Grade 12 Science: English

In this unit, 'Prose and poetry from world writers', you learn to compare two authors' treatment of one theme. You work with exam-style questions and written reasoning. You see it, say it, then do it alone.

• Listen first: your teacher or a recording says the new words or sentences from 'Prose and poetry from world writers' twice. You repeat them aloud.
• Notice the pattern: find where the new sound, word form or sentence rule appears in a short text and mark it.
• Use it: compare two authors' treatment of one theme, first with help, then alone.
• Check and fix: read your work aloud once more; fix one thing you hear is wrong.

Step by step.

1. Step 1, State the theme in a sentence. Extract A (prose): 'Ravi lay on the riverbank for an hour, counting the ripples as if they were sums that would one day add up.' Extract B (poem): 'The microscope shows me a drop of pond: / a whole crowded city nobody planned.' Theme: patient looking turns nature into wonder.
2. Step 2, Gather evidence from A. 'Counting the ripples' shows slow, careful observation, like a scientist taking measurements. The simile 'as if they were sums' links nature with mathematics and suggests Ravi believes the pattern will eventually make sense. 'One hour' shows how patient he is.
3. Step 3, Gather evidence from B. 'A drop of pond' is tiny, but the metaphor 'a whole crowded city' makes it huge and busy. 'Nobody planned' suggests life organises itself without a designer. The tone is amazed. The microscope, a tool, is what reveals the wonder.
4. Step 4, Build a comparison grid. Similarity: both characters discover meaning by observing closely. Difference: Ravi observes with his eyes and patience, and still waits for understanding; the speaker uses an instrument and is already astonished. Choose linking words: both, whereas, by contrast.
5. Step 5, Write one comparative paragraph. 'Both writers show that careful observation reveals order in nature. In A, ripples are "sums that would one day add up", so understanding is still to come; in B, the pond is already "a whole crowded city", so wonder is immediate. Both use comparison to make nature feel familiar.'
6. Step 6, Your turn: compare the simile in A with the metaphor in B in two sentences. Model answer: A's simile 'as if they were sums' makes ripples a puzzle to solve, while B's metaphor 'a crowded city' makes the pond a place to marvel at. Both comparisons turn something small into something full of meaning.

Activity. About 40 to 50 minutes of class work, then one short practice task for home. Keep evidence: a timed paper and an error log.

Standard to meet. Compare two authors' treatment of one theme: at least 70 percent on an exam-style task, with the method shown.

In this unit, 'Grammar and editing', you learn to edit and transform text with precision. You work with exam-style questions and written reasoning. You see it, say it, then do it alone.

• Listen first: your teacher or a recording says the new words or sentences from 'Grammar and editing' twice. You repeat them aloud.
• Notice the pattern: find where the new sound, word form or sentence rule appears in a short text and mark it.
• Use it: edit and transform text with precision, first with help, then alone.
• Check and fix: read your work aloud once more; fix one thing you hear is wrong.

Step by step.

1. Step 1, Edit for scientific style. Draft: 'We heated the water to 60 degrees and we wore goggles.' Method sections use the passive and the past tense: 'The water was heated to 60 °C. Safety goggles were worn and the beaker was handled with tongs.' The passive keeps the focus on the procedure, and safety is part of the method.
2. Step 2, Edit units and numbers. '5ml' becomes '5 mL', with a space and a correct symbol. 'sixty degrees' becomes '60 °C'. Always write the unit once after the number, keep one style throughout, and use figures for measurements. Check each quantity against the data table.
3. Step 3, Edit agreement and fewer/less. 'The data shows that less samples dissolved.' Formal usage: 'The data show that fewer samples dissolved.' Data is treated as plural in formal science writing, and 'fewer' is used for countable things such as samples, while 'less' is used for uncountable things such as water.
4. Step 4, Edit certainty. 'This proves that heat speeds up dissolving.' One experiment rarely proves anything, so hedge: 'This suggests that higher temperature increases the rate of dissolving.' Use may, suggests, indicates or is consistent with when the evidence is limited.
5. Step 5, Transform by combining. 'The solution was stirred. It was left for ten minutes.' Joined: 'The solution was stirred and then left for ten minutes.' Or with a relative clause: 'The solution, which was stirred first, was left for ten minutes.' Pick the version that keeps the order of events clear.
6. Step 6, Your turn: edit 'We add 5ml of acid and the data shows less bubbles.' Answer: 'Five millilitres of acid were added (or 5 mL of acid was added) and the data show fewer bubbles.' Use the past passive, spell out the number at the start or write the unit with a space, and use 'fewer'. Acid needs goggles and gloves.

