Every distinction begins with one topic at a time.- start now
Before you revise a single set work or grammar rule, learn the shape of the exam you are walking into. Three papers test different skills, carry different marks and reward different kinds of thinking. Knowing the map in advance is what lets you spend your study hours, and your exam-day minutes, exactly where they earn the most marks.
The paper structure is the fixed set of sections, marks and time that every candidate sits, decided by the examiners in advance. A cognitive level is the kind of thinking a question demands, from simply locating a fact stated on the page (low) up to judging a writer's craft with evidence (high). Matching your answer to both the mark value and the cognitive level is the single skill that runs through all three papers. In every paper about 40% of the marks sit on levels 1 and 2, 40% on level 3 and 20% on levels 4 and 5.
| Paper | What it tests | Marks | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paper 1 | Language in Context: comprehension, summary, language structures and conventions | 70 | 2 hours |
| Paper 2 | Literature: poetry, one novel and one drama | 80 | 2 hours |
| Paper 3 | Writing: an essay plus two transactional texts | 100 | 2 hours |
| Total | 250 | 6 hours | |
Across the three papers you write for 250 marks over about six hours. Paper 3 (Writing) carries the most marks of any single paper, even though it can feel like "just writing", and Paper 2 (Literature) is close behind. Budget your revision and your exam-day time to match that weight, not to how comfortable each paper feels.
Paper 4 (orals) is not written in the exam room. Your school sets and marks it during the year: two prepared speeches (10 marks each), one unprepared speech (15) and one listening for comprehension (15), 50 marks in all. It lifts the end-of-year total to 300 marks and counts for 12.5% of your promotion mark, next to the school-based tasks (25%) and Papers 1, 2 and 3 (17.5%, 20% and 25%).
| Section | Focus | Marks |
|---|---|---|
| A: Comprehension | A written passage answered across the cognitive levels, plus a short visual text such as a cartoon or advertisement | 30 |
| B: Summary | Condense a passage into your own words, as one paragraph of full sentences, inside a strict word limit | 10 |
| C: Language structures and conventions | Advertisement, cartoon and a textual-editing text: persuasive technique, grammar and sentence-level work | 30 |
The summary in Section B and the language tasks in Section C are the most formulaic marks in the whole exam: the same instructions and the same traps repeat every year. Learn the technique once (word limit, own words, no new ideas for the summary; name the exact error type for editing) and you can answer these sections almost on autopilot.
Because poetry, novel and drama are all examined through the same core skill, one habit wins marks across the whole paper: read closely, name a technique or a character clue, then explain what it reveals. Decide in advance whether your essay goes to the novel or the drama, so you never waste exam minutes deciding under pressure.
| Section | Marks | What it usually asks for |
|---|---|---|
| A: Essay | 50 | A longer piece of about 300 to 350 words, usually with a choice of topics (check your paper) or a visual stimulus where the paper sets one. Narrative, descriptive and argumentative are the three CAPS names for the Grade 10 essay task; the exam wording can also name discursive and reflective, so learn to recognise all five |
| B: Transactional texts (two) | 2 x 25 | Two structured pieces, each with a body of about 180 to 200 words, such as a formal letter, a report, a newspaper article, a written interview or a speech |
Spending so long on the 50-mark essay that the second 25-mark transactional text is rushed or left half-done. The two transactional pieces together are worth as much as the essay, and their format and register (layout, tone, required parts) are marked directly, so they are often quicker to score well on. A brilliant essay cannot make up for a missing transactional text.
| Level | What it demands | Signal verbs | Example question stem |
|---|---|---|---|
| Literal | Locate a fact stated directly on the page | quote, name, state, identify | "Quote a word that shows the speaker is afraid." |
| Reorganisation | Gather facts from more than one place and restate them in your own words | summarise, list, give reasons | "Give TWO reasons, in your own words, why the character leaves." |
| Inference | Work out a meaning that is suggested rather than stated | suggest, imply, what does this tell you | "What does this line suggest about the mood in the home?" |
| Evaluation | Judge a choice or an idea, and back it with evidence | do you agree, comment on, discuss | "Do you agree that the character was right to stay? Discuss." |
| Appreciation | Respond to the writer's craft and its effect on you | how effective, comment on the diction | "Comment on the effect of the imagery in these lines." |
Literal questions are the fastest marks in every paper, especially the opening sub-questions of each literature extract and the early comprehension questions. Spot the signal verb, answer in a few words, and move straight on; do not spend evaluation-level time on a literal-level question.
The paper: poetry (30 marks), novel (25 marks), drama (25 marks), across about 120 minutes.
