Our Lingua Franca, English Language

2008-09-09T11:58:00.002+08:00

Dear Sunshines,

Your EL Paper is over...

so *breathe* :)

After much anxiety and nere-wrecking lessons,
You're done!
I hope I have managed to soothe your anxieties despite my pressurising you as well to study, study, study! :)

If you have tried your best,
I'm sure all of you have done your best,
We'll just have faith and hope for the best ok?

I believe in you Sunshines!

For now, just focus on doing your best for the rest of the subjects you have yet to sit for ok?

ALL THE BEST AND MAY YOU SHINE IN YOUR N LEVELS!

*SMILES*

2008-09-03T20:06:00.004+08:00

Time Management Advice

This is my general advice for time management:

For Paper One:

You have a total of 1 hour 40mins for Paper One.

Section One:

50 mins : 10 to 15 minutes planning your essay and 35 to 40 minutes writing it according to your planning/draft.

PLAN IN POINT FORM, not full sentences.

Section Two:

40minutes : 10 minutes planning & 30 minutes to write.

You would have used up 90minutes.

Always leave 10minutes to read through your essays again, check for tense errors, spelling errors and so on.

MAKE SURE YOU ALWAYS HAVE AT LEAST 10MINUTES BEFORE THE PAPER ENDS TO CHECK YOUR PAPER SO YOU WILL HAND IT IN WITH PEACE OF MIND. :)
Avoid ending just in time to submit the paper.

PLEASE ENSURE YOU HAVE YOUR OWN WATCHES TO BE ABLE TO CHECK YOUR TIME BETTER RATHER THAN RELYING ON THE CLOCK IN THE HALL. TRUST ME, HAVING YOUR OWN WATCH IS MUCH EASIER AND LESS FRIGHTENING.
JUST SET YOU WATCH TO THE SAME TIME AS THE CLOCK IN THE HALL. :)

Time Management for Paper Two:

1) Cloze Passage: 10 to 15 minutes

2) Comprehension Questions: 35 minutes

3) Summary Question: 30 to 40minutes

Ensure that you have at least 5 to 10minutes to CHECK THROUGH YOUR ANSWERS BEFORE SUBMITTING YOUR PAPER OR RETURN TO THE QUESTIONS YOU HAVE SKIPPED EARLIER.

REMEMBER: Do NOT ponder over ONE question for too long. If you find it difficult, skip it FIRST and go on to other questions. Make Sure you return to the questions you have skipped once you've completed up to the SUMMARY question.

I'VE GIVEN MY BEST AND I'VE IMPARTED ALL THE SKILLS I COULD THINK OF WITH YOU.
PLEASE READ YOUR NOTES, THE SAMPLE ESSAYS AND EVERYTHING ELSE THE I HAVE GIVEN YOU.
THIS IS YOUR REAL PAPER FOR TOMORROW SO PLEASE GIVE IT YOUR BEST SHOT FOR YOUR OWN SAKE, IF NOT YOUR FUTURE. :)

I will be praying for the best for each and every one of my sunshine.

I believe that you can do it but you need to believe in yourself too. :)

Have faith, have confidence,

step into the hall to win the battle of examinations.

Step out and tell me you have conquered the paper, not the paper conquering you! :)

Lots of Love,
Miss Sunshine

2008-09-02T22:23:00.002+08:00

Revision on Paper One

Section One:

1) PLEASE avoid writing argumentative because generally, that's not your strength. Remember the 4 aspects that are crucial for argumentative ( logical reasoning/common sense points, quotes/information from books/authors, statistics from newspapers, life examples from newspapers or other sources to support your argument in an essay). It will not be an easy task! AVOID Argumentative essays.

2) Remember the OCCRC for NARRATIVES (Orientation, Complication, Climax, Resolution and the optional, Coda).
For narratives, write mainly in PAST TENSE!
Start immediately with the action as you introduce the characters at the same time.
Do not have too many characters in your narratives.
Do NOT use too much dialogues.

3) Personal Recount - something that you have personally experienced and you are recounting it so write in the PAST TENSE too.

4) Avoid attempting one-word essays because you're generally quite weak in it too.

You do not have to necessarily always use difficult or impressive words in your essay for Section One. You can keep it simple if you're unsure of using impressive words. The important thing is to make sure your essay is not out of point and you write in the correct way (tense usage, stages of a narrative).

DEADLY IMPORTANT:

REMEMBER TO WRITE THE ESSAY QUESTION THAT YOU HAVE CHOSEN ON YOUR FOOLSCAP PAPER on the left-side column! IF NOT, THE EXAMINER WILL TAKE IT THAT YOU HAVE CHOSEN ESSAY TOPIC ONE.

Section 2:

1) PLEASE memorise your FORMAL LETTER, INFORMAL LETTER AND REPORT FORMATS!! KNOW IT BY HEART!!

Please read the sample model essays i have provided for you.

