contents · best things in life come free 88 shopping advantages and disadvantages from choices 90...

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contents

title Page no.

Descriptive

Shopping Mall 1

December Holidays 3

Arriving Late Led to Serious 6

Laughter Inappropriate Moment 9

Speaking Truth 12

Ideal Home 14

Lessons Outside School 16

Amusing Incident 19

Religious Event in Your Country 22

Incident That Remain in Mind 24

Annual Event 26

Hawker Centre and Food Courts 29

Greatest Achievement 31

Memorable Occasion 34

Singapore Major Tourist Attraction 37

Possession of Importance 40

narrative

Furious Argument 43

Accident 47

Nature Reserves 50

Singapore Better Than Other Countries 53

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School Rules 56

Teenage Frustration and Delights 59

TV Newspaper Internet 62

Voluntary Work 65

Bored Teenagers 67

Consequences of Helping 70

Internet 73

Leadership 75

Use of Motorcars Threat to Environment 77

Safe Than Sorry 80

The Way We Dress 83

Person Who Influences My Life 85

Best Things in Life Come Free 88

Shopping Advantages and Disadvantages from Choices 90

Important Toy 93

reflective

Choosing A Career 96

Marriage 99

Parents and Teachers Partners in Education 101

Health and Safety in Schools 104

Dreams 107

Longlife 110


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Heroes 113

Failed in Reputation 115

Greed 118

English as Medium of Communication 120

Power 123

Lending and Borrowing Money 125

Girls and Boys Education 128

Freedom 131

Advantages and Disadvantage of Life Expectancy 134

Fame 136

Music World Dull Place Without It 139

Electronic Devices Help or Hinder Students 142

Learning from Others and Our Mistakes 144

Ambition and Difficulties Achieving It 147

Teenagers Leading Unhealthy Lifestyles 150


Model compositions

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DescriPtiveshoPPing Mall

Describe a day out at your favorite shopping mall. Why does it attract so many customers?

When writing this essay, choose a shopping mall which is your favourite and explain why you feel it is so popular. Describe the amenities near the mall and the displays in the shops. Discuss the reasonable prices and the quality and variety of goods you can get there.

On weekends, the Tang’s household department store might take on the air of a pasar malam (night market), however, even after more than 75 years, CK Tang remains a shopping treasure trove for tourists and locals alike. Housed in the iconic Tang Plaza on Orchard Road, the original department store can be a rather nostalgic place for many Singaporeans and is still fit to boast the Tang’s slogan ‘All the Best under One Roof’.

Why I like CK Tang as a shopping mall in Singapore is because of the fact that it is at the heart of Orchard Road which is also within the ‘up market’ area here. Despite being in a high end location, the goods available are affordable for the man on the street. Unlike other shopping malls in Orchard Road, like ION’s and Paragon, CK Tang reaches out to people who are not so rich yet the goods are of high quality. It is situated just near the Marriot Hotel and the building is majestic with the finesse and décor of a Chinese Emperor’s palace. It is clean and very inviting from the outside and the inside is immaculate with displays beautifully lined up in the shopping area. There are many sales persons or pleasant young ladies with friendly dispositions who greet you and are ever willing to assist you, if you need help to find where the things are. There is the perfume and cosmetics stall on the ground floor where you can test branded perfumes and the salesgirls will help you to make a choice on which perfume brand suits your skin best. At the far end on the ground floor, leather handbags of very high grade, but set at reasonable prices, are clearly arranged and displayed. At the basement area, kitchenware, crockery of beautiful finish and utensils can be found arranged neatly on the polished shelves. The shopping area is well-constructed and spacious for customers to move around.


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DescriPtiveAt the end of the basement is the eatery area with an assortment of delicious bites and tidbits. You can also have a main meal here. This area is conveniently linked to the Mass Rapid Transport train station of Orchard Road. The amenities found at this shopping mall are very convenient for customers and increases the appeal factor as well. If you go to the top floor, an array of toys and clothes are being displayed and sold. After a day’s shopping, you can drop in for coffee and cakes at the Marriot Hotel which is just next door and relax.

In addition, CK Tang shopping mall appeals and charms customers because of its accessibility. Moreover, most goods such as clothes, perfumes, crockery and bags are not locally made either; some of them are imported from foreign countries. Prices are also reasonable which makes it even more attractive to customers. Anyone would understand why CK Tang shopping mall is very popular with shoppers.

(487 words)

VOCABULARY

treasure trove collection of valuable things

iconic relating to, or having the character of an icon

immaculate clean and spotless

Dispositions a person’s inherent quality of mind and character

assortment a collection of various kinds

amenities something considered to benefit a property

accessibility easily approached or entered


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DescriPtiveDeceMber holiDays

The December break is a long vacation from school so how do you occupy your time?