The budget: roughly 45 minutes on poetry (the two prescribed poems plus the unseen), roughly 37 minutes on the novel and roughly 38 minutes on the drama, which is our suggestion from the marks, not an official split.
∴ The clock follows the marks. Poetry carries the most marks in Paper 2 (30), so it earns the biggest share of the time, about 45 minutes against about 37 for each 25-mark literature section.
You cannot budget time for a paper you have never mapped. Learn the shape of the exam before you learn the content.- know the paper before you write it
The exam is three papers worth 250 marks over about six hours (the CAPS times; some school papers run longer, so confirm yours). Paper 1 (Language in Context, 70 marks) splits into comprehension (30), summary (10) and language structures (30). Paper 2 (Literature, 80 marks) has poetry (30), novel (25) and drama (25); you answer five questions in all, with one literary essay and one contextual across the novel and drama. Paper 3 (Writing, 100 marks) splits into a 50-mark essay and two 25-mark transactional texts. Every question also sits on a cognitive level, from literal up to appreciation. Let the marks set your minutes, and let the signal verb tell you how much thinking, and how much writing, a question wants.
Section A is 30 of Paper 1’s 70 marks. CAPS sets a written Text A of 500 to 600 words, a visual or graphic Text B such as a cartoon or an advertisement, and a question that works across both texts; font types and sizes, headings and captions are examined too. Revision here is about speed and accuracy, not new theory: the instruction word and the mark in brackets decide your answer before you write a sentence, so check both first.
| Level | Signal verbs | Under time pressure |
|---|---|---|
| Literal | name, state, identify, quote, list | Scan for the exact word or line; answer in seconds. |
| Reorganisation | summarise, outline, group the facts | The facts are spread over two or three lines; gather them before you write. |
| Inference | explain the main idea, suggest, what does this reveal | Name the clue in the text, then state what it reveals. |
| Evaluation | do you agree, comment critically, discuss | Commit to a stance at once, then back it with one detail. |
| Appreciation | comment on the writer’s use of language, why is this effective | Name the technique first, then explain the effect on the reader. |
| The instruction says | What you write |
|---|---|
| Quote | Copy the exact words, nothing changed, inside quotation marks. Take only the length asked for, usually a word or a short phrase. |
| In your own words | Reword the idea; do not reuse the passage’s phrasing. Write a full sentence with no quotation marks. If you cannot say it differently, you have not understood it yet, so reread the line. |
Time follows marks. Section A carries 30 of Paper 1’s 70 marks, a little over two-fifths, so it earns a little over two-fifths of the time your paper allows. Share that time across the questions by their brackets; the Strategy tab sets out the clock.
Line from the passage: “Naledi checked her phone for the third time, then pushed her plate away, the food barely touched.”
Two clues, each turned into a separate point in reworded language: exactly what a (2) inference question wants.
Question (own words): explain why the manager was reluctant to approve the request. (2)
Same idea, but the second version replaces the passage’s own phrasing entirely instead of reshuffling a few of its words.
Text B is read the way you read a line of text: find the evidence, then say what it shows. Font type and size, headings and captions are all examined, so treat each as a clue about tone, importance or purpose.
| Frame | What you can see | What it is evidence of |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Level mouth, calm eyes, upright posture. Bubble: “I have studied all week. Nothing can go wrong.” | Confidence. |
| 2 | Wide eyes, open mouth, arms out. Bubble: “WHAT?! The exam is TODAY?!” | Shock and disbelief: the capitals raise the volume and ‘?!’ joins a question with surprise. |
| 3 | Down-curved mouth, dropped eyebrows, slumped shoulders. Bubble: “... I studied the wrong week.” | Defeat. The ellipsis marks the pause before the realisation, so the turn is here, not in Frame 2. |
Read the verb and the bracket before you read for the answer. They tell you what a correct answer looks like.two seconds that save two minutes
Which of these Section A instructions asks for the writer’s exact words, copied and put inside quotation marks?
“Outline the steps Mr Dlamini took to start the garden.” The facts are spread over three paragraphs. What is the question asking, and what do you do first?
Which question is an inference question?
“What does the writer imply by calling the shop ‘a museum of old promises’?” Which plan fits this question best?
Which of these questions asks you to take a stance first and defend it with a detail from the text?
The passage says: The street rattled with hooters, shouting and the grind of a bus. The instruction is: “Quote one phrase that shows the street was noisy.” Which answer follows it?
The passage says: The shopkeeper was reluctant to extend credit. The instruction is: “Explain in your own words what the shopkeeper did not want to do.” Which answer earns the mark?