2)Remember:

ELABORATE on the bulleted points. You do not have to elaborate on ALL bulleted points. Read the bulleted points, think and ask yourself WHICH of these bulleted points will need more elaboration than the others? Try to elaborate on at least 3 out of 5 bulleted points in detail!

DO NOT FORGET the ADDITIONAL INFORMATION you need to include in your Section 2.
IT IS COMPULSORY to add your own information that's logical and related to the situation and this additional information should not fall under any of the bulleted points!

3) DO NOT USE DIALOGUES (NOT AT ALL) IN YOUR SECTION 2.

Come to me and ask me for explanation anytime tomorrow.

I WILL BE IN SCHOOL FROM 12PM ONWARDS AND AM PREPARED TO SPEND TIME WITH YOU TO CLEAR ANY DOUBTS YOU HAVE.
FIND ME AT THE STAFFROOM ANYTIME AFTER 12PM.

30MINUTES TO BE SET ASIDE FOR EACH STUDENT WHO SEEKS MY HELP TOMORROW.
SO TOMORROW, PLEASE GET ALL YOUR QUESTIONS FOR ME READY BECAUSE TOMORROW WILL SIMPLY BE CONSULTATION TIME TO CLEAR ANY DOUBTS YOU HAVE BEFORE YOU SIT FOR YOUR PAPER!

Lotsa love and prayers,
Miss Sunshine

2008-08-31T13:50:00.002+08:00

A few more days to the REAL exam sunshines!

Yesterday was a learning outing with some of you only.
I really appreciate those who came down to revise EL with me and hope you've learnt or understood the aspects that you had doubts better now. :)

Thank you all 14 who came yesterday :)
Cheryl, Sarah, Shi Yan, Ayu, Muy Kim, Aaron, Ali, Husnul, Thahir, Leslie, Jin Siang, Roem, Zhi Keong, Irfan.
They were tested on the 3 formats of situational writing (Informal Letter, Formal Letter and Report).
Explanation on what elaborating on the bulleted points for Paper 1 Section 2 means.
Explanation on what ADDITIONAL information means for Paper 1 Section 2.
Comprehension Summary Skills and we went through BPGHS summary section together.
I hope you have had a better understanding? :)

Thank you for the hilarious moments, snapping photos and your bubbly, crazy talks amidst the revision. :)
However, we can improve on the noise level yeah? ;)
And Thank You for the magic tricks taught by Jin Siang and Husnul. :)
Thanks for all the disturbing magic tricks you boys did which left me wondering how did you manage to do all that.. hahaha!

Please don't forget to send me the pictures. Thank you!

This blog will be used for further revision and tips, advice and all ok?

I have some sample model essays to be shared amongst you.
Especially for the weaker ones,
please get the soft copy from me if you see me on msn anytime tonight or tomorrow and read through.
I have some instructions for you as you read the essays ok?

I will be in school on Tuesday and Wednesday.
I'm setting aside 30minutes individual session for these 2 days for those who'd like to meet me and ask me questions on Paper 1 or Paper 2.
We can go through papers and you can ask me on anything you're unsure of.
To cater to the whole class,
the approximate time for each sunshine is 30minutes to 1 hour if time permits.

If you feel you need the extra help, i'm going to be in school on Tuesday and Wednesday from 12pm onwards ok?

More things coming up on this blog!

So keep checking and update those who are not checking please!

2008-08-02T11:56:00.002+08:00

I'm going to reinforce some important points to take note for your Paper One:

Section One:

1) Write MAINLY in the PAST TENSE

2) AVOID writing too much dialogue - you're NOT writing a script. You must show your ability to WRITE A STORY with BEAUTIFUL SENTENCES.

3) NAME ALL the characters in your story - try to have at least 2 to 3 characters and NOT more than that because you might confuse yourself as you write the story.

4) DO NOT end with "it was just a dream" or without a CLOSURE to your story by writing ".....".
5) If you want to use the flashback technique, ENSURE THAT YOU BRING THE CHARACTER BACK TO THE 'ORIGINAL' STATE WHEN YOU END YOU STORY. Please do NOT use this technique if you're unsure.

6)EVERY paragraph should not EXCEED 8 LINES. Start a new paragraph for a new character that appears or something new that happens. THAT IS WHY YOU NEED TO PLAN YOUR WORK!

7) Try to write between the word limit. DO NOT AIM FOR THE MINIMUM NUMBER OF WORDS OR EXCEED THE NUMBER OF WORDS PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE.

Section 2:

1) Identify ALL tasks -
what are you supposed to do for this section? Write a Report? Letter?
What type of information are you supposed to put into the paper?

PRIORITIZE the tasks: if there's more than one thing you should do in your paper, what are the MAIN/most important task and what follows next? - this refers to the BULLETED POINTS. Which bulleted point(s) would require you to prioritize? Which bulleted point would require more focus and elaboration?

2) Identify your audience -
WHO are you writing to?
Language and TONE must be appropriate. DO NOT write in unacceptable language, SINGLISH, or get too emotional in your writing. YOU MUST KNOW WHO YOU ARE WRITING TO.

