2011 PSLE Discussions and Strategy

[James Ang]

Brenda10:

James Ang:

Try this easy Pri 1 sum, from a good book, Improve your thinking skills in Maths by EPH.


If Anna buys 5 mangoes, she will have $4 left. If she buys 7 mangoes, she will be short of $2. How much money does Anna have?

Hi James

Give a try:

7 - 5 = 2
4 + 2 = 6
6 / 2= 3
3 x 5 + 4 = 19

The answer is $19.00

You are correct, best method too!

[Brenda10]

James Ang:

You are correct, best method too!

Hi James

Thank you.

I remember this method when dd was working on P4 (if not wrong) past year paper and again see this type of questions in P5 and P6 papers too. How come now P1 also has such question? Really scary.

[tisha]

Brenda10:

James Ang:

You are correct, best method too!

Hi James

Thank you.

I remember this method when dd was working on P4 (if not wrong) past year paper and again see this type of questions in P5 and P6 papers too. How come now P1 also has such question? Really scary.

Brenda,
I must say your method is very elegant. Appropriate for higher primary.
I solved it using models, a bit laborious I must say, but that's how you would do solve in lower primary.
James Ang,
I see the point now, for P1 it would be a 2-3 mk Q where as for P6 just a MCQ to be done in the least amount of time. I'm humbled. :salute:

I wonder how DS will solve this, he is not a big fan of models. Will ask him to try when he returns from school.

[James Ang]

Brenda10:

James Ang:

You are correct, best method too!

Hi James

Thank you.

I remember this method when dd was working on P4 (if not wrong) past year paper and again see this type of questions in P5 and P6 papers too. How come now P1 also has such question? Really scary.

This type of question appeared in last year's PSLE paper 2, but the language was indirect so there are many students who didn't get it right.

[hashroop]

James Ang:

Brenda10:

[quote=\"James Ang\"]You are correct, best method too!

Hi James

Thank you.

I remember this method when dd was working on P4 (if not wrong) past year paper and again see this type of questions in P5 and P6 papers too. How come now P1 also has such question? Really scary.

This type of question appeared in last year's PSLE paper 2, but the language was indirect so there are many students who didn't get it right.[/quote]Sorry, maths is never my forte. I'll hide under the table when i'm asked maths questions. As for the above question Im still :?

[Mum1113]

This type of question appeared in last year’s PSLE paper 2, but the language was indirect so there are many students who didn’t get it right.[/quote]


Just involved ds to try it out, he couldnt believe it came out last PSLE. As ds is taking this year, and just reminded not to ‘over’ or ‘under’ estimate power of questions coming through this year. As the saying goes : You will never know…

[Mum1113]

Mum1113:

This type of question appeared in last year's PSLE paper 2, but the language was indirect so there are many students who didn't get it right.

Just involved ds to try it out, he couldnt believe it came out last PSLE. As ds is taking this year, and just reminded not to 'over' or 'under' estimate power of questions coming through this year. As the saying goes : You will never know......[/quote]

Forget to add , ds got it right :love:

[Tinkerbelle]

tisha:

Tinkerbelle:

Science is not DD's forte so I hope that there's enough time for her to process all the new knowledge later in the year. DD usually loses marks in MCQ and does better in Section B. :scratchhead: Heard from friends that their kids are the opposite....can get full marks for MCQ and loses marks in open-ended questions. What about your kids? Do they fare better in MCQ or Open-ended questions?

Doing well in Section B is quite an achivement. :celebrate:
Most kids mess up their score due to Section B ( as told by DS's FT), and same is the case of DS. Can get close to full marks in science MCQ but really messes up Section B. I'm still not sure how to coach him in component. Sometimes his answers are correct but the key words are missing. Sometimes he loses marks for incomplete key words. For e.g. He would write 'This forms a circuit' instead of 'This forms a closed circuit' :x Some answers are long winded, where as the expectation is to write succinct answers, peppered with the right key words. And yes some asnwers are completely off the mark. :stupid:

tinkerbelle, how do you coach your DD for science, especially the Section B.

Any tutors, parents please share any pointers.

Mum1113:

Reading this creates much anxiety in me and ds. Doing well for section B is really something !!
Will tinkerbelle share how it's done ?

Hi Tisha & Mum1113,
I understand what you mean. For Section B, teachers are very particular about certain key words. Most kids do understand the concepts but because they use layman's terms, the teachers will mark them wrong. DD also loses marks for incomplete key words.

I'm no science expert. Textbooks don't cover much details so I usually use sci guide books to revise with DD. I'll go through the concepts with her and highlight key works to help her tackle open-ended questions. After going through the guide book, I'll get DD to tackle assessment books on that topic. When we have time, We'll try to squeeze in past year papers.

Her teacher ever commented that if in doubt for sci questions, always think of a scientific concept behind the questions. To quote an example: Why do we need food? Some kids will answer \"We need food so we will not be hungry.\" In actual fact, the scientific answer is \"We need food so that we can obtain energy from it to do work.\" So I always remind DD to look for the scientific facts. I'm also learning together with DD. Wish I can help her more with MCQ. Each MCQ is worth 2 marks each so getting a few questions wrong can be costly Any tips to improve on MCQ, anyone???

[Tinkerbelle]

Funx3:

My Gal did Her latest compo (CL) in school, in the time frame set by the T, and Just Misses the Ending by 4 character when the T strictly asked everybody to \"Pens Down, No Writing!\"

And was Told she Got 4 marks Minus off Coz Ending Not Completed ....

She Wrote 3 1/2 pages - Don't have time to read thru what she wrote,
So I Just Told Her to Cut Her Story Short Next Time, So Can Complete it on time (4 Marks is A Lot -le!) ....

Heard they Need at Least 350 characters only for Compo ....
Am I Right?

Hi Funx3,

Wow....the teacher deducted 4 marks for not completing the conclusion!!! That's strict marking, ya? Wonder if that's the norm across the board?
Yes, I agree with you...cut the story a bit shorter & aim to complete the compo. No wonder my DD always rush her conclusion...but her teacher said it was too obvious that she was rushing through the conclusion....ending always too abrupt. :slapshead:

Dunno about the word limit for CL compo....anyone else know??

[Tinkerbelle]

ppnqq:

Tinkerbelle:

:!: 8 成语 to score A* in CL compo??? :faint: Don't think DD can come up with that many 成语 in 1 compo. Think I better start exposing DD to more 成语 and hope she uses the right ones in the right context for PSLE. :xedfingers:

Thanks for sharing but if they are to use it inappropriately... :nailbite: :clubmyself:

So I still do not think it is advisable unless they really understand the idioms well and know when and how to use it. :xedfingers:

Hi ppnqq,
Thanks for your advice. Will ask DD to use only idioms that she really knows.