# English HL Grade 11 P1 November Mock 2026 Question Paper (Eng)

> Grade 11 English HL Paper 1 question paper from the November Mock Exam 2026 (English), 12 pages. Read online or get the free PDF download, memo linked when available.

- Page: https://www.hlayiso.com/library/grade-11-english-hl-2026-november-mock-exam-question-paper-paper-1-english/60ecd319-3ed5-4ef9-bc7b-40d74241bb88
- Updated: 2026-10-19
- Subject: English HL
- Grade: Grade 11
- Language: English
- Document type: Question paper
- Year: 2026
- Exam period: November Mock Exam
- Paper: 1
- Publisher: Hlayiso
- Curriculum: CAPS
- Pages: 12

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## About this document

English HL · Grade 11 · November Mock Exam · 2026. Question paper, 12 pages. Read online or download the PDF.

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## Matching paper and memo

- [Grade 11 English HL P1 November 2026 Mock Memo](https://www.hlayiso.com/library/grade-11-english-hl-2026-november-mock-exam-memorandum-paper-1-english/df577ff9-323d-433c-952e-1bbd390ab781) — Memo · 2026 · Eng

## Document text

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### Page 1

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Mock
hlayiso mock exams
Practice Series:
Grade 11 Exam Preparation
WWW.HLAYISO.COM
NATIONAL
SENIOR CERTIFICATE
GRADE 11
ENGLISH HOME LANGUAGE P1
NOVEMBER EXAMINATION 2026 (MOCK)
MARKS: 70
TIME: 2 hours
This question paper consists of 12 pages.

### Page 2

English Home Language/P1
2
NSC Mock
Hlayiso/Mock 2026
INSTRUCTIONS AND INFORMATION
1.
This question paper consists of THREE sections:
SECTION A: Comprehension
(30)
SECTION B: Summary
(10)
SECTION C: Language in context
(30)
2.
Read ALL the instructions carefully.
3.
Answer ALL the questions.
4.
Start EACH section on a NEW page.
5.
Rule off after each section.
6.
Number the answers correctly according to the numbering system used in this question
paper.
7.
Leave a line after each answer.
8.
Pay special attention to spelling and sentence construction.
9.
Suggested time allocation:
SECTION A:
50 minutes
SECTION B:
30 minutes
SECTION C:
40 minutes
10.
Write neatly and legibly.
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### Page 3

English Home Language/P1
3
NSC Mock
Hlayiso/Mock 2026
SECTION A: COMPREHENSION
QUESTION 1: READING FOR MEANING AND UNDERSTANDING
Read TEXT A and TEXT B below and answer the questions set. Answer in your own words
as far as possible.
TEXT A
THE SLEEPLESS GENERATION: WHY TEENAGERS ARE RUNNING ON EMPTY
1
It is 23:30 on a Tuesday night in Durban. Ayanda*, sixteen, lies in bed with the
lights off, but his face glows blue. He has promised himself that he will sleep after
just one more video. At 01:15 he is still awake. Five hours later, his alarm drags
him out of bed and into another school day. 'I sit in Maths and the numbers just
swim,' he says. 'I'm there, but I'm not really there.'
5
2
Ayanda belongs to what some writers have called a 'sleepless generation'. Health
guidelines recommend that teenagers sleep between eight and ten hours a night,
yet many manage fewer than seven. The consequences are far more serious than
a few yawns during the first period. Chronic1 sleep loss has been linked to poor
concentration, weaker memory, low mood, a weakened immune system and even 10
a higher risk of accidents on the road.
3
Part of the problem is biological. During puberty, the body's internal clock shifts.
The brain begins to release melatonin – the hormone that makes us feel sleepy –
later in the evening than it did in childhood. A teenager who cannot fall asleep at
ten o'clock is therefore not being stubborn; his or her body is simply not ready. Yet 15
school bells across the country ring at the same early hour, regardless of biology.
'We are asking young people to write tests at a time when their brains are, in
effect, still in the middle of the night,' says Dr Naledi Mokoena*, a paediatrician in
Johannesburg.
4
Technology deepens the problem. Screens give off blue light, which signals to 20
the brain that it is still daytime and delays the release of melatonin even further.
More importantly, apps are designed to keep us hooked: the endless scroll has no
natural stopping point, unlike the last page of a book. Notifications buzz through
the night like an uninvited guest who keeps knocking at the door.
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### Page 4

