ENG 1:1 PERSONAL LIFE AND FAMILY

MY FAMILY

INTRODUCTION

In this chapter, you will be writing a narrative about your personal experience and family life. You will learn how to use the verb ‘to be’ in the present tense, and personal pronouns so as to be able to communicate effectively in the English language.

When we meet people for the first time, we are always interested in knowing who they are, the things they like and dislike, and what type of families they come from.

In pairs, introduce yourself to each other. Share with your partner your

name, where you live, your former school, and what you like to do during your free time. Tell him/her about your family. State the family name, number of siblings, and the responsibilities of the different members of your family.

In small groups, share how your family works together to have a

peaceful relationship. Write bullet points for your sharing and prepare a presentation for the whole class.

Families are usually beyond the nuclear one. Do you remember what

you learnt about nuclear and extended families in Social Studies at the primary level?

In pairs, share two differences between nuclear and extended families and then write down two differences between nuclear and extended families.

We all started from somewhere. We had great grandparents on both our father’s (paternal) and mother’s (maternal) sides. We then have grandparents, aunties, uncles and cousins.

When you try to follow your origin or lineage it comes out as a family tree . A family tree is a chart that indicates the relationship between the different members of a family.

Why is it important to know our family lines? Find out from your parents or guardians about the relationship you have with different people you closely relate with, and how they are related to you. Using the information you have gathered about your family, draw your family tree, and present it to the class.

You may use the computer graphics to design your family tree.

The verb ‘to be’ refers to ‘a state of being.’ It shows an action or event

that usually takes place. It is also described as a present or general state of being. The state of being can be temporary, permanent or even common. For example:

• I am
• She is

Using the verb ‘to be’, construct ten sentences expressing your feelings towards members of your family.

For example:

• I love my

– Sometimes my big sister makes me angry when she leaves all the housework to me.

2. The verb ‘to be’ can also be used to refer to something that is true at the For example:
   • She is twenty years
   • He is my

Tables 1.1 and 1.2 below show how the verb ‘to be’ is written in the affirmative and negative forms.

Table 1.1: Affirmative forms of the verb ‘to be’:

Table 1.2: Negative forms of the verb ‘to be’:

Fill in the blank spaces with the correct personal pronoun from the list provided in the brackets (you, he, she, it, we, and they):

1. Francis is my father,——— isn’t my
2. Dorcas is my mother,——– isn’t my

3. My friend and I belong to the same But —aren’t of the same family.
4. Our home is in Kiira, — isn’t in

Fill in the blank spaces with the correct form of the verb ‘to be’ (am, are, is)

5. — you his sister?
6. Yes, I —.
7. Pearl and Carol—–
8. My brother Eria and I——
9. The food—-

Complete the sentences below with the correct form of the verb ‘to be’ in the negative or affirmative structures:

1. Is Julie Paul’s sister? No, she —-.
2. How about Robert? Is he related to Julie? Yes, he —.
3. Were Mr and Mrs Mugoya Alice’s grandparents? No, they —-.
4. Does Mrs Mukasa live with her daughter in Masaka? No, she —.

Write a short story in two paragraphs about your family and the things

that they like and dislike. Use the correct form of the verb ‘to be’ that we learnt in

Activity 1.5.

How many people in your family do you share the likes and dislikes

with? Use your knowledge of sets, to show the individual preferences in your family.

Read the following passage from a book called “A Dakar Childhood”

by Nafissatou Dialo, a female writer from Guinea and answer the questions that follow.

I was born in Titene on the 11th of March 1941 in the area known as the ‘Guards’ camp. Don’t try to find this camp; it is now the Iba Mar Diop Stadium. Our house was one of the few civilian’s houses in that area where the policemen, who guarded the Medina and its surroundings, were stationed.

The camp was surrounded by a wall with two gates, one to the north and the other to the south, through which we passed, in and out. This wall separated the camp from the rest of the area which consisted of huts and sharks, which were in some places grouped together in confusion. Through this area ran narrow sand streets, crowded with people and domestic animals.

