June Holidays

Dear all,

I know that it has been a while since I have last updated. Since this is the time of the June Holidays, I would like to send out a few notices and thoughts about the first semester.

Parents-Teachers Meeting

Thank you parents for coming down and to update me about your child's progress at home and to offer your encouragement and improvements. I am heartened to work with each one of you and I feel that it is important to forge communication and have constant updates. We share a common goal of the welfare of your child.

Take note of the strengths and weaknesses as highlighted and work on the areas of improvement. As I have stated, a good part of the areas of improvement is to actually offer encouragement and motivation which are somewhat lacking in the students. They are not reaching their full potential and are definitely capable of doing better if they can make the extra effort to push themselves consistently. Of course, do allow time to destress and relax when needed.

For those parents who were not down, not to worry. I will look to call you soon after this busy week in school. I look forward to communicating with you.

For parents who indicated that you would like to receive the mid-year progress report/feedback through e-mail, I have already sent the first batch of e-mail out. Hope it reaches you fine. Do drop me a reply so that I can track that you have received my e-mail. Thank you!

Parents, do get your children to view the blog. I hope to make full use of the blog as a platform for them to be reminded of school work and important announcements. The blog has also been a useful tool for the students to revise certain notes being posted. As such, do read the blog regularly and to also get your children to check it on a regular basis. Many thanks in advance.

Semester 1

As we look back on Semester 1 as a family, I am glad to see the general improvement in academic results for English and Science, whether it is on a small or large scale. Always tell yourself that you can do better and work on it. Do not stop at where you are.

The general feedback for English is to improve on grammar, spelling and punctuation for most of you. These are the basics of English and without these basics, you will not be able to progress to the next level. As such, it is very important to work on tenses, grammar items, spelling and punctuation. Find some time to drill on these items time and again to make sure you remember how to use them correctly. This helps when it comes to writing, answering of comprehension and booklet B (which is the usual most difficult section of the papers in which you lost most of your marks).

For Science, always remember to drill yourself and ace booklet A (MCQs). This is the section in which I have told you time and again, that it is very important and will determine whether you can pass or score well. 30 questions, 4 options, read carefully and aim to score 40 or above. A 50 and above would help you to safely move on to an A grade if you do not do badly for your booklet B. Use Science concepts and key terms when you answer booklet B open-ended questions, especially for questions in which you have to explain.

As for progress report on classroom discipline, it still has alot to be worked upon. By now, you would be familiarized with what each teacher expects and sets in place to make sure your self-discipline is achieved. However, most of you lack the consistency to be self-disciplined at the right times, especially after the examinations. Self-discipline is the key to help you be organized in the classroom and to have a conducive environment to study well. As such, it is really important. It also applies at home when you revise and do your work. With self-discipline, you can then be more motivated to do well.
As a class, you have done well in readily getting yourself ready in lining up. That is really commendable. Please continue to work together. We need to maximize all the time we need in the classroom.

In terms of attitude in school, one area to be greatly improved! SELF-MOTIVATION! Motivation is the want and need to achieve a goal and task. You have to know what you want and to be determined to achieve that goal and not to give up halfway. There will be obstacles along the way and difficulties. But don't give up. If you are unsure, please ask. Teachers, parents, tuition teachers, relatives and siblings are all here to help you. Ask a few people if you need help in your studies. Check and check and make sure you understand and solve a problem. Many of you just want to get the answers to a question rather than focusing on how to solve the problem and what is needed to solve the problem. This is more important than just getting the answer. It is the process that will help you solve other problems.
It is already half a year gone by. Very soon, you will see your seniors taking their PSLE and wonder to yourself, "Is that me in a year's time?" This is your goal, to do well and take pride in your studies.

Important Notices

Homework on Composition Unit 7 to be done and passed up when you come back for the extra supplementary lessons on the last week or latest by first day of TERM 3!

This time, I have decided to let you try on your own after all the previous help being provided. The main aim is to let you have your own practice on your own to see how well you can write. So please put in your best effort. Parents, do take note of the advice provided to some of you during the meet the parents' session. You can help your children to break down the story into different parts to drill them and help them check on their content and mistakes before combining each part into a perfect story.

Important Events in Term 3

First week of school would be your Science practical test which marks 10% of CA2 results. We will be having intense practice during the first week when school reopens. I will post up some notes during the holidays for you to revise a little.

CA2 will take place in the 6th week onwards. Start your revision. Do not laze around. Past year topics are important, especially for Science. Go and read up.

P5 NE Show and P5 Camp will take place in July and August.

Lastly, lets' go back and revisit the rules that we hold dearly in our classroom.

5 Golden Rules 

1. We are a family.

I value the bond between the teachers and students and this first rule seeks to establish a supportive environment in which everyone can help one another and make learning interesting and fun. Just like the analogy of branches, roots, leaves, stems and shoots that make up a tree, students and teachers need one another in their walk through daily school life. As much as I hope students can learn from me, I also look forward to learning from each and every student. 

2. Listen Attentively!

The power of listening is immense. The sense of hearing is an important tool in classroom learning. It is important to respect the speaker when he/she is talking just as we hope that others will listen to us when we are talking. Thus, it is important to listen first and ask/speak later. 

3. Respect, bow and greet the principal, vice principals and teachers.

The value of respect is clearly meted out in the school rules (in the school handbook/diary) - Respect yourself, respect others and respect the environment. It is important to show respect to higher authority and to fellow classmates/schoolmates. It is an integral aspect of character development and lifelong learning.

4. Pass up all work on time. 

Work is not to burden students but to build up their knowledge and put into practice concepts learned. Students must take pride in their work to grow academically. With constant practice, students can activate their schema and drill the concepts in their mind. As the saying goes, practice makes perfect. As such, it is important for students to pass up work on time so that the teacher can grade and provide feedback. 

5. Do your best in everything you do.

No one is perfect. We make mistakes along the way in our life. But it is important to put in our best effort and maximise our talent and efforts, learn from our mistakes along the way and become a better person. Likewise, students must put in their best effort to shine academically, in terms of character development or physical sports. 


Thank You,
Sincerely,
Mr Nelson Ong