VS 2A 2009 English Language Blog

Hi guys,

Most of you did fairly well in English and have shown some improvement. Congrats to Francis for topping the class in English and Xun Yi for showing the most improvement.

Do remember to read more short stories during the year-end break and make regular deposits in your Vocab Bank. This will help you get a better grasp of the language and aid you in your other subjects as well.

Please also check the LMS for your holiday homework.

Happy holiday!


MS Koo

DOs

• Analyse the question to determine what the question is asking for.
• Refer to the passage instead of relying on your memory/ knowledge to answer the question (this is important, especially for vocab questions!).
• Answer in the same tense as the question (a must for summary).
• Read instructions (especially for own words and quote questions)
• Answers for vocab question must follow the same word form (e.g., "frightened" = "scared", NOT "scary")

DON'Ts

• Don't be tricked by the question. Factual/ literal questions need not always start with the 5Ws1H (e.g., "what", "who", "when"), they could start with "list", "write", "state".
• Don't infer too far from the text (see example given at the end of this entry)
• Don't use the root word to explain the meaning (of the phrase).

Good luck for your exams!

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E.g., if given the statement, "The Minister confessed to owning the gun that was used to injure his wife", we may infer the following:

• the Minister is married (since he has a wife)
• the Minster is a man (since he has a wife)
• he owns a gun
• his wife was injured
• the minister acknowledged that he owned a gun

We may NOT infer the following (too far an inference):

• the Minister shot his wife (he only confessed to owning the gun)
• his wife is dead (statement only says she is injured)
• the Minister is covering up for someone

Sec2 2007 P2 Answer

Hi guys,

You should have received the 2007 Paper 2 from Ryan. Do try it under exam conditions. I will post the answers on the blog on Sunday.

REMINDER #1: Underline the key words in the question and look for these key words in the passage (you will usually be given the paragraph or line number). The answer is usually found within the paragraph/line stated (unless it is an inferential question).

Except for Own Words, Vocabulary and Summary questions, you may lift the answer directly from the passage (i.e. no need to substitute key words).

If you answer in your own words for factual/literal questions, you may risk losing the contextual meaning or accidentally giving an inferential answer (which is NOT what the marker is looking for!) You may also have wasted precious time (and brain cells) rewording your answer.

TIP #1: Assume all questions (unless told to write the answer in your own words) are factual/literal questions, and look for the answer in the passage. If you are unable to find the answer in the passage, deduce/infer your answer from the clues given in the passage.

TIP #2: If the key word in the question is not used in the passage, chances are that it is a factual/literal question. E.g., if the question asks you "What did Timmy do to punish Tommy?" and "punish" is not in the paragraph, it may be a factual/literal question and you should look for verbs that are related to "punish".

If you have problems recognising the type of question, drop by my window and I'll give you a mega tips on the wording usually used for each type of question. Do bring along the practice papers you have for 'live' examples.


MS Koo

How do you bring the reader into your story? How do you create a vivid picture with words? You could consider showing the reader instead of telling. What's the difference between showing and telling?

Consider these two simple examples:

• I grew tired after dinner.

• As I leaned back and rested my head against the top of the chair, my eyelids began to feel heavy, and the edges of the empty plate in front of me blurred with the white tablecloth.

The first sentence tells readers that you grew tired after dinner. The second sentence shows readers that you grew tired. An effective narrative essay will have such 'shows' because they enable readers to imagine or experience something for themselves.

The best way to create a vivid experience for your readers is to focus on the five senses.
• sight
• sound
• smell
• touch
• taste

When you focus your descriptions on the senses, you provide vivid and specific details that show your readers rather than tell your readers what you are describing.

(adapted from How to Write a Descriptive Essay by Jesse Seldess, Professional Writer)

Hi guys,

For those of you who wish to rest your brains, you may wish to visit these websites and read the collection of short stories there.

www.eastoftheweb.com/short-stories

www.theshortstory.org.uk

www.americanliterature.com

www.shortstoryarchive.com


MS Koo

For your essays, do not use informal language (unless it's in a dialogue). Words like "kids" & "bike" are not allowed.


MS Koo

Hi guys,

Attached are some sample narrative scaffolds you may wish to refer to when planning your essays.

Remember, it is okay to keep the story simple - use language to retain the readers' attention.



MS Koo

Sample Narrative Scaffolds

For those who wish to know the solution to the Neightbours puzzle.

Neighbours

Unless the question specifically asks you to quote a word, you may quote the phrase you deem appropriate. When in doubt (i.e. you are not sure which is the relevant phrase), you may quote the entire chunk of text within the punctuation marks (e.g., all the words in the second half of the sentence, between the comma and the full-stop).

NOTE: Use this ONLY when you are desperate and unsure which is the correct answer. As you may inccur "excess denied".

Hi guys,

I am considering putting together some practice exercises targetted at skills needed to answer specific comprehension questions (e.g., inferential questions). Do let me know if anyone needs additional help on a specific type of question.


MS Koo

Hi guys,

For your info, you will most probably be tested only on narrative essays for your Paper 1. Do not assume that there will be factual or expository questions (or that you can write a factual/expository essay using a narrative topic).

For those who submitted a factual or expository essay on Thursday, I would strongly recommend that you attempt a narrative one over the weekend so that I can take a look at it next week and give you comments on how you could improve your essay.

Hi guys,

The baton is in your hands - we've already gone over all the material you will be tested on and you have been handed the necessary tools you need to get that A1 in your SA2. All that's left is for you to practice and hone your skills so that you can secure that oft-elusive distinction.

So, good luck guys and full steam ahead for the last leg of the 'race' (until 20 Oct anyway)!


MS Koo

p.s. Those who have any queries, feel free to look for me in the Staff Room. I should be in school till 5pm.