Sharing Our Stories in a Digital Age

By Michael Black, Grade 4 Classroom Teacher

“Technology is the campfire around which we tell our stories.” Laurie Anderson

Our desire to tell stories is a practice that drives most of us throughout our lives. Straight to the point, we all just want someone to listen. I’d argue this theory holds true not only in our personal journey but also in our educational journey. Now in my second year of working within a 1:1 iPad classroom, there is no doubt in my mind that allowing technology to become an active tool within the classroom provides students with a greater opportunity to create, communicate and reflect on their own stories.

My favourite agent for cultivating these important opportunities is the Explain Everything app. In brief, it is an easy-to-use screen casting and interactive whiteboard tool that allows students to annotate, animate, narrate, import and export almost anything to and from almost anywhere. Its advantage over classical educational materials such as pencil and paper, is that students can present information using multiple forms of expression (images, text, video and audio) all at once. Work can then be shared through a multitude of platforms and reach a wider audience. It is a real thrill when relatives in a foreign country are able to enjoy and follow a student’s learning.

Storytelling has been one of the most powerful forms of education throughout the history of the world. Whether you look back to the Middle Ages when wandering bards shared their stories orally from place to place or to the thirst for knowledge following the rise of printing in the 1400’s, storytelling has been front and centre. As storytelling platforms continue to evolve so will the magnitude to which we can share our stories. I see great value in students having an increased sense of purpose when expressing their ideas and when I consider the potential the digital medium has for allowing students to create more personal and captivating work, I can’t help but get excited where their stories will take us.

To read more great articles about how CIS uses technology to support student learning visit www.cismosaic.com

ASK THE DENTIST: Q&A: Choosing the Right Toothpaste

Q: Every time I go to buy toothpaste in groceries or stores, I really find it difficult to choose which toothpaste to buy. They come in different tastes, textures, supposed efficacies… I even saw black toothpastes with charcoal. How do you know which one would work amongst all the many choices?

A:  Toothpastes help to remove dental plaque, which is the major cause of dental caries and periodontal (gum) diseases. Modern technologies have made it possible for manufacturers to include ingredients that provide therapeutic and cosmetic 

benefits in toothpastes. 

Fluoride toothpaste
The most important ingredient to look for when choosing toothpaste is fluoride. Fluoride helps to remove plaque, a film of bacteria that forms on teeth and gums every day. It works first by strengthening your tooth enamel, and secondly by remineralising areas that have started to decay. The water in Singapore is also fluoridated, but studies have shown that using fluoride toothpaste helps increase the concentration of fluoride in the teeth, even in areas with water supplies containing high levels of fluoride. 

Tartar control toothpaste
Tartar is hardened plaque. This hard-to-remove deposit can build up on your teeth and under your gums, leading to gum disease. There is a variety of ingredients added into toothpastes to help prevent the accumulation of tartar on the teeth like chemical compounds, including pyrophosphates and zinc citrate. Additionally, some tartar control toothpastes contain an antibiotic called triclosan, which kills bacteria in the mouth. Look out for toothpastes containing several anti-plaque agents in one formulation, which will be more effective at tartar control than varieties with only one.

Whitening
All toothpastes rely on mild abrasives to remove surface stains. Whitening toothpastes do not contain bleaches, they typically contain special abrasives that polish the teeth and chemicals that help to breakdown or dissolve stains. Do note that these pastes will not help lighten a stain that goes deeper than the tooth’s surface. There are whitening toothpastes in the market that containw charcoal particles, touted as having benefits from removal of stubborn stains to being anti-bacterial. In theory, charcoal will bind stains, tartar and bacteria, which will make your teeth whiter. However, charcoal may also bind to medications that the body needs to absorb and even bacteria that you need for digestion. There is no proof that they actually work and that they are completely safe and effective. 

Sensitivity Control
Sensitivity results when the tooth’s dentine (inner layer of the tooth) becomes exposed. This can be caused by aggressive brushing, acidic food and drinks, tooth decay, cracked fillings, fractured teeth and gum disease. For mild cases, a desensitising toothpaste can help. The toothpastes typically contain potassium nitrate or strontium chloride and work by interfering with the transmission of nerve impulses to the brain, so you will experience no pain; other types work by blocking the exposed tubules and stabilising the nerve in the tooth as they seal the dentine surface. To see benefits, long-term continuous usage is required. 

There really is no best toothpaste and you should choose one that suits your family’s needs. Start with a toothpaste that contains fluoride and the rest is a matter of personal choice and needs. 