For Letters,
Formal letters: You cannot use exclamation marks in your FORMAL WRITING.
You CAN use exclamation marks for INFORMAL LETTERS.
Understand?

For Report,
make sure you write WHAT YOU WITNESSED (what you saw exactly) and pen it down in a proper way using appropriate language.
PLEASE READ the samples given to you.

3) IT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO ADD IN ADDITIONAL INFORMATION RELEVANT TO YOUR LETTER OR REPORT BECAUSE MARKS WILL BE AWARDED FOR IT.
YOU MUST EXPAND AND ELABORATE ON THE 5 BULLETED POINTS BUT ALSO ADD IN EXTRA INFORMATION ON YOUR OWN WHICH SUITS THE TASK TO EARN MORE MARKS. PLEASE REMEMBER THIS.

4) Remember the 1 husband and 5 wives questions for section 2.

ALL IN ALL,

REMEMBER TO PLAN YOUR WRITING.
THOSE WHO WRITE ON THE SPOT WITHOUT PLANNING TEND TO GO OUT OF POINT OR WILL NOT WRITE IN A SMOOTH AND LINKED STYLE WHICH WILL COST YOU YOUR MARKS.

JUST TAKE 10 MINUTES TO PLAN IN POINT FORM THE THINGS YOU ARE GOING TO WRITE ABOUT AND HOW THE FLOW IS GOING TO BE.

PLEASE PLAN!

All the best in your PRELIMS.
DO YOUR BEST.
This will measure your preparation for N Levels.

I will not be around after school from 12th to 25th August because i'm down for O levels invigilation.
:((((((
I'm feeling very very very worried about this.
We have to make sure every single period in school will be used well and not wasted on me trying to grab the attention of those who are talking and not paying attention ok?
Please make use of the blog to ask me questions.

All the best and Good Luck my dear Sunshines.
I'll always be praying for the best for you and I want to see all of you excel.

Love,
Miss Sunshine

I'm So Proud of You

2008-07-29T14:49:00.001+08:00

4A1,

I just want to tell you how very proud I am of you for being able to identfy and answer most of the essay topics correctly when you were being tested during the mass lecture just now...

Kudos to the rest of the students from 4A2, 4A3 and 4A4 too if you managed to identify correctly! :)

To my 4A1,

you did well.. :)

I'm happy that you remembered the topics and found it familiar because i set you an assignment on it once remember? :)

Check your files.
I've returned your essays to you on this. :)

Love,
Miss NF

Grammar Errors through Comic Strips

2008-07-16T11:21:00.002+08:00

Look at the baby blues comic strip and spot the child's error.. :)

Next,

just read this and see the potential debater in the little girl..
Have a good laugh!

That's it!
Feel free to contribute your thoughts on the above 2 comic strips!

Love,
Miss sunshine

2008-07-07T12:08:00.004+08:00

Comprehension Question Types

This is a call for revision.

REVISION!!!

Comprehension Skills:

1) READ THE QUESTIONS FIRST ( just a quick reading through).
Reason: To get an idea of what the passage is going to be about. Secondly, once I have read the questions before reading the passage, I would be able to understand the passage better and at the same time be aware of the answers found in the passage.

2) READ THE PASSAGE ONCE OR TWICE.
Miss Sunshine's advice: TWICE. So that you get a better understanding of the passage.

3) Start attempting the comprehension questions. Highlight the key words in the questions.
Some of you highlight almost the WHOLE question that it becomes redundant.

Steps in attempting the questions:

i) What type of question is it?

a) Literal/Direct question type: Answers are from the passage. This type of question tests your ability in identifying and picking out the right answer from the text.

Example of a literal question: "What are the 2 factors contributing to air pollution?"

b) I.YOW! (In your own words question): Answers are from the passage but you are expected to rephrase the answer in your own words WITHOUT changing the meaning of the sentence(s) in your answer.

Example of this type of question: "In your own words, why did the author run away from home?"

c) Inferential Question: Reading between the lines. This type of question tests your understanding of the text or certain part of the text. The answer(s) will NOT be in the passage but you use the passage to help you understand and provide an answer related to the given text.
Example of this type of question: "What does the author mean....."

d) Quoting/Lifting words or phrases question: Questions that ask you to lift a word or phrase from the text and put it in your answer. YOU MUST USE THE QUOTATION MARKS FOR THIS TYPE OF QUESTION.

Example: "Quote a phrase from the passage that means...."

Did I miss out on any other types of questions?
Think hard!
The Examples for question types are simply EXAMPLES and the questions can be asked in different ways. It is important that you understand the comprehension question and what type it is before attempting to answer. This is to avoid misintepretation of the question and answering incorrectly.
Are we clear on this sunshines?

PLEASE feel free to post any questions on this.

