Junior Secondary School English Language Syllabus Grades 8 9

Republic of Zambia
ZAMBIA BASIC EDUCATION COURSE
JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL

ENGLISH LANGUAGE
SYLLABUS
GRADE 8 – 9
Prepared by the Commercial Subjects Curriculum Committee

Published by the Curriculum Development Centre
P.O. Box 50092
Lusaka
ZAMBIA BASIC EDUCATION COURSE
JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL

ENGLISH LANGUAGE
SYLLABUS
GRADE 8 – 9
Produced by the Curriculum Development Centre

On behalf of the English Curriculum Committee
P.O. Box 50092
Lusaka
(c) All rights are reserved. No part of this syllabus may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval manner,
transmitted in any means without the prior consent of the copyright owner.
Phototypeset and printed by Printpak (Z) Ltd

(iv)
Page
PREFACE .............................................................................................................. (v)
INTRODUCTION........................................................................................................................ (vii)
PART 1: LISTENING AND SPEAKING
Preamble 1
General Aims 1
Specific Objectives:
A. Oral Communication Skills 2
B. Stress and Rhythm 6
C. Sounds 7
PART 2: READING
Preamble 9
General Aims 9
General Scheme of Work 10
Section A: Efficient Reading 11
Section B: Reference Skills 12
Section C: Intensive Reading 17
Section D: Extensive Reading 21
PART 3: COMPOSITION
Preamble 22
General Aims 24
Specific Objectives for the Remedial Syllabus 25
Specific Objectives for the General Syllabus 27
PART 4: STRUCTURE
Preamble 30
General Aim 30
Structures Adequately learnt in Grades 1 – 7 31
Suggested General Teaching Sequence for Grade 8 33
Suggested General Teaching Sequence for Grade 9 35
Part 1: The Verb 37
Part 2: Parts of Speech, etc 47
Part 3: Concepts 58
Part 4: Direct and Reported Speech 64
Part 5: Punctuation 66
PART 5: SUMMARY AND NOTE-MAKING
Preamble 67
General Aim 69
Specific Objectives 69
(v)
PREFACE
The production of this syllabus has, as all times, been carefully monitored by the English
Curriculum Committee. This Committee is made up of teachers, teacher’s trainers, university
lecturer, inspectors, education psychologists, experts in continuing education and educational
broadcasting and, of course, Curriculum specialists. The syllabus has benefitted greatly from
the experience and expertise of the above. Furthermore, an extensive programme of trialling,
evaluation of revision has ensured the fulfilment of an important recommendation of the
Education Reform Document: namely, that ‘teachers in the field should .... participate .... in
the identification of objectives, design of curricula and syllabuses’. (Ch 6, para 11).
The syllabus provides the sound basis required for the effective teaching of English at the
Junior Secondary Level, for the development of teaching materials and for the preparation of
the Junior Secondary School Leaving Examinations (Grade 9) in English). Whilst the general
format of the syllabus is essentially “structural”, the recommended methodological
interpretation is ‘functional’ and ‘communicative’. As a result of Grade 9 graduates should
develop a high level of confidence in English, and be able to use the language effectively in
everyday life, in the world of work and in their further education.
I am confident that this syllabus will be of lasting benefit to pupils and teachers alike.
R.S. ZULU
DIRECTOR
CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT CENTRE.
(vi)
INTRODUCTION
The evolution of this syllabus began in 1973 when the English Curriculum Committee
recommended the production of a Revised Junior Secondary English Language to supercede
the English Language Interim Syllabus for Secondary Schools, which had been in use since
1969. The revised syllabus was contained in a series of Teachers’ Handbooks, viz:
Composition (1978). Structure (1979), Reading (1980), Summary and Note-making (1982).
In 1982 the Ministry of General Education and Culture decided to structure the secondary
school system in accordance with the recommendations of the Education Reform Document
so that the Junior Secondary Level would comprise Grades 8 and 9, and the Senior Secondary
Level Grade 10 to 12. It therefore, became necessary to amend the existing syllabus
contained in the Teachers’ Handbooks so that work considered essential to Grade 9 Leavers
could be adequately covered. This was done at a specially convened workshop held in
December 1982. In addition, the workshop produced a Listening and Speaking Syllabus.
The outcome of this exercise was the Provisional English Language Syllabus for Grade 8 and
9, which was implemented in all secondary schools from January, 1983.
After the provisional Syllabus had been in use for two years, the English Department at the
Curriculum Development Centre carried out an extensive evaluation exercise. An ad hoc
committee was convened, which examined the data obtained during the evaluation and made
recommendations concerning the final form of the syllabus. These recommendations were
accepted by the English Curriculum Committee at its meeting in September, 1985.
(vii)
The Junior Secondary School English Syllabus is divided into five parts:
Part 1: Listening and Speaking

Part 2: Reading
Part 3: Composition
Part 4: Structure
Part 5: Summary and Note-making
Each ‘part’ begins with a statement of the General Aims which should have been achieved by
all pupils by the end of the course. In order to meet these General Aims, Specific Objectives
have been identified. It is these that teachers will use when preparing their schemes of work
and detailed lesson plans.
The General Aims and Specific Objectives are presented in behavioural terms. A behavioural
objective tells the teacher precisely which skill each pupil should have mastered if the
learning experience has been successful. The teacher’s task, therefore, is to provide effective
learning experiences which will enable the pupils to perform the skill identified in the
objective.
The following suggestions are offered to help teachers in preparing lessons based on the
specific objectives.
1. Study the objective carefully to be sure it is fully understood.
2. If possible, try, by such means as diagnostic testing, to determine whether or not the
pupils have already mastered the objective.
(viii)
3. If it is feasible, identify related objectives which can be dealt with at the same time.
Similarly, try to integrate objectives, from different aspects of the syllabus (i.e.
‘structure’ and ‘composition’, ‘structure, and .oral work’, ‘summary and note-making’
and ‘reading’ etc)..
4. Plan your teaching method using a series of small, consecutive steps, the last of which
will be the actual performance by the pupils of the skill stated in the objective.
5. Tell the pupils what you are teaching them to do. (It is much more helpful to explain
to someone where he is going before a journey and to help him along the way than to
lead him blindfolded.)
6. Give the pupils plenty of initial practice in the skill and continue practising it from
time to time until has been mastered.
This syllabus is, of necessity, very extensive. It is strongly recommended therefore that,
wherever possible, a minimum of seven teaching periods and two homework periods per
week should be allocated to English in Grade 8 and 9. In order that classroom time is
used most effectively, it is also recommended that teachers should take full advantage of
home-work periods and pupils’ free time-especially for reading and written work. Teaching
time can also be saved by the use of diagnostic tests for structure and composition.
As a general guide the approximate weekly time allocation for the different aspects of
English in Grades 8 and 9 is as follows:-
(ix)
Number of Minutes
Listening and Speaking..................................................... 40

Reading............................................................................. 80
Composition...................................................................... 80
Structure ........................................................................... 40
Summary and Note-making.............................................. 40
280 Minutes
= 7 Periods
R.C.T
All correspondence concerning this syllabus should be addressed to:
The senior Curriculum Specialist, English,

Curriculum Development Centre,
P.O. Box 50092,
LUSAKA.
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PART 1; LISTENING AND SPEAKING
PREAMBLE
The general aims of the Listening and Speaking Syllabus will be achieved by mastery of
the specific objectives given below.
These are divided into three sections:
A. Oral Communication Skills
B. Stress and Rhythm
C. Sounds
Section A, Oral Communication Skills, should receive more time and emphasis than
Section B and C.
Teachers should spend at least forty minutes a week on listening and speaking activities.
GENERAL AIMS
By the end of Grade 9, pupils should be able to:-
1. Manipulate the English Language in order to use it spontaneously and flexibly to

communicate a spoken message.
2. Communicate effectively in the situations they are likely to meet in and out of school.
3. Use the spoken language forms which are appropriate in different social contexts.
4. Recognise that a linguistic form may perform more than one function and that any one
function may be expressed by several linguistic forms (see Footnote on page 7).
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SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES
A. Oral Communication Skills
Mastery of these skills will be obtained by practice in:
i) Communication games
ii) Role-playing activities
iii) Listening comprehension.
1. Pupils should be able to use and understand English in the following

situations:
a) Teacher/Pupil classroom interaction e.g. asking for an explanation,

apologising, asking permission etc.
b) School situations outside the classroom e.g. in clubs and societies,
Headmaster’s office, speaking with teachers, sporting situation etc.
c) Shopping and restaurant situations
d) Hospital situations.
e) Dealing with the Police.
f) The Post Office.
g) Government Offices
h) Travel
i) Personal identification
j) Places of entertainment.
k) Asking for public services.
e.g. house defects, rodent and pest control, water and sewerage etc.
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l) Meeting strangers
m) Seeking employment and being interviewed.
n) Possible post-Grade 9 job situations
2. Pupils should be able to understand extended spoken discourse such as in news

broadcastings, talks, lecturers, dramatic performances school assemblies, debates etc.
3. Pupils should be able to perform the following functions using appropriate languages
forms:
Categories
i) Imparting and seeking factual information

ii) Expressing and finding out intellectual attitudes.
iii) Expressing and finding out emotional attitudes.
iv) Expressing and finding out moral attitudes
v) Getting things done
vi) Socialising
Specific Functions
i) Imparting and Seeking Factual Information
a) identifying
b) reporting (including describing and narrating)
c) correcting
d) asking
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ii) Expressing and Finding Out Intellectual Attitudes
a) expressing agreement and disagreement

b) inquiring about agreement or disagreement
c) denying something.
d) accepting an offer or invitation
e) declining an offer or invitation
f) inquiring whether an offer or an invitation is accepted or declined.
g) offering to do something.
h) stating whether one knows or does not know something or someone.
i) inquiring whether one knows or does not know something or someone
j) stating whether one remembers or has forgotten something or someone
k) inquiring whether someone remembers or has forgotten something or someone
l) expressing whether something is considered possible or impossible
m) inquiring whether something is considered possible or impossible.
n) expressing capability or incapability
o) inquiring about capability or incapability
p) arguing logically
q) expressing how certain/uncertain one is of something
s) expressing that one is/is not obliged to do something
t) inquiring whether one is obliged to do something expressing that others
are/are not obliged to do something
v) inquiring whether others are obliged to do something
w) giving and seeking permission to do something
x) inquiring whether others have permission to do something.
y) stating hat permission is withheld
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iii) Expressing and Finding Out Emotional Attitudes
a) expressing pleasure and liking

b) expressing displeasure and dislike
c) inquiring about pleasure and liking/displeasure and dislike
d) expressing interest or lack of interest
e) Inquiring about interest or lack of interest
f) expressing surprise
g) expressing hope
h) inquiring about satisfaction and dissatisfaction
i) expressing satisfaction and dissatisfaction
j) expressing disappointment
k) expressing fear or worry
l) inquiring about fear or worry
m) expressing preference
n) inquiring about preference
o) expressing gratitude
p) expressing sympathy
q) expressing intention
r) inquiring about intention
s) expressing want and desire
t) inquiring about want and desire
iv) Expressing and Finding Out Moral Attitudes
a) expressing apology
b) expressing forgiveness
c) expressing approval/disapproval
d) inquiring about approval/disapproval
e) expressing appreciation
f) expressing regret
g) expressing indifference
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v) Getting Things Done
a) suggesting a course of action that includes the speaker.

