Either....or.. / Neither....nor.... / main subject / who and whom / semicolon and colon

Grammar rules:

1) Either.....or.... / Neither......nor .....

The second noun determines the verb.

E.g.

Neither Amelia nor her friends like durians.

Neither Jayne nor Naomi has a mobile phone.

Sometimes the sentence may be in the past tense:

Neither James nor Peter watched the match.

(In this case, it does not matter if the noun is singular or plural.)

2) Main subject

Remember that the clause between commas provides extra information. The main subject determines the verb.

E.g.

Nick, as well as Matthew, is good in badminton.

Chris, together with his brothers, walks to school every day.

3) who / whom

Both of these are relative pronouns used to refer to people

who - followed by a verb

whom - followed by a noun / pronoun

exception: to whom - followed by a verb

E.g.

The lady who waved at me is a famous actress.

The boy whom I spoke to was my best friend.

To whom does this file belong?

4) Punctuations

Colon - used to introduce a list

E.g. These are some of my favourite books: Leota's Garden, Anne in Green Gables, Someone Else's Kids and Toto Chan.

Semicolon - used to separate two closely related independent clauses

E.g. Samantha was the only prefect around ; she had to settle the matter.

Note: There are many other usages of the colons and semicolons. If you are interested, take a look at

http://www.gprc.ab.ca/library/Homepage/Help%20With/LSC/LSC%20pdfs/Semicolon%20and%20Colon%20Usage.pdf

24 February

Homework:

1) Composition / SPCOC
(Practice 2 Composition B)
- Please use the words and phrases in your notes

What we did today:

Went through SPCOC (Please ensure you know what each letter stands for)
New word learnt - indelibly (What does it mean?)

23 February 2010

Homework:

1) English Practice Paper 3 (due tomorrow) - Please identify clues in cloze passage

2) Spelling and Dictation (on Friday)

3) Situational Writing 3 Corrections (due on 8 Mar together with writing file)

What we did today:

- Went through Practice Paper 2 (Identify clues in cloze passage; Synthesis and Grammar rules - Reported speech; Neither...nor and Either...or)

- Went through Situational Writing 3

Press on!

Reported Speech

3 points to note:

1) change the tenses

present tense to past tense
past tense to past perfect tense

E.g. "She is at the library now," Tim said.
Tim said she was at the library then.
E.g. "I went to the zoo yesterday," Sam announced.
Sam announced that he had gone to the zoo the day before.

2) change the pronouns

E.g. "I have eaten," Tina said.
Tina said she had eaten.

3) change the time/ place etc

now to then
today to that day etc

E.g. "I will be studying in America next year," she said.
She said she would be studying in America the following year.

TPTP
Tenses
Pronouns
Time
Place

If you are reporting a question, you need to take note of 2 additional points:

1) Switch the positions of the subject and verb
In a statement, the subject appears before the verb.
In a question, the verb appears before the subject.

E.g. "How old are you?" she asked me.
She asked me how old I was.

2) Add "if" if there is no question word.
Question words: Who, what, why, where, what, how

E.g. "Are you going to the library tomorrow?" Mandeal asked Nathan.
Mandeal asked Nathan if he was going to the library the next day.

Having mentioned the 5 golden rules for reported speech, please remember not to change the tenses for other questions on synthesis.

Situational Writing 3

Dear Tim,

How are you? I am writing to invite you to take part in a writing competition with me. The competition is organized by Scholastic and allows us to inspire the world through our stories. There is a chance to get our stories published. We would be in Category A since we are twelve years old and our essay needs to contain 300 to 600 words.

We can choose from three different titles: “My Family”, “If I Ruled a Country, I Would” and “The Day that Changed My Life Forever”. I would like to write about my family as I have many experiences to share. Would you prefer other titles? We can discuss further.

We stand to receive US$150 each and a certificate of honour if we are grand prize winners. There are also eighteen consolation prizes in our category. Each consolation prize winner will receive a token and a certificate of honour.

If we are participating, we have to send in our entry by 30 April 2010. I am excited about working together with you as we have worked well together in the past. Do reply soon!

Regards,
Jed.

22 February 10

Homework

1) Homework Book p. 48

2) Comprehension

It's the Weekend!

