English FAL

Grade 8: Language Basics

Term 1
 Parts of speech
 Sentence structure
 Tenses
 Reported speech
 Concord
 Visual literacy – advertisements and
cartoons
 How to do a summary
GRADE 8: ENGLISH FAL – LANGUAGE TERM 1

Parts of speech

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Parts of speech (cont.)

VERBS
 Verbs can describe actions or indicate situations.
 Verbs can indicate the tense of a sentence.

FINITE VERBS: verbs that have a subject, number (concord: singular or

plural form) and tense.
NON-FINITE VERBS: these words do NOT have subject, number or
tense.
They consist of:
A. Present participles e.g. laughing, playing, running etc.

B. Past participles – the words you find in the THIRD COLUMN

e.g go – went - gone

AUXILIARY VERBS: also known as “helping” verbs, e.g. I am singing in

tonight’s show. / He may borrow my book this weekend. / John can help
you with your work.

You will also come across regular and irregular verbs.

Regular verbs follow a standard pattern e.g. play – played – played /
laugh – laughed – laughed

PLEASE TURN OVER FOR: LIST OF IRREGULAR VERBS

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PRACTICE ACTIVITIES: PARTS OF SPEECH

NOUNS
What is a noun? A noun is a naming word
Exercise 1: Identify types of nouns
List the nouns according to the table:
Retief High School, love, table, perseverance, hatred, Simon, Gauteng, swarm of
bees, fruit, government, Mr Jones, “Sewende Laan”, TV 1, Pioneer, respect, cars,
subjects, Geography, hostel, anthology of poems, DSTV, string of pearls, honour,
Samsung.
Common nouns Collective nouns Proper nouns Abstract nouns

(copy this table into your workbook and complete the activity)
Exercise 2: Find collective nouns
e.g. a gaggle of geese.
2.1 a ….. of stairs 2.6 a range of …..
2.2 a ….. of bees 2.7 a ….. of worshippers
2.3 a ….. of trees 2.8 a bundle of …..
2.4 a stack of ….. 2.9 a hatch of …..
2.5 an ….. of diplomats 2.10 an ….. of musicians

ADJECTIVES
What is an adjective? A word that describes a noun/pronoun
Example : The girl sings a song.

The beautiful girl sings a sad song.

adj. noun adj. noun

Exercise 3: Form adjectives

3.1 an (stand out) student 3.7 an (educate) TV-programme

3.2 an (enjoy) holiday 3.8 a (complicate) sum
3.3 an (admire) person 3.9 a (demand) career
3.4 an (explode) bomb 3.10 an (adore) toddler
3.5 an (impress) performance 3.11 a (horrid) accident
3.6 a (beauty) princess 3.12 a (luck) draw

Exercise 4: Form adjectives

4.1 He is always honest. He is an (honour) ____________ man.

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4.2 All our Gr 12’s passed in 2015. The results were (satisfy) _____________ .
4.3 My cellphone fell on the cement. Luckily it is (repair) ____________.
4.4 Our pastor is a (please) ________ man and truly (religion) ________.
4.5 She is an (obey) __________ child.
4.6 Of all the matriculants, Sarah is the (bright) _____________.
4.7 Of the two boys, Pieter is (good) ______________ at soccer.
4.8 Today I am tired. Yesterday I was even (tire) _____________.
4.9 May you have (much/many) ________ more birthdays!
4.10 I do not want to go home. There is not (much/many) _______ to do.
4.11 Joan is fit. Peter is (fit) _______, but Cindy is the (fit) _____ .
4.12 Sarah is (laid back)______________ than Marianne.

