---
title: It is given that a child speaks Arabic in the home and English at sc… — Sounds and letters: how phonics starts · tree and pragmatics
description: It is given that a child speaks Arabic in the home and English at school. Ascertain the effect of the home language upon her acquisition of English phonics. Exam question 4 of lesson 1 «Sounds and letters: how phonics starts» of the English course of Mova's primary school, with the dependency tree a
---

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# Exam question 4 · Sounds and letters: how phonics starts

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It is given that a child speaks Arabic in the home and English at school. Ascertain the effect of the home language upon her acquisition of English phonics.

<!-- .vintro -->
**Mova's choice:** option 1 · **The right answer:** option 1 · right ✓ · **Who acts:** child, you, English · **What happens:** give, speak, ascertain, effect, acquire · **To what, where:** It, Arabic, home, effect, home language, English phonics · **Speech:** someone speaks here

<!-- .vabout -->
This is exam question 4 of lesson 1 «Sounds and letters: how phonics starts» of the English course of Mova's primary school, asked in stiff, formal language. The page gives the question's syntax tree — a dependency tree in the style of Universal Dependencies — and its pragmatics clause by clause, then the 4 options as the student saw them, each with its tree and pragmatics. Every text is parsed by Mova itself. How the student answered it, with the score of every option and why: [the test at school](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/school-run/english/1-sounds-and-letters-how-phonics-starts/#e4).

## The question {#question}

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 1:* It is given that a child speaks Arabic in the home and English at school.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:english:1-sounds-and-letters-how-phonics-starts:e4:1
# text = It is given that a child speaks Arabic in the home and English at school.
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	3	nsubj:pass	_	_
2	is	be	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	aux:pass	_	_
3	given	give	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	0	root	_	_
4	that	that	SCONJ	IN	_	7	mark	_	_
5	a	a	DET	DT	Definite=Ind|PronType=Art	6	det	_	_
6	child	child	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
7	speaks	speak	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	3	advcl	_	_
8	Arabic	Arabic	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	7	obj	_	_
9	in	in	ADP	IN	_	11	case	_	_
10	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	11	det	_	_
11	home	home	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	obl	_	_
12	and	and	CCONJ	CC	_	13	cc	_	_
13	English	English	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	11	conj	_	_
14	at	at	ADP	IN	_	15	case	_	_
15	school	school	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	11	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
16	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	3	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **give** | present · passive |  | It |  |  |  |  | vn give-13.1-1 «NP V NP»: subject=Theme |
| 2 | **speak** *speech: other* | present | a child | Arabic |  | the home at school and English |  |  | tree rules |

<!-- .note -->
One row per clause the reader finds. «not said here»: a role filled from the clause above. «roles by»: a VerbNet class and frame when one fits the verb, else the reader's rules on the tree.

<!-- .note -->
*Sentence 2:* Ascertain the effect of the home language upon her acquisition of English phonics.

```conllu
# sent_id = question:english:1-sounds-and-letters-how-phonics-starts:e4:2
# text = Ascertain the effect of the home language upon her acquisition of English phonics.
1	Ascertain	ascertain	VERB	VB	Mood=Imp|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
2	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	3	det	_	_
3	effect	effect	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	1	obj	_	_
4	of	of	ADP	IN	_	7	case	_	_
5	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	7	det	_	_
6	home	home	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	compound	_	_
7	language	language	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	3	nmod	_	_
8	upon	upon	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
9	her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	10	nmod:poss	_	_
10	acquisition	acquisition	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nmod	_	_
11	of	of	ADP	IN	_	13	case	_	_
12	English	English	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	13	amod	_	_
13	phonics	phonic	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	10	nmod	_	SpaceAfter=No
14	.	.	PUNCT	.	_	1	punct	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **ascertain** | imperative | you *not said here* | the effect of the home language upon English's acquisition of English phonics |  |  |  |  | vn discover-84 «NP V NP»: agent=Agent effect=Topic |
| 2 | **effect** |  |  | the home language upon English's acquisition of English phonics |  |  |  |  | nom effect «phenomenon transitive»: of=patient |
| 3 | **acquire** |  | English | English phonics |  |  |  |  | nom acquisition «act transitive»: poss=agent of=patient |

## The options {#options}

### Option 1 · ← Mova's choice · ✓ the right answer {#o1}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It does not impede her acquisition of English sounds

```conllu
# sent_id = question:english:1-sounds-and-letters-how-phonics-starts:e4:o1:1
# text = It does not impede her acquisition of English sounds
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	4	nsubj	_	_
2	does	do	AUX	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	4	aux	_	_
3	not	not	PART	RB	Polarity=Neg	4	advmod	_	_
4	impede	impede	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	0	root	_	_
5	her	her	PRON	PRP$	Case=Gen|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|Poss=Yes|PronType=Prs	6	nmod:poss	_	_
6	acquisition	acquisition	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	4	obj	_	_
7	of	of	ADP	IN	_	9	case	_	_
8	English	English	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	9	compound	_	_
9	sounds	sound	NOUN	NNS	Number=Plur	6	nmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **not** **impede** | present · do-support | It | her acquisition of English sounds |  |  |  |  | vn discourage-64.5-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Causer acquisition=Eventuality |
| 2 | **acquire** |  | her *= she* | English sounds |  |  |  |  | nom acquisition «act transitive»: poss=agent of=patient |

