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Acti
Letter wr,Wng. (bu
Hints o~ Pr'eparing fo
Guidelines for teachers.
Glossary .
Author

E: 'MASUNDIRE

Bachelor of Adult Education (U.Z)

Diploma in Adult Education (U.Z)
Training of Trainers Certificate (U.Z)

Author of:' Dzapiringana ~

Mhandu Dzorusununguko
Mutikitivha' Dumbuzeriene
Nyanga YeChipembere
Nyanga Yenzou
Nzira Dzekunyora Rondedzero Dzine udzami
 COMPOSITION WRITING SKI .

....... ,
First Publishe~2003 1#' t.r· \
- \

Copyright © ~003' .~~:,.

~ , E. MASliNDIRf

, All, rights reserved. 'No part of (fiR publication may be

produced, stored in a retrieval s~tem or transmitted in i
form or by any mean~/ectronic, mechanical, photoco
ing, recording, or otherwise, without the prior perfTJ{ssiO
the copyright owner.
, .
'\ 'I l

. ISBN 0-7974-2526-4

Published by LLee~on 'Publishers , .

[A division of Grimsorne investments (Pvt} Ltd]
POBox HG 191 r

Hiqhlands
HARARE"
 book introduces the .subject of writing to school cHil.•
. It is precise and very much simplified. It has been ap-
bVthe Ministry of Education for use in Zirnbabwea ~ I •..•

Is. •

, '

he book is user-friendly to both the pupils and the

teacher. Besides the laid down strategies 'of tackling, differ:

\
ent types of compositions,
'
it contains some activities or
assignments that will require teachers and' students' to
work together as a team. The child can learn most if 'after
discussions he participates in the given activities under the ','
'.
• , ' - r

watchful eye of the teacher.

,r. VL
"

child can also develop if the parent at home sits down ,

I :h him and' guides him through' asslqprnents which ap- '
r. . .
I,

~ \' , I
The book alsq co~tains.a section at the end that provid s
a gUideli~\ for ma~kin~to the teacher or parent at hom ,

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PO'
e

l.Alh at IS
?"Y.
l . a composmom
j.., ltion? "~""'"'''''''''''''''.'''''''''''''''''
• 1
esqriptive composition
\ .. "" • .. ....t.
: :
..'
·.r '. 2
arratlve composition .. "1f r' ...................................• i 5
Sit~~tional composition : :~:. A-
5
Guided Composition :.. 6
.,
ArgurriemtaHve composition ; . 8
Activities :; : : : 9 .
Struct!Jre of a composition .'.•........ 10
The
~ beginn.ing ·: ~ , .
....;,
11 .

The middle ; ; , , . 15
.The ending ; .' : 'to • v; • , .•• 15
A.ct·IVI·to'les . ,
",.' :.... ;.' 19
Style : : . 21
Use of proverbs .. ~ :;.; :~ , 21
:, ' . /<.
Use of similes ?2'
..
v-{ • ~•• ·•• ·.: ;

Use of metaphors ..• :':................................• . 'il • ; .•• :.: 23/'

/ .,
Use of figurative expressions : ::.;. 23
ctivities : . :26
,'.~·}, nguage : ' . 27
i., ~ " .

. ntence construction
! \
,.,.;
.
. \~8
29
.. 30
32
33
 1
", '

What is a Composition?
, A composition is a short piece of writing on a par-
ticular subject. It is characterised by well org~ed
-
ideas that flow smoothly from the beginning to the
.
end The ideas must fit together like a chain. The
language used must be simple and straighUOrward.
.
It must also be flowery
~ to make the composition in-
teresting. . .

There are so' many things to write about. You may

write about something that you saw, something that
you hew about or even something that you read 'in
the newspaper. You may write about y6ur experi-
ences in church, at a football match, in a bus, car,
lorry, aeroplane, train or in t9.lNI1.Anything can be
written about. . ..
I

The ~t behind a good compQ§jtign is sim~ty.

Do not make use of big words that are difficult to un-
derstand. By writing a composition, you are commu-
nicating with your audience. You want them to be
thrilled. You also want to earn marks from your
teacher. ~e/she cannot award marks f9r something
 that he/she does .not understand. Who will read"
something that is difficult to understand anyway?

Examine closely the following sentences :-

a) The management's sermons were intended

to flabbergast and bamboozle the workers
into obedience.

b) The management's talk on a religious subject

was intended to confuse and trick the work-
ers into obedience.

The two sentences basically convey a common

message. The first one is loaded with big words that
are difficult to understand. You need a dictionary
besides you to check the meaning of the big words.
Without a dictionary the words do not mean any-
thing to you. This is the type of writing that every
scholar must avoid. The second one uses simple
language which is recommended.

1 .1 Descriptive Composition

A writing that is descriptive describes what some-

thing is like. A descriptive composition therefore de-
scribes a subject. This type of a composition is very
easy to write provided you know your subject.

Description of thinqs or events should show a pat-

tern of continuity. In other words the description
" must not be mixed up. There must be in place a
system of describing things. If you are describing a

2
 person for example you may start by his head,
neck, chest, tummy down to his legs. Do not mix up
. descriptions, say for example from head to toes,
neck, then back to head.

The following are some of the different approaches

of describing things or events.

Describing from particular to general

The smartly dressed girl was among the fifty grade

five pupils who were punished for misbehaving.

Describing from general to particular

Among the fifty grade five pupils who were pun-

ished for misbehaving was the smartly dressed girl.

Describing from far to near

About twenty kilometres away, the hills silhouetted

against a pale blue sky. Ten kilometres from the
hills were a range of Msasa trees and close to
where Peter was standing was the big herd of buffa-
loes. ~

Describing from inside to outside

There were green flowers well arranged in rows in-

side the garden. Surrounding the garden were thick-
ets of dry trees that had been neglected for a long
time.

