THINKING SKILLS TO BETTER YOUR ENGLISH INTRODUCTION In a world of rapid change and high competitive era, the ability

y to think with clarity and efficiency has become increasingly important. This programme enhances the skills that constitute clear and critical thinking. The students acquire a greater degree of proficiency in the various skills of thinking if they are provided with opportunities to practice. Students with well-rounded, well-developed thinking skills will benefit in all areas of the school curriculum, perform better in standardized tests and cope better with real-life situations. The thinking skills include: Fact and Opinion Comparing and Contrasting Identifying main ideas Ordering objects Judging completeness Thinking. Stage 1: Knowledge Stage 3: Application NOTE: Stage 2: Comprehension Stage 4: Analysis Real and Imaginary Identifying steps in a process Identifying relationships Inferring Anticipating probabilities

Mastery of the above said skills through practice will aid in the development of four stages of

This programme is included in the internal examinations for ---------- marks. TABLE OF CONTENTS

Stage 1:

KNOWLEDGE Skill 1: Skill 2: Fact and Opinion Real and Imaginary Comparing and Contrasting Identifying steps in a process Identifying main ideas Identifying relationships

Stage 2:

COMPREHENSION Skill 3: Skill 4: Skill 5: Skill 6:

Stage 3:

APPLICATION Skill 7: Skill 8: Ordering objects Inferring Judging completeness Anticipating probabilities KNOWLEDGE

Stage 4:

ANALYSIS Skill 9: Skill 10:

Discriminating between Real and Imaginary This skill develops the differentiation between real and imaginary situations. Discriminating between Fact and Opinion This skill makes the child to say which sentence tells of something that could be proven true and which tells of something that merely expresses an opinion. EXERCISE
I.Some of the sentences in the following story can only happen in our imagination. Identify and underline them. The Girl Who Couldn't Sleep Lo ng a go , in a fa raw ay lan d, th ere live d a gir l n am ed Sam an th a . She was ten years old. Although she was only ten, Samantha knew the telephone numbers of everyone in the world and beyond. Samantha lived in an old cottage in a forest with her mother. They had two cats and a dog. Their other pet was a very cute dragon. Samantha had a problem: she found it very hard to sleep at night. To help her g e t t o s l e e p , s h e w o u l d p l a y a C D w i t h v e r y s o f t , n i c e music. O ne n ig ht , sh e w a s l is te ni n g t o a l o v e l y t un e w he n, s ud de nl y, s he s a w t h e musical notes appear before her eyes. She was so s ur pr is e d . So me o f th e n o t e s w e r e r e d , s o me gr e e n a nd o the r s gold. Samantha ran downstairs to tell her mother but when she got to her mother's room, she got an even bigger surprise. Her mother had turned into a unicorn! Samantha didn't know what to do so she picked up the telephone and dialled a number. "Hello," said a voice at the other end, "This is the mystery woman of Planet Zinga Zinga." " He l p! " cr ie d S am an t ha , " I c an ' t s le e p a nd e v e r y th in g is r e a ll y s t r a n g e h e r e ! " Then, a brilliant flash of lightning lit up the house. This was followed by a loud clap of thunder as a hundred ten-legged horses galloped through the house. All the furniture started singing songs. Then, Samantha woke up.

II.Write 'R' (for real) in the box after each sentence which tells something that is or could be real, and 'I' (for imaginary) after each sentence which tells something that could not be real.

1. The young girl was reading a b o o k a b o u t a b e a u t i f u l u n i c o r n . 1. The young girl owned a beautiful unicorn.

2. The t i n y f i s h w a s s w i m m i n g b e s i d e t h e l o v e l y m e r m a i d . 3. A mermaid has the head and body of a girl, and the tail of a fish. 2. 3. Dragons are fire-breathing creatures in story books. T h e b r a v e k n i g h t p l u n g e d h i s s w o r d i n t o t h e b o d y of the dragon. 4. A l i t t l e g i r l w a s f l y i n g t h r o u g h t h e a i r o n a m a g i c c a r p e t . 4. The little girl was hoping to have a magic carpet ride. 5. I k n o w a m a n w h o w i s h e d h e c o u l d f l y l i k e a b i r d . 6. The man t r i e d t o f l y l i k e a b i r d . 7. I l ook e d i n t he s ky and sa w a bird wit h t he he ad o f a ma n. 5. The man made some thick paper wings and jumped off a cliff. EXERCISE
A statement telling something that is true is called a fact. A statement from someone about their thoughts or beliefs is called an opinion. I n t he bo x es p ro v id ed , w r it e 'F' a ft er ea c h fa ct a nd '0' a ft er ea c h op inio n.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12.

Singapore is a country in As ia . The flag of Singapore is red and white. I love Singapore. More Singaporeans should visit Disneyland. I think Singapore is much too busy. Orchard and City Hall are two MRT stations. I think it's g r e a t g o i n g t o t h e z o o a t n i g h t . Y o u wi ll se e p le nt y o f b ig ae r o pl an e s a t S in ga po r e 's Changi Airport. Chinatown is one of my favourite places. I think it's better to travel on the MRT than on the bus. Sometimes, Singapore has thunderstorms. S i r S t a m f o r d R a f f l e s i s a n i m p o r t a n t m a n i n Singapore's history.

