Our Workbooks
+hinkingMath@onSponge Workbooks
Our +hinkingMath@onSponge workbooks are specifically designed to help students develop their Math problem sum solving skills and prepare for the Primary School Leaving Examinations (PSLE) in Singapore. Our series of +hinkingMath workbooks are used as supplementary training material in over 100 schools throughout Singapore, and more than 100,000 students have used our workbooks to maximise their potential and succeed in their Math examinations.
The series of workbooks served as supplementary learning material designed to work in conjunction with the schools’ curriculum. Within each series, there is a different workbook for each school year, which is aligned with the school curriculum and tailored to the learning requirements of P3, P4, P5 or P6 students.
Based on Latest MOE Syllabus
Developed in conjunction with educational experts and experienced teachers as an enhanced-learning resource, our workbooks closely follow the Ministry of Education (MOE) syllabus. However, our learning materials go beyond traditional teaching methods and incorporate scientific learning techniques that are proven to help children develop more quickly in the understanding of mathematical concepts, extrapolate relevant information to facilitate thinking and thus, arriving at solutions more quickly and accurately.
All our +hinkingMath@onSponge workbooks are structured using a trusted and proven format that have been refined and developed for more than twelve years to give Primary 3 to 6 children the skills to master the Math problem sums solving techniques and improve their grades.
Essential Problem Solving Skills (EPSS)
The Essential Problem Solving Skills (EPSS) adopts the scaffold approach to learning right from the concept stage in each opening chapter.
Conquer Problem Sums
The Conquer Problem Sums incorporates both thinking and procedural learning to aid students to solving problem sums. The strategies and types of questions covered will ground the foundation for higher primary Mathematics.
PSLE Revision Papers
PSLE Revision Papers contains ten sample exam papers and is specifically conceptualised to prepare students to sit the PSLE Math Paper 2.
Misconceptions Clarified
Misconceptions Clarified is a handy lightweight guide that students can use just before sitting for an exam to help them avoid common mistakes.
Essential Problem Solving Skills
The Essential Problem Solving Skills (EPSS) series is designed as an enhanced-learning resource for Primary 3 to 6 students. Based on the MOE syllabus, onSponge’s EPSS workbooks use the scaffold approach – a learning framework specifically developed to take advantage of one-to-one teacher-student relationships and collaborative teaching. Students can learn more effectively when they work closely with a teacher, coach, parent or more knowledgeable student to achieve their goals.
The questions in each section are scaffold to ease students into the application of the concepts and strategies to allow students to expand their boundaries and offers support with problems that are beyond their knowledge. A key concept in the successful application of the scaffold approach is the “zone of proximal development” – the level of knowledge that is just above the student’s current level. Fundamental concepts are categorised into those which a student can understand and self-study, and those which students can quickly learn with the right help. Then, there are higher level concepts which students would struggle with at this point in their education, even with knowledgeable assistance. By focusing on the right Math skills that are in the student’s “zone of proximal development,” the EPSS series of workbooks will help your child attain the essential problem-solving skills required for Primary-level Math.
The key features of the EPSS series of workbooks:
- Opening Chapter – an introduction of the concepts covered in the workbook
- Background Information – highlights the Math syllabus that students need to know before attempting each unit
- Let’s Get Started – uses simple pre-exercises to introduce students to the fundamentals of the scaffold approach before applying the techniques learned to a full problem sum
- Let’s Learn – uses prompts to guide students through the solution to a problem sum, including different approaches
- Let’s Practise – reinforces an understanding of each concept with 4-6 problem sums which progress at increasing levels of difficulty; this gently exposes students to sums that are just beyond their comfort zone and helps accelerate their learning
- Review Questions – a competency test at the end of each main chapter that includes a random selection of problems sums in a mixed-question format; this assesses the student’s ability to identify the question type and apply each of the concepts learned in the chapter
This workbook also introduces the BRISK approach to problem sum solving: Believe in yourself, Read to understand, Identify key facts, Squeeze and write, and Keep questioning. This systematic methodology teaches children to work through a problem sum step by step, first helping to identify the key information, maximise points and minimise mistakes.
Essential Problem Solving Skills is available in four editions, with each workbook in the series tailored to the abilities of P3, P4, P5 and P6 students.
Conquer Problem Sums
Conquer Problem Sums is an enhanced learning series of Math workbooks that complement existing school textbooks and workbooks used in Singapore’s schools. Developed by a panel of experienced teachers and heads of departments from top-performing schools in Singapore, these workbooks are meant to free children from the limited learning time in a classroom setting and be subject to unproductive drilling using assessment books. Conquer Problem Sums helps students to develop the required skills through practice and reinforcement.
