Basic 7 · English Language
Long Vowel Sounds, Adverbs, Explaining Events and Text Structure
In this topic you will pronounce and spell words with long vowel sounds, use adverbs to modify verbs, write an expository account explaining how an event happened, and use text structures to understand what you read.
By the end of these notes you should be able to:
- Pronounce, distinguish and spell words with long vowel sounds
- Identify kinds of adverbs and use them to modify verbs
- Write an expository account explaining the causes and sequence of an event
- Identify common text structures and their signal words
What you already know
- Short vowel sounds
- Writing to explain a process
Copy everything that has a blue line on its left into your notebook. The other parts are for reading.
Lesson 1
- Strand
- Oral Language
- Sub-strand
- Speech Sounds
- Indicator
- B7.1.3.1.2 – Produce pure vowel sounds (long vowels) in context
Introduction
"Sit" and "seat", "full" and "fool", "cot" and "caught": the difference between these words is the length and quality of the vowel. Long vowels are held for longer and sound different from short ones.
1. The Five Long Vowels
| Symbol | Sound as in | More examples | Common spellings |
|---|---|---|---|
| /iː/ | see | sheep, eat, field, key | ee, ea, ie, ey |
| /ɑː/ | car | father, heart, half, calm | ar, a, ear, al |
| /ɔː/ | door | saw, caught, ball, four | or, aw, au, al, our |
| /uː/ | food | blue, shoe, juice, through | oo, ue, oe, ui, ough |
| /ɜː/ | bird | word, learn, turn, her | ir, or, ear, ur, er |
The colon-like mark (ː) after the symbol shows that the vowel is long.
2. Short and Long Pairs
| Short | Long |
|---|---|
| ship /ɪ/ | sheep /iː/ |
| full /ʊ/ | fool /uː/ |
| cot /ɒ/ | caught /ɔː/ |
| hut /ʌ/ | heart /ɑː/ |
| bed /e/ | bird /ɜː/ |
3. Producing Long Vowels Correctly
For /iː/ spread the lips as if smiling and hold the sound. For /uː/ round and push the lips forward. For /ɑː/ open the mouth wide and keep the tongue low. For /ɔː/ round the lips and keep the mouth fairly open. For /ɜː/ keep the lips relaxed and the tongue in the middle of the mouth. Many speakers find /ɜː/ difficult and say "bed" for "bird"; practise "first", "work" and "learn" slowly.
4. Why Vowel Length Matters
Changing the vowel can change the meaning entirely. "Please sit on the seat" uses both /ɪ/ and /iː/. If you say "I need a sheep" when you mean "I need a ship", the listener will be confused. In examinations, you may be asked to choose the word with the same vowel sound as a given word, so careful listening is important.
5. Practice Passage
Read aloud: "Early in the morning, Kofi's father walked to the farm. The birds were singing, and the cool breeze moved through the tall corn. He saw a small blue bird on a branch near the stream. 'What a beautiful morning,' he thought, as he started to work."
Find words with each long vowel: early, birds, work (/ɜː/); father, farm (/ɑː/); walked, corn, saw (/ɔː/); cool, blue, moved (/uː/); breeze, stream (/iː/).
New words
- long vowel
- A vowel sound held for a longer time, such as /iː/.
- phonetic symbol
- A sign that stands for one speech sound.
- vowel length
- How long a vowel sound is held.
Summary
- English has five long pure vowels: /iː/, /ɑː/, /ɔː/, /uː/ and /ɜː/.
- Long and short vowels can change meaning, as in ship and sheep.
Exercises
Answer in your exercise book first, then check your answers.
1. Which word has the /uː/ sound?
- A. food
- B. foot
- C. fat
- D. fit
Show answer
Answer: foodLong /uː/.2. "Bird" and "word" have the same vowel sound.
- A. True
- B. False
Show answer
Answer: TrueBoth /ɜː/.3. "Cot" and "______" form a short and long vowel pair.
Show answer
Answer: caught/ɒ/ and /ɔː/.4. Give two words with the /ɑː/ sound.
Show answer
Answer: car, father (or heart, half)Any two.
Lesson 2
- Strand
- Grammar
- Sub-strand
- Adverbs
- Indicator
- B7.3.1.1.5 – Use adverbs to modify verbs accurately at the phrase and sentence level
Introduction
"The boy ran." Now add adverbs: "The boy ran quickly home yesterday." The adverbs tell us how, where and when he ran.
