English Language Skill Test Notes

Here are the most detailed and structured study notes based on your English Language Skills Term 2 (Year 8, 2025) material. Everything is broken down logically with examples, patterns, and grammar logic that helps you master sentence structure, types, subject-object rules, voices, and phrases. Straight to the point. Ready to ace your test.

CLAUSES

What is a Clause?

• A clause contains both a subject (doer) and a verb (action).

• Clauses can be:

  • Independent: complete thought → stands alone

  • Dependent: incomplete thought → needs more info

Independent Clause

• Has subject + verb

• Expresses a complete idea

• Example:

  • "We played football."

  • "I am hungry."

Dependent Clause

• Has subject + verb BUT doesn't make sense alone.

• Often begins with: when, while, because, although, if, since

• Example:

  • "While Dad cooked dinner" → Not a full idea

  • "When Dad arrived home"

SENTENCE TYPES

1. Simple Sentence

• ONE independent clause (subject + verb)

• Example: "Laura jumped off the diving board."

2. Compound Sentence

• TWO independent clauses

• Joined with FANBOYS (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so) OR punctuation (semicolon ;)

• Example:

  • "We called the plumber, and he fixed our pipes."

  • "The oyster opened; there was a pearl inside."

3. Complex Sentence

• ONE independent clause + ONE dependent clause

• Linking words: after, although, because, if, since, unless, when

• Punctuation Rule:

  • Comma only if dependent clause comes first.

• Examples:

  • "Because she was tired, she slept early."

  • "She slept early because she was tired." (no comma)

4. Compound-Complex Sentence

• TWO independent clauses + ONE dependent clause

• Example:

  • "If I become a rock star, I will quit my job as a builder so I can travel the world."

SUBJECT, VERB & OBJECT

Subject

• The doer of the action

• Example: "Ānaru wears a mask." → Subject = Ānaru

Object

• The receiver of the action

• Example: "Ānaru wears a mask." → Object = mask

Personal Pronouns

Example:

• Subject: He gave me a book.

• Replace: "Uncle gave me a dog" → He gave me a dog.

ACTIVE vs PASSIVE VOICE

Active Voice

• Subject does the action.

• Structure: Subject + Verb + Object

• Example:

  • "Mary baked a cake."

Passive Voice

• Subject receives the action.

• Structure: Object + be (is/was/etc.) + past participle + by Subject

• Example:

  • "A cake was baked by Mary."

To Change Active → Passive:

1. Move object to subject position.

2. Add proper form of be + past participle.

3. Add "by [subject]" (optional if clear).

Example:

• Active: "The cat watches the mouse."

• Passive: "The mouse is watched by the cat."

PHRASES vs SENTENCES

Phrase

• A group of words with NO complete subject + verb pair.

• Doesn’t make sense alone.

• Example:

  • "at the grocery store" → phrase

  • "Have been singing" → verb phrase, missing subject

Sentence

• Has a subject + verb → complete thought.

• Example: "You smile." Sentence

Types of Phrases

1. Verb Phrase

• A verb made up of more than one word.

• Helping verb + main verb.

• Examples:

  • "I will have been waiting"

  • "Bryce must not be rushing"

2. Subject Phrase

• The full subject group before the verb.

• Example:

  • "The big black dog with sharp teeth barked."

3. Prepositional Phrase

• Preposition + object

• Adds info about time, place, cause, manner.

• Examples:

  • "on the table"

  • "in the morning"

  • "with great speed"

FANBOYS Conjunctions

Used to join two independent clauses in a compound sentence.

EXAM STRATEGY CHECKLIST

Want to Practise?

Tell me if you want practice drills on:

• Turning sentences passive → active

• Clause identification

• Sentence transformation (simple complex compound)

• Subject/Object spotting

• Verb phrase spotting

I’ll generate focused questions.

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