Grade 8

Unit 9: Plants for medicinal use

Objective
In this unit, you will give information about plants and their medicinal uses.

A Listening and speaking

LESSON ONE

Activity
Name these plants and describe them. What medicinal values do they have?

Exercise 1: Answer the questions below.

1. Mention some medicinal plants you know and the diseases they cure.
2. How should we look after herbs?
3. Apart from curing illnesses, what other values do herbs have?

Listening practice
Exercise 2: Your teacher will read to you a passage about medicinal herbs. Listen
carefully then answer the questions.
1. Give the names of the plants mentioned in the passage.
2. What type of plants are they?

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3. Which ways can we conserve plants in our environment?
4. Classify the plants according to their uses.
5. Name any plants in your community that are of medicinal use.

Exercise 3: Your teacher will read to you names of different plants. Group them under
the following sets as shown in the table.

Shrubs Vegetables Creepers Trees Water plants

Compare your table with a partner. Tell him or her why you categorised some plants
differently.

LESSON TWO
Dialogue
Activity 1
Read the dialogue and answer the questions that follow.
Tejetu : Plants are very important to man. I was thinking about it the other day.
Tona : Why do yo say so? To me they are just ordinary plants. And they are all
the same.
Tejetu : No, they aren’t. Plants range from tiny microscopic algae to gigantic trees.
Some are green, others are not. Some are creepers, others are shrubs.
But the best way to classify them is into flowering and non-flowering plants.
Tona : I can identify the flowering and non-flowering plants because all I have
to do is observe them for at least 6 months to see which ones flower and
which ones don’t.
Tejetu : I am glad you know something about plants. You should also remember
their importance to man.
Tona : That’s the bit I don’t know.
Tejetu : Most of the plants have medicinal qualities. They can be used to cure
diseases, for example; don’t you remember that endod soap cures
bilharziasis?
Tona : Of course I do.

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Exercise 1: Answer the questions in complete sentences.
1. What are the two groups of plants?
2. How do plants differ in appearance?
3. Why are plants important?
4. Which part of endod is used to make the soap?
5. Name any medicinal plant you know.

Exercise 2: Match the words under A with their meaning in B.

A B
herbal used up
conserve medicinal
pruning cutting
exhausted protect

Activity 2
Think of any herbal plant in your community and write a dialogue in which you will
explain its importance and how it can be preserved.

LESSON THREE

Grammar practice
Present simple passive
Exercise 1: Copy the sentences in your exercise book. Underline the verbs.
1. Koso is used to kill worms.
2. Carrots are eaten to improve eye sight.
3. Mango leaves are believed to cure cough.
4. Onions are said to be a remedy for high blood pressure.

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Exercise 2: Rewrite the sentences in your exercise book using: as a result, because
of or consequently.
Example: As a result of taking Koso, you will feel better.

Activity
With a partner write more sentences about different plants and their uses, using as
a result, because of and consequently.

LESSON FOUR

Vocabulary practice
Exercise 1: Complete the following sentences with the nouns in the box.
headache, toothache, stomachache, backache

Example: My head is paining me, I have a headache.

1. If one has a painful stomach, he or she has a ______.
He has to take some tablets.
2. My sister had a ______. She went to a dentist.
3. My grandmother always complains of pain in her back. She has a ______.
The doctor advised her to do simple physical exercises.
Exercise 2: Match the actions in column A with words in column B. Do the work in
your exercise book.
A B
grind leaves
chop seeds
pound root
boil bark
Activity
Work in small groups. Identify some common health problems that affect people in
your community. Write their symptoms. How are the herbs used by the people in
your community?

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LESSON FIVE

Grammar practice
Using: should / shouldn’t
Work with a partner and read the sentences.
1. Herbs should be preserved so that they are easily available in the communities.
2. Herbs should be washed before they are used.
3. Important herbal leaves shouldn’t be exposed to animals.

Exercise 1: Give similar advice to the people in your locality about the value of plants.

Using: ought to / had better

1. You ought to prune herbal trees so as to get good yield.
2. The community ought to know the names and kinds of herbs that are of medical
use to human beings.
3. Mothers in our homes ought to identify the leaves, roots and seeds that are
useful to the wellbeing of their babies.
4. My sister had better look for the mango leaves in order to make medicine for her
sick child.
5. You had better chew these seeds in order to reduce your painful toothache.

Exercise 2: Complete the following sentences with should/shouldn’t, ought to,

had better
1. Medicine _______ be kept out of reach of children.
2. We _______ read the doctor’s prescription before we take any drugs.
3. Sick people _______ go to hospital and not to witchdoctors.
4. Herbs _______ be preserved for future use.
5. Since you have a bad cough, you _______ take your medicine.
6. Only patients with heart problems _______ take this drug.
7. We _______ to know the medicinal value of that herb before we use it.

