CSE Class Magazine: Second Issue (November 2011)
CSE 1 Class Magazine, issue 2
The latest issue of our student-produced magazine features more articles on topics of the students’ choosing. They wrote about movies they had seen and wanted to recommend, products that they liked, books that they had read, and so on. As they picked up language skills in their English class, they applied their newfound writing skills with the CSE magazine.
This unit in their English classes had a greater emphasis on writing skills. Thus, the amount of content is much higher than the first issue, as is the quality of their writing. Have a read, and enjoy!
You can check out the magazine here (issuu.com), or download the PDF file here.
CSE Class Magazine: First Issue (October 2011)
CSE 1 Class Magazine, issue 1
Students of our intensive English course, Certificate in Standard English 1, were tasked to create a class magazine with articles written entirely by them. The first magazine was a big hit: as our students explored pop culture with movies, stories, video games, and so on, they did independent research and wrote a series of articles and reviews for the magazine.
The magazine traces the development of their language, as the articles have been arranged chronologically in the production — as students progressed through the course and their language developed, they were able to tackle and produce much more difficult language, and thus created higher quality work towards the end.
You can check out the magazine here (issuu.com), or download the PDF file here.
Best works of this Season (PCS 2011)
Duan Shuo – Pulau Ubin
This group photograph is my favourite one. It was taken on the way where rode bicycle to the fish spa place .I am in front of them .I turned my head and found that they were very adorable. So I took this photo. The other reason is that I was fascinated by the landscape-the flat road, blue sky, quiet atmosphere, fresh air and the most beautiful smile on our faces. These made up this lovely photo. I remember that Lywint was squabbling with Seinila. Others didn’t care about me. Only Yang Yan was smiling to me. We are so happy.
This outing is very memorable. We got the wrong way from the school to the wharf. That wasted a lot of time. After a diffcult time finding. We took the boat and arrived at Pulan Ubin. First of all, we had to resolve our hunger. So we ate the seafood. Lywint is King of the stomach who ordered much food =. However, it is was tasty. Than, we borrowed the bicycle and rode to the fish spa place. They road slowly and I said, ”Hurry up and be careful!”
The fish spa was scary.Those fishes were extremely hungry and ate my skin.After that ,my skin were very nice .Them ,time flew by quickly ,Seinila should go back to catch her flight.So we returned to Singapore and finished this interesting outing.
After this trip ,I realised that we should never live in the city for a long time ,We should get into the nature cond relax.I am so happy go out with my friends.
Ketty Zhang – Narrative: Time
The rays from the cruel sun pricked Ally’s skin continuously. It was torturous. Ally went to the time-honoured local cafe with her friends. She had chosen a cup of coffee and the new flavour of chocolate mousse. When she drank the coffee, she missed her grandpa.
Ally’s grandpa usually went to this time-honoured local cafe. He would order a cup of coffee and a piece of toast, costing two dollars and fifty cents. He always had coffee and toast, and every time would praise the pride and passion of the chef in making the authentic coffee for him. Ally’s sister Liz and Ally have heard it one thousand times already. He sounded like an old record.
Ally’s grandpa was busy; sometimes he took Ally and her sister to his company. He took them to meet his colleague and told them that Ally and Liz were his granddaughters. He always gave a winning smile and flashed a ‘thumb-up’ sign to his colleague when praising them. He was extremely proud of them.
When Ally’s grandpa had free time, he took them to go fishing. The first time, he was the one that showed Ally and Liz how to fish, with fishing rod and live worms. He didn’t have a license to fish himself, Ally and Liz didn’t believe his grandpa, so her grandpa showed them. Seconds later, Ally’s grandpa caught a fish. He smirked with pride when he finally managed to show-off.
Ally’s parents were busy working, so every weekend they would stay at their grandpa’s home. Every Sunday, Ally’s grandpa took them to the old cafe. Ally couldn’t really remember what she and her grandpa talked about. Mostly she remembered the nothing moments, just sitting with her grandpa and watching her grandpa wear the glasses and read the menu; but she knew that her grandpa would still ordered a cup of coffee and a piece of toast. That was his favorite food. Ally often wanted to have other types of food, but her grandpa would often reject her pleas. “This is always the best,” he would say, pointing to the brown crispy toast.
Nevertheless, that was long ago; today, it was different. Time had passed so quickly. Ally had grown up. She could order all food that she wanted to eat. She ordered a bowl of spicy noodles. When the food came ,she tasted it but no smile of fulfillment came to her face. When she drank the coffee, she thought it wasn’t the same without her grandpa. It all reminded her of him.
That day, Ally ordered the food that her grandpa was faithfully in love with. She didn’t know why she did it, but it just felt like the right thing to do.
Taylor Zhang – Narrative: An Accident
John,who was a, handsome,ambitious and hardworking man, ran to his car quickly. He drove his car at full speed.Today was his wife, Mary’s birthday.He hoped to meet her wife as soon as possible.However,he made some mistake on his work,so his boss asked him to change it today.
After he finished the work,it was so late.The evening sun colored the sky pink.There was not a single cotton-candy cloud in sight.He didn’t have enough time to buy a gift.He took out the cell phone and booked a table for Mary’s birthday.
He was on his way to home in his formal dress shirt and tie.He checked if the shirt dirty or untidy every moment.He was so excited but nervous.He was afraid that he would be late.
He always kept on looking at his shirt,so when the traffic light turned to red,he didn’t know.Suddenly,a car crashed into his car. There was a loud sound.”Bang!”The sound shook him.He was scared and he called his wife as fast as he could.
However,he became unconscious.His wife was on the line.No matter how she called John,he couldn’t answer her.
People who were coming back home saw the accident.They called the ambulance and his wife.
John was sent to the hospital immediately.His wife rushed into the hospital and asked where John was.Her eyes were moist with tear when she saw John lying on the bed.She called John again and again but it seemed useless.She was helpless.What she could do was just to hold John’s hand.Suddenly,John’s hand shook.He opened his eyes and said “Happy birthday to you.Dear.”Mary was so moved,she cried and said “I don’t need any surprise .Your safety is the best gift to me.”
Joey – Argumentative Essay
Question: Some people are concerned that children spend too much time on computers – playing games, chatting and watching videos. But all this time is actually good preparation for children, who will have to spend many hours working on computers throughout their education and their working lives.
To what extent do you agree or disagree with this statement? Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from own knowledge and experience.
I don’t agree this statement.
There are some reasons for this statement. Firstly, as a student, the duty is study well. If you spend too much time on computers to playing games, it will influence your study deeply. Perhaps you can not finish your homework on time, then you will got the score is 0. If you always play games, when you can review what you learn before. The study need to review again, if not, maybe you will fail the text.
Secondly, if you always spend a lot of time on computer to watching videos, it will waste your time to do many beneficial things. Now, there are many useless soap opera on internet. It was very hard to control yourself to not watch it if you like it. And everyday you will pay more attention on the soap opera, even forget to study.
Thirdly, the most important one is playing too much computer is not good for your eyes. Now, there are more young child are nearsightedness. Their eyes always feel tired when they use too much computer. Wear the glass easy to let your eyes to become unbeautiful. They can not live without glasses now. That’s too bad!
I think chatting with friend is quite good. Because some people are very shy to talk with each other face on face. They can talk more with each other by computer, it will help them to be more confidence. This will be a good preparation for their working lives when they grow up.
In conclusion, I think student should pay more attention on study first. Using computer will be helpful, but depend on how you use it. They can use it to do something good for study. Don’t always to do something waste your time.
Lywint Ko – Letter Writing
Question: Last Tuesday you flew from New York to Paris. When you arrived home, you discovered that you had left your cabin bag on the plane. Write a letter to the airline.In your letter, you should explain:
- Where and when you lost your bag
- What your bag looks like
- What its contents were
Write at least 150 words.
You do not need to write an address.
Begin your letter with Dear Sir or Madam.
Dear Sir / Madam ,
I’ m Mr Lywint Ko Yuk Wing . I on flew from New York to Paris last Tuesday on France Airlines . It departed at New York time 7 pm
and arrived at Paris time 6am , My seat number was A02 . The flight number was FT0987 .
