Xitsonga First Additional Language - Term 3 - Week 5

Grammar is the set of rules that helps us use a language correctly. In Xitsonga, just like in any language, we need to pay attention to how we form our sentences. This includes using the right words, putting them in the correct order, and adding punctuation marks like full stops and question marks. Today, we will explore how to make our sentences clearer and more interesting.

Let's look at the sentence: 'Nna u ya eskolweni.' This means 'I go to school.' Now, if we want to ask a question, we need to change it to 'Nna u ya eskolweni?' Notice how the question mark changes the meaning. We will practice changing statements into questions and adding punctuation to make our sentences correct.

Now, let's work together to create sentences. I will give you a few words: 'mama', 'u', 'bika', 'ndzi', 'na'. How can we arrange these words to form a correct sentence? (Expected answer: 'Mama u bika ndzi na.') Let's also add punctuation at the end. Remember, every sentence needs to start with a capital letter and end with a full stop or question mark.

For your independent practice, I will give you a short paragraph with some mistakes. Your task is to read the paragraph and find the errors. Correct the sentences by adding punctuation and fixing any grammatical mistakes. After that, write your own short paragraph about your favorite animal, making sure to use correct grammar and punctuation.

• Full stop
• Comma
• Question mark
• Exclamation mark

Answer: Question mark

A question mark is used to indicate that a sentence is asking something.

• Nna u ya eskolweni
• nna U ya eskolweni.
• Nna u ya eskolweni?
• Nna u ya eskolweni!

Answer: Nna u ya eskolweni.

The correct sentence should start with a capital letter and end with a full stop.

Answer: My best friend is Thandi.

Students should provide a simple sentence that follows grammatical rules.

• To make it longer
• To correct mistakes
• To change the meaning
• To add more words

Answer: To correct mistakes

Editing helps us find and fix errors in our writing.

Answer: Comma

A comma is used to separate items in a list.

• I like ice cream.
• Do you like ice cream?
• Ice cream is delicious.
• I eat ice cream.

Answer: Do you like ice cream?

This sentence asks a question and ends with a question mark.

• A number
• A capital letter
• A small letter
• A punctuation mark

Answer: A capital letter

Every sentence begins with a capital letter to indicate the start of a new thought.