Parents Seminar English Language Sharing 11 February 2017 EL Curriculum at Upper Primary Requirements of PSLE EL & Tackling EL PAPER 2
Content of Presentation Overview of Primary 5 & 6 EL Curriculum Requirements of PSLE EL Papers Tackling the challenging components in EL PAPER 2 Editing Synthesis Reading Comprehension Comprehension Cloze How Parents Can Support Children s Learning Q & A
Our English Programme Springdale English Curriculum Modified STELLAR School-based curriculum
P5 EL Curriculum Coverage of 10 STELLAR books at P5 level Pupil Handout (story) STELLAR Learning Sheets / Companion Booklets Student Response Log*
P5 EL Curriculum New Spelling Format 15 mistakes for students to correct Comprises 10 spelling mistakes & 5 grammar mistakes Exposes students to commonly misspelt words Serves as practice for Editing component Provides reading exposure to different topics & genres
P5 School-Based Curriculum Structured teaching programmes for the following: Composition & Situational Writing Oral Grammar Synthesis & Transformation Component Mastery Booklets Enables students to practise intensively certain skill sets or strategies Practice Papers 6 practices to familiarise students with the new format
PSLE EL PAPER MARKS WEIGHTING Writing (Paper 1) Language Use & Comprehension (Paper 2) Listening Comprehension (Paper 3) 55 27.5% 95 47.5% 20 10% Oral (Paper 4) 30 15% Total 200 100%
Paper 1: Writing Total duration of paper: 1 hour 10 min WRITING COMPONENTS Situational Writing MARKS 15 marks Continuous Writing Total 40 marks 55 marks
Paper 1: Situational Writing Situational Writing is marked for: Task Fulfilment (6 marks) Language & Organisation (9 marks) Students would need to show awareness of purpose, audience and context while supplying key information.
Paper 1: Situational Writing Task You are a member of the school s Green Club. You have been given this pamphlet about an art competition and would like all members to participate in it. Your friend, Paul, was sick that day and he missed the session. Write an email to Paul to tell him about the competition. In your email, include the following key information: who organised the competition theme of the competition how to participate why you think both of you should participate You may reorder the points. Write in complete sentences.
Paper 1: Continuous Writing Continuous Writing is marked for Content (20 marks) Language & Organisation (20 marks) Minimum number of words: 150 words Student s writing must be based on at least one of the given pictures address the given topic / theme
Paper 1: Continuous Writing
Paper 3: Oral Assessment Total duration of paper: approximately 10 min ORAL COMPONENTS Reading Aloud MARKS 10 marks Stimulus-based Conversation 20 marks Total 30 marks
Paper 3: Oral Assessment Reading Aloud Read with good pronunciation & clear articulation of the words Use appropriate rhythm and stress to achieve a wellpaced, fluent reading Read with appropriate variation of pitch and tone in order to convey the information, ideas and feelings in the passage
Paper 3: Oral Assessment Stimulus-based Conversation State an opinion / choice Explain rationale Illustrate with personal experience Students are expected to demonstrate the following: Express oneself clearly in a conversation Demonstrate wide range of appropriate vocabulary Use grammatical structures accurately
Paper 3: Oral Assessment Stimulus-based Conversation 1. Look at this poster. Do you agree that you should always do your best? Why? Why not? Do you think having posters around the school is good? Why? Why not? 2. What is your favourite subject in school? Why? Do you think homework is important? Why? 3. What is something you are very good at? Tell me about it. How do you spend your free time?
Paper 4: Listening Comprehension Listening Comprehension 20 MCQ questions Approximately 35 minutes Students are required to: Practise active listening Read the question stems carefully
Paper 2: Language Use & Compre Total duration of paper: 1 hour 50 minutes PAPER 2 COMPONENTS Booklet A Booklet B Visual Text Grammar MCQ Vocabulary MCQ Vocabulary Cloze Grammar Cloze Editing Comprehension Cloze Synthesis & Transformation Comprehension Open-Ended Total MARKS 8 10 5 5 10 12 15 10 20 95 marks
Reviewing the Components in EL PAPER 2 Refer to Handout 1-2016 PSLE English Paper 2 (Booklets A & B)
Tackling the Challenging Components in EL PAPER 2, BOOKLET B Editing Synthesis & Transformation Comprehension Cloze Comprehension Open-Ended
Tackling Editing Editing One given passage 12 mistakes (12 marks) Spelling mistakes Grammatical mistakes Students are required to: Rectify the mistakes and write the correct words in the corresponding boxes
Hands-on 1: Editing Correct the mistakes in the passage.