b) requesting and inviting others to do something
c) advising and warming
d) instructing and directing
e) offering and requesting assistance
vi) Socialising
a) greeting and meeting people

b) introductions
c) leave taking
d) attracting attention
e) congratulations
B. Stress and Rhythm
1. Pupils should be able to understand spoken discourse containing

stressed and unstressed syllables.
2. Pupils should be able to produce stressed and unstressed syllables in
connected speech according to normal stress and rhythm patterns.
3. Pupils should be able to recognise the meaning conveyed by emphatic
stress.
4. Pupils should be able to convey meaning by emphatic stress.
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C. Sounds
1. Pupils should be able to discriminate and articulate English sounds in

connected speech.
1.1 Pupils should be able to discriminate and articulate English
sounds which commonly present problems to Zambian
speakers.
e.g. Consonants: /1/ as in live, /r/ as in river,
/3/ as in vision.
Vowels: /i/ as in sit, /e/ as in ten,

/1/ as in cup.
1.2 Pupils should be able to articulate consonant clusters. E.g.

sixth, against, health, scream months.
1.3 Pupils should be able to discriminate and, where appropriate,

articulate words which have strong and weak forms:
e.g. ‘some’: Some of the boys have gone home

(strong) Can you lend me some money? (Weak)
(‘a): The letter ‘a’. (Strong)

Half a kilo. (Weak)
‘the’ The atlas, the island, the orange, the umbrella,

the hour (strong – usually before vowels)
The dog, the man, the rubber, the sea, the house,
the witch (Weak – usually before consonants).
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‘of’ : The word ‘of’. (strong)

A beg of mealie-meal. (Weak)
That’s very kind of you.
‘and’ : The word ‘and’. (Strong)

Boys and girls.
Bread and butter.
‘to’ : I don’t want to. (strong)

He has gone to the market. (Weak)
1.4. Pupils should be able to discriminate and articulate contracted forms:

e.g. haven’t held, I’ll, you’ve, his father’s ill etc.
1.5 Pupils should be able to articulate reduced vowels in unstressed

syllables:
e.g. discipline, accompanied, development, bicycle etc.
Note on General Aim 4: (See page 1)
Example: The imperative form can be used to express many functions other than an
order. Hence the following:-
Pass the salt ...................................................... REQUEST
Come to the part on Saturday............................. INVITATION
Say that again and I’ll hit you !.............................. THREAT
Watch out!............................................................. WARNING
Forgive us our trespasses....................................... PLEA
On the other hand, an order or directive can be given without using the
imperative form.
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I’d like you to finish this exercise by tomorrow.

You’ll have no trouble finishing this exercise by tomorrow.
Could you finish this exercise by tomorrow?
It would be a good idea to finish this exercise by tomorrow. Etc.
PART 2: READING
PREAMBLE
These General Aims will be achieved through the specific and Auxiliary Objectives to be
found in each of the four components of the Reading Syllabus:
The Reading Syllabus consists of our main components:-
SECTION A: EFFECTIVE READING

SECTION B: REFERENCE SKILLS
SECTION C: INTENSIVE READING
SECTION D: EXTENSIVE READING
The General Scheme of work for the Reading Syllabus is provided on the following page.
GENERAL AIMS:
By the end of Grade 9, pupils should be able to:-
1. understand the different types of reading material which they are likely to meet both
inside and outside school;
2. read efficiently at a speed appropriate to the text and to the purpose of reading;
3. read for enjoyment;
4. read critically and make discriminating judgements.
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READING SYLLABUS: GENERAL SCHEME OF WORK

GRADE 8 GRADE 9
EFFICIENT Activities Faster Reading Course in Term 1 or 2.

(Repeat in Grade 9 if necessary)
READING
Time Allocation 30 minutes per week for the duration of the
course
Activities Activities leading to the mastery of all the

Terminal Objectives. Objectives 1, 2 and 3
REFERENCE should be mastered as soon as possible. All
SKILLS Objectives should be achieved by the end of
Grade 9.
Time Allocation 30 minutes per week

INTENSIVE Terminal Objectives including Efficient
READING Reading Objectives 2.1, 2.3 and 2.4
Materials graded throughout.
Time Allocation 40 minutes per week.

Use should be made of homework and the
pupils’ spare time whenever possible

INTENSIVE Terminal Objectives including Efficient
READING Reading Objectives 1 and 2.2 Materials
grade throughout.
Time Allocation Class Readers – 40 minutes per week.

Class Library – 20 minutes per week.
Use homework and pupils’ spare time
whenever possible.
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SECTION A: EFFICIENT READING
1. Pupils should be able to read with good silent reading habits.

2. Pupils should be able to sue the reading techniques best suited to the type of material
they are reading and the purpose of their reading.
2.1 The Study Techniques
Pupils should be able to read a passage with complete understanding and recall
details.
2.2 Rapid Reading
By the end of Grade 9, pupils should e able to read for general understanding
at a speed of at least 200 words per minute with 70 per cent comprehension.
2.3 Skimming
Pupils should be able to skim through a piece of writing in order to obtain a

general idea of the content.
Auxiliary Objective
Given paragraphs or pages from various types of writing, pupils should
be able to find specific information within a brief time limit.
2.4 Scanning
Pupils should be able to scan through a piece of writing in order to obtain a

general idea of the content.
Auxiliary Objective
Given paragraphs or pages from various types of writing, pupils should
be able to find specific information within a brief time limit.
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SECTION B: REFERENCE SKILLS
This is one of the areas where English acts as a service subject and develop skills necessary
for efficient study.
The basic skills (Objectives 1, 2 and 3) are concerned with alphabetical order, skimming and
scanning, and are a necessary foundation for the development of the other reference skills.
They should, therefore, be taught as early as possible in Grade 8. All reference skills should
have been mastered by the end of Grade 9.
The reference material selected for practising these skills should be of practical value to the
pupils both in the school situation and outside school.
Many of the specific objectives given below are followed by auxiliary objectives. These
involve practical activities which will help pupils achieve the specific objectives.
1. Alphabetical Order
Pupils should be able to arrange letters and words in alphabetical order.
Auxiliary Objectives
1.1 Given a list of scrambled letters, pupils should be able to re-arrange them in
alphabetical order.
1.2 Given a list of words beginning with different letter, pupils should be able to
re-arrange them in alphabetical order.
1.3 Given a list of words beginning with the same letters of the alphabet, pupils
should be able to re-arrange them in alphabetical order.
2. Skimming: (See Efficient Reading, Objectives 2.3).
3. Scanning: (See Efficient Reading, Objective 2.4).
4. Using a Telephone Directory
4.1 Pupils should be able to use a telephone directory to find telephone numbers
by employing their knowledge of alphabetical order.
4.2 Pupils should be aware of the various types of information to be found in the
telephone directory, e.g. postal information, residential and postal addresses,
and trade information carried in the yellow pages.
5. Using Textbooks
5.1. Pupils should be able to use the various sections of a text book in order to
obtain information efficiently. (These include the Title Page, publishing
details, the Introduction, the Preface, the Table of Contents and the Index).
Auxiliary Objectives.
5.1.1 Given the Title Page of a textbook, pupils should be able to answer
specific questions about who wrote the book, who published it, when it
was printed and where it was produced etc.
5.1.2 Given the Contents Page of a textbook, pupils should be able to name
the chapter in which a given topic is most likely to be found.
5.1.3 Given the Index of a textbook, pupils should be able to locate specific
information.
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5.2 Pupils should develop an appropriate attitude to text-books.
5.3 Pupils should be able to determine why a textbook was written, what main
conclusions it reaches and how it is organised before they begin to read it
through.
6. Using a Dictionary
Pupils should be able to use a dictionary efficiently.

They should be familiar with the conventional abbreviations and symbols used in
dictionaries. They should be aware of the various kinds of information dictionaries
provide and know how to make use of such information (definitions, pronunciation,
syllabification, alternative meanings and uses, parts of speech, common abbreviations
etc...)
6.1 Given a list of words, pupils should be able to choose those words that would
be placed between two given guide words’ in a dictionary.
6.2 Given a specific word, pupils should be able to find that word in the dictionary
using the guide words.
6.3 Pupils should be able to discover the correct pronunciation of words’ from the
dictionary. (Use of phonetic symbols).
6.4 Pupils should be able to use a dictionary to discover correct syllable stress.
6.5. Pupils should be able to interpret the abbreviations used in dictionaries e.g. n
(noun), adj (adjective). Pl (plural) v.i (verb intransitive), sb (somebody) and
understand the use of the title ( ) to indicate the use of a headword in an entry.
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6.6. Pupils should be able to find the meaning of common prefixes, suffixes and
abbreviations.
7. Using and Encyclopaedia.
Pupils should be able to locate a required volume and section using their knowledge
of alphabetical order.
7.1 Pupils should be able to locate a required volume and section using their
knowledge of alphabetical order.
7.2 Pupils should be able to locate required information using the index.
7.3 Pupils should be able to find information about a given topic and answer
specific questions.
7.4 Pupils should be able to identify key words in a reading passage to locate
additional information in an encyclopaedia.
7.5 Pupils should be able to local information by means of cross-references (use of
‘c.v.’) and bibliographical references.
8. Periodicals
Pupils should be able to read periodicals for information and understand the meaning
of such terms as: editor, author, article, issue, volume, bibliography, footnotes etc.
9. Using Library
Pupils should be able to make full use of a library. They should be able to understand
its borrowing procedure, its general organisation and classification of books so as to
be able to find specific books and information quickly and efficiently.
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9.1 Given the Dewey Decimal System of Classification, pupils should be able to identify
the general class category for given subject areas.
9.2 Pupils should be able to identify the subject matter of a book from the reference
number on its cover.
9.3 Pupils should be able to use the subject cards, title cards, author cards and the cross-
reference cards in the school library.
9.3.1 Pupils should be able to identify the type of card to use with the information
available and then find the book.
9.3.2 Pupils should be able to interpret the information given on a reference card.
9.4 Library Assignments
Given cards containing questions on various topics, pupils should be able to use
reference cards in the school library in order to find books containing the answers to
these questions.
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SECTION C: INTENSIVE READING
The chief aim of the intensive reading (or comprehension) lesson is to help the pupils towards
a full understanding of a particular piece of writing. The teacher’s main functions here is not
simply to test but to teach. It is therefore likely that in most intensive reading lessons there
will be a large amount of oral work aimed at developing the reading skills of literal
comprehension and interpretation.
The specific objectives for intensive reading are divided accordingly into these two
categories. It will be found that the passage chosen for intensive reading will determine
which specific objectives are dealt with during a particular lesson. No single passage can
involve all the specific objectives. However, over a period of time, pupils will be exposed to
wide variety of passages for intensive study so that by the end of Grade 9, all the specific
objectives should have been achieved.
Each specific objectives is followed by auxiliary objectives. The purpose of these is to

