The International English Olympiad (IEO) is a competition for students from all over the world who have passed an international English language test. This exam is open to students in grades 1 to 12. The IEO is a single-level test. This exam must be registered through your school. The exam is not particularly hard; you can obtain a high score by making an extra effort.
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Any student interested in participating in the International English Olympiad must be familiar with the IEO syllabus. The SOF IEO syllabus covers all of the topics that will be included in the examination. Students must understand the IEO syllabus since it will assist them in developing an exam preparation approach.
Exam Pattern of IEO
You should be familiar with the IEO exam syllabus and format and understand the marking scheme. This will help you prepare more effectively. The below table provides the IEO exam pattern.
| Class | 1 to 4 | Number of questions/Total marks | 5 to 12 | Number of questions/Total marks |
| Sections | Word and Structure Knowledge | 30/30 | Word and Structure Knowledge | 45/45 |
| Reading | Reading | |||
| Spoken and Written Expression | Spoken and Written Expression | |||
| Achievers Section | 5/10 | Achievers Section | 5/15 | |
| Total | 35/40 | Total | 50/60 |
IEO Syllabus for Class 1
- Total number of questions – 35
- Time – 1 hour
The topics listed below are included in the IEO Class 1 syllabus.
| Jumbled Letters, Words: Their Meanings and Opposites, Making a Word, Identify the Word From the Picture, Word Power, One and Many Word Pairs, Feminine and Masculine, Odd One Out, Pronouns, Nouns, Verbs, Animals: Their Babies Sounds and Groups, Conjunctions, Prepositions, Articles, Adjectives, Punctuation, Basic tenses, Picture Composition, Comprehension (Prose and Poetry), Spoken and Written Expression. |
| Achievers Section – Higher-order thinking questions – from the Syllabus described above |
IEO Syllabus for Class 2
- Total number of questions – 35
- Time – 1 hour
The SOF IEO Class 2 syllabus is divided into four sections, each of which includes the topics listed below.
| Section 1 | Collocations, Antonyms, Synonyms, Spellings, Identifying the word from the Picture, Phrases, Words Related to Animals, Pronouns, Nouns, Idioms, Adverbs, Verbs, Articles, Adjectives, Prepositions, Contractions, Simple Tenses, Conjunctions, Punctuation, Word Order. |
| Section 2 | Search for and retrieve information from various text types like short dialogues, stories, etc. Acquire a broad understanding of and look for particular information in short texts, such as invitations, messages, etc. |
| Section 3 | Ability to understand situation-based variations in functions, such as greeting, thanking, introducing (oneself), asking for permission, etc. |
| Section 4 | Higher-order thinking questions include the syllabus as per the 1st, 2nd and 3rd sections. |
IEO Syllabus for Class 3
- Total number of questions – 35
- Time – 1 hour
The IEO Class 3 syllabus is divided into four sections, each of which includes the topics listed below.
| Section 1 | Word Power, Homophones, Spellings, Collocations, Household things, Words related to animals, Basic emotions, Clothes, Food, Pets and Animals, etc. Antonyms and Synonyms, Proverbs, Gender, Number, Idioms, Nouns, One Word, Pronouns, Adverb, Verbs, Adjectives, Prepositions, Articles, Punctuation and Conjunctions, Simple Tenses, Questions tags, Jumbled words, Basic Questions, etc. |
| Section 2 | Search for and retrieve information from various text types, such as Anecdotes, Stories, etc. Understand information through timetable format, pictures, etc., Acquire a broad understanding of and look for particular information in short texts like Invitations and messages, etc. |
| Section 3 | Ability to understand situation-based variations in functions, such as greeting, apology, request, introduction, etc. |
| Section 4 | Higher-order thinking questions include the syllabus as per the 1st, 2nd and 3rd sections. |
IEO Syllabus for Class 4
- Total number of questions – 35
- Time – 1 hour
The IEO Class 4 syllabus is divided into four sections, each of which includes the topics listed below.
