Preparing kids for P5 in 2011

[Brenda10]

pixiedust:

I am okay with English, Chinese (but not ds), Science but I think my brain has 1-less-screw for Maths.


@Brenda, appreciate any links to useful maths thread here ? I tried to read the one on maths problems but my eyes and brains are all crossed. Also looking forward to your dd's feedback about speedmaths camps. I had a quick look at their workbooks and they look tough :!:

CA1 timetable is out for us, good chance to find out area of weakness for each subject.

@Janet, agree EL difficulty has jumped. S&T is not straightforward, test a lot of grammar foundation.

Hi Pixiedust

We have not decided yet as school will also organising at least two maths enrichment classes for them too.

I think will very much depend on how is her performance for CA1.

Yes, for EL the most critical area in Paper 2 is compreh (20 marks) and fill in the blank with suitable words (15 marks). Both added up be 35 marks out of 95 marks.

[janet88]

Hi Brenda,

P5 open-ended comprehension passages is an eye-opening experience for my son…passages are longer and there are 10 questions. Filling in the blanks with suitable words also tricky…have to try to master these areas…30 out of 95 marks is quite a chunk.

What about editing, synthesis & transformation pls ?

[mrswongtuition]

Key things to note in helping P5 kids cope with increased volume in questions in P5 English Exam Format:


1. Read Read Read. Instill the habit of reading at least 1 news article a day. If you don't subscribe, read online news and print out 1 or 2 interesting articles a day to get your child interested. Choose an article which is in hot discussion or may interest your child. Draw a word mindmap (using the main topic, branch out related words) to increase vocab and also to understand that certain words will be used in certain scenarios.

2. Have a dictionary ready within easy reach. If budget permits, get an electronic one which can store a word list which you can upload onto the computer and print out. If using the hardcopy, make sure your child knows how to use it.

3. When reading, highlight phrases that always go together (phrasal verbs). E.g. He was taking down the poster when he fell off the ladder.
They will need phrasal verbs for Compre Cloze.

4. Make it a habit to underline/circle/highlight KEY WORDS/CLUE WORDS.
This is what I teach in class for Compre OE/MCQ: Take note of the QUESTION WORD, the clue word (tenses) and the key word (what are they referring to in the question). And if need, make simply annotations. E.g. *circle* \"WHY\" *write8 \" --> REASON\" Which means that the question is look for a REASON (not anything else).

5. For S&T, there's a few good books which give good examples and also re-explain the grammar rules. I think it's called \"Synthesis & Transformation P6\" by Marshall Cavendish. However, for practise purposes, I still prefer Teachers @ Work, Conquer S&T. Use the one from MC to 'teach', then use the exercises in Conquer for more practise.

Hope this helps!!

Regards,
Mrs Wong
http://www.mwtuition.com.sg
thelittleonesinmylife.blogspot.com

[Brenda10]

janet_lee88:

Hi Brenda,

P5 open-ended comprehension passages is an eye-opening experience for my son...passages are longer and there are 10 questions. Filling in the blanks with suitable words also tricky...have to try to master these areas...35 out of 95 marks is quite a chunk.

What about editing, synthesis & transformation pls ?

Hi Janet

These two section editing and synthesis & transformation are 10 marks each.

They are easier to score high or full marks compare with the other two ( 35 marks) that we mentioned earlier.

Thank you

[janet88]

Brenda10:

janet_lee88:

Hi Brenda,

P5 open-ended comprehension passages is an eye-opening experience for my son...passages are longer and there are 10 questions. Filling in the blanks with suitable words also tricky...have to try to master these areas...35 out of 95 marks is quite a chunk.

What about editing, synthesis & transformation pls ?

Hi Janet

These two section editing and synthesis & transformation are 10 marks each.

They are easier to score high or full marks compare with the other two ( 35 marks) that we mentioned earlier.

Hi Brenda/mrswongtuition,
Thanks for the advice. Will follow up using the tips you have given.

Thank you

[mrswongtuition]

Brenda10:

janet_lee88:

Hi Brenda,

P5 open-ended comprehension passages is an eye-opening experience for my son...passages are longer and there are 10 questions. Filling in the blanks with suitable words also tricky...have to try to master these areas...35 out of 95 marks is quite a chunk.

What about editing, synthesis & transformation pls ?

Hi Janet

These two section editing and synthesis & transformation are 10 marks each.

They are easier to score high or full marks compare with the other two ( 35 marks) that we mentioned earlier.

Thank you

For S&T, bear in mind that ANY MISTAKE (even if it's a punctuation mistake) is considered as ZERO MARKS for that question.
Many of my students lose marks here due to small mistakes. Must teach them to be very careful and check their work.

For editing, the child needs to be very alert (in terms of the right tenses the word should be in) and very strong in spelling (not to be confused easily).
I will be uploading a list of common words which students have problems with on my website. Do keep a look out.

[2DMommy]

What will be tested in EL Paper 1 ? Maths Paper 2 is it problem sums questions that can use calculator?

[mrswongtuition]

Hi,


SEAB has the list of the different subjects here: http://www.seab.gov.sg/psle/2011subjectInfo.html

They have detailed the exam format clearly.

Hope this helps.

[mrswongtuition]

I've uploaded a list of 207 commonly misspelled words for parents to work on with your children.


It's available here: http://www.mwtuition.com.sg (under 'Resources', scroll all the way down)

[janet88]

Brenda10:

janet_lee88:

Hi Brenda,

P5 open-ended comprehension passages is an eye-opening experience for my son...passages are longer and there are 10 questions. Filling in the blanks with suitable words also tricky...have to try to master these areas...35 out of 95 marks is quite a chunk.

What about editing, synthesis & transformation pls ?

Hi Janet
These two section editing and synthesis & transformation are 10 marks each.
Thank you

Hi Brenda,
I've been doing few more practices with 'fill in the blanks' (comprehension cloze) bcos he's quite weak in that area.
Have made indications for the types of comprehension cloze for eg, 'food', 'animals', 'health' etc.