ORAL SKILLS
1. THE MAGNIFICIENT BULL
My bull is white like the silver fish in the river
White like the shimmering crane bird on the river bank
White like fresh milk.
His roar is like thunder to the Turkish cannon
On the steep shore.
My bull is dark like the rain cloud in the storm.
He is like summer and winter.
Half of him is dark like the storm cloud,
Half of him is light like sunshine.
His back shines like the morning star.
His brow is red like the beak of the hornbill.
His fore head is like a flag, calling the people from a distance,
He resembles the rainbow.
I. The singer achieves rhythm in the song above through repetition of words i.e. “white like”
like e.t.c.
Identification
Illustration
II. If you are to do a live performance of this song how would you make it more
interesting to the audience?
b) Underline the silent letter in each of the following words (5mks)
i) Rendezvous
ii) Eulogy
iii) Tourism
iv) Condemn
v) Phlegm
c) Read the genre below, and then answer questions that follow:-
“Willy warmly welcomed Wendy and wondered why Wyatt walked wearingly while whistling.‟
i) Classify the above genre.
ii) Identify and illustrate one sound pattern from the genre
iii) State any one function of the above genre
d) You school is participating in a debate and the motion is: “Parents should let children
decide their own destiny,” How would you ensure that your argument convincing? *KC*
e) Imagine that you are listening to a telephone conversation between a receptionist and a lady
whose child is very ill and she is seeking her physicians‟ help. Unfortunately, Dr. Kemboi is
not in, but the receptionist is on the line. In the blank spaces, fill in what you think the
receptionist should have said to the lady.
2. (a) Read the narrative below and then answer the questions that follow:
A Greedy Old man and the sausage
Once upon a time, there lived an old man. One day he paid a visit to his in-laws. On entering
the house of his mother-in-law, he found that she had been roasting some meat, among which was a
delicious looking sausage and she was not in the house. He immediately took the sausage and quickly
shoved it into his quiver. And it so happened that a piece of live coal had got stuck on the sausage but
PSE
, the old man didn‟t know. He quickly shut the quiver.
No sooner had he sat down than the owner of the house came in. They sat down to talk about
the children‟s health. When they had finished, it was time for the old man to return to his home. Just
then, the woman noticed smoke issuing from the quiver and asked the old man; “Paker, how come the
quiver is smoking?” The man answered, “Oh. It‟s some naughty fire stick with a soft head that
smokes whenever it comes into contact with soft wood and the arrows.” The woman kept quiet and
got up to escort her guest.
When they had walked only a short distance, the fire made a hole in the quiver and the arrows
fell out, tiak! together with the stolen sausage. The lady, who was walking closely behind, exclaimed:
„See, had I not known it! Then the old man fearing that his sausage might be eaten. shouted, “Oh, my
Paker, please do not eat it!”
So while the lady ran home in shame, the greedy old man continued with his journey in
extreme embarrassment. They showed each other their backs and there ends my story.
(i) State two things a narrator would do to draw the audience‟s attention to the beginning of
t he story
(ii) Describe how a narrator would perform line 4-6 of the second paragraph
(iii) Explain three ways in which the audience can indicate active listening in the performance
of this narrative
(iv) Apart from using the ending formula, how else would a narrator signal to the audience
the ending of his story?
3. Read the following oral poem and answer the questions that follow:-
Where is she eee
Where is she ee
We want to pamper her
We want to pamper her x2
We advise you, we advise you
When you get there respect your husband
When he calls you, respond to his call
So that your marriage can last
Both of you may live in peace
Both of you may live in peace x2
(i) List down what is lost when the above song is written down
(ii) The above song is a translation from Kiswahili to English. What has been lost in the
translation?
(c) (i) Underline the stressed syllable in the correct pronunciation of the following words
(The dots indicate syllable boundaries)
(i) res. pect
(ii) re. view
(iii) in. ves. ti. gate
(iv) con.so.li.date
(v) cal. cu. late
(vi) di. vi. de (noun)
(ii) Provide another word with a similar pronunciation for each of the following words
(i) Feet
PSE
, (ii) Alter
(iii) Ale
(iv) Cereal
(v) None
(vi) Ate
(d) (i) Explain three things you would do if you were unexpectedly asked to give a short speech
During the form four farewell party
(ii) You are giving this speech without a public address system. How do you ensure you are
heard clearly by everybody
4. i) Read the oral narrative and answer the questions asked.
