ESL Grammar | Common Sense Teaching ESL You don’t have to be a grammar expert to help your students with the grammar in their writing. During the week of Jan. 15-19, each day, I was interviewed online at LINCS about teaching grammar. You can read the discussion at this link: LINCS grammar discussion , The topics were: Jan. 15: Inductive teaching Jan. 16: Importance of grammar terminology Jan. 17: Ear-learners Jan. 18: Leading students to finding grammar mistakes Jan. 19: The connection between reading and learning grammar Each day, I mentioned handout exercises related to that days topic, and I made these available in this posting below. To see the handouts and read more information about the topics, please read below. Reading every chance you get. An international student, Emily, was really struggling with the grammar in her writing assignments. At the end of the Fall term, she passed my class and then took English Comp (English 101) during the Winter term. I had a chance to talk to her about her remarkable turn-around.
English Grammar -- Parts of Speech -- Sentence Structures Here we will practice building effective sentences. After reviewing the basic parts of speech, we'll work with more advanced structures: adjective and adverb clauses, appositives, participial phrases, and absolutes. Finally, we will focus on ways to correct some common problems (fragments and run-ons) to ensure that our sentences are clear and complete. What Is Grammar?"Descriptive grammar" refers to the structure of a language as it is actually used by speakers and writers. Ten Types of GrammarSo you think you know grammar? W. Why Does Grammar Matter? Why Should We Study English Grammar? What Works in Teaching GrammarIn her book "Grammar to Enrich and Enhance Writing," Constance Weaver delivers on her promise to offer a text that's "more comprehensive, more reader friendly, and more concretely focused on teachers' practical needs." What Is Sentence Combining and How Does It Work? Introduction to Sentence CombiningAn introduction to the basic principles and methods of sentence combining.
Adverbs of frequency Teaching adverbs of frequency has to consist of several steps. First, the students have to learn the words. If they do not know the words it is useless to teach them the grammar. Adverbs of frequency – vocabulary As I write above, it is neccessary to teach the vocabulary first. adverbs_of_frequency_worksheetadverbs_of_frequency_key Adverbs of frequency – grammar Once you are sure that the students know the words you should teach the grammar. Adverbs of Frequency practise And now if you have an interactive whiteboard at school you can try the following games and activities. Adverbs of frequency – full screen quiz ADVERT: If you would like to try out any more activities, there are several interactive and print activities at British Council site on adverbs of frequency. Do you like this post?
Introduction to Sentence Combining - Sentence Combining Exercises This exercise will introduce you to sentence combining--that is, organizing sets of short, choppy sentences into longer, more effective ones. However, the goal of sentence combining is not to produce longer sentences but rather to develop more effective sentences--and to help you become a more versatile writer. Sentence combining calls on you to experiment with different methods of putting words together. An Example of Sentence Combining Let's consider an example. She was our Latin teacher. Have you succeeded in combining the sentences? Our Latin teacher in high school was a tiny woman. If you're curious, here is the sentence that served as the original model for this little combining exercise: Our high school Latin teacher was a tiny, birdlike woman, swarthy, with sparkling dark eyes, graying hair. Evaluating Sentence Combinations Here are six basic qualities to consider when you evaluate your new sentences: Meaning. Sentence Building Exercises: Sentence Combining Exercises:
Ending with a Preposition Advice on Visiting Athens Read the Paragraphs (with terminal prepositions) When traveling to a city such as Athens, Greece you may find yourself wandering through its streets and not knowing where you are going to. The old part of Athens, called "the Plaka", has a number of little streets leading in and out. Half the time you won't know the direction you are walking in. Fortunately, Athens has a lot of little kiosks called "peripteros" with vendors to help you out. You can even find such things as a deck of cards, a toothbrush, aspirin, or hand-sanitizer to clean your hands with. Most locals (Greeks living in the Plaka) are happy to help you find your way provided that you have a map to point to. kiosk (N) – a small structure having one or more sides open, used as a newsstand, refreshment stand, bandstand, information or security center make out (verbal idiom) – interpret or understand I can't make out his handwriting. provided that – as long as; under the condition that Match Maker
The Subordinate Clause Printer Fabulous! Recognize a subordinate clause when you see one. A subordinate clause—also called a dependent clause—will begin with a subordinate conjunction or a relative pronoun and will contain both a subject and a verb. This combination of words will not form a complete sentence. It will instead make a reader want additional information to finish the thought. After Amy sneezed all over the tuna salad After = subordinate conjunction; Amy = subject; sneezed = verb. Remember this important point: A subordinate clause cannot stand alone as a sentence because it does not provide a complete thought. After Amy sneezed all over the tuna salad. Correctly attach a subordinate clause to a main clause. When you attach a subordinate clause in front of a main clause, use a comma, like this: Subordinate Clause + , + Main Clause. When you attach a subordinate clause at the end of a main clause, you will generally use no punctuation, like this: Main Clause + Ø + Subordinate Clause. Rhonda gasped.
Asking Questions Delay ESL EFL Speaking Activity - Elementary - 10 Minutes This amusing speaking activity is useful for teaching question and answer structures. The aim is to delay the answer to a question until the next question is asked. Students work in pairs. Delay.PDF Exclusive The Right Answer ESL EFL Speaking Activity - Elementary - 30 Minutes This fun ESL speaking task helps students to master yes/no questions with the verb to be and do as well as short answers with auxiliaries. The Right Answer.PDF Free Information Line Up ESL EFL Speaking Activity - Elementary - 25 Minutes In this enjoyable teaching activity, students have to line up in teams as quickly as possible according to a series of instructions. Information Line Up.PDF Exclusive Guess the Word ESL EFL Speaking Activity - Pre-intermediate - 30 Minutes Here is a fun activity that helps students practice asking questions using a variety of question words. Guess the Word.PDF Free Opening Statements Opening Statements.PDF Exclusive Questions for Me
Sentence Builder Program: Free program for writing sentences The Sentence Builder Program is a free, comprehensive 108 page resource that will help your children to learn to construct grammatically correct sentences. This program uses a combination of oral language stimulation techniques, scaffolded contextual cues, phonemic awareness cues and written language exercises to facilitate students’ awareness of phrase, sentence, and grammatical structures. These skills are developed to help scaffold students’ ability to learn to read and spell new words. The Sentence Builder program features seven chapters: 1. Recommended Sequence and Example Session2. The Sentence Builder program is limited to students learning 30 unique phrases and 38 individual words. Once students have had the opportunity to learn the programs words and phrases, they will have increased confidence when combining the target phrases to form, read and eventually write grammatically correct and original sentences. Example of a Typical Session The Sentence Builder Program Goals
Information Questions (#3) with Auxiliary Verbs, by Dennis Oliver - Free English Grammar Lessons If the sentence has an auxiliary verb and if the "Wh-"question asks about words that are after the subject,the form is Wh + first auxiliary + subject + rest of the verb +other words? Examples: Bill will ??? The party was held ??? The party is being held at ???' I've found ???. Nancy can speak ??? Jae-Hoon has lived in ??? You have been eating ???. Lucinda has gone ???. He had worked ??? Yasuhiro can run ??? The twins will celebrate their ??? They have been working ???. You would gone ??? They might have been being punished ???. Special Notes: