• Young inventors in Singapore create 4128 toys for a once-in-a-lifetime educational trip to Tokyo
• A Marriage of Fun and Science at Sony Science Program
• Sony Launches Book Donation Drive in Singapore
• Sony Touches Lives Through the Arts
• Water for Life in Sony

Young inventors in Singapore create 4128 toys for a once-in-a-lifetime educational trip to Tokyo

This year, Sony Creative Science Award (SCSA) celebrates 15 years of toy-making in Singapore. Since its origins in 1998, it has touched the lives of 50,000 students that have ever taken part in creating a toy for the competition. Organised each year by the Sony group of companies in Singapore, together with Science Centre Singapore and supported by the Ministry of Education, this meaningful initiative has grown from strength to strength, with 4128 toys from 104 different schools submitted this year.

In this competition, students between the ages of 7-12 years compete to create unique, innovative toys that demonstrate scientific principles. At the awards presentation ceremony held on 18 July 2012 and officiated by the Singapore Minister of Education, the top winners of the most unique and creative toys were announced and awarded many attractive prizes, including an educational trip to Tokyo where they would visit Sony ExploraScience and have an opportunity to interact with Japanese students.

Since 2010, the annual competition expanded with the launch of the Sony Science Program, a series of workshops planned and conducted by Sony employees. The workshops aim to teach children about the principles of Science through hands-on experience and in doing so, further inculcate the learning and love of science to more children in Singapore. This year’s workshops saw over 180 students taking part in making their own power generator stick and learning more about electricity generation and storage. Besides taking home their own power generator stick, the children were imparted with basic science knowledge and had fun along the way.

A Marriage of Fun and Science at Sony Science Program

Originated from Japan, Sony Science Program was brought to Singapore in 2010. The Sony Science Program comprises a series of science workshops where primary school students learn scientific concepts through hands-on experience in a fun and creative way outside the classroom. In this year’s workshop, with the help of Sony volunteers, students learned how to create and store electricity through alternative means by making their own mini electricity stick generator through electromagnetic induction. Once the students were done assembling the electricity stick generator, they then tested it by shaking it to power the LED light!

The workshops were held for primary school children aged 7 through 12 years at the Sony Creative Science Award held at the Science Centre Singapore on 18 and 19 July, 2012.

The workshops aim to teach children about the principles of Science through hands-on experience and in doing so, further inculcate the learning and love of science to more children in Singapore. This year’s workshops saw 180 students taking part in the three workshops held. Besides taking home their own power generator stick, the children were imparted with basic science knowledge and had fun along the way.

Sony Launches Book Donation Drive in Singapore

South African Mobile Library Project (SAMLP) is a joint project between South African Department of Education and SAPESI (South Africa Primary Education Support Initiative, a non-profit organization established in 2005), with the strong support of Sony Corporation. With the aim of improving South Africa’s literacy levels, this project acquires used mobile libraries from Japan to South Africa to visit schools in remote areas with books for children and teachers who would otherwise not have access to such learning materials.

As part of Sony’s continued commitment towards contributing to the next generation, the Sony Group of companies in Singapore has been actively engaged in this project since 2008. This year, a book donation drive was conducted among Sony employees, schools and members of the public and collected more than 13,000 books.

Sony Touches Lives Through the Arts

Sony continues its steadfast support of the arts, by investing in arts education through The Little Arts Academy, an initiative of The Arts House. The Little Arts Academy is an arts education centre which primarily aims to provide a dedicated learning and creative space to identify and nurture talented young people between the ages of 5 and 12. In our commitment to develop artistic talents, Sony has contributed many products such as our Handycam Video Cameras, Cyber-shot cameras and Digital Photo Printers. Our products were created by the sheer will of creative endeavor and it’s always a joy to see them being put to such creative use. 

As part of our make.believe ART project, Sony organized a series of guided workshops and training for the beneficiaries of BT-BAF (The Business Times – Budding Artists Fund) where participants were taught craft techniques like collage painting, photography and macramé. A total of 20 primary 1 and 2 students were asked to photograph the world that they lived in and create a visual arts presentation of the world that they would like it to become when they grow up, their very own make.believe worlds. A total of 35 A4-size art pieces were created and publicly exhibited at Sony Store Paragon while 5 art pieces created by Donna Ong using some of the children pieces were auctioned at the BT-BAF dinner with all proceeds going to The Little Arts Academy.

Water for Life in Sony

Water for Life is an annual program through which Sony aims to educate the younger generation on the importance of water conservation. This year was the fourth year that Sony has organised this worthy cause together with the PUB (Public Utilities Board), Commonwealth Secondary School, and for the first time Fuhua Primary School.

With sustaining bio diversity as the key theme, over 200 employees and 100 students got together to build 8 one-of-a-kind Fish Aggregating Device, which maintain the eco system and serve as homes for the small fishes living in the reservoir. The importance of environmental education to the younger generation is crucial as all of us have a role to play in ensuring a greener future.