By JM Estrella, 6-Almaciga

A Family Love Day to Remember

by Hannah Palima, 6-Almaciga

It was Saturday, February 23, 2008…..

“ Gimme an O!”

“Go! Go Blue!!”

“Gimme a G!!!”

“Yellow Team Kaming Lahat!”

“We are RED, and we’re RED-Y!”

Little preschoolers running around the court wildly; lower graders waving their pompoms; upper graders screaming at the top of their voices; parents doing last minute choreography; teachers calling the little kids to join their teams.

Everyone was very energetic and enthusiastic.

“Run  faster!”

 “You can do it!!!”

“Hurry!!”

“Yeah!!”

Screams. Shouts. The world goes crazy. Family Love Day…Okay, IT’S MY FIRST. 

Let’s start off with the cheering competition. All  the teams were prepared, especially the Orange Team. It was really choreographed well, with their cart wheelers and all. Next, the Blue Team was definitely ready with their blue balloons and pompoms. Green Team had some 6^th Graders do a little, “GIMME a G! R! E! E! N!” Yellow sang their cheer to the tune of Voltes 5. Red… “We are RED! AND WE’RE RED-Y! RED-Y FOR VICTORY!”

Then the games began. There were relays for the different age levels and for Daddies and Mommies. All teams fought well but it was the Orange Team who prevailed and was declared the overall winner.

            The event was also highlighted by the Walk for a Cause project of the 6^th Grade. They were able to raise P230,000.00. This amount is more than enough for two houses for two families in the typhoon-stricken < xml="true" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" prefix="st1" namespace="">province of Bicol.

Family Love Day was absolutely fun! Tiring, but FUN! And for me, it’s going to be unforgettable! 

Elec-TREE-fied: Math and Science Week 2008

By JM Estrella, 5-Molave

            The week-long (January 28 to February 1) Math and Science Week was a big success. The whole week was full of excitement and fun.

Day 1 was Pet Day, which was hosted by the 1stGraders Acacia and Narra. Dr. Carolyn Ramos, the resident veterinarian of Pet House was our pet doctor judge. Winning Pets are the following:

Casts Shine In “A Star is Born”

By David G. Laureta, 5-Tindalo

 “A Star is Born” was a big success! A production by the Malikhaing TREE-atro, it was directed by T. Heidi de Hesus and co-directed by T. Yasmin Calamba. The play was created by Celeste Clydesdale and arranged by David Clydesdale.

“A Star is Born” is about a Christmas taping gone wrong. It shows the events leading up to the birth of Christ and highlights Biblical values and the importance of Christmas. There is a shift from taping to in-between-takes portions. The problem all starts with the disappearance of one of their lead roles. Then there arrives Sophia Spaghetti and what follows was a series of problems that burden each member. Mr. Spielman, the director, tries to control the problem by motivating the cast.  And in the end, all problems were solved and the Lord was glorified by and in each of the cast.

The songs and dances imparted messages to the audience. Many of those who watched were moved. Many said that they enjoyed the play. We, the cast, enjoyed the play as well and really made us closer to one another during our practices. A fitting message from God’s word was rendered by the School Chaplain, Rev. Ariel Jornales.

On behalf of the cast, the teachers, and technical staff, we thank you for your support. We hope to have made you smile on that day.

To God be the Glory!

EMANWEL Was with Us                                  

Mini Musical Journey ‘07

By Katrina Abenojar, 5-Molave

        During the Mini Musical Journey we had our usual flag ceremony and prayer before anything. The prayer was from the verses of the Book of Psalms.

 For the biggest event of the day we listened and danced to the music of Emanwel, a Christian rock band.  The band members are Kuya Jun on the banduria (has 14 strings), Kuya Soy on the drums, Kuya Arnold on the bass guitar (with 4 strings), Kuya Tim on the electricguitar (with 6 strings) and Ate Ann on the maracas (which they just made out of a plastic canister and rice grain because the real ones would probably cost around 400 pesos). The band played 4 songs, one from Spiderman 2, a Filipino original, Tingnan Mo, another Filipino original, Subukan Mo and their own version of Tinikling. 

            Before they sang their last song, Kuya Jun, gave a lecture about rock music. He started by telling us that if anyone tells you that rock music is from the devil, then tell them that even other kinds of music can be from the devil. What is important is that you  pay attention to the lyrics and see if they are bad or good (if your looking for good lyrics look at the Psalms.) He also informed us about pluginonline.com. Kuya Jun said that it contains the biography of singers and lyrics of the songs people listen to nowadays and also the old songs. You can check there if the songs you listen to have good or bad content. He also said that we have to evaluate the group, their goals, the genre of the songs, and the gods they serve.