Tackling Editing Suggested Procedure for Tackling Editing Read the entire passage once first before attempting to correct the mistakes Identify the nature of mistakes Spelling mistakes are words with wrong spelling Grammatical mistakes are those spelt correctly
Tackling Editing Answers to Spelling Mistakes (40) adequately (42) physical (44) exhausted (45) absolutely (46) sufficient (48) nourished
Tackling Editing Answers to Grammatical Mistakes (39) competes Clue: use of is in 1 st sentence and will in 2 nd sentence) (41) have Clue: presence of does in same sentence (43) Learning Clue 1: the verb before and after and must be of the same tenses ( Lifting and learning ) Clue 2: -ing noun phrase starts a sentence and is followed by a verb
Tackling Editing Answers to Grammatical Mistakes (47) performance Clue: peak is used as an adjective hence what follows should be a noun (49) chosen Clue: use of participle after having (50) so Clue 1: replacing connector with another connector Clue 2: so as to is used as a common phase to mean in order to
Tackling Editing Strategies for Tackling Spelling Mistakes (Editing) Sound out the mis-spelt word to guess the content word Be aware of the common types of spelling mistakes Double or single consonants Consonant sounds with different spelling Vowel sounds with different spelling Correct order for vowel pairs e.g. ei versus ie Omission of vowels or consonants
Tackling Editing Strategies for Tackling Grammatical Mistakes (Editing) For grammatical mistakes, identify the grammatical category of the underlined word The correct answer for the underlined word should be of the same grammatical class e.g. replace a preposition mistake with another preposition; pronouns for pronouns; connectors for connectors Re-read the sentence of the underlined word to check for the following: Subject Verb Agreement Tenses Conditions for Base Form Word Forms
Tackling Synthesis & Transformation Synthesis & Transformation 5 questions testing different structures Total of 10 marks for this component Students are required to: Re-write the given sentence(s) using the given prompts Ensure that meaning of the answer is the same as the meaning of the original sentence(s)
Hands-on 2: Synthesis & Transformation Look at the students answers in Handout 2. Spot the mistakes and correct them.
Tackling Synthesis & Transformation Did not check Subject Verb Agreement Did not use the correct tenses
Tackling Synthesis & Transformation Do-er of the action is not clear Did not use -en/-ed participle
Tackling Synthesis & Transformation Wrong use of but and missing commas Wrong word order for statement
Tackling Synthesis & Transformation Change in meaning; Do-er of the action is not clear Did not use correct word form
Tackling Synthesis & Transformation Strategies for Tackling Common Structures Check subject verb agreement and tenses Take note of the conventions governing each structure Take note of required punctuation e.g. obligatory commas Be careful with the use of upper and lower case letters Check meaning of your answer is the same as the given sentence(s)
Tackling Synthesis & Transformation Strategies for tackling Structures that Require Transformation Be familiar with the different word forms e.g. noun form of a particular verb Check subject verb agreement and tenses Check if obligatory commas is required Be careful with the use of upper and lower case letters Check meaning of your answer is the same as the given sentence(s).
Tackling Synthesis & Transformation Strategies for Reporting Direct Speech Check for the presence of the following and amend them accordingly: Pronouns Word order (verb-subject inversion) Tenses Time markers Demonstratives Check meaning of the answer is the same as that of the given sentence
Tackling Synthesis & Transformation Strategies for Writing the Indirect Speech Check for the presence of the following and amend them accordingly: Pronouns Word order (subject verb inversion) Tenses Time markers Demonstratives Try reporting the direct speech (your answer) and see if you arrive back at the same answer as the question
Tackling Comprehension Cloze One passage with 15 blanks for students to fill in Total of 15 marks for this component A challenging component for most students Introduced in P3 & P4 as Modified Cloze (4 blanks) Assesses students reading comprehension and grammar/ vocabulary skills
Suggested Procedure for Students Read the entire passage without attempting to fill in any of the blanks during the 1 st reading. Understand the key idea(s) in each paragraph. Do repeated, close reading of the text. Look out for contextual cues, use of common phrases and word collocation. Decide what is grammatically correct at phrase, sentence and paragraph level.
Suggested Procedure for Students Highlight, underline or draw arrows to indicate plausible links and clues. Once all the blanks are filled, read the entire passage again to check that the choice of answer do not contradict with the main ideas and intent of the passage.
