Tanzania Form Two English Syllabus

This syllabus outlines the English language curriculum for Form Two students in Tanzania. It emphasizes a competence-based approach, focusing on developing practical communication skills.

Listening to Various Simple Oral Texts

Objectives: Students will be able to understand and respond to a range of simple oral texts on diverse topics, including events, situations, and dictations. They will develop the ability to answer questions, extract key information, and write down dictated content accurately.

Topics and Activities:

• Events: Listening to descriptions of various events, such as graduations, sports days, and accidents, and answering comprehension questions. Activities may include brainstorming vocabulary, answering guiding questions, and pronunciation drills.
• Situations: Understanding oral texts about different situations, such as those encountered in schools, markets, or bus stations. Activities may include brainstorming vocabulary, answering guiding questions, and pronunciation drills.
• Dictations: Writing down dictated texts accurately, focusing on spelling and punctuation. Activities may include listening to dictations at varying paces and correcting work using provided texts.

Speaking Using Slightly Complex Sentences

Objectives: Students will be able to express themselves orally using more complex sentence structures. They will learn to narrate events, describe situations, express opinions, and participate in discussions.

Topics and Activities:

• Narrating Events: Describing celebrations, accidents, elections, sports events, and visits using appropriate vocabulary and sentence structures. Activities may include brainstorming vocabulary, narrating personal experiences, and writing and presenting narratives.
• Expressing Personal and Group Routines/Habits: Talking about daily routines and habits, both personal and group-related, using appropriate vocabulary and sentence structures. Activities may include describing daily routines, preparing oral presentations, and writing about daily activities.
• Expressing Ongoing Activities: Describing activities happening at the moment, using present continuous tense. Activities may include describing actions being performed by oneself and others, and writing short texts about ongoing activities.
• Expressing Likes, Dislikes, and Preferences: Communicating personal preferences and opinions using appropriate vocabulary and sentence structures. Activities may include expressing likes and dislikes in pairs, writing about preferences, and reading dialogues.
• Talking About Family: Describing family relationships and occupations using appropriate vocabulary. Activities may include creating family trees, discussing family occupations, and writing about family members.
• Expressing Opinions and Feelings: Sharing personal opinions and feelings on familiar issues, including health, emotions, and past events. Activities may include stating health conditions, expressing feelings, and narrating past activities and events.
• Giving Directions and Locating Places: Giving and asking for directions, and describing the location of important places. Activities may include practicing giving directions, using maps and compasses, and expressing locations of places in different settings.
• Asking for Services: Making telephone calls, making reservations, and engaging in shopping conversations using appropriate language and expressions. Activities may include practicing telephone conversations, role-playing reservations, and using appropriate expressions for shopping.
• Describing Things: Describing things in terms of quality and quantity using appropriate vocabulary and sentence structures. Activities may include giving descriptions of objects, reading texts with descriptions, and writing short descriptive texts.
• Talking About Cultural Activities: Explaining how familiar games are played and describing marriage ceremonies and funerals. Activities may include brainstorming cultural practices, reading texts about cultural activities, and describing cultural events.

Reading Intensively

Objectives: Students will be able to read and understand a variety of simple English texts, including narratives, descriptions, and literary works. They will develop comprehension skills and the ability to explain the content of different genres.

Topics and Activities:

• Reading for Comprehension: Answering general and specific questions on texts read, focusing on extracting key information and understanding the main ideas. Activities may include reading texts silently, answering comprehension questions, and discussing answers in groups.
• Interpreting Literary Works: Explaining the message from simple stories and poems, and identifying themes and main features of different genres. Activities may include reading literary works, discussing characters and events, writing book reports, and answering questions on poems.

Writing Simple Texts

Objectives: Students will be able to write simple texts in English, including personal letters, notes, forms, and descriptions. They will develop writing skills and the ability to express themselves in different formats.

Topics and Activities:

• Writing Personal Letters: Writing friendly letters using appropriate format and vocabulary. Activities may include studying model letters and practicing writing letters to different recipients.
• Taking Notes: Writing down important points from oral and written texts. Activities may include taking notes from simple texts, discussing and correcting mistakes, and writing summaries.
• Filling in Forms: Completing various forms, such as bank forms, hospital forms, and school admission forms. Activities may include studying sample forms and practicing filling them in independently.
• Writing in a Diary: Writing entries in a diary, including personal thoughts, events, and plans. Activities may include brainstorming the uses of a diary, keeping a diary for a given period, and writing personal entries.
• Writing Cards and Messages: Creating cards for various occasions, writing telephone messages, and leaving written notes. Activities may include brainstorming occasions for cards, practicing writing different types of cards, and writing telephone messages.

This syllabus provides a framework for English language instruction in Form Two, focusing on developing essential communication skills through a variety of activities and learning experiences. The Tanzania Institute of Education (TIE) provides further details and resources for implementing this syllabus.