Sepedi First Additional Language - Term 1 - Week 9

Punctuation marks are important in writing because they help us understand the meaning of sentences. In Sepedi, we use full stops (.) to end sentences, commas (,) to separate items in a list, and question marks (?) at the end of questions. Today, we will learn how to use these punctuation marks correctly in our writing.

Let’s look at the sentence: 'Mokhudu o ja borai.' (Mokhudu eats rice.) If we want to ask a question, we can change it to 'Mokhudu o ja borai?' (Does Mokhudu eat rice?) Notice how we added a question mark at the end. Now, let’s add a comma in a list: 'Mokhudu, Thandi, le Sipho ba ja borai, le dipholo.' (Mokhudu, Thandi, and Sipho eat rice and vegetables.) Here, we used commas to separate the names.

Now, let’s work together to correct some sentences. I will write a sentence on the board: 'Thandi ja borai le dipholo' (Thandi eats rice and vegetables). What is missing at the end of this sentence? Yes, a full stop! Let’s rewrite it as 'Thandi ja borai le dipholo.' Can anyone tell me how we would ask if Thandi eats rice? Correct! 'Thandi ja borai?'

For your independent practice, I want you to write three sentences about your favorite food. Remember to use correct punctuation at the end of each sentence. After that, write a question about your favorite food. For example, 'O rata borai?' (Do you like rice?) Make sure to check your spacing between words and add full stops or question marks where needed.

• ?
• .
• ,

Answer: .

A full stop (.) is used to end a statement.

• Mokhudu o ja borai.
• Mokhudu o ja borai?
• Mokhudu ja.

Answer: Mokhudu o ja borai?

The sentence with a question mark is asking a question.

Answer: Example: 'Ke rata mangai.' (I like mango.)

Students should write a complete sentence about their favorite fruit.

• To end a sentence
• To separate items in a list
• To start a sentence

Answer: To separate items in a list

Commas are used to separate items in a list.

Answer: ?

A question mark (?) is used at the end of a question.

• O ja borai.
• O ja borai
• O ja borai?

Answer: O ja borai.

The sentence with a full stop is correct as it is a statement.

Answer: Example: 'O ja eng?' (What do you eat?)

Students should formulate a question about their eating habits.

• To make it look nice
• To separate words
• To confuse readers

Answer: To separate words

Spacing is important to ensure that words are clearly separated for better understanding.