Activity. About 40 to 50 minutes of class work, then one short practice task for home. Keep evidence: a timed paper and an error log.

Standard to meet. Edit and transform text with precision: at least 70 percent on an exam-style task, with the method shown.

In this unit, 'Writing: reports, letters and articles', you learn to write formal, persuasive and analytical text. You work with exam-style questions and written reasoning. You see it, say it, then do it alone.

• Listen first: your teacher or a recording says the new words or sentences from 'Writing: reports, letters and articles' twice. You repeat them aloud.
• Notice the pattern: find where the new sound, word form or sentence rule appears in a short text and mark it.
• Use it: write formal, persuasive and analytical text, first with help, then alone.
• Check and fix: read your work aloud once more; fix one thing you hear is wrong.

Step by step.

1. Step 1, Plan a lab report. Sample data from a class test: time for a spoonful of sugar to dissolve in 100 mL of water was 90 seconds at 20 °C, 55 seconds at 40 °C and 30 seconds at 60 °C. Safety: warm water only, safety goggles, hair tied back, and an adult pours anything hot. Headings: Aim, Method, Results, Conclusion.
2. Step 2, Write Results analytically. 'As the temperature rose from 20 °C to 60 °C, the dissolving time fell from 90 s to 30 s, a decrease of 60 s or 66.7 per cent.' Quote the figures from the table and describe the trend in one clear sentence before you explain it.
3. Step 3, Write a hedged conclusion. 'The results suggest that higher temperature shortens the time sugar takes to dissolve, possibly because particles move faster. One trial per temperature limits reliability, so the test should be repeated.' Formal science writing hedges and names a limitation.
4. Step 4, Write a persuasive letter to a council. 'Dear Sir or Madam, I am writing to propose a weekly river-testing project for local schools. Students would measure temperature and clarity, wearing gloves and goggles, and report findings.' State the proposal, the benefit and the safety plan, then close with 'Yours faithfully'.
5. Step 5, Draft an article for a school magazine. Headline: 'Why Every School Needs a Weather Station'. Hook: 'What if tomorrow's forecast came from your playground?' Add a fact from your records, such as rain on 12 of 30 days (40 per cent), and end with a clear call to action.
6. Step 6, Your turn: write one results sentence for 25 s at 70 °C compared with 90 s at 20 °C. Answer: The time fell by 65 s, which is 72.2 per cent (65/90). 'Raising the temperature from 20 °C to 70 °C reduced the dissolving time from 90 s to 25 s, a fall of 72.2 per cent.' Hot water needs adult help.

Activity. About 40 to 50 minutes of class work, then one short practice task for home. Keep evidence: a timed paper and an error log.

Standard to meet. Write formal, persuasive and analytical text: at least 70 percent on an exam-style task, with the method shown.

In this unit, 'Reading: unseen passages', you learn to read critically in timed conditions. You work with exam-style questions and written reasoning. You see it, say it, then do it alone.

• Listen first: your teacher or a recording says the new words or sentences from 'Reading: unseen passages' twice. You repeat them aloud.
• Notice the pattern: find where the new sound, word form or sentence rule appears in a short text and mark it.
• Use it: read critically in timed conditions, first with help, then alone.
• Check and fix: read your work aloud once more; fix one thing you hear is wrong.

Step by step.

1. Step 1, Plan the timing. For a 45-minute unseen section, allow 5 minutes to skim, 30 to answer and 10 to check. Passage: 'A school weather station recorded rain on 12 of 30 days. The rainfall total was 96 mm. A student wrote that this clearly proves the town is getting wetter every year.'
2. Step 2, Skim and mark the claim. Circle 12, 30 and 96 mm, and underline 'clearly proves'. The main idea is that the data are being used to support a strong claim about climate. A scientific reader checks whether thirty days of data can support that claim.
3. Step 3, Answer with working. Rainy days: 12 out of 30 is 40 per cent. Average rainfall per day: 96 / 30 = 3.2 mm. Average per rainy day: 96 / 12 = 8 mm. Write each answer with its unit, and quote 'rain on 12 of 30 days'.
4. Step 4, Read critically. 'Clearly proves' is too strong. A single month cannot show a yearly trend; the student would need many years of records for comparison. Fact: 96 mm in 30 days. Opinion or claim: 'wetter every year'. Say so and cite the evidence.
5. Step 5, Use context for vocabulary and summary. 'Proves' means 'shows beyond doubt', so the writer implies certainty. Summary in 30 words: 'A school weather station recorded rain on 12 of 30 days, totalling 96 mm, but a student wrongly claimed this proves yearly change.' Keep facts and the writer's attitude.
6. Step 6, Your turn: work out the percentage of dry days and say why the claim is weak. Answer: Dry days are 30 - 12 = 18, which is 60 per cent. The claim is weak because one month of data cannot show a trend across years. 'Proves' is too strong.

