5 Secret Ingredients to Writing a Good Chinese Compo
For many secondary school students in Singapore, writing a Chinese essay can be a daunting task. However, with a little preparation and practice, it is possible to produce a well-written essay that will impress the examiners. If your child is aiming to score well in Chinese composition, here are a few tips to get them started.
Before the exam
Have a robust vocabulary
When it comes to writing, vocabulary is key. This means not only being able to recognise many words, but also understanding how to use them in different contexts. If your child only knows a few words, they will be limited in what they can say. But if they have a wide range of words memorised by heart, they will be able to be more imaginative in their writing and express emotions better.
There are a variety of memory techniques that your child can use to improve their recall. While there are no hard and fast rules about which words to learn first, building up a solid foundation of Chinese vocabulary is a good place to start.
Read model essays
To improve their Chinese language skills, your child can also study from examples of good writing. Your child can learn how to effectively structure their own essays by paying close attention to the structure and the overall flow of the piece. Your child can also familiarise themselves with the use of dialogues and transitions to smoothly move from one paragraph to the next.
Additionally, your child can also take note of any new words that they come across to build up their vocabulary. By reading as many essays as possible, your child will get a better sense of what works and what doesn’t – and they can use that knowledge to improve their own writing.
Put what they have learnt to practice
Apart from remembering phrases and quotes, your child should also know how to make use of the most appropriate ones to convey their meaning. By writing about different topics, they can learn to flex their “composition muscles” and become better at thinking creatively and constructively about various issues. The more different topics your child writes about, the more exposure they have to different sentence structures, vocabulary words, and idiomatic expressions – all of which come in handy during exam time.
Remember that practice makes perfect; the more your child writes, the better they will become at applying their knowledge to new and more complex problems. By familiarising themselves with a range of common exam topics, your child can also quickly and easily find the right words to express their ideas.
During the exam
Read the question properly
When it is finally time to sit for the exam, it is important to read the question thoroughly before writing down any answer. This is especially true for Chinese composition, where misreading the question can result in a completely different essay. As such, reading and understanding the question will be the key to writing a good Chinese composition. This is because the question will contain keywords that need to be included in the essay, as well as provide guidance on what sort of content is required.
With this in mind, your child will need to comprehend the question carefully before starting to write. This will help to ensure that their composition is on-topic and focused. At this stage, your child would also know what phrases and quotes they can incorporate into their writing.
Double-check their work
Finally, remind your child to spare some time to double-check their work before the exam ends. A few small mistakes can mar an otherwise excellent composition. Even if your child is a careful writer, it is easy to overlook a mistake when they are focused on the content during exams. As such, it is essential that they check their work to catch any spelling or grammar errors that they may have missed. These can be costly mistakes that can easily be avoided.
Study better with Superstar Teacher
On top of these five secret ingredients, your child can also make full use of our online Chinese tuition lessons in preparation for their exams. With Superstar Teacher in Singapore, they will have access to our online tuition classes, Instant Homework Help and other resources that can be extremely helpful in preparing for their Chinese exams. For more information, check out our Secondary Chinese online classes for a glimpse into the learning experience with us.
