Answers: α-Grammar Drill 2

Form 4 & 5

Shalom and hi! These are the answers to last week's grammar drill. Please mark your work with a red pen, and feel free to ask if there's anything you're unsure of or confused about, yeah? 😊

Answer

Family Values

By Kevin Jeyaraj

Family values are (be) something that transcend (transcend) time, race and religion. No matter the colour of one’s skin or their life philosophy, there are (be) some things that ­are (be) immutable, namely, how we behave (behave) in our family.

                Love is (be) the most important value of all, because it is (be) the basis of all our interactions. If we love (love) every family member, that love is (be) reflected in everything we say (say) and do (do). We will automatically respect (respect) our parents. And when we esteem (esteem) our parents, we will always be honest with them, too, even if it gets (get) us into trouble.

                We should always be (be) polite to every member in our family – from our grandparents right down to our youngest sibling. We should also be (be) generous with what we have (have), and never hold (hold) back anything good from a family member. In other words, we should freely share (share) our belongings with family members.

                In a family, another way of showing love is (be) by putting (put) other family members first, and thinking (think) of their benefit even before we consider (consider) our own advantage.  We can do (do) this by helping the others, even in simple things like doing (do) chores around the house.

                It is (be) said that love bears (bear) no ill-will, so if we love (love) our family, we will forgive them when they wrong us. Showing (Show) love also means (mean) that at times, we will have to humble (humble) ourselves and be the first to apologise when there is (be) a fight.

                When we love (love) our family, we will be (be) punctual for family events. This will show (show) how much we prioritise family over friends.

                A wise man once said  (say) that love is (be) patient and kind, and that love never fails (fail). Our families might be (be) the toughest people to get (get) along with, but they still are (be) the most important people in our lives, and we can show (show) this by practising (practise) all these family values.

👈💖👉

α-Grammar Drill 2

Form 4 & 5

Shalom and hi, kids!

Today we'll be doing another grammar drill, so open your book to the Grammar section and write today's date and date. The title should be Tenses, SVA, and Gerunds.

Copy the essay below and fill in the blanks your answer. 

Happy writing!

Family Values

By Kevin Jeyaraj

Family values ___________ (be) something that ____________________ (transcend) time, race and religion. No matter the colour of one’s skin or their life philosophy, there ___________ (be) some things that ­______________ (be) immutable, namely, how we ___________________ (behave) in our family.

           

     Love ____________ (be) the most important value of all, because it _________ (be) the basis of all our interactions. If we __________________ (love) every family member, that love ______________ (be) reflected in everything we ___________________ (say) and ____________________(do). We will automatically _______________________ (respect) our parents. And when we ______________________ (esteem) our parents, we will always be honest with them, too, even if it ___________________ (get) us into trouble.

                

      We should always _____________ (be) polite to every member in our family – from our grandparents right down to our youngest sibling. We should also ____________ (be) generous with what we ________________________(have), and never ______________________ (hold) back anything good from a family member. In other words, we should freely _______________________ (share) our belongings with family members.

     In a family, another way of showing love _____________ (be) by ___________________ (put) other family members first, and __________________________ (thinking) of their benefit even before we _______________________ (consider) our own advantage.  We can __________________ (do) this by helping the others, even in simple things like __________________ (do) chores around the house.

      It _________________ (be) said that love ________________________ (bear) no ill-will, so if we ______________________ (love) our family, we will forgive them when they wrong us. ____________________(Show) love also _______________________ (mean) that at times, we will have to ______________________ (humble) ourselves and be the first to apologise when there ________________ (be) a fight.

     When we ____________________ (love) our family, we will _________________ (be) punctual for family events. This will _______________________ (show) how much we prioritise family over friends.

      A wise man once ____________  (say) that love ____________ (be) patient and kind, and that love never ___________________________ (fail). Our families might _____________ (be) the toughest people to _____________________ (get) along with, but they still _______________ (be) the most important people in our lives, and we can ______________________ (show) this by ____________________ (practise) all these family values.