1. What Is an Adverb?
Adverb: A word that modifies a verb, an adjective or another adverb, telling us how, when, where, how often or to what degree.
2. Kinds of Adverbs
| Kind | Question answered | Examples | Sentence |
|---|---|---|---|
| manner | how? | quickly, carefully, loudly, well | She sang beautifully. |
| time | when? | now, yesterday, soon, early | We left early. |
| place | where? | here, outside, everywhere, upstairs | The children played outside. |
| frequency | how often? | always, often, sometimes, never | He always prays before meals. |
| degree | to what extent? | very, quite, too, almost, extremely | It is very hot today. |
3. Forming Adverbs of Manner
| Rule | Examples |
|---|---|
| most adjectives: add -ly | slow → slowly, careful → carefully |
| ending in y: change to i + ly | happy → happily, easy → easily |
| ending in -le: drop e, add y | gentle → gently, simple → simply |
| ending in -ic: add -ally | basic → basically |
| irregular | good → well, fast → fast, hard → hard |
4. Position of Adverbs
Adverbs of manner usually come after the verb or object: "She read the passage carefully." Adverbs of frequency usually come before the main verb but after "be": "He often visits us." "She is always punctual." Adverbs of time often come at the beginning or end: "Yesterday, we went to Ho." "We went to Ho yesterday." When several adverbs appear together, the usual order is manner, place, time: "He worked hard in the farm all day."
5. Adverbs and Adjectives
Do not confuse adjectives and adverbs. Adjectives describe nouns: "She is a careful driver." Adverbs describe verbs: "She drives carefully." A common error is "He did good in the test"; the correct form is "He did well in the test". "Good" is an adjective, while "well" is the adverb.
6. Adverbs in a Paragraph
Read this paragraph and notice how adverbs make the action clear: "Early in the morning, the farmers walked slowly to the field. They worked hard and rarely stopped to rest. At noon, the sun shone fiercely, so they sat quietly under a tree. Later, they returned home happily, carrying baskets of fresh maize." Each adverb tells us when, how or how often the farmers did something, making the picture much more vivid.
New words
- adverb
- A word that modifies a verb, adjective or adverb.
- adverb of manner
- An adverb that tells how something is done.
- adverb of frequency
- An adverb that tells how often something happens.
Summary
- Adverbs tell how, when, where, how often and to what degree an action happens.
- Many adverbs of manner end in -ly; place adverbs correctly and do not confuse "good" with "well".
Exercises
Answer in your exercise book first, then check your answers.
1. Which word is an adverb of manner?
- A. carefully
- B. careful
- C. care
- D. caring
Show answer
Answer: carefullyTells how.2. "Always" is an adverb of frequency.
- A. True
- B. False
Show answer
Answer: TrueTells how often.3. She speaks English ______ (good).
Show answer
Answer: wellAdverb form.4. Identify the adverbs in: "He quickly ran outside yesterday."
Show answer
Answer: quickly (manner), outside (place), yesterday (time)Three adverbs.
Lesson 3
- Strand
- Writing
- Sub-strand
- Expository Writing
- Indicator
- B7.4.2.1.4 – Compose a paragraph to explain a process social and natural phenomena (how to do or use something how something works)
Introduction
When something important happens at school or in the community, people want to know what happened, in what order and why. Writing that explains an event clearly is a useful skill for reports and news.
1. Explaining Events
An explanation of an event answers the questions: What happened? When and where did it happen? Who was involved? In what order did things happen? Why did it happen? What were the results? It uses the past tense, time order and cause-and-effect words.
2. Useful Language
| Purpose | Words |
|---|---|
| time order | first, then, after that, later, at about 10 a.m., by noon, finally |
| cause | because, since, as a result of, due to |
| effect | so, therefore, as a result, consequently |
| adding detail | in addition, also, moreover |
3. Model Paragraph: The Day the Lights Went Out
On Tuesday, our school was without electricity for six hours. At about nine o'clock in the morning, a heavy storm brought strong winds and rain. Because of the wind, a large mango tree near the main road fell onto the electricity pole. As a result, the cables snapped and the power went off in the whole area. Teachers moved lessons to the classrooms with the most daylight, and the computer practical was postponed. By noon, workers from the Electricity Company of Ghana had arrived to clear the tree. Finally, at three o'clock, they repaired the cables and the power was restored. The headteacher later asked the District Assembly to trim the trees near the school to prevent such problems in future.
