South Africa Grade 4 Home Language

This course is based on the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) for English Home Language, Grades 4-6, issued by the Department of Basic Education of South Africa. The curriculum aims to develop learners' proficiency in listening, speaking, reading, viewing, writing, and presenting, with a focus on language structures and conventions.

Course Content:

• Listening and Speaking: Learners will engage in various oral communication activities, including listening comprehension, prepared and unprepared speeches, storytelling, discussions, debates, and interviews. They will develop skills in retelling stories, recalling details, reflecting on values and messages, expressing opinions, and using clarifying questions. Emphasis will be placed on developing clear pronunciation, phrasing, tempo, and appropriate use of volume, posture, and gestures.
• Reading and Viewing: Learners will read and analyze a variety of literary and non-literary texts, including folklore, short stories, novels, dramas, poetry, informational texts, and visual texts like advertisements, cartoons, and diagrams. They will develop reading strategies such as prediction, skimming, scanning, inferring meaning, and summarizing. They will also learn to identify text features, structures, and parts of a book. Critical language awareness will be fostered through analyzing how language is used to convey meaning and create specific effects.
• Writing and Presenting: Learners will practice writing different types of texts, including narratives, descriptions, poems, dialogues, letters, news reports, instructions, and advertisements. They will learn the writing process, from planning and drafting to revising, editing, proofreading, and presenting. Emphasis will be placed on developing clear and coherent writing, using appropriate vocabulary, grammar, spelling, and punctuation. Learners will also develop skills in creating visual aids for presentations.
• Language Structures and Conventions: Learners will build upon their knowledge of grammar, punctuation, and spelling. They will learn about parts of speech, sentence structure, verb tenses, and other language conventions. This knowledge will be applied in context through the other language skills. Formal instruction and practice in language structures and conventions will be provided.

Assessment:

Assessment will be both informal and formal. Informal assessment will involve daily monitoring of learners' progress through observation, discussions, and practical demonstrations. Formal assessment will include tests, examinations, practical tasks, oral presentations, and written tasks. The formal assessment program will comprise seven tasks throughout the year, accounting for 75% of the final mark, and a year-end examination accounting for 25%. The examination will cover reading comprehension, vocabulary, creative writing, transactional writing, and language structures and conventions. Listening and speaking skills will be assessed through formal tasks during the year and a summative mark will be allocated for the examination.

Learning and Teaching Support Materials (LTSM):

Learners will need a prescribed language textbook, a dictionary, and readers containing various text types. Media materials such as newspapers and magazines will also be used. Teachers will have access to the CAPS document, policy documents, textbooks, dictionaries, literature genres, media materials, and audio/visual aids. Classroom resources will include a range of texts at different reading levels, media materials, and audio/visual aids.