Chinese Tuition with 胡老师

🪷 Celebrating Vesak Day 🪷

May this meaningful occasion inspire peace, compassion, and mindfulness in our daily lives.

Let us take a moment to reflect, appreciate the blessings around us, and spread kindness wherever we go.

Wishing everyone a peaceful and blessed Vesak Day. 🙏

𝐈𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝'𝐬 𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐤𝐞𝐞𝐩𝐬 𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐝 "内容普通"...

It's probably not because they don't work hard enough.

It's because they were never taught 𝐡𝐨𝐰 to write — only 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 to write.

---

After analysing PSLE Chinese Composition picture topics from 2017–2024, I noticed something most students miss:

The exam is rarely testing big dramatic storylines.

Most topics are small, everyday moments:
- losing something ·
- ⁠getting distracted ·
- ⁠accidents ·
- ⁠misunderstandings
- ⁠helping others
- ⁠making mistakes

So what separates a high-band composition from an average one?

It's NOT vocabulary.
It's NOT memorising 好词好句.

It's the ability to turn a simple moment into a vivid, emotionally-layered story.

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Most students write like this:

❌ "他很紧张。"
❌ "我很害怕。"
❌ "最后问题解决了。"

Flat. Rushed. No tension. No inner world.

High-band compositions do the opposite — they slow down at key moments and show:

✅ Reactions (using FEAST: Feelings · Expressions · Actions · Speech · Thoughts)
✅ Inner thoughts and emotions
✅ A realistic, step-by-step problem-solving process
✅ Natural tension that makes the examiner want to read on

---

That is the difference between:

"写完故事"

and

"写出一个让考官想继续读下去的故事"

---

As an ex-subject head with years of marking experience, I don't just teach students to memorise model essays.

I teach them a system — so they can write well for any topic they face on exam day.

If your child struggles with Chinese composition, drop me a DM to find out more about my classes.

𝗢𝗻𝗲 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗱’𝘀 𝗣𝗦𝗟𝗘 𝗢𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗮𝗻𝘀𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿:

Check whether the answer has both 𝗪𝗛𝗔𝗧 + 𝗪𝗛𝗬.

For PSLE Oral Conversation, a good answer should not stop at the first sentence.

For example:

𝗤𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻:
你认为学生应该遵守交通规则吗？

𝗪𝗛𝗔𝗧:
我认为学生应该遵守交通规则。

𝗪𝗛𝗬:
因为这样可以保护自己和别人，避免发生意外。

This answer is not wrong, but students can still learn to say more.

After students can give a basic “WHY”, I guide them to expand further using 𝗩𝗕𝗜𝗣𝗣:

𝗩 — 𝗩𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲𝘀
𝗕 — 𝗕𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗶𝘁𝘀
𝗜 — 𝗜𝗳 𝗻𝗼𝘁
𝗣 — 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀’ / 𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀’ 𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴
𝗣 — 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲

So instead of stopping at:

因为这样可以保护自己和别人，避免发生意外。

Students can expand their answer to:

我认为学生应该遵守交通规则，因为这是负责任的表现。这样不但可以保护自己，也不会让家人担心。如果我们乱过马路，可能会发生意外，伤害自己和别人。老师也常常提醒我们，过马路时要看清楚红绿灯。有一次，我看到有人闯红灯，差点被车撞到，所以我明白遵守交通规则很重要。

That’s why in my classes, I don’t just ask students to “speak more”.

💡 I teach them detailed answering techniques for 𝟭𝟬+ 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝘀𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗣𝗦𝗟𝗘 𝗢𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝘆𝗽𝗲𝘀 — using methods that are easy to understand, remember, and apply.

Many students do not lack ideas.

They simply need to be taught 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝘀𝘄𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗹𝘆.

📩 Looking for help in PSLE Chinese Oral?
PM me to find out more about my June Holiday Oral class.

弟弟很玩皮

Dear parents, does your child often write this?

Hold on… did he mean "𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗯𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝘀 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗻"? 😅

The correct sentence should be:

✅ 弟弟很顽皮。

Many children are not making these mistakes because they are careless on purpose.

Very often, they remember the sound of the word, but they are not sure which Chinese character to use.

These mistakes may look small, but they can slowly add up and cause children to lose 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝘀 in exams — especially in composition, comprehension open-ended questions and vocabulary MCQs.

Other common mistakes include:

❌ 因该 → ✅ 应该
❌ 时后 → ✅ 时候
❌ 玩皮 → ✅ 顽皮
❌ 幸苦 → ✅ 辛苦
❌ 辛运 → ✅ 幸运
❌ 应刻 → ✅ 应该 / 立刻

That is why simply asking them to copy the correct word many times may not really solve the problem.

I teach my students to understand the meaning, compare similar words, use them in sentences, and explain why one word is correct while the other is wrong.

When students understand the difference, they are less likely to repeat the same mistake in composition, comprehension and written assignments.

I have created a list of these commonly misused Chinese words for primary school students.

Comment "𝗩𝗼𝗰𝗮𝗯" below and I’ll send you the list.

𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐲, 𝐈 𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐲𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝟐𝟎𝟏𝟕–𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒 𝐏𝐒𝐋𝐄 𝐂𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐎𝐩𝐞𝐧-𝐄𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐡𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐛𝐲 𝐭𝐲𝐩𝐞.

And the pattern is very clear.

Students are not just tested on whether they understand the story.

They are tested on whether they know how to answer different question types properly.