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Activity
Design a poster. Think of all the medicinal plants in your community. Why do you
think they should be preserved? What should people do? Use should, shouldn’t,
ought to, had better.

Grammar highlight
should, shouldn’t, ought to and had better are used when
giving advice or when persuading someone to do something.

B Reading
LESSON SIX
Comprehension
Activity

Discuss the following questions in groups.

1. What is in the basket?
2. Of what importance are plants to us?
3. Name some herbal medicines.
4. Which medicine do you prefer?
The modern or traditional?

Read the passage below.

Plants for medicinal use
Plants are mainly grouped according to whether they produce flowers or not. Plants
are vital for the survival of man, beast and even climate. They range from microscopic
ones growing in water to gigantic trees growing in dense forests. Medicinal plants
are also called herbs and are widely used in research centres to develop remedies for
various ailments. Some are administered to patients in their raw form.

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Every part of a plant is important as medication can be extracted from the roots, the
bark, stems of fleshy plants, leaves, flowers and fruits. Herbs can be chewed fresh
or dried, boiled or roasted or applied on affected areas of the body. It is therefore
important that everyone young and old play their role in conserving plants. It could
save humanity a lot of trouble and expense.

Exercise: Write answers to the questions in your exercise book.

1. What is the main grouping of plants?
2. What are medicinal plants called?
3. Why are herbs taken to research centres?
4. Which parts of the plant are used for medication?
5. List the different ways in which herbs are administered to patients.
6. By what means can man conserve plants?

LESSON SEVEN

Vocabulary practice
Exercise: Work in pairs to complete the table. Refer to the passage about Plants
for medicinal use. Match the words in A with their meaning in B.

A B
herbs medicine to cure a disease.
remedy to cook something without water over open fire.
chew to look after and protect something.
apply on body medicinal plants.
roast study something carefully in order to discover something new.
conserve breakdown something into small pieces using teeth.
research rub into skin or cover body with medicine.

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Activity

In groups of four, think of more words related to medicinal plants and add them
to the list. Look up their meanings in a dictionary. Construct sentences using the
words. Work with your partner.

C Writing
LESSON EIGHT
Making a poster
Activity 1
Work in pairs. Make a poster.
Draw leaves, flowers and fruits of medicinal plants around your school.
Write the name of each below the drawing.
Colour your pictures beautifully.

Activity 2
Pressing leaves
Find a few leaves of any plant near your home or school.
Place them in between the pages of an exercise book and press it closed.
Keep the book under a heavy object to keep the leaves tightly pressed.
What happens to the leaves after a week?

LESSON NINE

Composition
Activity

Work with a partner. Describe any herb you know of that was used to cure a person.
Describe the different steps taken to extract the remedy and how it was administered
to the patient. Remember to make a draft before you write the final copy.

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LESSON TEN

Forming sentences
Exercise: Write correct statements about herbs from the table.
a common local plant that kills tape worm.
Local herbs
still working to determine the correct
Koso can dosage of herbs.
Excessive amounts of koso is cure several diseases.
Medical researchers are cause severe intestinal disorders.
Medicinal plants continuing to be of importance to people in
our communities.

Activity 1
Identify as many herbs as you can that can cure illnesses and write them in your
exercise book.

Activity 2
Work in groups of three. Study the following processes of getting coffee herbal
products.
Husks of dried green coffee beans known as keshir can be boiled; sugar and milk
can be added to make a nice, soothing herbal drink.
Coffee leaves are also boiled to make a herbal drink.
Raw berries or dried beans are roasted and ground and can then be mixed with
butter and honey to form balls which are eaten like herbal sweets.
The white fragrant flower of the coffee plant is made into herbal perfumes.
Think of another herbal plant. Explain the processes of getting its products.

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LESSON ELEVEN

Summary
Read the passage below.
Herbs are used to treat different health disorders, mild or severe. Today, 80% of the
world’s population rely entirely on plants for medicine and its popularity is being
revived rapidly in Ethiopia.

Whole plant remedies are used both internally and externally to treat various ailments.
Herbs can be used to treat many of the conditions that patients might take to their
doctor, from skin problems and digestive disorders to problems with the heart and
blood circulation.

Stress related conditions also respond well to the healing properties of herbs. Herbs
also raise energy levels of the body. They boost the body’s immune system; to fight
bacteria. Herbs normalise the body functioning; by helping to regulate the function of
glands. Herbs are also nutritious and contain vitamins that nourish the body.

Exercise : Summarise the passage in not more than 100 words. Do the work in your
exercise book.

Activity
Use a dictionary to find the meanings of the words in bold and form meaningful
sentences of your own using these words.

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