South Sudan Primary 8 Curriculum - English

This curriculum is designed to equip learners with essential English language skills, focusing on reading, writing, speaking, and listening. The curriculum emphasizes active learning through group work, discussions, presentations, and creative writing activities. It also integrates relevant cultural and social themes to enhance understanding and critical thinking. The curriculum is based on the Primary 8 English Pupil's Book and Teacher's Guide developed by the Ministry of General Education and Instruction, Government of South Sudan.

Unit 1: Democracy

This unit introduces learners to the concept of democracy and its importance.

• Reading: Learners read fiction and non-fiction texts about democracy, focusing on comprehension and vocabulary development.
• Writing: Learners write fiction and non-fiction pieces on democracy, exploring different scenarios and perspectives. They also practice report writing, summarizing key information and presenting different viewpoints.
• Speaking and Listening: Learners participate in role-playing activities, simulating real-life situations related to democratic processes. They also listen to speeches and presentations on democracy, identifying main points and engaging in discussions.
• Vocabulary: Learners expand their vocabulary related to democracy, including terms like election, candidate, constitution, president, and dictatorship.
• Activities: Learners engage in various activities, including vocabulary exercises, role-playing, reading comprehension, creative writing, and analyzing literary techniques. They also learn about democratic processes in South Sudan and other countries.

Unit 2: Climate Change

This unit explores the causes and effects of climate change.

• Reading: Learners read non-fiction texts about climate change, including articles, journals, and news reports. They identify evidence for climate change and discuss the reasons behind it.
• Writing: Learners write about climate change, focusing on its causes, effects, and potential solutions. They also practice summary and report writing, synthesizing information from multiple sources. They write both fiction and non-fiction pieces, imagining potential future scenarios.
• Speaking and Listening: Learners participate in debates on climate change, arguing different perspectives and supporting their claims with evidence. They also listen to speeches and presentations on the topic, summarizing key points and analyzing complex language.
• Vocabulary: Learners expand their vocabulary related to climate change, including terms like atmosphere, weather, drought, habitat, ecosystem, environment, pollutant, and infectious.
• Activities: Learners engage in vocabulary exercises, debates, reading comprehension, creative writing, summary writing, and analyzing different viewpoints on climate change.

Unit 3: A Sustainable Economy

This unit examines the concept of a sustainable economy and its importance for the future.

• Reading: Learners read non-fiction texts about sustainability, exploring the challenges and potential solutions for a sustainable future.
• Writing: Learners write about sustainability, focusing on ways to achieve a sustainable economy. They also practice report writing, summarizing different perspectives and proposing solutions. They also write about their visions for the future.
• Speaking and Listening: Learners participate in debates on sustainability, arguing different viewpoints and supporting their claims with evidence. They also listen to speeches and presentations on the topic, summarizing key points and analyzing complex language.
• Vocabulary: Learners expand their vocabulary related to sustainability, including terms like developed, economy, infrastructure, literacy, industry, urban, rural, resources, deforestation, and desertification.
• Activities: Learners engage in vocabulary exercises, debates, reading comprehension, creative writing, report writing, and analyzing different perspectives on sustainability.

Unit 4: Conflict Resolution

This unit focuses on understanding conflict and exploring ways to resolve it peacefully.

• Reading: Learners read fiction and non-fiction texts about conflict resolution, exploring different types of conflict and methods for achieving reconciliation.
• Writing: Learners write about conflict and reconciliation, focusing on the causes of conflict and strategies for resolving it. They also practice summary and report writing, synthesizing information from multiple sources. They write both fiction and non-fiction pieces, exploring different perspectives and scenarios.
• Speaking and Listening: Learners participate in debates on conflict resolution, arguing different viewpoints and supporting their claims with evidence. They also listen to speeches and presentations on the topic, summarizing key points and analyzing complex language. They also participate in role-playing activities, simulating real-life conflict scenarios and practicing mediation techniques.
• Vocabulary: Learners expand their vocabulary related to conflict resolution, including terms like conflict, peace, war, mediator, and reconcile.
• Activities: Learners engage in vocabulary exercises, debates, reading comprehension, creative writing, role-playing, summary writing, report writing, and analyzing different viewpoints on conflict resolution.

Unit 5: Short Stories

This unit introduces learners to the elements of short stories and different literary techniques.

• Reading: Learners read a variety of short stories from Africa and around the world, analyzing their structure, characters, and themes.
• Writing: Learners write their own short stories, developing their own themes, plots, and characters.
• Speaking and Listening: Learners participate in group discussions and presentations, summarizing short stories, explaining their importance, and analyzing different authors' styles. They also practice narrating short stories, focusing on clear communication and engaging delivery.
• Vocabulary: Learners expand their vocabulary related to short stories, including terms like theme, story, setting, plot, narrate, and character.
• Activities: Learners engage in vocabulary exercises, reading comprehension, oral discussions, role-playing, creative writing, summary writing, comparing short stories from different authors, and analyzing literary techniques.

