Thank you for all those who completed last week’s ‘Question’ assignment.  Well done. I was impressed by your questions, your curiosity, and empathy.    Moreover, many of you did research on the people you questioned which was reflected in the quality of your questions.   Impressive.

Today’s assignment builds upon our last assignment on “Questions“.

Over the next few weeks, I will ask you to read a few pages in the Life Skills books posted on our web site and then, join me in a Wednesday, 11am conversation on Zoom about the readings.  

The final Zoom conversation will be with my friend from Singapore, Tino Chow, for you to compare your own experience during the virus quarantine with Tino’s experiences in February when he was in Singapore and Hong Kong when the pandemic exploded in these places.  Tino left both Hong Kong and Singapore one day before each place closed their airports and borders because of the Coronavirus outbreak. If Tino was not able to leave each country on the days he did, he would still be there.

The objective of our conversations with Tino will offer you an opportunity to compare and contrast your experience now in Rhode Island during the Coronavirus quarantine with Tino’s experiences in both Singapore and Hong Kong up to the days he left both places in late February of 2020.

Tino has already told me he looks forward to your questions!  Your questions could be very specific about how both Singapore and Hong Kong were dealing with the pandemic when he was there. Your questions may also be about his native country of Singapore and some of its unique policies. For instance, before anyone can buy a car in Singapore, a person must apply to buy a “Certificate of Entitlement”; in other words, you pay a minimum of $40,000 just for the right to buy a car before buying the car.  It’s also illegal to buy and sell chewing gum in Singapore.

Asking good questions is all about preparations.  Our ability to ask questions usually affects our ‘Brand’ and how people perceive us.  Don’t forget, questions are more important than answers!  Questioning skills will be important in college, in your future jobs and careers, and for those of you who will own your own businesses.

Here’s our schedule for the next few weeks:

1. Read a short story on PANDEMICS on pages 72 through 76 in our “FUTURE” textbook posted on our web site.   Join me on a Zoom conversation on Wednesday, APRIL 29, at 11am to discuss what you read on these 5 pages.

2. Read a short story on the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic which killed 75 million people worldwide and 676,000 Americans on pages 78 through 91 in our “Quest For Success” textbook posted on our web site. The story is about city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and how this city unsuccessfully dealt with the deadliest pandemic in history, the Spanish Flu pandemic. Join me on a Zoom conversation on Wednesday, MAY 6th, at 11am to discuss what you read on these 13 pages.

3. Read the short textbook “The Story of Singapore“.  It’s a short story about the country where Tino was born, raised, and served in the Singaporean army.  Please don’t get overwhelmed.  First, just “skim” the book;  this means, simply look at the pictures on each page and the breakout print sections in large print on each page.   Then, if you see anything you’re curious about, go back and read all the information on those pages in the book.  Singapore is a fascinating country with one of the best school systems in the world, little to NO CRIME, with a population of different races with long standing difference who now live peacefully together.  90% of Singaporeans own their own home or condo.  Singaporeans have a longer life expectancy than people in the United States with universal, FREE health care.  There are also strict anti-fake news laws.  Join me on a Zoom conversation on Wednesday, MAY 13th, at 11am to discuss what you read in this short textbook.

4.  Finally, join me on Zoom on Wednesday, MAY 2oth, at 11am to speak with Tino Chow and myself to ask him your questions about his experiences in Singapore and Hong Kong and your own experiences during the corona virus outbreak and quarantine. 

Tino Chow (right) visiting the Hope Life Skills class 2017.

NB –  Please feel free to invite your parents and siblings to the conversation.  And, if you have relatives living in a foreign country, you may ask if their country is affected by the Coronavirus pandemic and how their country is protecting its citizens from the virus.