Syllabus English Lang Primary
Syllabus English Lang Primary
Syllabus English Lang Primary
Introduction
This English Language Syllabus for Primary years 3 – 5 has been developed by a
Committee of teachers and other professionals over a period of 6 months, from
September 2003 – February 2004. The impetus for the development of the syllabus
came from a number of sources, which will be discussed in more detail below. The
need for a revised syllabus was evident in that the previous syllabus for years 4 and 5
had been derived from the course book in use, which was soon to be changed. The
syllabus for year 3 had been developed more recently, though there was no book in
use for this year group.
Acknowledgements
The creation of the syllabus would not have been possible without the work of the
Committee in Curriculum Design and Course Book Evaluation:
Melanie Williams acted as consultant for the Committee and the project was
supported by the British Council:
Peter Skelton, Director British Council Cyprus
Dilek Behcetogullari, Manager, north
Sencan Yesilada, Projects Co-ordinator
Background to the syllabus document with reference to the context (north Cyprus)
Rosalyn Hurst produced a detailed report in October 2001 which looked at and
reported on the current provision of ELT in Primary Schools in north Cyprus. One of
the weaknesses identified was the lack of a firm syllabus for the three years of
primary English. Melanie Williams was invited by the British Council in September
2003 to work as a consultant with a Committee on the development of a syllabus for
Primary English grades 3 – 5 in anticipation of the course book being changed in
September 2004.
The syllabus has been developed to reflect the teaching hours in grades 3 – 5:
In Grade 3 English is taught for 2 hours a week.
In Grades 4 and 5 English is taught for 5 hours a week
It was decided that a ‘hybrid’ syllabus would be the most appropriate for the context.
This syllabus is a principled mix of a product-oriented syllabus, where the focus is on
outcomes and products, and a process oriented syllabus, where the focus is on the
process of learning in the classroom. A typical product oriented syllabus tends to be
structure or function focused, with learners’ success being measured by their ability to
use the structures or functions learned. A process-oriented syllabus, on the other hand,
tends to focus on the tasks that are used in the classroom, the process of learning,
through which the learners learn the language and through which they are able to
engage in meaningful interaction.
In this syllabus there are suggested lists of structures, functions, topics and vocabulary
for each level as well as suggested activities.
The main difference between this syllabus and the one that preceded it are the
Performance Objectives. Performance Objectives define learning outcomes by stating
what a learner will be able to do with the language at the end of a given period,
therefore making the prime focus language competence rather than knowledge. This is
particularly important at Primary level where learning is very much a holistic process
and where learners want and need to use the language for meaningful interaction as
much as possible. The focus at Primary level is not on learning grammatical
structures.
The Performance Objectives in this syllabus are divided into skills and grades. There
are sets of objectives for each language skill at each level. The objectives are graded,
in that the ones at the top of the list for each grade are likely to be the ones learners
achieve first. However, learning is cyclical process, it is not lock-step or linear and
While structures and functions are listed for each grade in the syllabus, this separation
is not absolute. Therefore, it would be perfectly possible to select a course book which
included a structure in grade 3 which is listed in this syllabus in grade 4.
