is science tuition necessary for P3 or wait til upp pri?

[Sci]

IMHO, The higher order thinking skills questions can be managed. Your child must ofcourse have quite good content knowledge of science first…so the first thing to do during the holidays is to get a good science guide and tell them its going to be "bed time story" for the next few months.


Next make sure they are aware of the key concepts and keywords. Unfortunately, they are very important if you want to score in your exam.

Students often forget its a Science Exam, so the explanation must be based on some science concept they have learnt before. Their first response is often to panic and say to themselves "But I’ve never seen this Q before". Students need to be empowered with confidence instead to think "For most of life’s problems that I face, I would never have "seen" or experienced them before, but i have to solve the problem with my given knowledge."


What are the keywords? Hmm… ask the school teacher or find all the words in bold in some of the science guides!!

[Sci]

Re Is science tuition necessary in P3 and 4? I think science tuition is not necessary at all if the child pays attention in class and an adult is willing to hold the child’s hand through it all. But time investment may be high.


The adult must have a good grasp of science and must be willing to read science guides…or the child must be motivated enough to read the guides themselves. The adult must also be willing to invest the time to train the child to speak and write accurately. Many children’s problem with Section B is that they cannot express themselves clearly. Even with keywords, if they cannot express themselves clearly, I believe its still hard for teachers to award marks. Many adult’s problems are that in our haste, we often interpret our children’s speech, so even when they don’t describe things clearly to us, we interpret and understand them. I choose to pretend not to understand them and make them find ways to speak until they can communicate their ideas precisely.

Then all you need in hand is a bunch of past year exam papers…and you’re set.

I find the ultimate science guide good. But it does not highlight keywords for you. Casco, has good detail for adults, but for some children (who are not interested in science) they may find the big words overbearing.

For a household where the child/parent reads science guides, most of the explanation would be in the guides. Some help a Science tutor can offer is for example by fine tuning Section B answers, highlighting to child how they should improve their answers, what key points their missing, how to answer to the point and explain or describe precisely. Breaking down the more difficult questions and so help a child see what thought processes are needed.

In short if you want to save money, no need tutor, do the work yourself and ask your child to pay 110% attention in class.
If you don’t have time, get a tutor by mid year P4. But you must still monitor homework. If your child does not do homework, don’t waste your money on tuition. Discipline issues must be solved first.
If you don’t have time, and don’t have much money, start tuition latest by mid year P5.
If you have too much money, start science tuition at P3.

That’s just a personal opinion… Many may beg to defer.

[Leanne]

Hello Sci,


Thanks for the explanation.



Just need advice, what is the sure way to hit perfect score for MCQ?DS missed by one, tho we have exposed him to many types of questions.
He doesnt like to read boring guide, is there one guide that is easy to read and that has captured the main facts that you can recommend?ds is primary five this year.thanks

rgds
Leanne

Sci:

Re Is science tuition necessary in P3 and 4? I think science tuition is not necessary at all if the child pays attention in class and an adult is willing to hold the child's hand through it all. But time investment may be high.

The adult must have a good grasp of science and must be willing to read science guides..or the child must be motivated enough to read the guides themselves. The adult must also be willing to invest the time to train the child to speak and write accurately. Many children's problem with Section B is that they cannot express themselves clearly. Even with keywords, if they cannot express themselves clearly, I believe its still hard for teachers to award marks. Many adult's problems are that in our haste, we often interpret our children's speech, so even when they don't describe things clearly to us, we interpret and understand them. I choose to pretend not to understand them and make them find ways to speak until they can communicate their ideas precisely.

Then all you need in hand is a bunch of past year exam papers...and you're set.

I find the ultimate science guide good. But it does not highlight keywords for you. Casco, has good detail for adults, but for some children (who are not interested in science) they may find the big words overbearing.

For a household where the child/parent reads science guides, most of the explanation would be in the guides. Some help a Science tutor can offer is for example by fine tuning Section B answers, highlighting to child how they should improve their answers, what key points their missing, how to answer to the point and explain or describe precisely. Breaking down the more difficult questions and so help a child see what thought processes are needed.

In short if you want to save money, no need tutor, do the work yourself and ask your child to pay 110% attention in class.
If you don't have time, get a tutor by mid year P4. But you must still monitor homework. If your child does not do homework, don't waste your money on tuition. Discipline issues must be solved first.
If you don't have time, and don't have much money, start tuition latest by mid year P5.
If you have too much money, start science tuition at P3.

That's just a personal opinion... Many may beg to defer.

[Violetmum]

I have not started my girl on tuition, how is P3 science like? She likes to read science magazines like YoungScientist but besides that, I have not given her much exposure to science.


I wonder if science enrichment like going to Smart Lab or Science Buddies is
necessary to give her exposure to doing experiments?

[comfy]

Violetmum:

I have not started my girl on tuition, how is P3 science like? She likes to read science magazines like YoungScientist but besides that, I have not given her much exposure to science.


I wonder if science enrichment like going to Smart Lab or Science Buddies is
necessary to give her exposure to doing experiments?

You can take a look at the sci text book P3 to have a feel of it. And to access her understanding, can look at past yr top school paper P3. This will give you an idea how she will fare in her school paper. If you can afford the money and your dd can afford the time, then going to Smart Lab or sci buddies is good exposure for your dd as I know that Science Buddies is very hand-on in the teaching.

[Violetmum]

comfy:

Violetmum:

I have not started my girl on tuition, how is P3 science like? She likes to read science magazines like YoungScientist but besides that, I have not given her much exposure to science.


I wonder if science enrichment like going to Smart Lab or Science Buddies is
necessary to give her exposure to doing experiments?

You can take a look at the sci text book P3 to have a feel of it. And to access her understanding, can look at past yr top school paper P3. This will give you an idea how she will fare in her school paper. If you can afford the money and your dd can afford the time, then going to Smart Lab or sci buddies is good exposure for your dd as I know that Science Buddies is very hand-on in the teaching.

Oh thank you comfy for your advice. I know have a much idea what to do.
I might try Science buddies as I heard quite a lot of good reviews about it.

[ctct61t]

Violetmum:

Oh thank you comfy for your advice. I know have a much idea what to do.

I might try Science buddies as I heard quite a lot of good reviews about it.

What is the time schedule and fee of Science buddies?

[MMM]

In our case, we are hopeless with science so we opted for tuition. It was a wise decision as my P3 enjoyed her science lessons and went on to score well in her SA2. They do experiments in class, etc… so some of those section B questions become closer to heart.


But if parents are able to guide, I think it’s fine. But for us, both my hubby and I are just science phobic since our school days. It’s really beyond us.

[ctct61t]

MMM:

my P3 enjoyed her science lessons and went on to score well in her SA2. They do experiments in class, etc... so some of those section B questions become closer to heart..

Hi MMM, where do you send your DD for science tuition?

[janet88]

Hi Leanne,

I exposed my son to many different questions and formats...he scored in MCQ questions but did badly in Section B open ended. Still looking for a useful guide book. Someone recommended 'My Pals' Science PSLE revision but it doesn't quite explain some terms

Happened to see this Maths author Simon Eio...he conducts Science as well.