Activity 6: Look at language

Use these questions to guide a discussion on the newspaper article.

Skim means to read something quickly to get an overview, for example, skim newspaper headlines for the main news. Scan means to run one’s eye over the text to get specific details without reading every single word, for example, to find the name of the anonymous donor.

1. Scan the article for the following information: a) The name of the boy who collected books b) The number of books collected c) On which radio channel he was interviewed d) His mother’s name e) The bookshop with whom they worked closely 2. What is the purpose of the article? 3. Does this article send a message to the youth of South Africa? 4. Does the library only have English books? Quote a sentence from the article to substantiate your answer. 5. What genre of books are available in the library? 6. Read the last paragraph. What, apart from the fact that Yonela has helped start a muchneeded library, is the main impact of what he did? 7. What is the name of the anonymous donor? 8. In your opinion, why did she come forward at the unveiling? 9. How did the learners welcome the visitors to the school at the unveiling of the library? 10. What does Yonela mean when he says, “Books can be your new friend”?

Activity 6: Look at language

Let’s read about nouns.

Nouns

Noun: the name of a person, place or thing Common nouns name ordinary objects, for example, newspaper, book, donor, library.

Proper nouns name particular people, places or things, for example, Yonela, Bovet Primary School, and Johannesburg Public Library. Proper nouns always start with a capital letter.

Countable nouns are nouns that can be counted, for example, flower, book, library, and donor. They can be in the singular and the plural.

Uncountable nouns are nouns that cannot be counted, for example, sugar, water, sand, paper. (These can only be put into containers and the containers counted.)

Give three common and three proper nouns.