### Option 2 {#o2}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It renders the acquisition of English sounds impossible

```conllu
# sent_id = question:english:1-sounds-and-letters-how-phonics-starts:e4:o2:1
# text = It renders the acquisition of English sounds impossible
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	renders	render	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	4	det	_	_
4	acquisition	acquisition	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	7	nsubj	_	_
5	of	of	ADP	IN	_	6	case	_	_
6	English	English	PROPN	NNP	Number=Sing	4	nmod	_	_
7	sounds	sound	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	2	ccomp	_	_
8	impossible	impossible	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	7	xcomp	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **render** | present | It |  |  |  |  |  | tree rules |
| 2 | **sound** | present | the acquisition of English |  |  |  |  | impossible *property* | vn stimulus\_subject-30.4 «NP V ADJ»: agent=Stimulus |
| 3 | **acquire** |  |  | English |  |  |  |  | nom acquisition «act transitive»: of=patient |

### Option 3 {#o3}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It causes every English letter to be confused with another

```conllu
# sent_id = question:english:1-sounds-and-letters-how-phonics-starts:e4:o3:1
# text = It causes every English letter to be confused with another
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	causes	cause	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	every	every	DET	DT	PronType=Tot	5	det	_	_
4	English	English	ADJ	JJ	Degree=Pos	5	amod	_	_
5	letter	letter	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	2	obj	_	_
6	to	to	PART	TO	_	8	mark	_	_
7	be	be	AUX	VB	VerbForm=Inf	8	aux:pass	_	_
8	confused	confuse	VERB	VBN	Tense=Past|VerbForm=Part|Voice=Pass	5	acl	_	_
9	with	with	ADP	IN	_	10	case	_	_
10	another	another	DET	DT	PronType=Ind	8	obl	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **cause** | present | It | every English letter |  |  |  |  | vn engender-27.1-1 «NP V NP»: agent=Precondition letter=Patient |
| 2 | **confuse** | to-infinitive · passive |  | every English letter *not said here* |  |  |  | with another | vn amalgamate-22.2-2 «NP V PP»: with another=Co-Patient |

### Option 4 {#o4}

<!-- .ven lang=en -->
It obliges her to abandon the home language entirely

```conllu
# sent_id = question:english:1-sounds-and-letters-how-phonics-starts:e4:o4:1
# text = It obliges her to abandon the home language entirely
1	It	it	PRON	PRP	Case=Nom|Gender=Neut|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	nsubj	_	_
2	obliges	oblige	VERB	VBZ	Mood=Ind|Number=Sing|Person=3|Tense=Pres|VerbForm=Fin	0	root	_	_
3	her	she	PRON	PRP	Case=Acc|Gender=Fem|Number=Sing|Person=3|PronType=Prs	2	obj	_	_
4	to	to	PART	TO	_	5	mark	_	_
5	abandon	abandon	VERB	VB	VerbForm=Inf	2	xcomp	_	_
6	the	the	DET	DT	Definite=Def|PronType=Art	8	det	_	_
7	home	home	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	8	compound	_	_
8	language	language	NOUN	NN	Number=Sing	5	obj	_	_
9	entirely	entirely	ADV	RB	_	5	advmod	_	_
```

<!-- .fr -->
| # | verb | tense, mood | who | what, whom | to whom | where | when | other | roles by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | **oblige** | present | It | her *= she* |  |  |  |  | vn compel-59.1-1 «NP V NP S\_INF»: agent=Agent she=Patient clause=Result |
| 2 | **abandon** | to-infinitive |  | the home language |  |  |  | entirely *property* | vn leave-51.2 «NP V NP.initial\_location»: agent=Theme language=Source |

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**Text:** the tests of Mova's primary school, written for Mova (`world/data/school/`), as the course runner gave them to the student. **Trees:** Mova's own parse — the `en` model on the CPU, when the site is built — not checked by a teacher; they may be wrong. **Frames:** Mova's frames reader (`prag`), each text read on its own. Elamur Cosmic License.

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- ← previous: [Sounds and letters: how phonics starts, exam 3](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/english/1-sounds-and-letters-how-phonics-starts/e3/)
- next →: [Blending, segmenting and the Year 1 ch…, test 1](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/english/2-blending-segmenting-and-the-year-1-check/t1/)
- ↑ back to [Sounds and letters: how phonics starts](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/questions/english/1-sounds-and-letters-how-phonics-starts/)