3
 Describing from left to right

On the far left of the homestead was an abandoned

car park, then two beds of roses and a small cot-
tage on the far right.

Describing from top to bottom

Upon the summit of the height was the big baboon

with its young one. Further down some squirrels
were mating and right at the bottom Simon watched
closely with his bow and arrows, ready to pounce.

As an example, say your topic is My Dog ..

What are you going to describe about your dog?

>- What does it look like? (head..--e)1.es, ears,

nose, mouth, tail, legs)
>- What colour is it?
>- Is it thin or fat?
>- What type of a dog is it?
>- Where does it stay?
>- What type of food do you give it?
>- Is it friendly or vicious?
>- Is it a good hunter?

Please note that your description is restricted to the

dog. You may write anything that has to do with the
dog, but nothing else outside. If you find yourself
writing about an elephant, a cow or your school
. then you are getting lost. Stick to your topic.

4
1.2 Narrative Composition
A writing that is narrative gives an account of events
or experiences. Usually narrative compositions are
easier to tadkle because they are not very restric-
tive.

On a topic like A day I will never forget, for" exam-

ple, what do you need to write about? i.~i
<.~;:
.if"
When was that?
>- Where were you?
>- In whose company?
>- What were you doing?
);>" What then happened?
>- Where you happy or sad?
>- Why is it that you will never
forget that day?
Please note that the main aspect of the story line
circles around why you will not forget that day. On
this topic you are free to write anything.
What you need is to explain why YOIf will never for-
get that day. -

1.3 Situational Composition

This type of a composition gives an account of
events or experiences happening to you or some-
one else at a particular time and place. Your main
task is to write what happened at that particular
time and place.
A topic like The Wedding can suit this type of com- '
position.

s
 ~ W~en did it happen?
"-
~ Who was the bride/brideqroom?
','
oj),

if,,
~ Wha\-role did you play?

~ Did a big crowd attend?

~ What type of food w~s 'there?

~ Any music?

~ Any dancing?

~ Was it a good one or a bad one?

~ Of all the events, what really struck you?

Please note that this type of a composition; like the-

descriptive composition is restrictive. You are only
giving an account of events' for that particular time
and place and nothing else. You may not write
about other weddings in other places.

1.4 Guided Composition'

In this type of a composition, you are given some in-
formation or instructions to incorporate in your writ-
ing. Thus you are given a skeleton and you have to
add some flesh.

This type of a composition comes in many forms.

As an example you may be given a topic, My Jour-
ney to Chivhu.

6
/
In addition you are given some guidelines to follow,
like;

)i;> you board a bus at Mbare.

)i;> your wallet is stolen in the bus.
)i;> the conductor drops you on the way because
you have no money.
)i;> a priest gives you a lift.
)i;> you are involved in an accident 10 kilometres
away from Chivhu.
)i;> you arrive in Chivhu by ambulance.
)i;> you get home the following morning.

A's you can see you have to follow the pattern of

guidelines. Do not write anything that is outside the
guidelines. You may fail. For example you can't talk
of boarding a train or an aeroplane to Chivhu when
you are told that you go by bus. Other guided com-
positions have the following instructions :-

Write a compo~ition that ends ud:with the fol-

I'owing words; -
a) " I looked at my sister for the second
time ..- There was blood all over her face. I
fell down and began to cry."

b) u••.. The headmaster handed me the book

prize. People cheered. Tears of joy trickled
down my cheeks."

7
1 .5 Argumentative Composition
This type of a composition involves some discus-
. sion. You argue that something is the case and give
some reasons. You try to convince the audience
that you are right. Usually you argue for both sides
of the case and end up taking a stance.

A topic may come in the form;

A boy child is more important than a girl child.

Your main task here is to highlight important roles

played by the boy child. You also need to shed
some light on the roles of the girl child. In the end,
you must wrap up your composition really giving
strong reasons for your argument.

1.6 Summary
This chapter has looked at the possible explanation
of a composition. It has also gone into five types of
compositions. It is very important to realise that it is
the topic that determines the type of composition to
be written. Also one composition may follow two or
more types of writing, that is, it may be descriptive,
situational, narrative, argumentative and guided at
the same time. It therefore becomes. complex.
Usually complex compositions are more informing
and interesting than the simple ones. However at
this stage concentrate on simple compositions. It is
only after having a lot of practice on simple compo-
sitions that you can try complex ones.
;;'1.7 Activities
a) Choose one topic from the following and
write a very good composition .

• :. The teacher I like best at my school.

.:. An accident.
.:. My mother
.:. The importance of water in our country .
• :. An industrial worker is better than a farmer .
• :. How to keep money .
• :. The book that I read last week.

b) Under which category does your composition

fall? (Descriptive, Narrative, Situational, Ar-
gumentative etc). Explain.

c) Write a composition that ends with the follow-

ing words; (choose one).

" AII the school children ran around

the football pitch celebrating."

" '" The dog died instantly after the

snake bite. I sat alone in the "bush not know-
ing what to do next." .•

0,

, 9
\'
 2

Structure of a Composition

If you are hungry and you want some food, what do

you do? Do you start by swallowing lumps of food
as quickly as possible and get satisfied instantly?

.. No, you don't start with a mouthful. You start by

praying to God for the wonderful meal in front of
'you. You go on to wash your hands, dry them then
you dig your clean hands into the food, taste it then
start eating. .

You keep on taking the food, enjoying the taste at

the same time filling your tummy. When your tummy
is full then you are satisfied, but the process of sat-
isfaction is not complete. You go on to drink some
water, wash your hands and dry them. You take a
toothpick to remove some plaque. Finally you take a
siesta. The process of satisfation becomes com-
plete.

The above process of satisfaction has taken three

stages.

10
 ." Preparation (beginning)
>- Actual eating (middle)
I

> Resting (ending)

Writing a piece of work, as a process also follows

the above stages. It has three stages namely the
beginning, the middle and the ending.