Activity. About 40 to 50 minutes of class work, then one short practice task for home. Keep evidence: a timed paper and an error log.

Standard to meet. Read critically in timed conditions: at least 70 percent on an exam-style task, with the method shown.

In this unit, 'Speaking and listening', you learn to deliver an argued presentation. You work with exam-style questions and written reasoning. You see it, say it, then do it alone.

• Listen first: your teacher or a recording says the new words or sentences from 'Speaking and listening' twice. You repeat them aloud.
• Notice the pattern: find where the new sound, word form or sentence rule appears in a short text and mark it.
• Use it: deliver an argued presentation, first with help, then alone.
• Check and fix: read your work aloud once more; fix one thing you hear is wrong.

Step by step.

1. Step 1, Frame the motion. "Governments should fund basic research even without immediate applications." Thesis: "Basic research drives unpredictable breakthroughs that applied research alone cannot reach." Reason: the claim is arguable and specific.
2. Step 2, Write an opening with a hook. "No one funded early work on electricity to power phones, yet our devices depend on it. Curiosity often reaches destinations planners never imagined." Reason: a historical pattern supports the thesis.
3. Step 3, Build argument one with PEEL. Point: basic research creates foundations. Evidence: many technologies grew from studies done without a product in mind. Explain: applications need a pool of tested knowledge. Link: funding it is investing in the future.
4. Step 4, Meet the counter-argument. "Opponents say money should address current problems. Yet current solutions often depend on earlier discoveries, so neglecting basic research starves tomorrow's solutions." Reason: show dependency, not just disagreement.
5. Step 5, Fix an error. Weak: "Research is always beneficial so we should fund all of it." Better: "Basic research has a strong record of long-term benefit, so a balanced portfolio of funded projects is justified." Avoid absolute words like always.
6. Step 6, Respond to a question. Q: "How would you measure success?" A: "By published findings, trained researchers and later uses, though the value may take decades to appear." Reason: show you understand limits as well as benefits.
7. Step 7, Your turn. Write a thesis and a rebuttal for "Nuclear power should be part of a low-carbon plan". Model answer: "Thesis: Nuclear power gives steady, low-carbon electricity." "Rebuttal: Waste is a challenge, but modern storage and recycling reduce long-term risk."

Activity. About 40 to 50 minutes of class work, then one short practice task for home. Keep evidence: a timed paper and an error log.

Standard to meet. Deliver an argued presentation: at least 70 percent on an exam-style task, with the method shown.

On the slide: L1 Basic · Letters, sounds and first reading

Notes: Match letters to sounds and read short words and simple sentences aloud. Notes: use the sounds s, a, t, p, i, n; learners blend them into sat, pin and tap, then read a three-word sentence and clap the syllables.

On the slide: L2 Awareness · Sentences and simple writing

Notes: Write a clear sentence with a capital letter and full stop, and read a short story with understanding. Notes: give a picture prompt; learners say the sentence first, write it, and check capital, spacing and full stop with a partner before reading it aloud.

On the slide: L3 Foundation · Paragraphs, grammar and reading for meaning

Notes: Write a paragraph of five connected sentences and identify nouns, verbs and adjectives in a text. Notes: colour nouns blue and verbs red in a short passage; learners then write about their street, using at least two adjectives and one linking word.

On the slide: L4 Practitioner · Essays, speaking and responding to texts

Notes: Write a 300-word structured essay and give a short talk, quoting evidence from a text to support a view. Notes: model Point, Evidence, Explain; learners write one paragraph about a character, quote one line, and explain what it shows, then speak it aloud.

On the slide: L5 Specialist · Analysis, argument and style

Notes: Analyse a writer's choices of language and structure and write a sustained argument of 600 words. Notes: take two openings of different short stories; learners compare tone, sentence length and imagery in a table, then argue which opening works better and why.

This course: Grade 12 Science English is at this level. Its units include Prose and poetry from world writers; Grammar and editing; Writing: reports, letters and articles; Reading: unseen passages and more.

On the slide: L6 Advanced · Literary and linguistic study

Notes: Evaluate texts through a critical lens, tracing how language changes across time and context in a researched essay. Notes: compare an older and a modern passage; learners list five differences in vocabulary and syntax and argue in 1,500 words what each reveals about its period.

On the slide: L7 Super expert · Research, editing and authorship

Notes: Produce an original piece of research or a polished long-form text, with a literature review and defended method. Notes: pick a narrow question about language in one genre; build a corpus of fifty samples, analyse patterns, write 5,000 words, and revise after external review.