A new school year

Mid January is the month when school starts back for Solomon Island students. No doubt it's the same in other PSSC participating schools across the Pacific. It's always good to get your new books and feel positive about the year to come. But PSSC is a tough year. There are so many taks to complete in other subjects, let alone English, that often students never get around to reading that novel or non-fiction book. It's hard too, when books you have to read for school aren't really what might interest you normally.

Source: travelwizard.com

   What I found useful was setting targets for each week. Everyone had to have finished reading to the end of chapter two of our class novel by the first week of February, for example. That way the novel was cut into smaller pieces and everyone could get through it in time.

   But actually remembering what you thought about the novel you read in the first half of the year can be difficult when it comes to writing essays about it in October. Keeping a literature diary is a great help. Students can jot down chapter summaries, character notes, page numbers and quotes, all for future reference come exam time.

   Ideas and notes about the poetry, non-fiction, short stories, films and plays studied during the year can also be put in the diary, along with your personal reactions. Did you like the story? Were the characters interesting or wooden? Was the language easy to understand? Was the setting similar to your village/town life? 

   Good luck to PSSC students. Enjoy your year and delight in the riches of Pacific literature. There's more out there than you think.