We will be going through the Comprehension Homework answers tomorrow.
PLEASE BRING YOUR HOMEWORK.
PLEASE BRING YOUR EL FILES FOR THOSE WHO HAVE YET TO SUBMIT FOR CHECKING.

LET'S BE RESPONSIBLE FOR OUR OWN SELVES AND EACH OTHER AS WE WORK TOGETHER OK? :)

Last but not least,

HAPPY YOUTH DAY!!!!!!!!!! :)

Oral Examination Tips

2008-06-27T11:25:00.003+08:00

Dear Sunshines,

I have sprained my ankle quite badly and i have to rest from today till Sunday and i hope to be back on Monday.

I really did not want this to happen but apprently, i twisted it without realising it as i was wearing heels for work yesterday.
So docs has told me to be on flats for the next one week.

Ms Chee has kindly offered to help me by taking over the extra class today.
I hope all of you as well-behaved and attentive as you normally are.
Your oral exams will be next week Monday and Tuesday and so, i will use this blog as a communication tool for the weekend if you have any questions ok?

4A1,

When you are going for your oral exams,

1) Please remain silent and well-behaved as you wait for your turn to be assessed. Please do not paint a poor impression of yourself to the examiners by talking or laughing while the exam is going on. I know all of you are sensible and I will not expect you to do this. I'm putting this down only because i have seen some candidates that i have taken who are not well-behaved during the exams and causing disruption.

2) Please wear your tie smartly and properly and ensure that your uniform is tucked in and not out. This will give a very good impression to the examiners.

3) Please greet the examiners when you reach the table and ask to sit down before sitting down. It's always polite to ask, "May I sit down Teachers?" Don't just take your seat happily because it might seem rude ok?

4) Don't be so nervous, breathe in and out and try your utmost best. That is most important ok?

On Monday,
for those who have not submitted their files,
please do so.
I only have 20 odd files now.
If you have lost your files, please inform me.
However, please ensure that you check your house thoroughly for your file.
Don't expect to come with the easy way out of claiming you've lost it ok?

Husnul,
I will be giving out worksheets and practices on SEAT & SIT and more of such confusing words.
To explain simply,

SEAT is a NOUN.
However, it can also be used as a VERB.
This depends on the context (situation) of the sentence that you are writing.

SIT is a VERB and will only be used as a VERB.
SIT is easier to apply in sentences but sometimes, you need to use SEAT as a VERB instead of SIT.
More practices coming up ok? :)
Once Oral Exams are done, we will start on our writing and grammar learning ok class? :)

With all my love,
Miss NF

2008-06-19T18:07:00.005+08:00

School is Starting!

One more weekend and we'll see each other in school next Monday dear ones. :)

Anyway,

One announcement:
The exercise below will be open to you only till Friday 10pm.Entries after that will not be entertained. Marks will only be given to those who attempted accurately as much as possible and 1 mark extra as credit for the effort. :)
So far, those eligible for the marks are:

1) Sarah
2) TeckWoon
3) Brendon

3 out of 41?
So i assume the rest are not interested in earning more marks?
This is practice for you as well.
These words are common words that students always confuse themselves with.
So why not give it a shot and test yourself? :)

See you on Monday 23rd of June!
In the meantime, i hope you've done some revision and enjoy the rest of your break!

Love,
Miss Sunshine. :)

2008-06-10T17:03:00.007+08:00

What's the Difference?

These are some words that students always get confused with in the usage of sentence construction.

Can any of you tell me or show me the usage of these words in their respective sentences correctly?

I will add 1 mark for your assignment in Term 3 for EVERY correct sentence showing the correct usage of these words. :) You need not necessarily use the word in its original form. You can change the form of the word depending on your sentence. For instance, if you feel you need to change the word to its past tense form, do so. :)

So what are you waiting for?

Earn your marks!!
Please type your answers in the COMMENT BOX SECTION and NOT THE TAGBOARD.
Thank you!

Confusing words:

1) Seat & Sit
2) Except & Accept
3) Bring & Take
4) Come & Go
5) Send & Sent

All the Best!

2008-06-06T22:10:00.003+08:00

Announcement!!

I have linked 2 websites under the Links Navigation in the side bar ok!

Do check it out and read up during the holidays!

Love,
MissNasyitah :)

2008-06-06T18:42:00.002+08:00

Balance Holidays & Play Sunshines!

Evening every single Sunshine of mine! :)

Firstly,
apologies for replying late to your questions and tags okay?
I was busy visiting my friend who has just given birth to a healthy baby boy for the past few days! :)

Anyway,
i am very very happy indeed to see sensible yet humorous tags on the board.
Tags that are related to EL and at the same time, i am of course open to jokes which are acceptable. ;)
THANK YOU for taking the effort to come to this blog my dearest Sunshines. *SmiLes*

Alright!
First things first,
Let me answer Sayrah Kiddo's question!
What's the difference between WONDER and WANDER?

Let me give you 2 sentences to exemplify(show) the use of these words and KIDDO,
do tell me if you understand the meaning from these sentences ok? :)

1) I wonder what the world would be like in twenty years time.