Part of onSponge’s +hinkingMath programme is based on the merits of the workbook where students are equipped with the skills to tackle and solve any problem, as opposed to using rote learning techniques through specific formulas. The emphasis is on learning to solve problem sums by systematically extracting the relevant information from the question, then working through each step in the process to reach the solution.
The step-up in difficulty from lower primary to higher primary Mathematics has proven to be a challenge for most children because of a lack of preparation at lower primary level. The strategies and types of questions covered in this workbook give students a solid grounding in fundamentals and problem sum solving skills required to excel when they reach P5 and P6.
Conquer Problem Sums is tried, tested and proven to help learners of different abilities to reach their goals. The problem sum solving skills established by onSponge and detailed in this series of workbooks has directly contributed to the tremendous results for a local school in Singapore which, after adopting the Conquer Problem Sums workbooks in their Math classes, saw PSLE distinction rates improve dramatically from 58% to 79.4%. This was achieved by helping students to deduce the meaning of problem statements, rather than just to apply methods – a critical skill that we strive to develop in each student.
The key features of the Conquer Problem Sums series of workbooks:
- Organised Structure – chapters are arranged by distinct mathematical topics, such as Division, Length, Time and Fractions to perfectly complement the structure of existing school textbooks
- Key Concepts – each chapter is broken down into the key concepts within each topic
- Working Examples – each key concept is supported with a working example that shows how to work through the solution to a problem sum, before posing a similar question for the student to practice their new skills
Conquer Problem Sums is available in four editions, with each workbook in the series tailored to the abilities of P3, P4, P5 and P6 students.
PSLE Revision Papers
The +hinkingMath PSLE Revision Papers workbook aims to prepare students for the PSLE. PSLE Math is divided into two papers, Paper 1 which consists of multiple-choice questions and short-answers, and the more intense Paper 2 with 17 questions ranging between 2 to 5 marks. As Paper 2 make up 55% of the final grade, a level of understanding and experience in recognising and solving different kinds of Math word problems are essential in solving the word problems effectively.
The +hinkingMath PSLE Revision Papers workbook includes ten practice exam papers to give students an appreciation of the types of questions that regularly occur in the exam. The problem sums included in the practice exam papers are carefully crafted and developed to ensure that the questions are relevant and challenging. The structure and mix of problem sums in each paper are planned meticulously, with the topic, level of difficulty and variety of questions taken into consideration.
At the start of each revision paper, a worked example is included to illustrate an appropriate +hinkingMath strategy, along with a full explanation of its application to the word problem. This works as a form of revision for students who are familiar with +hinkingMath series of workbooks, while the full worked example also helps to enhance the problem sums solving skills for students who are new to +hinkingMath methodology.
The key features of the PSLE Revision Papers workbook:
- Revision Exam Papers – ten Paper 2 questions with 50 additional bonus questions
- Comprehensive Selection of Questions – to fully prepare for PSLE Math Paper 2
- Challenging Questions – to test understanding of key concepts and strategies
- +hinkingMath Approach – problem sum solving techniques applied in practice paper answer keys
A PSLE Revision Papers workbook can be purchased in our online store – solutions are included in the workbook.
The +hinkingMath Handy Guide – Misconceptions Clarified
Students often make errors in Math exams, not because they do not know how to solve a particular type of word problem, but because over the years, they developed misconceptions on word problems. These misconceptions can also occur in short-answer or even multiple-choice questions and cost precious marks in exams.
This can be frustrating for parents when it seemed as though their child had fully grasped all mathematical concepts. Even though they had tirelessly worked through all the study materials to reinforce understanding, they failed to get the questions right. In this situation, parents will ask themselves, “Why did this happen, and how can we fix it?”
Developed by the onSponge team, this +hinkingMath Handy Guide addresses the ten most common misconceptions about word problems. Presented in an easy-to-understand step-by-step format, it explains how each misconception arises and how students can avoid it.
This handy guide is a must-have for all upper primary students to help eliminate misconceptions.
The key features of the Misconceptions Clarified handy guide:
- Common Misconceptions – ten of the most common misconceptions explained
- Detailed Presentation – a step-by-step visual breakdown of each misconception and how to tackle it
- Practice Questions – to reinforce understanding of misconception learned
- Lightweight Guide Format – for easy revision just before an upcoming exam
