This is the Xitsonga Home Language CAPS Document (Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement) for the Foundation Phase, Grades R-3, issued by the South African Department of Basic Education. It sets out what must be taught, learnt and assessed in Xitsonga Home Language across Grades R, 1, 2 and 3, and is relevant for the 2026 and 2027 school years. It covers the foundational language skills of listening and speaking, phonics, reading and viewing, and writing and handwriting, building learners literacy from the early grades.
The following document, Xitsonga Home Language CAPS Document Grades R-3.pdf, is the full document.
CAPS Document Brief
Xitsonga Home Language CAPS Document Grades R-3 kavo-197
The document defines the core language skill areas taught in the Foundation Phase: Listening and Speaking, Phonics, Reading and Viewing, and Writing and Handwriting. For Xitsonga Home Language it sets out how these skills build learners oral language, phonemic awareness, decoding, comprehension and early writing ability from Grade R through to Grade 3.
The document runs to 142 pages and is organised into three main sections plus a glossary. Section 1 introduces the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement, its background, the general aims of the South African curriculum and time allocations across the phases. Section 2 introduces the language, covering approaches to teaching, time allocation, assessment, and the skills of listening and speaking, phonics, reading and writing at each grade level. Section 3 sets out detailed, grade-by-grade teaching plans for Grade R and Grades 1 to 3 covering listening and speaking, phonics, reading and viewing, and writing and handwriting, followed by a glossary of terms.
The document aims to develop learners ability to listen and speak, read and view, and write and present in Xitsonga Home Language, building a strong foundation in literacy during the early years of schooling. It aims to develop phonemic awareness and phonics skills, growing vocabulary and comprehension, and the ability to write with increasing fluency and accuracy, so that learners are equipped to use Xitsonga Home Language confidently for learning across the curriculum.
Grade
R-3
Subject
Xitsonga Home Language
Phase
Foundation Phase
Curriculum
South African (CAPS)
School Years
2026 and 2027