2) Mrs Tan's daughter likes to wander the streets to pass the time away.

Next,
the link to the BBC website is:

CLICKHERE!

For your information, the website also includes practices for other subjects like Mathematics as well.
So do feel free to explore the website ok ESPECIALLY the English Language section! :)
Sufiyan website's posted here! :)
THANK YOU Hidir for providing the link on your nickname before i responded. :)
I'm very glad you took the initiative to inform Brendon. :)
Brendon, I hope you will give it your best shot for yourself from now until the 'N' Levels. :)
I hope EVERY SUNSHINE of mine will give it their best shot from now till the 'N' Levels ok?
WE can do it together!
Just like what Brendon and Hidir has been discussing on the tagboard,
help each other out! ;)

Hearul Irfan,
yes it's the holidays for U!
Remember to balance revision and play ok?

Alright Sunshines!

Enjoy your break but at the same time, take some time to revise your studies ok?
Do not lose touch with revision my dear ones! :)

I'll be posting more online exercises that I find useful for grammar skills or other skills ok? :)

Love,
Miss Nasyitah

2008-05-25T12:30:00.003+08:00

Okie 4A1,

The previous entry on June Holiday schedule is not the finalised schedule ok?

I have passed the Finalised schedule to Tommy on Friday for everyone to take note.

Don't tell me you did not see it.

It's your responsibility.

30th May - 10.30am to 12.30pm

Oral Intensive Program.
Only for the selected 21 students.

2nd June - Whole Class tutorial.
PLEASE BRING YOUR EL FILES.

4th June - Groups A,B,C tutorial. Combined.
So there should be 25 of you attending altogether for this session.

FOR ALL THE TUTORIALS STATED ABOVE,
TIME IS FROM 10.30AM TO 12.30PM.
2 HOURS FOR EVERY SESSION OK?

THANK YOU!!

P/S: Thank you for the song dedication. :) I will try my best to help you in EL ok but let's work together!

2008-05-19T19:01:00.002+08:00

Holiday Program Schedule:

Time for ALL holiday programmes for EL 4A1:

1030 to 1130

27th & 29th May:

Those who are down for the Oral Intensive Programme, please make sure you attend for these 2 days.
Remember what i say about how Oral Exams now are of higher percentage count in your exams? You need to do well in Oral Exams too!

21 of you are down for this Oral Practice Programme.

Holiday Tutorials will be on the 2nd, 3rd and 4th June.
(you should know because you have been informed)

2nd June: Group A
3rd June: Group B
4th June: Group C

These are the Tutorial groupings:

Group A:
1. Ayu
2. Muy Kim
3. Thahir
4. Mohan
5. Randall
6. Tommy
7. Kang Yu
8. Shi yan
9. Weiling

Group B:
1. Zi Yang
2. Ali
3. Wan Xin
4. Arisa
5. Zhi keong
6. Jun fei
7. Irfan
8. Benjamin

Group C:
1. Daryl
2. Leslie
3. Cheryl
4. Guiling
5. Philana
6. Brandon
7. Sebastian
8. Roem

It's just ONE hour for each day and you don't have to come everyday as you can see above.
This is because i have divided you into groups.
So please, if you love yourself and your FUTURE,
let's work together and put in the extra mile to do well for N Levels ok? :)

Remember:
Effort is important. The key is to always try your best through effort. Effort can produce SUCCESS!

Answering Knightmare's question

2008-05-18T15:42:00.005+08:00

LOOKS

1) If you are using 'Looks' as a NOUN, it will be considered to be in the plural form.
Example of sentences:

a) If looks are important, what about character?
b) His good looks are causing him to be egocentric and full of himself.

2) Looks as a VERB (action word) is in the PRESENT TENSE form. In this case, it has nothing to do with plural or singular forms.

Example of sentences:

a) He looks out for her safety every single day without fail.
b) She looks very dazed and sad.
c) He looks up to his father who is a firefighter. - the phrase in bold is called a PHRASAL VERB, not just a Verb.

Remember: 1 English word can be used in so many different ways to convey different meanings, depending on the situation (situation = context).

By the way dear sunshines,

This is a link for you to explore, practice and build your vocabulary power in a fun and learning manner. Please attempt the challenging games and not the simple ones because you will not be learning anything new if you don't attempt the challenging games or those that will put your vocabulary skills to a test ok?

My recommendation: Try the QUIZ game and the LETTER BLOCKS game.

ClickHERE!

Love,
MissSunshine

2008-05-07T09:31:00.003+08:00

What are your feelings/thoughts about this recent case?

Dear 4A1,

Have you heard of the word, INCEST?
Do you know the meaning of trauma?
Psychological, emotional and physical abuse?
Have you heard of the name Josef Fritzl?

Well, if you haven't here's a piece of news for you!
Read this article on a recent case which proves to be shocking and disturbing for people all over the world to know.

Click here for the article.

