Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Dangerous Flowers

Some people have a habit of plucking flowers and smelling it. Unless you know the flowers, you may put yourself in danger. Beautiful as it may be, some flowers are much more than it appear to be. Believe it or not, these seemingly harmless plants can really ruin your health.
These species are present in Malaysia : Oleanders, Angels Trumpets (especially in highlands) and Rhododendrons (different species from the ones in the picture). Do take a close look before you start to buy any flowering plants.



These are the 7 Most Beautiful - But-Deadly Flowers in the World.


1. Autumn Crocus

One of the most endangered plants in the world, Autumn crocus is also probably the most poisonous. It contains colchicines, a deadly drug used effectively in the treatment for gout. Unlike other toxins found in the flowers above, colchicines, an arsenic-like poison has NO antidote.  Autumn crocus poisoning leads to reduced blood pressure and cardiac arrest.




2. Oleander


Oleander is known as one of the most poisonous plants on Earth, often used in suicidal cases around southern India . The numerous toxic compounds contained in the entire Oleander plant, including oleandrin and nerine, affect the nervous, digestive and cardiovascular systems, all at the same time.
Oleander poisoning leads to drowsiness, tremors, seizures, coma and even death. The plants sap causes skin irritation and severe eye inflammation.




 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
3. Rhododendron


This popular evergreen shrub, featuring large, beautiful blooms, has been known for its toxicity since ancient times. Xenophon recorded the odd behaviour of a group of Greek soldiers who had eaten honey from rhododendron flowers.  Rhododendron contains Andromeda toxin which causes nausea, severe pains, paralysis and even death. Azaleas, members of the same plant-family as rhododendron, are also poisonous.





4. Angels Trumpet


Despite its name, there's something very evil about this plant. The toxins it contains can be fatal to humans and a number of animals. Known as a powerful hallucinogen, Angels Trumpet should not be used for recreational purposes, since the risk of an overdose is very high. 
Angels Trumpet plants contain a variable amount of tropane alkaloids, like atropine and scopolamine, and it is used in shamanic rituals by indigenous tribes in western Amazonia .






5. Belladonna


Known as one of the most poisonous plants in the Western Hemisphere , Belladonna contains potentially lethal tropane alkaloids. The entire plant is harmful, but its good-looking berries pose the most danger, especially to children.
The symptoms of Belladonna or Deadly Nightshade poisoning are dilated pupils, blurred vision, headaches, hallucinations, delirium and convulsions. Atropine, the toxin in Belladonna, can kill a person by disrupting the nervous systems ability to regulate breathing, sweating and heart rate.






6. Lily of the Valley


Just like the Daphne, Lily of the Valley may look beautiful and harmless, but it is entirely poisonous. Eating one or two of the plants bell-shaped flowers won’t hurt you very much, especially if you're an adult.
Eaten in large quantities, Lily of the Valley causes pain in the mouth, nausea, vomiting, cramps and diarrhoea. People with heart conditions should be most careful since the toxins cause the heartbeats to slow down or become irregular.





7. Daphne


Also known as Lady Laurel or Paradise Plant, Daphne is a 1-1.5 meters tall shrub, usually grown for its scented flowers. All parts of the plant are poisonous, but the greatest concentrations are in the sap and berries.
Daphne contains mezerine and daphnin, two powerful toxins that cause stomach aches, headaches, diarrhoea, delirium and convulsions. If  Daphne berries are consumed, the victim might fall into a coma and even die.



Monday, December 21, 2009

Mesyuarat Guru 1

Masa yang ditunggu-tunggu kini sudahlah tiba.  Mesyuarat Guru kali ke-1 untuk sesi 2010. 

What's in store for us in 2010...shall be revealed today in this meeting.  Good luck dear teachers.



Thursday, December 17, 2009

Nostalgia PSS

Pusat Sumber SK Permai Indah goes nostalgic today.  Here are the photo story in random order.  Enjoy...




































Don't you think this place is cosy and condusive enough to stimulate read habit among the pupils?
Comments....COMMENTS PLEASE ?

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

New Books 4 Teachers

Pusat Sumber Permai Indah got another two new books donated by anonymous.  These books make interesting casual reading. 
These book will be placed at the Red Spotted section.

Sunday, December 13, 2009

The Switch


The "Switch" intrigues me and I decided to write more about it.  I realised a teacher's job is not to impart knowledge through babbling  talking in front of the class day in day out.  Teaching and pumping facts into the poor child's head.  Mind you...these children are not turkeys meant to be stuff with herbs N spices.   











I had just completed a chapter of my Module (my exam) and it discussed about Gardner's Multiple Intelligences. Well...as a teacher, I often label my pupils based on their appearances. Judging a book by it's cover shouldn't be a criteria !


Well..
According to Gardner, human are born with 9 intelligences. A person's profile reflects a unique configuration of these intelligences....just a matter of degree how these intelligences plays a role in our lives. A child who excels academically is usually Linguistically or Mathematical inclined. That's what our education system is all about. Those who scored strings of As are considered as excellent students and role models to their peers.

