Maternelle et primaire mercredi
Entrance criteria for the English primary section
By Jenny Bennitt, Head of Primary
Entrance Test Guidelines
SIS is an academic programme for bilingual children. Most of the primary pupils continue into Collège and Lycée with SIS and take the OIB (Option Internationale du Baccalauréat)
Details of both primary programmes can be found at >> in French or >> in English
The following is a brief, general outline of the tests and gives an idea of what is expected of pupils accepted into SIS Primary department. N.B. These are not sample tests. The actual entrance tests will be similar to these guidelines but the reading texts will be longer. We do not expect candidates to achieve full marks but your child should be able to do these tasks comfortably. If he or she struggles, we suggest you apply to a less academic programme rather than placing your child in a situation of failure in an SIS test.
- General :
All candidates should speak English to native or near native standard. Fluency and ease of expression are most important. The best way to prepare your child for a test is .... talk.
Reading : Children will be asked to read a text aloud. They should be able to speak fluent, grammatically correct English and express their ideas easily in response to questions about the reading text.
Writing : Children should be able to write grammatically correct English and interesting vocabulary is to be encouraged.
| Select the class which interests you for the coming year [1] | P1 | P2 | P3 | P4 | P5 | P6 |
- Going into P1 / Grande Section (Wednesday programme only) The test lasts approximately 3O mins.
There is no formal reading or writing test but children will be expected to do tasks such as : distinguish and repeat sounds ( e.g. p, b, d / e, a) ; to clap a given rhythm ; to talk about pictures ; to put a series of pictures into a story sequence and then tell the story ; to listen to a very short story and then retell it ; to recognise pictures or patterns which are the same, to hold and use a pencil or crayon correctly
- Going into P2/CP The test lasts approximately 3O mins.
There are two levels of P2
- P2 NY for children who have not yet started to read and write. The test is similar to P1. Wednesday programme only.
- P2 RW for children who have started to read and write. For Integrated classes or Wednesday programme.
Writing- to write a short sentence about each of a given series of pictures
Reading – children will be asked to read a short simple text of the level - Ben sat on the bed. More complex texts will also be on hand for those who have more developed reading skills – The boy ran over the hill then fell down. Short questions will be asked to check children understand what they have read.
- Going into P3 / CE1 The test lasts approximately 4O mins.
Writing - to write interesting sentences about a given series of pictures
Reading – example :
Crabs and lobsters have shells which are a sort of hard skin. A lobster has a shell. It flaps its tail to swim. As the lobster gets bigger, its shell splits. The fresh shell is soft to begin with, but it soon hardens.
There are lots of different sorts of crabs. Some are good at swimming and some have long thin legs.
Children should be able read this text comfortably and, after reading, say what it is about without looking at it. They should be able to try to explain one or more of the words in bold and should be able to describe crabs (good at swimming / long thin legs). They should then be able to talk about shells for a few minutes in correct English.
- Going into P4 / CE2 The test lasts approximately 45 mins.
Writing - to write a short story about a given picture, imagining and relating the ending
Reading – example :
‘Good-bye’ said Plop, bobbing up and down
in a funny little bow. He watched the boy run across the field, and then took a little run himself, spread his wings, and fluttered up to the landing branch. He slithered along on his tummy and dived head first into the nest-hole.
‘Well ?’ said his mother.
‘The little boy says DARK IS EXCITING.’
‘And what do you think, Plop ?’
‘I still do not like it AT ALL,’ said Plop, ‘but I’m going to watch the fireworks – if you will sit by me.’
Children should be able read this text comfortably and with expression, possibly hesitating a little over the words in bold. After reading, they should be able to give an idea of what has happened beforehand and should be able to try to explain two or more of the words in bold. They should also be able to explain why the author has used capital letters for some phrases. They should be able to describe, in correct English, what they think might happen next.
- Going into P5/CM1 The test lasts approximately 5O mins.
Writing – to write a story, in paragraphs, developing ideas from a given starting point (picture or an opening paragraph)
Reading – example :
Maurice and Dodi were relaxing in front of
the television one balmy evening when they heard something on the news that was to change their lives completely.
“Scientists have discovered,” explained the newscaster, “that the world’s core has been heating up. Within six calendar months the Earth will be so hot it will explode !”
“Explode ?” Dodi said, “What does that mean, explode ?”
“It means go pop, dear !” Maurice replied, “Kaboom !”
“Oh, I don’t like the sound of that, it’ll ruin my garden !”
Children should be able to read the text comfortably and with expression that reflects the punctuation and dialogue. They should be able to explain the underlined words and give an alternative for each. They should be able to give at least one alternative word for the word explode, as if they were explaining it to Dodi themselves. They should identify the clues about Dodi’s character and explain what they think she is like.
- Going into P6 /CM2 The test lasts approximately 6O mins.
Writing – to write a story of approximately an A4 page length in paragraphs, developing ideas from a given starting point (picture or an opening paragraph)
Reading – example :
The island looked perhaps two or three miles in length, no more. It was shaped a bit like an elongated peanut, but longer at one end that the other. There was a long swathe of brilliant white beach on both sides of the island, and at the far end another hill, the slopes steeper and more thickly wooded, but not so high as mine. With the exception of these twin peaks the entire island seemed to be covered in forest. So far as I could see there was no sign of human life. Even then, as I stood there, that first morning, filled with apprehension at the terrifying implications of my dreadful situation, I remember thinking how wonderful it was, a green jewel of an island framed in white, the sea all about it a silken, shimmering blue.
Children should be able read this text comfortably and with expression, possibly hesitating a little over highlighted words. After reading, they should be able to try to explain two or more of the phrases and words written in bold.They should be able, in their own words, to describe who they think ‘I’ is and how they think ‘I’ arrived there. They should be able to describe, in correct English, what they think might happen next.
[1] Please note that pupils are placed in the same year level as in their French school. For example, a child in CE2 must have the level for P4 English class.
Dernière modification le 07-03-11 par