THE MAN WHO LIVED WITH THE TRIBE OF HIS WIFE
There was a man, it is said, who lived with the ethnic group of his wife. One day he said to
his wife, “We are moving away-tell your people.” So she told her people and they gave him the
customary gifts and returned to him a part of his bride wealth.
Then this man who had been living with his wife‟s ethnic group moved away with his
family and his wife, and after he had walked all day he set up a camp in a certain place. Then he
said to his wife, “woman, there is a matter I have to discuss with the people whom we left, and I am
going back to them. Pen the animals and wait for me.”
So he went back, and when he reached the village in the evening he sat down in the
clearing by the huts, intending to eavesdrop. The people were gossiping about and someone said,
“well, let us all give our opinion of that who stayed with our tribe for such a long time!”
“He was a good man.” said one.
“By God, he was a brave man.”
“By God, he was a generous man.”
“By God, he looked after the animals well.”
“By God, he had some knowledge of men.”
The whole village praised him, and all the time the man was listening. There was pause, and
then a young girl spoke, “but I know something about him that was bad!”
“What was it?” the people asked.
“He didn‟t go far away enough from the huts when he urinated!” at this the whole
village burst in to laughter, but the eavesdropper was so angry that he stood up said to them,
“well, by God, I have moved far enough away now!” to the great astonishment of the whole
village.
a) How would you performs the narrative in order to capture the audience attention
b) (i) In which tone would the eavesdropper say last line of the narrative
ii) Underline the word in which the vowel sound is different in the following sets of words :
a) ship, sheep, sleep
b) Pull, pool, book
c) Bark, park, buck
d) Might, height, mice
e) Barn, ban, bag
iii) State whether the stress would fall on the first or second syllable on the word in
bold by underlining:
a) I don‟t like associating with that rebel
b) Waiyaki had a lot of respect for the elders
PSE
1. THE MAGNIFICIENT BULL
My bull is white like the silver fish in the river
White like the shimmering crane bird on the river bank
White like fresh milk.
His roar is like thunder to the Turkish cannon
On the steep shore.
My bull is dark like the rain cloud in the storm.
He is like summer and winter.
Half of him is dark like the storm cloud,
Half of him is light like sunshine.
His back shines like the morning star.
His brow is red like the beak of the hornbill.
His fore head is like a flag, calling the people from a distance,
He resembles the rainbow.
I. The singer achieves rhythm in the song above through repetition of words i.e. “white like”
like e.t.c.
Identification
Illustration
II. If you are to do a live performance of this song how would you make it more
interesting to the audience?
b) Underline the silent letter in each of the following words (5mks)
i) Rendezvous
ii) Eulogy
iii) Tourism
iv) Condemn
v) Phlegm
c) Read the genre below, and then answer questions that follow:-
“Willy warmly welcomed Wendy and wondered why Wyatt walked wearingly while whistling.‟
i) Classify the above genre.
ii) Identify and illustrate one sound pattern from the genre
iii) State any one function of the above genre
d) You school is participating in a debate and the motion is: “Parents should let children
decide their own destiny,” How would you ensure that your argument convincing? *KC*
e) Imagine that you are listening to a telephone conversation between a receptionist and a lady
whose child is very ill and she is seeking her physicians‟ help. Unfortunately, Dr. Kemboi is
not in, but the receptionist is on the line. In the blank spaces, fill in what you think the
receptionist should have said to the lady.
2. (a) Read the narrative below and then answer the questions that follow:
A Greedy Old man and the sausage
Once upon a time, there lived an old man. One day he paid a visit to his in-laws. On entering
the house of his mother-in-law, he found that she had been roasting some meat, among which was a
delicious looking sausage and she was not in the house. He immediately took the sausage and quickly
shoved it into his quiver. And it so happened that a piece of live coal had got stuck on the sausage but
PSE
, the old man didn‟t know. He quickly shut the quiver.
