ESSAY WRITING LEARNING AND STUDY TECHNIQUES ( PART 1)

By : ABIDAH BT SARAJUL HAQ , English Language Master Teacher, Sekolah Tuanku Abdul Rahman , Ipoh

Writing is a way of communicating your ideas. The art of good essay writing is to have something to say and to express these ideas clearly and concisely. In Paper 2 of the PMR English Language examination , students are required to write one composition in not less than 120 words. The types of guided compositions are as follows : 1. Pictorial or route maps 2. Descriptive compositions 3. Narratives 4. Note expansion 5. Processes and procedures 6. Letters ( Formal or Informal) 7. Articles 8. Speeches and Talks 9. Giving opinions 10. Dialogues and conversations

Guidelines
You are advised to spend 40 minutes in Section A , where you will have to write one guided composition. Read the instructions and question carefully so that you understand the requirements of the task. Underline or circle the keyword or main point to ensure that you are keeping track with the requirement of the question. Focus on the format that is required, for example whether it is a letter, a speech or writing a story based on given pictures. Spend time to plan for your composition. Jot down important notes and ideas using a mind map. Present you ideas in sentences and later write them out into paragraphs. Use clear and grammatically correct sentences. Use interesting expressions to arouse the readers interest. Finally, after you have completed your composition, read again and edit your work. Check for spelling errors, inappropriate tenses and incorrect sentence structures.

THE BRAINSTORMING STAGE ( Time allotted : 3 minutes )

This is the first stage in any essay writing process. Brainstorming is writing down everything you can think of without considering whether it is good or useable. During the brainstorming session you will usually come up with a list of words and phrases. Just jot down ideas that seem related to the topic or question. Later on you can delete the ideas that are irrelevant.

THE PLANNING STAGE ( Time allotted : 34 minutes)

The second stage in this process is the planning stage. Every composition consists of an introduction , a body and a conclusion. Introduction Refers to your general overview of the topic or your comment INTRODUCTION regarding it. comment regarding it. An introduction should be short and clear and should inform the reader what you are going to write about.

This is the main section of your composition. Write out each mainin BODY a paragraph you will main idea in a paragraph. Remember : in a paragraph you will have a topic sentence and supporting details (which include examples and further elaborations). TOPIC SENTENCE : to inform readers what the paragraph is about. SUPPORTING DETAILS: to explain, give reasons or examples that support and elaborate the topic sentence. An example is given below

A forest is a large area of land covered with trees. A forest is not only made up of trees. It also includes smaller plants such as mosses, shrubs and wild flowers. In addition many kinds of birds, insects and other animals make their home in the forest.

Topic sentence :

A forest is a large are of land covered with trees.

Supporting details : It includes smaller plants for example mosses, shrubs and wild flowers. Many kinds of birds, insects and other animals make their home in the forest.

CONCLUSION conclusion to be effective,

This is the last paragraph of your writing. Here you are to summarise the main points which you have stated in the earlier paragraphs or to restate your opinion or stand on the topic.

THE EDITING STAGE ( Time allotted : 3 minutes)

This is the final and crucial stage of your writing process . But I find many students seem to ignore this last bit of effort before passing up their work. By editing , you are actually checking whether you have missed out any relevant information . You can also use the time left by checking for correct grammar ,sentence structures , spellings and tenses. Below is a checklist that I find helpful in monitoring the editing process.
NO ITEMS PLACE A ( / ) AFTER CHECKING

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Notes ( expanded) Relevant details (added ) Examples (given) Main ideas ( in sequence) Tenses( used correctly) Sentences ( grammatically correct) Paragraphs( organised) Spelling( without errors) Punctuation (correctly placed) Handwriting ( eligible)

I would advise students to take some time every week to practice your writing skills. Although some of you may feel it to be taxing at first but I can assure you that this exercise is most useful for an English Language student to do. And with constant and consistent effort , without giving up , you can eventually write better compositions in the PMR examination. Remember : We can do anything we want to do if we stick to it long enough Helen Keller.