A learner copies a whole sentence from the passage into quotation marks to answer “In your own words, explain why the match was moved.” Why does the marker withhold the mark?
A one-mark question says “Quote the words that show Anele was nervous.” The best answer is…
The passage says: Thabo parted with his bicycle to cover his sister’s school fees. The instruction is “In your own words, say why Thabo sold his bicycle.” Maya wrote: ‘Thabo parted with his bicycle to cover the school fees.’ Jonas wrote: ‘He needed money for his sister’s education, so he gave up the bike.’ Which judgement is correct?
A Section A question is worth one mark. How much should you write?
A question says “Give three reasons why the town grew.” It is worth three marks. How does the marker award them?
A question is marked (2 x 2): “Give two ways the new road helped the village and explain each.” What should the answer hold?
A learner writes five ideas for a two-mark question and only one idea for a three-mark question. What is the likely result?
Two learners have six minutes left for two questions: a one-mark literal question and a four-mark inference question. Whose plan is best?
The passage says: The council postponed the vote because the budget was insufficient. Which answer to “In your own words, why was the vote postponed?” is lifted?
A learner changes one word in each passage sentence and calls it own words. Why does this still lose the mark?
The passage says: The manager was reluctant to approve the request. Which rewrite earns full marks for “In your own words, describe the manager’s attitude.”?
In an own-words answer, which words may stay exactly as they are in the passage?
A learner says: ‘I kept the writer’s key phrase and added my own words around it, so I did not lift.’ Which judgement is correct?
In a cartoon strip, a character has wide eyes and an open mouth. What kind of evidence is this?
Text B has a caption under the picture. How should you treat it in an answer?
A speech bubble reads WHAT?! The exam is TODAY?! What do the capitals and the punctuation suggest?
The headline of an advertisement is printed in huge, bold letters while the small print is tiny. What does the size suggest?
Question: “To what extent does Text B support what the writer says in paragraph 3?” Which answer plan fits it best?
How many of Paper 1’s 70 marks does Section A carry?
Section A carries 30 of Paper 1’s 70 marks. What share of the paper is that, and what share of the time does it earn?
Why does reading the instruction word and the bracket before you scan the passage save time?
You have eight minutes left and two questions unanswered: a one-mark literal question and a four-mark inference question. What is the best plan?
A learner gives each of twelve questions exactly the same time, whatever its brackets say. How should this plan be judged?
A Section A question reads: “In your own words, explain why Naledi pushed her plate away.” It is worth two marks. Say (a) what ‘in your own words’ asks you to do, (b) how many points the mark value asks for, and (c) what you must leave out of your answer. (3)
It asks me to reword the idea in my own language and not copy the passage. The mark value of two asks for two separate points. I do not use quotation marks, because the words must be mine.
Read this line from a passage: “Sipho read the letter twice, folded it into a tiny square and slid it under his mattress, although the room was empty.” What does Sipho’s behaviour suggest about the letter? Give two clues and say what each one shows. (4)
He folds the letter into a tiny square and slides it under his mattress. This shows the letter is secret and he does not want anyone to find it. He reads it twice. That shows the letter is important to him, or that it worries him.
A learner says: “For a two-mark question I will write a full paragraph, so that I cannot lose marks.” Do you agree? Give two reasons. (3)
I disagree with the learner. Extra ideas earn no extra marks, because the marker credits only the two ideas the bracket asks for. It also wastes time that the questions with more marks need.
Explain to a Grade 8 learner why you check the instruction word and the mark in brackets before you search the passage for an answer.
Explain to a Grade 8 learner the difference between a quote answer and an own-words answer, and what lifting is.
Explain to a Grade 8 learner how to earn marks from a cartoon in Text B without only describing it.
This is a free preview of Topic 1. The full guide has every topic, the self-marking quizzes, mock exams, planner, journal and wellbeing tools.
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Exam stress is completely normal. Here are a few things that actually work. None of this replaces a doctor or a trusted adult.
Box breathing: 4 counts in, 4 hold, 4 out, 4 hold. Do it four times.
Look at the worked example below first, then make your own. Tick off each topic as you finish it.
Example (already filled in)
| Date | Subject | Topic | Done |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | English Home Language | Your weakest topic, notes + summary | ✓ |
| Day 2 | English Home Language | Next topic + 10 practice questions | ✓ |
| Day 3 | English Home Language | A full past paper under time | – |
| Day 4 | English Home Language | Mark the paper, revise weak spots | – |
Your plan
| Date | Subject | Topic | Done |
|---|---|---|---|
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A winner is a loser who tried one more time.- keep going, all the way to the exam