Above: At East Spring Primary School, pupils get to climb a rock wall as part of their lessons. For example, cards printed with English words are stuck on hand-grips on the wall, and pupils compete to retrieve these and form sentences with them in the shortest time possible.

Right: Classwork at East Spring Primary takes place outdoors. Teachers slip worksheets underneath glass cases held up by steel structures and pupils work their way around these structures to complete various tasks.

Left: A mini rainforest has been built to give East Spring pupils a first-hand experience of ecological cycles. A stream flows into a pond filled with plants and fish. Pupils can look through the pond's glass enclosure to observe how water is filtered by layers of soil. The water is then recycled and flows back into the stream. There are also water sprinklers, which are turned on at intervals to simulate rain.

Left:Beacon Primary pupils can record performances in a studio and retreat into rooms called 'pods' to view their work. The school's media hub comprises three computer labs and a library. The kids can visit the library or log on to online information sources using the computers.

Left: The furniture in Unity Primary School's redesigned classrooms is arranged for group learning. The rooms have an IT centre for multimedia learning, reading corners and space to display pupils' work. The design allows different groups of pupils to carry on different activities at the same time.

This article was first published in The Straits Times.