Interact Club

About Interact

There isn’t an exact way to put everything that HCInteract is into words, because service—as our passion—does not have boundaries.

Interact is a group of 40 students who are passionate in contributing to our community. Apart from regular community service sessions with our six beneficiaries such as Beyond Social Services and Pertapis Children's Home, we also engage in other ad-hoc service opportunities and outreach events. Some of these activities include the Christmas block party at Tembusu Senior Activity Centre, and Service Learning Summit, which reached out to over 100 students to build their empathy for prominent social issues in Singapore.

In addition, we organise many different events annually. This includes the Asia Clean Project, which aims to educate over 50 students in Sikkim, India on plastic pollution and waste disposal, and coincides with Interact’s goal of advancing international understanding amongst our members; Project Bisrama, which plans a fun-filled day of games and performances for the migrant worker community; and the Service Learning Summit, which reached out to over 100 students to build their empathy for prominent social issues in Singapore and upscale their volunteering programmes to better serve the needs of their beneficiaries.

Driven by our motto of “Service above Self”, Interactors learn from and serve with one another, forging long-lasting connections within our respective Interact Groups, across the club, and with those whom we serve.

If you have an open mind, a zeal for service, and a willingness to lead, we’re excited to have you in our 40th batch of Interactors!

To us, what stands out is our strong tradition of developing our members to the fullest. Other than ExCo positions, we make an effort to provide numerous opportunities for our Interactors to grow as leaders. Many of our Interactors lead the planning and execution of our ad-hoc events as the Organising-In-Charge and serve in other capacities, including in Hwa Chong’s Faculty Committees and CCA Council.

CCA Venues and Timings

Interactors are expected to attend all Community Service (CommServe) sessions physically, and all General Gatherings in school. General Gathering sessions typically take place on Wednesdays from 3.30pm-6.00pm. Other than our usual General Gatherings, there may also be opportunities to participate in ad-hoc mass CIP events outside of school!

For CommServe sessions, HCInteract has 6 Interact Groups (IGs) that partner different beneficiaries to serve different groups of individuals:

IG 1: Riding for Disabled Association

Timing: Saturday afternoons, 1.30 - 4.00pm

Venue: 5 Jln Mashhor, Singapore 299174

Riding for the Disabled Association (RDA) provides free equine-assisted therapy (also known as hippotherapy) to children and adults with physical and mental disabilities. During the sessions, we act as side walkers by watching over the riders’ safety and aiding them in simple activities. We aim to ensure that our riders not only benefit from each session, but also have a fun and safe time!

IG 2: Pertapis Children's Home

Timing: Saturdays 10am to 11am

Venue: 993B Kovan Rd, Singapore 545676

We conduct regular reading and literacy sessions with the children at Pertapis Children’s Home, whose mission is to help victims of abuse re-integrate into society through positive learning. In addition, we also conduct other engaging educational activities with the children. Occasionally, we celebrate momentous events (e.g. Children’s day, June/December holidays) with the children at Pertapis through film-watching sessions, music sessions, and other fun activities.

IG 3: Beyond Social Services

Timing: Tuesdays and Thursdays 4pm to 6pm

Venue: 26 Jln Klinik, 01-42/52

IG3 provides homework support for the children at BSS, which is a charity dedicated to helping children and youths from less privileged backgrounds break away from the poverty cycle. We also search for papers online to complement their homework if they are keen on additional practices and organize activities occasionally to forge relationships with and between the children and add elements of fun into the structured homework program.

IG 4: Epworth Community Services

Timing: Saturdays 1pm to 3pm

Venue: Blk 1511 Bukit Batok Street 11 #02-250

IG 4 mainly gives tuition for underprivileged students from lower-income families, teaching them at their pace and giving them a platform to clarify their doubts without any fear of judgment. Besides just being their tutors, we are also their friends whom they can approach should they need help. In the past, we conduct the lessons via an online platform, but it has now became physical lessons!

IG 5: New Life Teck Whye Children and Student Care

Timing: Tuesday and Fridays 4pm to 5pm

Venue: Block 6 Teck Whye Avenue #01-110

IG5 volunteers at NLCS under the Steady Readers Programme. We mainly teach primary school students phonics during reading classes, and guide them through English worksheets. We aim to make learning and reading an enjoyable experience for the kids by forging strong connections with them and making their lesson a fulfilling one. Apart from the weekly commserve sessions, we conduct fun activities (e.g. arts and crafts) for them during the holidays.

IG 6: Tembusu Senior Activity Centre

Timing: Fridays, 4.30pm-5.30pm

Venue: #06-01 Block 31A Eunos Crescent

IG6 alternates between mass activities at the centre and home visits to the elderly every two weeks. For the mass activities, we would begin with a short catch-up session with the elderly, then carry out various activities such as bingo games, arts and crafts as well as traditional games. For home visits, we would usually spend time talking with the elderly and sharing important information/news updates with them, for example, Covid-19 updates. We would also assist them in carrying out simple household chores and provide updates about the elderly to the center if needed.

Requirements

An open mind, a passion for service and a willingness to lead :)

Applications open on 15 January and will close on 18 February!

Teacher ICs

Mr Ho Ho Sing Philip

hohs@hci.edu.sg

Mrs Eunice Quah

euniceng@hci.edu.sg

Achievements

We are proud to announce that in 2023, HCInteract was awarded the ‘Best Interact Award (Junior College)’ as a club out of all Interact Clubs in Singapore, Malaysia, and Brunei. Our projects helmed by our very owned members, Project Bisrama and Service Learning Summit were also awarded the ‘Distinction’ award by the Rotary Club!

Do find out more about us @hcinteract!

Open Sessions (January)

Commserve Tasters:

09/01/24

12/01/24

13/01/24

16/01/24

18/01/24

19/01/24

20/01/24

23/01/24

25/01/24

26/01/24

27/01/24

30/01/24

Tea Sessions:

24/01/24

31/01/24

Open Sessions (February)

Commserve Tasters:

01/02/24

02/02/24

03/02/24

09/02/24

17/02/24

20/02/24

23/02/24

Tea Sessions:

07/02/24

14/02/24

Workcomm Adventures:

6th, 8th and 15th February (Interact Week)

20th - 22nd February (Project Bisrama)

Interested? Check out the links below!

Brought to you by: CCA Council