Syllabus for IP Track
EL Dept
Subject: Language Arts
Year 1
Semester 1
Year 2
Unit 1: Using Language to Express Thoughts and Feelings
Unit 1: Persuasive Texts
● Persuasion in visual culture
● ‘Or Else the Lightning God’ (by Catherine Lim): A
○ Advertisements and multimodality
study of ‘Kevin’
○ Persuasive techniques in advertising
● Exploring the issue of Asian parenting, parent-child
○ Analysis of visual texts
relationships, parents’ expectations, the tiger
● Persuasive speech
mom
○ Speechcraft: Structure and strategy
● Developing personal response
○ Speech analysis
● Developing personal recount writing skills
○ Public speaking skills
● Persuasive writing
Unit 2: Using language to Reflect
○ Format and conventions
○ Essay writing skills
● A study of ‘Ah Bah’s Money’ in comparison with
‘Paper’
Unit 2: Critical Reading and Writing
● Mining levels of reflection (exploring self, family,
● Comprehension and summary writing skills
peers, community, country)
● Introduction to the 10m application question (AQ)
● Writing a reflection
○ Evaluating the writer’s arguments
● Exploring conflict in drama devices
○ Application to Singapore society
Unit 3: Using Language to Create a Story
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Further study of ‘Or Else the Lightning God’
Character analysis
Writing and performing a monologue
Narrative essay skills
Unit 3: Literary Reading and Analysis
● Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird (1960)
● The passage-based question (PBQ)
● Tension and suspense
● Sympathy and humour
● Literary devices
Semester 2
Unit 4: Using Language to Evaluate
● Global poetry unit
● Discuss global issues/concerns
● Personal response
Unit 5 Using Language to Describe
● Close reading of prose passages
● Descriptive writing skills
Unit 4a: Reading Shakespearean Drama
● Introduction to Shakespeare and Early Modern English
● William Shakespeare’s Macbeth (Acts 1 and 2)
Unit 4b: Close Reading and Criticism: Prose and Poetry
● Global and local poetry
● Critical and personal response
● Literary techniques
Subject: English Language
Year 3
Year 4
Semester 1
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Written & Oral Speech Writing
Socratic Circles for Writing and Application
Questions
Comprehension Skills
Argumentative / Discursive Writing
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Persuasive writing
Speech writing
Descriptive commentary writing
Discursive / Argumentative writing
Critical reading / reasoning & thinking
● Argument & disagreement
● Reading between the lines
● Identifying flaws in arguments
Summary Writing skills
Comprehension skills :
Semester 2
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Journalism and Writing
Comprehension, Summary, Application
question skills
Argumentative / Discursive Essay
Comparative Commentary Writing
Blog-post and report writing
1. Understanding the demands of the questions, types
of questions, key words and flags in the questions
2. Application questions: understanding the different
types of questions:
● Type 1: The ‘agree’ , ‘disagree’ type
● Type 2: The one that specifically requires you to
select passage arguments and apply to your society
or other societies
● Type 3: The general one that looks like a typical
essay question.
Subject: Literature
Year 3
Semester 1
Term 1 :
● Introduction to the study of poetry
● Introduction to poetry analysis
● Overview of poetic techniques
● Introduction to the study of the novel
● Review of narrative techniques
● Commence study of The Joy Luck Club (by Amy
Tan)
Term 2 :
● Complete study of The Joy Luck Club (by Amy Tan)
● Study of Singapore Poetry
● Poetry Slam
Semester 2
Term 3 : Person & Place
Year 4
Term 1: Shakespeare and Poetry
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Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare
Poems by Wilfred Owen
Term 2: Shakespeare, JLC, Literature and Society
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Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare
The Joy Luck Club (by Amy Tan)
W.B. Yeats, A.E. Houseman, Pam Ayres
Renaissance: John Donne
Enlightenment: Jonathan Swift
Romanticism: S.T. Coleridge
Term 3: Literature and Society
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In-depth poetry analysis of poems related to
character and locations
● Introduction to the study of unseen prose
● Variety - a study of major types of
unseen prose passages
● Revision of The Joy Luck Club
Term 4 : Further revision of The Joy Luck Club.