ESSAY WRITING LEARNING AND STUDY TECHNIQUES ( PART I1) THE FIVE PARAGRAPH ESSAY

By : ABIDAH BT SARAJUL HAQ , English Language Excellent Teacher, Sekolah Tuanku Abdul Rahman , Ipoh

TIPS AND TECHNIQUES As a teacher , my sole concern will be to find ways on how to improve my students essay writing skills. In this issue I would like to share some ideas that I find useful to practice . Writing a good five paragraph essay requires one to master the format of this kind of essay. What is required for writing a good five- paragraph essay is the same as writing any good piece of writing but in this case the format has to be exact. Since writing is a form of communication , you must always remember that the goal is to become clear, concise and unified so that the reader can follow along and appreciate your piece of writing and flow of thought. The five- paragraph essay is indeed a great tool for learning and communicating at all levels. Here are some ideas that are helpful when writing the above essay :

1. A five paragraph essay consists of

an introduction ( one paragraph) body of contents ( three paragraphs) a conclusion ( one paragraph)

2. Writing the Introductory Paragraph

This is the most important part of the essay writing process as you are grabbing the readers attention by informing him or her the main points of your essay. Spend time learning to write this well. A poor impression often turns off the reader or the examiner. You have to grab the readers attention with interest and clarity. Choose a topic which you know quite well. Brainstorm for ideas , then jot them down and arrange them in order. You may give a definition, a quotation, proverb or a general statement of the topic. REMEMBER : The introduction should be short comprising of a few sentences.

3.

Writing the Body of an Essay

You need to write THREE paragraphs in this kind of essay. A paragraph is a group of sentences that is linked to relate ideas. The sentences should be varied and do not use the same dull sentence structures. Be sure that there is a flow of ideas in your paragraphs and these are connected and in sequence. Each paragraph should made up of a topic sentence and supporting details. You must provide a transition between one paragraph to the next paragraph so that the reader sees that there is a link or connection and can anticipate what is coming next. REMEMBER : the most important sentence in a paragraph is the first sentence ( topic sentence) which informs us of the main idea in the paragraph and the last sentence in each paragraph summarises what had been said earlier in the paragraph.

4. Writing the Conclusion

You have to restate what had been said in the three paragraphs. The introductory paragraph becomes a strong guide for writing the conclusion or summary paragraph. You must summarise effectively Practice writing conclusions for a while. Sometimes you find that you have developed a style that is good and impressive . REMEMBER : These are the last thoughts you will leave with the reader/ examiner. Make them the best that you can.

Some Ending Thoughts ..

Practice writing one supporting paragraph and evaluate, revise and edit it. As with the introductory paragraph, this process and format becomes easier to follow as you practice. The same goes with the other structured paragraphs. Do each section at a time to practice. Have someone to look at your product. If possible give some comments as this will help you to improve further. Use the checklist that I have given in the last issue to monitor the editing process. If you have done all these , youll be amazed at how good and unified you ideas have been. Remember it does not happen overnight. Practice and evaluate your own piece of writing . Revise and reread. Progress is the most important product. It usually does not come without a lot of effort. The five- paragraph essay is a good introduction to patterned writing. It is the basis for much writing that is done in school and later life. Mastering this form is essential. Developing good writers requires regular and frequent practice. As Swami Sivananda said Put your heart, mind, intellect and soul even to your smallest acts. This is the secret of success. Good Luck.

PMR ENGLISH LANGUAGE PRACTICE

BY: ABIDAH BT SARAJUL HAQ ENGLISH LANGUAGE MASTER TEACHER SEKOLAH TUANKU ABDUL RAHMAN , IPOH PRACTICE 1

BATA has a whole new range of bags and shoe wear. It ___(1)______ offering a 10 per cent ___(2)______ on any of it standard collection of products. Just cut ____(3)_____ the coupon in our Batas advertisement page. Ladies items are ____(4)_____ from RM29.90 to RM139. The Bata __(5)________ in Malaysia have ____(6)_____ a long way. Remember First to BATA then to school ?. From a household name selling school ___(7)_______ , BATA has gone on ____(8)_______ serve different segments of the market. Adapted from KLIA Times, July 2007

1 A B C D

are was is were

2 A increase B decrease C account D discount

3 A B C D

out off in on

4 A prices B priced C price D price

5 A branches B tree C branch D root

6 A come B comes C coming D came

7 A B C D

shoes sandals boots socks

8 A B C D

to for up on

PRACTICE 2

Five- year old Daniel woke up one day to a rainy morning . It was pouring cats and dogs outside. Mummy , of course did not want him to get in the rain and suggested that day he stay home for the day. Just then came a totally unexpected reaction from Daniel .He screamed Nooo!! and threw a tantrum like never before . He insisted on going to school ,no matter what. Most children would very happy stay home from school , but not Daniel , a Smart Reader Kids student . He has never missed a day of school. A chat with any Smart Reader Kids teacher confirms that most centres have a very low non-attendance rate. Children have short attention spans. And if you cant keep them interested , you will have a headache chasing after them because they will be running all over the place, says a teacher at Smart Reader Kids. Three to six- year- olds are constantly moving about and they cant sit still for more than two minutes in one place. It makes our work much easier as we have a curriculum that captures their attention 100% , said one of the teachers. Adapted from The Star Education Guide 20/ 9/ 07 9 Pouring cats and dogs in passage means A B C D flood thunderstorms heavy rain scanty rain