English Home Language/P1
4
NSC Mock
Hlayiso/Mock 2026
5
Then there is the culture of busyness. Many learners juggle homework, extra 25
classes, sport, church activities and household chores, and sleep is usually the
first thing to be sacrificed. Some even wear exhaustion as a badge of honour,
posting photographs of their late-night study sessions with captions such as 'No
sleep, no limits!' Dr Mokoena is unimpressed. 'Sleep is not a luxury that you earn
once the work is done,' she says. 'It is part of the work.'
30
6
Why does this matter so much? During sleep, the brain is anything but idle.
It sorts through the experiences of the day and transfers new information into
long-term memory. This means that the learner who gives up sleep to cram for
an examination may remember less, not more. Sleep also helps to regulate our
emotions: a tired teenager is more likely to snap at a younger brother, burst into 35
tears over a small setback or take foolish risks.
7
Some solutions lie beyond the control of individual teenagers. A few schools
abroad have experimented with later starting times and have reported better
attendance and more alert learners. Parents, too, can help – not by lecturing, but
by modelling healthy habits and switching off their own devices at night.
40
8
Much, however, is within a teenager's power: a regular bedtime, even over
weekends; a phone that charges outside the bedroom; and a 'wind-down'
half-hour of reading, journalling or quiet music before the lights go out. None of
these steps costs a cent.
9
Ayanda has started small. His phone now spends the night on the kitchen 45
counter. 'The first few nights I just lay there staring at the ceiling,' he admits. 'Now
I sometimes wake up before my alarm. It's strange – it feels as if someone has
given me extra hours in the day.' By giving time to sleep, he has gained time. In
a world that never switches off, perhaps the most rebellious thing a teenager can
do is to close his eyes.
50
*not their real names
[Examiner's own text]
GLOSSARY:
1chronic:
continuing for a long time or happening repeatedly
AND
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### Page 5

English Home Language/P1
5
NSC Mock
Hlayiso/Mock 2026
TEXT B
CHARGE YOURSELF TOO.
Your phone gets eight hours on the charger. Do you?
01:15
100%
3%
Z z z
Switch off screens by 22:00. Leave your phone to charge outside your bedroom.
Aim for 8–10 hours of sleep every night – weekends too.
Wake up at 100%.
#PowerDownToPowerUp
HEALTHY TEENS SA
[Examiner's own poster. Healthy Teens SA is a fictitious organisation.]
NOTE: The poster shows a teenager sitting slumped in bed late at night, staring at a phone.
His eyes are half-closed. A low-battery symbol showing 3% points to him. On the bedside
table, his phone is plugged in and shows a full battery (100%). A clock reads 01:15 and the
letters 'Z z z' (sleep) have been crossed out.
The text in the poster reads as follows:
CHARGE YOURSELF TOO.
Your phone gets eight hours on the charger. Do you?
Switch off screens by 22:00. Leave your phone to charge outside your bedroom.
Aim for 8–10 hours of sleep every night – weekends too.
Wake up at 100%.
#PowerDownToPowerUp
HEALTHY TEENS SA
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### Page 6

English Home Language/P1
6
NSC Mock
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QUESTIONS: TEXT A
1.1
Refer to line 2: 'but his face glows blue.'
What does this detail reveal about what Ayanda is doing?
(1)
1.2
Refer to paragraph 1.
Explain what Ayanda means when he says, 'I'm there, but I'm not really there'.
(2)
1.3
Refer to line 9.
Choose the correct answer from the options below.
As it is used in the passage, the word 'Chronic' suggests that the sleep loss
is …
A
painful.
B
sudden.
C
ongoing.
D
harmless.
(1)
1.4
Refer to lines 12–15.
In your own words, explain why a teenager who cannot fall asleep at ten
o'clock 'is … not being stubborn'.
(2)
1.5
Refer to lines 23–24: 'Notifications buzz through … at the door.'
Comment on the effectiveness of the comparison in these lines.
(2)
1.6
Refer to lines 27–30.
Explain the irony in the idea that some learners 'wear exhaustion as a badge
of honour'.
(2)
1.7
Refer to lines 29–30: 'Sleep is not … of the work.'
Critically discuss the validity of Dr Mokoena's view.
(3)
1.8
Refer to lines 33–36.
In your own words, explain why a learner who gives up sleep to study 'may
remember less, not more'.
(2)
1.9
Refer to paragraphs 7 and 8.
Do you think that the solutions offered by the writer are realistic for South
African teenagers? Justify your response.
(3)
1.10
Refer to paragraph 9 (lines 45–50).
Critically comment on the effectiveness of this paragraph as a conclusion to
the article.
(3)
QUESTIONS: TEXT B
1.11
Discuss how the contrast between the teenager and the phone on the bedside
table conveys the message of the poster.
(3)
1.12
Explain the play on words in the hashtag, '#PowerDownToPowerUp'.
(2)
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### Page 7

