Good Read for Lower Primary Kids - The Robozonic Series

While searching for good books to buy for my niece who is in lower primary, I stumbled upon this series, the Robozonic series. This series is written by a local author, Caline Tan. Caline was a teacher with the Ministry of Education for about ten years till she left the teaching service to devote more time to her two children.

The first book in the series is entitled "Save the Flowers". One day, on the way to school, eight-year-old Mabel met a mysterious talking pebble. She soon discovered that the "pebble" was not a pebble. It was a gadget known as Robozonic from the year 2111. Robozonic could communicate will all living things. Robozonic had to find a way back to the future but it had to first prevent some flowers in the park from being destroyed, with Mabel's help.

The author has also included the definitions of difficult words mentioned in the story. Overall, a good read for kids who are in the lower primary.

Go to the link below to read a sample from the first book, "Save the Flowers".

http://www.robozonic.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/RZ.pdf

Tips for English PSLE: 8 Essential Reading Comprehension Skills

Before enrolling their child in our English programme, many parents have shared with us that the open-ended Comprehension component is one of their children's weakest areas. How can parents help their children to improve on their areas of weaknesses and to optimise his or her learning?

To help the kiddos improve on reading comprehension, parents should be aware there are 8 essential reading comprehension skills that the kiddos need to develop. Kiddos need to be able to:

1) skim through the text to get the main idea
2) scan the text for details
3) sequence details
4) use contextual clues
5) make predictions
6) make inferences
7) make connections between text and personal experiences
8) draw conclusions

I'll explain the first two  reading comprehension skills in the following paragraphs.
1) Skimming
It is a rapid reading method in which you have a quick glance at the passage to get an overall idea of the text.

Here are some examples of texts that we skim in our daily lives:
- the newspaper: to quickly get the general news of the day
- magazines: to discover quickly which articles we would like to read in more detail
- brochures: to be informed quickly

How do we skim a text?
- Read the title if there is one.
- Read the introduction or the first paragraph if there is one?
- Read the first sentence of every other paragraph.
- Notice any pictures, charts or graphs.
- Read the summary or last paragraph if there is one.

Skimming  is often the first type of reading that should be done when we read a Comprehension passage. Skimming the Comprehension passage requires the pupils to read through the paragraphs quickly. At the end of this, pupils should be able to make a quick summary of the passage, that is, he should be able to say what the passage is about.

2) Scanning
It is a reading technique used to find specific information quickly. You have a question in mind and you scan a passage to find the answer quickly.

How do we scan a text?
- Know the specific information you are looking for.
- Anticipate how the answer will appear and the clues you may use to help you locate the answer. For example, if you are looking for the year in which a character was born in, you will scan the passage quickly to look for numbers.

We hope you have a better understanding of the first two reading comprehension skills that your child needs to be equipped with. We'll cover the rest of the comprehension skills in the next few posts.

PSLE Oral: Stimulus-based Conversation (Part 1)

As this cohort of P6 pupils is the first batch to be tested with the new PSLE Oral Format, there are very few commercial resources on stimulus-based conversation available in the market. Here is a list of sample stimulus-based conversation topics that parents can use as practice resources:

(A) Theme: Occupations
Picture: Assembly Talk on Four Occupations
Question 1: Will you attend this assembly talk? Why or why not?
Question 2: Which occupation will you be interested to find out more about? / Which occupation is the most challenging?
Question 3: What do you aspire to be when you grow up?

(B) Theme: Sports & Charity
Picture: Poster on POSB PAssion Run for Kids
Question 1: Will you take part in this event? Why or why not?
Question 2: Why do you think people will attend this event?
Question 3: Besides engaging in sports, how can we maintain a healthy lifestyle?

(C) Theme: Reading
Stimulus: Cover page and blurb of a children's story book
Question 1: Will you be interested to read this book? Why or why not?
Question 2: Tell me about your favourite book.
Question 3: You have a friend who does not like to read. How can you persuade your friend to read more books?

(D) Theme: Dengue Fever & Illness
Picture: Poster on Prevention of Dengue Fever and Breeding of Mosquitoes
Question 1: Do you think the poster is effective in preventing the breeding of Aedes mosquitoes?
Question 2: Tell me about a time when you were sick?
Question 3: Besides displaying posters, what else can be done to encourage Singaporeans to do their part to prevent dengue fever?

(E) Theme: Outdoor event & Family
Picture: Poster on Outdoor Family Carnival
Question 1: Will you be interested to take part in this event? Why or why not?
Question 2: Tell me about an outdoor activity that you enjoy.
Question 3: What activities do you and your family engage in on weekends?

Are humans conductors of electricity?

During a recent P5 Science class, a pupil asked me, "Teacher Serena, are humans conductors of electricity?"

This video will demonstrate that humans are conductors of electricity.

Watch the video carefully.

Observations:
When both hands are used to grip the Energy Stick with a hand on each silver ring, there are flashing lights and a sound is heard. When the person lets go of one hand, the Energy Stick stops working.

Science Concepts:
The Energy Stick is a battery-powered circuit tester. Electricity flows because of a flow of free electrons moving from atom to atom through a material. An electrical conductor allows a current to flow through it.