2.1 The beginning

The beginning is the first part of writing. It is the in-
troductory part of the piece of writing. The introduc-
tion gives the reader an insight into the story. It is
the introduction that creates suspense to the reader
who then wants to read the whole story to see what
is going to happen.

If you taste something and find it unpleasant, what

do you do? You throw it away. If it tastes nice, you
eat it. Same applies to reading ..If the first paragraph
is boring then you don't read any further. You look
for something better. Thus the beginning of a com-
.position must be interesting. It musr'qst the reader
.hooked.

The following are characteristics of a good begin-

ning.

>- It must be exact and accurate.

>- It must be brief.
~ It must give some hint of the story to come.
>- It must be interesting.

I1
If you want your introduction to be interesting there
is a secret you must know. Make use of proverbs,
metaphors, similes and figurative expressions [fully
explained in Chapter 3].

The following are examples of how you may begin

your compositions in such a way that you get the
reader hooked.

2.1.1 Beginning with a proverb

o Marambadoro sat motionless on the bed,
eyes fixed at the letter that lay open in his
palms. The message was unmistakably
clear. His wife was having an affair with a
next door neighbour. The previous day
they were seen together in Greenhood
Park by a friend. And now today, the let~
ter from his' uncle. Where there is smoke
there is fire. The words kept on ringing in
Mararnbadoro's mind. He was going .to
take action, fast action .

o It was in the middle of the examination that

James realized the mistake. He had not
followed instructions. He was supposed to
write a poem, not a letter. A. poem! He
cancelled the whole letter and gathered
himself up. It was no use to cry over spoilt
milk. He had to start again.' Time was not
on his side but he had to do some-
thing .

12
2.1.2 Beginning with a simile
o The second gunfire came a few seconds
after the first one. It was as loud as thun-
der. The window panes were smashed. I
crawled to the edge of the bed and lay
motionless. My heart was beating fast,
and I was as nervous as a mouse. I did
not want to die, but if they were to find me
what was I going to do? I started sweat-
ing .

o The match was on. Dynamos was lead-

ing by one goal. Caps United was trailing
behind. Peter watched the game from the
f~orner as helpless as a babe. His
team was loosing but he could not do
anything. Time was running out and he
was "becoming as impatient as a lover

2.1.3 Beginning with figurative expressions

o Soon after the headmaster had driven off
the school yard, Thompson silently walked
out of the staff room. He went straight to
the headmaster's office, entered and
locked himself inside:" Paidamoyo who
was sitting on a bench outside the office
gave him a thumps-up signal to indicate
that he would keep his eagle-eye open for
the headmaster. In thunder, lightning or
rain, they were determined to steal the
money that had been locked in the
safe .

13
2.1.4 Beginning with a metaphor
o Before the boxers started dancing in the
ring, Jameson looked closely at their phy-
sique. He realised he could not match
them. They were real lions hungry for
meat "

o Majori starts the journey to the Police sta-

tion. She is going at a very slow pace. Her
body is weak. She is a duck the~e days.
She takes to thinking as a duck takes to
water. She can swim better than a duck in
her floods of thoughts. Hope she will not
drown ih her tides of thoughts.

2.1.5 Beginning with weather conditions

o As the sun went down, a cool breeze
started blowing from the west. Dark clouds
slowly covered the sky. A few minutes
later they started spitting some drizzle

o It was extremely hot that day. The sky

was clear and on its background the hot
sun was very distinct. Chamaida walked
across the fields, sweating, oblivious of
the heat ".

2.1.6 Beginning by describing the landscape

o Chinombi forest was a vasty tract of land
characterised by evergreen forests, ever-
flowing rivers and soils rich in minerals
and humus. ·It was a land whose naturally
evergreen vegetation kept animals, in-
sects, reptiles, birds and crustaceans in

14
 numbers. An extra ordinarily beautiful
land that every living being would desire
setting foot on .

o A range of mountains stood on the far

east, silhoutted by the deep blue sky. On
the western side lay an open, barren and
desolate piece of land where poor villag-
ers lived .

2.2 The Middle

The middle of a comp~~ition is the part that comes
after the beginning and before the end. It is in the
middle that the writer explains everything in detail.
The middle, if well written will cause the reader to
laugh with joy or cry.

To keep the reader 'hooked, the middle must be in-

teresting as well. Figurative expressions, similes,
metaphors, proverbs and all sorts of idioms must be
used.

2.3 The Ending

This constitutes the last part of the-composition. It
is called the conclusion. Here the writer ties all the
threads of the story together. All the twists and turns
are tied together to form a knot.

The ending, too, must be interesting. Just like the

beginning it may use metaphors, similes, proverb
and figurative expressions.

Here are two examples of endinq a composition.

15
 ~ Jameson looked down hopeless. All the tricks he
had employed hurriedly had failed. He realised
that to scare a bird is not the best way to catch
it.

~ The Magistrate realised that there was insuffi-

cient evidence. All along they had been chasing
a dead horse. He looked at the accused person
and said, "You are found not guilty and acquit-
ted."

2.4 Paragraphing
A paragraph' is a section of a piece of writing. It is
made up' of sentences carrying forward an idea. It
may consist of one or more sentences, or even a
word or two. A paragraph always begins on a new
line.

We have seen that a composition is made up of a

beqlnninq, a middle and an ending. These three
stages themselves are made up of paragraphs. .
The beginning is usually the introductory paragraph.
The middle is made up of more paragraphs since it
unwinds the main story. The ending is the conclu-
sion which usually consists of a single paragraph.

16
 +

The
omposition

Etc .

+
ending •.
~

There is no hard and fast rule as to the number

paragraphs that constitute the beginning, th mldd
and the ending. It just depends on the type of

17
 position and its length. A lengthy composition may
have two paragraphs on its introduction, or even
more. At this level I recommend a single paragraph
for an introduction, a single paragraph for a conclu-
slon and a number of paragraphs for the body.