When I arrived home , I realised that I had left my bag on the plane and I sure that I had left it in overhead compartment . It’s a Louis Vuitton duffel bag in medium size . The colour of the bag is brawn and with the LV monogram print . There are some clothes and a pair of shoes inside my bag . Would you please help me to check with the cabin crew on that flight or the cleaner . That bag is very important to me .
If you find my bag , please contact me . My handphone number is +65 9374 5650 . Thank you so much for your patience in reading my letter .
Yours Sincerely ,
Lywint Ko Yuk Wing
Seinila – Free Writing
Question: Write about some of your worries about the future.
Firstly I’m so scared of my ambition,what will i become next 10 years.I’m still confuse what major subject should I take.Basically I have 2 choices : hospitality and business.For me hospitality is very fun.It is because i love staying in hotel for a long term,I like the facilities inside the hotel.Business is an experiment that make someone change become a succesfull person.Nowdays many chinese people are very rich,they put hard-working.I want to be a businesswoman,I don’t want to be a housewife.I want to help my husband. Secondly I’m so scared if I will have a baby,I can’t manage my time properly,what time should I go to bed,what time i should play the internet,what time should I study.Basically I love baby,I love childrens and play around with them.I’m so scared of pregnant,many people die.It is because they lack of oxygen. Thirdly it’s all about money.I’m so scared if one day I don’t have enough money for my family,especially for my childrens,for their education.I want to make them school in singapore,not in indonesia,to improve their english and chinese,so when they already grew up they can speak 2 languages.There are a lot of necessary in our life,examples;health food,good clothes,comfortable house,medicine,and etc.So from now on I must study hard and I can’t waste my parents’ money. Fourthly,this is the last and the most important I’m so scared if i chose wrong person in my life.I mean wrong husband,they look very nice and they have a lot of money.The truths are they like to play with another girl,he doesn’t responsible to his family,go to club everyday and drink beer.I want search husband like my father’s behaviour.He loves his family,he is a responsible person.So i should be careful of this.It is because what we may look from outside is different.
In conclusion,my worries about my future are firstly what I’ll become next year,a succesfull person or an unimportant person.I want to make my parents proud of me.Secondly i’m so scared of having baby,many people die,and i’m not sure i can manage my childrens properly.Thirdly I’m so scared I don’t have enough money for my future,I want the best for my childrends and it needs much money,for their education. The last is i’m scared if someone that i chose for my life is a wrong person,we should be careful of that,we must know each other first,we can’t take wrong decision.
What did we learn? (17.10.11)
| Purpose
(What do we want to achieve this week) |
How to do a Summary
1. How to gain content?
2. How to para_ _ _ _ _ _? |
| Presentation (20 minutes)
(How I teach you) |
|
| Practice (30 minutes)
(How you learn) |
1. Students highlight key words in the question.
2. Students search for 15 content points in the passage. 3. Students list out the points and replace some words synonyms, or rephrasing them. 4. Keeping to the word limit. (_____ words)
|
| Play (10 minutes)
(How you apply it) |
Find an instance of a summary, take a photo of it and put it on the facebook group. Explain why you think it is a summary. |
| Homework
(What you need to do outside of class to learn independently) |
Do the first 5 summaries of the BLUE BOOK
|
| Teacher-Student Time (10 minutes) |
What did we learn? (10.10.11)
| Purpose
(What do we want to achieve this week) |
How to ace the Speaking Test
1. What is the Process of the exam? 2. How to answer the questions? Part 1: Introduction and Interview [ ] (___________ mins) - job - family - interests - home *DEVELOP, not DESCRIBE. Part 2: Individual Speaking [ ] (___________ mins) - How to structure your speaking in a logical way. - 1 min of preparation. What does PMIO stand for? P ______ M__________ I____________ O__________ Part 3: Two-Way Discussion [ ] (___________ mins) - Skills to note - Analysis List the ways to analyse: - Compare and contrast List the ways to compare and contrast: |
| Presentation (20 minutes)
(How I teach you) |
Part 1: Describe a day’s work Part 2: What are some of your priorities? How do you manage your priorities? Part 3: Do you think a person’s priorities change over time? Why? In your opinion, what is the right way to arrange one’s priorities and why? |
| Practice (30 minutes)
(How you learn) |
1. Students demonstrate the speaking test process.
2. Students get cards with questions on it. They practice it with their classmates |
| Play (10 minutes)
(How you apply it) |
Students are free to expose themselves to new experiences during the weekend (e.g. Planning an outing to Marina Bay Sands, Little India, Kampong Glam)
They should not only enjoy but also develop inquisitiveness as a learner. |
| Homework
(What you need to do outside of class to learn independently) |
Write your own series of questions and let your classmates try. It would be good if your questions relate to your project topic.