Inside the camp, everything was orderly and quiet. The policemen’s quarters consisted of small wooden houses, painted yellow, arranged in straight rows. There were coconut palms and well kept vegetable gardens which provided us with our farm produce. The calm quietness and simplicity of the scene was reflected in the peaceful attractiveness of our home. The large brick houses had been built by my grandfather and father who ran a business which employed most of the males in our family. My uncles, cousins and brothers all helped in the construction of the house and created the character of the place.

Every inch of floor was cemented and every single door was made, by their own hands. We were very fond of our house because it was our small world in the great wide world. It was our place of refuge and security.

There were large rooms, high ceilings and huge windows – as big as doors – space everywhere; the house made you want to run and jump and shout, a feeling I remember with fondness.

The house was divided into two quite separate parts. The north wing was reserved for my father and his temporary guests. I lived in the south wing with my grandfather and his two wives, one of whom was my grandmother, my sisters, brother, uncles, aunts and cousins.

The very large courtyard was planted with all kinds of fruit trees: mangoes, pomegranates, guavas, paw paws. It was like a farm with all the domestic animals: ducks, hens and cockerel; sheep and goats; numerous cats that never left our home even when we children mistreated them.

Figure 1.1: My home in the camp

Around the house there were two verandas, which, more than any of the rooms inside were the scenes of our sorrows and our joys: it was there that we had our meals and there that our family gatherings took

place. Many village folks who came to the capital to look for work always stayed with us for some time. We always gathered on the verandas after supper in the evenings, shivering with cold or sweating with heat, according to the season, wide awake or heavy with sleep. There we listened, calmly or excited, to the tales and legends my grandmother told us.

‘Lèèbòn – once upon a time’, she would begin. ‘Lippòn – yes, yes!’ we chorused.

‘Amon na fi – there was a …’ she continued. ‘Dana am – go on’, we replied.

‘… little girl called Kumba who had no mother and no father.’

That was our favourite story. We asked for it again and again. Sometimes she would tell us the legend of Leuk Daour, the one – legged horse, the local jinnee which, she said, galloped past the windows after midnight on Thursdays and Sundays. We were very afraid of this spirit. None of us would dare go outside after evening prayers on either of those days.

Question

Write a summary indicating who the author is, what their home looked like, and what they liked about their home.

Read the story below silently, and study the picture. Discuss with

your partner the questions that follow. Share your answers in a group.

Musa was one of the rich men in the Buwaiswa village. He owned cows,

goats, sheep and two donkeys. Yokana, Musa’s son, used to look after those animals every day. He always took the animals to graze. He would stay in the fields all day long. He got into a habit of calling for help even when he was not in danger. He would shout, “Lion, lion, please help, help … heeeelp the lion has taken a goat.”

Figure 1.3: Yokana grazing animals

Whenever he shouted people came to help to chase away the lion but they found none. They always warned him not to lie about something as serious as that but he never listened.

One day, a tiger came and grabbed a goat. Yokana shouted for help as he usually did. But this time nobody came to his help. The tiger killed two goats and a sheep and went away with another sheep. He went home feeling very miserable and scared that day. When he told the story to his family, everybody blamed him for being naughty and a liar.

Questions

• Where did Musa live?
• Did he have children?
• Name some of the animals Musa
• Why was Yokana always calling for help?
• Who used to help Yokana to chase away the lion?
• Why didn’t the tiger attack Yokana?
• What do you learn from Yokana’s behaviour?
• Suggest a suitable title for the

ORAL LITERATURE

Oral literature is literature that was/is expressed by word of mouth. Do you remember the traditional stories your grandparents, auntie and mother used to tell you when you were young; they are a good example of oral literature. Share with your neighbour any of the stories that you recall, and prepare to make a presentation to the class about one that you loved so much. In this chapter, you have learnt language related to personal and family life. Write your own story on this topic.

The head teacher of Nakatooke Secondary School has instructed the

editor of the school magazine to ask all the S.1 students to write articles about their families, in preparation for the School Family Day celebrations.

1. Write a magazine article about your family using the present tense, personal pronouns and abstract nouns learnt in this
2. Include your personal family tree starting with your great grandparents and include their

3. Describe the responsibilities of the members of your family, and how each one of them helps in ensuring that there is no conflict in the