A Composition A Week

For this week's composition, I've chosen a story that is told from a different perspective. Most of the stories that we write, they are told from the perspective of the main character. Occasionally, we get pupils who will write from the perspective of the villain. But the rarest stories are those told from a non-human perspective, like this one.

The Gold Shop Robbery

            “Oh my gosh! That is so cool!” My admirers stared at me as I glistened in the light, showing off myself. “Better buy me now, I’m the last of my type!” I said sadly. All my best pals had been sold long ago. I had always wanted an owner, but there were always insulting comments like “Too expensive!”, “Hey! There is a scratch!”, “Oh! That is nicer than this!” or even “Why is it not sparkly?” Then, the shop owner picked me up and handed me to a lady clad in black. She tossed and turned me this way and that, looking for scratches on me.

Spelling Lists for Semester 1 Week 22

Tip of the Week


One of the stories that we did recently took place in an MRT train.


Some of the pupils who are more sensitive to language sat up and asked, 'An MRT train?' I was so happy when they brought that up because it showed an awareness of how English was being used.


And yes, it should be 'an MRT train'.


The confusion is that we usually use the article 'an' before a word beginning with a vowel. Hence, 'an apple', 'an elephant' and 'an iron' would be correct. But 'M' is not a vowel, it is a consonant.


However, there is an additional part to this lesson that is not usually taught in schools. It is not a formal part of the curriculum and sometimes teachers may bring it up, but sometimes not. And that part is this:


When a word or letter sounds like it begins with a vowel, then when we want to put an article before it, we need to use 'an'.


'M' sounds like it is spelled 'em', so we say an 'MRT train'.


Other letters that have the same effect include:

• 'f' - 'ef'
• 'h' - 'aitch'
• 'l' - 'el'
• 'n' - 'en'
• 'r' - 'ar'
• 's' - 'es'
• 'x' - 'eks'

~.      ~.      ~.

Book Review: UNEARTHLY

Unearthly by Cynthia Hand

Unearthly, as its title suggests, is a book about unearthly creatures – angels. The protagonist, Clara, appears to be a normal human at first. At fourteen, however, she is told the truth by her mother, Maggie: that Maggie is in fact a Dimidius, a half-angel, which makes Clara and her brother “quarter-angels”, Quartarius, and that, as beings with angel blood, they will have a “purpose” to fulfill, sent by God.

And that is where the story starts off, with Clara getting her first dream about her purpose. Slowly, she begins to find her purpose: to find a boy called Christian and save him from a forest fire. In order to fulfill her purpose and find Christian, their family moves to Wyoming thus starting a new life.

A Composition A Week - The Problem With Flashbacks

Flashback is one of the most popular ways of beginning a story. And if used correctly, it is also very effective. However, just like using characterisation to start a story has its pitfalls, you must be careful when using the flashback technique.


How the flashback technique works is that the story starts in the present. An event in the present triggers the narrator's memory and the narrator then recounts the main story as an event that happened in the past, i.e. as a memory. The problem occurs when the pupil forgets to get the narrator to return to the present at the end of the story. To use the flashback technique correctly, the narrator must recollect himself and return to the present moment at the end of the story.


Below is a story by one of the pupils.


It is an excellent story on many counts. The flashback at the start of the story is succinct and effective, the story is well-developed with plot points that flow logically and the writer displays a great range of vocabulary. The only problem is that the writer forgot to bring the narrator back to the present at the end of the story.

Semester Lists for Semester 1 Week 21

Tip of the Week


Certain words in the English language have two forms of Spelling. For example, 'jewellery' which was used in the Semester 1 Week 19. It could be spelled in the following ways:

jewellery

jewelry

Other such words include:

1. judgement and judgment

2. acknowledgement and acknowledgment

3. tranquillity and tranquility

4. spelled and spelt

5. smelled and smelt

6. grill and grille



Note that such words are spelled differently within the British language (that is the British themselves spell the words two ways); it is not the case that one form is British spelling and the other American spelling.


