Singapore family goes viral with grenade-shaped cake reveal for daughter's primary school
In a TikTok video posted on Aug 14 by user claudia52scarlett, the family of five gathers around around the unusual cake, which hid the name of the school inside.
The caption read: "D-Day", with a skull emoji - a tongue-in-cheek nod to the suspense.
In the clip, the mother asks her daughter hopefully: "Which school are you going to?"
"SCGS," the girl replies shyly, before repeating it louder when prompted.
Turning to her younger daughter, the mother adds: "You also. If she goes in, then you go in too. If she goes to another school, you also go another school."
The family then counts down together. The father lights a spark at the top of the cake, triggering the upper half of the "grenade" to pop open.
The children squeal in excitement as the reveal shows a cake inside, decorated with the word "Congrats" and the Singapore Chinese Girls' School (SCGS) logo.
The mother exclaims "SCGS!" while her husband lifts his daughter in happiness.
Amid the cheers, she tells her younger daughter: "Next year, you will also go in, you don't need to worry."
In Singapore, parents of children entering Primary 1 may have to ballot for spots in oversubscribed schools, with priority given based on factors such as proximity and citizenship status.
Netizens congratulate family
The TikTok clip has since racked up more than 80,000 views and 2,000 likes.
Many netizens congratulated the family, with some calling it a creative idea. "First time seeing a primary school reveal. So cute," one wrote.
Others debated the primary school admissions process.
"How do people get into SCGS?" one asked. Another responded: "Be rich enough to buy a condominium within 1km."
Some stressed that upbringing mattered more than the school, with one commenting: "Whatever school it is, the most important is the child's upbringing from home. 'Top schools' or 'bottom schools' will still have people with poor upbringing."
Amid the mixed sentiments, one summed it up: "All schools are good schools."
The New Paper has reached out to claudia52scarlett for comment.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New Paper
2 days ago
- New Paper
Singapore family goes viral with grenade-shaped cake reveal for daughter's primary school
When primary school posting results were released in August, one Singapore family found an explosive way to announce their daughter's assigned school - with a grenade-shaped cake. In a TikTok video posted on Aug 14 by user claudia52scarlett, the family of five gathers around around the unusual cake, which hid the name of the school inside. The caption read: "D-Day", with a skull emoji - a tongue-in-cheek nod to the suspense. In the clip, the mother asks her daughter hopefully: "Which school are you going to?" "SCGS," the girl replies shyly, before repeating it louder when prompted. Turning to her younger daughter, the mother adds: "You also. If she goes in, then you go in too. If she goes to another school, you also go another school." The family then counts down together. The father lights a spark at the top of the cake, triggering the upper half of the "grenade" to pop open. The children squeal in excitement as the reveal shows a cake inside, decorated with the word "Congrats" and the Singapore Chinese Girls' School (SCGS) logo. The mother exclaims "SCGS!" while her husband lifts his daughter in happiness. Amid the cheers, she tells her younger daughter: "Next year, you will also go in, you don't need to worry." In Singapore, parents of children entering Primary 1 may have to ballot for spots in oversubscribed schools, with priority given based on factors such as proximity and citizenship status. Netizens congratulate family The TikTok clip has since racked up more than 80,000 views and 2,000 likes. Many netizens congratulated the family, with some calling it a creative idea. "First time seeing a primary school reveal. So cute," one wrote. Others debated the primary school admissions process. "How do people get into SCGS?" one asked. Another responded: "Be rich enough to buy a condominium within 1km." Some stressed that upbringing mattered more than the school, with one commenting: "Whatever school it is, the most important is the child's upbringing from home. 'Top schools' or 'bottom schools' will still have people with poor upbringing." Amid the mixed sentiments, one summed it up: "All schools are good schools." The New Paper has reached out to claudia52scarlett for comment.