Unit 6: HIV and AIDS

This unit provides learners with information about HIV and AIDS, focusing on prevention and care.

• Reading: Learners read non-fiction texts about HIV and AIDS, including articles, journals, and government publications.
• Writing: Learners write about HIV and AIDS, focusing on its transmission, prevention, and impact on the community. They also create informational leaflets and brochures.
• Speaking and Listening: Learners listen to talks and presentations from health workers about HIV and AIDS, discussing different aspects of the disease and sharing information. They also participate in role-playing activities, simulating conversations with healthcare professionals and practicing communication skills. They also recite poems about HIV and AIDS.
• Vocabulary: Learners expand their vocabulary related to HIV and AIDS, including terms like deadly, disease, antiretroviral, hospital, unprotected, virus, immune, antibodies, infections, doctor, transmitted, abstain, blood cells, healthy, kills, living, talking, stigmatize, sick, and testing.
• Activities: Learners engage in vocabulary exercises, reading comprehension, oral discussions, role-playing, creative writing, poem recitation, and creating informational materials.

Unit 7: World Poetry

This unit explores poetry from around the world, focusing on different styles, forms, and themes.

• Reading: Learners read a range of poems from different cultures and time periods, analyzing their structure, language, and meaning.
• Writing: Learners write their own poetry, experimenting with different forms, styles, and themes.
• Speaking and Listening: Learners participate in group discussions and presentations, sharing their favorite poems, explaining their meaning, and analyzing different poets' styles. They also listen to poems being read aloud, summarizing main points and discussing their preferences.
• Vocabulary: Learners expand their vocabulary related to poetry, including terms like technology, poet, rhyme, prose, stare, slave, release, and warning.
• Activities: Learners engage in vocabulary exercises, reading comprehension, oral discussions, comparing poems from different poets, creative writing, and analyzing poetic devices.

Unit 8: World Drama

This unit introduces learners to the elements of drama and different playwrights from around the world.

• Reading: Learners read extracts from various plays, analyzing their structure, characters, and themes.
• Writing: Learners write their own short dramas, adapting well-known stories and adding stage directions.
• Speaking and Listening: Learners participate in group discussions and presentations, summarizing plays, explaining their importance, and comparing different playwrights' styles. They also act out their own dramas, practicing performance skills and receiving feedback from their peers. They may also use video recording to enhance their presentations.
• Vocabulary: Learners expand their vocabulary related to drama, including terms like squatting, talking, disobedient, classmate, confirm, looking, suddenly, children, sitting, nobody, walking, openness, heavier, picking, waiting, eagerly, bag, honest, answered, and continued.
• Activities: Learners engage in vocabulary exercises, reading comprehension, oral discussions, acting out drama, writing scripts, comparing plays from different playwrights, and using ICT to enhance their presentations.

Unit 9: 20th Century World Literature

This unit explores key literary works from the 20th century, focusing on their themes, styles, and cultural contexts.

• Reading: Learners read a range of 20th-century literature from around the world, analyzing their structure, characters, and themes.
• Writing: Learners write passages based on key themes from the literary works they have read, applying these themes to familiar settings.
• Speaking and Listening: Learners participate in group discussions and presentations, summarizing books and authors, explaining their importance, and comparing different writers' styles. They also listen to extracts from 20th-century literature being read aloud, discussing the content and meaning.
• Vocabulary: Learners expand their vocabulary related to 20th-century literature, including terms like great, shoulders, granary, lake, swayed, shield, chief, compound, stood, protruded, proudly, highest, wizened, politeness, arriving, and sent.
• Activities: Learners engage in vocabulary exercises, reading comprehension, oral discussions, summary writing, comparing different authors' works, creative writing, and analyzing literary techniques.

Unit 10: 19th Century World Literature

This unit explores key literary works from the 19th century, focusing on their themes, styles, and cultural contexts.

• Reading: Learners read a range of 19th-century literature from around the world, analyzing their structure, characters, and themes.
• Writing: Learners write passages based on key themes from the literary works they have read, applying these themes to familiar settings.
• Speaking and Listening: Learners participate in group discussions and presentations, summarizing books and authors, explaining their importance, and comparing different writers' styles. They also listen to extracts from 19th-century literature being read aloud, discussing the content and meaning.
• Vocabulary: Learners expand their vocabulary related to 19th-century literature, including terms like approaching, newer, man, large, waist coat, dust, child, dusty, swarthy, woman, just, and tired.
• Activities: Learners engage in vocabulary exercises, reading comprehension, oral discussions, summary writing, comparing different authors' works, creative writing, and analyzing literary techniques.