2.4.1 Points to bear in mind

o Paragraphs must clearly express an idea.

o Paragraphs must not be too long.

o Paragraphs must be linked together since

they form a chain which makes up one
story ..

middle
beginning ending

The composition
(the chain)

o Each paragraph always begins on a new line.

o Paragraphs must be· arranged in chronological or-

der that best outlines the story.

1(,
 2.5 Summary
This chapter has looked at the structure of a
composition. We have seen that a composition
consists of a beginning, middle and an ending.
We have also seen the crucial role of paragraph-
ing in the three stages. Proverbs, similes,
metaphors and idiomatic expressions have
proved to be important ingredients of a good
composition. These will however be discussed
in greater detail in the next chapter.

2.6. Activities
The following are topics for good compositions.

a) Once bitten twice shy.

b) The bull elephant.
c) Hunting.
d) Our Christmas party.
e) The importance of electricity in Zimbabwe.
f) Why home economics is important..
i) From each of the above topics, write a good
beginning of a composition usin~ :-
.:. Similes .
.,..

.:. Metaphors .
.:. Proverbs .
.:. Figurative expressions .
.:. The weather conditions .
,1

.:. Natural features of the land .

19
ii) From each of the above topics write a good
ending of a composition using:-

.:. Similes .
.:. Metaphors .
.:. Proverbs .
.:. Figurative expressions
.:. The weather conditions .
.:. Natural features of the land .

iii) Write the beginnings of the compositions

.which have the following endings :-

" 1fell down and began to cry."

" ; My mother embraced me with tears

of joy on her cheeks."

" It started raining again. I ignored my

sister's advice and kept going-without a rain-
coat."

" 1 realised that the saying, a rolling

stone gathers no moss is true."
" 1touched her hands. They were as
cold as a corpse."

" After the bad dreams, I started think-

ing about the ghost story." ,

" Birds of the same feathers flock to-

gether. I had sensed it from the beginning."

': 1 never thought such an awful thing

could happen at a white wedding."
20
 3

Style

The style relates to the methods and techniques

used in creating a piece of writing. A good style
uses a variety of things that include the following;

3.1 Use of proverbs

A proverb is a short sentence which gives advice or
tells you something about life. lt is coined by the
people after they have realised something from their
way of life. It has deep roots in culture. Different CUl-
tures have different proverbs.

Examples
o Where there is smoke there is fire.
o To scare a bird is not the best way to catch it.
o Time is money;'
o Strike while the iron is hot. /
o Failure teaches success. r:
o Forewarned is1orearmed.- ,..,
o It is no use to cry over spoilt milk, ,
o Every dog has his day. _
o Beggars must not be choosers .

. 21
 D Absence makes the heart grow fonder.
D Call a spade a spade.
f
~" ,
D lf'wishes were-horses beggars might ride.
D A great talker is a great liar.
D A friend in need is a friend in deed.
D A hungry man is an angry man.
D A miss is as good as a mile.
D Better be late than never.
D Do as I say not as I do.
D A burnt child dreads fire.
D Other fish to fry.

3.2 Use of similes or comparisons

A simile is an expression which describes a person
or thing as being similar to something or someone.

Examples j

>- As alike as two peas.

'J As blind as a bat.
>- As blund as a hammer.
>- As careless as the wind.
I~ As cold as a corpse.
>- As cool as a cucumber.
>- As countless as the stars.
;,>-' As docile as a lamb.
>- As fit as fiddle.
>- As foolish as a calf.
>- As harmless as a baby.
>- As invisible as the air.
>- As nervous as a mouse.
>- As loud as thunder.
>- As shy as a squirrel.
>- As sharp as a razor.
>- As useful as a cow.
>- As stealthy as a cat.

\ 22
3.3 Use of metaphors
A metaphor is an imaginative way of describing
something by saying that it is something else which
has the qualities that you are trying to describe.

Example
If you want to say someone is very shy, you might
say that they are a squirrel.

~ Tom is a squirrel.

If you want to say someone is very brave, you might

say that they are a lion.

~ Patrick is a lion.

3.4 Use of figurative expressions

Figurative expressions are phrases or sentences
with more abstract or imaginative meaning than
their usual meanings.

Examples
~ To build castles in the air
~ To air one's views
~ To take up arms
~ To backbite a person
~ A bad egg'
~ To keep the ball rolling
--'i In the same boat
--'~' To bite the dust
'"' To let the cat out of the bag
/vili!/
);> To jump from the frying pan into the fire
);> To be at loggerheads
)0 To see daylight
» Spick and span
23
 ~ A lion's share
~ To read between the lines
~ To look down upon
~ In the long run
~ To pull through
~ To muddle through
~ To buy a pig in a poke
~ Petticoat government
~ To give a person a long rope

3.5 Summary
This chapter has looked at the use of proverbs, simi-
les or comparisons, metaphors and figurative ex-
pressions in detail. .

Now that you know how to employ these tech-

niques, read the following composition carefully. '
Try to identify all the ingredients of the flowery lan-
guage in this composition.

The day when things went wrong

,~s a beautiful day. ~ day that I ha~ been waiting

{Qr_jmpa1ifm!!y. My fatheLtQQ_J~PulQ....o9t (bide the ex--
.. dtement. The_3mg_II_'vY.tiokLes on. his .fQrehe.icf.-ui-
m_moustach.e._au.d. th 'bap.m'~9ml!Lr}.g Jb,in liES re~
flec e fee'n s of pleas,ure inside ~ Gona-
rezhou game park sparke a the e ectric feelings in
our bodies. What never struck our minds was that
. JdJ1.fU{pactedthing~ always ha J~en.. W ere there is
~~misfortunes'cin still come' and they never
come sin.,9!y. "

My father stopped the car at. the main gate of.

