Grade 5 Afrikaans First Additional Language (CAPS): a guide for parents (Afrikaans Eerste Addisionele Taal)

Course guides › Grade 5 › Afrikaans First Additional Language

Afrikaans First Additional Language (Afrikaans Eerste Addisionele Taal) is the second language most English-speaking learners take. In Grade 5 they read and write short texts such as information texts, stories, newspaper reports, poems and advertisements, and build their grammar (taal) step by step.

This guide is written in English so every parent can follow it. It shows what CAPS and the 2023/24 Annual Teaching Plan cover each term, with short Afrikaans examples. Our Grade 5 Afrikaans FAL course is being built in that order, with Matthew as the guide. Die kursus self is in Afrikaans.

Course status: coming soon. We are still building the Grade 5 Afrikaans First Additional Language (CAPS) course, so it can’t be bought yet. This guide explains what the CAPS curriculum covers this year, so you can use it now. The planned price is R100 per subject per year.

See all Grade 5 subjects on the course cards

What’s covered, term by term

Term 1 (Kwartaal 1)

  • Inligtingsteks (information text), sms and e-pos
  • Werkwoorde, tydsvorme en sinonieme (verbs, tenses, synonyms)
  • Novelle-uittreksel en ‘n boekresensie (novel extract and a book review)
  • Voornaamwoorde, byvoeglike naamwoorde en voegwoorde (pronouns, adjectives, conjunctions)
  • Storie: ‘n verhaal lees en skryf (a story)
  • Soortname, eiename, voor- en agtervoegsels (nouns, prefixes, suffixes)
  • Koerantberig (newspaper report)
  • Voorsetsels, lidwoorde en vraagsinne (prepositions, articles, questions)
  • Gedig (poem): rhyme and rhythm
  • Bywoorde en saamgestelde sinne (adverbs, compound sentences)

Term 2 (Kwartaal 2)

  • Gedig: klank en beeld (sound and imagery)
  • Bywoorde van graad en afkortings (adverbs of degree, abbreviations)
  • Weerverslag (weather report)
  • Lydende en bedrywende vorm; indirekte rede (passive and active; indirect speech)
  • Drama: ‘n dialoog lees en skryf
  • Versamelname en abstrakte naamwoorde (collective and abstract nouns)
  • Verslag met prente en grafieke (report with pictures and graphs)
  • Enkelvoud, meervoud en verkleinwoorde (singular, plural, diminutives)

Term 3 (Kwartaal 3)

  • Volksverhaal (folk tale)
  • Samestellings, afleidings en homonieme (compounds, derivations, homonyms)
  • Projek: inligting soek, orden, skryf en aanbied (research project and presentation)
  • Advertensie (advertisement)
  • Trappe van vergelyking; onderwerp en gesegde (degrees of comparison; subject and predicate)
  • Gedig: lees vir genot
  • Direkte en indirekte rede; aanhalingstekens

Term 4 (Kwartaal 4)

  • Volksverhaal met dierkarakters
  • Voegwoorde en frases
  • Inligtingsteks met prente; ‘n verslag skryf
  • Lidwoorde, ontkenning en vraagvorm (negatives and questions)
  • Inligtingsteks met grafieke en tabelle
  • Woordeskat en spelling (revision)

Key ideas, with worked examples

Word order (woordorde)

Afrikaans word order differs from English. In a simple sentence the verb comes second (STOMPI: subject, time, object, manner, place, infinitive).

Worked example. Ek speel elke dag sokker in die park. (I play soccer in the park every day.) With a time word first, the verb stays second: Elke dag speel ek sokker.

The negative (ontkenning)

Afrikaans uses a double negative: nie … nie.

Worked example. Ek eet vis. becomes Ek eet nie vis nie.

Diminutives (verkleinwoorde)

Add -tjie, -jie, -pie, -kie or -etjie to make something small.

Worked example. hond → hondjie, boom → boompie, ring → ringetjie

Degrees of comparison

Most adjectives add -er and -ste, and some are irregular.

Worked example. groot, groter, grootste; goed, beter, beste

Common mistakes (and how to fix them)

  • Translating word for word from English, which puts the verb in the wrong place.
  • Leaving out the second nie in negative sentences.
  • Spelling sounds the English way, for example writing “ee” or “oo” where Afrikaans needs a single vowel.
  • Not reading the question words: wie, wat, waar, wanneer, hoekom, hoe.
  • Mixing die and ‘n (the and a) in written answers.

Tips for parents

  • Little and often. Fifteen minutes on most school days works better than a long session once a week.
  • Hear Afrikaans every day. A short radio slot, a song or a cartoon in Afrikaans builds listening skills even if you don’t speak it.
  • Label things at home with their Afrikaans names: deur, venster, tafel, yskas.
  • Read aloud together, even slowly. Listen mode in the course will help with pronunciation.
  • Learn the question words first; they unlock every comprehension test.

Frequently asked questions

I don’t speak Afrikaans. Can I still help my child?

Yes. This guide explains each term’s work in English, and the course’s parent memos will include the answers, so you can check work without being fluent.

Is this the Home Language or the First Additional Language?

It is First Additional Language (Eerste Addisionele Taal), the level most schools offer to learners whose home language isn’t Afrikaans.

How much will the Grade 5 Afrikaans First Additional Language course cost?

R100 per subject per year once it opens. Like our live courses, it will be one course for the whole year with Terms 1 to 4 inside it, so there’s nothing extra to pay per term.

When will the course be ready?

We’re building it now. The Grade 5 Afrikaans First Additional Language card on our home page shows “Coming soon” until the course is ready, and then it changes to “Open course”.

Will it work on a phone, and will it use a lot of data?

Yes, it will work on a phone. Like our live Maths courses, it will open in a phone’s web browser or in the free Coursebox app for Android and iPhone. Lessons are pictures and short text with quizzes and no videos, so it uses little data.

Is the course in Afrikaans?

Yes. The lessons, texts and questions are in Afrikaans, as CAPS requires for a language subject. This guide is in English so that every parent can read it. Die kursus self is in Afrikaans.

Get ready for Grade 5 Afrikaans First Additional Language

The Grade 5 Afrikaans First Additional Language (CAPS) course is coming soon at R100 per subject per year. Bookmark this guide and use the term lists above to follow what your child is doing at school. While you wait, our Grade 5 Mathematics course is available through Coursebox.

Back to the Grade 5 course cards · All Grade 5 guides

Sources and review

This guide is based on the DBE’s CAPS Afrikaans Eerste Addisionele Taal Grades 4–6 document and the 2023/24 Grade 5 Annual Teaching Plan, and on our course topic plan. Last reviewed: 31 October 2026. AI Buddies is an independent project and is not endorsed by the Department of Basic Education.