Exercise 5: Fill in the correct adjectives to complete the degrees of comparison

e.g. pretty prettier the prettiest

Thin 5.1 5.2
5.3 Easier 5.4
Painful 5.5 5.6
5.7 5.8 most comfortable

ADVERBS
What is an adverb? An adverb is a word that describes the verb
Example : The girl sings the song. (How does she sing? She sings passionately)

The girl sings the song passionately.

verb adverb

Exercise 6: Form adverbs:

6.1 We go to town (regular) ____________ on Saturdays.

6.2 Father hates shopping, but he (usual) ______________ waits in the car.
6.3 (Clear) ____________ Mother will not be rushed by anyone.
6.4 She strolls (slow) _______________ through the mall, looking (careful)
___________ at the prices of everything, before she buys.
6.5 Dad is (sincere) ___________________ pleased when she finally comes to
the car with all her shopping bags.
6.6 The shopping spree went (good/well) ____________.

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Exercise 7: Form adverbs

Change the following words into adverbs by adding –ly :
e.g correctly

7.1 patient
7.2 quick
7.3 efficient
7.4 spontaneous
7.5 necessary

Exercise 8: Write down the adverbs and the verbs :

8.1 The proud father shook his son’s hand wildly after he was called to the stage
as ‘Soccer Player of the Year’.
8.2 The appreciative child accepted the trophy gracefully.
8.3 The difficult exam paper confused me completely.
8.4 The mother shook the dying baby desperately.
8.5 The strong WWF-wrestler defeated the slender competitor viciously.
8.6 She writes impeccably and calculates faultlessly.
8.7 The grateful parent thanked the police officer gratefully and scolded the child
mercilessly.

PRONOUNS
Exercise 9: Choose the right word in brackets :
9.1 (Him, He) and (I, me) are both fourteen years old.
9.2 Give it to (I, me).
9.3 This is my sister. Do you know (she, her)?
9.4 He cut (himself, him) with a knife.
9.5 (Who, Whom) did you speak to just now?
9.6 James is much taller than (I, me).
9.7 I have lost my pen. Have you seen (it, him)?
9.8 This pen is not (your, yours).
9.9 The birds were feeding (there, their) chicks.
9.10 When I spoke to Ann, (she, he) did not answer me.

Exercise 10: Replace the underlined names with pronouns.

Example : Tom went to the store this morning.
He
10.1 Harry can run very fast.
10.2 Leon is in Grade 9 C.
10.3 The chair is broken.
10.4 Did you see Mary or Ben on the playground?
10.5 You and I will help Peter and David.
10.6 The farmer will dip the cattle today.

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Exercise 11: Fill in the correct pronoun :

Example : I read from my book. The book is mine.
11.1 You read from your book. The book is ________.
11.2 He reads from his book. The book is _________ .
11.3 She reads from her book. The book is _________.
11.4 It broke ____ leg.
11.5 We read from our books. The books are _______.
11.6 They read from their books. The books are ________.
11.7 Mary and John read their books. The books are ________.

Exercise 12: Use pronouns instead of the words in bold :

Example : This pen is a thing belonging to me.
This pen is mine.
12.1 The dog is an animal belonging to me.
12.2 Those cattle are animals belonging to us.
12.3 The t-shirt is a thing belonging to her.
12.4 These sheep are animals belonging to them.
12.5 This hat is a thing belonging to me.
12.6 These knives are things belonging to him.

Exercise 13: Fill in the correct pronoun :

13.1 I have lost _______ (belonging to me) pen.
13.2 Alfred tore _______ (belonging to him) trousers.
13.3 The farmers have ploughed __________ (belonging to them) fields.
13.4 She was wearing ___________ (belonging to her) blue dress.
13.5 Marius and I made ___________ (belonging to us) beds.
13.6 Have you found ___________ (belonging to you) books?
13.7 The baby bird opened _______ (belonging to it) beak.
13.8 Louis and Martin helped _________ (belonging to them) father.
13.9 The dog wagged ________ (belonging to it) tail.
13.10 She left _________ (belonging to her) book at home.

Exercise 14: Read through the examples and then fill in the correct pronouns :
Examples: I hurt myself. It hurts itself.
You hurt yourself. We hurt ourselves.
He hurts himself. You (two or more) hurt yourselves.
She hurts herself. They hurt themselves.
14.1 John cut ________ with a sharp knife.
14.2 I saw __________in the mirror.
14.3 We helped ___________ to some cake.