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Victorian: Elizabeth Barrett Browning
Modern: Virginia Woolf
Dystopian: EM Forster, Sara Teasdale
Modern Short Stories:
Dan Jacobson, Katherine Mansfield, John Wain
Poetry: Philip Larkin
Term 4: Revision
Maths Dept
Subject: Maths
Year 1
Year 2
Semester 1
B1C3: Approximation & Estimation
B1C15: Statistical Data Handling
B2C13: Averages in Statistical Data
B2C12:Statistical Data
B1C2: Integers, Rational Numbers & Real Numbers
B1C1: Primes, Highest Common Factors & Least Common
Multiples
B1C4: Basic Algebra & Algebraic Manipulation
B2C3: Expansion & Factorization of Algebraic Expression
(Exclude Factorization of Quadratic Expressions via FOIL)
B1C9: Rate, Ratio and Speed
B1C5: Linear Equations and Simple Inequalities
B3C6: Application of Math in Practical Situations
B2C6: Algebraic Manipulation & Formulae
B2C2: Simultaneous Linear Equations
B2C8: Pythagoras Theorem
B1C6: Functions and Linear Graphs
B2C2: Linear Graphs and Simultaneous Linear Equations
B3C7: Linear Graphs and Their Applications
B3C8: Arc Length, Sector Area and Radian Measure
B2C9: Trigonometric Ratios
B2C8: Pythagoras Theorem [Converse of Pythagoras Theorem]
B2C3: Expansion and Factorization of Quadratic Expressions
B2C4: Further Expansion and Factorization of Quadratic
Expressions
B3C1: Solutions to Quadratic Equations
B2C6: Algebraic Fractions and Formulae
AM C1: Simultaneous Equations
B2C5: Quadratic Graphs
B3C5: Graphs of Functions and Graphical Solution [Graphical
Solution and Graphs Applied to Kinematics]
Semester 2
B1C10: Basic Geometry
B1C11: Triangles, Quadrilaterals & Polygons
B1C12: Geometrical Constructions
B1C13: Perimeter & Area of Plane Figures
B1C14: Volume & Surface Area of Prisms and Cylinders
B2C10: Volume and Surface Area of Pyramids, Cones &
Spheres
B2C1: Direct and Inverse Proportion
B2C7: Congruency and Similarity
B3C9: Congruency and Similarity Tests
B3C10: Area and Volume of Similar Figures and Solids
Subject: E Maths
Year 3
Year 4
Semester 1
Quadratic Equations and Functions
Linear Inequalities
Indices & Standard Form
Coordinate Geometry
Graphs of Functions of Graphical Solution
Sets
Probability of Combined Events
Statistical Data Analysis
Matrices
Vectors
Semester 2
Further Trigonometry
Application of Trigonometry
Geometrical Properties of Circles
Matrices
Arithmetic & Geometric Progressions
Subject: A Maths
Year 3
Year 4
Semester 1
Simultaneous Equations, Polynomials and Partial Fractions
Quadratic Equations, Inequalities And Modulus Functions
Indices, Surds and Logarithm, Graphs of Exponential and
Logarithmic Functions
Coordinate Geometry
Further Coordinate Geometry
Proofs in Plane Geometry
Differentiation & its Applications
Further Application of Differentiation
Differentiation of Trigonometric, Logarithmic &
Exponential Functions and their applications
Integration
Applications of Integration
Kinematics
Semester 2
Linear Law
Trigonometric Functions and Equations
Trigonometric Identities and Formulae
The Binomial Theorem
Permutations & Combinations
Trigonometry
Science Dept
Subject: Lower Sec Science
Year 1
Term 1
Chemistry Module:
1. Discovery of Science - Lab Safety & Science Process
Skills
2. Introduction to Laboratory Apparatus - Use of
apparatus and equipment and Bunsen burner
3. The Particulate Nature of Matter
4. Atomic structure
5. The Periodic Table
6. Atoms and molecules
7. Elements, compounds and mixtures
8. Methods of purification and analysis