Straits Times
3 days ago
- Straits Times
Stressed UK teens seek influencers' help for exams success
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Online study influencers are gaining popularity among stressed British teenagers in search of exam success. LONDON - Posing as a fortune teller on his YouTube channel, former teacher Waqar Malik tells thousands of followers that he can predict this year's exam questions. He is among online study influencers gaining popularity among stressed British teenagers in search of exam success. But educators and examiners are concerned some pupils are relying too much on online advice. Mr Malik posts videos on TikTok and YouTube forecasting questions on classic English literature for the UK GCSE school exam taken at 16. In 2024 'I predicted the entire paper,' he said on his popular Mr Everything English channel. Mr Malik, who says he is a former assistant head teacher, noted that he was just making an 'educated guess', but educators remain concerned. 'If you are a 15- or 16- year-old doing your GCSEs and you've got somebody in your phone who's telling you 'this is what the English exam is going to be about'... that is so appealing,' said Ms Sarah Brownsword, an assistant professor in education at the University of East Anglia. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Ong Beng Seng fined $30k for abetting former minister Iswaran in obstructing course of justice Life How do household bomb shelters in Singapore really work? Singapore Sengkang-Punggol LRT line resumes full service 4 hours after power fault halts trains Asia Johor authorities seize four Singapore-registered vehicles over illegal e-hailing Singapore Owners call for stronger management rules in ageing condos, but seek to avoid being overburdened Asia Japan's PM Ishiba mentions wartime 'regret', toeing right-wing line After British pupils sat their exams in May, some complained that Mr Malik's predictions were wrong. 'Never listening to you again bro,' one wrote, while others said they were 'cooked' (done for) and would have to work in a fast food restaurant. With GCSE results set to be released on Aug 21, one exam board, AQA, has warned of 'increasing reliance on certain online revision channels'. 'Clearly this is an important source of revision and support for students,' it said. But the examiners want 'your interpretation of the texts you have studied, not some stranger's views on social media'. 'Looking for help' Students are overloaded, school leaders said. 'With so much content to cover and revise in every subject it can be completely overwhelming,' Ms Sarah Hannafin, head of policy for the school leaders' union NAHT, told AFP. 'And so it is unsurprising that young people are looking for anything to help them to cope.' Mr Malik, whose prediction video has been viewed on YouTube 290,000 times, did not respond to a request for comment. Ms Brownsword praised TikTok, where she posts grammar videos for student teachers, and said: 'You can learn about anything and watch videos about absolutely anything'. Teachers have always flagged questions that could come up, she said, but predicting exam questions online is 'really tricky'. 'But I think there's a real difference between doing that and doing it on such a scale, when you've got thousands or tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of followers online.' Other content creators defended such videos, however. 'Those kind of videos were never to mislead,' said Ms Tilly Taylor, a university student posting TikTok videos with candid revision advice to 100,000 followers. 'I make it very clear in my videos that these are predictions,' based on past papers and examiners' reports, said Ms Taylor, who appeals to younger viewers with her fashionable eye makeup. Other content creators sell predicted papers 'all the time,' Ms Taylor said, but 'I don't think it's right.' Other educational influencers were more in favour. 'If you're marketing it as a predicted paper, that's completely fine... you just can't say guaranteed paper,' said Mr Ishaan Bhimjiyani, 20, who has over 400,000 TikTok followers. He promoted a site offering an English predicted paper for £1.99 (S$3.47) with a 'history of 60-70 per cent accuracy'. 'It took off' Predicted papers allow you to 'check whether you're actually prepared for the exam', said Ms Jen, a creator and former teacher who posts as Primrose Kitten and declined to give her surname. Her site charges £4.99 for an English predicted paper and includes a video on phrasing to score top marks. Mr Bhimjiyani, who went to a private school, started posting on TikTok at 16, saying he was 'documenting my journey, posting about how I revise'. 'And then it kind of took off.' He founded an educational influencer agency, Tap Lab, that now represents over 100 bloggers in their mid-teens to mid-20s. Influencers earn most from paid promotions – for recruiters or beauty or technology brands –- which must be labelled as such, he said. Mr Bhimjiyani made £5,000 with his first such video. Taylor said she recently promoted student accommodation. No one explained 'how do you actually revise', Taylor said of her school years. So she turned to YouTube for ideas. 'I wanted to help someone like myself,' she said, 'who couldn't necessarily afford to go to private school or have private tuition.' AFP
AsiaOne
09-08-2025
- AsiaOne
Karung guni man, old-school provision shops and more: The vanishing sights and sounds of Singapore, Lifestyle News