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14.4 The woman was speaking to ____________.

14.5 You must do this by ____________.
14.6 The children enjoyed ____________ very much.
14.7 My little sister dresses __________ every morning.
14.8 The horse hurt _________ trying to jump over the fence.
14.9 They burned _____________ while they were playing with matches.
14.10 Tom and Frans, did you wash _____________ this morning?
14.11 The bird killed ___________ when it flew against the wall.
14.12 Mother bought _____________ a new hat.

Exercise 15: Fill in WHO, WHOM, WHAT or WHICH :

The following words in capital letters are pronouns which help us to ask questions :
WHO lives there?
WHOM did you see in the classroom?
WHAT did you buy?
Here are two books. WHICH is yours?
15.1 _________ is the time, Jane?
15.2 _________ helped Patrick with his sums?
15.3 _________ did you meet at the post office?
15.4 _________ of the two girls is the older?
15.5 _________ did you ask to direct you to Dan Pienaar?
15.6 _________ of the dogs caught the rabbit?
15.7 _________ lives next door to them?
15.8 _________ is the date today?
15.9 _________ did you knock down with your bicycle?
15.10 _________ of you two children knows the answer?
15.11 _________ came first in that test?

Exercise 16: PRONOUNS can also be used as conjunctions.

Examples : This is the boy. He hit me.
This is the boy who/that hit me.

The car was black. The car knocked him down.

The car which/that knocked him down, was black.

REMEMBER : WHO is used for persons only.

WHICH is used for animals and things.
THAT is used for persons, animals and things.

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Choose the correct word in brackets:

16.1 It was my aunt (who, which) sent me the money.
16.2 The knife (whom, which) I found belong to Johan.
16.3 This is the bus (whom, which) we have to take to town.
16.4 I do not know the man (who, which) threw a stone at me.
16.5 He had a puppy (who, which) was run over by a lorry.
16.6 It was Andrew’s book (whom, which) I picked up on the playground.
16.7 The cow (which, whom) Father sold had a black calf.
16.8 He saw the woman (who, which) stole your cell phone.

CONJUNCTIONS (linking words)

Exercise 17: Conjunctions
Join each pair of sentences together with the words given in brackets. Pay attention
to correct usage of punctuation.
17.1 Joan will lay the table. Mother will fry the eggs. (and)
17.2 I called her. She did not hear me. (but)
17.3 I went to town yesterday. I bought new shoes yesterday. (and)
17.4 I sat down to rest. I was very tired. (because)
17.5 I saw the accident. I went to school. (when)
17.6 She fell. She was running across the street. (while)
17.7 Mom is singing. Dad is singing. I am not singing. (but)
17.8 She had a bath. She went to bed. (before)
17.9 He was ill. He did not go to school. (therefore)

Exercise 18: More conjunctions

CONJUNCTIONS do not only have to be added between two sentences. Sometimes
they are used at the beginning of a sentence.
Example : The rugby match is cancelled. It is raining. (because)
The rugby match is cancelled, because it is raining
or
Because it is raining, the rugby match is cancelled.
Combine the following sentences by using the conjunction in brackets. Start your
sentence with the given word.
18.1 She washed the dishes. He carried the dishes to the kitchen. (After)
18.2 It began to rain. We were playing soccer. (While)
18.3 Lettie sharpened the pencil. She began to write. (Before)
18.4 I shall visit my brother. I go to Durban. (When)
18.5 I watched TV. I was eating Kentucky. (While)
18.6 Mother mixed the ingredients. She baked a cake. (Before)