Some common question types include:

✔ 原因题 / 为什么题 — 12 times
✔ 行动 / 做法 / 决定 / 目的题 — 7 times
✔ 反应 / 感受 / 心理题 — 5 times
✔ 人物分析 / 人物评价题 — 5 times
✔ 个人看法 / 价值判断 / 生活迁移题 — 5 times
✔ 词语理解 / 指代 / 深层含义题 — 3 times
✔ 内容理解 / 情节概括题 — 3 times

Many students actually understand the passage, but still lose marks because they:

• do not answer the question directly
• miss important clues
• copy too much from the passage
• explain too vaguely
• do not know the correct answering structure

That’s why in my classes, I don’t just ask students to “do more practices”.

💡 I teach them HOW to answer every different type of question strategically — using techniques that are easy to master and apply.

Students learn how to:

✔ identify the question type
✔ locate the correct clues
✔ use the right answering structure
✔ explain clearly
✔ check whether the answer matches the marks allocated

Many students do not lack ability.

They simply have not been taught how to approach Comprehension properly.

Once they understand the answering methods, they become:

✅ clearer in their thinking
✅ more confident
✅ faster at answering
✅ less afraid of Open-Ended questions

📩 Looking for help in Chinese Composition & Comprehension?
PM me to find out more about my June classes.

❌ “𝑴𝒚 𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒅 𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒂𝒔𝒔𝒂𝒈𝒆… 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒔 𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝑪𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒆 𝑪𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒉𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏.”

👩‍🏫 As a Chinese tutor, this is one of the most common things parents tell me.

And honestly?
📖 Understanding the passage is only the first step.

Many students actually understand the story, but still lose marks because they:

• do not answer the question directly
• copy too much from the passage
• miss important keywords
• do not explain clearly enough
• give answers that are too vague

So even when they “know” the answer, their marks still suffer.

📝 In PSLE Chinese Open-Ended Comprehension, students are tested on many different question types.

For example:

原因题
当大华走过来恭喜小明时，小明的笑容为什么会消失了？

人物分析题
作者决定去找美玲，你觉得作者是个怎样的人？为什么？

人物评价题
你认为服务员有什么值得你学习的地方？试加以说明。

反应 + 原因题
看见老师走进教室，小明有什么反应？为什么？

🎯 Every question type requires a different answering approach.

That’s why in my classes, I don’t just ask students to “do more practices”.

💡 I teach them HOW to answer strategically.

Students learn how to:

✔ identify what the question is really asking
✔ locate the correct clues quickly
✔ answer using the right structure
✔ explain clearly instead of vaguely
✔ check whether the answer matches the marks allocation

📌 This is technique — and technique changes results.

Many students do not lack ability.

They simply have not been taught how to approach Comprehension properly.

🌱 Once students understand the answering methods, they become more confident, clearer in their thinking, faster at answering, and less afraid of Open-Ended questions.

📩 Looking for help in Chinese Composition & Comprehension?
PM me to find out more about my June classes.

“𝑴𝒚 𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒅 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒘𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝑪𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒐𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒅𝒐 𝑰 𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒑 𝒉𝒊𝒎/𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒘𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓?”

The above is one of the many concerns I hear quite often from parents.

Many students can write the basic storyline, but the story often feels too simple or too flat.

The good news is — composition writing can be taught step by step.

Using techniques like FEAST — Feelings, Expressions, Actions, Speeches and Thoughts — students can learn how to develop their stories with more details and depth.

Sometimes, they do not lack ability.
They just need to be shown how to improve.

📩 PM to enquire about my June Composition & Comprehension classes.

𝐏𝐒𝐋𝐄 𝐎𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐄𝐱𝐚𝐦:

𝐒𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐨𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐬 𝐈 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬:

“My child doesn’t know what to say.”

“She doesn’t know how to elaborate.”

“He doesn’t always understand the question, and sometimes he is afraid that his answer is too short.”

This is actually a very common issue.

For example, when asked a question, a student may answer:

“I think it is important to care for family members because they are my family members.”

Then they stop.

When I ask:

“Any other reasons?”
“How do you care for your family members?”

They get stuck.

The problem is not always that they have no ideas.

Very often, they simply do not know how to expand and elaborate their answers.

The good news is — this can be taught.

In class, I guide students to build their answers step by step:

✔️ a clear point
✔️ reasons using VBIPP
✔️ an example to elaborate further
✔️ a simple conclusion

This structure helps students:

✔️ think of more ideas
✔️ organise their answers
✔️ speak with more confidence
✔️ avoid giving one-line answers

For example:

Weak answer:
“Yes, because it is good.”

Better answer:
“Yes, I think it is important because…
For example…
All in all, I think that…”

PSLE Oral is not about memorising beautiful answers.

It is about learning how to respond clearly, naturally, systematically, and with enough detail.

Do you want your child to learn a simple structure and apply it for the PSLE Oral Exam?

📩 PM to enquire about my PSLE Oral June Holiday class.

Labour Day is a reminder that progress doesn’t happen overnight — it’s built through effort, consistency, and determination.

Today, we celebrate every individual whose hard work makes a difference! 💙

⚠️ 𝑷𝑺𝑳𝑬 𝒊𝒔 𝑮𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑪𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒓 ⚠️
With less than 4 months to go, this is the crucial window to sharpen Composition & Comprehension skills and close learning gaps.

PSLE Composition & Comprehension Intensive Workshop
JUNE HOLIDAYS
🕘 9:00am – 11:00am
📍 2, 3, 4, 5 June
📍 22, 23, 24, 25, 26 June

💲 $80 per lesson – All materials provided
💻 Online via Zoom

What Your Child Will Gain:
✅ Targeted practice to master key answering techniques
✅ Personalized feedback to improve faster and more effectively
✅ Stronger confidence in tackling exam questions
✅ Exposure to exam-style questions and strategies

Mock Exams (for 5 lessons & above):
📅 8 June & 26 June
📝 Simulated exam conditions to prepare your child for the real paper

📲 Enquire now: https://wa.me/+6590628176