GRADE 8 English NATURAL RESOURCES:WILDLIFE – READING:VISUALS Notes
English: Reading — Visuals (Topic: Natural Resources: Wildlife)
These notes show how to read and write about visuals (photos, pictures, simple charts) about wildlife. The focus is on useful grammar students (age 13, Kenya) need when describing pictures and charts.
1. What is a visual?
A visual is any image, photo, drawing or simple chart. When you read a visual, you describe what you see using correct English grammar.
2. Key grammar points for describing visuals
- Present simple for facts: use to state general truths.
Example: "Elephants live in Maasai Mara."
- Present continuous for actions happening now in the picture.
Example: "A giraffe is eating leaves."
- There is / There are to say how many or if something exists.
Examples: "There is one lion." / "There are many zebras."
- Prepositions of place: use to show where animals are.
Examples: "The tree is next to the river." / "The elephant is behind the jeep."
- Comparatives and superlatives: compare amounts or sizes.
Examples: "Zebras are faster than tortoises." / "The elephant is the largest animal here."
- Adjectives to describe appearance and number. Use order: quantity + opinion + size + colour + noun.
Example: "Three young, brown giraffes."
- Relative clauses to add information: use who/which/that.
Example: "The ranger who protects the animals is kind."
- Passive voice to focus on the animal or result.
Example: "The elephant was rescued by rangers."
- Verbs of change: increase / decrease / grow / fall — useful for charts.
Example: "The number of rhinos has decreased because of poaching."
3. Useful vocabulary (wildlife)
elephant, lion, giraffe, zebra, rhino, buffalo, poaching, habitat, conservation, ranger, river, savanna, herd, flock
4. Simple visual: wildlife photo + small chart
🐘 🦒 🦓 🦁
A family of animals near a river in the savanna
- One elephant is standing by the water.
- Two giraffes are eating leaves.
- A herd of zebras is walking.
Animals seen today (count)
Zebra
45
45
Giraffe
35
35
Elephant
20
20
Lion
8
8
5. Example sentences describing the visual (with grammar explained)
- "There are many zebras near the river." — uses "There are" + plural noun to show number.
- "A giraffe is eating leaves from a tall tree." — present continuous for action in the picture.
- "Zebras are more numerous than lions today." — comparative: more + adjective/noun to compare counts.
- "The elephant, which is standing by the water, is drinking." — relative clause gives extra information.
- "Twenty elephants were counted last week." — passive + past simple to report a past count.
6. Short practice (try these)
- Write one sentence using "There is" or "There are" about the picture.
- Change this fact into the present continuous: "A giraffe eats leaves." → ____________________
- Use a comparative: "Zebras (many) / lions (few)" → ____________________
- Make a sentence with a preposition of place: use "behind", "next to", or "in front of".
- Fill the blank with a correct verb (present simple or continuous): "The elephant __________ (drink/drinks) water now."
7. Answers (check your work)
- Example: "There are three zebras near the river." (any correct use of there is/are)
- "A giraffe is eating leaves." (present continuous: is eating)
- "There are more zebras than lions." or "Zebras are more numerous than lions."
- Examples: "The elephant is behind the jeep." / "The giraffe is next to the tree."
- "The elephant is drinking water now." (present continuous is drinking)
8. Tips for exams and reading tasks
- Look at the whole visual first, then focus on details.
- Decide whether you need present simple (fact) or present continuous (action now).
- Use "there is/are" to begin descriptions of how many things you see.
- When describing charts, use verbs like "increase", "decrease", "more than", "less than".
- Keep sentences short and clear. Check subject-verb agreement (e.g., "There are many zebras", not "There is many zebras").
Practice daily by describing photos from Kenyan parks (e.g., Maasai Mara, Amboseli). Focus on the grammar forms above.