indicate the activities which help the pupils achieve the specific objective. The auxiliary
objectives will be used by the teacher when preparing the specific teaching points for the
discussion stage of the lesson.
The specific and auxiliary objectives will also be reflected in the questions used for testing
pupils’ understanding of the comprehension passage,
By the end of Grade 9, pupils should have achieved the following specific objectives.
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Literal Comprehension.
1. Pupils should be able to locate details and answer factual questions based on a
passage.
Auxiliary Objectives: Pupils should be able to:
1.1 Answer who, what, where, when, how and why questions on a given passage.
1.2 Complete sentences based on a passage.
1.3 Identify true and false statements about a passage.
1.4 List facts about a topic or character in a passage.
1.5 Compile a list using information extracted from a given passage.
2. Pupils should be able to identify and recall in chronological order a series of events in
a passage or story.
Pupils should be able to:
2.1 Identify omissions from a series of sequentially stated facts based on a passage
or story.
2.2 re-arrange jumbled sentences into a logical order depicting a series of events
drawn from a passage or story.
2.3 list in chronological order a series of events based on a passage or story.
3. Pupils should be able to identify and express the main idea of a piece of writing.
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3.1 Select or write a title for a given paragraph or untitled story.

(This Objective appears in Stage 2 of the Summary and Note-making
Syllabus, but it should be practised throughout Grades 8 and 9 as a
comprehension skill).
3.2 Select the best summary of a given passage.

(This Objective appears in Stage 2 of the Summary and Note-making
Syllabus, but it should be practised throughout Grades 8 and 9 as a
comprehension skill).
3.3 State the main idea of a given paragraph.
3.4 draw a simple diagram according to the information given in a piece of
writing.
4. Pupils should be able to deduce the meaning of unfamiliar words by using contextual
clues and a knowledge of word-building.
Auxiliary Objective
4.1 deduce the meanings of unfamiliar words and idiomatic expressions in a
comprehension passage. (Teachers should encourage pupils to do this and
illustrate how it can be done during the Discussion Stage of the lesson).
5. Pupils should be able to distinguish between facts and opinions, and between specific
facts and more generalised facts, based on a piece of writing.
5.1 Identify facts and opinions in a passage
5.2 list a number of facts contained in a passage.
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Interpretation
6. Pupils should be able to draw inferences from written material.
6.1 predict the outcome of a given story.

6.2 suggest a setting where a story might have occurred when the place is not
explicitly given.
6.3 answer questions related to a given passage where the answers are implied but
not stated in the passage.
6.4 explain the value expressed by a fable or similar story.
7. Pupils should be able to describe the feelings, qualities and motives of a character in a
story.
7.1 describe the feelings of a character in a particular situation in a story.

7.2 select from a list of suggested characteristics those that are appropriate for a
character in a story.
7.3 specify the general characteristics of a character by interpreting the author’s
description.
7.4 select from given alternative suggestions a motive that best explains a
character’s action in a story.
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SECTION D: EXTENSIVE READING
Extensive Reading involves the reading of Class Readers and Class Library Books. Class
Readers are sets of books and are issued to the whole class at the same time. They are read
by the pupils together inside and outside the classroom.
The Class Library contains books which are read by pupils independently usually outside the
classroom. In these two areas of reading activity the minimum number of books to be read is
as follows:
Class Reader – 3 books per term.

Class Library Book – 1 book per fortnight.
By the end of Grade 9, pupils should be able to:
1. read the books on the list of Recommended Books for Grade 9.

2. read a wide variety of appropriate types of writing.
3. read critically and make discriminating judgements.
4. relate their reading to their own experiences, interests and feelings and develop these
through their reading.
5. read for enjoyment.
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PART 3: COMPOSITION
PREAMBLE
The Composition Syllabus has two parts: The Remedial Syllabus and the General Syllabus.
The Remedial Syllabus
This is meant to be used only with three classes or possibly individuals who need it. It can be
used as a complete course or in part, depending on the need.
To diagnose whether a particular group of pupils should start with the Remedial Syllabus, the
teacher can provide a simple topic (e.g. ‘My Closest Friend’, ‘My Family’ or ‘How I get to
School’) and ask pupils to write a short composition. No control or guidance should be
provided and there should be no preparatory teaching. When the teacher reads through the
pupils’ work, he should look for the following aspects only:
General layout .......................................... (especially ability to indent at the beginning of

Paragraphs and to follow the line of the margin.)
Legibility ................................................. (including ability to differentiate between

capitals and ordinary letters)
Punctuation ............................................ (especially ability to use full stops correctly).
All other errors should be ignored for the purpose of diagnosis. Inability in any of the three
areas described above will necessitate the use of the Remedial Syllabus.
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As a result of this diagnosis test, the teacher might decide that the whole class needs to follow
the Remedial Syllabus, or that the whole class can move on directly to the General Syllabus.
If, however, the teacher decided to use all or part of the Remedial Syllabus with certain pupils
only, he will need to plan his composition work so that, while these pupils are thus engaged,
the rest of the class will involved in other activities. This will enable the whole class to begin
the General Syllabus at the same time.
Parts of the Remedial Syllabus may be used from time to time as necessary even after pupils
have started the General Syllabus.
The General Syllabus
The specific objectives of the General Syllabus have been arranged in a logical teaching
sequence. Teachers may, however, wish to change the sequence occasionally to suit their
own needs. (It may also be possible to deal effectively with more than one objective at the
same time.) Ideally the teacher should not move to a new objective without being satisfied
that the previous objective has been mastered.
Once a particular objective has been dealt with it will often be necessary to give the pupils
periodic practice in the required skills so as to develop their confidence and proficiency.
Approximately half of the specific objectives should have been covered by the end of Grade
8 and the remainder by the beginning of the third term in Grade 9.
-24-
GENERAL AIMS
By the end of Grade 9, pupils should be able to:
1. produce the kinds of writing which are likely to be required of them when they leave
school after Grade 9 (e.g. all kinds of letter writing, simple reports prepared from
given materials);
2. produce the kinds of writing which will be expected of them in other subjects of the
Junior Secondary Curriculum and attain a level which provides a basis for the further
development of writing skills in the Senior Secondary Curriculum;
3. express in writing their personal ideas, thoughts, opinions, knowledge and feelings
with clarity and fluency;
4. write with lexical and grammatical accuracy;
5. write in an appropriate style 9i.e. suit the written language used to a particular
audience or purpose);
6. select relevant material from given information and organise this effective into a piec
of writing for a particular purpose.
-25-
SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES
Suggestions as to how the specific objectives for the Remedial and General Syllabus may be
achieved are contained in the English Teachers’ Handbook for Grade 8 and 9.
Specific Objectives of the Remedial Syllabus.
1. Given a passage without headings or capitals, pupils should be able to:
a) rewrite it legibly.
b) write clearly letter with and without tails.
c) write clearly capital and non-capital letters.
2. Given a passage without paragraph indentation, pupils should be able to rewrite it,
indenting the paragraphs and following the margin.
3. Pupils should be able to lay-out neatly a heading at the top of a passage.
4. a) Given a number of sentences in jumbled order, pupils should be able to re-

arrange there in chronological order and write out the answer in paragraphs.
b) Given a number of questions in jumbled order, pupils should be able to re-

arrange these in chronological order and write out the answers in paragraphs.
5. Given a list of actions, pupils should be able to compose a short description of an

activity using sequence indicators.
6. Given a passage containing sentence patients S + V + DO and S + V with no full

stops or capital letters, pupils should be able to rewrite it inserting full stops and
capital letters where necessary.
-26-
7. Given a passage containing sentence patterns (Adv) + S + V + (Adv) and (Adv) + S +

V + DO + (Adv) with no full stops or capital letters pupils should be able to rewrite it
inserting full stops and capital letters where necessary.
8. Given a passage containing sentence patterns (Adv) + S + V + IO + DO + (Adv) and

previous patters with no full stops or capital letters, pupils should be able to rewrite it
9. Given a passage containing sentence patterns (Adv) + S + V + Adj + (Adv), S + V +

DO + (Adv) and previous patterns with no full stops or capital letters, pupils should
be able to rewrite it inserting full stops and capital letters where necessary.
10. Given a passage containing sentence patterns S + V + Inf. Phrase and S + V +