            Earlier in the program, we journeyed through the history of music. The first kind of music was the music played during a special gathering with the datus and rich people from the south of the Philippines was presented by TLT’s very own Philippine Indigenous Musical Instruments (PIMI). The students who played the PIMI were Josef Remollo, Mark Armas, Kim Rubina and Minette Marquez. This was folowed by folk music. Zoe Gutierrez played Pamulinawen on the bamboo flute and Gelli Rivera played Leron Leron Sinta on the piano.

         When we got to the classical period, “Fur Elise”, a classical piece was played by Matthew Reysio-Cruz. We also heard music from the 20^th century like “Blue Moon” played by Mai-Mai Nakajima on the piano. For the contemporary period, 1945-present, Mia Gener sang “One Small Voice” and 4^th graders Tyron Vitangcol, Sarah Castaneda, Jotham Pesebre, Gelli Revera, Pauline Tiosin, Mia Gener, Kianna Valdez and Adina Bondoc hip-hopped “What Time Is It?” from High School Musical 2. Also, Nathan Sasing, played his “Metallurgy” & “Rockplicity” on the drums.

The convocation was a lot of fun and we learned how to be attentive of the music that we listen to.

Winning Drives @ 1st Open

             Participants show off their winning drives in the 1st Toribia Teodoro Castaneda Pingpong Open held on October 20, 2007. Teacher Francie officially opened the tournament on behalf of the Lola of THE LEARNING TREE.

               Cheers to all the winners!

 TLT 2nd and 4th in Scrabble

THE LEARNING TREE placed 2nd and 4th in the MABUHAY WORD FOR WORD CHALLENGE Scrabble Tournament held on September 27, 2007 at the TriNoma Mall, Quezon City.

 Children participants in the tournament are:

4th Grade
Alex Cagaoan
Jessey Cortez (top 3 player)
Jack Gutierrez
Ara Mariano (top 4 player)

5th Grade
Luis Poe

 

6th Grade 

M2 Bilan (highest scorer in a game)

Kim Rubina (top 1 player)

Trixie Miraflores (top 2 player)

Chynna Salazar (top 5 player)

Minette Marquez 

Hannah Palima
Matthew Reysio-Cruz

Celine Villanueva

 

Beaten, but Not Broken: The PSO National Finals

 By JM Estrella, 5-Molave and David Laureta, 5-Tindalo

Sad to say, we lost in the Philippine Society of Youth Science Clubs (PSYSC) 2007 Finals. It was consolation to note that reaching the National Finals and being neophytes in this competition make us winners already. It was, of course, painful, but it is the experience and lesson learned that matters the most. It is good to understand a defeat as a positive force that is giving you an opportunity to improve one’s self and use it for everybody’s benefit. Besides, there is still a next time and a next year.

The Finals was composed of a theoretical oral exam and a practical exam. The oral exam is worth 70% of the total score, while the practical exam is worth 30%.

            The theoretical oral exam was composed of three rounds: easy, average, and hard. There are ten questions per round. The ten questions are divided into: Health, Biology, Astronomy, Earth Science, and Physics.

The practical exam is composed of eleven stations. Each station has different questions based on the five mentioned topics of science. There were two rest stations.

The membes of TLT Team, namely,  Axel Bondoc, JM Estrella, and I thank you very much for your support and your prayers. It helped us a great deal. Thank you very much!

Math-Sci-A-Ka 2007 

By Hannah Palima, 6- Almaciga

           Last September 15, 2007,  five students from TLT represented the school in the National Science Club Month 2007 Math- Sci -a- Ka Challenge held at the Agrarian Reform Covered Court . Among them were Julienne Depatilio, Josef Remollo, Joash Dellota and Aaron Crisostomo and myself. It was really fun, but at the same time, challenging because not only do you have to think fast, you also have to move fast. We were running around in the first activity, “The Game of Life”, where predators tried to catch the opponent’s prey and at the same time, protect their own.In the second activity, we had the On the Spot Experiment, where we were supposed to make a light bulb light up using lemons and copper and zinc strips.  The third activity we had was the Amazing Race, where we had to solve various science and math problems. But, it’s timed, so we had to rush and move really, really fast!!! There was a memory test station, a guess—the- constellation station, a put- the- skeletal system – together station, and many more!