4. Planning Your Explanation
- Choose an event you saw or heard about, such as a sports day, a flood or a visit.
- Note the time, place and people involved.
- List what happened in order.
- Identify causes and effects.
- Write in the past tense with time and cause-and-effect words.
- End with the result or what was learned.
5. Daily Journal Writing
Writing about the events of each day in a journal builds this skill. Each evening, write a short paragraph about one important event: what happened, why, and how you felt. Over time, you will become faster and clearer at explaining events.
New words
- event
- Something that happens, especially something important.
- cause
- The reason why something happens.
- effect
- The result of an action or event.
Summary
- Explaining an event answers what, when, where, who, how and why.
- Use the past tense, time order and cause-and-effect words.
Exercises
Answer in your exercise book first, then check your answers.
1. Which word shows effect?
- A. as a result
- B. because
- C. first
- D. since
Show answer
Answer: as a resultShows the result.2. An explanation of a past event is usually written in the past tense.
- A. True
- B. False
Show answer
Answer: TrueIt already happened.3. ______ of the wind, a tree fell onto the pole.
Show answer
Answer: BecauseShows cause.4. Give the cause and effect in: "The road was flooded, so the bus could not pass."
Show answer
Answer: Cause: the road was flooded. Effect: the bus could not pass.Cause and effect.
Lesson 4
- Strand
- Reading
- Sub-strand
- Comprehension
- Indicator
- B7.2.1.1.4 – Use text structure to understand and read texts independently
Introduction
Writers organise information in different ways, just as builders use different plans for different houses. Recognising the plan, or text structure, helps you follow and remember the ideas.
1. Common Text Structures
| Structure | Purpose | Signal words |
|---|---|---|
| description | describes features of a topic | for example, such as, characteristics |
| sequence (chronological) | gives events or steps in order | first, next, then, finally, in 1957 |
| compare and contrast | shows similarities and differences | similarly, both, however, whereas, unlike |
| cause and effect | explains why things happen | because, so, therefore, as a result |
| problem and solution | presents a problem and ways to solve it | problem, solution, solve, one answer is |
2. Reading Passage: Two Seasons in Ghana
Ghana has two main kinds of weather each year: the rainy season and the dry season. Both are important for farming, but they are very different.
In the rainy season, which in the south usually begins around April, heavy rains fall, rivers fill up and the land becomes green. Farmers plant maize, cassava and vegetables. However, floods can damage roads and homes.
In contrast, the dry season brings little rain. In the north, it lasts much longer than in the south, and the harmattan, a dry, dusty wind from the Sahara, blows from about November to February. The air becomes cool at night and hot in the afternoon. Unlike the rainy season, the dry season is a time for harvesting, drying crops and holding festivals.
3. Identifying the Structure
The passage uses a compare-and-contrast structure. Signal words include "both", "however", "in contrast" and "unlike". A Venn diagram or a two-column table is a good way to make notes on this structure.
| Rainy season | Both | Dry season |
|---|---|---|
| heavy rain, green land | important for farming | little rain, harmattan |
| planting maize, cassava | part of each year | harvesting, drying crops, festivals |
| floods damage roads | cool nights, hot afternoons |
4. Using Text Structure When Reading
Before reading, survey the text and look for signal words. Decide which structure the writer uses, then choose a graphic organiser to make notes: a timeline for sequence, a Venn diagram for comparison, a flowchart for cause and effect, and a two-box chart for problem and solution. This helps you read independently and remember more.
New words
- text structure
- The way information in a text is organised.
- signal word
- A word that shows how ideas are connected.
- graphic organiser
- A diagram for organising information.
Summary
- Common text structures are description, sequence, compare and contrast, cause and effect, and problem and solution.
- Signal words reveal the structure, and graphic organisers help you make notes.
Exercises
Answer in your exercise book first, then check your answers.
1. Which signal word shows contrast?
- A. unlike
- B. first
- C. because
- D. for example
Show answer
Answer: unlikeShows difference.2. The harmattan is a dry, dusty wind.
- A. True
- B. False
Show answer
Answer: TrueFrom the passage.3. A ______ diagram is useful for comparing two things.
Show answer
Answer: VennOverlapping circles.4. Which text structure would a passage about the history of Ghana from 1957 use? Why?
Show answer
Answer: Sequence, because it presents events in time order.Chronological.
Homework
- Write a journal entry explaining an event that happened in your home or school this week.
- Find a passage in your Science or Social Studies book and name its text structure.