Perspective-Taking:
Questions for you:

1) How would you feel if you were the victim (the daughter) or the victims (the children)?
2) How would you feel if you were the wife of the perpetrator?
3) What is your overall feelings and thoughts about this whole case?

Feel free to put your opinions on the comment box.
Sensible, true, honest opinions without being offensive ok?

I will start putting in entries for discussions on recent incidents on the news headlines or anything I feel is interesting for you!

You can post entries on topics that you find interesting for the class to discuss and post their opinions ok! :)

Hope to see your comments soon!

And good luck for mid-year exams!

Starting Afresh!

2008-05-04T14:20:00.002+08:00

First and foremost,
Thank You 4A1 for that sweet and truly sincere apology on Friday.

I wsa speechless and really touched by the gesture.
What's most important is that you realised your folly and some of you have shown interest for us to start afresh on this blog. :)

I will not hesitate to do so if you are keen on maximizing the usage of this blog and use it to your advantage in learning the english language. :)

Let's start afresh!
I will be placing a new comment box at the end of every entry so check it out.
You can use that comment box by clicking on 'Comment' and type your comment.
Tagboard will be up also on the side bar ok?

Good Luck for the Mid-Year Exams that's coming up this week ok!
Study hard and let's continue to work hard for English LAnguage ok?

Lots of Love,
Miss N

A Surprise Indeed

2008-04-28T17:03:00.003+08:00

A SURPRISE?

I am surprised indeed.

However, i am NOT pleasantly surprised.

my surprise is one of being appalled (go and check the meaning of this word and build up your vocabulary).

I am surprised + disappointed (and extremely disappointed at that).

WHY?

Because:

1) I never expected my 4A1 to be irresponsible users of this blog.
2) I never expected such disappointing tags on the board.
3) 4A1 has defeated my purpose (look up the meaning of this phrase if you don't know) in setting up this blog.
4) 4A1 has insulted and humiliated me plus many other teachers in the tagboard, which is extremely unacceptable and irresponsible.
5) You have abused the trust i had in you.
6) You are not even bothered to try and post comments or questions. Instead, you happily tagged ridiculous things on the board.

IS THAT MY PURPOSE IN SETTING UP THIS EDUCATIONAL BLOG?

WHAT IS MY MAIN AIM IN THIS BLOG?

WHO ARE YOU TO MAKE FUN OF OTHERS AND THE MOST SHOCKING PART IS MAKING FUN OF TEACHERS?!

HAVE I EVER EVER MADE FUN OF ANY OF YOU???!

LIKE I ALWAYS SAY,

WHAT MIGHT BE FUNNY TO YOU,
MIGHT NOT BE FUNNY TO OTHERS AND THERE ARE LIMITS TO JOKES 4A1.

I'm so terribly disappointed.

And yes.
Your wish has been granted 4A1.
You have surprised me indeed.
Surprised me in every way but positive.
Surprised me to a point my heart sank when i read the tags.

Is that what you find this blog is about?
A JOKE?

Ok.
Since it's a joke to you when here i am trying hard to try and work together on learning english language,

Decision made:
This blog is going to be closed down.
This will be the last post.
I see it as futile to have this blog up when it's not being taken seriously.
I've already stated my expectations of you in this blog when i posted the first 2 entries.

Thank you 4A1.
For disappointing me.
For throwing my efforts into the drain, just in the blink of an eye.
Thank you.
I know now how much i am appreciated.

As of now, we will make use of only lesson time and tutorials.

Mid year paper is over

2008-04-24T19:46:00.001+08:00

Now we will work towards the bigger picture,

N Levels paper ok sunshines?

Let's continue working hard towards N Levels and try our utmost best.

Hopefully today's paper was alright and you tried your best!

Sorry i couldn't be in school due to unforeseen circumstances.

See you next week for EL lessons k!

Answer Scheme

2008-04-22T21:41:00.001+08:00

Answers for comprehension practice

Units 1 to 3

UNIT 1

(Limestone) caves and (razor-edged) pinnacles
it is a well-established feature on the Borneo tourist map. OR it has more than 100 visitors a week
The word is ‘trek’
They are dedicated climbers
Even amateur hill walkers would not think 8000 feet is high.
There is still a wild, inaccessible element to Borneo.
the word is ‘ recorded’
The headhunters
the words are ‘seasoned climbers’
they climbed the wrong mountain
he knew which was the right mountain OR the area had been properly surveyed
The sheer cliffs
He knew the route to the ridge
the cold, wet weather and the lack of food
Oxford university
the word is ‘gruelling’
there are many leeches
the place is quite unlike the surrounding area
it is extremely wet and dark
you can see far into the distance

UNIT 2

the phrase is, ‘amidst his plants and flowers on his veranda’
it means to be found only among the Ibans
the word is ‘indigenous’
they were used for war and ceremony
they are used exclusively for ceremony today
the shields of former times which were used in warfare
the words are , ‘regularly grace’
the word is, ‘festooned’
he draws freehand
the words are, ‘fertile imagination’
they are ‘a dream’
he believes it has some magical power that will keep his ability safe
the word is, ‘schooled’
he says he has never derived his ideas from other people
he meditates for a short while

UNIT 3

the Romans were superior soldiers with greater experience
an earthquake
they are ‘battle-hardened’
it is ‘obscurity’
compared with what it had known, there was very little further trouble
it took 2 years for Roman troops to reach there

OK! Please practice your exercises given to you!
And if you have any questions,
bombard me tomorrow!