👈💖👉

Answers: β-Grammar Drill (1)

Form 4 & 5


Shalom and hi! These are the answers to the Grammar Drill 1 exercises. Mark your work with a red pen, and please leave a comment below or pm me if you have any questions! 😃

The Answers 

  1.   Till this day, James is (be) the naughtiest boy I know (know).  His mother told (tell) me that last year, he locked (lock) a friend in a storeroom in school. Then, he went (go) for recess with everyone else. After recess, when the teacher asked (ask) where his friend was, he said (say) he did (do) not know. When he finally went (go) to open the door, his friend was crying loudly. The discipline teacher was (be) so angry! James was (be) caned three times.

2.       When I grow up, I want (want) to be a fireman. I made (make) this decision after I saw (see) two fireman rescuing my neighbour’s children from their burning house. Everyone thought (think) it was (be) too late for the children, but not the brave firemen. They ran (run) into the burning house and rescued (rescue) Dolah and Khadijah. I will always remember how they came (come) out of the fire carrying one child each. It was (be) so heroic! I want (want) to help people, too, so I will do my best to become (become) a fireman!

3.       It is (be) important to take care of the environment. One of the things we can do (do) to reduce pollution is to carpool. My father did (do) this with two friends last year. When I asked (ask) him, he told (tell) me that doing this will save money and help save the environment. Father said (say) he spent (spend) less money on petrol because he shared (share) the cost with his friends. He was (be) happy that he helped (help) to protect our environment. He will carpool again this year after he discusses this with his friends.

4.       I love (love) flowers very much. I like (like) looking at them, and I like (like) planting them. I am (be) sad because now I live (live) in an apartment and cannot plant anything. Two years ago, I stayed/was staying (stay) in a single-storey house. I planted (plant) many types of flowers! In my garden I had (have) hibiscus, bougainvillea, daisies and lilies. There were (be) many different colours, and everything was (be) so beautiful! I spent (spend) a lot of time and effort to take care of my garden. Now, all I can do is (be) to hang up pictures of my favourite flowers. 

👈💕👉

Answers: ⍺-Grammar Drill (1)

Form 4 & 5

Shalom and hi!

The answers to the Grammar Drill 1 exercise are below. Use your red pen to mark your work. Please comment below or pm me if you have any questions! 😉

The Answer 

“I am going (go) to the shop. Do you need anything?” Mum asked (ask) me. I did not/didn’t (do, not) even bother (bother) to lift (lift) my head from where I was staring (stare) at the television, I just grunted (grunt) a ”No” at her. I knew (know) Mum was scowling (scowl) at me because I was being (be) quite rude, but I did not care (do, not, care) – my favourite drama was (be) on and I couldn’t afford to miss (miss) an episode!

          

Mum left (leave), closing (close) the door with a bit of an irritated bang that I hardly noticed (notice), because my eyes were (be) glued (glue) to the television screen. It really was (be) a crucial episode – today’s story would explain (explain) the twist in the previous one, which I had been going (go) mad trying (try) to figure (figure) out. I was focusing (focus) so intently that it actually took (take) the sound of someone clearing (clear) their throat for me to realise (realise) that there was (be) something thin, cold and sharp at my neck.

            I froze (freeze) and my eyes went (go) wide. Someone had come (come) into my house without me being (be) aware of it! I had been focusing (focus) on the television so much that I had not heard (not, heard) the burglar come/coming (come) in at all! My heart was going (go) a mile a minute as I tried (try) to think (think) clearly. I glanced (glance) at the burglar from the corner of my eyes.  He was wearing (wear) a balaclava, so I could not see (can, not, see) any of his facial features other than his eyes. They were (be) cold and unforgiving, and I almost gulped (gulp) until I remembered (remember) that he had (has) a blade at my neck.

       “Don’t do (do) anything stupid,” the man warned (warn) in a rough voice. It sounded (sound) like he had swallowed (swallowed) a mouthful of sand. A quiet corner of my brain that was (be) not panicking thought (think) that he was (be) probably trying (try) to disguise (disguise) his voice. I recalled (recall) what I had watched (watch) on a documentary on criminals some time ago – if they showed (show) you their face, your chances of getting (get) out of a situation like this were (be) very, very low. I squeezed (squeeze) my eyes shut and tried (try) not to cry (cry).

         “I’m going to tie you up,” the burglar continued (continue), “and if you are (be) a good little boy, I won’t harm (harm) you.” He pressed (press) the knife closer and I felt (feel) it cut into my skin. I let (let) out a whimper that he took (take) for agreement. “Good. Now go (go) sit (sit) facing that corner. If I see (see) you peeking (peek), your mum will have a very nasty surprise when she comes (come) home.”

