Article by Allard Quek
Storyblog by Euclea Tan, Verlyn Ku, Natalie Lem, Andrew Sutjipto
Dragon Boat Festival 2020
25 June was when this year’s Dragon Boat Festival was set to take place. While perhaps better known as a day to pay homage to Qu Yuan, a well-loved and trusted minister during the Warring States Period in China, the Dragon Boat Festival is actually also a day to ward off evil spirits, diseases, pests and the like.
In Singapore today, this would typically mean going out to watch exciting dragon boat races, savouring delicious dumplings, or simply spending time with friends and family. However, with the introduction of strict social-distancing measures to combat Covid-19, many of these activities (except the savouring of dumplings, of course!) had to be postponed or even cancelled to the disappointment of many.
Who needs an Activity Booklet?
One group in particular which has been greatly affected is our elderly population. Being in the most vulnerable age group, our seniors have been strongly advised to stay at home as much as possible throughout the pandemic, and this might naturally lead to many of them feeling bored or disappointed that they are unable to continue with their usual routines. This is especially true for seniors who might not have access to or know how to use technology to keep themselves engaged on their own or with their friends, and should such an issue be left unaddressed the negative feelings experienced by these seniors could very well spiral into something much worse --- unless something is done about it.
Thus was born the idea of creating, designing and delivering monthly activity booklets to our seniors in order to engage them and give them a breath of fresh air during this phase where they might not have as much freedom as before to do the activities they love.
Booklet Background
Made with much love by a team of USP freshmen from various houses, everything from the booklet’s cover design, to the illustrations to the translations, was designed and carefully refined over many discussions, feedback sessions, and cups of coffee. And the end product? A 40-page activity booklet which has since been distributed to 300 seniors under the Filos organisation.
Why did the team have to go so far as to build everything from scratch though? As with all creative content, one of the concerns the team had was the risk of running into copyright issues should they decide to make use of existing work done by others. But more importantly, the team felt a strong need to take full control of the booklets’ activities so that they could better integrate meaningful lessons the seniors could take away, and not simply string together a bunch of random activities in the booklet. So without further ado, let’s take a look at some of the highlights from July’s activity booklet!
QR Code Game
Out of the 20 activities included in the booklet, one activity which was particularly striking (not least due to its visual appearance) was the QR Code Game. The QR Code Game depicts a mini storyline where a senior goes out to get essential items in the midst of the pandemic and is faced with tough choices along the way. In the game, seniors are given instructions to scan the displayed QR codes to answer questions on appropriate behaviour during the Covid-19 situation. Upon answering each question correctly, the seniors would then be rewarded with a clue to a secret message which they would be able to decipher once they have answered all 4 questions correctly.
“...we wanted to teach them and let them practise how to scan [QR] codes (since [SafeEntry] requires it) and also wanted to make it fun...“
-- Soo Yen (‘24, Luna)
Through a simple activity, it is this simplicity which makes the QR Code Game such an intriguing activity for seniors as the incremental progress made towards solving the overarching puzzle piques the seniors’ curiosity to find out what is at the end of the game. When asked about the thought process behind the design of the QR Code Game, one of the freshmen who worked on the game, Soo Yen (‘24, Luna), explained: “...we wanted to teach them and let them practise how to scan [QR] codes (since [SafeEntry] requires it) and also wanted to make it fun...“
As such, compared to other activities where it might be easier for the seniors to simply lose interest midway, the QR Code Game gives seniors the satisfaction of gradually working towards a final goal and at the same time teaches them two important lessons: the first being how to use QR codes correctly, and the second regarding acceptable behaviour in the context of Covid-19.
Perhaps one other small but noteworthy design implementation to mention is the inclusion of the links to the questions at the bottom of each QR code. This was done so that even if the seniors are unable to get the QR code functionality to work or do not have access to a smartphone, they would still be able to participate in the activity and ultimately take away crucial knowledge on the Covid-19 situation.