December break is a long vacation and every student welcomes it. My parents usually plan with the family our holidays abroad and if not, we will typically plan for a good Christmas. This is the time when can take holidays to far away places like Europe or Australia rather than merely visiting the neighbouring countries. Examinations are usually over at this time of the year, so the stress of the year is over and we can truly unwind and not be under pressure or worry.

Last year, my family and I went to Europe. We began with London. We flew with the Singapore Airlines which was a non-stop thirteen-hour flight. The flight was smooth and we slept overnight and woke up when the plane was about to land at London’s Heathrow Airport.

We visited various places such as the Trafalgar Square, Oxford Street, Covent Garden and went round London on their tour bus, but it was really cold as it was the winter season at that time of the year. We sat by a real fireplace and toasted marshmallows and chestnuts and warmed our tummies with lovely English breakfast tea with milk. We had typical English food such as English breakfast of bacon and eggs, toast and jam, and kippers with par-boiled potatoes. It was indeed sumptuous and filling. For lunch, we had some sandwiches and for dinner we tucked into onion soup, croutons and breads of an assortment.

After three days in London, we ventured to Paris. We had French food and did some sight-seeing and watched the immaculately dressed French ladies. The museum was indeed beautiful and so was the art gallery with the original Mona Lisa mounted in a protective frame on the wall. We then went to the Eiffel Tower and had dinner at the top of the tower. After Paris, we went to Venice. We sat on the Gondola which was indeed a very pleasant ride and stopped at St Mark’s Square to have our fill of authentic pizzas and pastas. We went to the Murano factory that is renowned for manufacturing ornate glass ornaments and chandeliers and observed how the skill of glass art was passed down through generations. The


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view of the rivers in Venice where we took the gondola from was indeed breathtaking and the people were very warm and amiable.

From Venice, we travelled to Amsterdam which was also a beautiful city. We had Dutch food and also Indonesian food. You might wonder about the existence of Indonesian cuisines there and this is because the Dutch had colonized Indonesia many years back and brought back to Holland some of the Indonesian culture. We went to the diamond factory and the diamonds were of brilliant cut; definitely showcasing the zenith of opulence and beauty.

After our two weeks of holiday in Europe, we returned to Singapore. There was still much of the December vacation left and I spent time visiting friends. However, it was a big antithesis in weather; the climates changed drastically from the cold season in Europe, back to the humid tropical weather in Singapore. The scorching sun was a huge bane for me. I spent time fishing and catching prawns in Pulau Ubin with family and friends. We also went to Johor Bahru to do some shopping at the malls there and had dinner of scrumptious and delectable seafood.

Most of my December holidays are usually spent travelling to different places of interest. Sometime ago we took a trip to Australia and came back feeling refreshed after visiting the different farms at the countryside. Whenever we are back in Singapore after our trips, we still maximise the holiday and travel up to Genting Highlands in Kuala Lumpur or to Cameron Highlands. We make the most of the December holidays as my parents who are also teachers use this time to bond with us; this is a time when the family can truly rest and enjoy different kinds of recreations. Most of our December holidays are spent abroad after we spend the early part of the year working hard; for me I focus on my studies while my parents work hard in schools. My parents save up to give us, their children, a truly wonderful year end. Christmas is also usually a lovely occasion with a variety of delicious food and exchanges of presents. On the whole, we look forward to our December holidays each year.

(737 words)


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VOCABULARY

sumptuous splendid and expensive-looking

immaculately in a perfectly clean, neat, or tidy manner

authentic of undisputed origin and not a copy; genuine

ornate elaborately or highly decorated

breathtaking astonishing or awe-inspiring in quality, so as to take one’s breath away

amiable having or displaying a friendly and pleasant manner

zenith the best or most successful point or time

opulence great wealth or luxuriousness

antithesis direct opposite; contrast


Model compositions

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arriving late leD to serious

You were late arriving for a great celebration and it led to serious trouble. Write about it.

When you write about this topic, let your mind carry you to a real incident; if not imagine the incident in your mind.

Craft the story so that your presence was needed on time and you defaulted by arriving late that put you in a situation of embarrassment and how others frowned on you for being late.

Use an important occasion and write about how your presence early at the celebrations was crucial and end with the delay on your part which led to others having to wait for you to make the celebration a fulfilling one.

It was the reunion dinner for Chinese New Year last year. My family had carefully planned the menu to be a special one as apart from the yearly Chinese Reunion Dinner that we were having, we would also be celebrating my grandmother’s 88th birthday. We were in fact killing two birds with one stone. It was to be celebrated at Grandma’s home in Katong. As my school was near the vicinity, I was told to bring two whole roasted ducks and two whole roasted chicken from Johnson Lock. Dinner was to commence at 7.00 pm sharp.