Dr. Steven Soo is a Dental Specialist in Prosthodontics with Specialist Dental Group®. He was formerly a Clinical Lecturer at the Eastman Dental Institute and Clinical Teacher at the GKT Dental Institute, both of which are affiliated with the University of London. Dr Soo has a special interest in prosthetic and implant restorative dentistry. 

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Do you have questions related to your teeth, mouth or oral health? 
Drop us a note with the subject titled “Ask The Dentist” at 
info@specialistdentalgroup.com to have them answered by the team at Specialist Dental Group®. If your question is featured, we will send you a pair of movie tickets! 

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.

Summer Ready

It's almost Summer and its time to start planning now to see the results! Whether you plan to be on the beaches of Vancouver or Toronto, or Sentosa Singapore, you will want to look and feel your best!

So…….

A. Set a goal on how many sessions can you train either alone or with your trainer.

B. Determine your goals.

To lose weight, try HIIT as the fastest way to lose 1 to 2 kg per week.

For lean muscles on top of weight loss, add Pilates to your HIIT training.

As a trainer, I often get asked about my customized PHIIT. It does look random but it is not! Each move is well planned to suit your body type and goals. Each sequence and repertoire are carefully designed for safety and effective sculpting.

C. Know your body type.

Ectomorph (long lean) . Train with compound moves. Use weights.
Endomorph (apple like shaped). Train with intensity. Reduce Carbs.
Mesomorph (athletic). Do power moves.

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Here ‘s your PHIIT nugget here for toned glutes...

• Do 45 jumps on the spot. Think knee to waist. ONE minute.
• Stand pile position. Hands on your waist. Tip toe. Then lower into a squat with knees pointing outward like a ballerina. Then up stand tall. Stay on toes. ONE minute.

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The Holy Cephalopod

Text and Photo by Charlene Kwan

With a dive count in excess of 400 and visits to the legion of SE Asia’s macro diving hotspots, diving’s most sought after critters have been found, admired and photographed for posterity. With one notable exception. Back in October, I proved the old adage ‘if you snooze you lose’ by sitting out one of 13 dives in the tropical island of Malapascua. In this dive not one, but two, blue ringed octopi were discovered in the islands’ fringing reefs. Despite the primary purpose of this trip being to see the majestic thresher shark, this was a sickening body blow! So near and yet so far!

Plans for the next trip therefore were researched with a single aim: to find one of diving’s holy grails, the blue ringed octopus.

Constructing an algorithm of dive locations to establish the most likely seasonal sightings, we opted for Dauin, a small town South East of the island of Negros Occidental in the Philippines. I booked in with my partners’ long-time friends, Tim & Zoe and owners of Liquid Dumaguete - a first rate flash-packers’ resort nestled amongst verdant plantations and overlooking the black sands and azure waters of Dauin.

Trying not to be too demanding, we did however make it clear that for we were on a mission! By the time we arrived, all of the dive guides, staff and anyone else that would listen knew our single-minded aim.

And so armed with local knowledge, eagle-eyed dive guide supremo Rocky, the alignment of tides, currents, stars and the planets we plunged into the temperate waters of Dumaguete. Our quest had begun.

Despite our much publicised goal, this was strangely forgotten as we explored the local sub-aqua fauna and flora. Perennial favourites frogfish, seahorses, ornate ghost pipe fishes, an abundance of funky and obscure crabs filled the vista and occupied us wholly. And then the telling ‘clank clank clank’ as Rocky signalled for our attention by rapping his pointer repeatedly on his air cylinder.

We approached cautiously, our eyes darting to where Rocky was positioned motionless on the sand. And there it was. Perched atop a single outcrop of sinewy soft coral, plugged in isolation in the black sands was the most majestic of cephalopods.

Disturbed by our intrusion the octopus took flight, nimbly moving across the rubbly seabed in search of refuge. Recognisable by characteristic blue and black rings and yellowish skin when the octopus is agitated, it constantly flashed its warning as the brown patches on its body and tentacles darkened dramatically and, mesmorisingly, it’s iridescent blue rings or clumps of rings appeared and pulsated. Despite their small size and relatively docile nature, they are known as one of the most venomous marine animals and we therefore kept a close but respectful distance as we followed this tentacled trouper in awe until fully sated by this experience.

The dive came to an end and elated we clambered aboard our Bangka, ready to discuss where to find our next Holy Grail.