Participle phrase with no full stops or capital letters, pupils should be able to rewrite it
11. Given a passage without full stops or capital letters containing ‘and’ and ‘but’ pupils
be able to rewrite it inserting full stops and capital letters where necessary.
12. Given a skeleton story, pupils should be able to rewrite it adding Relative Clauses
previously practised, and using correct punctuation.
13. Given a skeleton story, pupils should be able to rewrite it adding Time Clauses,
previously practised, and using correct punctuation.
14. Given a skeleton story, pupils should be able to rewrite it adding reason clauses and
using correct punctuation.
-27-
SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES OF THE GNEERAL SYLLABUS
1. Given a passage containing excessive use of ‘and’, pupils should be able to rewrite it
correctly.
2. Given a passage containing unnecessary structural repetition, pupils should be able to

rewrite it correctly.
3. Given a paragraph of jumbled sentences, pupils should be able to rewrite it putting the
sentences into a logical order (i.e. from the general to the particular or from the
particular to the general, and using cause/effect sequences).
4. Given a passage containing a variety of connectors and sub- ordinators but no

punctuation pupils should be able to rewrite it using the correct punctuation.
5. Given a passage containing no connectors, pupils should be able to rewrite it using

appropriate connectors.
6. Given a passage in note form, pupils should be able to rewrite it in full using
appropriate connectors.
7. Given a passage written in a specific style, pupils should be able to rewrite it in a

different style to make it suitable for a different audience and purpose.
8. Given a picture strip and a series of questions, pupils should be able to write a clear
and precise description.
9. Given notes for expansion, pupils should be able to write a clear, lively and
interesting description.
10 Given notes for expansion, pupils should be able to write a lively, interesting
description and a clear, precise description in accordance with the purpose and
audience.
-28-
11. Given the necessary details in note form, pupils should be able to compose a set of
instructions for a process.
12. Given jumble notes or questions, pupils should be able to rearrange them in the
correct order in paragraphs and write out the composition.
13. Given jumbled notes or questions, pupils should be able to organise them into
paragraphs, and write out a composition with an introductory and a concluding
paragraph.
14. Given a model personal letter, pupils should be able to write a similar letter.
15. Given notes or questions, pupils should be able to write a semi-formal letter.
16. Given a model formal letter, pupils should be able to write a similar letter.
17. Given a letter, pupils should be able to reply to it appropriately.
18. Given the first paragraph of a story, pupils should be able to complete the story using
a new paragraph to indicate each new stage in the story.
19. Given the first paragraph of a story, pupils should be able to use Direct Speech, as
well as narrative, to complete the story.
20. Given the first paragraph of a story, pupils should be able to use Reported Speech, as
well as narrative, to complete the story.
-29-
21. Pupils should be able to write a free composition using Reported and Direct Speech as
appropriate.
22. Pupils should be able to write a narrative composition using a plan they have prepared
themselves.
23. Pupils should be able to write a descriptive composition using a plan they have
prepared themselves.
24. Given jumbled notes for expansion, pupils should be able to write a report.
25. Given the necessary notes, pupils should be able to compose a plan for an essay for
another subject.
26. Given a plan, pupils should be able to write an essay for another subject.
27. Pupils should be able to complete application forms and other types of writing of a
similar nature.
-30-
PART 4: STRUCTURE
PREAMBLE
The thirty-fur sections of the Structure Syllabus are presented in five parts : 1. The Verb, 2.
Parts of Speech etc, 3. Concepts, 4. Direct and Reported Speech, and 5. Punctuation.
These sections are not arranged in a teaching sequence. (A general teaching sequence is
suggested on pages 27-30).
Each specific objective is stated in behavioural terms and is followed by an example of the
structure. A distinction has been made between those structure that pupils should be able to
‘use’ and those which they need only to ‘recognise’.
It is not intended that classroom time should be spent on all the structural items contained in
the syllabus. Certain structures will already have been adequately learnt by the end of Grade
7, and some of these can be safely identified (see below). In addition teachers should use
diagnostic tests as a means of identifying those structural items which require special
attention in the classroom.
The Structure Syllabus should be used in conjunction with the Structure Section of the
English Teachers’ Handbook for Grades 8 and 9 which contains more detailed information
and guidance.
GENERAL AIM
By the end of Grade 9, pupils should be able to understand and use correctly, in spoken and
written English, all the structures in the Structure Syllabus.
-31-
STRUCTURES ADEQUATELY LEARNT IN GRADES 1 – 7
Most of the structures in the Structure Syllabus have already been presented to the pupils in
Grades 1 – 7. However, many pupils leaving Grade 7 are unable to use in their speech or
writing many of the structures they have met and some have very little understanding of their
meaning. For this reason a lot of work on structure still has to be covered in Grades 8 and 9.
There are, nevertheless, certain structures, which, because of the frequency of their use in and
outside the language lesson, are known by the majority of pupils entering Grade 8. These
structures are listed overleaf and it is recommended that teachers should not teach these
unless they find that nearly all the pupils in the class do not know them. It is expected,
however, that remedial teaching of these structures will be necessary for a few pupils.
-32-
STRUCTURES ADEQUATELY LEARNT GRADES 1 – 7
PART 1 : THE VERB PART 1: THE VERB

(Continued)
Sect. Obj. page Sect. Obj. page
1. Present Tenses(except 1 37 7 Auxiliaries 1 42
for 3rd person sing. Of 3.1 42
Present Simple)
2. Past Tenses (except for 1 38 PART 2: PARTS OF SPEECH etc
use of emphatic ‘did’
where no emphasis is 14 Nouns (except for 1a 47
intended) compound words) 1c 47
2 2 47
2 (except for use of 18 Pronouns 1 52
Continuous with ‘state 2 38 2 52
verbs’ and overuse of 3 38 1 57
Continuous forms) 24 Co-ordinators 2 57
3 57
3. Present Perfect Tenses
(except for use of 1 39 PART 3: CONCEPTS
‘have’ for 3rd person
sing.)
25 Comparison 1 53
3 39
(except for use for ‘for’ 4 39 26 Reason (because) 1 59
and ‘since’) (because of) 4 60
6 39 27 Purpose 1 60
7 39 4 60
4. Past Perfect Tenses 1 28 Time 1 (a)
(except for use of ‘had’ 40
to’ and form of ‘have’
5 The Future 1
40
2
40
7
40
-33-
SUGGESTED GENERAL TEACHING SEQUENCE FOR GRADE 8
PART 1 : THE VERB PART 2: PARTS OF SPEECH
Sect. Obj. page Sect. Obj page
1. Present Tenses 1 37 14 Nouns 1 (b) 47
3 37 2 47
6 37
15 Countable and 1 47
Un-countable 2 47
Nouns 3 47
4 47
2. Past Simple and 1 38 1 48
Continuous Tenses 3 38 16 Determiners 2 48
4 38 a/an/th 3 48
5 38 4 48
6 (a) 38 5 48
6 (b) 38 6 48
17 Determiners 1.1 49
3. Present Perfect 1 39 1.2 49
Tenses 2 39 1.3 49
5 39 1.4 49
1.5 50
4. Past Perfect 1 40 1.6 50
Tenses 2 40 1.7 50
3 40 1.8 50
3.1 51
3.2 51
4.1 51
4.2 51
5.1 51
5. The Future 3 41
4 41 18 Pronouns 3 52
5 41 4 52
6 41
8 41
6. Auxiliaries 2 42
4 42 23 Intensifiers 1 56
6 42 2 56
7 42 3 56
9 43
10 43
11 43
(Continued on the next page) Continued on the next Page)
-34-
PART 1: THE VERB PART 2: PARTS OF SPEECH etc.

Sect. Obj. page Sect. Obj. Page
23 Intensifiers 4 56
8 Question Tags and 1 44 6 56
Short Answer Forms 2 44
24 Co-ordinators 4 57
PART 3: CONCEPTS PART 4: DIRECT & REPORTED SPEECH

Sect. Obj. page Sect. Obj. page
25 Comparison 2.1 58 32 Direct Speech 1 64
2.2 58 2 64
2.3 59
2.4 59 33 Reported Speech 1 64
2.5 59
2.6 59 PART 5: PUNCTUATION
2.7 59
26 Reasons 1 59
27 Purpose 2 60 Sect. Obj. Page

3 61
28 Time 1 (b) 61
2 61
29 Result 1 61 34 The Comma 1.1 66
2 61 1.3 66
3 61
30 Contrast 1 62 1.4 66
2 62 1.5 66
3 62 1.6 67
31 Condition 1.1 68 Capital-Letters 4 67
1.2 68 The Question Mark 5 68
1.3 68 The Exclamation
2 68 Mark 6 68
3.1 68 Quotation Marks 7 68
-35-
SUGGESTED GENERAL TEACHING SEQUENCE FOR GRADE 9

Sect Obj page Sect Obj. page
6 The Unreal Past 41 16 Determiners 7 49
a/an/the 8 49
7 Auxiliaries 3.2 42 17 Determiners 1.9 50
5 42 2.1 50
8 43 2.2 50
12 43 4.3 51
13.1 44 4.4 51
13.2 44
9 Passives 1 45 18 Pronouns 5 52
2 44 6 52
3 44 7 52
10 Verbs followed 45 19 Noun Phrases 1 53

by Infinitive 2 53
3 53
4 53
20 Relative Clauses 1.1 53

11 Verbs and 1.2 53
Expressions 45 1.3 54
followed by -ing 1.4 54
1.5 54
1.6 54
12 Verbs followed 46 1.7 54
by Object plus 1 46 1.8 54
Infinitive 2 46
2 54
13 Phrasal Verbs 1 46 21 Order of 1 55

Adjectives
2.1 46
2.2 46 (Continued on the next page)
-36-
PART 3: CONCEPTS PART 2: PARTS OF SPEECH etc

Sect Obj page Sect Obj. Page
25 Comparison 2.8 59 22 Adverbs 1 55

2 55
26 Comparison 2 59 23 Intensifiers 5 56
3 59 7 56
4 60
27 Purpose 5 60 PART 5 : PUNCTUATION
28 Time 3 61
29 Result 4 61
30 Contrast 4 62 34 The Comma 1.2 66

5 62 The Semi-colon 2 67
6 62 The Colon 3 67
31 Condition 3.2 63
PART 4: DIRECT & REPORTED

SPEECH
33 Reported Speech 2 64
3 65
-37-
SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES
Please refer to pages 28 to 31 for the suggested general teaching sequence.
PART 1: THE VERB
SECTION 1: PRESENT TENSES
1. Form the affirmative, negative interrogative and negative interrogative forms of the
present simple and continuous tenses. Grades 1 - 7
(including formation of third person singular:
e.g. He smokes a pipe. Grade 8
My dog has five puppies.)
2. Use the present continuous for an action happening now.