      He gave (give) me a kick in the direction of the corner he wanted (want) me to sit (sit) in. I tripped (trip) but managed (manage) to prevent (prevent) myself from falling by clutching (clutch) at the sofa on my right. I hobbled (hobble) my way to the corner and stood (stand) with my nose to the wall. I kept (keep) my eyes closed and tried (try) to tune (tune) out the sounds of drawers being opened and furniture being overturned violently.

           I was (be) so intent on pretending (pretend) that nothing was happening (happen) behind me that it took (take) me a while to realise (realise) that the sounds had ceased (cease). I had to take (take) a few minutes to screw (screw) up the courage to turn (turn) around. When I finally did (do), I saw (see) that the place was (be) in a shambles, and that the burglar had disappeared (disappear). My knees knocked (knock) together and I sank (sink) to the floor, shivering (shiver) and almost fainting (faint) in relief.

            Mum was (be) horrified when she came (come) home to find (find) me sitting pale and shaking amidst the mess that our living room had become (become). She immediately called (call) the police, who came (come) and took (take) my statement. Till this day I cannot quite remember (remember) what I said (say), but I recall (recall) very clearly what the policeman said (say).

           “You’re very lucky, boy,” he told (told) me. “From what you have told (tell) us, this is (be) definitely the modus operandi of The Slasher Thief. He has killed (kill) almost all his victims so far, so you should be (be) very thankful to be (be) alive.”Hearing that, I nearly passed (pass) out again.

    Over two years have passed (pass), but as much as I want (want) to, I’m not going to forget (forget) this whole experience. It’s definitely the most horrible thing that has happened (happen) to me, and I’m never going (go) to forget (forget) it.

👈💕👉

β: Grammar Drill (1)

Form 4 and 5

Shalom and hi!

This week, we'll be doing Grammar drills. You'll be tested mainly on tenses.

1. Open your book to the Grammar section, and write today's day and date, as well as the title Grammar Drill (1): Tenses.

2. Copy the essay below and fill in the blanks with the correct form of the verbs in brackets. Think carefully!

Answers will be provided later in the week. Happy writing!

1.       Till this day, James __________________ (be) the naughtiest boy I _____________________ (know).  His mother ___________________ (tell) me that last year, he ______________________ (lock) a friend in a storeroom in school. Then, he _____________________ (go) for recess with everyone else. After recess, when the teacher ______________________ (ask) where his friend was, he _________________________ (say) he ___________________ (do) not know. When he finally _______________________ (go) to open the door, his friend was crying loudly. The discipline teacher __________________ (be) so angry! James _________________ (be) caned three times.

2.       When I grow up, I ___________________________ (want) to be a fireman. I _______________________ (make) this decision after I ____________________ (see) two fireman rescuing my neighbour’s children from their burning house. Everyone ___________________________ (think) it ___________________ (be) too late for the children, but not the brave firemen. They ______________ (run) into the burning house and _________________________ (rescue) Dolah and Khadijah. I will always remember how they ________________________ (come) out of the fire carrying one child each. It ___________________ (be) so heroic! I _________________________ (want) to help people, too, so I will do my best to _________________________ (become) a fireman!

3.       It _________________ (be) important to take care of the environment. One of the things we can ______________________ (do) to reduce pollution is to carpool. My father ______________________ (do) this with two friends last year. When I ________________________ (ask) him, he ___________________ (tell) me that doing this will save money and help save the environment. Father _______________________ (say) he ________________________ (spend) less money on petrol because he ___________________________ (share) the cost with his friends. He ________________ (be) happy that he ________________________ (help) to protect our environment. He will carpool again this year after he discusses this with his friends.

4.       I ________________________ (love) flowers very much. I __________________ (like) looking at them, and I _____________________ (like) planting them. I ________________ (be) sad because now I ______________________ (live) in an apartment and cannot plant anything. Two years ago, I __________________ (stay) in a single-storey house. I _______________________ (plant) many types of flowers! In my garden I ________________________ (have) hibiscus, bougainvillea, daisies and lilies. There ______________________ (be) many different colours, and everything __________________ (be) so beautiful! I ____________________ (spend) a lot of time and effort to take care of my garden. Now, all I can do __________________ (be) to hang up pictures of my favourite flowers. 