On that day, I also had a function in school which was to end at 6.00 pm. I thought to myself that since everything could be found nearby, I planned to make a quick dash to Johnson Lock to pick up the roasted meats after the school event had ended and head for the reunion dinner. We have a large family of 15 members and the roasted meats were for one and all at the dinner. My plan looked almost perfect and I smiled to myself for my ingenious plan.

However, my plan went awry. Whatever that I had planned did not go as expected as the event in my school began late and ended only at 6.30 pm. Nevertheless, I still thought I could make it on time. I rushed to Johnson Lock but unfortunately there was a large queue. My heart beat raced and I pleaded with people in the queue for me to jump the queue but all of them looked at me with disdain and ignored my pleas. It was


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arriving late leD to serious not until 7.30 pm that I was able to purchase the roasted meats. Then I

tried to hail a taxi but being the eve of Chinese New Year, the place was empty and looked like a ghost town. My heart rate was beating even faster so I called for a taxi and it was not until 8.00 pm that a taxi came by to rescue me.

When I boarded the taxi, I told the driver to drive at lightning speed to my grandma’s place but lo and behold as we were speeding along the road, the tyre of the cab was punctured and this meant getting out of the cab and getting another one. It was already 8.30 pm and I knew I was very late but in my heart I told myself that I had to beat the odds and still make it to my grandma’s place no matter whatever the time. Being the eldest granddaughter, my presence was crucial and this was made worse as I was holding on to the roasted meats which was an important and significant part of the menu for the celebrations.

Hurriedly, I called for another cab which arrived at 8.45 pm and I made it to the dinner only at 9.00 pm. All those at the dinner table were really annoyed at me; I could see from their expressions. I was flustered, hot and bothered. My mother took the roast meats from me and started scolding me in the kitchen for being so irresponsible. Later, my father walked in and chided me even further. I tried to explain my predicament but no one was interested to hear me out. The roasted chickens and roasted ducks were placed on a platter and handed out to the guests even though the dinner was served very late. No one seemed forgiving as everyone looked at me with annoyance and disbelief that I let them down on such an important celebration. Only my grandmother heard me out and patted me on the back and advised me to be more careful in future and plan things ahead. It was the most embarrassing moment of my life.

(626 words)


Model compositions

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DescriPtiveVOCABULARY

vicinity the area near or surrounding a particular place

commence to begin; start

dash run or travel somewhere in a great hurry

disdain consider to be unworthy of one’s consideration; to despise

crucial involving an extremely important decision or result; decisive; critical

significant great or important to be worthy of attention; noteworthy

flustered agitated or confused

predicament difficult, unpleasant, or embarrassing situation


Model compositions

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laughter inaPProPriate MoMent

You laughed uncontrollably at an inappropriate situation. Describe the situation well.

When you write this essay you could either relate a real life incident or make up the situation. The situation appeared funny to you but it was inappropriate as it was misplaced for you to laugh. For instance, someone falling off a chair. You should have sympathized and helped the person instead of laughing.

It was a lovely cool December evening. The sun was setting as I looked out into the horizon from the open window. The sun’s rays were still gleaming through the window as it was not yet dusk. My family comprising my parents, my sister and my grandmother were all in the sitting room area of our condominium. A slight breeze with all its freshness blew into our home. The television was switched on though only some of the family members were watching a Korean movie. You could hear the television blaring. Most of us were in the sitting room relaxing while some of us were having tea and biscuits. My grandmother, of 88 years, was sitting as usual on her rocking chair and rocking slightly backwards and forwards in a relaxed manner. She was watching television and munching on her biscuits at the same time.

All of a sudden there was a loud crashing sound. I turned around to look and saw that my grandmother had fallen off her rocking chair! I found this incredibly hilarious and instead of moving towards her to assist her to get up, I roared into an uncontrollable fit of laughter.

My grandmother was on the floor while the rest of the family members quickly gathered round to help her up. My mother frantically asked my grandmother, “Are you alright, Ma? Are you alright?” I still found it to be so funny and all I could do was laugh and I laughed quite loudly. Soon, my father chided me, telling me to control myself and to stop laughing. He reprimanded me saying, “Grandma has fallen and you are laughing? What is the matter with you? Have you no sense of sympathy?”

I stopped laughing almost immediately and like the rest of the family went to the scene where grandma was. Grandma was bold and brave


contents · best things in life come free 88 shopping advantages and disadvantages from choices 90...

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