Since our body is mostly water and there are water and minerals on our skin, our body can be a conductor of electricity but a poor one. The weak current flows from one silver ring onto one hand and then across the surface of our skin to the hand and onto the other silver ring. This complete loop is called a closed circuit and an electric circuit can flow through the closed circuit. Hence the light in the Energy Stick lights up.

Registration for 2016 Classes

Dear Parents,

We have started our registration exercise for 2016 classes. Here are the details of our classes:

Classes Conducted by Mrs Teo:
(a) P4 Science
Wednesday 7.15 p.m. to 9.15 p.m.

(b) P5 Math * (Placement test will be conducted to ensure there is a right fit)
Sunday 1.30 p.m. to 3.30 p.m.

(c) P6 Math
Sunday 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Classes Conducted by Ms Hayati:
(a) P5 English Paper 2
Friday 4.45 p.m. to 6.45 p.m.

(b) P6 English Paper 2
Saturday 12 p.m. to 2 p.m.

(c) P6 Writer's Craft
Friday 7.15 p.m. to 9.15 p.m.

Classes Conducted by Teacher Serena:
(a) P5 Science
Saturday 8.30 a.m. to 10.30 a.m.
Sunday 10.45 a.m. to 12.45 p.m.

(b) P5 Writer's Craft
Saturday 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

(c) P6 Science
Sunday 8.30 a.m. to 10.30 a.m.
Sunday 1.15 p.m to 3.15 p.m.

(d) P6 Writer's Craft
Wednesday 4.30 p.m. to 6.30 p.m.

Please send an email to serenagreenhouse@gmail.com for enquiries.

Topics for New 2015 PSLE English Composition Format

Some parents have commented on the lack of available resources on the new PSLE English Composition format at the bookshops. I have compiled a few composition topics.

(1) A Mistake

What was the mistake?

What was the outcome?

(2) A Well-deserved Reward

What was the reward?

Why was the reward well-deserved?

(3) A Dream Come True

What was the dream?

How did the person realise the dream?

(4) A Surprise

What was the surprise?

What happened in the end?

(5) A Disappointing Experience

What was the disappointing experience?

Why was it disappointing?

As educators or parents, you can create your own composition questions based on these topics to better prepare your pupils or children for the new composition format for the PSLE. You can think of three random pictures that can be linked to the topic and include them in the question for your pupils or child to attempt.

For example, for the topic, "A Mistake", the pictures can be the following:

- an ajar door

- a man whose hands are handcuffed

- a pedestrian crossing

Brainstorm with your pupils or child some possible plots. Include a conflict in the story (if possible). Then discuss the merits and shortcomings of each plot and how each plot can be improved on.

Remember, a story with a creative plot will have a higher score. 

Writer's Craft: Types of Conflict in Narratives

Many parents and pupils are jittery about the new 2015 PSLE English syllabus. For example, many have expressed concern about the new format for English Paper 1.

We believe that it is important to teach pupils the craft of writing explicitly and to show them models of good writing. We will be blogging about some of these writing skills.For instance, pupils attending our Writer's Craft classes are introduced to the elements of a narrative. One of the elements of a narrative is a conflict/ problem. In this post, we'll be sharing more about what a conflict is.

What is a conflict / problem in a narrative?
A conflict/ problem arises when the main character wants something but something else stands in his or her way.


Why is a conflict important?
Most of the action centres around the main character trying to find a solution to solve the conflict. A conflict drives the plot. It makes the story more interesting.

How do we identify a conflict?
The easiest way to identify a conflict is to write a conflict statement. A conflict statement is a statement that briefly tells us what the main character wants and what is preventing him  from getting what he wants.
Example:
Cinderella wants to go to the ball but her evil stepmother does not allow her to do so.

Types of conflict
There are five main types of conflict.
(1) Person versus Self
The main character has trouble deciding what action he should take.
Example:
Tim saw his friend stealing. He was in a dilemma. Should he tell his teacher about his friend's misdeed or should he just feign ignorance?

(2) Person versus Person
The main character has a problem with one or more characters.
Example:
Ben and his best friend saw a gang abusing an animal. Ben did not want to get into trouble and suggested walking away. However, his friend wanted to stop the gang. As a result, Ben and his friend argued.

(3) Person versus Society
The main character does something that he wants to do but it is against the law or the school rule or is an unaccepted behaviour.
Example:
Ben's parents were very busy and neglected him. Ben decided to use a spray can to spray graffiti to get his parents' attention but this action was against the law.

(4)Person versus Nature
The main character struggles with the elements of nature such as a thunderstorm, an earthquake, a wild animal etc
Example:
Pete was hiking in the forest when he encountered a wild bear.

(5) Person versus Fate
The main character comes face to face with a situation that is beyond his control.
Example:
Mary was involved in a serious accident and the doctors did not think she would pull through. Miraculously, she survived.

Once pupils know what the different conflicts are, they can decide for themselves the type of conflict that they will include in their own narrative. This will lead to a more interesting story plot.

We hope you have a good understanding of what a conflict is in a narrative and what some types of conflicts are. Tune in to our next post. We'll be writing a post on how parents can help their child to be better prepared for the new PSLE Oral format.