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PREPOSITIONS
Exercise 19: Fill in suitable prepositions
19.1 Please think ___________ the matter.
19.2 This sum is so difficult. It is __________ her ability.
19.3 Stealing goes __________ my principles.
19.4 The books were divided _____________ the pupils.
19.5 She is 16. She is ___ a difficult stage.
19.6 To warm up, the soccer players run ________ the field.
19.7 The second floor is ___________ the first floor.
19.8 The first floor is ____________ the second floor.
19.9 The teacher stood ___________ me when she explained the sum.
19.10 I cannot understand it! This is __________ my understanding!
19.11 ____ noon she arrived!
19.12 Take ______ all the soccer advertisements! It is over now!
19.13 I feel sorry ____ beggars.
19.14 This letter came _____ England.
19.15 My shoes were imported ______ Italy.
19.16 The concert is ___ the morning.
19.17 He concentrated. He tried to take ___ the facts.
19.18 The cat fell _______ the river.
19.19 The South Africans are fond ____ braaivleis.
19.20 After we had a fall-out, she went _____ in a hurry.
19.21 The picture hangs ___ the wall.
19.22 We congratulated him ___ his victory.
19.23 He loves rugby! He is very keen ____ it!
19.24 He finished school in 2017. He then went ___ university.
19.25 It was _____ midnight when she came in!
19.26 She was able ___ stop smoking.
19.27 The book, I am David, is similar ___ the movie!
19.28 I waited ____ my son to come home after the bachelor’s party.
19.29 The house is sale.
19.30 The meaning of the word lies ______ the sentence.

Exercise 20: Complete the sentences

Choose words provided in the word box to complete the following sentences
meaningfully.
Word box: motivated by / approve of / ill with / believe in /
ask of / ask for / rely on / insist on / accused of /
afraid of / object to / waits for

20.1 She has long been ___________________ bronchitis.

20.2 There is nothing to be _______, the murderer was caught by the police.
20.3 It is no wonder that people ____________ your conduct.
20.4 All I ________________ you is that you do your best this year.
20.5 The students _______________________ the exam time table.
20.6 The teachers are ____________________ the motivational quotes.

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20.7 Pensioners ___________________ the government grant for the elderly.

20.8 The parents ______________________ the young man’s behaviour.
20.9 I ______________________ God and Rasheed says he is spiritual.
20.10 Mother ____________________ me being home before 23h00.
20.11 The thug is _______________________ a smash-and-grab-robbery.
20.12 Father __________________________ me to finish my drama practice.

Sentence Structure

(paste in gr 9 p 10)

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A sentence has a subject, a verb and an object.

Subject = Who/what is sentence about

Verb = Action VERB + object = PREDICATE

Object = Who/what after the verb

PRACTICE ACTIVITIES: SENTENCE STRUCTURE

Exercise 21: Divide the sentences into the subject and the predicate
Copy the sentences into your book.
 Find the verb and circle it.
 Ask who or what is doing the verb. Underline the subject.
 Indicate the predicate with a “squiggly” line.
Remember: the verb forms part of the predicate.
21.1 Johnny told her to pass the ball.
21.2 The goalkeeper rushes out.
21.3 The whole team cheered.
21.4 The ball shoots towards me.
21.5 Her dad came to watch her play.

Exercise 22: Find the Subject – Verb – Object

Copy the sentences into your book.

 Find the verb and circle it.

 Ask who or what is doing the verb. Underline the SUBJECT.
 Ask who or what + verb + subject. The answer is your OBJECT. Indicate this
with a broken line.
22.1 The green frog ate the fly.
22.2 My favourite necklace has pretty gemstones.
22.3 The brown bear slept in a cave.
22.4 The wooden sailboat has an orange sail.
22.5 My sister wore a pretty dress.

PLEASE TURN OVER FOR: TENSES

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Tenses

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Tenses (cont.)