It was a great learning experience, because we not only learned new things about science, we also learned the importance of teamwork.

Speech Fest 2007 

bY: Erika Morales, Sabrina U. Espiritu, & Alyssa Publico, 6-Lauan

       The Speech Fest 2007 Exhibition was held in Balara, Escoda Hall, Balara Filtration Plant. Also present and participating were the Sunny Hill School students. The center theme of the speeches was about “Responsible Stewardship of God’s Creation.” Special music numbers were rendered by Sabrina and Shauna Espiritu and Clarisse Baniqued.The program was very short, yet lively. It was raining hard that day, but the performers managed to recite their speeches very well. We had a small snack break and enjoyed free food from Lemon Square! Here is a list of all the winners: English Division:

Impromptu         1^st:    Matthew Reysio- Cruz
                        2^nd:   Hannah Palima

                        3^rd:   Cara Damian

Poem                 1^st :   John Depatillo

                        2^nd:   Camille Baniqued

                        3^rd:   Josh Villacorte

Declamation       1^st:    Justine Savet

                        2^nd:   Karissa Valdes

                        3^rd:   Pauline Tiosin

Speech Choir:     1^st:    5^th Grade (Best Rendition)

                        2^nd:   4^th Grade (Best Piece)

                        3^rd:   6^th Grade

Story Telling       1^st:    Raffy Ugaddan

                       2^nd:   Rob.b Plopinio

                        3^rd:   Marc Reyes

Newscasting:      1^st :   JM Estrella

                       2^nd:   Ella Pangilinan

Filipino Division:

Poem:               1^st:    Julienne Depatillo

                        2^nd:   Cara Damian

                        3^rd:   Mikaela Evangelista

Story Telling:      1^st:    Rene Rebong

                        2^nd:   Alyssa Quiaoit

                    3^rd:   Rob.b Plopinio

TLT Makes it to the PSYSC Elimination

By: David G. Laureta, 5-Tindalo
A rainy day it was on the first of September. It was the PSYSC (Philippine Society of Youth Science Clubs) Science Olympiad (PSO). We went to University of the Philippines Integrated School (UPIS) for the competition. The TLT team was composed of Axel Bondoc, JM Estrella, and I.

The exam that we took was the elimination round of the said Olympiad. It was taken by member schools nationwide in eleven testing centers: six in Luzon; two in Visayas, and three in Mindanao. The pen and paper exam was composed of one hundred items and a ten-point clincher (ten anonymous questions for to be used in case of a tie). It had five divisions: health, biology, physics, astronomy, and earth science at twenty points each.

We waited for the outcome along with our parents and Teachers Gracel and Ryan for more than two hours of nervousness and excitement.

When it was time for the results we did not expect to be in the finals since we are first timers in this competition. But TLT was second in the whole Luzon area.  The other schools were: U.P.I.S. (1st), University of Perpetual Help, Rizal (3rd), Collegio de San Agustin (4th), San Beda, Alabang (5th).

    We all were overjoyed with such an unexpected result. It was a wonderful blessing that the Lord has bestowed upon TLT. I thank you for your prayers! Though, I still ask for your prayers for our coming September 29 Finals. Thanks again!                  

Tree Planting Experience  

By Angela N. Rivera & Aiah G. Santos , 4-Kamagong

            September was tree planting month at THE LEARNING TREE! The lower graders (1st-3rd Grs.) had their tree planting activity last September 21, 2007. Some of them planted eight to nine trees! It was also fun for them just as it was for us.

The fun experience of 4-Kamagong and Anislag are combined with the 5-Molave and Tindalo‘s joy and excitement when it was our turn. The activity was a special way of getting to know each other more. We were like real environmentalists. After a hard day of planting seedlings even if we were so tired,  we still had to continue our classes in the afternoon.

            As of the month, THE LEARNING TREE has planted a thousand trees in our adopted watersheds in Ipo Dam, Norzagaray and Balara Filtration Plant, Balara Quezon City. We started three years ago, and our tiny seedlings are now little trees.

We all had so much fun. We just wished that the planting ground was less muddy and that we had no classes afterwards. But then, we thank the Lord that it was when we were on our vans on the way back to school that it rained hard. I thank God also that our school can be a large help in saving the environment.