| Section 1 | Collocations, Gender, Spellings, One-word Substitution, Singular-Plural, Antonyms, Synonyms, Pronouns, Nouns, Verbs, Adjectives, Adverbs, Articles, Contractions, Conjunctions, Prepositions, Tenses, Jumbled Words and Punctuations, Proverbs, Basic Questions, Idioms, Question Tags, etc. |
| Section 2 | Search for and retrieve information from various text types, such as Anecdotes, Stories, etc. Understand information through timetable format, pictures, etc. Acquire a broad understanding of and look for particular information in short texts like Invitations and messages, etc. |
| Section 3 | Ability to understand situation-based variations in functions, such as greeting, apology, request, introduction, etc. |
| Section 4 | Higher-order thinking questions include the syllabus as per the 1st, 2nd and 3rd sections. |
IEO Syllabus for Class 5
- Total number of questions – 50
- Time – 1 hour
The IEO Class 5 Syllabus is divided into four sections, each of which includes the topics listed below.
| Section 1 | Spellings, Idioms, Collocations, Synonyms, Homonyms & Homophones, Pronouns, Nouns, Antonyms, Phrasal Verbs and Verbs, Adverbs, Articles, Adjectives, Conjunctions, Prepositions, Punctuation, Active and Passive Voice, Reported Speech, and Tenses, etc. |
| Section 2 | Search for and retrieve information from various text types, such as Messages, Letters, News headlines, etc., Understand information given in Timetables, Messages, News reports, etc., Acquire a broad understanding and look for particular information in short texts like menu card dialogues, messages, etc. |
| Section 3 | Ability to understand situation-based variations in functions, such as Refusals, Apologies, Requests, etc., and the use of conjunctions. |
| Section 4 | Higher-order thinking questions include the syllabus as per the 1st, 2nd and 3rd sections. |
IEO Syllabus for Class 6
- Total number of questions – 50
- Time – 1 hour
The IEO Class 6 Syllabus is divided into four sections, each of which includes the topics listed below.
| Section 1 | Nouns, Verbs, Pronouns, Adjectives, Adverbs, Articles, Prepositions, Conjunctions, Jumbled Words and Punctuation, Narration, Voices, Tenses, etc. Spellings, Collocations, Idioms, Phrasal verbs, Antonyms and Synonyms. |
| Section 2 | Search for and retrieve information from various text types, such as Brochures, News headlines, Itinerary, Informal letters and Formal letters, etc., Acquire a broad understanding of and look for particular information in Time-tables, Short narratives, Diary entries, News stories, Messages, Poster Making, etc. |
| Section 3 | Ability to understand situation-based variations in functions, such as disagreement and agreement, Refusals, Apologies, Requests, etc., and also distinct differences in the use of conjunctions. |
| Section 4 | Higher-order thinking questions include the syllabus as per the 1st, 2nd and 3rd sections. |
IEO Syllabus for Class 7
- Total number of questions – 50
- Time – 1 hour
The IEO Class 7 Syllabus is divided into four sections, each of which includes the topics listed below.
| Section 1 | Spellings, Locations, Collocations & Words related to Travel, Homonyms & Homophones, Activities, etc. Antonyms, Synonyms, Spellings & Analogies, One word, Idioms & Phrasal Verbs, Modals, Word order, Pronouns, Nouns, Adverbs, Verbs, Articles, Adjectives, Conjunctions, Prepositions, Tenses, Punctuation, Narration, & Voices, etc. |
| Section 2 | Search for and retrieve information from various text types, such as Brochures, News stories, Advertisements and Informal & formal letters. Understand the information given in itineraries, Brochures, News reports, etc. Acquire a broad understanding of and look for particular information in Biographies, short narratives, Messages and Notices, etc. |
| Section 3 | Ability to understand situation-based variations in functions like refusing and requesting, expression of intent, Apologies and stating of preferences, etc. |
| Section 4 | Higher-order thinking questions include the syllabus as per the 1st, 2nd and 3rd sections. |
IEO Syllabus for Class 8
- Total number of questions – 50
- Time – 1 hour
The IEO Class 8 Syllabus is divided into four sections, each of which includes the topics listed below.