Benchmarking
The Outcomes at the end of Grade 5 match with descriptors of A1 within the
Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. The decision to
benchmark the syllabus at this level was made for the following reasons:
Assessment
Class 3 • Understand and respond to very simple • Recognize and produce the sounds of English • Read and understand familiar words and phrases • Write simple words and phrases legibly
classroom instructions as distinct from those of Turkish • Identify the letters of the alphabet and develop • Spell simple words with a basic level of
• Understand and respond to very simple • Ask for and give limited personal information spelling accuracy
questions on familiar topics • Speak with basic pronunciation and a basic • Read and understand very simple sentences and • Use basic punctuation accurately
• Listen to and understand simple songs and level of accuracy questions • Write and respond to very simple
rhymes • Talk about familiar topics using short, simple • Use a picture dictionary questions about familiar topics
• Listen for key specific information in very utterances • Read and understand very short, simple texts on • Write one or two simple sentences about
short, simple texts on familiar topics • Ask and answer a limited range of simple familiar topics familiar topics
questions about their needs in the classroom
Class 4 • Understand and respond to simple • Give simple instructions and make simple • Read and understand the general idea in short, • Write a limited range of text types such
classroom instructions requests simple texts about familiar topics as cards, letters and simple projects
• Understand and respond to simple • Talk about familiar topics using short • Identify the main characters and places in a • Write legibly and use satisfactory
questions on familiar topics utterances short, simple story punctuation and spelling
• Understand the general idea in short, • Speak with satisfactory pronunciation and a • Use a picture dictionary • Write dictated paragraphs of up to 8
simple texts on familiar topics satisfactory level of accuracy • Read a limited range of short, simple texts on sentences about familiar topics
• Listen for key specific information in • Ask and answer simple questions about familiar topics and identify specific information • Write a paragraph of up to 10 sentences
short, simple texts on familiar topics familiar topics about a familiar topic
Class 5 • Understand and respond to classroom • Give instructions and make requests • Read and understand the main idea of a short • Write legibly and use accurate
instructions appropriately reading text punctuation and spelling
• Understand and respond to questions on • Ask and answer questions about familiar topics • Identify the main characters, places and the • Write dictated paragraphs of up to 15
familiar topics • Speak with reasonable pronunciation and a progress of a short story sentences
• Listen to and understand the main idea of a reasonable level of accuracy • Use a dictionary / the internet for reference • Write a range of short texts such as
short text • Talk in some detail about familiar topics • Read a range of short texts on familiar topics emails, invitations, poems, projects and
• Listen for specific information in short • Tell simple stories and identify specific information recipes
texts on familiar topics • Write several paragraphs as appropriate
to text type about familiar topics
Specifying number How many + plural How many books? Two books.
nouns
Numbers 1 – 20
Asking and talking Inverted questions Are you five years old?
about ages. Short answers: Yes I Yes, I am. / No, I am not. (I’m not)
am / No, I’m not.
Identifying friends and Verb: to be This is Ali. He is (He’s) seven years old.
members of the family. S/he + contractions He is (He’s) a pupil.
This is Ayse. She is (She’s) eight years old.
She is (She’s) my sister.
Describing people. Adjectives / nouns Is Ali tall / doctor/ three years old?
Short answers: Yes Is Ayse happy / a teacher?
s/he is / No, s/he isn’t
Expressing possession. Possessive adjectives: This is my book. This is her pen.
my, your, his, her
Talking about location. Where? Where is (Where’s) the book? On the table.
Prepositions of place
In, on, under
Colours red, orange, yellow, green, blue, brown, black, grey, white, pink, purple
Toys doll, ball, car, plane (aeroplane), kite, bike, balloon, scooter, roller-
skates, drum, computer, train
My family father, mother, brother, sister, grandmother, grandfather
Body head, eye, nose, mouth, ear, hair, face, tooth / teeth
Animals dog, cat, horse, snake, hippo, elephant, lion, rabbit, bird, parrot, donkey,
dinosaur, mouse, monkey
Food sandwich, toast, cheeseburger, icecream, chocolate, cake, banana, apple,
orange, egg, strawberry, cherry, grapes, pear, peach, melon, watermelon
Jobs teacher, policeman, dentist, farmer, footballer, butcher
Clothes T-shirt, shirt, shorts, trousers, jeans, hat, dress, skirt, shoes and socks
Adjectives tall, short, happy, sad, hot, cold, hungry, thirsty, fat, thin, big, small,
long, short
Nouns look, listen, open the door, close the door, clean the board, come here, sit
down, stand up, quiet please, repeat, draw, match
ACTIVITIES
Songs
Rhymes
Filling in missing letters or words
Guessing games
Matching (pictures with words or numbers)
Colouring
Cutting and pasting
Drawing
Anagrams (finding the words)
Bingo
Responding to commands (TPR)
Labelling
Making sentences (organizing the words)
Crossword puzzles
Adding and subtracting with numbers up to 20
Putting the objects into groups
Odd one out
Answering the questions
Performing simple dialogues
Describing people, Have got I have (I’ve) got long hair. My eyes are brown.
family, animals and Short answers He is tall. He has got short hair. His eyes are big.
things Adjectives (see list at Helen has not (hasn’t) got short hair. She has
end of syllabus) (She’s) got long hair.
Have you got curly hair? Yes, I have / No, I
What + adjective haven’t.
Adjective + adjective What colour is Ali’s shirt ? It’s brown.
My mother’s name is Susan. She is tall and thin.
