The oral exam is around the corner (specifically, this Friday), and when you have students who don't quite know how to elaborate on their ideas, you need to go the extra mile for them. So, I spent my one-week break combing through essays and comprehension passages to sieve out phrases they can arm themselves with.

The typical approach many teachers use is to collate power phrases in a thematic manner. So, they will get their students to internalise a set of vocabulary for the environment and another set of phrases for topics on family. This is where my creative and unorthdox mind diverges from their thinking. I think getting students to memorise phrases according to themes is a burden on their cognitive capacity - particularly if they are not especially motivated to prepare for their exam. What I think might work is compiling phrases according to prepositions. Some of these phrases cuts across topics, so it's my fervent hope that they will know how to apply them under exam pressure.

Additionally, my students have to tackle a notoriously difficult section called Comprehension Cloze in their main paper. They have to use contextual clues to fill in 15 blanks, which is no mean feat if you don't have the stamina to work through long text passages.

Anyway, I actually took three hours to put this together (no AI magic!). I think my Proof of Work stems from scrutinising every single collocation and imagining how my students might use them to express their thoughts. Did I hear that I would be getting the Best Teacher Award?

on focus / concentrate on my studies keen on sports emphasis placed on saving water juggle many things on my plate perform on stage leave a deep impression on the audience splurge on branded goods buy on a whim relieve the burden on my parents depend / rely on my teammates take on responsibilities run on clean energy positive impact on the environment

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in engrossed in a captivating book engage in sports / retail therapy participate / partake actively in engaging activities hold a special place in my heart confide my problems in a trusted adult relax in the shade work / collaborate in groups help someone in need being in the company of my friends keep my body in shape increase in accessibility / convenience take in the aromatic smells

to look forward to the holidays give back / contribute to society essential to staying healthy play to my strengths keep up to date keen to take part appeals to me grow accustomed / adapt to new approaches / platforms / conventions access to resources increased exposure to social media opens my eyes to pain / suffering caters to our interests live life to the fullest put my knowledge to good use

by fuelled by my passion inspired by my teachers bothered by my obstacles enthralled by spectacular sights stand by me

for fend for myself prepare for festive occasions up for the challenge

out stressed out try out fascinating activities miss out on opportunities stick out like a sore thumb rough it out decked out in hip-hop attire

with pass with flying colours graduate with beautiful memories catch up / touch base with my friends bond deeply with my family impressed with innovative ideas go with the flow filled with laughter share new perspectives with one another cementing our relationships with one another blend in with the surroundings

over bond over long conversations / scrumptious food depressed over certain mistakes /setbacks fear looms over my head

about think / ponder about my future create awareness about sustainable energy learn about diverse cultures care about troubled friends brings about advantages go about handling challenges / resolving conflicts

from learn from experts benefit from its unique / novel features gain benefits from exercising stand out from the crowd feel gratitude from the bottom of my heart feel stress from multiple sources

into break into a sweat break into laughter

through express my gratitude through handwritten notes exert my individuality through my music playlist go through thick and thin survive through tough times