As we enter yet another academic year, you may be facing the most crucial examination of your Primary School education this year – the PSLE. A student’s proficiency in the English language affects their success in other academic areas in addition to being a requirement for moving on to higher levels of education. In essence, excelling in your English PSLE examinations is crucial.
One of the components that many students struggle with is the Situational and Continuous Writing tasks of the English Paper 1 examinations. If you are looking to improve your writing skills, especially in the Situational and Continuous Writing components, keep on reading!
Situational Writing
1. Break down key information
Before you pick up your pen and begin writing, it is important to break down key information to ensure that you include everything you need to in your final work. Spend a couple of minutes creating an outline of important details and points. This could include the purpose of the piece you’re writing, the context, the tone, and more. Doing so will ensure that you have a strong foundation to build your piece on.
2. Create a checklist of your content points
Next, go over the bullet points you must address – there should be a total of 6 content points. We would recommend making a checklist of every point you have identified. As you write your piece, refer to this list and ensure that every point has been touched on. That way, you’ll be sure that you won’t lose marks from overlooking anything!
3. Don’t neglect your sign off
As you complete your piece, it can be tempting to rush through the conclusion and sign off so you can move on to the next component – Continuous Writing. This is a huge mistake that could cost you precious marks!
For informal letters, you may sign off your letter with “Best Regards.” On the other hand, formal letters should be signed off with “Yours Sincerely.”
Continuous Writing
1. Plan, plan, plan!
If there is one piece of advice we could share for your Continuous Writing essay, it would be to plan out your storyline.
While it may be tempting to dive head-first into writing your essay, taking 5 to 10 minutes to plan out your content will help to ensure that you have a coherent and cohesive story.
Start by dissecting the subject or theme. Keep in mind that the theme is what you should be concentrating on, as your score for the content component may be impacted if your narrative is not aligned.
2. Use varied expressions and descriptions
If you are looking to have your essay stand out, packing in long descriptive phrases will undoubtedly do the trick. For those having trouble coming up with these expressions organically, there is no harm in memorising chunks of description from model compositions beforehand and modifying them to fit in with the context of your essay.
3. Check your work
Correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation help students achieve high marks in their PSLE English compositions. About 55% of most English exam papers are made up of grammar. A smooth and fluent phrase is produced when students apply the correct tenses and punctuation in their English composition.
Thus, when you have completed your essay, run a thorough check to ensure that you have not made any mistakes in your grammar, spelling, punctuation and sentence structure.
Conclusion
Having a good command of English is crucial in many aspects of your life. If you require additional assistance in your PSLE English examination preparations, consider hiring a private English tutor in Singapore.
English home tuition will help you reach your fullest academic potential by offering you personalised support to hone your skills in various aspects of the language. Premium Tutors is a home tuition agency in Singapore that offers private tutoring services by experienced tutors in the comfort of your own home. We have a comprehensive pool of qualified tutors who will be able to help you brush up on your writing skills and other components of the language.
Ace your examinations and achieve top marks by contacting us today!