I was an addict

Q1a) What are some of the earliest signs mentioned in the article to indicate that a person is addicted to gaming?

When a person is addicted to games, they would skip meals and lose sleep. He/She also would start to skip school to have time. He/She would introduce his avatar's name and call himself that. Then, he/she would constantly talking about the game and imagined things. In order to buy the games or the consoles for the games, they would save money in order to buy them.

Q1b) State some of the methods listed by the author to overcome the addiction to gaming.

Marrisa Yeo, the author, asked her mother to lock up the computer and prevent her from playing. She tried to avoid computer games and socialise more instead. The topics are not games and are irrelevant to games.

Q2) What are some of your reactions after reading this article? If a close friend of yours confesses to you that he/she is addicted to online games, what would your advice to him/her be?

After reading this article, I realise that I am a bit like a game addict in the past. (except that those symptoms do not happen on me). I used to have this weird thinking: "All work and no play, made Jack a very dull boy." So in order to strike a "balance", I played as long as I worked. There would be such things lke " Five more minutes, mum!" Play become "heavier" than work.
Excuses were often made up so during PSLE, the last day for Science, I played online games for about 4 hours and 2 hours of homework. In the end, the results I believed to be A* become A. I also wore glasses during Secondary 1 due to excessive use of the eyes. I quit online games and that's that.

If my close friend confessed to me that he/she is addicted to online games, I will use myself as a prime example. The school I always wanted to go unfulfilled! I would tell him/her the consequences. Then, lock up the computer. Hide it if you have to and make sure only your mother or father knows where it is. I would also try to help him/her find interests back to study and make sure he/she struggled his/her way up again.

Mum’s catching up with me … on Facebook

Q1) What were the reasons given by Facebook parent, Rashida Husian, when she requests access to the networking sites and also to what her children had put online?

Reason One: She wants to be able to keep in touch of her children and leaves some words of encouragement to them.

Reason Two: She wants to befriend her child's friends.

Q2) Do you think it is a good idea to accept requests by your parents to add them readily to your friends’ list on the Facebook? Why?

I don't think it is a really good idea to accept requests by your parents to add them. Sometimes, to a child, they may feel that their parents do not trust them. They feel uncomfortable when someone is "spying" on them while using facebook or Internet (including me). No matter what, they are still your parents so even they request to add me on facebook, I will not object. I have nothing to hide anyway.

HFMD cases near epidemic level

Q1) How does HFMD spread and what are some of the preventive measures that the childcare centres and kindergartens have taken to ensure that the disease is contain?

Hand, Foot, Mouth Disease (HFMD) is a disease that mainly affects children 10 years or below. It is travelled through bodily fluids and it can be passed easily when children put toys in their mouths and shared it with another child. Children are required to wash their hands before and after every meal and the Childcare and kindergartens are often needed to have a clean toilet and a good sanitation. Children who are sick or having symptoms of the disease are sent home immediately, to prevent the spreading of these diseases.

Q2) In your opinion, what implications will the childcare centres face if the HFMD issue escalates further?

Childcare centres and kindergartens will have to close down. Not only that, they will be issued a fine, faces charges for not having the kindergarten or childcare centre clean and pay the victims too.