CIS Students attend Model UN Conference

By Lisa Leland
Communications and Marketing Executive
Canadian International School

In February, the largest middle school Model UN Conference in the world took place in Singapore. Model UN serves as a platform for students to learn UN protocol, share perspectives, and gain confidence with presenting and debating important United Nations issues.

Thirty-seven students from the Canadian International School’s Tanjong Katong and Lakeside campuses attended the conference and spent a weekend debating and passing resolutions pertaining to human rights, ECOSOC, the environment, food security, and the security council. It was a marvelous event with twenty-eight schools from Singapore, China, India, Malaysia and as far away as Jordan and Saudi Arabia taking part.

Alexandra Chapman (Grade 7 Tanjong Katong student), who had the experience of being a Delegate representing Ethiopia reported the following:

“At the Model UN, students took on the role of diplomats and debated real world issues, such as relief for the East Africa drought, promotion of fair trade and ending tobacco production. Our campus represented Ethiopia and Iraq. Delegates had to write resolutions and make speeches about global issues whilst keeping in mind the perspective and interests of the country we were representing. It took a lot of research and thought, but with the help of our teachers, and our peers, we accomplished our task. In conclusion, this was a phenomenal experience. We learned about the world, made friends and gained confidence by taking the risk to speak in front of our committees during debates. We are already looking forward to next year’s conference.” 

A Healthy Mouth, A Brighter Smile

Contributed by the Specialist Dental Group

A recent poll by Gallup International declared that Singapore was the most emotionless and unhappy country in the world. According to last year’s survey by Oral-B, it was revealed that 67% of Singaporeans agreed that they would smile more if they had healthy teeth. Dr Helena Lee, a periodontist (gum specialist) at Specialist Dental Group advises that the removal of plaque is essential as where there is plaque, bacteria will be present. When bacteria is present for a period of time, there will be a higher possibility of infection. It is important to inculcate good habits into your daily oral care routine. The three step regimen to follow is:

• Brush your teeth
• Use soft bristles as it helps to avoid damaging the gums and enamel
• Change your toothbrush once every three months
  
  
• Floss
• Daily flossing removes food particles between your teeth and around your gums
• Curve the floss to contact as much of the tooth as possible and gently move it up and down
• Rinse your mouth
• 30 seconds of a non-alcohol based antibacterial rinse can help reduce plaque
• Choose  an alcohol-free mouth rinse to minimize bad breath

When we have a healthy mouth, we should be in the pink of health. This is something to smile about! 

Feel free to contact us with your questions. To find out more about other dental solutions or to make an appointment, visit www.specialistdentalgroup.com

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Specialist Dental Group is a corporate sponsor of the Canadian Association of Singapore (CAS). CAS members enjoy a special rate for dental services. For details, send an enquiry via www.specialistdentalgroup.com or call 6733 7883

Wet Market, Part 5, “Wing or Sting?”

By Herb Pillar

Skate Wing or Stingray?  They are different in the sea, but in the kitchen they are the same!  Almost unheard of in Canadian grocery stores and fish markets, and completely absent from restaurant menus, skate wing presents a marvellous culinary opportunity here in Asia.  Don’t decide to make skate wing this weekend – find it first!  Even here in Singapore, it is not always available, so when you do see it at the wet market, snap it up!

Stingray is a regular offering at Singapore hawker stalls, (ikan pari bakar), but it is very difficult to find it in a North American cookbook.  It does have a long presence in French cooking.  When properly prepared, it is tender, succulent and delicious and has a wonderful texture - but like squid, it can become rubbery and tasteless if overcooked.  Perhaps that’s why people tend to shy away from it.  This is the exact reason why I am going to give you a foolproof method for preparing stingray at home, French style, poached and with beurre noire and capers.

Have your stingray wing cut into pieces like the one on my cutting board in the photo.    Bring some fish stock (court bouillon) to the boil.  If you don’t have fish stock, use water, a small handful of peppercorns, and a glass of dry white wine.  There should be enough stock to cover the fish.  Take the boiling stock off the stove and immediately slide your stingray piece into the pot, cover, and let sit for about 12 minutes. 

While the fish is poaching off the stove, slap a few tablespoons of unsalted butter into a small saucepan on low heat.  The butter will melt, become clear, and the solids will settle to the bottom of the pan.  Leave them there.  They will gradually turn golden, then brown, like in the photo.  Toss in a tablespoon of capers.   Keep warm, but don’t let it burn!

When the fish is done, take it out of the liquid, peel off the skin, and with a spoon, scrape the meat off the cartilage, both sides.  It will come away easily, in lovely long strands, like spaghetti squash.   Gently spoon some of the warm buerre noire over the top, and serve immediately, with tiny boiled potatoes and your choice of green vegetables – asparagus or ladyfingers would be nice.  Serve with a very dry, very chilled white wine, such as a New Zealand Riesling.  Very tasty and very special!

You learned it here in Singapore.