Homework (Due on Monday 22 Feb):
1) Vocabulary (Word Forms Test 1-3)
2) Composition corrections
3) Practice Paper 1 corrections

Update on Haiti fund-raising
When: 10 and 11 March 2010 (recesses)
Where: Canteen
What to sell:
Bookmarks, Bottles with stars, Comics, Stories, Origami, Aeroplane or boat models etc.
Announcers: The Wees
Important Note: If you need to be reimbursed for items bought, do keep your receipt. You will only be reimbursed if a profit is made.
Let's pray that we will be a blessing to the Haitians.

CA1 is in a week's time. Please revise your notes (in your notebook and files).

Have a blessed weekend. :)

Composition Two

Composition Two:

You were at an MRT station when you heard someone calling your name.

Here are some wonderful ideas that you came up with:

Who could be calling your name

1) A school bully

2) A former classmate

3) A family member

4) A stranger

5) A friend

Plot development and conclusion

1) The school bully challenged you to commit a crime. Turn of event: Through the events that happened, you found out that the bully was not as intimidating as he showed himself to be. You helped him turn over a new leaf.

2) The former classmate looked different from before. As you chatted, you found out more about the experiences that changed his life.

3) A family member informed you of the passing of another family member.

4) A stranger tricked you into following him / her and eventually kidnapped you or tried to hurt you.

Model essay

Love in Action

Author: T. Suresh

A bolt of lightning tore across the sky and a peal of thunder came close upon each other. The wind was thrashing the tree tops as a curtain of rain beat down from the heavens. I took to my feet, which moved quickly, as if on fire. I clutched my bag tightly and dashed through the raindrops. "Aargh! This is the worst rain I've seen," I moaned, placing my bag in front of me once I reached the Jurong MRT Station.

I retied my shoelaces, straightened out my frizzy hair and wiped the water off my shirt. "Hey, Chester," a menacing voice caused me to freeze for a few seconds. I braced myself for the imminent fate as I slowly turned around. Terror gripped my whole being and perspiration started dripping from my forehead. It was Darren, the infamous school bully!

"Hey, you're going to do me a favour, or else you will be in hot soup!" threatened Darren. He pointed at a shop nearby. "Get me that phone!" his loud voice demanded. I could not do much but resort to crime as ordered. I walked towards the shop surreptitiously. Although my head shrieked to me to stop in my tracks, my body did not want punch markings on it. Panic continued to engulf me as I debated my next course of action. Finally, I regained control of my body. I was not going to do it.

I halted in my tracks. My feet slowly shifted towards the nearby stairs as I braved the fear I possessed- Darren.

"What are you trying to do?" Darren shouted at me.

I summoned all the strength I had and raced towards the stairs, my heart smashing the insides of my ribs. Behind me was Darren, hot on my heels. Suddenly, like a bolt out of the blue, Darren tripped and fell. "Aaaaahhhh! Help me up! Please help! Ouch!" whimpered Darren in a meek voice.

I turned around. The steps were stained with blood. Finally, my eyes lay upon the rolling body belonging to Darren. Suddenly, it dawned on me that Darren was not that tough. He just needed help to turn over a new leaf.

I rushed down the steps and dashed in lightning speed towards Darren. I called for an ambulance which arrived in a matter of seconds. I watched as the paramedics treated him. As the injuries sustained were minor, he was let off. I volunteered to send him home.

"Why are you helping me?" Darren asked, looking confounded.

I grinned at him. "Do unto others what you want others to do unto you," I said, before proceeding. Darren soon broke into sobs as he confessed that he did not have any friends. I assured him that I would be his friend. Darren dried his tears and formed a grin.

It was a U-turn in Darren's life. I was the main reason for that turning point. Now, Darren is one of my best friends. Whenever Darren feels demoralised, I cheer him up and he always comes to me for advice. I learnt that people can change. However, for that, they need love.

***Remember to use the SPCOC technique (found in your notes) whenever you write an essay.

***Please use the words / phrases from the vocabulary list that was given to you.

Welcome

Dear 6B,

I've decided to set up a blog to record what we have learnt and done in class. Homework will also be documented here. Hope this will be a good resource for you and your parents.

I hope you remember the two principles that I shared on Day One:

1) Whatever you do, do it heartily.

2) Do unto others what you want others to do unto you.

Also remember, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. May God bless you with abundant strength, peace, joy and love the whole year through.

Blessed 2010.

Mrs Gan.