Gonarezhou park. A Warden Officer met us. He
was at the brightest stage of musculine growth, in
. 24
 his khaki uniform and loud black boots. He informed
us that everything was alright in the game park and
opened the gate for us.
I

We drove through. I suggested that we start by

watching elephants. I was burning to see live ele-
phants. I had always seen them on television and
books.

We first came across two elephants about twenty

kilometres right inside the game park. They were
both males grazing. They were as alike as two
peas. I took out my camera and took some photo-
graphs.

We left the car beside the road and went up a small

hill. That is where I got the surprise of my life.
There was the biggest herd of elephants I had ever
seen. They were as countless as the stars, very
close to us. I was about to take photographs when
we heard a loud bang. Gunfire! There were two
more bangs. The elephants started trumpeting, run-
ning wildly in different directions. I saw one falling
down .

. For a moment we stood watching rn shock. A bull

elephant was coming towards us, its task swinging
high up in the air. It saw us and charged towards
us. I got the fright of my life.
,
My father picked me up and we went towatqs a rook
further up the hill. The elephant was coming fait"
this time flapping its ears. My camera dropped and
we. left it. .

.. 25
 There was a cave between two balancing rocks
right up the hill. My father pushed me roughly in-
side and he followed. We sat close together our
hearts pounding. We heard the noise of the ele-
phant as it went wildly in another direction. The
noise quickly died down.

We stayed in the cave for about an hour. We heard

some voices shouting outside. We got outside and
found that they were- armed rangers of Parks and
Wildlife Management. They were looking for us. I
felt relieved. They informed us that the gunfire had
come from poachers. They apologised to us for the
incident and led us to where we had left our vehicle.

From there we went straight back home. What was

supposed to be a good day turned out to be the
worst day in my life. A cloud of the events will hang
in my memories forever. I will never forget this day.

3.6. Activities
Choose one topic from the following and write a
good composition making use of proverbs, similes,
metaphors and figurative expressions that you know.

a) The thief.
b) The wounded lion.
c) The happiest day in my life.
d) lrnportance of firewood.
e) The nightmare.

26
 4

Language
No matter how creative you are, if you are not good
at language you will never produce a good composi-
tion. You must therefore have a very good command
of English language. It is through practice that you
can be a master in the field.

My piece of advice to you is :-

>- read a lot of work that has been written by others.

> pay particular attention to sentence construction,

punctuation, tenses, prepositions, paragraphing
and spellings.

>- have a lot of practice in writing compositions.

You may do this by writing at home and giving
your father or mother your work for marking. Do
not wait for your class teacherjill the time.

>- work in groups. Do not isolate yourself. Your

friends will help you improve on your grammar.

>- After you have done your written work, revise It

for common errors .

.work on your vocabulary.

27
4.1 Sentence Construction
In your writings, it is very important that you make
use of simple and short sentences. A sentence is a
group of words which, when they are written down,
begin with a capital letter and end with a full stop.
You must be able to identify a complete sentence
from a group of incomplete sentences. Study the
following examples.

Incomplete sentences
Among his baggage.
As usual at the weekend.
If I could afford it.
After a while.
While we were talking to him.
As they were going to Chitungwiza.
If you don't mind.
Among the new nursing students.

Complete sentences
Among his baggage was a medicine chest.
As usual at the weekend, the club was empty.
·If I could afford it I would buy a boat.
After a while, my eyes became accustomed to the
darkness.
The teacher is in the office.
He looked at me as if I were mad.
If you don't mind my saying so, I think you are
partly responsible.
Her voice was, if not perfect, at least nearly so.

28
4.2 Activities
Read the following composition carefully.

An Accident I witnessed
As usual. My day had been properly planned. l was
going to spend it with my friends. Chipo and Tariro.
If only I knew the horror that was awaiting us.

We boarded a bus and were on our way to town.

We disembarked at Rezende Street bus terminus.
We then walked all the way to Eastgate. As is al-
ways the case. When the three of us are together.
We talk and laugh.

As we were about to cross Second Street. Chipo

dropped her wallet. But she did not realise it. It was
after we had crossed the street. That a certain man
shouted to Chipo pointing at the wallet. Realising
that she had dropped her wallet on the other side of
. the road, Chipo reacted swiftly. She started running
across the road in the direction of her wallet. As she
was crossing the road. A fast moving car blew a
horn. But it was too late. Chipo was knocked down
and that was the last we saw of ber. She lay still as
a statue, in a pool of blood. ""

As we were looking at Chipo's body. Tariro screa-

med. I screamed too in pain and shock. If Chipo had
been more careful. It wouldn't have happened.

Twenty minutes later. A police vehicle brought a

coffin. Chi po's body was taken to the mortuary. We
watched in silence not believing our eyes.

29
 Oh! A beautiful day was spoiled by the tragic event.
Accidents do happen. But at times it is our duty to
avoid them.

Questions
a) Is this a good composition? Explain.

b) In this composition, there are some sentences

which are incomplete. Identify them.

c) Comment on the use of idiomatic expressions in

this composition.

d) Rewrite this composition improving on sentence

construction and the use of proverbs, similes,
metaphors and figurative expressions.

4.3. Punctuation
Punctuation is the marks such as question marks,
commas, full stops, exclamation marks, opening
and closing inverted commas that you use in writing
to divide words into sentences and clauses.

The punctuation needs putting right.

4.3.1 Full stops and commas

Usually, students have problems with the use of full
stops and commas. A full stop comes at the end of
a complete sentence. Commas may appear in be-
tween the sentence.

30
 Study the following examples carefully.

Correct use ot full stops Incorrect use of full stops

and commas and commas
James, Peter, Taurai and James. Peter. Taurai and
Chipo are going to school. Chipo, are going to school.
As he was going to school, As he was going to school.
he saw a lion. He saw, a lion.
Among the oxen there was Among the oxen. There was,
a pig. a pig.