10 What is special about the Smart Reader Kids Centre? A B C D students are always 100% attentive students are always running around students can play anytime students are always chatting

11 Why did Daniel scream when his mother told him to stay home?

A B C D

He was happy He was sad He was sick He was angry

12 He has never missed a day of school means A B C D his attendance in school was 50 % his attendance in school was 100 % his attendance in school was 80% his attendance in school was 99%

PRACTICE 3 On 31 August , Malaysia will celebrate her 50th birthday! It is s special day for us . We remember how our country achieved its independence from the British at midnight 30 August 1957. It was our first Prime Minister , Tunku Abdul Rahman ,who helped our country to achieve its independence. Tunku ,as he was fondly known , formed an alliance between the United Malay National Organisation [UMNO] , the Malayan Chinese Association[MCA] and the Malayan Indian Congress[MIC] . Together with his colleagues, Tunku led the fight for independence from the British When Malaya ,as it was then known, became independent, Tunku was elected as the countrys first Prime Minister . A prince from Kedah, Tunku was loved by the people . For his role in uniting the three races and achieving Malaysians Independence, he became known as Bapa Malaysia. Thanks to the efforts of the older generations , young Malaysian today live in peace and harmony. Adapted from Quest magazine July August issue 2007

13 Who had helped Malaysia to achieve its independence? A B C D Tun Abdul Rahman Tun Hussein Onn Tunku Abdul Rahman Tun Dr Mahathir

14 On 31 August 1957,Malaya achieved its independence from the A B C D Japanese Portuguese Dutch British

15 Why was Tunku loved by the people? A He invented a special place for certain people. B He united the races in Malaya C He fought in the war with the British D He was our second Prime Minister 16 The word colleagues in the passage means A B C D neighbours schoolmates partners enemies

PRACTICE 4 The fitting sessions would be conducted at either Hajjah Cik Minahs Songket House in Penambang or at the tailors in Kota Bharu . Jamal and his fiance would have their songket fitting sessions in the morning at the baju Melayu sessions in the afternoon . Then they usually lunched together in Kota Bharu , chaperoned , definitely, but it was a small matter . The more important matter was that these fitting sessions were the times Jamal stole precious few moments with his wife-to-be. He began to notice more things about her . She had a mole on the left of her chin and she was actually far fairer than she had seemed when he had first seen her. Fair complexion in ladies were was very much prized. Of Bunga Telur and Bally Shoes by Che Husna Azhari

17

What were the fitting sessions for ? A To see who is fitter

B To try out the wedding outfits C To discuss wedding outfits D To organise the buffet lunch

18

The word chaperonedmeans A B C D followed by an uncle followed by a stranger accompanied by a husband accompanied by an older woman

19 Jamals wife-to- be- is described as A Very fair without any mole B Quite fair with a mole on her cheek C Fair with a mole on her chin D Moderately fair with some moles on her chin 20 What did Jamal and his fiance do during the afternoon ? A B C D They had a stroll They did some shopping They visited friends and relatives They had lunch together

PRACTICE 5

Zahid , youve turned into a little monster!. In reply Zahid merely lifted his eyebrows and gazed off into space. He was really putting on a show .From time to time ,he sniggered . No one could fathom his thoughts. If you dont have a book or pencil , then go home . Youre better off staying at home and sleeping . Whats the use in coming to school if youre going to act like a brat? . The teacher s threats didnt bother him at all. His face remained expressionless and empty. Once in a while , he would stare spitefully at his teacher and wish , if you were only my size, Id take you on too, just as I did Dolah..

 Stand here until school is out, Mr.Jamal commanded . Zahid headed for the corner, with his head down, but on his lips there was a smile. He strutted, as though mocking the command given by his teacher. Mr.Jamal became furious. When school was out , Dolah was waiting for him. But Zahid was in luck, because he happened to be carrying a piece of wood to protect himself. The Pencil by Ali Majod

21 The phrase putting on a show means A B C D to show something to take part to pretend to react

22 Why did Mr. Jamal call Zahid a little monster? A B C D He looks like a monster He sings in the class He helps the students in the class He disturbs the students in the class

23 The piece of wood that Zahid carried was for A donation B protection C selling D throwing 24 The teachers threats didnt bother Zahid because A B C D he was not afraid of anyone he was happy in school he did not understand what the teacher meant he did not know what to do

Good Luck and All the Best in your PMR exam

ANSWERS

1C 2 D 3 B 4 B 5A 6 A 7 A 8 A 9 C 10 A 11 D 12 B 13 C 14 D 15 B 16 C 17 B 18 D 19 C 20 D 21 C 22 D 23 B 24 A