It does not matter which form you choose but the important thing to remember is to be CONSISTENT. Pick one form and stick to it throughout the whole examination paper or essay.

~.      ~.      ~.

Book Revew: CHILLI PADI

Chilli Padi  by Adeline Foo

Mention Adeline Foo and the Amos Lee series, her bestselling books, comes to mind. Chilli Padi is a book from another series written by the same author. While the Amos Lee series deals with the issues faced by schoolchildren in Singapore, the series comprising of The Beaded Slippers, The Kitchen God, Chilli Padi and The Amulet aims to share the Peranakan culture with our children.

The story of Chilli Padi is a simple one: the main character, Puteh, a girl brought up in a Perankan household, lost her temper during the preparations for the Tang Chek (winter solstice) celebrations but it was her servant boy, Itam, who had to bear the consequences of her actions. Puteh regretted her actions when she saw what her actions led to and the rest of the story describes how she tried to make amends for them.

A Composition A Week - A Remarkable Rat

It has been some time since I posted good stories by pupils. With the examinations coming up and to make up for my tardiness, I'll be posting more such stories in the coming couple of weeks. I know, then the posts should not be entitled A Composition A Week, but never mind. :)

The constraints of Continuous Writing in the PSLE are rather limiting. The pupils are not encouraged to write about the supernatural, aliens or fantasy (which includes a range of characters from witches to elves to talking animals). In fact, some teachers have warned pupils that they would fail if they write about such topics in the examination.

Wow, think about that. It means that works like the Harry Potter series, the Lord of the Ring trilogy and the Narnia series, all considered classics in their own right, would have failed in the PSLE.

You three would not have passed muster
in Singapore's PSLE!

That said, rules and regulation are rules and regulations so we teachers and tutors dutifully exhort our charges not to write about the abovementioned topics in all the-important PSLE, not even for the less important but still important school examinations.

But you know what? Children like such stories. They are so whimsical and amazing that children find them interesting and it is easy for them to immerse themselves in the worlds of such stories. And when given such topics to write about, the more natural writers simply get fired up and when they may be sometimes stuck for words, now they find a torrent pouring out.

Hence at times, to spark the pupils' interest, and to give them free rein to truly explore their creativity, in our classes, the tutors turn a blind eye and let the pupils write about these forbidden topics 'just this once'.

We have below an excellent example of such a story. Read and enjoy. We will share with you our analysis and why we think it is a great piece of work.

The assignment given was the beginning of the story below and the writer has to continue the story:

One night, after a movie, you were going home. When you reached your home, you saw something strange outside your neighbour’s house.

This was what the writer came up with:


[Warning: The story is more than 1000 words long.]

A REMARKABLE RAT

Dark rain clouds covered the night sky as I reluctantly slung my bag over my shoulder and headed home. I had just finished watching a movie with my best friend at the cinema and I was trudging home, a wave of guilt flooding over me. I knew it was wrong not to revise for the test for the next day but if I did not agree to go out with my friend, she might just think that I was not keen to be her friend and our friendship would just fade away. All because of the new girl, Cindy. Cindy wore black-rimmed spectacles and she always topped the class – except for English. My best friend, Hilary, had taken a liking to her and now she stuck to Cindy most of the time because Cindy was intelligent. The next day would be our English test. A really difficult one, the teacher had said in class. I groaned. I guess I had to burn the midnight oil this time because if I did badly again, Hilary might decide she did not want to be my friend anymore.

Glumly turning a corner, I was shocked to espy a livid-looking man, my neighbour Mr Tan, about to strike a helpless rat with the handle of a broom. The rat cowered below him, shaking with fear. As I approach it, the rat turned its head to stare right at me. To my astonishment, I heard it speak, ‘Please, rescue me! I promise I will be your loyal friend forever!’