Samoa School Syllabus - English

This course focuses on developing fundamental English skills, including listening, speaking, reading, writing, and critical thinking. Students will engage with a variety of texts and develop their comprehension and analytical skills. The curriculum emphasizes practical application of English in everyday situations, including communication, research, and creative expression.

Term 1

• Unit 1: Getting to Know Myself: This unit focuses on developing speaking and listening skills through question and answer exercises, personal reflection, and creating scrapbooks and family trees. Students will also learn about passport vocabulary and complete a passport application.
• Unit 2: Getting to Know Other People: This unit builds on the previous unit by using question and answer techniques to learn about other people. Students will study profiles, conduct interviews, and create profiles of people in their community. They will also learn about word usage and prefixes.
• Unit 3: Research Using Simple Questions: This unit focuses on research skills. Students will develop research questions, conduct surveys, and present their findings in various formats, such as posters, charts, or booklets. They will also practice their presentation skills.
• Unit 4: Following Instructions: This unit focuses on understanding and following instructions. Students will learn about phrasal verbs, prepositions, and instructional language. They will practice giving and following directions, making origami, and following recipes.

Term 2

• Unit 5: Working in Groups: Speaking and Listening: This unit emphasizes effective group work skills. Students will learn about group dynamics, roles within a group, and strategies for collaboration. They will also practice problem-solving and conflict resolution in group settings.
• Unit 6: Working with Words: Idioms: This unit focuses on idioms and phrasal verbs. Students will learn the meanings of common idioms and how to use them in conversations and writing.
• Unit 1: Oral Presentation - Making a Speech and Reciting a Poem: This unit focuses on public speaking skills. Students will learn how to prepare and deliver speeches, focusing on information, explanation, persuasion, and entertainment. They will also practice reciting poems, paying attention to pronunciation, tone, and body language.

Term 3

Unit 3: Novel Study - The Silent One by Joy Cowley: This unit focuses on the novel The Silent One*. Students will explore the plot, characters, setting, and themes of the book. They will also participate in discussions and oral presentations related to the story's themes.

• Unit 4: Media Studies: This unit introduces students to media literacy. They will learn about different forms of media, including newspapers, television, radio, magazines, and the internet. They will also analyze news stories, editorials, columns, and cartoons, distinguishing between fact and opinion.
• Unit 5: Dictionary Skills: This unit focuses on developing dictionary skills. Students will learn how to use a dictionary to find word meanings, parts of speech, pronunciation, and derivations. They will also explore synonyms, abbreviations, and new vocabulary.

Term 4

• Unit 7: Grammar Revision: This unit reviews essential grammar concepts. Students will revise parts of speech, tenses, prefixes, suffixes, plural formation, and sentence construction. They will also practice identifying and correcting grammatical errors.
• Unit 8: Library Skills: This unit focuses on developing library research skills. Students will learn about library organization, different types of books, and the Dewey Decimal System. They will also practice locating books, writing book reviews, and using library resources.
• Unit 9: Focus on Poetry: This unit explores poetry. Students will read and analyze various poems, focusing on poetic devices such as simile, metaphor, personification, alliteration, and onomatopoeia. They will also write their own poems and explore song lyrics.