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PRACTICE ACTIVITIES: TENSES

Exercise 23: Using the correct tense
Write down the correct form of the word in brackets.
23.1 People (love) watching the monkeys in the zoo.
23.2 At the moment the athletes (line) up for the race to start.
23.3 We (study) the history of our city last year.
23.4 It is 9:00 and we (wait) for the doctor to examine my brother.
23.5 While John (run) the race, his friends cheered him on.
23.6 It (rain) tomorrow.
23.7 I (wonder) what my pet (think) when he (watch) me.
23.8 Jack (practise) hockey until five this afternoon.
23.9 Last week our teacher (show) us how to analyse a poem.
23.10 At that moment the robbers (escape) with the valuable jewels.
23.11 Up to now I (finish) three of my assessment tasks.
23.12 You can call any time – I (watch) rugby until late tonight.
23.13 It (become) cooler tonight.
23.14 Yesterday, by six o’clock I (do) my homework.
23.15 Bennie (help) his father until the job is done.
23.16 The groom (wait) in the isle when the bride arrives.
23.17 Unfortunately some animals (neglect) their young.
23.18 Tomorrow (be) the best day to go fishing.
23.19 After the thieves (stole) the jewels, they drove off in a black van.
23.20 She (go) to the library yesterday.

Direct and Indirect Speech

(reported speech)
1 2 3
(be) – am/is/are was/were been
eat ate eaten
sing sang sung
kick kicked kicked

When you report in the present:

 Your verb stays the same tense
 Your time indicator stays the same

“I am hungry today.”
Susan says that she is hungry today.

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“He eats an apple.”

Susan says that he eats an apple.

“He ate an apple last week.”

Susan says that he ate an apple last week.

“He will eat an apple next week.”

Susan says that he will eat an apple next week.

Exercise 24
Report the following sentences starting Peter says,
24.1 “I have seen many movies.”
24.2 “This is my favourite song.”
24.3 “My father loves gardening.”
24.4 “Susan is singing a song.”
24.5 “Martin kicked the ball yesterday.”

REPORTED SPEECH II
1 2 3
(be) – am/is/are was/were been
eat ate eaten
sing sang sung
kick kicked kicked

past perfect past present

had + 3rd 2nd 1st

When you report in the past:

 Your verb moves one tense back
 Your time indicator changes

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“I am hungry today.”
Susan said that she was hungry that day.

“He eats an apple .”

Susan said that he ate an apple.

“He ate an apple yesterday.”

Susan said that he had eaten an apple the day before/the previous day.

“He will eat an apple tomorrow.”

Susan said that he would eat an apple the next day/the following day.

Exercise 25
Report the following sentences starting Peter said,
25.1 “I have seen many movies.”
25.2 “This is my favourite song.”
25.3 “My father loves gardening.”
25.4 “Susan is singing a song.”
25.5 “Martin kicked the ball yesterday.”

REPORTED SPEECH III

1 2 3
go went gone
thank thanked thanked
congratulate congratulated congratulated
greet greeted greeted

“Thank you.” (Tom)

Susan thanks him.
Susan thanked him.

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“Congratulations.” (Anne)
Susan congratulates her.
Susan congratulated her.

“Good morning.” (Dad)

Susan greets her father.
Susan greeted her father.
***
“Are you coming to the party, John?”
“Yes.” (“No.”)
Susan asks/wants to know if he is coming to the party.
John says/replies that he is (not).

Common changes to remember:

 This – that
 These – those
 Here - there
 Today – that day
 Yesterday – the day before/the previous day
 Tomorrow – the next day/the following day

Exercise 26
Report the sentences, starting Peter says
26.1 “I was very angry yesterday.”
26.2 “She played my favourite song.”
26.3 “Hello, John.”

Report the sentences, starting Peter said

26.4 “Kathy has broken my heart.”
26.5 “We are racing tomorrow.”
26.6 “Congratulations, Paul!”

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PRACTICE ACTIVITY: REPORTED SPEECH

Exercise 27
Report the following sentences. Take note of the reporting verb – is it present (says)
or past (said).
27.1 “Some people are cruel to animals,” Margie says.
27.2 “Peter is like that. He kills animals for fun,” Jane replies.
27.3 “Does the cat always rub up against your legs like that?” Keith asks.
27.4 “Yes, it means that he is hungry,” John replies.
27.5 He said, “The athlete is running splendidly.”
27.6 “We are mapping out the route for the fun run,” Susan said.
27.7 “I am looking forward to our match tomorrow,” Paul said.
27.8 “I am proud of you,” he said.
27.9 “Thank you,” she said.
27.10 “Can I offer you a cup of tea?” asked Peter.

