Below are the 4 ‘P’s approach that parents can adopt to help prepare their child for PSLE.

1. Pro-Active Learning

Master the English Language

Read widely, from newspaper articles to fictional stories.

Use the newspaper as a context everyday to get in touch with the real world. Choose topics that are related to their lives as much as possible. This would help develop their interest and engage them. Follow through with a discussion on their thoughts and opinions.

Focus on those with issues on consideration and being civic-minded. From the articles that your child has picked up, continue to work on the following.

Summarise into 100-150 words

By writing a summary, your child will be practicing not only on his summarizing skills where the focus is on picking out the relevant points, but also works on developing vocabulary, grammar and a deeper understanding of content.

Vocabulary

Pick up at least 6 new words/phrases a day from the article or novel read. Encourage your child to weave the new vocabulary into his written work. Find every opportunity to use the new vocabulary as part of his daily conversation.

Composition

Your child needs to see the connection between reading and writing. Pay more attention to the story ideas than to the grammatical errors. Praise the story ideas, this would encourage the child to want to write and boost his self-confidence.

Comprehension

Focus on developing the skills in asking and answering questions. Understand the different types of questions posed for PSLE and how to answer accordingly.

Oral & Communication

Once he has completed his summary, discuss his topic and encourage him to share his thoughts on the matter.

We cannot deny the fact that oral examination is an important part of the English paper as 30 marks or 15% is set aside to make up the 100% required for PSLE. Your child needs to develop his reading skills, to read fluently, to articulate and read expressively. He needs to enjoy reading, make it fun!

2. Pen down notes

In order to help your child to prepare for PSLE, the best PSLE notes are those that your child makes himself.

Designing his own set of notes and having them colour coded will benefit him and enable him to recall more effectively. This is why it is important for him to spend some serious time sitting down and consolidating what he has learnt into proper notes.

He needs to read through, decide what is relevant and pen it down. Should he have any difficulties to pen down his notes, do find programs that would guide him and help develop his note taking skills.

By penning down notes, it also encourages him to review everything he has learnt, encourages him to organize the way he learns best in a particular structure that he has designed for himself.

This helps him to recall better as it links the different topics, creating a logical flow.

This is a skill that is extremely beneficial as it can be effectively use throughout his learning journey.

3. Precision Reading

Remind your child to read each question carefully before moving onto the next one. Highlight the important words or key phrases. This is to ensure that he answers what is required of him

Many children are anxious to complete their paper to ’get it over with’. This may cost them the marks they need to excel.

Encourage your child to always check his work after every class assignment, homework or exam paper before handing it in.

4. Positive Parenting

One of the most important things you can do for your child is to listen. If he is struggling in a particular area, ask him where his challenges are. Do not assume he is lazy or careless.

If you are coaching your child, do make his learning an enjoyable experience. If you do not have the time due to work commitment, it is always good to have your child enrolled in programs that would help improve in his academic performance and motivate him into becoming a confident learner.

Do try to put yourself in your child’s position in order to understand him better. Take a positive approach.

Remember that no child wants to fail. Your child needs your emotional support and belief in him, for him to succeed.

Be the supportive and loving parent that you are and enjoy the journey with your child while helping him to prepare for PSLE.

Our children are Gifts.
They are precious and need to be treasured!

Homework Overload

Apart from homework given by the school, my child gets homework from the other enrichment courses that I have put him in as well. I feel that it is necessary to have homework to help him improve but my child seems to be getting stressed. Is too much homework necessary?

It is important to understand the value of homework or enrichment to begin with, so it is good to talk it through with your child.

For example, sit down and go “Why do we need homework or enrichment in the first place?” It is important that the parent does not answer that question. It must come from the child why that is necessary. And if the grades are not wonderful, you may like to ask in what way homework can help them in their grades. It is important that children understand as many truly felt stressed and hate homework especially due to overload. They find that they have too much homework and these eat into their time from play, games, doing the things that they want. It deprives them, it is a mindset. This in turn makes them feel too much stressed. It is because of their reluctance and taking so painfully long for homework to be done makes it appear very overwhelming and overload.

After asking why it is necessary, do help your child to prioritize whether it be homework from school or enrichment centers. Start with the one that the child finds the most challenging. So that the child can start fresh and more alert as he is working on the weaker subject. This in turn will minimise the thought of “too much” or “overload”.

Another area why the child feels overload and stressed as they know that it is the time where mum and dad will get very upset with them or disappointed. If they can avoid homework, which they feel is too much for them, this is the direction they will go. Therefore homework cannot be stressed but has to be pleasant.

When sending your child to another organization for enrichment classes where there are homework given, or even in addition there is home tutoring where homework involved. Be sensitive and mindful, as these may create an overload and stressed. This is where parents need to share with tutors how to find a balance to prevent too much homework.

When a child has homework from school or enrichment classes, the child has to do it first instead of waiting for the tutor doing with him.