No sooner had he sat down than the owner of the house came in. They sat down to talk about
the children‟s health. When they had finished, it was time for the old man to return to his home. Just
then, the woman noticed smoke issuing from the quiver and asked the old man; “Paker, how come the
quiver is smoking?” The man answered, “Oh. It‟s some naughty fire stick with a soft head that
smokes whenever it comes into contact with soft wood and the arrows.” The woman kept quiet and
got up to escort her guest.
When they had walked only a short distance, the fire made a hole in the quiver and the arrows
fell out, tiak! together with the stolen sausage. The lady, who was walking closely behind, exclaimed:
„See, had I not known it! Then the old man fearing that his sausage might be eaten. shouted, “Oh, my
Paker, please do not eat it!”
So while the lady ran home in shame, the greedy old man continued with his journey in
extreme embarrassment. They showed each other their backs and there ends my story.
(i) State two things a narrator would do to draw the audience‟s attention to the beginning of
t he story
(ii) Describe how a narrator would perform line 4-6 of the second paragraph
(iii) Explain three ways in which the audience can indicate active listening in the performance
of this narrative
(iv) Apart from using the ending formula, how else would a narrator signal to the audience
the ending of his story?
3. Read the following oral poem and answer the questions that follow:-
Where is she eee
Where is she ee
We want to pamper her
We want to pamper her x2
We advise you, we advise you
When you get there respect your husband
When he calls you, respond to his call
So that your marriage can last
Both of you may live in peace
Both of you may live in peace x2
(i) List down what is lost when the above song is written down
(ii) The above song is a translation from Kiswahili to English. What has been lost in the
translation?
(c) (i) Underline the stressed syllable in the correct pronunciation of the following words
(The dots indicate syllable boundaries)
(i) res. pect
(ii) re. view
(iii) in. ves. ti. gate
(iv) con.so.li.date
(v) cal. cu. late
(vi) di. vi. de (noun)
(ii) Provide another word with a similar pronunciation for each of the following words
(i) Feet
PSE
, (ii) Alter
(iii) Ale
(iv) Cereal
(v) None
(vi) Ate
(d) (i) Explain three things you would do if you were unexpectedly asked to give a short speech
During the form four farewell party
(ii) You are giving this speech without a public address system. How do you ensure you are
heard clearly by everybody
4. i) Read the oral narrative and answer the questions asked.
THE MAN WHO LIVED WITH THE TRIBE OF HIS WIFE
There was a man, it is said, who lived with the ethnic group of his wife. One day he said to
his wife, “We are moving away-tell your people.” So she told her people and they gave him the
customary gifts and returned to him a part of his bride wealth.
Then this man who had been living with his wife‟s ethnic group moved away with his
family and his wife, and after he had walked all day he set up a camp in a certain place. Then he
said to his wife, “woman, there is a matter I have to discuss with the people whom we left, and I am
going back to them. Pen the animals and wait for me.”
So he went back, and when he reached the village in the evening he sat down in the
clearing by the huts, intending to eavesdrop. The people were gossiping about and someone said,
“well, let us all give our opinion of that who stayed with our tribe for such a long time!”
“He was a good man.” said one.
“By God, he was a brave man.”
“By God, he was a generous man.”
“By God, he looked after the animals well.”
“By God, he had some knowledge of men.”
The whole village praised him, and all the time the man was listening. There was pause, and
then a young girl spoke, “but I know something about him that was bad!”
“What was it?” the people asked.
“He didn‟t go far away enough from the huts when he urinated!” at this the whole
village burst in to laughter, but the eavesdropper was so angry that he stood up said to them,
“well, by God, I have moved far enough away now!” to the great astonishment of the whole
village.
a) How would you performs the narrative in order to capture the audience attention
b) (i) In which tone would the eavesdropper say last line of the narrative
ii) Underline the word in which the vowel sound is different in the following sets of words :
a) ship, sheep, sleep
b) Pull, pool, book
c) Bark, park, buck
d) Might, height, mice
e) Barn, ban, bag
iii) State whether the stress would fall on the first or second syllable on the word in
bold by underlining:
a) I don‟t like associating with that rebel
b) Waiyaki had a lot of respect for the elders
PSE
