Wednesday, February 29, 2012

QWERTYUIOP By Vivien Alcock

QWERTYUIOP By Vivian Alcock 






Synopsis


QWERTYUIOP  BY VIVIAN ALCOCK
Synopsis
 This story is about a seventeen - year - old girl called Lucy Beck,who had just received a diploma from a secretarial college. With the diploma, she hoped to secure a job as a secretary. Her principal, Mrs Price however did not have much confidence in her because she was small, she looked timid and could only type at a slow speed.
 Lucy too was not very confident in her own self. She feared that she would not get a job. So, getting a job at the first interview she went was really a blessing. On her first day, she was surprised by a spirit of the former secretary, Miss Broome. The spirit communicated with her using the electronic typewriter. At first, she was horrified and frightened. Yet when she thought about the many luxurious things she could buy with her salary as a secretary, she became determine to fight the spirit.
 She discovered from Harry Darke, an old man who worked at the firm that Miss Broome was a lonely woman who dedicated her life to her job as secretary. She was asked to leave by the late Mr Bannister after working for 43 years. She was reluctant as the office was like her home and she had no family. Even in her death, she was adamant to keep her job and frightened off many young girls who wanted to take her job.
 Finally, Lucy was able to persuade the spirit of Miss Broome to leave the job to her. She told her that Mr Bannister had passed away and he desperately needed her to take care of him in the new world. Lucy related to Miss Broome that she was told to leave because Mr Bannister was worried about her health.

Character
Lucy Beck
Young, small, easily overlooked, with one ‘O’ level pass and poor typing skill; shows a determination and willingness to learn and is smart enough to win over Miss Broome. Shows courage and does not run away from problems.
Mrs. Price
The kindly principal of Belmont Secretarial College.
Mrs. Beck
Lucy’s mother; amiable, pleasant-natured woman who would never lose her temper; kind-hearted towards others.
Uncle Bert
Drinks too much; used to fly kites with Lucy when she was small; kind enough to prepare a meal for Lucy when she returns home; feels hurt of her careless treatment of him and is happy when they both reach a level of understanding.
Harry Darke
The all-purpose man who has served 30 years at Ross and Bannister’s; helpful to Lucy and sharp about what is happening around him.
Miss Broome
The late and very loyal secretary of Ross and Bannister’s; had served 43 years with the company and cannot bear to stay away; haunts the typewriter and detests the young girls who try to take her place there. The job was all she had lived for.

Setting
1 Ross and Bannister’s firm
2 Belmont Secretarial College
3 Lucy’s home – lived with her mother and Uncle Bert


Theme
·         Compassion and perseverance are very important at home and at the workplace.
·         The easy solution is not always the best; look for a workable compromise always.
·         It is important for people to have a job and be independent for their self-respect.
·         Loyalty has a place in this world.

Moral values/Lessons
 One should not be prejudiced towards others.
 Example 1:The Spirit of Miss Broome, for example was looked down by others before Lucy. She may be a spirit but she was a lonely spirit .By understanding her loneliness, Lucy succeeded to tell her to serve Mr Bannister who had also passed away and needed her.
 Example 2: Lucy was also a victim of prejudice. Being young, small and shy, her principal and even Harry Darke thought that she was a coward. Yet she proved to herself and others that she was a brave person who would not submit to the wish of a lonely spirit.



some improvement & courtesy from: http://spmenglish.blogspot.com/2010/06/qwertyuiop-by-vivien-alcock.html

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

An Informal Letter :A letter to pen-pal



Instruction:

Fill in the blanks with suitable words listed below.



Decided |  special  |   enjoyed  |   banned  |   abstain  |   healed  |  played  |   wonderful  |   lovely  |  who  |   fun  |   because  |  thick  |   chat  |   best  |   dawn  |   indoor  |   joyous



 23 Jalan Damai ,

 Taman Damai,

 86200 Simpang Rengam,

 Johor,

 Malaysia.

 2 August 2009.



Dear Nina,

How are you? I was very happy when I received your letter this morning. I had so much 1) ______ reading about how you celebrate Christmas in Moscow. In Malaysia, I celebrate “Hari Raya” which falls on the first of Syawal, the tenth month of the Muslim Calendar.


Hari Raya is celebrated after fasting for a month in Ramadhan, which is the ninth month of the Muslim Calendar. During Ramadhan, as a Muslim, I have to 2) myself from eating, drinking and from committing any ill-doings from 3) __________ until sunset. It is hoped after Ramadhan, the Muslims will continue to do good and avoid any wrong-doings. So, the Hari Raya marks the Muslims’ success in fasting for a whole month.


Of course, Hari Raya is a 4) ___________ occasion for Muslims from all walks of life. On this 5) ______________ day, everyone puts on their 6)___________ clothes and go to the mosque to perform obligatory Hari Raya prayer. Usually each family brings a plate of traditional cakes and cookies to be shared together after the prayer. Before we leave the mosque, we ask for forgiveness from each other. Then, we go home to have a 7) ___________ meal with our family. We often have “ketupat”, which is actually rice cooked in a case made of woven coconut leave. This ketupat is eaten with “rendang”, meat cooked in 8)____________ spicy gravy and peanut sauce. We can only savour these dishes on Hari Raya.


Every year we never miss to visit our grandparents 9) _____________ are staying in a village located about 40 kilometres away from our house. My cousins often arrive at my grandparents’ house a day earlier 10) _________they live far away in Kuala Lumpur. Can you guess what usually happen when cousins get together? Well, we will have a long 11) _____________ about everything under the sky. When we were younger, we used to play fireworks. However since playing fireworks have been 12) _____________ in our country, we choose to stay13) _____________ watching special Hari Raya programmes on television.


Last year, since all my cousins were able to be present at our grandparents’ place, we 14)_____________to have a football match competing against the local team. As expected, we lost the game as most of us had not 15) ___________ football for quite some times. Yet, we had 16) ___________ ourselves tremendously.

Hari Raya is a day where everybody has a chance to meet. It is a day to tie the bond. Most importantly, it is a day where old wounds are 17) _______________ and love to grow between family members, between friends and neighbours.


Ramadhan is coming soon. I am looking forward to it because it is a month full of God’s blessings. I hope you have enjoyed reading about Hari Raya. It would be 18) _______________ to have you here to celebrate the day. Bye.


Your pen-pal,

 Jamil


Source from: http://spmenglish.blogspot.com/2009/08/informal-letter-letter-to-pen-pal.html

Saturday, February 4, 2012

Words From The 'Sifu'....





Assalamualaikum wbt...
Welcome to my blog, as you know, I'm on vacation (maternity leave) so, I prayed hard to Allah that while I'm away, the school will choose an eligible substitute teacher to replace me... 


I have created this blog for teaching purpose...all you need is to ask things/materials that I will be post it in this blog site...let's make this an interactive learning...but using cyberspace...hehehe... you can video call me through my Yahoo Messenger ID: ratusheba85.....


Happy learning dear students!!!