Lesson 1 of 4 · Form 4 English
Know your KCSE English papers
12 min
Paper 1 (101/1): Functional skills
- Functional writing: letters, emails, reports, memos, speeches, CVs, minutes.
- Cloze test: fill in the blanks in a passage.
- Oral skills: pronunciation, stress, intonation, conversation etiquette, oral literature.
Paper 2 (101/2): Comprehension, literary appreciation and grammar
- Comprehension passage.
- Excerpt from a set book: character, theme, style, context.
- Oral literature passage.
- Grammar: rewriting sentences, choosing the correct form, phrasal verbs.
Paper 3 (101/3): Creative composition and essays on set texts
- Imaginative composition (you may be given a starting or ending sentence).
- Compulsory set text essay.
- Optional set text essay.
Time tips
- Read every instruction twice.
- Plan before you write: 5 minutes of planning saves 20 minutes of rewriting.
- Leave time to check spelling and punctuation.
Key points to remember
- Paper 1: functional writing, cloze, oral skills
- Paper 2: comprehension, excerpts, grammar
- Paper 3: composition and set text essays
- Always plan before writing
Test yourself
