Grade 7 English TRADITIONAL FASHION – READING:COMPREHENSION Notes
READING: COMPREHENSION — TRADITIONAL FASHION (English — Grammar focus)
Topic: Traditional Fashion — Kenya 🇰🇪 | Age: 12
Goal: Read a short passage and practise English grammar items (verbs, tenses, nouns, adjectives, prepositions, articles, subject–verb agreement).
Short passage (read first) 👗🧵
In Kenya many people wear beautiful traditional clothes. Women often use kitenge and kanga, which have bright colours and bold patterns. Men sometimes wear the Maasai shuka or a kikoi when they go to special events. People decorate clothes with beadwork and embroidery to show their culture and family history. Today some young people mix traditional designs with modern styles.
Grammar points to study from the passage:
- Simple present tense vs present continuous
- Nouns (common, proper), countable/uncountable
- Adjectives and comparison
- Prepositions of place and time
- Articles (a, an, the) and demonstratives
- Subject–verb agreement
Exercises (try each):
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Identify the verbs in the passage and write their tense.
Example: "wear" — simple present.
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Nouns and adjectives: Pick five nouns from the passage and add one adjective before each noun to describe it.
Example: "kitenge" → "colourful kitenge".
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Fill in articles (a / an / the) where needed:
a) Many people wear ___ beautiful traditional clothes.
b) Women often use ___ kitenge and ___ kanga.
c) Men sometimes wear ___ Maasai shuka or ___ kikoi. -
Change these sentences from present to past tense:
a) Women often use kitenge.
b) People decorate clothes with beadwork.
c) Some young people mix traditional designs with modern styles. -
Subject–verb agreement: Choose the correct verb form.
a) The beadwork (shows / show) family history.
b) Bright colours (is / are) on many fabrics.
c) Each pattern (tell / tells) a story. -
Make one sentence passive:
Active: People decorate clothes with beadwork.
Passive: ___________________________ -
Prepositions: Fill in suitable prepositions (in, on, with, to, for).
a) They wear special clothes ___ events.
b) Designs are made ___ bright colours and patterns.
c) Beadwork is used ___ show family identity. -
Pronouns: Replace the underlined noun with a pronoun.
a) Women often use kitenge and kanga. → Women often use kitenge and kanga. → ___ often use them.
b) The Maasai shuka is red. → ___ is red.
Answers and notes
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Verbs and tenses (examples from passage):
- wear — simple present
- use — simple present
- have — simple present
- wear (again) — simple present
- go — simple present
- decorate — simple present
- show — simple present
- mix — simple present
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Nouns and adjectives (example answers):
- kitenge — colourful kitenge
- kanga — patterned kanga
- shuka — red shuka
- beadwork — detailed beadwork
- clothes — traditional clothes
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Articles:
- a) Many people wear — beautiful traditional clothes. (no article needed)
- b) Women often use the kitenge and the kanga. (optional; can be no article: "use kitenge and kanga")
- c) Men sometimes wear the Maasai shuka or a kikoi. (or "the kikoi" if a specific one)
-
Past tense changes:
- a) Women often used kitenge.
- b) People decorated clothes with beadwork.
- c) Some young people mixed traditional designs with modern styles.
-
Subject–verb agreement:
- a) The beadwork shows family history.
- b) Bright colours are on many fabrics.
- c) Each pattern tells a story.
-
Passive sentence:
People decorate clothes with beadwork. → Clothes are decorated with beadwork.
-
Prepositions:
- a) They wear special clothes to events. (or "for events")
- b) Designs are made with bright colours and patterns.
- c) Beadwork is used to show family identity.
-
Pronouns:
- a) Women often use kitenge and kanga. → They often use them.
- b) The Maasai shuka is red. → It is red.
Tip: Read slowly and underline verbs and nouns in the passage. Doing grammar from a short text helps you see how real sentences are built. Practice by changing tense or turning active sentences into passive ones.