👈💗👉

𝛼: Grammar Drill (1)

Form 4 and 5

Shalom and hi!

This week, we'll be doing Grammar drills. You'll be tested mainly on tenses and gerunds.

1. Open your book to the Grammar section, and write today's day and date, as well as the title Grammar Drill (1): Tenses and Gerunds.

2. Copy the essay below and fill in the blanks with the correct form of the verbs in brackets. Think carefully!

Answers will be provided later in the week. Happy writing!

       “I _________________ (go) to the shop. Do you need anything?” Mum __________ (ask) me. I _______________________ (do, not) even ______________________ (bother) to __________________ (lift) my head from where I ____________________________ (stare) at the television, I just _____________________ (grunt) a ”No” at her. I __________________ (know) Mum __________________________ (scowl) at me because I __________________ (be) quite rude, but I ______________________ (do, not, care) – my favourite drama ______________ (be) on and I couldn’t afford to _______________ (miss) an episode!

          

Mum _____________________ (leave), __________________ (close) the door with a bit of an irritated bang that I hardly ______________________ (notice), because my eyes ______________ (be) ____________________ (glue) to the television screen. It really ______________ (be) a crucial episode – today’s story would _________________ (explain) the twist in the previous one, which I _____________________________ (go) mad _________________ (try) to __________________ (figure) out. I _____________________ (focus) so intently that it actually _____________________ (take) the sound of someone ___________________ (clear) their throat for me to ________________________ (realise) that there ______________ (be) something thin, cold and sharp at my neck.

            I ______________________ (freeze) and my eyes __________________ (go) wide. Someone ______________________ (come) into my house without me _____________________ (be) aware of it! I ___________________________ (focus) on the television so much that I _____________________________ (not, heard) the burglar ____________________ (come) in at all! My heart ____________________ (go) a mile a minute as I _____________________ (try) to __________________________ (think) clearly. I _______________________ (glance) at the burglar from the corner of my eyes.  He ____________________________ (wear) a balaclava, so I __________________________ (can, not, see) any of his facial features other than his eyes. They ______________ (be) cold and unforgiving, and I almost _________________________ (gulp) until I _______________________ (remember) that he _________________ (has) a blade at my neck.

       “Don’t ____________________ (do) anything stupid,” the man ___________________ (warn) in a rough voice. It ___________________ (sound) like he ________________________ (swallowed) a mouthful of sand. A quiet corner of my brain that ______________ (be) not panicking ________________________ (think) that he _______________ (be) probably ________________________ (try) to ____________________ (disguise) his voice. I ______________________ (recall) what I ________________________ (watch) on a documentary on criminals some time ago – if they _________________________ (show) you their face, your chances of ________________________ (get) out of a situation like this ______________ (be) very, very low. I ______________________ (squeeze) my eyes shut and ______________________ (try) not to ___________________________ (cry).

         “I’m going to tie you up,” the burglar __________________________ (continue), “and if you ______________ (be) a good little boy, I won’t _____________________ (harm) you.” He __________________________ (press) the knife closer and I _______________________ (feel) it cut into my skin. I _______________________ (let) out a whimper that he ______________________ (take) for agreement. “Good. Now ______________ (go) __________________ (sit) facing that corner. If I ___________________ (see) you ______________________ (peek), your mum will have a very nasty surprise when she ____________________ (come) home.”

      He ____________________ (give) me a kick in the direction of the corner he ____________________ (want) me to ______________________ (sit) in. I ____________________ (trip) but _______________________ (manage) to __________________ (prevent) myself from falling by ________________________ (clutch) at the sofa on my right. I _______________________ (hobble) my way to the corner and _____________________ (stand) with my nose to the wall. I ___________________ (keep) my eyes closed and _____________________ (try) to _______________________ (tune) out the sounds of drawers being opened and furniture being overturned violently.