The Ipo Dam Fieldtrip

By: Erika Morales, Sabrina Espiritu
and Ally Publico, 6-Lauan

The 6th graders went to Ipo Dam to have a tree planting experience. We were among the group and it was an exciting fieldtrip. We left at 5:45 in the morning (most of us slept in the van). It took us two hours of dizziness to finally reach Bulacan.

The sun was burning hot. Sweat must have excreted fifty times more than usual. We took only our water jugs because heavy luggage is bad for the health especially since we were going on a hike.

 Hiking was fun! Of course, the ground was muddy, sticky and full of dead leaves, despite that. . . THE VIEW WAS INCREDIBLE! So practically, the hike was worth it. Most of us enjoyed it, others are just too afraid to walk and some were injured on the way.

When we arrived at the tree planting site, (all tired and sweaty) Mr. Vince Solomon, our tree planting coordinator taught us how to plant properly. The holes were already done for us (no one brought shovels anyway). We were covered with dirt. We had to plant more than 2 trees. Some holes that were dug were deep. The tree planting site was near the water (with boats). There, we washed our hands.

After planting we went to the Ipo Elementary School for our performance. We think the performers did a good job with “Tubig: Ugat ng Buhay” play. The audience was very interested in the presentation. They clapped and we think they were overjoyed by the fact that we performed for them. After the performance, we shared our food with the Ipo children. We felt happy that we were helping them and showing them that we really care.

We went back to the parking and ate in front of the mini waterfall. Mr. Solomon informed us a few things about water while we gathered. We were all tired, yet, it was a good experience and most of us enjoyed it.  We should go back there one day...again, to see our wonderful full grown seedlings.

LG Focuses on Nutrition
By Alina Aficial, 5-Molave

The Lower Graders had a convocation showcasing eating healthy and nutritious sandwiches. This was held last July 27, 2007, the last day of the Book Week. They had games like sandwich stacking and sandwich relay which was really fun just to watch and even better if you were the one playing! The lower graders clapped and cheered. This event was a good way of teaching us how to eat healthy and nutritious foods so that we could become stronger!

UG Dresses up Doors
By Hannah Ysobel M. Palima, 6-Almaciga

The Book Week......Full of colorful costumes, convocations, and best all....BOOKS!BOOKS!BOOKS! But, our Book Week won't be complete without another exciting event... our Dress Up Your Door! The beautiful and creative designs told the viewers a very important message, that we all should take care of the environment, and we can help save it from further destruction.

Winners of the event are:

4- Kamagong came in as first place, showing us a scene of the rivers, lakes and seas being polluted. They had many colorful signs encouraging everyone to save and take care of nature.

 

In second place, the 6- Almaciga 's door, entitled Half- Life. It showed a tree, half-alive and half- dying. The live part showed a clean river, a healthy tree, and lively animals. The dead half, however, showed a person smoking cigarettes, dead flowers and dirty air. It is telling us that if people continue to pollute the world, we will also suffer the consequences.

 4- Anislag, third placer, entitled their door HELP. This displayed animals that seemed to be asking for help, help to save their homes. And we can help, by stopping illegal logging, so that these animals can still have a home.

Congratulations to everybody, for doing a great job on your doors! Everyone worked hard. All the classes did their best. Till next Book Week!!!!

The Colorful Costume Parade
By Aiah Santos, 4-Anislag

This year’s theme for the costume parade is “Rainforest”. The UGs prepared their creative costumes. They paraded around the Forest Floor (play area) before the judges, namely, Teacher Rhoda Cuevas, Miss C.J. De Silva, and Mrs. Carol De Silva.

            Here are the winners (and their short dialogue):

1st place:

Hannah Palima, 6-Almaciga
“Hello! I’m a butterfly. I flitter here and flutter around. I help you grow flowers through pollination.”

Pauline Tiosin, 4-Anislag
“I, a tiger, live in the rainforest which people are trying to destroy. People hunt me for my fur.”

Kitty Abenojar, 5-Molave
“Hi! I’m a sssnake. And asss you know, sssnakes live in the rain foressst. And now people are polluting and dessstroying the foressst.”

2nd place:

 Allysa Publico, 6-Lauan
“I’m a raccoon! I’m a scavenger who hunts for food every part of my day.”

Joseph Remollo, 5-Tindalo
“Hi, I’m Snappy, the worm. I eat your garbage. And you know, I fertilize your garbage to protect you from pollution.”

Justin Savet, 5-Molave
“I’m  Kabunian, a supreme god, a protector of the rainforest. As a god, and protector it’s my duty to take care and look over my creations. For that, I made man to help me. But as the years passed, man himself has destroyed my creations and now I’m asking you to help me rebuild a better future.”