Tackling Comprehension Cloze Strategies to narrow range of answers: Contextual Clues Word Association Common Phrases Grammatical Analysis
Hands-on 3: Comprehension Cloze Read the passage and fill in each blank with a word.
Live Demonstration
Tackling Comprehension Cloze Resources: Use of newspaper articles to give students further practice on this component
Tackling Comprehension Cloze
Tackling Comprehension Cloze
Tackling Reading Comprehension Another challenging component for most students Students need to understand the text at both literal and inferential levels At times, they may also be required to form an evaluative opinion and support their answers with evidence from the text Questions can be 1 to 4 marks Total of 20 marks for this component
Tackling Reading Comprehension Understanding the passage Read the passage at least twice and re-read parts that seem confusing or difficult to understand Employ reading strategies taught in class like asking questions as you read, making connections with the text, making predictions and inferences while reading, synthesizing informing in the text Make inferences about the meaning of challenging words, characters actions, feelings and events in the text
Hands-on 4: Reading Comprehension Annotating the text A strategy to deepen students understanding of the text
Annotating Comprehension Text Annotating text means Making notes of any form while reading Making sense of what is being read Forming questions to parts which unclear Linking/connecting information while reading Therefore, you definitely need a pencil while reading.
Annotating Comprehension Text Why annotate? It helps the readers to Formulate questions in response to what they are reading Analyse and interpret elements of the text Draw conclusions and make inferences based on explicit and implicit meanings in the text
Annotating Comprehension Text Thus, annotation helps readers to Deepen their understanding of the text Be ready to answer their comprehension questions
Annotating Comprehension Text This is definitely NOT the right way to annotate. Annotation is not mere highlighting.
Annotating Comprehension Text How to annotate? 1. Underline the major points 2. Circle unfamiliar or confusing keywords/phrases 3. Use question mark (?) for questions that you have while reading (Be sure to write the questions.) 4. Draw an arrow ( ) when making a connection inside the text (Briefly note the connections.) 5. Make inferences and write it on top of the phrase
Annotating Comprehension Text Important Note: There is no one right way to annotate as different students make different personal connections and interpretations to the text. Different teachers may choose to focus on different annotation strategies depending on students readiness and needs
Live Demonstration
Tackling Reading Comprehension Analysing the questions Highlight the question word (e.g. who, why, what etc.) in each question Pay attention to the tense of the main verb in the question Remember that most of the questions follow the chronological order of the passage Study examples given, if any
Tackling Reading Comprehension Crafting your answers Note the expectations of the questions e.g. 4-word phrase Check that you have answered to the question. Do not copy chunks of information that do not answer the question. If it is a 2-mark question, 2 essential points would be required Strive for accuracy in language as grammatical mistakes hinder clear communication and understanding
Types of Comprehension Question A Closer Look at the Different Question Types
Types of Comprehension Questions Which word from paragraph 1 has the similar meaning as the word confinement? [1m] Common Mistakes - Citing a phrase instead of a word - Citing word from other paragraphs - Spelling mistakes
Types of Comprehension Questions Match the characters to the items they had stolen. [2m] Scarlet two shirts Fran three shirts and a ring Common Mistakes - Doing the matching without even reading the questions - Assuming a cross pattern must be the answer
Types of Comprehension Questions Write 1, 2 and 3 in the blanks below to indicate the order in which the events occurred in the story. [1m] Scarlet s father took me home from the mall. Fran encouraged Scarlet to go to shopping mall. Scarlet had to attend counselling session in school. Common Mistakes - Writing a, b and c instead of 1, 2 and 3 - Not referring to the text to check the sequence of events
Types of Comprehension Questions State whether each statement in the table below is true or false, then give one reason why you think so. [2m] Scarlet was eager to steal the shirt from the store. Scarlet was not allowed to go out after school for three weeks. True/False Reason Common Mistakes - Copying irrelevant information from text - Reason cited should be phrased in own words and answer to the point.
How Parents Can Support Children s Learning Provide opportunities for your children to share any interesting things they have read Take them out (shopping malls, outdoor activities, use of public transport etc.) so that they have an experience they can relate to for conversation Encourage your child to read widely including story books, newspapers and educational magazines (e.g. only reading Young Scientists or comics is insufficient) Compulsory reading material for P5 & P6: Little Red Dot
Thank You