English Home Language/P1
7
NSC Mock
Hlayiso/Mock 2026
QUESTION: TEXTS A AND B
1.13
Both TEXT A and TEXT B aim to persuade teenagers to sleep more.
Critically discuss which of the two texts you find more persuasive. Refer to
BOTH texts in your answer.
(4)
TOTAL SECTION A:
30
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### Page 8

English Home Language/P1
8
NSC Mock
Hlayiso/Mock 2026
SECTION B: SUMMARY
QUESTION 2: SUMMARISING IN YOUR OWN WORDS
TEXT C gives advice on how to avoid becoming a victim of online fraud. Summarise, in your
own words, the steps that young people can take to protect themselves from online scams.
NOTE:
1.
Your summary should include SEVEN points and NOT exceed 90 words.
2.
You must write a fluent paragraph.
3.
You are NOT required to include a title for the summary.
4.
Indicate your word count at the end of your summary.
TEXT C
DON'T TAKE THE BAIT: OUTSMARTING ONLINE SCAMMERS
'Congratulations! You have won a brand-new smartphone. Click here to claim your prize.'
Most of us have received a message like this, and most of us have laughed it off. Yet every
year thousands of South Africans, many of them young people, lose money, data and even
their identities to online criminals. Scammers no longer need to be clever with computers;
they simply need to be clever with people.
The first rule is simple: your passwords, PINs and one-time pins (OTPs) belong to you
alone. No genuine bank, cellphone network or school will ever ask you to share them – not
by SMS, not by e-mail and not over the phone. Create a strong, different password for each
of your accounts, so that if one is stolen, the others remain safe. A password made of a
short phrase that only you would think of is far harder to crack than your name followed by
'123'. Wherever possible, switch on two-step verification, which sends a code to your phone
before anyone can log in.
Learn to recognise the warning signs. Scammers love urgency: 'Your account will be closed
in 24 hours!' They also love offers that seem too good to be true, such as a job that pays
R5 000 a week for one hour of work. If a message makes you panic or makes you greedy,
slow down.
Never click on links or download attachments in messages that you were not expecting.
Instead of following a link, type the official website address yourself. If a 'friend' suddenly
asks you for money on social media, phone that person to confirm that the request is
genuine; their account may have been hacked.
Be careful, too, about how much you reveal online. Your date of birth, your home address
and your school's name can help a criminal to guess your passwords or pretend to be
you. Keep your profiles private, and keep the apps and software on your devices updated,
because updates often repair security weaknesses.
Finally, if you think you have been scammed, do not hide it out of embarrassment. Contact
your bank immediately and report the incident. The sooner you act, the more you are likely
to save.
[Examiner's own text]
TOTAL SECTION B:
10
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### Page 9

English Home Language/P1
9
NSC Mock
Hlayiso/Mock 2026
SECTION C: LANGUAGE IN CONTEXT
QUESTION 3: ANALYSING ADVERTISING
Study the advertisement (TEXT D) below and answer the set questions.
TEXT D
WHEN THE LIGHTS GO OUT,
YOUR FUTURE DOESN'T.
Load-shedding? Light-shedding? Not in this house.
The SunBright Solar Study Lamp charges in the sun all day and gives you
up to 8 hours* of bright, eye-friendly light at night.
No wires. No bills. No excuses.
SunBright
Brighter by nature.
*Light duration depends on sunlight exposure.
Terms and conditions apply.
[Examiner's own advertisement. SunBright is a fictitious brand.]
NOTE: The advertisement shows a dark room at night. Through the window, the neighbouring
houses are in darkness. A learner sits at a desk, reading a book in a cone of warm light from
a solar lamp. A small solar panel is attached to the base of the lamp.
The text in the advertisement reads as follows:
WHEN THE LIGHTS GO OUT, YOUR FUTURE DOESN'T.
Load-shedding? Light-shedding? Not in this house.
The SunBright Solar Study Lamp charges in the sun all day and gives you up to 8 hours* of
bright, eye-friendly light at night.
No wires. No bills. No excuses.
SunBright
Brighter by nature.
*Light duration depends on sunlight exposure. Terms and conditions apply.
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### Page 10