e.g. It is raining. Grade 1 - 7
3. Use the present continuous for an action in progress but not necessarily happening
now. Grade 8
e.g. I am studying French at school
4. Use the present simple form of state verbs which cannot be use in the continuous
tenses. Grade 8
e.g. I forget his name.
I smell something burning.
This carpet costs K450.
5. Use the present simple tense to express habitual action or general truths.
Grades 1 - 7
e.g. He eats Kapenta.
It rains in November.
6. Use the present continuous with ‘always’ for an action which occurs often and is
accidental or annoying.
e.g. You are always losing your pen.
I am always falling over the dog.
-38-
SECTION 2: PAST SIMPLE AND CONTINUOUS TENSES
1. form affirmative, negative, interrogative and negative interrogative of the past simple
and past continuous Grades 1 – 7
tenses. (including avoidance of the emphatic form ‘did’ when no emphasis is
intended.
e.g. They saw a lion in the game park Grade 8
2. use the past simple for an action which was completed in the past. Grades 1 - 7
e.g. He had an egg for his breakfast this morning.
3. use the past simple form of ‘state’ verbs Grade 8

e.g. I forgot his name.
4. use the past simple for an action that was not continuous Grade 8
e.g. He insulted me so I hit him.
5. use the part continuous to emphasise that an activity was continuous over a certain
period. Grade 8
e.g. I was working hard all last week.
6. (a) use the past simple, ‘used to’ or ‘would’ for repeated actions in the past.
Grade 8
e.g. He often borrowed books from me.
He often used to borrow books from me.
He would often borrow books from me.
(b) use the past continuous for repeated actions in the past to show disapproval.
Grade 8
e.g. He was always borrowing money form me.
-39-
SECTION 3: PRESENT PERFECT TENSES
1. form the affirmative, negative, interrogative and negative interrogative

forms of the present perfect and perfect continuous tenses and use the Grades 4 - 7
shortened forms.
(including formatting of the third person singular:
e.g. He has come) Grade 8
2. use the present perfect with ‘just’ in the correct position. Grade 8
e.g. He has just gone out.
3. use the present perfect when no time is mentioned or the action is not
necessarily completed. Grade 1 - 7
e.g. They have gone to the shop.
4. use ‘since’ and ‘for’ with the present perfect. Grade 8

e.g. I have known him since he was two years old.
This room hasn’t been cleaned for two weeks.
(but we are cleaning it now).
5. use the present perfect when the result of the past action is important now. Grade 8
e.g. I have read one book by Ngungi.
6. use the present perfect continuous when it emphasises that the action was
continuous in the recent past. Grades 1 - 7
e.g. I’m very tired. I have been working all day.
7. use the present perfect continuous when it emphasises that the action is continuous up
to now and has not stopped. Grade 1 - 7
e.g. He has been waiting for you for 20 minutes.
-40-
SECTION 4: PAST PERFECT AND CONTINUOUS TENSES
1. form the affirmative, negative, interrogative and negative interrogative of the past
perfect and the past perfect continuous. Grade 1 - 7
(including avoidance of ‘had to’ instead of the past perfect tense: Grade 8
2. use the past perfect simple when a completed action precedes another in the past.
Grade 8
e.g. I had gone before you came.
3. use the past perfect continuous for a repeated or continuous in the past which precedes
a time in the past. Grade 8
e.g He was tired because he had been working all day.
He had been visiting her for a year.
SECTION 5: THE FUTURE
1. form the future and the future perfect simple and continuous, correctly with ‘shall’
and ‘will’. Grades 1 – 7
e.g. I shall go or I will go.
He will have gone.
2. use the simple future tense or the ‘going to’ form for future actions. Grade 1 – 7
e.g. We’ll find him at the market.
He is going to finish the book tonight.
It’s going to rain soon I think.
3. use the present simple to express a planned action.

e.g. We leave Ndola at 18.00 hours.
-41-
4. use the present continuous to express a definite future arrangement. Grade 8

e.g. The new film is coming to the cinema soon.
5. use the future continuous as an alternative to the present continuous (in 4 above) or
the simple future (in 2 above) when the arrangement is more casual. Grade 8
e.g. I’ll be seeing Tom tomorrow.
6. use the future perfect tense for an action which will be completed by a
given time in the future. Grade 8
e.g. By the end of the term, we will have finished the syllabus.
7. use the future continuous tense for an activity or state which starts
before and continues after a future time. Grade 1 - 7
e.g. We’ll be playing football tomorrow at 16.30 hours.
When you arrive, I’ll be waiting for you.
8. use the future perfect continuous for an action which will have been
continuing for a time. Grade 8
e.g. By the end of this term, I will have been teaching English for
ten years.
SECTION 6: THE UNREAL PAST
Pupils should be able to recognise the ‘unreal past’ after ‘It is time’,
‘I wish’ and ‘if only’. Grade 9
e.g. It is time we went

I wish we were staying here.
If only we had a rope.
- 42 –
SECTION 7:
AUXILLIARIES AND OTHER WAYS OF EXPRESSING PERMISSION,

PROHIBITION, ABILITY, OBLIGATION, NECESSITY, INFERENCE,
POSSIBILITY, REQUESTS, COMMANDS, SUGGESTION AND PREFERENCE
1. form the affirmative, negative, interrogative and negative interrogative forms

of ‘be’, ‘have’, ‘should’, ‘will’, ‘would’, ‘can’, ‘could’, ‘may’, ‘might’, Grades 1 – 7
‘must’, ‘ought’, ‘need’.
2. use ‘can’, ‘could’ and ‘may’ to express permission. Grade 8

e.g. You can go when you have finished your work.
You may go when you have finished your work.
You can borrow my car.
3. use ‘cannot’ and ‘must not’ to express prohibition. Grade 1 – 7

e.g. You can’t go.
You mustn’t go.
3.2 recognise that ‘shall not’ expresses prohibition. Grade 9

e.g. You shall not enter the house.
4. use ‘can’, could’, ‘am able’ and ‘was able’ to express ability. Grade 8
e.g. You can do it.
You could have done it.
He was able to write.
5. use ‘should’, ‘should have’, ‘ought to’, ‘ought to have’, and ‘had better’
to express obligation. Grade 9
e.g. You should go.
You had better go.
You should have gone.
6. use ‘must’, ‘have to’, ‘have got to’, ‘had to’, ‘need to’, ‘am to’,
to express necessity. Grade 8
e.g. You must go.
-43-
6. (continued)
e.g. He needs to practise more often. Grade 8
My shirt needs mending.
You are to stay here.
They all have to finish before they leave.
7. use ‘need not’, ‘do not need to’, ‘need not have’, ‘have not got to’,
‘did not need’, ‘do not have to’ to express the absence of necessity. Grade 8
e.g. You needn’t go.

You needn’t have gone.
You didn’t need to have gone.
You don’t have to go.
8. use ‘must’ and ‘cannot’ to express an inference. Grade 9

e.g. He must be coming very soon.
He can’t be coming now; it is too late.
9. use ‘may’, ‘might have’, and ‘can’ to express possibility. Grade 8

e.g. It may rain.
It might rain.
It might have fallen out of the bag.
It can be very cold here.
10. use ‘have’ and ‘got’ in a causative sense. Grade 8

e.g. When will you have/get your house painted?
He had/got his house painted last week.
11. use ‘will’, ‘would’, ‘shall’, ‘can’ ‘could’, ‘may’ and ‘might’
to make polite request. Grade 8
e.g. Will you come with me, please?
Would you come with me?
Can you come with me?
Could you come with me?
Shall I help you?
May I help you?
12. use ‘shall’ and ‘let’s to make a suggestion. Grade 9

e.g. Shall we go to the cinema?
Let’s catch the bus.
-44-
13.1 use ‘would’ or ‘would rather’ or ‘would sooner’ to express

a preference. Grade 9
e.g. I would like to leave early.
He would rather go home now.
He would sooner you went home now.
13.2 recognise that ‘should’ is an alternative to ‘would’ with the

first person. Grade 9
e.g. I should like to leave early.
SECTION B: QUESTION TAGS AND SHORT ANSWER FORMS.
1. Pupils should be able to use question tags in order to encourage

agreement with the speaker. Grade 8
e.g. Helen always comes late, doesn’t she?
They should win the match, shouldn’t they?
You haven’t read it, have you?
You’ve finished, have you?
2. Pupils should be able to respond correctly to negative questions. Grade 8

e.g. Haven’t you brought your books?
No!/No, I haven’t! (When the pupil hasn’t)
Yes, I have! (When the pupil has brought them).
You don’t mind if I sit down, do you?
No!/No, I don’t. (If you don’t mind)
Yes, I do! (If you do mind).
SECTION 9: PASSIVES

1. form the affirmative, negative, interrogative and negative
interrogative of the passive. Grade 9
2. use the passive when the ‘doer’ is known or unimportant. Grade 9

e.g. My watch has been stolen.
They were given some bread.
3. use the passive form with ‘by’ to draw attention to the subject
and not the agent. Grade 9
e.g. My friend was bitten by a dog.
-45-
SECTION 10: VERBS FOLLOWED BY INFINITIVE
Pupils should be to use the VERB + INFINITIVE construction with

each of the following: Grade 9
agree, appear (seem), attempt, arrange, be, care, dare, decide, deserve, desire,
determine, expect, fail, guarantee, happen, hesitate, hope, learn, long manage,
mean (intend), neglect, offer, ought, prepare, prefer, promise, refuse, seem,
swear, think threaten, want, wish.
+ the following verbs when used with ‘how’:

Consider, discover, explain, find out, know, understand, wonder.
e.g. He agreed to pay for the taxi.
I hope to go there next month.
She wants to marry me.
He knows ho to mend a puncture.
SECTION 11: VERBS AND EXPRESSIONS FOLLOWED BY – ING
Pupils should be able to use the VERB + ING construction with each
of the following: Grade 9
advice, admit, appreciate, avoid, consider, delay, deny, dislike, enjoy,

escape, excuse, finish, forgive, give up, go on, imagine, keep on, mention,
mind, postpone, practise, put off, resent, resist, risk, suggest, stop , (cease).
e.g. He wouldn’t admit stealing the pen.

They enjoy playing football.
Would you mind lending me your rubber?
Would you mind me leading him your rubber?
-46-
SECTION 12: VERBS FOLIO FOLLOWED BY OBJECT PLUS INFINITIVE
Pupils should be able to use the VERB + OBJECT + INFINITIVE

construction. Grade 9
1. with each of the following:

Advise, allow, ask, cause, command, compel, encourage,
forbid, force, get, instruct, invite, order, permit, persuade,
request, remind, show how, teach, tell, tempt, worn, want.
e.g. She told the children to finish their meal.