           I _______________ (be) so intent on ____________________ (pretend) that nothing ________________________ (happen) behind me that it ________________ (take) me a while to ___________________ (realise) that the sounds ______________________ (cease). I had to ____________________ (take) a few minutes to ____________________ (screw) up the courage to _____________________ (turn) around. When I finally ______________ (do), I ___________________ (see) that the place ________________ (be) in a shambles, and that the burglar ___________________________ (disappear). My knees _______________________ (knock) together and I _________________________ (sink) to the floor, ___________________ (shiver) and almost __________________________ (faint) in relief.

            Mum ______________ (be) horrified when she ________________________ (come) home to ___________________ (find) me sitting pale and shaking amidst the mess that our living room ______________________ (become). She immediately ___________________ (call) the police, who ________________________ (come) and ___________________ (take) my statement. Till this day I cannot quite ______________________ (remember) what I ___________________________ (say), but I ______________________ (recall) very clearly what the policeman ______________________ (say).

           “You’re very lucky, boy,” he _______________________ (told) me. “From what you ___________________ (tell) us, this ____________ (be) definitely the modus operandi of The Slasher Thief. He ________________________ (kill) almost all his victims so far, so you should ______________ (be) very thankful to ___________ (be) alive.”Hearing that, I nearly __________________ (pass) out again.

    Over two years ________________________ (pass), but as much as I _________________ (want) to, I’m not going to ________________________ (forget) this whole experience. It’s definitely the most horrible thing that ________________________ (happen) to me, and I’m never ______________________ (go) to _____________________ (forget) it.

👈💗👉

5 L, N: Captain Nobody Sample Answer (2)

Form 5

Shalom and hi!

This is another question and sample answer for the novel question.

1. Open your book to the Literature section, and write today's day and date. The title is Novel: Captain Nobody Sample Answer (2).

2. Copy the question and sample answer below. Be careful not to make mistakes! Highlight exactly as shown below. You can underline with different colours if you don't have any highlighters.

Question 2

‘A friend in need is a friend indeed.’

How is this proverb seen in the novel you have studied? Explain how you can apply this proverb in your own life.  

The novel I have studied is Captain Nobody by Dean Pitchford. This story is about Newton (Newt) Newman, who is a quiet, often-ignored 10-year-old boy who lives with his busy parents and football star brother, Chris. He loves his family very much and is a responsible and caring person. On Halloween, Newt’s best friends JJ and Cecil show prove their friendship by helping him make a costume, and he calls himself Captain Nobody. He becomes a superhero who does many brave things until his town acknowledges him as a courageous superhero. The proverb ‘a friend in need is a friend indeed’ is seen in the novel I have studied. There is a way I can apply this proverb in my life.

This proverb is seen when JJ and Cecil visit Newt. Newt is worried about his brother Chris, who fell into a coma as a result of his injuries during the Big Tackle incident of the Big Game. His friends, JJ and Cecil, come to visit him to cheer him up. They bring him a CD each as a present. They tell him how Chris’ football teammates took revenge on Reggie Ratner, who is accused of injuring Chris, by vandalising his house and car. JJ and Cecil come back later in the evening to take Newt trick-or-treating with them, but Newt doesn’t have his Halloween costume ready, and doesn’t feel like celebrating Halloween. JJ and Cecil help him turn Chris’ old clothes into a superhero costume. Newt ends up going out with his friends, and he calls himself Captain Nobody.

The proverb ‘a friend in need is a friend indeed’ can also be seen when Captain Nobody climbs a Dumpster. Captain Nobody gets a summons over his walkie-talkie. It was Cecil, asking Captain Nobody to meet him in an alley. Captain Nobody is reluctant to go at first, but in the end he goes to meet his sidekick and friend. He finds Cecil next to a Dumpster. Cecil asks Captain Nobody to climb the Dumpster to take down a big bass drum that has been left there. Initially, Captain Nobody hesitates because he is afraid of heights, but then Cecil says that Captain Nobody is fearless. This gives Captain Nobody the strength to cast aside his fears. He climbs the Dumpster and retrieves the bass drum for his friend, Cecil.

I can apply the proverb ‘a friend in need is a friend indeed’ in my life by helping my friends when they need help. If my friend doesn’t have money to buy food during recess, I can share my food with him/her. I can help to pump air into my friend’s motorcycle tyres if they are running out of air.

In conclusion, the proverb ‘a friend in need is a friend indeed’ can clearly be seen in the novel I have studied, and I can apply the proverb in my life by helping my friends who need help.

👈💗👉