Part 1: Part 2: Part 3: |
| Teacher-Student Time (10 minutes) |
What did we learn? (27.9.11)
| Purpose
(What do we want to achieve this week) |
- Using General Knowledge in a Discursive Essay
|
| Presentation (20 minutes)
(How I teach you) |
- What a discursive requires- Convincing proof
- Comparing 2 passages- One with evidence and one without. - Consolidate all topic- research delegated to students in a Mind map - Students are to take notes and be aware of what is taught by their peers 8 topics mind map research 9. American History – Revolutions (Long Sing) [ ] 11. Social Psychology (Jing Xi Ma) [ ]
|
| Practice (30 minutes)
(How you learn) |
Students put ideas down on A3 paper in a mind map and present their topic while other students take notes.
Some questions will be discussed in class as practice. |
| Play (10 minutes)
(How you apply it) |
-
|
| Homework
(What you need to do outside of class to learn independently) |
Pick a topic of interest which was not discussed before and read up on it.
All mind maps photos posted on PCS 2011 facebook for revision. |
| Teacher-Student Time (10 minutes) | - |
English GCE ‘O’ Levels : Patterns of Study
http://prezi.com/ktwkvenq3etg/english-gce-o-levels/
This is to help students get an overview of English GCE ‘O’ Levels through study patterns, so that you would adequately informed of how to study for the paper, and use the information for independent research.
This prezi presentation is a work in progress. Currently, we offer only Paper 1, Section 1.
Do leave us comments and relevant links so that everyone can benefit.
Quick Tips for O Level Revision
For Paper 1
For Free Writing Skills:
1. Read Model Free Writing Essays
2. Structure your Paragraphs clearly. Each paragraph must have a purpose/topic (sentence), elaboration of that topic sentence to help others understand what, why, and how it means to the writer.
Methods For Writing Topic Sentences
View more presentations from Glenn Malone
- Read newspapers and highlight topic sentences you find in each article. Try the New York Times
- Read exhaustively about environment and education issues. Try Global Issues
- Check out other articles to read online. Try Readers’ Digest
For Situational Writing Skills:
- Read Model Situational Essays
- Check and read real letters you get from different companies.
- Explore new ways of developing introductions in letters by reading The Straits Times Forum letters.
- Memorise the situational writing formats of speech, informal letter, formal letter, report and proposal.
- Read a speech
For Paper 2
For Comprehension Skills:
- Read at least 5-6 passages from the Ten-yr series and observe which are the most common question types.
- Analyse how to predict all of the vocabulary questions in the Ten-year series.
- Underline difficult words in different comprehension passages and check them up.
For Summary Skills:1. Figure out how to use conjunctions (connecting words like ‘and’ and ‘therefore’) for summary.2. Attempt 1-2 Summaries from the Ten-year series
Download Exam Papers
2011
2011 Prelim_Paper 1 | 2011_Prelim Paper 1 (ans)
2011 Prelim Paper 2 | 2011_Prelim_Paper 2 (ans)
2009
1127/01 past tests, exams, and model essay answers
2009 Prelim Paper 1 | 2009 Prelim Paper 1 (ans)
2009 Prelim Paper 2 | 2009 Prelim Paper 2 (ans)
2008
2008 Prelim Paper 2 | 2008 Prelim Paper 2 (ans) | 2008 Prelim Paper 2 : City College Comments
2007 Prelim Paper 1 (Ans) Set 1 | 2007 Prelim Paper 1 (Ans) Set 2
2007 O level Paper 1 : Cambridge Comments
2006
2006 O Level Paper 1 : Cambridge Comments
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