4.3.2 Exclamation marks

An exclamation mark is the sign (!).It is used in
writing to show that a word, phrase, or sentence
is an exclamation. An exclamation is a sound,
word, or sentence that is spoken suddenly and
emphatically in order to express excitement,
shock or anger.

Correct use of exclamation Incorrect use of exclamation

"Run!" shouted Chipo. "Run." Shouted Chipo!

J""
"Watch out!" shouted Peter. "Watch! Out!"•• Shouted Peter.
"Oh, you poor chlld!" "Oh! You poor child!"
exclaimed the teacher. exclaimed the teacher.

4.3.3 Inverted Commas

Inverted commas are used in writing to indicate
where speech or a quotation begins and ends. •
They are of two types, the opening and closing
inverted commas.

31
 Correct use of inverted Incorrect use of inverted
commas commas

"Come home early today "Come home early today

Chipo," said mother. Chipo, said mother."

"Go well my son," said "Go well my son, said Mrs

Mrs Zviuya. Zviuya.

"If you encounter problems If you encounter problems

phone me," Tom mumbled. phone me", Tom mumbled.

4.4 Activities
The following passage is not properly punctuated.
Read it carefully and make the necessary correc-
tions.

Yeukai
From the day when the policemen came and took
father away everything is not going on well I just do
not understand why mother is crying everyday she
is crying every minute It is even worse during night
times She does not want to talk as she used to do
She prefers to stay alone Most of the time she talks
to herself Last night it was worse.

"Mother" I called She did not answer "Mother what

is wrong I asked." I heard her start snoring but I
knew she was awake Very awake.

"My son are you calling me?" She asked.

Yes mother why are you crying? I asked

J was dreaming my son.

32
 What were you dreaming mother?

Let us talk tomorrow Yeukai. Right now I am feeling

sleepy. She said I did not believe her She was not
feeling sleepy That was not true she was wide
awake She was having a sleepless night I was also
getting the same problem.

"There is something I do not understand mother.

Why did the policemen take father away?"

"We will talk tomorrow Yeukai." She said.

4.5 Tenses
The tense of a verb is the form which shows whether
you are referring to the past, the present, or the fu-
ture.

This is another sensitive area. You must stick to

your tenses. If you decide to use present tense then
stick to it. If it is the past tense then let it be the
past. Pay particular attention to the conjugation of
verbs.

Pay particular attention to the following words;

r:

is - was Shall - sh,.ould

are - were Will - would
shall have - should have Can - could
will have - would have Has - had
can have - could have Have - had

33
 Correct tenses Incorrect tenses

I wish I were young. I wish I was young.

John and Peter are happy. John and Peter is happy.

Tsitsi wished she had Tsitsi wished she has written

written the Examination. the examination.

Were it not for the rains Were it not for the rains Mary
Mary would have made will have made some fire.
some fire.

The word to must be followed by the present tense, even if

you are writing in the past.

Correct tenses Incorrect tenses

Tommy was made to believe Tommy was made to be-

salt is sweet. lieved salt is sweet.

Trust had to look at the re- Trust had to looked at the

suits again. results again.

Mrs Moyo was requested to Mrs Moyo was requested to

bake a cake every Easter baked a cake every Easter
holiday. holiday.

4.6 Activities
Choose the best word or words to complete the fol-
lowing sentences.

i) If Patrick had gone to school he .

have written the examination. (will, shall,
WOUld, should).

34
 ii) Mrs Chitsva she would stay in Mas-
vingo the whole of her life. (wish, wished, is
wishing, was wishing).

iii) Tom wished he written the assignment.

(was, has, had, were)

iv) Because of the hot weather, Chipo had to

...... ice cream. (bought, buy, buying, buys)

v) Yesterday mother me some money.

(give, gives, gave, had to gives)

vi) Chipo sweets (had to liked, likes, would

liked, is likes).

vii) Where ..... you going? (is, were, has, have)

viii) I am against the idea of alone at night.

(walked, walks, walking, would have walked)

4.7 Prepositions

Here are some tricky prepositions that n~ed your attention.

by for "'"
into with

about of m at

on over under out ,

35
 Correctly used Incorrectly used

They usually go Qy car. They usually go with car.

He parked the car about a metre He parked the car for a

,from the gate. metre from the gate.

That night I camped in the hills. That night I camped on the

hills.

ln the middle of the lawn was On the middle of the lawn

the great cidar tree. was the great cidar tree.
•.
4.8 Spellings
A spelling is the correct order of the letters in a
word. To guai;~ against spelling errors, it is impor-
tant to revise one's work.

4.9 Activities
Read the following passage carefully. Some prepo-
sitions were omitted .. Pick the correct prepositions
from those' listed below and fill them in.·

Jameson

-;.., Jameson-
. 1.. was born . the 24th day July
1988 .. :":'.~
.. Harare Hospital. He grew up Gutu .
where he was staying his uncle Matombo.

When Jameson was aged seven, his uncle Ma-

tombo died. There was no one to care ..... Jameson.
A certain business-man took Jameson to his home.

36
 He bought some clothes ..... him and gave him
some food. He sent Jameson to school.

When Jameson was aged ten, he one day ran away

...... school and went back home. The business
man was away. Jameson opened the door to the
bedroom and silently got........... There was a big
table the centre of the room. .. the table
was a wallet. Jameson thought that it contained
some money. He crawled the table and took the
wallet. He opened it and empted the contents
.......... the floor. There were pieces of paper inside.
There was no money.

At that time the business-man arrived car. He

parked it the garage. He saw Jameson com-
t ing out the bedroom. He smiled him and
gave him some. money. He then took him back
....... school.

with, on, of, at, in, for, about, under, out, over, by, into

.....

37
 5

Letter writing
Letter writing is a branch of composition writing.
U.sually you are given composition' topics and guide
lines for letter writing in an examination. It will be up
to you to make a choice whether to write a composi-
tion or a letter.

I find letter writing easier, under examination condi-

tions, than composition writing. Why? Letter writing
is not very demanding in the sense that;

>- it does not call for much creativity. You simply

write your letter following guidelines given.

