VS 2A 2009 English Language Blog

hello all,

This is the help desk for your English CA preparations. If you haven't already heard, Mr Sivanesson will be covering for me in my absence, however, there are some periods that he will not be able to make it, so other teachers will cover the slots that he is not there. Mr Sivanesson is an ex-VS student and has done very well in the Sec 1 classes that he teaches. So I trust that everything will be in order in my absence.

Anyway, so I'm off for my reservist duty at Central Police Division and I have a strong feeling that I will be deployed for the law and order operation at Thaipusam.

So do post your concerns and whatever you require help for as a comment under this post. See you soon.

Best Wishes,
Mr Tan

Dear all,

This is the LAST call for all your blog entries. Please ensure that all your blog entries are updated and that you have indicated the entries for assessment. This must be done by Monday 2 Feb 2009.

If by any chance your blogs are not reflected or accurately reflected on the links in this blog, please do drop a comment on this post with your blog URL.

Thanks and see you soon!

hi all,

We now have a word of the day widget.

No need to look for the definitions as they are all in the widget, so, take down the definition and need to make a sentence with this word!

So, dedicate an exercise book for this and I will check the exercise books on a regular basis!

hello all,

These are the words that we looked at in class.

Endorse
Furnace
Obscure
Jaded
Eschew
Magnanimous
Fastidious

Your CNY assignment is to find the definitions of these words and make a sentence with these words. Post your sentences in the comments section to this post!

hi all,

Let's have a look at this sample blog post.

Well, I can't claim to speak for the Tekong people [I will leave that for Asri] because most of us on the blog at the moment were from BMTC 2 at Nee Soon Camp, come to think of it, most of us were in fact from Gryphon Company, BMTC 2.

I was absolutely scared stiff on posting day, whatever the Singapore Armed Forces had in store for me, I wasn't looking forward to it. I had seen the barracks at SAFTI MI and I was convinced the better it looked the less you were going to use it. In preparation for the inevitable let down by the supply chain, I had packed 5 toilet rolls in anticipation of a long and painful confinement period at OCS.

But, somehow or other at the back of my mind, I had a feeling that it was going to be my lucky day. After all, it was 5 Oct 1998, it was my 22nd birthday.

So as Gryphon Company gathered reluctantly to find out the fates that awaited us, 2nd Lieutenant Tay, my less than sane Platoon Commander went "Wah Lau! Daryl Tan and Mark Tan half left hit it!" I started to think this really could be my day, was it really the mythical NSPI posting that I had heard much about but knew very little off.

Numerous push ups and crunches later, it was confirmed, Mark and I were going to the SPF and of course, we were overjoyed and we let our platoon 2 mates who were going to SISPEC know all about it as well. I looked around the motley collection of individuals from Gryphon who were going to the SPF as well, there was Mark who I didn't know particularly well except he was the talkative one from Section 3 who got the whole company into pumping position during range as he was hassling the most effeminate member of our platoon. Looking further up the line, there 2 guys who stood out as they were clearly less than enamored at the posting which was rather strange to me. One was the psychopathic looking Indian guy who had a moustache and looked like he was in his 30s and looked ready to kill. There was also the skinny Eurasian dude who had hassled me on guard duty a few weeks before.

From this less than promising beginning, Mark, Aziz, Terence and I would become the best of friends during National Service!

As they say, this was just the beginning!

Can you identify the various structures in this post?

For this assignment, you will be required to create 5 blog entries over ANY FIVE days (from Sat 17 Jan 09 to Thurs 29 Jan 09) of which you will choose one to print out and hand to your teacher fro formal assessment.

Each entry which should be at least 250 words.

The entries should demonstrate the writer’s ability to:
• use language features and structures appropriate to a given audience (their peers)
• entertain and inform effectively.

Such structures and language features of blog creation should:
• include the use of at least one other media effectively combined with the text to elaborate and extend the communication
• be written in the form of personal recount with language features such as personal pronouns, details of events (what, where, when, what and how)
• vivid descriptions, elaboration through cause and effect and personal response and reflection

Your 5 entries could cover the following themes:
• something unusual that happened that day
• a difficulty you faced
• a moment you enjoyed with your family
• something that took place in school
• a moment spent alone doing something you enjoyed


N.B. THIS ASSIGNMENT CONSTITUTES 50% OF CA1 MARKS

Your assignment should be posted on your blog over the week ready to be assessed by your teacher by 8am, Friday 30 Jan 2009

hello all,

It's that time of the year again. Everyone is required to write and submit an essay of between 500 to 700 words for this competition by Thursday 22 Jan 2008, so I can clear the marking before I head off for reservist duty.

Please note you should submit your word processed essays (Times New Roman, size 12 font, double spaced) in hardcopy. After submission, please retain your soft copy until we decide which entries will be submitted for evaluation.

The topics are:

1 Your assignment is to interview an animal for your local newspaper or radio station. Send us the transcript of your interview!

2 What three plants or trees are most important for life inyour country? Why?

3 What I don’t want to do when I’m grown up.

4 A distant cousin who lives in a very different Commonwealth country is coming to visit for the first time. Write a letterintroducing yourself and your home

5 Write a story about the sea or a mountain or both.

6 Commonwealth Question OR Charlton Athletic Community Trust Question:
a) Commonwealth Question: Over half of the 1.8 billion people in the Commonwealth are
aged 25 or under. What changes in your country would enhance
the lives of young people?
b) Charlton Athletic Community Trust Question: ‘The Beautiful Game’: Why does football inspire such passion
around the world?

Please refer to the following document for more details:

2009 Commonwealth