Concord rules

To show how the verb agrees with its subject in person and number:
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KNOW THESE CONCORD RULES!

1. Two singular subjects joined by and take a plural verb.

Tom and Harry are brothers.
2. Two singular subjects separated by either … or / neither … nor
take a singular verb.
Neither Peter nor his brother is athletes.
But: S + Pl = Pl Neither Peter nor his brothers are . . .
A singular subject who has a phrase beginning with like, with, or as well as
added to it takes a singular verb.
Dick, with two others, is going.
Mavis, like her sister, is clever.
James, as well as Peter, is here.
(Short cut: look at the subject CLOSEST TO THE VERB)
3. The nouns news, physics, mathematics, politics take a singular verb.
The news is bad.
Measles is an infectious disease.
Mathematics is taught by Mr Moloi.

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Politics is a subject I usually avoid.

Darts is an interesting game.
4. The nouns sports, athletics, trousers, shears, scissors, shorts, pliers, pants,
clippers, compasses, bellows, pincers, tongs, thanks take plural verbs.

Our sports were held on Friday. My trousers are dirty.

Athletics are popular. The scissors are blunt.
Use singular verb with ‘ A PAIR OF ‘
A pair of trousers is a useful gift.
My pair of compasses is lost.

5. In alternative subjects the verb takes the number of the alternative subject
nearest.
The captain or the soldiers are to die.
Is the boy, or the girls, to be blamed?
6. Expressions such as each (of), either (of), neither (of), one (of) and words
such as every, no-one, anybody, and nobody take a singular verb.

Each of the boys has a pen.

Each is different.
Either of the girls is available to assist.
Either is correct.
Neither of the dogs is mine.
Neither is missing.
One of the pupils is missing.
Not one of the sheep is missing.
Every pupil has passed.
No-one is allowed to go.
Somebody is making a noise.
Anybody is allowed to go.
Nobody has gone already!

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7. None may take either a singular or a plural verb.

None of us was strong enough.

None of us were able to do the sum.

8. Some nouns of multitude always take a plural verb.

These cattle are my father’s. The people were angry.

The poultry are doing well.
Animals, such as rats, mice and jackals do much harm.

Others such as Government, Council, Police, company, number, crowd,

pack, party may take either a singular or a plural verb.
a) If such a noun stands for a single group it takes a singular verb.
The Government has always helped the poor.
The crowd is well-behaved.
The Skhosana family is rich.
The Police is here!
b) When the noun stands for all the individuals, who make up the group, it
takes plural.
The Government have decided to do more for the poor.
The party have taken the food to the shelter.
The Body Corporate all agree to increase the levy.
A number of people were killed in the accident.

9. Care must be taken when the verb stands before the subject.
Yesterday there were a table and two chairs in the room.
There are children who work very hard.
On the table are pencils.

1. The words heaps and lots, meaning a great lot, are not good English but they
are sometimes used. They take a singular verb.

There is heaps of time.

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There is lots to do.

If a plural noun with of is used = plural ( plural noun + of = plural )

There are heaps of cups.
There are lots of figs on the tree.
11. Much / little = singular
Many / few = plural
There is little sugar left!
There are many apples on the tree.
Only a few parents are at the meeting.
Many boys play soccer.
There is not much we can do to comfort her now.
There is only a little flour in the pantry.