Year 2
Biology Module:
1. Nutrients
2. Enzymes
3. Nutrition in humans
4. Molecular genetics (DNA structure)
5. Reproduction in humans
Term 2
Biology Module:
1. Cells Structure and Function
2. Movement of Substances
3. Classification (including viruses and bacteria)
4. Ecology
5. Plant nutrition
6. Transport in plants
Chemistry Module:
1. Atomic Structure , Periodic Table and Formulation of Ions
2. Chemical bonding - Ionic Bonding, Covalent bonding
3. Chemical Formulae
4. Acids, Bases and Alkalis
5. Chemical Equations
Term 3
Physics Module:
1. Recap and Revision to Science Process Skills
2. Physical Quantities, SI units and Prefixes
3. Measurement - Length, Area, Volume
4. Mass, Weight and Density
5. Time, Rate, Speed and Acceleration
Physics Module:
1. Temperature
2. Transfer of Thermal Energy
3. Light - Reflection
4. Light - Refraction
5. Electricity and its practical uses
6. Force and Pressure
7. Energy
Subject: Biology
Year 3
Year 4
Semester 1
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Cells
Movement of substances
Nutrients
Enzymes
Nutrition in Humans
Transport in Humans
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Hormones
The nervous system
Eye
Reproduction in plants
Reproduction in Humans
Molecular genetics
Cell division
Inheritance
Semester 2
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Respiration
Excretion
Homeostasis
Nutrition in Plants
Transport in plants
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Ecology & its impact on Man
Revision
Subject: Chemistry
Year 3
Semester 1
1.
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4.
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6.
Introduction of chemistry, Atomic Structure
Bonding and structure
Ionic Equations
Redox
Periodic Table
Mole Concept
Year 4
1.
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5.
6.
7.
Simple Cell
Electrolysis
Energy from Chemicals
Speed of reaction
Kinetic Particle Theory
Fuel and Alkanes
Alkenes
8.
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Semester 2
1.
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4.
Acids and Bases
Salts
Qualitative Analysis
Metals
Alcohols
Carboxylic Acids and Esters
Macromolecules
Experimental Techniques
Air
1. Ammonia
2. Equilibra
3. Revision
Subject: Physics
Year 3
Year 4
Semester 1
Light
Physical Quantities, Units and Measurement
Kinematics
Dynamics
Mass, Weight and Density
Turning Effect of Forces
Energy, Work and Power
General Properties of Waves (Revisit)
Electromagnetic Spectrum (Revisit)
Sound
Static Electricity
Current Electricity
D.C. Circuits
Practical Electricity
Magnetism
Electromagnetism
Semester 2
Pressure
Kinetic Model of Matter
Temperature
Transfer of Thermal Energy
Thermal Properties of Matter
General Properties of Waves
Electromagnetic Spectrum
Electromagnetic Induction
Revision
Humanities Dept
Subject: Geography
Year 1
Semester 1
Semester 2
Theme: Man and Environment
1. Introduction to Geography
2. Geographical Investigation and Skills
3. Maps and Photograph Interpretation
4. Population
5. Water Resources
6. Energy Resources
7. Natural Vegetation
Year 2
Theme: Liveable Cities
1. Introduction to liveability
2. Plate Tectonics and Geomorphology
3. Geographical Investigation and Skills
4. Settlements and urbanization
5. Transport
6. Floods
Subject: History
Year 1
Semester 1
Introduction to History
● How does one be a historian?
● The History of the School: Who are we and how
did we come to be?