COMPREHENSION Comparing and contrasting This skill makes the child to pick out the similarities and differences between things.

Identifying steps in a process Some things need to be done in a step-by-step way. This skill makes the child identify those steps based on his previous knowledge or by the hints given in the question and arrange them in a order. Identifying the main idea Pictures and stories have a main idea / theme. Usually, the complete story or a paragraph in a story is developed around a main idea / theme. This skill develops the knowledge to identify this main idea and also to construct a story around this idea. Identifying relationships Some things go together. This skill develops the childs knowledge about relationships between different things. Exercise:
To compare things means to say what is alike about them. To contrast things means to tell what is different about them. I. Look at the pictures of the two trees and read the paragraph that follows. Identify Tree X and Tree Y. Then, based on the information in the pictures and the paragraph, answer these questions.

Tree X and Tree Y both grow near a river bank. They both have thick trunks. However, Tree X is tall, while Tree Y is quite short. Tree X has branches which do not have many leaves, while Tree Y has branches that are leafy and p r o v i d e a lot o f shade. W h a t i s t h e s a m e a b o u t Tree X and Tree Y?

2.

How are Tree X and Tree Y different?

II. Look carefully at the pictures. Compare and contrast the biplane and the passenger jet. Biplane Passenger jet

1.

H o w a r e the t w o a i r c r a f t a l i k e ?

2.

Complete the table below by saying how the two aircraft

are

different.
a.
size

b.

windows

C.

wings

II.

Identifying steps in a process.

A. Ramu wants to open a bank account .As he is new to the bank operations he is in mere confusion. Help him by arranging the following steps in order to open an account. 1. Collect an application form from the counter. 2. Get the form attested by an account holder. 3. Submit the application duly filled in and signed to the competent person. 4. Deposit the minimum amount in your account. 5. Collect your pass-book the following day. 6. Fill in the required information. 7. Attach two passport-size photographs. B. Given below are some instructions to make mango chutney but in wrong order. Arrange the following steps in order to make delicious chutney. 1. Heat oil in a pan for about 2 minutes.

2. 1 teaspoon mustard seeds. 3. Remove cooker, release pressure. 4. Delicious chutney is ready 5. Take cup of vegetable oil. 6. Put in the cooker tsf turmeric powder, 1 kg of raw mangoes to salt +water .put on high heat. 7. Add mustard seeds III. Identifying main idea:
The main idea of a paragraph may be found in the first or last sentence, or even in the middle of the paragraph. A. Underline the sentence with the main idea in each paragraph below.

1.

The sky could not fall down because there is nothing where we call ` s ky ' . L o ng ag o , p e o p le th o u gh t t he su n, mo o n a nd

s ta r s w e r e a t the top of the sky. They thought we lived inside a bowl that was tur ne d upside do w n.

2.

W he n yo u loo k at a rainbo w , have yo u e ve r w o nde re d if o the r p e o p le se e t he o th e r s id e o f th e r a in bo w a t th e s am e

t im e ? Y o u c an se e bo th side s o f a br idge , be cause the re ar e tw o side s. Y ou o nly have to walk or drive round to see the other side of a bridge, but a rainbow has only one side.

3.

It is impossible to sleep with our eyes open. To keep them open nee ds effor t, altho ugh the brain do es this fo r yo u w itho ut you ha vi ng to th in k w he n yo u a r e aw ak e . W he n y o u be c o m e sl e e p y, y o u re lax and yo ur eye lids dr o p be cause o f their own weight.

4.

Most male birds have brighter feathers than female birds. Male birds have better voices than female birds. All these come about because each male bird, when looking for a wife, likes to sho w off his co lo ure d fe athe rs. He also likes to attract the female bird by calling and singing to her.

IV.

Identifying Relationships:
One thing often causes another thing to happen. This is called a causal (cause-

A. Some causes and effects are listed below. Put the letter of the
effect in the space after the line of the most likely cause.

effect) relationship.

Causes 1. 2. 3. Running beside a swimming pool Reading books E at in g yo ur fo o d to o quickl y 4. Spinning around on one spot d. e. 5. 6. R i d i n g y o ur b i k e t o o f a s t Looking directly at the sun g. c. a. b.

Effects may cause yo u to fe e l unw e ll. may cause e ye damage . may help increase your knowledge. may cause you to slip over. may cause you to have an accident. may cause yo u to fe e l dizzy.

B. List out two things that people who do the following jobs would need. 1.House keeper 2House cleaner 3.First aid officer APPLICATION Ordering objects The skill develops ordering of some objects in certain ways / depending on certain criteria (eg., according to size, height etc.). Inferring: This skill develops the inferring capacity on any given information. Exercise: I.
A. Arrange each list in order according to the directions above it. Write '1', '2', '3', '4' or '5' on the line before the word.