I persuaded my brother to do his homework.
Will you show me how to do this sum?
2. with verbs of sensation: e.g. see, feel, hear, notice, listen to, and with: Grade 9
watch, make, let and bid (which are followed by an OBJECT + INFINITIVE
without ‘TO’).
e.g. She made the children wash their hands

We heard them sing.
SECTION 13; PHRASAL VERBS
1. use the commoner phrasal verbs in informal English.

e.g. He took over the controls.
She put on her best dress.
2. use phrasal verbs formed with adverb particles putting the particle
before or after the object as required. Grade 9
1. Pronoun object.
e.g. He gave it away.
She took them off.
2. Noun object.
e.g. He gave his money away Or He gave away his money.
She took off her shoes Or She took her shoes off.
-47-
PART 2: PARTS OF SPEECH etc
SECTION 4: NOUNS
1. form the plural of nouns: Grade 1 – 7

a) by adding ‘s’ or ‘es’.
e.g. tomatoes, photos, babies, boys, wives,
churches, chiefs, boy friends, grown-ups, passers-by.
b) when the nouns are of non-English forms Grade 8

e.g. agenda, radii, crises, memoranda, appendices, algae.
c) When the nouns do not change. Grade 1 - 7

e.g. sheep, fish
2. use the possessive form of the nouns for animals the people. Grade 8
e.g. The cat’s bowl.
Tom’s books.
All the boys’ books.
SECTION 15: COUNTABLE AND UNCOUTABLE NOUNS
1. distinguish between countable and uncountable nouns. Grade 8
2. use the correct determiners (i.e. the/some/no determiner)

With uncountable nouns. Grade 8
e.g. Pick up the furniture.

Buy some maize, please.
He lacks intelligence.
3. use ‘a .....of’ with uncountable nouns to express one or more item.

e.g. a loaf of bread, a bag of flour, four loaves of bread.
-48-
4. use appropriately words which can be countable or uncountable

according to meaning.
e.g. He bought four cloths for dusting.
She bought some cloth to make curtains.
He gave me some water in a glass.
He bought some glass to mend the window.
SECTION 16: DETERMINERS – ‘a’ ‘an’ ‘the’
Pupils should be able to use:
1. ‘a’ or ‘an’ with suitable countable nouns which are not

defined or particularised. Grade 8
e.g. I saw a man in a car.
2. ‘the’ with nouns which are defined.

e.g. I saw the man whom we met yesterday. Grade 8
3. ‘the’ when there is only one particular thing.

e.g. The sky is blue. Grade 8
4. ‘the’ when a person or thing is mentioned again. Grade 8

e.g. I found a bag on the road yesterday. In the afternoon,
I took the bag to the police station.
5. ‘the’ before a superlative and ‘only’ Grade 8

e.g. He is the best runner in the school.
She is the only girls in my life.
6. ‘the’ before the names of seas, rivers, mountain rangers,

groups of islands, certain countries etc. Grade 8
e.g. The Pacific Ocean

The Sudan
The Seychelles
The Atlas Mountains
The River Zambezi.
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7. a) no determiner before plural nouns referring to a class. Grade 9
e.g. Elephants eat grass.

Trees should not be cut down.
7. b) ‘the’ with singular nouns to represent a class. Grade 9

e.g. the leopard is a very fast runner.
8. no determiner before nouns, which are almost proper nouns, Grade 9

e.g. church, market, college, school, hospital, court,
prison.
e.g. Will you go to school after you leave school?
She went to market to sell her eggs.
SECTION 17: DETERMINERS (ADJECTIVES OR QUATITY)
1. Some/any, no/none
2. Either/neither
3. Much, many, a lot of, several, etc
4. A few/a little, few/little
5. The whole/all/both
1. Some/any, no/one
1.1. ‘some’ in affirmative sentences and in questions when

the answer ‘yes’ is expected. Grade 8
e.g. He planted some flowers in his garden.

You haven’t had much to eat.
Would you like some more?
1.2 ‘any’ in negative and almost negative sentence.
e.g. there aren’t any trees in his village

He hardly has any money
1.3 ‘any’ in question unless the answer ‘yes’ is expected. Grade 8

e.g. Did you see any boys there.
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1.4 ‘any’ in expressions of doubt. Grade 8

e.g. If you have any news, let me know immediately.
I’m not sure if there is any more sugar.
1.5 the pronouns ‘someone’/anyone;, ‘somewhere’/anywhere’,

‘something’/anything’ etc. (which follow the same. rules
as ‘some’ and ‘any’). Grade 8
e.g. He lives somewhere near the police station.

I couldn’t find her anywhere.
Haven’t you got anything better to do?
1.6 ‘no’ with nouns to express the negative. Grade 8

e.g. There are no girls in his school.
1.7 ‘none’ as a pronoun to mean ‘not one’. Grade 8

e.g. Do you have any bananas?
I’m sorry. There are none left.
1.8 ‘some’ meaning ‘not all’. Grade 8

e.g. Some friends of mine are coming here tonight.
1.9 ‘any’ meaning ‘no one thing in particular’. Grade 9

e.g. any friend of your is a friend of mine.
2.0. either/neither
Pupils should be able to use.
2.1 ‘either’ to mean any one of two persons or things. Grade 9

e.g. You can have either book.
2.2 ‘neither’ as the negative of ‘either’. Grade 9

e.g. Neither answer was correct.
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3. Much, many, a lot of, plenty of, etc
3.1 ‘much’ with uncountable nouns and ‘many’ with Grade 8

Plural countable nouns to mean ‘a large number of’.
e.g. I haven’t got much money.

Many people do not have enough to eat.
3.2 ‘a lot of’, ‘lots of’, plenty of’, and ;a great deal of’ used as Grade 8
alternatives to ‘much’ and’ many’ especially in affirmative
spoken statements.
e.g. He’s got a lot of friends.
There’s plenty of time before the bus leaves.
4. A few/a little
Pupils should be able to use correctly:
4.1 ‘a few’ with countable nouns to mean ‘a small number of

‘but suggesting a positive attitude. Grade 8
e.g. There are a few people who would like to attend the meeting.
4.2 ‘a little’ with uncountable nouns to mean ‘a small amount of’

but suggesting a positive attitude. Grade 8
e.g. I still have a little money left.
4.3 ‘few’ with countable nouns to mean ‘hardly any’ and suggesting
insufficiency. Grade 9
e.g. There are few people who can sing
as well as you can.
4.4 ‘little’ with uncountable nouns to mean ‘hardly any’ and

suggesting insufficiency. Grade 9
e.g. He has little hope of succeeding.
5. The whole/all/both
Pupils should be able to use ‘the whole’, ‘all’ and ‘both’.
e.g. The whole class went to the field.
All the boys went to the field.
My friend and I both want to the field.
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SECTION 18: PRONOUNS

1. use personal pronouns and possessive adjectives and
pronouns in the correct form. Grades 1 - 7
e.g. Have you got your book as well as mine?
2. use personal pronouns, and possessive adjectives and pronouns

in the correct place making them agree with the person or thing
to which they refer. Grades 1- 7
e.g. He loves his mother.
He took it off.
John woke up. He washed his face.
3. use the first person with other nouns and pronouns in the
correct order. Grade 8
e.g. My brother and I attend the same school.
They gave the books to you and me.
4. use pronouns with self for emphasis. Grade 8

e.g. The President himself spoke to my father.
She went herself.
5. use pronouns with-self as reflexive pronouns. Grade 9

e.g. They blamed themselves for the accident.
(compare with ‘each other’)
He enjoyed himself.
6. use ‘you’ ‘or ‘one’ when no actual person is referred to. Grade 9
e.g. You must be careful not to lose your way in the forest
or/ One must be careful not to lose one’s way in the forest.
7. use a masculine pronoun to refer to both males and females. Grade 9

e.g. When a teacher returns to his home after a hard day’s
work, he should relax.
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SECTION 19: NOUN PHRASES AND CLAUSES
1. use ‘that’ clauses as objectives Grade 9

e.g. It’s a pity (that) you are leaving
It is strange (that) he hasn’t visited us.
2. use ‘wh’ clauses as objects or subjects, Grade 9

e.g. I wasn’t certain whose house we were in.
The point is not who will go, but who will stay.
I never know where to put my books.
I wasn’t certain what to do.
What he had to say was very interesting
Whoever wrote this book is a genius
3. use ‘if/whether’ clauses as objects. Grade 9

e.g. It doesn’t matter whether the shops are open or not.
4. use ‘-ing’ phrases as subjects and objects. Grade 9

e.g. Telling lies is wrong.
I’m tired of being treated like a child.
I’m surprised at him making that mistake.
SECTION 20: RELATIVE CLAUSES
1. Pupils should be able to use Relative Pronouns in

Defining Relative Clauses as follows:
1.1 ‘who’ or ‘that’ with subjects that a people. Grade 9

e.g. The girl who (or that) wins the race
will get a prize.
1.2 ‘which’ or ‘that’ with subjects that are things. Grade 9

e.g. The car which (or that) killed the cow.
Was badly damaged.
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1.3 ‘whom’, ‘who’, ‘that’ or nothing with objects that are people. Grade 9
e.g. The boy whom (or ‘who’, ‘that’ or nothing)
We caught stealing has been expelled.
1.4 Preposition + relative with objects that are people Grade 9

e.g. The man to whom you were speaking is my uncle.
or The man who you were speaking to is my uncle
or The man you were speaking to is my uncle.
1.5 ‘which’, ‘that’ or nothing with objects that are things. Grade 9
e.g. The cake (which or that) you baked was very nice.
1.6 preposition + relative with objects that are things. Grade 9

e.g. The village from which he comes is very poor.
or The village which he comes is very poor
or The village that he comes from is very poor
or The village he comes from is very poor
1.7 ‘whose’ to show possession (especially for people). Grade 9

e.g. That is the girl whose father works in the market.
1.8 ‘where’, ‘when’ and ‘why’

e.g. He took us to the place where he had seen a lion. Grade 9
We went on the day when we both had a holiday.
She asked the reason why I was late.
2. Pupils should be able to use infinitives and infinitive phrases

as alternatives to relative clauses. Grade 9
e.g. I have a lot of work to do.
There is no time to waste.
The man to complain to is the manager.
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SECTION 21: ORDER OF ADJECTIVES
Pupils should be able to put two or more adjectives in the Grade 9

usual order before a noun.
e.g. A useful, oblong, black, tin trunk
A short, pink, cotton dress.
A brand new, black, leather brief-case.
SECTION 22: ADVERBS
1. Pupils should be able to put adverbs in acceptable positions. Grade 9
e.g. I met him last month.

Next week we are going to Mongu.
They always play together.
She passed the exam easily.
They finished their meal.
2. Pupils should be able to understand sentences containing verb Grade 9

inversions negative adverbs e.g. ‘hardly’, ‘never’, nowhere’,
rarely’, seldom’, ‘no sooner’, and use inversions after ‘neither’, ‘nor’
and ‘not only’.
e.g. Rarely have I seen such bad behaviour.

