P4 SA2 English Results – Ways to help your child with the English components

Around this time of the year, the SA2 results are distributed to students. For many P4 students, this may be the first English examination of the year with all the components – Oral, Listening Comprehension, Paper 1 & Paper 2– tested. Whether the SA2 results were expected or unexpected, examinations are essential in alerting us to areas that need extra attention. This is especially important for P4 students who will begin their P5 year.

P4 English: What is expected at the end of the year?

At the end of the P4 year students should be able to do the following :

Writing

• Plan and write a complete composition independently, using appropriate writing techniques such as dialogue, description, and paragraphing.

Oral – Reading & Stimulus-based conversation

• Read a passage fluently with correct pronunciation, intonation, and expression.
• Hold a simple conversation confidently based on a poster or a ‘live’ picture, and use conversational techniques (e.g. elaborating, giving recounts and opinions).

Paper 2

• Master key lower primary grammar structures, such as subject-verb agreement, tenses, and modal verbs.
• Have a wider vocabulary and be able to use more challenging words accurately in sentences
• Read, understand, and answer comprehension questions using taught strategies (e.g. identifying keywords, inferring meaning).
• Apply commonly tested rules in synthesis & transformation such as ‘both’, ‘neither…nor’, and basic reported speech.
• Be able to look for clues in the surrounding sentences for a comprehension cloze passage and fill in the blanks with the correct words

At TF, our teachers work throughout the year to help students master the skills listed above, with the knowledge that Primary 5 introduces a new set of more complex rules and techniques in preparation for the PSLE year. This makes Primary 4 the ideal time to build a strong foundation.

Even if a student’s results are below expectations, there is still time to improve. While studying during the holidays may not be everyone’s idea of fun, spending a little time each day reviewing English can make a big difference in the new year.

Three easy ways to review the English component

1. Revise Grammar & Synthesis Rules

Struggling with subject-verb agreement? Unsure of question tags? Use the holidays to review grammar structures that confuse you. Create a personal grammar rulebook or flashcards. This will help you quickly refer to these rules when you encounter even more in Primary 5.

2. Build a Vocabulary Bank

If you often come across unfamiliar words, it’s time to build your vocabulary. Unlike grammar, vocabulary grows through regular exposure and use. At TF, we introduce weekly vocabulary lists from Primary 3 to 6 to help students keep up with increasing difficulty, especially in the Vocabulary Cloze of the PSLE. At home, you can also collect new words from books, newspapers, or even shows.

3. Write Regularly

If Paper 1 is your weak spot, start now. The writing component increases from 20 to 36 marks in Primary 5, which can be challenging for students who lack confidence or practice. By the end of Primary 4, students should be able to plan and write compositions independently. This way, they can better manage the new situational writing component introduced in Primary 5.
At home, write as often as you can, even if it’s just for fun. Like vocabulary, effective writing requires time and practice. At TF, our students write every week, building writing stamina early.

📝 With a total of 55 marks in P5, Paper 1 is just as important as Paper 2.

We hope that the above ways are helpful to you. In my next post, I will list what P4 students can expect in their P5 year.