Year 2
Singapore History
● Early Singapore
● Immigrants to Singapore
● World War 2 in Singapore and the Japanese Occupation
Ancient Civilisations
● Origins of Civilisations
● Organisation of Society and Governance
Semester 2
Subject: Geography
Ancient Civilisations (cont’d)
● The way people lived- Culture, Religion and
Discoveries
● Contact and Interaction
Road to Independence
● Post-World War 2 Singapore
● Emergence of Self-governance
● Merger and Separation
● Post-independence Singapore
Year 3
Semester 1
Semester 2
Year 4
Theme: Change and Managing Change - The Physical
Theme: Change and Managing Change - The Human World
World
1. Global Tourism - Ts Tourism the Way to Go?
1. Coasts - Should Coastal Environments Matter?
2. Food Resources - Is Technology a Panacea for Food
2. Living with Tectonic Hazards - Risk or Opportunity?
Shortage?
3. Geographical Skills and Investigations
3. Geographical Skills and Investigations
4. Variable Weather and Changing Climate - A
Continuing Challenge?
4. Health and Diseases - Are We More Vulnerable than Before?
Subject: History
Year 3
Semester 1
Semester 2
Year 4
European Dominance & Expansion in the Late 19th
Century
● Overview of European colonisation of Southeast
Asia
● British colonial rule in Malaya
● French colonial rule in Vietnam
● Dutch colonial rule in Indonesia
The World in Crisis
● Impact of WW1 in Europe
● Stalin’s Soviet Union
● Hitler’s Germany
Bi-polarity & the Cold War
● Reasons for the Cold War in Europe
● The Korean War
● The Cuban Missile Crisis
● The End of the Cold War
The World in Crisis (cont’d)
● Outbreak of WWII in Europe
● Germany’s defeat in WWII
● Outbreak of WWII in the Asia-Pacific
● Japan’s defeat in WWII
De-colonisation & Emergence of Nation-States (cont’d)
● Decolonisation of Vietnam
● Decolonisation of Indonesia
De-colonisation & Emergence of Nation-States
● Decolonisation and emergence of nation-states in
Southeast Asia
● Decolonisation of Malaya
Aesthetics Dept
Subject: MEP
Year 1
Year 2
Semester 1
1.
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4.
5.
6.
General Overview of the Programme
Elements of Music
Instruments of the Orchestra
Chinese Music
Brief Overview of Western Music
Theory and Analysis
1. Overview of the Baroque Period (General Characteristics
and Representative Composers)
2. Baroque genres
3. Indian music
Semester 2
1.
2.
3.
4.
Theory and Analysis
Melodic and Rhythmic Dictation
Melody writing
Malay Dance Music
1. Overview of Classical Period (General Characteristics and
Representative Composers)
2. Classical genres
3. Indonesian Gamelan
4. Melody writing
Subject: MEP
Year 3
Semester 1
Western and World Music
1. Overview of Romantic Period (General
Characteristics and Representative Composers)
2. Romantic Genres
3. Revision
Music Writing
1. Piano accompaniment
2. 2 part writing
Semester 2
Western and World Music
Year 4
Western and World Music
1. Prescribed Work
2. Prescribed Source Material
3. Revision
Music Writing
1. Coursework practice
1. O level preparation
1. Overview of 20th century music (General
Characteristics and Representative Composers)
2. 20th century genres
3. Revision
Music Writing
1. Word setting
Subject: ART
Year 3
Year 4
Semester 1
1. Art Fundamentals ( Elements & Principles of Art)
2. Learning Journey - Art Stage 2017
3. Fashion Illustration Workshop (Medium Mastery /
SOVA) - 2D Art / Digital Art
4. Printmaking - Screen Printing (Medium Mastery /
SOVA) - 2D Art
5. Paper Making Workshop (Medium Mastery /
SOVA) - 2D Art
NA
Semester 2
1. Assemblage Workshop (Medium Mastery / SOVA)
- 3D Art
2. Learning Journey - Art Studio Visit
3. Sketching & Watercolour Workshop - (Medium
Mastery / SOVA) - 2D
4. Art Writing Workshop (SOVA)
NA