> it does not call for a lot of figurative expressions,

proverbs, similes and metaphors. You can do
with little of these, or non and get away with it!

>- usually you don't have a problem of exceeding

the given length, whereas a composition may
cause you to get carried away and exceed the
expected number of words. This is common
where you choose a topic you a're 'very much
comfortable with.

38
5.1 Business letters

A business letter carries the following components;

I

,. address of the writer on the top right hand cor-

ner.

,. address of the company or organisation where

the letter is going on the left hand side, just be-
low the writer's address.

>- a greeting, usually its written Dear Sir/Madam.

>- the subject of discussion e.g Application for a

job, in form of a heading.

>- The main body of the letter.

>- The ending e.g yours faithfully Benhilda Chinhu.

Friendly letters

A friendly letter has;

>- only one address on the top right hand corner,
i.e, the writer's address. .,...

>- a greeting which may appear in varied forms e.g

Dear Chipo, Beloved Chipo, Sister Chipo, etc.

>- no heading.

>- an ending which appears in different forms e.g

your beloved wife Tsitsi, your sister Tsitsi, your
sister in Christ Tsitsi, etc.

39
5.3 Distinction between a business and a friendly
letter

>- The structure is different as you have noted

above.

>- In a friendly letter, the writer is free to write any-

thing he thinks of. In a business letter the writer
has to stick to issues concerning business only.

>- Names - a business letter is also called a for-

mal letter.
a friendly letter is called an informal
letter.

40
 Example of a formal letter

Chihamba School
Box 99
GUTU

10 October 2002

The Headmaster
Nhembe Secondary School
Box 89
MASVINGO

Dear Sir

RE: APPLICATION FOR FORM ONE: YEAR 2003

I hereby apply for a place for form one.

I am a boy aged 12 doing grade seven at Chihamba

School. I passed my mid-year examination very
well. I have attached a copy of the results.

As for my character and ability I refer you to the

headmaster of the above mentioned school.

Yours faithfully

Norbet Chiriko

41
Example of an informal letter

House number 551

Chinyaradzo Street
Kambuzuma

14 June 2002

Beloved Razaro

I am very glad to write this letter to you informing

you about my grade seven examination results. I
passed with flying colours.

As you know, the examinations were very difficult

especially Mathematics and. Science. Though that
was the case I got the following; mathematics A,
Science B, Shona A and, Content C. How do you
like it?

Is Johnson still in hospital? Tell him I will see him in

August after the Heroes holiday. That is when I will
be coming there.

Pass my warm regards to Zvichauya.

Your friend

Sosera

42
5.4 Activities
a) You are a student at Gochanhembe Primary
School POBox 40, Kwekwe. A classroom
block was destroyed by the rains and books,
chairs, tables and charts were damaged.
Telephone and electricity lines were badly af-
fected. There is no electricity at the school.
You have been learning under a tree for the
past week. The situation is just bad.

Write a letter to your friend informing him of

the incident.

b) You are in grade seven. You did not produce

very pleasing results but you want to go for
form one. Write a letter to the headmaster of
Changundega School, Box 55, Kadoma ap-
plying for a place

c) Read the following letter carefully. It is not

properly written. Rewrite it effecting the nec-
essary 'corrections.

43
 15 January 2003
Chakanetsa School
Box 55
Kadoma

The Headmaster
Chitando School
Box 851
Gutu

REj APPLICATION FOR FORM ONE

Dear Sir

I am applying for a place for form one.1 was told by my

mother that your school is the best in Zimbabwe. You have
very good teachers, so I have made up my mind to join
you. I am a well behaved student.

My father is a rich man .He will not have problems in pay-

ing school fees. He can even buy you drinks during week-
ends. I am good at swimming and tennis.

Please greet all the teachers and students at your school.

Loving student

Pedzisai Tichararama

d) The following business letter was poorly writ-

ten. Rewrite it making the. necessary correc-
tions.

44
 Fungisai Primary School
POBox 354
Nyamapanda

zs" November 2002

Dear Headmaster
Cheninga School
Box 45
Murewa

Sir

I wish to apply for a place for form one.1 am aged 13 doing

grade seven at the above mentioned school. I am above
average in intelligence. Please Headmaster consider my
application.

Next Tuesday I will be having my birthday party at Kadoma

Hotel. Please come and have a share of the cake.

Pass my greetings to your children. I am inviting the for the

cake as well .

Yours truly

Taurai Chinonhuwa

e) Your father was admitted at Harare Hospital

after suspected food poisoning. He had at-
tended a Christmas party at the neighbour-
ing village. Write a letter to your sister inform-
ing her of this sad event.
f) You will be having a birthday party next week
at your school. You have invited all your
friends and relatives. Write an invitation letter
to the teacher you like best at your school.
, 45
 i

Hints on Preparing for Examinations

6.1 Ten to three months before the examination

.• During the period 1o to 3 months before the

examination comes, give your self time to prac-
tice writing different types of compositions, be
they descriptive, narrative, situational, guided or
arqurnentative. Do not stick to one type of com-
position on your day to day assignments.

• Experiment on every idea you think of. Do not

restrict yourself to topics that are of interest to
you. Do not always go for easy topics. Instead
try the most difficult! Remember your teacher is
always available to assist you and there is still
plenty of time before the examination comes.

iii Make wide consultations. This is the time to

write different types of compositions giving them
to friends, parents and relatives for comments.
Remember this is a period of discovery.

46
 o Read a lot of compositions that have been writ-
ten by others. Always strive to do better .

.0 Collect stories from newspapers and magazines.

