Social Studies (Primary 3)

2. •Singapore has hot, wet and humid
weather throughout the year, also
known as an equatorial climate. It is
common to have a sudden downpour of
rain after a sunny day.
•The warm weather in Singapore plays a
role in bird migration. Changes in
climate affect migration patterns.
•For example, many birds leave the
Arctic breeding grounds when
temperature begins to fall and they
need a more temperate habitat. Hence,
Singapore becomes a stopover for
them before they move on to other
warmer regions.

3. •Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve is a home to a wide range of plants and
animals. Many birds from other parts of the world stop at the nature
reserve to rest.
•Singapore has about 375 species of birds that make their home here.
•Examples of birds that can be found in Singapore are
Common Myna Spotted Dove Asian Fairy Bluebird Tree Sparrow
•Leafbirds are a family of bird species found in India, Sri Lanka and
Southeast Asia.

4. •Singapore has no natural freshwater lakes.
•The reservoirs and water catchment areas are important
sources of water supply.
•‘Home’ means different things to different people. We live in
different kinds of neighbourhoods that meet our requirements
for home.
•A reclaimed land used to be part of the sea.

6. •The farming process involves planting,
watering, harvesting, bundling and
selling of vegetables.
•The farming process allows vegetables
/ food to reach the markets and to be
sold for our consumption.
•Chickens used to roam freely on farms
in the past. Due to the lack of land
space in Singapore, chickens are no
longer reared in this manner.
• Change takes place constantly and
everyone has a choice on how to
respond/ react when a change takes
place.

7. •Working on the farm is a physically tiring and
difficult occupation.
•It is not easy for the farmers to accept and
adapt to changes in their lifestyle.
•It is important for the farmers to be resilient.
They managed their challenges when they were
told to modernise or evacuate their farms and
homes.

8. •One way of managing their
challenges is to make their
farms cleaner and more
efficient. In order to do
that, they went for
workshops to learn new
ways of farming.
•They can also switch to
growing flowers like
orchids, which come in
many types of colours.

10. •Before HDB was set up in 1961, about
25% (one-quarter) of the Singapore’s
population lived in squatter areas.
•Squatters are people who live on land
that does not belong to them.
•Living conditions in old shophouses
were cramped and many people lived
together.
•Mr Lim Kim San, the first chairman of
the Housing Development Board, had a
vision for public housing. He cared
about improving the lives of
Singaporeans and worked towards
achieving it.

11. •The block of flats we live in is the work of many different people.
Architects Designed tall blocks of flats.
Each flat could house hundreds
of people.
Engineers Drew up plans to make sure the
buildings were safe.
Contractors and
workers
Laid the foundations and built the
flats.

12. •Mr Lim Kim San spotted that the first HDB blocks
were slanted and had them rebuilt.
• He also saw that the wires in a flat were not safe. The
thickness of the wires is the result of the rubber casing
around the copper. As such, if it was too thin, it would
not be safe. The rubber casing may even melt and cause
a fire.
•Hence, Mr Lim demonstrated the skill of attention to
details.

13. •The new flats were cleaner, more airy and more spacious
than the types of houses in squatter areas and shophouses.
•It is not easy for some people to adjust to living in HDB
flats.
•Housing in Singapore has developed from squatter areas
and shophouses to clean, airy and healthier HDB flats
situated close to amenities.

14. • HDB estates can be found all over Singapore island in the
North, West, East, North-east and Central.
•Almost 9 out of every 10 people in Singapore live in HDB flats.
Some possible reasons for this are HDB flats are accessible and
affordable to the general masses.
•The HDB became well-known around the world and Singapore
received many visitors who wanted to learn from the HDB’s
success story.
•The HDB has received an award because of good practices in
providing public housing for Singaporeans in a limited land area
– HDB won the 2011 Urban Land Institute (ULI) Global Award for
Excellence.

16. •Long ago, people moved from place to place by walking.
•To be able to ride on a rickshaw indicated that one was rich and
wealthy. A rickshaw puller led a hard live.
•Later on, bullock carts, horses and carriages helped people to
move around more quickly.
•With the invention of the motor engine and the use of fuel,
cars, buses and lorries offered a faster mode of transport.

17. •In the past, there were conductors on the buses who collected the bus
fares and issued bus tickets Today, most people pay their bus fares using
EZ-link cards.
•To solve the problem of traffic jams, one idea was to cut down the
number of vehicles on the roads. The other idea was to introduce the
MRT system in Singapore so as to improve how people moved around.
•Making a decision is not simple and there has to be research done before
any decision is made.
•There are 2 main operators of the train line in Singapore – SMRT and
SBS Transit.
•As of 2012, the North-South, East-West, North-East and Circle Lines
have a total of 103 stations and 148.9 km of track.

19. •A nature reserve consists of flora and fauna. Trees produce
oxygen, provide shade and shelter for animals and even as a base
for other plants to grow on.
•Trees are important because they help to keep the air clean
through the process of photosynthesis. Hence are very important
for human beings’ survival.
•Examples of animals that live in trees are
•Squirrels, monkeys and bats.
•Old trees are larger in size and would provide more space for
animals to live in. They are sturdier and provide better protection
for animals.
•The impact of noise and tree cutting affect the animals living in
the trees and in the nature reserve. Animals are sensitive to noise
as it can scare them. Tree felling causes animals to lose their
habitat.

20. •NParks has a role to play in creating a garden city.
Hence, they will ensure that trees are not removed
without their approval.
•The media, like the internet or the newspaper, can reach
many people very quickly. Hence, it is important to use the
media responsibly and in the right way.
•In Singapore, nature reserves are protected areas. One
such protected area is the Dairy Farm Nature Reserve in
Bukit Panjang.

21. Our nature reserves
•absorb carbon dioxide and give out oxygen into our
environment.
•collect rainwater for our reservoirs, which are one of the
sources of Singapore’s water supply.
•are home to hundreds of species of plants and animals.
•allow us to enjoy outdoor activities like hiking and
birdwatching.

22. Examples of trail manners :
•No fishing
•No catching of insects
•No bird trapping,
•No feeding of monkeys, fish, terrapins
•No releasing of animals
•No plucking of leaves / flowers
•No littering
•No smoking
•No Riding of motorcycles
•The replanting of trees contributes to the green movement.
Images are from Google