Saturday, April 18, 2009

Internalisation

in⋅ter⋅nal⋅ise
–verb (used with object), -ized, -iz⋅ing.
1. to incorporate (the cultural values, mores, motives, etc., of another or of a group), as through learning, socialization, or identification.
2. to make subjective or give a subjective character to.
3. Linguistics. to acquire (a linguistic rule, structure, etc.) as part of one's language competence.

See the word above??? Well, i need you to internalise what you have learnt. It means not forgetting what I've mentioned before and adding on new knowledge. A good way to internalise is when you try it yourself after we have gone through something. Practise one or two times... You will get better. For example, you don't have to write a full expository essay. Just practise and run through the planning part, adhering to the principles of the essay structure I've taught + the development of each body paragraph.

Try it. You'll do better each time.

Friday, April 17, 2009

A word a day.

ephemeral \ih-FEM-er-ul\, adjective:
1. Beginning and ending in a day; existing only, or no longer than, a day; as, an ephemeral flower.
2. Short-lived; existing or continuing for a short time only.

Success is very ephemeral. You depend entirely on the desire of others, which makes it difficult to relax.-- Eva Green

In "Mississippi Mermaid," the planter character played by Belmondo, a fellow who has sought a safe, permanent love, is liberated when he chooses to follow the ephemeral.-- Vincent Canby, "Truffaut's Clear-Eyed Quest.", New York Times, September 14, 1975

Rather, we must separate what is ephemeral... from the things that are of lasting importance.-- Patrick Smith, Japan: A Reinterpretation

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

IMPORTANT REMINDER

Mid-Year Examinations Paper 1 has been changed to 30 April (Thu).
{My bday *wahahaahaaa*}

Take note of text types for Section 1:
  • Narrative
  • Personal recount
  • Descriptive
  • Exposition

Please memorise the format for each type. Section 2:

  • Informal letter
  • Formal letter (IMPT! Likely to come out for N levels)
  • Information sheet (We did this in Sec 3!)
  • Report

I will be conducting a Remedial lesson on Writing. More information on that later!

Do you want to Twitter???

A Straits Times article to share...

April 15, 2009
Schoolboy is top Twitterer here
His popularity seems to be due to his young age and his tech knowledge
By Tan Weizhen


FEW people are likely to be too interested in the one-liners a 15-year-old Singapore schoolboy posts online about his life, his interests or his thoughts, except perhaps his parents, family and friends.
But Xavier Lur, in Secondary 3 at Maris Stella High, has corralled 54,567 netizens from the world over into following the updates he broadcasts on Twitter, a free social-networking utility big in the online world since last year.
With that number of 'followers' or friends, he is the top local Twitterer.
Irish rock star Bono has only a third as many.
Many politicians, showbiz people, athletes and ordinary netizens get on Twitter to offer updates on their lives; people become followers to get these updates, to stalk celebrities or simply to make friends the world over.
But why are almost 55,000 people 'following' the updates or 'tweets' put out by this Singapore schoolboy?
Xavier's popularity appears to stem from his knowledge about things tech and his tender years.
This self-described technology blogger puts out tweets on the latest tech trends, for example, the latest mobile phone applications.
His close friend Zhou Tong, 14, noted that Xavier has also put out tweets about the social networking site Facebook - ranging from tech tips on how to make one's profile more visually presentable to comments on Facebook's design revamp.
One tweet Xavier sent out announced that he and Zhou Tong were developing a 'social asking platform', which whipped up a flurry of excitement, say his followers. People were just intrigued that a 15-year-old could write a computer program for this.
Xavier said adults overseas are a big part of his audience, many keen on a peek into school life here.
Like any schoolboy, he has views on his teachers - some flattering, others less so, laced with some humour.
He describes his life as a Singapore student, including days he stays home from school for 'e-learning', his class trips and about creating class blogs.
Sometimes, his tweets are more personal, about his father's business trips.
Other days, he is plain mischievous, if also resourceful, and willing to share his ideas on how to save labour: 'Too lazy to write a Chinese composition titled Health Is More Important Than Wealth, so I used Google Translate to translate it from English.'
He is helpful, too, with tips like 'How to insert images in a word document without embedding', accompanied by a link to the actual method.
He has, in turn, used Twitter as a 24/7 helpdesk for getting answers to his own tech questions 'within a minute or so', and stirred debate among netizens with questions like 'Which programming language is the easiest to learn?'
He said that vitally, using Twitter has improved his communication skills and taught him about other cultures and 'the outside world'.
He grew his network of Twitter friends when he had time on his hands during a school break.
He now spends an hour online daily, sending out about 20 tweets, but still makes time for soccer, badminton, his friends, or even helping his mother with 'adult' tasks like submitting online passport applications.
Interestingly, his ambition has little to do with the tech world. He said that when he grows up, he wants to become a financial investor 'just like Warren Buffett, and maybe a psychologist'.
He has a younger brother who is keen on online computer games.
Fellow Twitterer Eric Chua, who follows Xavier for his tips, said the teen stands out for his useful tips, for example, on blogging and how to run online businesses.
Mr Chua, 27, and the owner of a start-up involved in video production and online publishing, is himself among the top five Twitterers here.
A distant second to Xavier, with 13,147 followers, he got on Twitter mainly to recruit suitably skilled people to join his start-up.
But Twittering is also about social networking. He has met chief executives, former politicians and authors online.
'The world is now flat,' he declared.
Of the other three top Twitterers, one is a social worker and two, Internet marketers.
Social worker and avid blogger John Yeo, with 5,676 followers, said he joined Twitter mainly to share blogging tips.

Monday, April 13, 2009

REMINDER

Just a GENTLE REMINDER (yah right!!!) to complete this HW by Wed (15 Apr):
Trial Examination 3 - Section 1 + Section 2(Passage A)


Hang in there!!! Mid-year examinations is only a couple of weeks away!!!

Voca People