Day Three

We went to school today! To be precise, we visited Padbury Catholic Primary School today. It is a primary school here in Perth with a kindergarden and pre-primary section. When we arrived at around 8.30 a.m., we were warmly welcomed by the principal Mrs Helen O'Toole. Then, we were split into two groups to join two different classes.
When we first met our Australian buddies, we were a bit apprehensive and did not quite know how to respond to them. But soon, we warmed up to each other and started to chat happily. Our buddies first folded paper aeroplanes with us and we had a whale of a time testing out our planes. Then, it was class time. we retreated back into their classrooms and did some seat work. We did some text-construction work on distorted gridlines. At first we didn't quite get the hang of it, but after some guidance from our buddies, we completed the work nicely.
We also spent time in their computer lab. There, via the internet, we showed them photographs of famous places in Singapore and even our school! They in turn showed us Australia's famous attractions. We really did learn a lot from each other. We were also brought around the school to visit the various classrooms and special rooms that they have. When we visited the kinder-classes, the children even sang and performed for us! They were all so little and cute! Then it was lunchtime, and we had pizza! Yum!
After lunch, we continued to spend time with our buddies. We joined them in a hip-hop/aerobics dance, and that was so much fun! Then when it was time to leave, we gave our buddies cards and little presents. Some of them were so moved that they even hugged us! We exchanged email addresses and promised to keep in contact. It has been wonderful visiting a foreign school and participating in their lessons. We saw how different our school environment was compared to theirs. It was indeed an enriching experience.
After we bade buddies goodbye, we proceeded to Harbour Town, a brand direct outlet shopping centre. Many of us had had enough shopping, so we just spent time in the cafes and had ice-cream. Some still could not get enough and continued to weave in and out of the shops.
Tomorrow we will move out from Criterion Hotel and in to the farm! As the cows do not have internet access and wifi, this blog will not be updated until we return to Singapore.
Remember, we will be coming back on FRIDAY, 12 November, on flight SQ226, ETA: 9.05 p.m. See you guys at the airport!
Goodnight!
Photos to follow.