| Section 1 | Antonyms, Synonyms, Spellings and Analogies, Phrasal Verbs, Collocations, Proverbs or Idioms, Homophones and Homonyms, One word, Pronouns, Nouns, Adverbs, Verbs, Adjectives, Prepositions, Articles, Participle Phrases, Prepositional Phrases, Conjunctions, Determiners, Punctuations and Jumbled Words, Tenses, Question Tags, Narrations and Voices, etc. Words related to leisure, Social causes, Household items/issues, Outdoor locations and activities, etc. |
| Section 2 | Search for and retrieve information from various text types, such as Blurb, News reports, Dictionaries, etc., Understand information presented in instruction manual format, Message format and others. Acquire a broad understanding of and look for particular information in longer texts like Essays, Editorials, etc. |
| Section 3 | Ability to understand situation-based variations in functions, such as Giving information, requesting, Pronunciation, Expressing surprise, etc. |
| Section 4 | Higher-order thinking questions include the syllabus as per the 1st, 2nd and 3rd sections. |
IEO Syllabus for Class 9
- Total number of questions – 50
- Time – 1 hour
The IEO Class 9 Syllabus is divided into four sections, each of which includes the topics listed below.
| Section 1 | Antonyms, Synonyms, Spellings and Analogies, Word order, One word, Pronouns, Nouns, Adverbs, Verbs, Articles, Adjectives, Prepositions, Punctuations, Conjunctions, Concord, Jumbled words, Voices, Tenses, Question Forms, Conditionals, Reported speech, Modals. Phrasal verbs, Collocations, Homonyms and Homophones, Idioms, Words related to Travel, Workplace, Social Cause, etc. |
| Section 2 | Search for and retrieve information from various text types like Classifieds, Dictionaries, flyers, etc., Understand information presented in instruction manual format, Message format and others. Acquire a broad understanding of and look for particular information in longer texts like Essays, Editorials, etc. |
| Section 3 | Ability to understand situation-based variations in functions such as Stating preferences, Giving advice, Making an offer, Discussing probability, etc. |
| Section 4 | Higher-order thinking questions include the syllabus as per the 1st, 2nd and 3rd sections. |
IEO Syllabus for Class 10
- Total number of questions – 50
- Time – 1 hour
The IEO Class 10 Syllabus is divided into four sections, each of which includes the topics listed below.
| Section 1 | Antonyms, Synonyms, One Word, Analogies and Spellings, Nouns, Word Order, Adverbs, Verbs, Articles, Adjectives, Prepositions, Punctuations, Conjunctions, Voices, Concord, Narration, Question Forms, Conditionals, Tenses, Collocations, Modals, Idioms, Homonyms and homophones, Phrasal verbs, Countries, Words related to weather, Global problems, People and Language, etc. |
| Section 2 | Search for and retrieve information from various text types, such as Dictionaries, Encyclopedias, etc., Understand information presented in instruction manual format, Message format and others. Acquire a broad understanding of and look for particular information in longer texts like Essays, Editorials, etc. Make inferences from advanced texts. |
| Section 3 | Ability to understand situation-based variations in functions such as Agreeing, Disagreeing, Giving/accepting compliments, Pronunciation, Requesting, Seeking information, etc. |
| Section 4 | Higher-order thinking questions include the syllabus as per the 1st, 2nd and 3rd sections. |
Class 11 and 12 IEO Syllabus 2021-22
- Total number of questions – 50
- Time – 1 hour
For English Olympiad 2022, students should refer to their relevant CBSE/ICSE/State Board syllabus. The IEO syllabus for Class 11 and Class 12 is as per your prescribed syllabus.
Frequently Asked Questions on IEO Syllabus
Q1
Is the IEO syllabus for 2022 different from the IEO 2021 syllabus?
No, the SOF IEO syllabus for 2022 has not changed.
Q2
What is the IEO Olympiad syllabus?
The Olympiad follows the syllabus provided by the various state boards, including ICSE and CBSE.
Q3
I’ve already participated in the Olympiads when I was in lower grades. Can I write the IEO test again?
Yes. This will allow you to improve your prior rankings, and if you are successful, you will be eligible for certificates and prizes again.
Q4
What is the structure of the IEO Exam?
The English Olympiad exam is divided into two levels, and students who pass the first level move on to the second. The second level is more difficult and complex since it includes advanced questions that require a deeper and more analytical understanding of subjects. Students are selected for the second level depending on their performance on the first level; only the top students are qualified for the next level.
