everyday Life project at HLS

A closer view of Kuang Yee's project

A closer view of Kuang Yee's project focused on the 'circle' of a typical week in comic book format

5TH PLACE, CHILDREN CATEGORY: YE HAO

Ye Hao and Mr. Duncan pose for a photo with his project and certificate in conjunction with the Circles In Everyday Life project at HLS

Ye Hao made a fruit basket and included a good story in the yellow booklet, along with labeling of the fruits in his basket

6TH PLACE, CHILDREN CATEGORY: ACELINE

Aceline and Mr. Duncan pose for a photo with her project and certificate in conjunction with the Circles In Everyday Life project at HLS

A closer look at Aceline's Circles In Everyday Life project

A closer look at Aceline's Circles In Everyday Life project

WINNER, ADULT CATEGORY: HUMAIRAH

Humairah and Mr. Duncan pose for a photo with her project, certificate and plaque in conjunction with the Circles In Everyday Life project at HLS

A closer look at Humairah's Circles In Everyday Life project

A closer look at Humairah's Circles In Everyday Life project

A closer look at Humairah's Circles In Everyday Life project

Humairah scored 98% and was excellent in every category. The creativity of her project was amazing and the paper folding exquisite. It was the clear winner. Congratulations Humairah!


=2ND PLACE, ADULT CATEGORY: KELLY

Kelly received the 2nd place certificate for this nicely done work in the Circles In Everyday Life project at HLS. Descriptions of the four emotions were tucked away inside each plate

=2ND PLACE, ADULT CATEGORY: MRS. FAM

Mrs. Fam and Mr. Duncan pose for a photo with her project and certificate in conjunction with the Circles In Everyday Life project at HLS

A closer look at Mrs. Fam's Circles In Everyday Life project. She made a container to store clothes pegs

The Christmas Project 2014 Winners

Thank you to all students who attended classes throughout December 2014 and participated in The Christmas Project. After marking we picked the best 3 entries and the 3 best runners-up. They received their trophies/prizes in class near the end of December.

Final percentages for students participating in The Christmas Project, December 2014

Here is the completed project of the top student:

Brandon's completed Christmas Project

The three trophies ready for presentation to The Christmas Project winners

Posing for a photo with Mr. Duncan, Brandon is The Christmas Project, December 2014 winner

Sher Wen poses for a photo with Mr. Duncan. She came in a close 2nd place in The Christmas Project, December 2014

Isaac takes 3rd place in The Christmas Project, December 2014, and poses for a photo with Mr. Duncan along with his project and trophy

Reagen with Mr. Duncan as he collected equal 4th consolation prize for his efforts in The Christmas Project, December 2014

Sooriyar dons a Santa hat to celebrate finishing equal 4th in The Christmas Project, December 2014, with Mr. Duncan

Ammar poses for a photo with Mr. Duncan after taking away the consolation prize for 6th place in The Christmas Project, December 2014

The Christmas Project, Dec 2014

This December at Horne Learning Services we are doing something fun for the children. 

The Christmas Project started last week and was the first of 3 parts the children will be involved in.

Our students' snowflakes decorate the wall

Part 1 - Make a snowflake

Part 2 - Design a Christmas Tree

Part 3 - Write a letter to Santa Claus

So Part 1 was finished last week (8-13th Dec) and you can see the snowflakes on the wall in the picture above. 

Parts 2 and 3 will be done this week (15-20th Dec). All 3 parts will be assessed for creativity, effort and good English. The overall winner of The Christmas Project will receive this little trophy:

Winner's trophy for The Christmas Project, Dec 2014

There will also be 2nd and 3rd place trophies, in addition to consolation prizes for other notable efforts.

Trophies ready to be presented to the Top 3 The Christmas Project entries

In Part 1 of The Christmas Project, students had 3 attempts at making a snowflake using various coloured pieces of paper and a pair of scissors. There were some excellent designs.

Students busy designing snowflakes in Part 1 of The Christmas Project, Dec 2014

Creativity often means getting messy!

A student looks at one of his three snowflakes

The top 4 scoring snowflakes from Part 1 of The Christmas Project, Dec 2014

The Christmas Project marking scheme

We are looking forward to this week where Parts 2 and 3 will be done. Part 2 - designing a Christmas tree, will be about creativity once more; Part 3 - Writing a letter to Santa Claus, will focus on imagination and good usage of the English language.

Prizes will be distributed next week (22-27th Dec) to all the best projects in class!

The Night Project Aug 2014 Winners

The Night Project was a huge success at Horne Learning Services. We saw a lot of creativity and unique designs both in the children and adult categories. It was extremely difficult judging the entries and selecting the winners. 

Here are the winners of The Night Project:

CHILDREN:

WINNER: JIA YI

Jia Yi's winning entry for The Night Project with the 1st place trophy. She made a book with pictures, a poem, an essay, a short story and more, in a very creative way.

Mr. Duncan with Jia Yi, the Night Project winner in the children category

2ND PLACE: BRANDON

Brandon's entry came in 2nd place in The Night Project. We liked his clean and attractive design and the two pieces of writing he included inside

Mr. Duncan posing with Brandon and his trophy for 2nd place in The Night Project

3RD PLACE: ISAAC

This entry by Isaac was chosen for the 3rd place trophy. He used toothpicks and a stand in his Night Project, along with a piece of writing concealed inside

Here is Isaac receiving his 3rd place trophy for The Night Project with Mr. Duncan

4TH PLACE: HAN YII

This collection of little comics was presented by Han Yii. This was different from others and very interesting

Mr. Duncan presents Han Yii with his certificate for 4th place in The Night Project

5TH PLACE: YONG CHUAN

This is Yong Chuan's work for The Night Project. Of the remaining selections we identified this as unique in design, creative, and possessing a good piece of writing

Yong Chuan with his 5th place certificate in The Night Project, posing for a photo with Mr. Duncan

ADULTS:

WINNER: YI CHIEN

Yi Chien's entry for The Night Project was deemed as the winner. It was a simple yet beautiful design, with an accomplished piece of writing inside, and a sketch on the back

Here is Yi Chien with her winner's plaque and certificate for The Night Project, presented by Mr. Duncan

2ND PLACE: JESSICA

Jessica's work for The Night Project was a brilliant correlation of words and pictures

Jessica with her 2nd place certificate for The Night Project

3RD PLACE: MS. CHONG

Ms. Chong's piece was really neat and creative and she quite brilliantly made the "G" of NIGHT in a moon shape!

Mr. Duncan poses with Ms. Chong as she receives her 3rd place certificate

Our congratulations go to all the winners of The Night Project, along with our thanks to all who took part! If you didn't manage to win this time, perhaps our next project will bring more rewards.