All in all, the QR Code Game is an interesting way to empower our seniors with the use of technology and is definitely something the Groundwork team will continue exploring in future editions of the activity booklet!
WhatsApp Walkthrough: To Do or Not To Do
But the activity booklet isn’t just all about fun activities. In this month’s edition, 3 lessons were also carefully crafted to equip the seniors with the digital-savvy skills to not only use the instant messaging service WhatsApp, but to also watch out for its potential pitfalls. Such skills are becoming especially important as technology becomes increasingly assimilated into the seniors’ lives, where tools like Whatsapp could turn out to be both a boon or bane for them depending on how they make use of such tools.
Without making any assumptions on the seniors’ prior experience with messaging services, the first lesson dived into the details of setting up Whatsapp for the first time, providing step-by-step instructions on how to use an internet connection, install Whatsapp and set up an account. Considerately enough, to allow the seniors to have a more pleasant messaging experience, the lesson even included a section on how the seniors could customise the text font size according to their preferences!
But perhaps the most important lesson was the final lesson: Safety, which provided vital information on identifying potential fake news and dealing with likely scammers. With instant messaging platforms recently gaining a bad reputation for being breeding grounds for fake news and scams, this lesson serves a crucial role in educating our seniors on the serious dangers of using platforms like Whatsapp and on the preventive measures which can be taken to guard themselves against them.
For instance, to avoid being trapped in an echo chamber of misinformation, the seniors are advised not to trust messages from strangers and to seek help if in doubt. Additionally, to keep vigilant against potential scams, the elderly are not only advised to refrain from revealing personal information to strangers, but are also taught how to set up Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) on Whatsapp for enhanced security.
Surprisingly, one of the main challenges in designing these lessons was actually sourcing for suitable Whatsapp screenshots.
“For the WhatsApp lesson, during [the] planning was a bit of [a] challenge especially when it comes to getting screenshots for seniors to better understand, as we initially assumed we needed [screenshots] for both iOS and [A]ndroid. We also had to find screenshots that [had] continuity flow between them so that the tutorial made sense.”
- Pawandeep (‘24 Aetheus):
In the end, while the final product was indeed designed specifically for Android users (fun fact: most of the seniors we are working with use Android not iOS), the team did also create an IOS version, just in case!
Honourable Mentions
The list of activities in store for the seniors goes on, but it honestly isn’t much fun reading about it as it is seeing the finished product and maybe even trying the activities out for yourself! Here are more highlights you might like to check out:
“...Eventually we were thankful that we were able to link everything together as we constantly held discussions and ask[ed] for feedback from our fellow peers.”
-- Pawandeep (‘24, Aetheus)
To sum up the process of working on July’s booklet, Pawandeep aptly highlighted the contributions of both the seniors and freshmen: “...BP groundwork’s project as a whole wouldn’t be possible if it wasn’t for our seniors...Plus the rest of the freshies who signed up and stayed committed and driven in working together to deliver something fun and enriching for the seniors to try...Eventually we were thankful that we were able to link everything together as we constantly held discussions and ask[ed] for feedback from our fellow peers.”
While Batch Project signups may have already closed, if this project has inspired you and you would like to contribute to it, we would definitely appreciate any feedback or comments you might have. If you do have any ideas on how we could better engage the seniors, please feel free to reach out to us in the comments section below or via our Instagram page!
Food for Thought
As the first of its kind, July’s activity booklet has really been a breath of fresh air for the freshmen, who up to only a few weeks ago had never met each other before and had nothing to show for their booklet except for an innate desire to create something which would touch the hearts of the seniors and hopefully provide a similar breath of fresh air into their lives during a time of increased physical isolation from others.
As we carry on with our lives dealing with novel challenges in this new normal, perhaps it might be good to pause for a moment to spare a thought for the seniors who may be struggling to adjust to a new routine, and realise that we are not alone in this pandemic. And if we realise that we are actually all in this together, perhaps we could do more for those around us to ensure that we stay strong and united --- with our seniors being just one of the groups of people we can start with.
Comments