PRACTICE ACTIVITY: CONCORD

Exercise 28: Concord

Choose the correct word to complete the sentence.
28.1 He and she is/are brother and sister.
28.2 Both Tom and Dick is/are going to the cinema.
28.3 Fruit is/are healthy.
28.4 One of our horses is/are brown.
28.5 Our cattle is/are in good condition.
28.6 Much money is/are wasted on unnecessary things.
28.7 Game is/are plentiful in the Kruger National Park.
28.8 Trousers is/are unnecessary.
28.9 Some of the boys is/are going to university.
28.10 Very few of the people here is/are educated.
28.11 Little is/are done to protect the young.
28.12 Many of our sheep is/are dying of hunger.
28.13 Everybody in our town is/are proud of it!
28.14 The picture of the two lions feeding on a buck is/are excellent!
28.15 Mathematics is/are not so difficult.
28.16 Most of the passengers is/are injured.
28.17 Mara and I is/are washing the dishes.
28.18 The boy or the girls was/were to be punished.
28.19 Each boy was/were doing his best during the game.
28.20 Several pupils was/were absent today.

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28.21 Was/were David or the two girls watering the garden?

28.22 Teacher Sue, with two others, was/were planning something.
28.23 Either of the parcels was/were too heavy to carry.
28.24 The crowd is/are noisy.
28.25 He, as well as his family, is/are driving me mad!
28.26 My scissors is/are blunt.
28.27 Every pupil in Grade 12 has/have passed.
28.28 The Government has/have decided to support the poor.
28.29 Animals, such as jackals, rats and mice does/do much harm.
28.30 None of us was/were strong enough to lift that weight.
28.31 No one is/are able to give me the correct answer.
28.32 Neither is/are missing.
28.33 Every pupil has/have passed matric.
28.34 The captain or the soldiers is/are to die.
28.35 My pair of compasses is/are lost.
28.36 Fish and chips is/are my favourite meal!
28.37 Your shorts is/are in the washing machine.
28.38 Measles is/are an infectious disease.

Visual literacy: Advertisements

(paste in notes: English survival guide pp 27-31)

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GRADE 8: ENGLISH FAL – LANGUAGE TERM 1

Visual literacy: Cartoons

(paste in example)

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GRADE 8: ENGLISH FAL – LANGUAGE TERM 1

(paste in: types of cartoons)

(paste in: techniques used)

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GRADE 8: ENGLISH FAL – LANGUAGE TERM 1

(paste in: irony/pun)

When analysing cartoons or caricatures:

Verbal (words)/ text (writing) look at:
 Font – type and size
 Bold writing
 Punctuation
 Register (kind of words used)
Visual (picture) look at:
 Body language e.g. hands on hips, finger pointing, hunched
shoulders etc.
 Facial expression e.g. large eyes (express shock or fear), pursed
lips (express anger or irritation) tears (express sadness or
frustration) etc.
 Lines that indicate movement e.g. waving arm, running, jumping
etc.

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GRADE 8: ENGLISH FAL – LANGUAGE TERM 1

Summary
A summary is a shortened version of an original piece of writing. In your
exam you will be asked to reduce a text to a summary of about 70-90
words.
A point-form summary is a summary of a text that is written as a set of
NUMBERED sentences.

HOW TO DO A SUMMARY
1. Read the passage (for understanding).
2. Carefully read the instructions:
 What needs to be summarized
 Number of words required
3. Read the passage, underlining points you are going to use.
4. Check that you have 7 points.
5. Write the rough draft.
6. Edit:
 Count words
 Check spelling, punctuation and other language
7. Write final.

REMEMBER:
 Be accurate, clear and straightforward
 Use your own words as far as possible
 Use full sentences!
 Leave out examples
 Leave out figurative expressions
 Leave out lengthy descriptions
 Do not use quotations and direct speech
 Avoid writing in the first person (e.g. I, we, etc.)
 Rather use the third person voice (e.g. he, she, it, they etc.)
 When giving instructions, use the second person (e.g you, your,
etc.)

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GRADE 8: ENGLISH FAL – LANGUAGE TERM 1

(paste: example summary

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GRADE 8: ENGLISH FAL – LANGUAGE TERM 1

1. The Answer Series

2. SMILE – Interactive English
3. X-kit Reference English
4. The English Handbook and Study Guide
5. English in Action
6. Language Basics for Grade 8-12 (DBE guide)
7. English Survival Guide

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