No sooner has we arrived then we started to dance.
Neither have I.
Not only does he play the piano, but he also writes music.
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SECTION 23: INTENSIFIERS (ADVERBS OF DEGREE)
Pupils should be able to use the following:
1. ‘very’, ‘much’, and ‘too’. Grade 8

e.g. He is a very strong man
I feel much better,
Time goes too quickly.
2. ‘fairly’ and ‘rather’. Grade 8

e.g. I am fairly good at Maths.
Juma is rather lazy
3. ‘quite’ to mean ‘completely’. Grade 8

e.g. My answer is quite different to yours.
4. ‘quite’ to mean ‘a little less than’. Grade 8

e.g. Your composition is quite good.
(i.e. not very good).
5. ‘hardly’, barely’, and ‘scarcely’. Grade 9

e.g. He hardly ever visits his mother.
We barely had time to catch the bus.
I was so tired I could scarcely keep my eyes open.
6. ‘almost’ and ‘nearly’. Grade 8

e.g. The match has almost/nearly finished.
Almost/nearly all the children were playing outside.
7. ‘just’ Grade 9
e.g. The match was just beginning when it started to rain
You are just in time for a cup of tea.
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SECTION 24: CO-ORDINATORS
1. ‘and’ or ‘but’ to join words, phrases and clauses. Grades 1 - 7

e.g. John and Mary are friends and they go to the same school.
2. ‘either’ ..............’or’. Grades 1 - 7

e.g. You may either talk quickly or read your books
Either you do as you are told or you will be punished.
3. ‘neither’ ..............’nor’ Grade 8

e.g. He was either rich nor was he poor.
(Note the inversion)
4. ‘both’ ............’and’ Grade 8

e.g. He was both clever and kind
She had both cleaned the house and cooked the dinner.
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PART 3: CONCEPTS
SECTION 25: COMPARISON
1. Pupils should be able to form comparatives and superlatives or

adjectives and adverbs as follows:
1.1 by adding ‘er’, ‘est’

e.g. long-longer-longest. Grades 1 - 7
1.2 by using ‘more’ and ‘most’ particularly with words of Grades 1 - 7

two or more syllabuses.
e.g. careful, more careful-most careful.
1.3 by using irregular forms.

e.g. good/well-better-best
bad/badly-worse-worst
much/many more-most
late-laster-last
little-less-least
far farther/further farthest/furthest.
2. Pupils should be able to use the following comparison structures.
2.1 comparative ‘than’ to compare two unequals. Grade 8

e.g. Mary is prettier than her sister.
This sum is more difficult than that one.
Her father works harder than yours.
2.2 (‘the’ +) comparative to compare two unequal. Grade 8
e.g. Mary is (the) prettier `

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2.3 (‘the’ +) superlative to compare more than two persons or things. Grade 8
e.g. This is the longest book I have ever read.
This one is the shortest.
George ran the fastest.
He is the most intelligent man in our village.
2.4 ‘as ..........as’ to make equal comparison. Grade 8

e.g. Mary is as pretty as her sister.
Peter has as many mangoes as Bwalya.
His hands were as cold as ice.
(and al similies)
2.5 ‘not as/so ..............as’ to compare unequals. Grade 8

e.g. Mary is not as/so pretty as her sister (is).
2.6. ‘the same ..........as’ to compare two equals. Grade 8

e.g. Mary’s dress is the same as Jane’s
2.7 ‘like’ to express similarity. Grade 8

e.g. Mary’s dress is like Jane’s
2.8 comparative + ‘and’ + comparative to express

gradual increase. Grade 9
e.g. The train went faster and faster.
SECTION 26; REASON
Pupils should be able to express reason:
1. by using ‘because’, ‘since’, and ‘as’. Grade 8

e.g. He took his umbrella because/since/as it looked like rain.
2. by using ‘for’ Grade 9

e.g. I had to leave for it is was getting late.
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3. by using for + a phrase. Grade 9

e.g. I was angry with him for being so rude
4. by using ‘because of’ and ‘on account of’ Grade 9

e.g. He failed the exam because of his laziness.
SECTION 27: PURPOSE
Pupils should be able to express purpose by using:
1. The Infinitive.
e.g. I went to the shop to buy some bread. Grades 1-7
2. ‘so, as to’ and ‘in order to’ Grade 8

e.g. I went to see him to as to ask for his advice.
He stayed up very late in order to finish his homework.
3. ‘for’ + noun
e.g. I went for a walk Grade 8
4. ‘so (that)’ and ‘in order that’

e.g. We came early so (that) you could show us what to do. Grades 1-7
He explained the method very carefully in order that we
shouldn’t forget it.
5. ‘in case’ Grade 9

e.g. Take this map in case you get lost.
SECTION 28: TIME
1 (a) use clauses of time introduced by the conjunctions

‘when’ ‘until’, ‘before’ ‘after’. ‘as soon as’ etc. Grades 1-7
e.g. When he comes, tell him I want to see him.
Don’t speak until I tell you.
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1. (b) use clauses of time introduced by the conjunctions: Grade 8

‘whenever’, ‘till’, ‘as’, ‘since’, etc.............
e.g. As the bus arrived, the people rushed for the door.
He runs away whenever he sees me.
2. use the correct tenses in time clauses, i.e. no future or conditional Grade 8
tense in the time clauses.
e.g. When he arrives, he will want a meal.
They were told to do nothing until he arrived.
3. use a phrase containing a present participle when two actions occur

Simultaneously.
e.g. He ran down the road, holding tightly to his hat.
SECTION 29; RESULT
1. use ‘therefore’, ‘for this reason’ and ‘as a result’ to express result. Grade 8
e.g. He failed the exam. Therefore he couldn’t get a job.
2. use ‘so’ to express result.

e.g. We were late so we ran all the way. Grade 8
3. use ‘so or ‘such a’ with ‘that’ to express result.

e.g. He was so small that he couldn’t reach the handle. Grade 8
He was such a small man that he couldn’t see over the wall.
4. use ‘enough’ with the infinitive to express result. Grade 9

e.g. He was old enough to learn to drive.
The book was short enough for me to finish in one day.
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5. use ‘too’ with the infinitive to express result. Grade 9

e.g. He was too old to drive.
The book was too long for me to finish in one day.
SECTION 30: CONTRAST
Pupils should be able to indicate contrast by using:
1. ‘however’, ‘nevertheless’ and ‘even so’ Grade 8

(see Composition General Syllabus, Objectives 4, 5 and 6).
e.g. George is very lazy. However/Nevertheless/
Even so, he always does well in the exams.
2. ‘but’ and ‘yet’ (see composition General Syllabus, Objectives 4, 5 and 6) Grade 8
e.g. Our teacher is kind yet/but he is very strict.
3. ‘though’, and ‘even though’, Grade 8

e.g. Even though/though it has started raining, he finished the
work on time.
4. ‘in spite of’ and ‘despite’. Grade 9

e.g. In spite of/Despite the bad weather, they continued their
journey.
or They continued their journey in spite of/despite the bad weather.
5. ‘whereas’ and ‘while’

Whereas/While his father is rich, Mr. Banda is poor. Grade 9
or Mr. Banda is poor whereas/while his father is rich.
6. ‘some’ ..........’some/others’.
e.g. Some books are boring and some/others are very interesting.
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SECTION 10; CONDITION
1. Pupils should be able to use the three basic conditional sentences patterns.
1.1 Probable condition. Grade 8

e.g. If he asks her, she will marry him.
or She will marry him if he asks her.
1.2. Improbable condition. Grade 8

e.g. If he asked her, she would marry him.
or She would marry her if he asked her.
or If he was to ask her, she would marry him.
If I were you, I would buy a car.
1.3 Impossible condition. Grade 8

e.g. If he has asked her, she would have married him.
(i.e. He didn’t ask her and she hasn’t married him)
or She would have married him if he had asked her.
2. Pupils should be able to use the common variation of the above patterns Grade 8
e.g. If water is heated, it turns to steam.

If he asks you, tell him the truth.
If the kettle has boiled, I’ll make some tea.
If he has asked her, she might have married him.
If you has cleaned your shoes, you would not look so untidy.
3. Pupils should be able to use the following in conditional sentences:
3.1 ‘unless’
e.g. I will come tomorrow unless I hear from you Grade 8
3.2. ‘even if’ to indicate condition and implied contract.

e.g. You wouldn’t believe me even if I told you.
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PART 4; DIRECT AND REPORTED SPEECH
SECTION 32: DIRECT SPEECH
(See also Composition General Syllabus, Objectives 19 + 21)
1. Pupils should be able to compose and punctuate correctly sentences

containing Direct Speech, as follows: Grade 8
1. Mary said. “The headmaster wants to see you”.

2. “The headmaster wants to see you,” said Mary.
3. “The headmaster wants to see you,” Mary said.
4. “The headmaster wants to see you,” Mary said,
“and he is very angry.”
2. Pupils should be able to use a variety of Reporting Verbs
e.g. say, ask, reply, answer, inquire (enquire), Grade 8

remind, explain, remark, shout, cry, well,
whisper, murmur, mumble, mutter, think etc.
SECTION 33: REPORTED SPEECH
(See also Composition General Syllabus, Objectives 20 & 21)
1. Pupils should be able to change direct statements into Reported Speech

making the necessary changes in pronouns, tenses and adverbs. Grade 8
e.g. D.S. - Mary said, 2The headmaster wants to see you, Tom!”
R.S. - Mary told Tom that the headmaster wanted to see him.
2. Pupils should be able to change direct questions into Reported Speech

making the necessary changes in pronouns, tenses and adverbs; Grade 9
e.g. D.S. - “Where are you going, Patricia?” he asked.

R.S. - He asked Patricia where she was going.
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3. Pupils should be able to change direct commands and requests into

Reported Speech making the necessary changes in pronouns, Grade 9
verbs and adverbs:
e.g. D.S. - “Come back and put your coat on,”

said my mother
R.S. - My mother told me to go back and

put my coat
D.S. - Open the window please, Bill,”

said Ann.
R.S. - Ann asked Bill if he would open the

window.
or Ann asked Bill to open the window.