3rd place:

Trixie Miraflores, 6-Almaciga
“Hi, I’m Tree, the source of many products like paper. I help lessen erosion in the province and even in the cities…”

Other Book Week Winners

Top Book Borrowers for SY 2006-2007

1st     Pauline S. Tiosin, 4-Anislag
2nd   Leizel Guerero, 2-Ipil-Ipil
3rd    Julianne Ruz, 4-Anislag
4th    Vica Fajardo, 4-Kamagong
5th    Angela Rivera, 4-Kamagong
6th    Clarissa Tongson, 3-Mulawin
           Ana Isabel Sta. Isabel, 3-Mulawin
7th    Regina Tongson, 4-Anislag
           Anna IsabelT. Echavez, 3-Yakal
8th    Hiromi Nishikawa, 2-Ipil-Ipil

Top Class Borrower – 1st Grade Narra SY 2006-2007

Diligent Readers and Children Who Use Library Well

Katrina Abenojar, 5-Molave
Mary Agnes Espina, 5-Molave
Sara Isobel Castañeda, 4-Kamagong
Angela Rivera, 4-Kamagong
Aianah Faye Santos, 4-Kamagong
Tracy Louise Carreon, 3-Mulawin
Caitlin Dominique Crisostomo, 3-Mulawin
Anna Isabel Echavez, 3-Yakal
Zion Cruz, 3-Yakal
Mikayla Shalom Fabian, 3-Yakal

Class with the Highest Scholastic Book Purchase

Lower Grade             Mulawin
Upper Grade             Anislag

Storytelling with Melody Remorca
By Alina Aficial, 5-Molave

Salaysayan National Storytelling grand prize winner, Ms. Melody Remorca was our guest storyteller during the bookweek program. She rendered a theatrical narration of the legend of the mosquito from the series of Lola Basyang. She told the story by acting and getting some actor volunteers from the audience to do the story with her! She made us learn and laugh.

Ms. Remorca is a professional storyteller. Currently, she is a storytelling performer for different public, private schools, and international schools, She is also a seminar speaker, a workshop facilitator and a DepEd resource speaker. Ms. Remorca won the grand prize in the 1st Duyan Awards last Mothers’ Day, May 2002.

Parent Interaction Hour

 By Pauline S. Tiosin, 4-Anislag

The first Parent Interaction Hour (PIH) held last June 30, 2007 was a welcome meeting for new parents in the school. It started with a prayer by our Math teacher, Teacher Joji and was followed by Teacher Francie’s discussion of the School Philosophy and Distinctives. Each teacher also talked about the subject area and grade level curriculum plan.

Updates on school rules and some announcements were given and light snack was served. The meeting ended with a closing prayer by Dr. Mark Reysio-Cruz, 2nd and 6th Grade parent.

Senator Pangilinan Visits TLT

by David G. Laureta, V-Tindalo

Our 1st Convocation had two guests: Sen. Francis “Kiko” N. Pangilinan and Mr. Reuben Laurente. It was a joint upper and lower grades program. Though it lasted for at least one hour and a half many children and parents enjoyed the convocation.

Sen. Pangilinan talked about good habits for success in school and some  of his life experiences when he was a young child. He shared to us most of his habits that helped him in his studies. Some of the habits that he enumerated and explained to us were: reading many books, knowing about great people, being punctual, listening well, writing your thoughts, and being participative. Also, he mentioned about his being an active leader during most of his years in school.

There was a question and answer portion in the program. Many asked questions about his life, his activities as a politician, and his dreams for a better Philippines. I got the chance to get his response in my two questions:

Q: What kind of Philippines do you want to see even long after your term as a senator? What will you do to make it happen?

A: “I want a good future for the next generations. I want our economy to prosper even more. I want higher pay for workers so that there will be less Filipinos leaving our country. This will happen if all the people would strictly follow and obey the laws. I will work for laws that will greatly benefit the masses.”

After his short message, the School Chaplain, Rev. Ariel C. Jornales, prayed for him.

            Also guest during the program was the Philippines bet for World Championships of Performing Arts (WCOPA), Mr. Ruben Laurente. He sang, “Lift Me Up.” We sent him off with a prayer and gifts from the children. (more about Mr. Ruben Laurente, see Zoom-in Rising Star Ruben Laurente)

TLT Welcomes New Teachers, Children