How about those who don't...? Some may not be good academically but they do excel in other fields like music or sports. These people boost their bodily kinesthetic, visual spatial or musical intelligences as in Gardner's theory.

Teachers or to be more precise....the Malaysian education system often overlooked this point.

What say you ?  Comment la...don't be so stingy to give your feedback...ladear teachers.  Tulis dalam Bahasa pun tak apa...asalkan dapat kongsi idea.

Friday, December 11, 2009

Turn on the switch

Take a look at this picture...How many deer can you see ?















At first glance, you may notice only one. However, after some serious concentrations, you may find another which is partially hidden. Right ?


Well... the reason I put up this picture in today's post is to make you ponder into our daily lives. More often than not, we usually make judgements based on the initial outlook. We rarely look deeper into it but already decide on the results. Just like how we judge people.
Hmmmm....as a teacher, I dealt with thousands of human beings in the course of my duty. I often judge my students based on first glances.


"Oh...he's terrible...he can't even identify the alphabets...."
"He likes to disturb his classmates and never does his homework nor pay attention in class...he's a real nuisance.!"
"He'll surely fail his UPSR.....cannot even read a simple text.."


A familiar conversation between teachers in the staff room during break. That was just a scene within the school compound. This could also happened in our daily encounters with people around us.


No matter how open minded we may claim to be, everyone of us make presumptions about others based strictly on first impressions. Seeing someone for only a split second, we may start to make assumptions on that person's attitudes, personality, and character.

We may tend to notice things about some one's appearance, mannerisms and features that we feel are grounds to pass judgement upon that person. We choose our friends based on these judgements.


Is this the right thing to do ? Let's ponder about it.

Let me share with you a personal experience I had encountered way back in 2004/05. I was put charged of this class. This is supposed to be the weakest class among the Year 3. I taught them English and Science. There was this boy whom often sat at the corner of the classroom, a very timid looking child whom often bullied by his peers. He never opens his mouth to utter anything and never writes anything as he had difficulty holding the pencil.



Though timid he was but he was a stubborn lad. No matter how hard I forced nor guide him to grip the pencil after some time he would just fall asleep face down on his desk.
Nevertheless, towards the end of the school term, he finally speaks up....but he only manage to repeats whatever the other person says like a parrot ! He would says the exact phrase or sentence we said to him. Considered an achievement for he started from a tight lipped child.


Fast forward 5 years ahead. The similar boy that I used to label as 'timid' is now in Secondary school. And a month ago, I was surprised to see him in Facebook requesting to add me as his friend. Wow....! I could recognise him through the mug shot he placed in the site.

This made me recalled that all geniuses too were slow learners during their growing years. Einstein and many others. True ya....when the right switch in a child is triggered then he would excel. It's just a matter of where, how and when ...to the switch. Dear teachers..it's our job, our duty, our responsibility to find the switch !

"TURN ON THE SWITCH"









Any comments...dear teachers..?

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

University's Modules

New Books Collection

Teacher Lim has accumulated a substantial amount of University's First Degree Modules for the library. Thanks to Pn Shxxxxxh for donating her modules. Deepest appreciations for her generosity. Anyone who wish to give away your university's modules can donate them to PSS SKPI. All materials are welcomed. You can contact Teacher Lim by leaving a message in this blog.




In the meantime, Teacher Lim is going to place those books or modules on the Red Spotted shelves for teachers' references. Borrowing is strictly prohibited unless upon special request.


Teacher Lim will post the list of books in the next post.

Friday, November 27, 2009

News Books

While grocery-shopping at TESCO EXTRA, Teacher Lim noticed some story books on sales. Those books are suitable for young children, perhaps Year 1-3.
Attractive illustrations on the covers....should be a suitable reading materials for SKPI students. These books are in Bahasa Malaysia, famous Malaysian folklore.

Teacher Lim bought a set of 12 books of different titles using the petty cash funds collected from the pupils (bayaran denda pulangan lambat).
RM12 for a set of twelve titles.















Teacher Lim plans to set up a reading corner along the little stairwell beside the school canteen. She will place a table and a basket of books so that the pupils could go there and read some books during recess.

However, it's understandable that the books will go missing in no time....unless the school administration work hard to strengthen the discipline among the pupils of SKPI. Librarians will be on duty at the little reading corner.

If this reading project is a success, then Teacher Lim would set up more reading corners in the school premises @ school open hall.






























What do you think of this idea ? Can it work ? Any comments, dear teachers. Please share with me.

Thursday, November 26, 2009

Tragedy

Dear teachers,
You can use this clip as a teaching aide to teach your students on the danger of fire. Topic ~ Fire
Berikut merupakan suatu cadangan sahaja. Cikgu boleh guna klip video ini sebagai bahan media pengajaran untuk mengajar peribahasa "kecil-kecil jadi kawan pabila besar jadi musuh". Turut boleh digunakan untuk set induksi menulis karangan bertajuk "Kebakaran Ngeri".





If you find this video clip useful, kindly give your feedback. Click on the "Post Comments" icon.