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PART : 5: PUNCTUATION
SECTION 34: PUNCTUATION
For the use of the full stop see the Composition Syllabus..
For the use of the apostrophe see Nouns.
1. The Comma (See also use of comma in Participle

Phrases, Relatives, Rime Clauses, Conditional
Sentences, Contrast, Question Tags, etc)
Pupils should be able to use commas:
1.1 in lists of nouns, adjectives, clauses etc. Grade 8

e.g. She bought some potatoes, peas, carrots, and onions.
It was a red, white and blue flag.
He was wearing a new, red, leather jacket.
John went to his garden, dug a hole, planted a tree and
then watered it.
1.2 with words added to a sentence by way of comment Grade 9

e.g. London, by the way, is not the biggest city in the
world.
There was, however, no time for a rest.
1.3 after ‘yes’ and ‘no’ Grade 8

e.g. Yes It is getting late.
No, I’m busy at the moment.
1.4 with words used to address a person. Grade 8

e.g. Bwalya, go and clean the blackboard.
1.5 to separate the items of a date. Grade 8

e.g. Thursday, 5th June, 1986.
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1.6 to separate the items of an address. Grade 8

e.g. 25, Jacaranda Road,
Matero,
Lusaka.
N.B. In typewritten block-layout the comma
Is not used.
e.g. Mr B. Maliko
Ministry of General Education
Box 50093,
LUSAKA
It is recommended that handwritten letters should be

punctuated as in 1.6 above.
2. The Semi-colon
Pupils should be able to recognise the function of a Semi-colon used to

link two closely related sentences. Grade 9
e.g. He left early; otherwise he would have missed the bus.
3. The Colon
Pupils should be able to use a colon to introduce words which explain what has
already been referred to (The colon is often followed by a dash thus:) Grade 9
e.g. Please order the following: ten pencils, ten rubbers,

four ball-point pens and a packet of paper clips.
4. Capital Letters
Pupils should be able to use a capital letter
a) at the beginning of a sentence (see Composition Section). Grade 8
b) for all proper nouns and proper adjectives

e.g. David, Ndola, Zambia, Zambian. Grade 8
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c) for all abbreviations of proper nouns and

proper adjectives. Grade 8
e.g. Z.B.S. UNIP.
d) for titles of people and books etc ........... Grade 8

e.g. His Excellency the President,
‘The Secret Garden’.
5. The Question Mark
Pupils should be able to use a question mark to show that a sentence

is a question/when appropriate. Grade 8
e.g. Are you going home for the holidays?

“Will you marry me?” said George.
6. The Exclamation Mark
Pupils should be able to use an exclamation mark when appropriate. Grade 8
e.g. “Get out of here!” he shouted.

I was glad to hear that you have passed your examinations.
Congratulations!
7. Quotation Marks
(see also Section 32: Direct Speech)
Pupils should be able to use quotation marks to indicate

quotations and titles. Grade 8
e.g. Our national motto is ‘One Zambia, One Nation!.

‘No longer at Ease’ was written by Chinua Achebe.
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PART 5: SUMMARY AND NOTE – MAKING
PREAMBLE
The course is divided into six stages, each of which contains teaching units. The course has
been carefully graded. Work should begin with Stage 1 and teachers should work through the
course stage by stage and unit by unit in numerical order. Non of the units should be omitted
as the skills developed during the course will be acquired in a gradual, cumulative way. The
units will require varying amounts of teaching time, ranging from as little as one period to as
many as five periods.
Work on the courses should begin as soon as possible in Grade 8 and, at the rate of one
period per week, should be completed early in the third term of Grade 9. When the course
has been completed, further practice and testing will be necessary.
For further details and suggested teaching materials, please see the Junior Secondary English
Teachers’ Handbook.
GENERAL AIM
By the end of Grade 9, pupils should be able to write a note summary containing specific
information obtained from a given passage.
SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES
STAGE 1: Introduction to Summary and Note-making
In this first stage, the teacher introduces the course and explains the basic
concepts and features of summary and note-making, stressing the usefulness
of these skills at school, in everyday life in many jobs.
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Unit 1.1 Pupils should be able to:
1. explain the purposes of summary-writing and note-making.
2. describe the main features of note summaries and prose summaries.
STAGE 2: Simple Summary Skills
In this stage of the course, pupils will be given graded practice in basic
summary skills. As a result of this they should develop a growing awareness
of the importance of relevance and brevity in summary writing.
Unit 2.1 Given a short passage followed by a list of possible titles, pupils should be
able to choose the best title and explain why the others are inadequate.
Unit 2.2 Given a short passage, pupils should be able to compose a title which
adequately and concisely described the passage.
Unit 2.3 Given a short passage followed by a question asking for specific information,
pupils should be able to identify the sentence in the passage which provides
that information.
Unit 2.4 Given a short passage followed by a list of possible summaries, pupils should
be able to choose the best and explain why the other options are inadequate.
Unit 2.5 Given a short passage followed by sentences containing blanks, pupils should
be able to add the relevant information so as to make as adequate summary
Unit 2.6 Given a passage, pupils should be able to:
1. Locate specific information.

2. Write a single sentence summary.
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STAGE 3: Tabulation Skills
This is the first stage in the development of note-making skills. Pupils will be
taught how to interpret the information contained in tables, charts and
diagrams. They will learn that information is often presented in this way
because it saves time for both the writer and the reader. Pupils will learn that
various formats are possible in presenting only information but that some
formats are better than others.
Pupils will also learn the importance of headings, underlining, capitals,

spacing and the use of vertical and horizontal columns. The final unit will
give practice in the actual construction of tables.
Unit 3.1 Pupils should be able to obtain specific information from tables, charts and
diagrams.
Unit 3.2 Given the framework of a table, pupils should be able to fill in the details
using information obtained from a passage.
Unit 3.3 Given an appropriate passage, pupils should be able to construct their own
tables which will contain the important information.
STAGE 4: Identifying Important Words
One of the essential skills of summary-writing and of note-making is deciding

which words are important and which are unnecessary. The important words
will usually be ‘content words’ and the less important words will be function
words.
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(sometimes called ‘structural words’) A ‘content word’ is a word which has a

full lexical meaning of its own, e.g. chair, you, write, new, quickly. A
‘function word’ has no independent lexical meaning but just contributes to the
grammatical meaning of a constructing, e.g. he, since, for, to. The basic
meaning of a sentence can often still be conveyed even if all the function
words are omitted. In addition, it is often possible to omit other words,
especially auxiliaries, pronouns and prepositions, without any loss of meaning.
Section 1: Writing Telegrams
Unit 4.1 Pupils should be able to explain how the telegraphic system operates.
Unit 4.2 Given a situation involving telegram messages, pupils should be able to
interpret the message using complete sentences.
Unit 4.3 Given a short message written in complete sentences, pupils should be able to
remove the less important words and, where possible, use more concise
wording so as to produce a good telegram.
Unit 4.4 Given an appropriate situation, pupils should be able to compose a telegram
containing the relevant information.
Section 2: Writing Advertisements
Unit 4.5 Given an advertisement written in complete sentences, pupils should be able to
compose a newspaper advertisement.
-73-
Section 3: Writing Notes by Omitting Less Important Words
Unit 4.6 Pupils should be able to write notes by omitting less important words.
STAGE 5: Abbreviations
In Stage 5, pupils will be taught how to use abbreviations to record

information quickly and in a recognisable form.
Unit 5.1 Pupils should be able to interpret and use all the common abbreviations listed
in Appendix 2 of the Summary and Note-making section of the Junior
Secondary English Teachers’ Handbook
Unit 5.2 Pupils should be able to:

1. use personal abbreviations when making notes and
2. remember their meaning at a later date.
Unit 5.3 Pupils should be able to use symbols when making notes.
Unit 5.4 Pupils should be able to use common abbreviations, personal abbreviations
and symbols when making notes.
STAGE 6: Note Summaries

In this section all the skills which have been taught and practised so far are
consolidated. The pupils’ performance in Unit 6.3 will provide a clear
indication of their competence in the basic skills of summary and note-making
Unit 6.1 Given a number of sets of notes with different formats, pupils should be able
to explain why one is preferable to the others.
Unit 6.2 Pupils should be able to write a note summary of a passage by completing a
given framework.
Unit 6.3 Pupils should be able to write a note summary containing specific information
obtained from a given passage.

Junior Secondary School English Language Syllabus Grades 8 9

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Republic of Zambia

ZAMBIA BASIC EDUCATION COURSE

JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL

Prepared by the Commercial Subjects Curriculum Committee

JUNIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL

Produced by the Curriculum Development Centre

Phototypeset and printed by Printpak (Z) Ltd

Part 1: Listening and Speaking

1. Study the objective carefully to be sure it is fully understood.

Listening and Speaking..................................................... 40

All correspondence concerning this syllabus should be addressed to:

The senior Curriculum Specialist, English,

PART 1; LISTENING AND SPEAKING

These are divided into three sections:

A. Oral Communication Skills

B. Stress and Rhythm

By the end of Grade 9, pupils should be able to:-

1. Manipulate the English Language in order to use it spontaneously and flexibly to

A. Oral Communication Skills

Mastery of these skills will be obtained by practice in:

1. Pupils should be able to use and understand English in the following

a) Teacher/Pupil classroom interaction e.g. asking for an explanation,

2. Pupils should be able to understand extended spoken discourse such as in news

i) Imparting and seeking factual information

i) Imparting and Seeking Factual Information

ii) Expressing and Finding Out Intellectual Attitudes

a) expressing agreement and disagreement

iii) Expressing and Finding Out Emotional Attitudes

a) expressing pleasure and liking

iv) Expressing and Finding Out Moral Attitudes

v) Getting Things Done

a) suggesting a course of action that includes the speaker.

a) greeting and meeting people

B. Stress and Rhythm

1. Pupils should be able to understand spoken discourse containing

1. Pupils should be able to discriminate and articulate English sounds in

Vowels: /i/ as in sit, /e/ as in ten,

1.2 Pupils should be able to articulate consonant clusters. E.g.

1.3 Pupils should be able to discriminate and, where appropriate,

e.g. ‘some’: Some of the boys have gone home

(‘a): The letter ‘a’. (Strong)

‘the’ The atlas, the island, the orange, the umbrella,

‘of’ : The word ‘of’. (strong)

‘and’ : The word ‘and’. (Strong)

‘to’ : I don’t want to. (strong)

1.4. Pupils should be able to discriminate and articulate contracted forms:

1.5 Pupils should be able to articulate reduced vowels in unstressed

Note on General Aim 4: (See page 1)

I’d like you to finish this exercise by tomorrow.

The Reading Syllabus consists of our main components:-

SECTION A: EFFECTIVE READING

By the end of Grade 9, pupils should be able to:-

READING SYLLABUS: GENERAL SCHEME OF WORK

EFFICIENT Activities Faster Reading Course in Term 1 or 2.

Activities Activities leading to the mastery of all the

Time Allocation 30 minutes per week

Activities Activities leading to the mastery of all the

Time Allocation 40 minutes per week.

Activities Activities leading to the mastery of all the

Time Allocation Class Readers – 40 minutes per week.

SECTION A: EFFICIENT READING

1. Pupils should be able to read with good silent reading habits.

2.1 The Study Techniques

2.2 Rapid Reading