LOts of love,
Miss Nasyitah

The use of Tenses

2008-04-20T10:53:00.002+08:00

Dear Sunshines,

Just a gentle revision and reminder,

In ANY of your works for English,
whether it's an essay or letter or comprehension,
the use of Tenses must depend on what you are writing about.
Some forms of writing,
like the NARRATIVES or PERSONAL RECOUNT must be written in the PAST tense unless you are using dialogues in certain parts of your narrative or personal recount.

However,
for other writings like descriptive, argumentative, discussion and so on,
you MUST look at the question and asks yourself, is the question asking me to write in the past or present or future tense?
You must be able to identify the use of tenses already by now ok?
However, if you are still uncertain,
always feel free to ask me because that's what i am here for.
To help you although i will feel very worried if you were to be really confused on this.

For instance,
the complaint/commendation letter to be written:

You write in the PAST tense when you are describing what happened or describing the incident because it has already happened; it's done; it's over; it's in the past. So you use past tense.
However, you write using the Present tense when you state the purpose of your letter at the beginning and when you state what you hope to be done as you end off your letter.

Is that alright with everyone? :)

Anymore questions,
just ask me!

Start your revision because...
English Paper's in less than 1 week!

All the best darlings!

Formal Letter

2008-04-19T23:58:00.004+08:00

Some tips and reminders:

1) Memorise the format by heart

2) Everything is of LEFT alignment now

3) The sequence of the format goes like this:

i) Address of Sender
ii) Date
iii) Position/Title of Recipient followed by the address
iv) Title of Letter
v) Greeting: Dear Sir/Madam or Dear (name of person if you are told)
vi) Letter content itself (intro, body, conclusion) --> USE THE BULLETED POINTS GIVEN TO YOU
vii) Signing off --> Yours Faithfully (if you used Sir/Madam) or Yours Sincerely (if you greet them by their names)
- sign your name then write your name below your signature.

4) No need to indent your paragraphs now. LEFT alignment.
Make sure you just leave a space after each paragraph to indicate a new paragraph. :)

Remember:
1) Tone of formal letter must be civil and polite, even if you are writing a complaint letter. You must not be rude or harsh in your letter. :)

2) Elaborate on each of the bulleted points/questions provided. Use your creativity/imagination to add details or description that answer the bulleted points. Make sure you do not go out of point or become too exaggerating.

Types of situations for formal letters:
--> Complaint
--> Commendation (praising)
--> Asking for permission to go somewhere or do something
--> Enquiry on company services
--> Request for something (maybe refund or services)

Any questionS?

Lesson for Monday (14/04/2008)

2008-04-13T12:42:00.002+08:00

Presentation of the Types of Essays by the groups who have yet to present their group work.

Make sure you do not tell me you have lost the paper.

I expect all of you to be responsible for your own learning and i have trusted you to keep the paper for our upcoming lesson.

EXAMS is in less than 2 weeks.

So PLEASE!

If you want to improve and learn the skills in English as much as you can,

Let's work hard together!

*think MOCCA advertisement concept for this post*. :)

I'll see you sunshines tomorrow!

Tutorial Groupings

2008-04-08T17:39:00.002+08:00

Dear 4A1,

Tutorials will resume every tuesday 215pm at 4a1 classroom.
I have divided the ones whom i feel need a lot of help into 3 tutorial groups.
Tutorials will now be more focused on individual weaknesses, that is the reason i have come up with this grouping system.

For those who are not selected to come for my tutorials,
it does not mean you cannot join.
Every Tuesday, the group will be a group of 8.
I have allowance or space for 2 more students who would like to join.
DO tell me beforehand (in class) that you are interested to join the upcoming tutorial so i can prepare additional materials for you to be included for that tutorial as well.

These are the Tutorial groupings:

Group A:
1. Ayu
2. Muy Kim
3. Thahir
4. Mohan
5. Randall
6. Tommy
7. Kang Yu
8. Shi yan

Absent from today's tutorial (9/4/08): Thahir, Tommy, Kang Yu

Group B:
1. Zi Yang
2. Ali
3. Wan Xin
4. Arisa
5. Zhi keong
6. Jun fei
7. Irfan
8. Benjamin

Group C:
1. Daryl
2. Leslie
3. Cheryl
4. Guiling
5. Philana
6. Brandon
7. Sebastian
8. Roem

Love,
Me

What type of essays?

