Register on the Phone and Online, Pronoun Errors, Dialogue in Narratives and Prediction

1. Telephone Conversations

On the phone, the listener cannot see your face, so your voice must carry politeness and clarity. Speak slowly, give your name at the start, state your reason for calling and end politely.

2. Text Messages and Chats

Text messages and chat apps such as WhatsApp are mostly informal. Friends use short forms ("u" for you, "pls" for please), emojis and very short sentences. This is acceptable among friends, but not in schoolwork, examinations or messages to adults in authority.

3. Formal Emails

4. Comparing Two Messages

Informal text to a friend: "Hey Ama, pls bring my maths book 2moro. Thx! 😊" Formal email to a teacher: "Dear Mr Owusu, I was absent on Monday because I was ill. Could you kindly tell me the homework given? Thank you. Yours sincerely, Ama Boateng."

The email uses a greeting, full words, correct spelling and punctuation, a clear reason and a polite closing. The text message uses abbreviations and an emoji, which suit only a close friend.

5. Online Manners (Netiquette)

Online, be polite and think before you post. Do not write in capital letters, which looks like shouting. Do not share other people's photos or private information without permission. Remember that messages can be forwarded and screenshots kept for a long time.

1. Errors with Pairs of People

2. Indefinite Pronouns and Agreement

Indefinite pronouns such as everyone, everybody, someone, nobody, each and either are singular and take a singular verb: "Everyone is present." "Each of the girls has a book." Pronouns such as both, few, many and several are plural: "Both are correct." Some words, such as all, some and none, can be singular or plural depending on what follows: "All of the rice is cooked." "All of the learners are here."

3. Who and Whom

Use "who" as a subject and "whom" as an object. A simple test: if you can answer with "he", use "who"; if you can answer with "him", use "whom". "Who broke the window?" (He broke it.) "To whom did you give the letter?" (I gave it to him.) In informal speech many people use "who" for both, but in formal writing "whom" is correct for objects.

4. Pronouns after "than" and "as"

In comparisons, finish the sentence in your mind to choose the right pronoun: "Esi is taller than I (am)." "The teacher likes Kojo as much as (she likes) me." Using the full form shows which pronoun is correct.

5. Clear Reference

Every pronoun must clearly point to one noun. Unclear: "When Kwame met Yaw, he was happy." Who was happy? Clear: "Kwame was happy when he met Yaw." Also avoid using "they" without a clear noun: instead of "They say rain will fall", write "The weather forecasters say rain will fall."

1. Writing Dialogue

Dialogue is the words that characters say. It is written in quotation marks and makes characters seem real. Begin a new paragraph each time a different person speaks.

2. Using Sensory Details

Sensory details describe what you see, hear, smell, taste and touch. Instead of "The kitchen was nice", write "The kitchen smelled of palm-nut soup, and steam rose from the black pot as Grandma stirred it with a wooden spoon."

3. Model Paragraph with Dialogue

The bell rang, and everyone rushed to the field. "Today we play Adisadel Junior!" our captain shouted, punching the air. My stomach turned. The grass was still wet from the morning rain, and the smell of fresh paint from the goalposts filled my nose.

"Are you nervous?" Kojo asked, tying his boots.

"A little," I admitted. "But we have trained hard."

He grinned. "Then let's show them."

4. Editing Your Narrative

5. Variety in Sentences

Mix short and long sentences to control the pace. Short sentences create tension at exciting moments: "Then I heard it. A loud crack. The branch was breaking." Longer sentences slow the reader down for description. Begin sentences in different ways, for example with a time phrase ("At dawn,..."), a feeling ("Nervously,...") or an action ("Grabbing my bag,...").

1. What Is Prediction?

Prediction: A thoughtful guess about what will happen next in a text, based on clues and what you already know.

Good predictions are based on evidence: the title, pictures, headings, what characters say and do, and your own knowledge of the world. As you read, you check whether your prediction was right and change it when new information appears.

2. Steps in Using Prediction

3. Reading Passage: The Locked Room (Part 1)

Every morning, Akosua passed the small room at the end of her grandfather's house. It was always locked, and the key hung on a nail high above the door, too high for her to reach. "That room is not for children," Grandfather would say whenever she asked.

One afternoon, while the adults were at a funeral in the next village, Akosua noticed something strange. The key was not on its nail. It lay on the floor beside a wooden stool, as if someone had dropped it in a hurry. Her heart began to beat faster. She picked up the key and looked at the door.

Stop and predict: What will Akosua do? What might be inside the room?

4. The Locked Room (Part 2)

Slowly, Akosua turned the key. The door creaked open. Dust floated in the beam of light from a small window. Inside were rows of carved wooden figures, drums and a tall stool wrapped in black cloth. On the wall hung an old photograph of a young man in kente, holding a sword.

"So you found it," said a voice behind her. Grandfather stood at the door. He did not look angry. "These belonged to our ancestors," he said gently. "I was waiting until you were old enough to understand. Now I think you are ready."

5. Checking Predictions

Many readers predict that Akosua will open the door, and they are right. Fewer readers predict that Grandfather will be kind rather than angry. The clue that he was "waiting" for her to be ready shows he planned to share the room's secret. Changing a prediction when new clues appear is a sign of a good reader.