English for the PSLE: Reading Comprehension, Language Structure and Vocabulary
What the English paper asks of you
The Botswana PSLE English paper tests how well you read, understand and use English. Questions usually fall into three groups. Comprehension questions give you a short passage and ask about facts, sequence, cause and effect, character feelings, and the writer's purpose. Language structure questions test grammar: tenses, subject–verb agreement, pronouns, prepositions, articles, plurals, and direct to indirect speech. Vocabulary questions test word meaning, synonyms, antonyms, and choosing the right word for a gap. You must also handle punctuation, spelling, and sentence construction.
Concepts to master
For comprehension, practise finding answers inside the text rather than guessing from memory. Look for signal words such as because, however, therefore, first, finally, which show cause, contrast, result and order. Identify who says what, and notice words that show feeling, such as relieved, anxious, grateful.
For grammar, know the simple present, present continuous, simple past, past continuous and future forms. Remember that a singular subject takes a singular verb (The dog barks), and that words between subject and verb do not change this (The bag of oranges is heavy). Learn prepositions of time and place (in, on, at, since, for), and when to use a, an and the.
Traps to watch for
Common traps include: choosing an answer that sounds true but is not in the passage; missing a negative in the question (Which is NOT true?); confusing similar words such as affect/effect or borrow/lend; and ignoring tense clues like yesterday or next week. In gap-fill items, read the whole sentence before choosing, because the first word that fits may not be the best one.
Worked example
Passage: Thabo had waited at the bus stop since six o'clock. When the bus finally arrived, he sighed with relief. Question: How did Thabo feel when the bus came? The phrase sighed with relief gives the answer directly. Do not answer angry because you think the bus was late; the text does not say that. Rule of thumb: point to the exact words in the passage that support your answer.
Practice habit
Read the questions before the passage, underline key words, then answer in your own simple sentences, checking tense and punctuation.