2008-04-06T22:08:00.002+08:00

The first step in attempting ESSAY Writing is to be able to identify the type of essay that you are writing.

If an essay is a descriptive essay that you have to write in details and flowery descriptions,
but you end up writing a personal recount,

that would cause you to fail your paper.

REALLY. this is the truth.

So the first step is always to identify correctly the type of essay ok?

I have provided the notes for you 4A1,
but do feel free to ask me if you have any doubts.

Do bear in mind that...

Almost all essays have to be DESCRIPTIVE.

Your narratives or personal recounts must involve a rich description using adjectives or phrases that will paint a picture in your reader's mind.
NOTE: why not use the VOCABULARY PRACTICE SHEET and use some phrases which suit your essay depending on the essay you are writing?

I will make this a compulsory aspect of essay writing for our next Paper 1, Section 1 Essay ok?

I realise, the vocabulary practice sheet will be collecting dust if i were to leave it to you to use on your own.
So, it's forcing time!
It's for your own good people. :)

And 4A1,
let's make classroom learning a pleasant and conducive environment alright?

Please, we only have one hour every lesson.
It's precious.

Please return to classroom as fast as you can if you are coming from another part of the school.
I don't wish to waste 15 mins waiting for you.
You would not want your classmates who are already in class to wait as well.
It's not fair is it?
Plus, i don't wish to start and leave you behind.
It's not fair is it?

Next,
please try to pay attention because i do not wish to make my lesson like a jerky taxi ride where there's pauses (resulting in a lesson that's not smooth-going) just because some of you are doing something else or talking or anything else except paying attention!

Let's help each other out for the N levels is near.

OK?
ALRIGHT!

Home Assignment for my Sunshines

2008-03-28T12:42:00.002+08:00

Just to serve as a reminder to my dear 4A1,

you have been given an assignment to do over the weekend today. :)

What we did yesterday & today:

1) I covered summary writing skills in general through powerpoint slides
(you can ask me for the powerpoint slides if you wish to have it)

2) I provided you with 6 essay topics (past N level Paper 1 Section 1 topics).

Two tasks for yesterday (27 March 2008):
i) To identify the type of essay for each topic given.
ii) To select one of the essays which you find you aer most comfortable and confident in writing with an explanation of why you have selected that topic.

Today's Lesson:

I checked your work for yesterday.
Those who completed my work (since yesterday, or smartly, today on the spot) received the first set of notes on "types of essay".

We went on to complete the "Essay Writing Guide Sheet" which I have collected from you!

Two more sets of reading were provided.
a) "The Real Meaning of Honesty" sample Essay
- Task: to read at home and identify what type of essay it is. To pick out anything that is amiss or unacceptable about the essay. :)

b) "Writing As A Process" Sheet.
- These are guidelines for you in planning or drafting out your essay before you write one.

HOME ASSIGNNMENT:

Deadline: Monday 31st March 2008

Products to be submitted:

i) Draft or Plan of your Essay Topic in your style (can be a mind map, table or so on as long as it's legible and logical.)

ii) Your full, completed beautiful essay written in your neatest handwriting which shows the pride you have in your work! :)

NO slipshod work please. This is for your own good.

Monday's discussion: On "The real Meaning of Honesty" essay. :)

Let's work hard together!

Love,
Miss Sunshine

WElcome 4A1 LYSS!

2008-03-22T10:29:00.000+08:00

To my dearest 4A1,

This is another step for this year that I feel would be useful for you to improve in your English Language skills.

BLOGGING.

:)

Blogging's the trend nowadays right?

However, this blog will only serve educational purposes.

I want you to regularly check this blog and BOOKMARK it.

We only meet for 6 periods a week..
So I find this blog useful for communication beyond the classroom level yes? :)

What is going to happen in this blog:

1) We will have discussions on topics that either ME or any of YOU choose to open with regards to EL learning ok? You will be given access to this blog personally in class by me. I trust you will not abuse the trust i have and pass the access around or i will delete this blog.

2) Questions or doubts that you have with regards to EL can be posted.

3) YOU are to identify yourself as my student whenever you post a comment.
NO anonymous comment will be entertained.

4) I will post assignments that have been given to you as reminders here. Or I can even put up new assignments for you here. So keep checking! :)

Let's have fun learning English in the process through blogging alright?

Expectations:

1) No nonsense. I believe and trust my 4A1 is mature and sensible enough. :)

2) Treat this seriously because i hope that through this blog, you'll learn useful tips on EL and improve your EL.

All other students from LYSS are also welcome to comment in this blog, but sensible and logical comments, not to mention, constructive comments. :)

Access however, is strictly for 4A1 students & myself.

Let's do this people! :)

P/S: Remember what i said about learning being a 2-way process and that when you make mistakes, i point it out. However, if I were to make mistakes as well, don't hesitate to point it out ok? ;) That's where real learning starts.

Remember: Nobody's perfect and we improve on ourselves through each other. :)

Love,
Miss Nasyitah