Whenever National Day draws near, the topic of our country's heritage and culture often comes up. While some are celebrated and continue to live on, others just quietly fade away, like roadside barbers and kacang puteh vendors. Most people from past generations probably wouldn't even know when they last saw some of these things that used to be such ordinary parts of their lives. And as we navigate our lives in ever-changing Singapore, we might also actually be living through some of the last moments of certain local sights and sounds that were once so common in our everyday lives — and we might not even realise it. Karung guni man The karung guni (a Malay phrase for gunny sack and means rag-and-bone) man's horn used to be heard fairly often in HDB estates. Alongside his familiar call for old newspapers, television sets and more, this sound used to prompt many to rush down with their recyclables in order to exchange them for some loose change. But as recycling habits shift and the older rag-and-bone men start to retire, the sound of the karang guni man can barely be heard any more. Old-school provision shops These individual, usually family-run mini marts used to be a common sight at HDB void decks. The shelves here weren't stacked with the hottest viral treats or international tidbits — instead, it held many nostalgic favourites like 10-cent cola candies, snacks, rubber balls and Pokemon cards that were an integral part of many of the older generations' childhood. Today, some void decks that used to house these shops have become empty or the space has been replaced by vending machines or chain marts — which might provide the same convenience and perhaps even more selections, but just doesn't feel quite the same. Ice-cream man Long before ice-cream and waffle cafes, gelato chains and TikTok-worthy sweet treats, there was the ice-cream man with his humble cart complete with paper cups, rainbow bread and cones that felt almost like styrofoam. While the ding of his cart that would make so many kids (and probably even adults) light up and rush for the elevators can still be found easily along Orchard Road, the sound and appearance of the ice-cream man has become a vanishing luxury anywhere else. Sandpit playgrounds Kids these days might think that building sand castles is an activity meant just for the beach — but those who were born in the 90s and older would know that most playgrounds — which are now usually built with rubber floors — used to be filled with sand where children would dig holes, bury sticks and even 'draw' on for a game of hopscotch or tic-tac-toe. Bendy buses Articulated buses — or more fondly known by many Singaporeans as bendy buses — used to be a common sight on the roads. Today, most of them have been replaced by double-decker buses, which might be more practical but definitely takes away the fun of feeling like you're on a thrill ride on the way home (especially if you're standing right at the jointed section of the bus). Long HDB corridors While many appreciate the privacy and peacefulness of the newer BTO flat layouts — which tend to have fewer units per floor — some might miss the almost 'kampung' spirit that used to come with sprawling HDB corridors where children used to play catch and neighbours all seemed to mingle and know each other. Bird cage corners Have you ever seen these tall hooked poles around older HDB estates? These bird cage corners used to be where uncles would sit around to showcase their pet birds, sip coffee and mingle in the mornings. But as times change with newer estates replacing the older developments that used to house these corners and younger generations becoming more conscious about animal welfare, the chirping of these songbirds at these dedicated communal areas might soon fade out. Payphone booths Remember scrambling for a 10-cent coin or borrowing your friend's swanky new phonecards to make a call home when you forgot your homework? These bright red payphones weren't just a lifeline, they were also landmarks — stationed outside MRT stations, shopping malls, schools and more — and they were often meetup points long before the luxuries of constant connectivity. But as everyone (even grandparents) started to switch to mobile phones, these landlines slowly transitioned from being a necessity to a relic of the past (or a nostalgic photo opportunity). CD shops Movie nights might start with just a click of the remote or tap on an iPad now, but back in the day, they usually began with a trip to a CD shop. In the past, shops and booths selling CDs and DVDs used to be everywhere — shopping malls, markets and even night markets or pasar malam . They often had a small television showing previews of the hottest films at the time, drawing in interested passers-by and potential customers. And while streaming might have made things more efficient and convenient, there's still nothing quite like owning and flipping through a physical collection of your favourite flicks and the memories that come with them. Newspaper and magazine stands Last May, the iconic Thambi Magazine Store at Holland Village closed down. It marked the end of an era, and like the iconic store, many similar and smaller newspaper and magazine stands that used to be such a pivotal part of many older Singaporeans' mornings and commutes have began to disappear from our streets. Most of us probably consume our content and get our news updates digitally now, but before these humble pit stops completely disappear, it might be a good idea to drop by for a visit, pick up a paper and have a chat with the uncles and aunties still tending to these stands. Bubble lifts Bubble lifts — which used to be fairly prominent in shopping malls, hotels and even HDB estates in Singapore — used to make elevator rides so much more than a means of transport. They made taking a lift feel like an experience — allowing people to peek outside the clear windows for a birds' eye view of the space and the various floors they're travelling through. Now, most have been replaced by sleeker and more practical designs which might be easier to maintain and fit most aesthetics, but probably not as fun. Ronald McDonald statues Whether you loved him or found him creepy, seeing the Ronald McDonald statue as a kid probably meant that you were going to have a great day at the fast-food chain with Happy Meals and playground sessions. And while this part-mascot, part-photo prop has almost completely disappeared from the McDonald's outlets in Singapore, you can still find a couple to snap one last picture before they completely disappear. [[nid:716651]]
