My Hari Raya

Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri to everybody.

This year's Raya was very great. I haven't got a new baju melayu for more than 5 years. This year, I promised to myself that I would buy a very nice baju melayu, and I did it.

Baju melayu story:-

I went to Masjid India area on the 28th, 29th, and 30th of September - that was 3 days in a row. Very crowded. On the first visit with a group of friends, I only got a songkok for RM20. I didn't buy any baju melayu because people said on the day before Raya, the price would be cheaper. But one of my friends did buy for RM160, and he had a reason - he had to leave for his kampung the next day.

I went there another time, with another friend. My friend got there earlier, so he bought a baju melayu at one of the bazaars there. It was RM80, and the designed was very common to all bazaars in Masjid India area. I actually fell in love to one baju melayu at the same bazaar (because the design as unique), but they don't have stock. They only have a single piece in L size. I was so frustrated. So I visited each and every bazaar hoping that I could find the same design, but none of the bazaars had one. I called my mother and she asked me to go to Jakel. I visited, and it was superb. The designs they have are different, and it was a very very very good bargain. I got a baju melayu at only RM70 (actual price - RM165). I also got a songket samping for RM60 (actual price - RM90). I called my friend who bought a baju melayu for RM160, and told him about it, he went crazy.

The next day, I went for another visit. This time it was even more crowded. I could see prices went down crazily from RM150 for a set of baju melayu to RM50. I just bought a set of buttons for RM15 and a sandal for RM10. I couldn't stand the crowd, so I went back immediately.

So, my expenses were:-
Baju melayu - RM70
Samping songket - RM60
Songkok - RM20
Buttons - RM15
Sandal - RM10
Total - RM175

My friend got a baju melayu only for RM160. I got an elegant full set for RM175. It was superb, wasn't it?

Software for the ESL Classroom

Software name: ASEAN Multimedia English
Publisher: CfBT Education Services (M) Sdn. Bhd.

This software is made especially for English learners of ASEAN countries. What is so special about this software is it has a bilingual dictionary with sounds. In addition to that, it caters three different levels of learners: post beginner, preintermediate and intermediate.

The activities that can be found in the software include vocabulary, comprehension, fill-in-the-blanks, listening and dictation. Furthermore, it also has crossword puzzle and card games that attract young learners to learn English in an attractive way. The card games look interesting as it uses bright colours and graphics that attract children.

To make English learning fun, the software has many short stories that children would love reading them. Each topic has different short story. As follow-up activities for the short-story reading, there are comprehension items such as multiple-choice questions and true-or-false questions. It is beneficial for both teachers and parents as they can know how far the children have understood the stories.

As an addition to the activities in the software itself, the CD ROM comes with a workbook with answer key. This is to reinforce children and to consolidate work done on PC. Teachers may benefit from this workbook because they can keep the work done by children as records to see the progress the young learners.

For AME users, there is a website that allows them to interact with other users on how to exploit the software with full benefit. I found this software useful for Malaysian young English learners as it is especially made for second language learners. The language used is understandable by children and it is very user-friendly.

Producing e-Book

1. For photos or pictures, go to any search engine (e.g. Yahoo!), select 'Image' and then type in keywords that reflect the items you want to obtain.


2. Then, look for suitable items and download them.


3. For audio files, go to the same search engine and click on 'Audio'. Type in the keywords or title.


4. Download the file.


5. Launch Microsoft Office PowerPoint. Select the background colour or image that you want to use or you can simply select pre-installed templates.


6. Arrange the photos and audio files according to your story board.


7. Apply animations and slide transitions, and set the timing for the animations.


8. Finalize your presentation by selecting 'Prepare' > 'Mark as final'.

What is an e-Book?

e-Book is a teaching material that helps teaching and learning process become more meaningful with the help of technology. While books are being used massively in classrooms,. e-books can be more interactive and fun. Bringing e-book for pupils can help them learn not only English, but also technology.

Normally, e-book is prepared in a software, and it comes in a CD that we need to purchase. However, as teachers, we have to be creative. We can produce e-book ourselves by using our own computer. I would suggest teachers to produce e-book using Microsoft Powerpoint or SMART Board Software. As long as we have ideas, a computer and a connection to the Internet, our versions of e-book can be really exciting.

Thanks to Puan Foziah for showing a great example of e-book during one of your classes. At least I know how to make my fiture classroon more cheerful.

To find e-book, visit www.slideshare.com and search any topic that you want. It is a great website to find and share PowerPoint presentations.

My Logo

This is my logo. I am not saying that I have officially established a company, but this logo represents all the workpieces that I have produced in the whole B.Ed. course. I would really hope to found my own production house in he future.

The Hardship of Video Editing

Since I was familiar with audio editing, video editing was quite easy for me. Every PC or laptop is equipped with Windows Movie Maker. I am very familiar with this software, so I always used this software to edit videos or even make new videos.

If you would like to download videos from YouTube, I would suggest YouTube downloader. It has got downloader and also converter. At the same time, the software if absolutely free. This intelligent software has also got simple interface, and it is very easy to use.

However, if I were given more time (example, a month), I would produce a better work. Time is very important to produce a good piece - the more time you get, the better your work.

Video Editing

1. Download the videos from www.8tv.com.my.


2. Once you have downloaded all the parts, create a new folder in 'My Documents' and transfer all the parts into the file. Then you need to change the extension for the files to .001, .002, .003 and so on.


3. Launch Fastest File Splitter and Joiner (FFSJ) and select 'Joining' tab.


4. Select 'Select the first split part' and look for the file you have created before. Then, select the first part of the video (file with extension .001) and click 'Open'.


5. Click the dropdown button and check that all parts are included for joining.


6. Click 'Join' button and wait until a pop up saying that the process is done come out.


7. Then, using any FLV converter, convert the joint videos to another file type which is compatible for Windows Media Player.