Identifying and These / those What are these / those? They’re books.
describing objects and There is / there are There is (There’s) a bathroom in my house. There
places Short answers are (There’re) three bedrooms.
There is not (isn’t) a television in my bedroom.
There are no chairs in our sitting room.
Is there a fridge in the kitchen?
Class 4
Words in italics are included in the Class 3 syllabus.
Household objects armchair, sofa, table, TV, bookcase, lamp, cooker, fridge, cupboard, bed,
wardrobe
Days, months and Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday
Adjectives happy, sad, ill, cold, hot, tired, hungry, thirsty, curly, straight, wavy, young,
old, dirty, clean, fat, thin, long, short, tall
Verbs play, speak, jump, fly, swim, climb, talk, read, write, eat, drink, open, close,
stand up, sit down, give, take, read, write, clean, look, listen, repeat, colour,
draw, come in,, match
Class 4
Activities in italics are included in the Class 3 syllabus.
ACTIVITIES
Songs
Rhymes
Filling in missing letters or words
Guessing games
Matching (pictures with words or numbers)
Colouring
Cutting and pasting
Drawing
Anagrams (finding the words)
Bingo
Responding to commands (TPR)
Labelling
Making sentences (organizing the words)
Crossword puzzles
Adding and subtracting with numbers up to 100.
Putting the objects into groups
Odd one out
Answering the questions
Performing simple dialogues
True / False
Listen and indicate the position
Listen and act
Spelling
Hangman
Answering multiple choice questions
Specifying location On the left / on the right Where’s the cinema, please?
giving directions Into, out of, through, Go across the road and it’s on the left.
over, across, down
Specifying number 101 – 1000 There are 40 pupils in the class.
1st – 31st My birthday is on 31st January
Expressing quantity Some / any: countable There are some apples. There is some milk.
and uncountable nouns Are there any apples? Is there any milk?
A bottle of, a packet of, Can I have a cup of milk, please?
a tin of, a cup of, etc
Talking about on- Present continuous - What is (What’s) he doing? He is (He’s) making
going actions extension a cake. Is your mother cooking? Yes, she is.
Asking for and telling Extension + past / to What is (What’s) the time?
the time It’s ten to eleven. / It’s five past ten.
Talking about the Hot, sunny, wet, dry It’s hot today.
weather Present continuous It’s raining.
Expressing likes, Present simple I like swimming. I don’t like playing tennis.
dislikes and wants Do you like geography?
She wants the doll, she doesn’t want a ball.
Giving and asking for In + Countries / towns / I live in north Cyprus. I live in Lefkosa.
personal information streets. At + house I live in White Street.
north, south, east, west I live at number six White Street.
Specifying a choice Which + noun Which apple do you want? The yellow one.
One
Talking about daily Present simple What do you usually do on Saturdays at 9
routines and habits and always, usually, o’clock?
jobs sometimes, never When do you get up?
When? What do you do in the summer?
On / at / in
Talking about the past Past simple: to be + He was there yesterday.
common regular and Did you see him two days ago?
irregulars Yes, I did / No, I didn’t
Short answers They did not (didn’t) go to the cinema yesterday.
Yesterday, ago, last
Class 5
Words in italics are included in the Class 3 and 4 syllabus.
Adjectives happy, sad, ill, cold, hot, tired, hungry, thirsty, curly, straight, wavy,
young, old, dirty, clean, fat, thin, long, short, tall
Verbs play, speak, jump, fly, swim, climb, talk, read, write, eat, drink, go, come,
watch, wash, clean, dance, buy, sleep, do, have, make, sit, laugh, drive,
Class 5
Activities in italics are included in the Class 3 and 4 syllabus.
ACTIVITIES
Songs
Rhymes
Filling in missing letters or words
Guessing games
Matching (pictures with words or numbers)
Colouring
Cutting and pasting
Drawing
Anagrams (finding the words)
Bingo
Responding to commands (TPR)
Labelling
Making sentences (organizing the words)
Crossword puzzles
Adding and subtracting with numbers up to 1000.
Putting the objects into groups
Odd one out
Answering the questions
Performing simple dialogues
True / False
Listen and indicate the position
Listen and act
Spelling
Hangman
Answering multiple choice questions
Putting picture sets or dialogues into the correct order
Describing pictures
Finding the differences (between two pictures)
Completing gapped texts