Read and analyse them. Look at how they han-
dle idioms. This widens your horizons. It also en-
riches your vocabulary. Read a variety of novels.

o During school holidays, visit .many places of in-

terest, if possible. Places like game parks, bo-
tanical gardens, lakes, hotels, rural homes, mu-
seums, libraries, national archives, town centres,
low and high density suburbs, bus terminuses,
etc, will give you good experiences.

o Avail yourself at functions like birthday parties,

christmas parties, weddings, football or netball
matches, shows etc.

o Have a small note book where you jot down all

interesting things. New idiomatic expressions
that come your way should also be written in this
note book. This is your tool box! Remember a
mechanic has a tool box to' deal with break-
downs. 'fI"

6.2 Two months before the examination

o About two months before the examination you
should know what kind of composition you normally
write best. Conversely you should know the kind of
composition you normally write worst!

o Collect sets of past examination papers and ~,r.ite·

compositions that have been written by others be'~,
fore, under examination conditions. _':'
.
,:"-,
. -, .•...

47
 o Find yourself an invigilator (parent, teacher or
friend). Do not cheat! Remember you want to feel
the examination environment. You also want to
check on your pace of writing.

o Practice planning on rough paper. It is important to

plan your composition before writing. Your teacher
will assist you on this.

6.3 . On the day of the examination

o Be at the examination centre an hour before the
exam ination.

o Do not panic. Do not be over-excited. Be calm.

o Read all the questions carefully. Be creative.

Think of interesting ways of treating the ques-
tions.

o Make a firm choice. Once you have made a

choice of your topic forget about others. Concen-
trate on the topic of your choice.

o Remember to plan on a rough paper.

o Arrange your ideas in chronological order, then

start writing.

o After writing the composition give yourself time

to revise and correct your work.

48
 7

Guidelines for Teachers

The teacher plays a pivotal role in the intellectual
stimulation of the child. It is therefore of utmost impor-
tance that the teacher leads the child along the correct
path from the beginning, in terms of knowledge, atti-
tude and skills.

Some children develop a weakness of copying what

others have written. Others even go to the extent of
copying extracts from books in order to impress the
teacher, or to earn more marks. This practice is
called plagiarism. A teacher can easily detect this
disease by comparing
If
the child's performance with
the previous standards. Students must be discour-
aged from this malpractice. They need to be told that
creativity is an art which comes through practice.

6.1· . Marking of Compositions

•
Marking of compositions is a nightmare to many
teachers. They know what a good composition is but
when it comes to marking they are not comfortable.
They are hesitant.

. ,
49
 i!t,M,arking of compositions must be systematic. It
i~:' " uld centre on important areas in the cqmposi-
'~~.h. The following are some of the areas that .the
'teacher should concentrate on when building a
child'~.skHls of writing:

""".,..rt. ction .
be interesting, relevant and 'commensu- -.
the level of the school pupil. Encourage

, .'"'

emphasis on grammar. Look at sen~~

t

nstruction. Encourage use of simple sen-

at first then go on to compound,' complex r'
pound' complex later
,
as the ch)ld
,I
devel-
,

.. ,,.
.~ ~ Vo,c~bulary.
"1' ;\ The vocabulary of a subject .is the group' of
words that are typically used whe~ discussing it.
t Help the child devel~p its vocabulary. .: ~,.I'
" "f
V' :". "
» Pli{1ctuation
. ,
. a)" '. Full stops
~/t·~ <.
b) Commas .! ' .

, ,'t "" ,

. p) Question marks
·'1.~1.
d) Exclamation marks
e) . ~•...',Opebir:lg and closinq inverted commas
I • 1 .~
,. .

f)· .; Other quotation r{i~rl<s

\- . ..I

50
 ~ Tenses
, . - , .'

. , • S~icking to tenses to' be encouraged.

':
.). "
.",.. :)

epositidns
,.. .
..• "

~. SpellIngs .

. • Literal translations
."
•.. ~ Paragraphing'

I~
,M~r~s.
· _. .
T~IS ·IS '~ very Important area to ,th~ teacher: It ~s up
. to the teacher to decide what the total should be.
tSo~ mark out of
10, others out of 2~ and others
out of 50. \ .
"
lhe following table provides a marking guide that
m~ be tcllovsed by teachers. It is merely a' sugges-
.tion . You may make use of it or develop your own
guide. .' . ,

adventurouswith language. No creativity. Uses

chosen/selected points. Uninspired.subject matter.
The compositionshould hjllliol~r"''''
~,~(!~~~tli'::.-"\
 . , .. <:» .\,,'""
_' '
-11~
" -----
Dull essay - makes sense but not explored ~n .~
..
,. 1 depth. No attempt to arrange work seriously. ~
Faults of sentence construction. Punctuation prob- -
lems. Sentence linkage haphazard.

Clear imitation of content. Digression/off topic/

repetitive/many errors.
';;:~

Little sense of development throughout. Gross

. -0-4
errors of all kinds.

52,: .'
 Descriptive composition - a writing that describes a.su -ject.
FiguraUve expressions - phrases or sentences with more ab-
stract or imaginative meanings than their usual meanings. .

Guided composition - a writing that is designed to follow iwen.

instructions or information.
. .
Metaphor - an imaginative way of describing a thing t5y saying
that N is something else which has the qualities that y u are try-
ing to'describe, . '.

Proverb - a short sentence which gives

something about life.. , •
advice or tells 'people
f,' !
Punctuation - commas, fulstops, questiet'l marks, ~xclamatlr
marks, etc. )..... I

'\ ..~imile
..

\Jbeing simil. r to'semething 0 someone.

I

- an expression whlch describes a person or thin

.
t
a.
I . ( J
SH:UaUonai composition - a writing that gives an account of
~~peri~nd~s at a partipylar time and place •
.t,. ,
.. ~-
, ~.....
- the methods and techniques .used In creating.
, . . ,

•
"
'0J,-
53
 .vocab~iary -: the vocabulary of a .sub] ".. is the group of words.
r- used when discussing the subject . '·31 ,.. .

Warde~ officer - an employee of Parks and Wildlife Manage-

. ment. ~

54