English Home Language/P1
10
NSC Mock
Hlayiso/Mock 2026
QUESTIONS: TEXT D
3.1
Refer to the headline: 'WHEN THE LIGHTS GO OUT, YOUR FUTURE
DOESN'T.'
Explain how the headline appeals to the target audience of the advertisement.
(2)
3.2
Explain the pun in the slogan, 'Brighter by nature.'
(2)
3.3
Discuss how the visual elements of the advertisement reinforce its written
message.
(3)
3.4
'No wires. No bills. No excuses.'
Identify the stylistic device used in the above line.
(1)
3.5
Refer to the small print: '*Light duration depends on sunlight exposure.'
Comment on the effect that the small print could have on the credibility of the
advertisement.
(2)
[10]
QUESTION 4: UNDERSTANDING OTHER ASPECTS OF THE MEDIA
Study the cartoon (TEXT E) below and answer the set questions.
TEXT E: CARTOON
1
2
3
4
GROUP
PROJECT
Due: Friday
Groups of three,
please!
Teamwork makes
the dream work!
CITY LIBRARY – Wednesday, 15:00
Z z z
Group 7
23:58
Kyle: Done!
Poster is
printed.
Aisha:
Finally. So
tired.
Thabo:
Guys, did we
finish?? I'm
SO stressed!!
WATER
SAVING
PROJECT
As a team, WE worked
really hard on this!
[Examiner's own cartoon]
CHARACTERS:
Thabo, Aisha and Kyle (classmates) and their teacher
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English Home Language/P1
11
NSC Mock
Hlayiso/Mock 2026
DESCRIPTION OF THE FRAMES:
FRAME 1:
The teacher points to the board, which reads 'GROUP PROJECT – Due: Friday'.
Thabo, smiling broadly, puts his arms around Aisha and Kyle.
FRAME 2:
In the city library, Aisha and Kyle are working hard with books and a laptop;
drops of sweat fly from their heads. Thabo is asleep with his head on the table.
FRAME 3:
A close-up of the group's chat on a cellphone at 23:58.
FRAME 4:
Thabo presents the finished poster to the class, holding out his arm proudly.
Aisha and Kyle stand behind him, frowning, with their arms folded.
QUESTIONS: TEXT E
4.1
Refer to FRAME 1.
Explain why Thabo's words, 'Teamwork makes the dream work!' are ironic in
the light of the rest of the cartoon.
(2)
4.2
Refer to FRAME 2.
Discuss how the cartoonist contrasts Thabo with the other members of his
group.
(2)
4.3
Refer to FRAME 3.
What does Thabo's message, 'Guys, did we finish?? I'm SO stressed!!', reveal
about his character?
(2)
4.4
Refer to FRAME 4.
Account for the use of capital letters in 'WE'.
(1)
4.5
Critically discuss whether the cartoonist succeeds in making a serious point
about group work through humour.
(3)
[10]
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### Page 12

English Home Language/P1
12
NSC Mock
Hlayiso/Mock 2026
QUESTION 5: USING LANGUAGE CORRECTLY
Read TEXT F, which contains some deliberate errors, and answer the set questions.
TEXT F
A LIBRARY ON WHEELS
1
Every Saturday morning, a bright yellow minibus rattles into the dusty schoolyard
of a primary school in rural Limpopo. Before it has even stopped, the children
come running. Each of them are clutching a small blue library card.
2
The driver, Mrs Thandi Ngobeni*, is a retired teacher who started the Book Bus
five years ago. 'I want every child in this valley to fall in love with reading,' she
5
said when I visited. She recieved her first donation of books from a church in
Polokwane, and the rest, as they say, is history.
3
The bus now carries more than eight hundred books. They are arranged on
wooden shelves that her son built: picture books at the bottom and novels at the
top. The childrens' favourite shelf is the one with comics. Volunteers repair torn 10
books every Friday, so that nothing is wasted.
4
Teachers say that the learners who visit the bus regularly read more fluently and
are more happier in class. Mrs Ngobeni waits patiently while each child chooses
a book. 'A book is a door,' she says. 'I just hand them the key.'
*not her real name
[Examiner's own text]
QUESTIONS: TEXT F
5.1
Correct the error of concord in paragraph 1.
(1)
5.2
Identify and correct the spelling error in paragraph 2.
(1)
5.3
'I want every child in this valley to fall in love with reading,' she said. (Line 5)
Rewrite the above sentence in reported speech. Begin with:
She said …
(2)
5.4
Explain the meaning of the idiom 'the rest … is history' (line 7).
(1)
5.5
State the function of the colon in paragraph 3.
(1)
5.6
Correct the apostrophe error in paragraph 3.
(1)
5.7
'Volunteers repair torn books every Friday' (paragraph 3).
Rewrite the above clause in the passive voice.
(1)
5.8
Correct the error in the degree of comparison in paragraph 4.
(1)
5.9
Identify the part of speech of 'patiently' (paragraph 4).
(1)
[10]
TOTAL SECTION C:
30
GRAND TOTAL:
70
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