1.

From heavy to light table pin tennis ball chair pencil

2.

From small to large large plate saucer small button telescope dish large coin

3.

From slow to fast cat mouse cheetah snail horse From near to far city centre neighbours the South Pole Japan Planet Saturn

4.

From short to tall giraffe man Tyrannosaurus Rex monkey camel From cold to hot Boiling water ice warm milk ocean water fire

5.

6.

B. Arrange the items in each group below according to size or amount, from smallest to largest. Write the items in order.

1. 186, 166, 132, 191, 179

1.
warship, dinghy, large ocean liner, small yacht, ferry boat

small

1.

mandarin, watermelon, small apricot, pea, orange

1 . hour, s e c o n d , m o n t h , w e e k , m i n u t e

2.

e ncyclo pae dia se t, lar ge bo o k, ne w sle tte r , ne w spape r , thick magazine

2. c a t e r p i l l a r , c r o c o d i l e , a n t , b e e t l e , s n a k e

3. trees, flowers, bushes, forests, seeds

I I . . Read each story and circle the correct answers.

1.

It was night time in the village. They lay in bed, awake.

There was a fa in t l ig h t o ut si de a nd a r um bl i ng so un d co u ld be h e ar d. T he r um bl in g go t l o u de r an d lo ud e r , a nd t he li gh t gr e w br ig ht e r an d br ighter . The n, the rumbling became so fter and so fter , and the light b e c a m e d i m m e r a n d d i m m e r . S o m e o n e s a i d , " W h a t w a s t h a t ? " It was a. an e ar thquake b. a passing train c. some men on horses

2.

This homework was not easy. I had been working on it for more than an

h o u r . It w a s no us e us in g a di ct io na r y , at la s o r e n cy cl o p ae di a . I f o n l y I h a d a c a l c u l a t o r . I t w a s_________________________________ a. English ho me wo r k b. researching a famous person c. Maths homework

3.

I e njo ye d my ho liday ve r y much. I had ne ve r see n snow before. It was fun o n the ski slo pe s.

M y h o l i d a y w a s i n _______________ a. Hawaii b. Switzerland c. Egypt

4.

I like visiting my co usins. The re are so many inter esting things to do , a nd i t' s

a lw ay s so qu ie t t he r e . It ' s fu n sw im mi n g i n th e s tr e am an d I l i k e h e a r i n g t h e sounds of the animals. My cousins live a. in a city apar tme nt b. at the beach c. on a farm

ANALYSIS Judging completeness The ability to judge what is missing (in a figure / sentence / paragraph) is learnt through this skill. Anticipating probabilities Predicting a likely future outcome is the skill learnt through this concept. Exercise: I. (-There are many problems that can be solved, only if you hove all the
necessary or complete information. A. In each word problem below, some information is missing. Read the problem. On the line provided, write the information you would need before you can solve the problem.

1.

I b o u g h t s o me p e n c i l s f o r 7 0 c e n t s e a c h . H o w m u c h c h a n g e d i d I g e t from $5?

2.

man buys a new car. This car costs $2000 more than what he paid for his last car. How much does the new car cost?

3.
and Gerald go fishing. Ben catches more fish than Gerald. If Gerald catches seven fish, how many fish does Ben catch?

Ben

4.

T he bus to Sco ttsda le le ave s five minute s afte r the bus to Se avie w . A t w h a t t i m e does the bus to Seaview leave?

5.
Simo ne ' s mo the r buys a hat fo r $1 5 , a scar f fo r $ 12 and a h a n d b a g . How much does she spend altogether?

6.

Lennies dog is four years older than Tommys dog. Tommys dog is the same age as Brendas cat. How old is Lennies dog?

7.

Pasty has 20 lollipops which she would like to share with her friends. How many lollipops will each child receive?

II. Rea d t he st o r y a nd a nsw er t he q uest io ns t hat fo llow .

Mr Bowland's Dog M r B o w l a n d i s v e r y r i c h . H e i s a k i n d m a n w h o n e v e r m a r r i e d , p r e fe r r i n g t o l i v e i n h i s b i g h o u s e w i t h h i s b e l o v e d d o g , R o ve r . M r B o w l a n d i s k n o w n t o l i k e a l l c h i l d r e n a n d a l l a n i m a l s . O ne d a y , w h e n y o u a r e p l a y i n g w i t h y o u r f r i e n d s a t t h e park, you see Mr Bowland searching for Rover. You see that Mr Bowland is very upset, and you hear him muttering, "Missing three days, missing three days." You go to Mr Bowland and say, "Mr Bowland, I know how much you love your dog. May I help you find him?"

1. Say what happens next.

2.

If Rover was never found, what could you do for Mr Bowland to make him feel better?

B. Study these pictures. They show two men who want to cross the mountains by horse. The mountains are very rugged with lots of rocks, some dense forest and fallen trees.

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Picture A

Picture B

The rider in Picture A is partly blind but he rides a race horse. The rider in Picture B can see well but his horse is quite slow. Which rider will cross the mountains first? Give your reasons below.

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