How to teach other grammatical categories

1. This box is large (it is better to teach this first).

2. This is a large box.

So start with showing the various objects and describing them.

Note and teach the use of the word one as used in the examples.

This box (book, etc.) is large; this box (one) is small.

This pencil (stick, etc) is long; this pencil (one) is short.

This stick (book, etc). is thick; this stick (one) is thin.

This piece of paper is white; this piece of paper (one) is black.

This book is blue; this book (one) is red.

This leaf is green; this leaf (one) is yellow.

This piece of cloth is brown; this piece of cloth (one) is grey. etc.

Questions as before;

Is this box large?

Is this box small?

Is this box large or small?

What is this box like?

Then such «series» as

1. Is this box large? Yes, it is.

2. Is it small? No, it isn't.

3. What is it like? It is large.

4. What is large? The box is.

The introduce which

Which box is large: this one or that one?

With the corresponding «series»

1. Is this box large? Yes, it is.

2. Is that box large? No, it isn't.

3. Which box is large? This one is.

The next step is to speak in the same way of plural objects:

These boxes are large; these boxes are small.

These pencils are large; these pencils are short. etc.

Note that instead of saying these ones, those ones we say simply these, those. It is by no means so easy to find adjectives applicable to persons. In fact so far as the description of the pupils themselves is concerned, the only ones generally practicable are big, little, tall, short, lean, fat, slim, dark, fair.

Now instead of showing and talking about particular objects collected and present and before the eyes of the pupils, talk about the size, color, etc. of objects and substances in general. Pictures will here be of great assistance. The following examples are suggestive:

A tree is (trees are) generally large (tall, high).

A bush is (bushes are) generally small (low).

A river is (rivers are) generally wide (deep).

A stream is (streams are) generally narrow (shallow).

A mountain is (mountains are) generally very (rather) high.

(Note the introduction of generally, very and rather)

A hill is (hills are) not generally very high.

A leaf is (leaves are) generally green.

A flower is (flowers are) generally beautiful.

(Speak of some animal that is considered ugly)

The sky is blue or grey.

A cloud is (clouds are) white or grey.

An elephant is (elephants are) large (big, grey).

A rat is (rats are) small (grey, brown).

Milk is white. Blood is red.

Fire is hot.

A plain is (plains are) generally flat.

A file is (files are) rough.

A knife is (knives are) sharp.

A stone is (stones are) hard.

Wool is soft.

Iron is (lead) heavy.

A feather is (feathers are) light.

You may now drill the pupils in the other use of the adjective:

This is a large box; this is a small box (one).

This is a long pencil; this is a short pencil (one)

This is a thick stick; this is a thin stick (one).

The questioning will be similar to that explained in chapter one.

Is this a large box?

Is this a long pencil?

Is this a large box or small one?

Is this a piece of white paper or black paper?

Which is the large box; this one or that one?

Which is the long pencil; this one or that one?

1. Is this the large box? Yes, it is.

2. Is this the small box? No, it isn't.

3. Which box is that? It is the large one.

After the first lesson on place and position has been given, you may combine place and description with such examples as:

The large (big) box is on the table.

The small one is on the floor.

The long pencil is in my pocket.

The short one is in my hand.

The stick is here.

The thin one is over there (in the corner).

The large boxes are on the table.

The small ones are on the floor.

The black stones are on my right.

The white stones are on my left.

With such questions as are shown in the «series»:

1. Is the large box on the table? Yes, it is.

2. Is the large box on the floor? No, it isn't.

3. Where is the large box? It's on the table.

4. Is the large box on the table? Yes, it is.

5. Is the small box on the table? No, it isn't.

6. Which box is on the table? The large one is.

7. Is the box on the table large? Yes, it is.

8. Is the box on the table small? No, it isn't.

9. What is the box on the table like? It's large.

10. Which box is large? The one on the table is.

At a later stage such descriptions must be developed with such examples as:

This box is large, but that box (one) is larger (than this one).

This box is small , but that box (one) is smaller (than this one).

This pencil is long, but that pencil (one) is longer (than this one).

This stick is thick, but that stick (one) is thicker (than this one).

This is a large box, but that is larger one.

This is a long pencil, but that is a longer one.

This stick is thick, but that is a thicker one.

Questions:

Which box is larger: this one or that one?

Which pencil is longer: this one or that one?

Is this box larger or smaller than that one?

Is the pencil longer or smaller than that one?

Then:

This box is not so large as that one.

This pencil is not so long as that one.

(Some people say not as large as instead of not so large as.)

Questions:

Is that box as large as that one or is that smaller than that one?

isn't it so large as that one?

Is this pencil as long as that one or is this shorter than that one?

isn't it as long as that one?

Is this box smaller than that one or is it as large as that one?

Is this pencil shorter than that one or is it as long as that one?

Allusions can here be made to objects and persons of the environment:

That tree is higher than that bush.

That bush is not so high as that tree.

A is taller than B.

A mountain is higher than a hill.

A tree is taller than a bush.

A river is wider than a stream.

Then follows the largest, the smallest, etc. Here three objects are compared, e.g.

Here are three boxes.

This one is large.

That one is larger.

That other one is the largest.

Here are three pieces of wood.

This one is long.

That one is longer.

That other one is the longest.

Questions:

Which box is the largest; this one, that one or that other one?

Is this the largest or the smallest box?

In course of time such examples may be extended to, e.g.

The … is the biggest building in this town(city).

… is the highest hill near here.

… is the nearest town to here.

… is the widest river in this part of the country.

… is the tallest pupil in the class.

The elephant is the biggest animal.

The … is the most dangerous animal.

The restaurant on the corner is the best restaurant near here.

With such questions as:

Which is the biggest building in this town?

Who is the tallest pupil in the class?

Words and combinations recommended in teaching the describing of objects and persons

What … like? Which? What sort(kind) of?

The following adjectives are easily taught by demonstration and object lessons.

Colours

White, black, red, blue, green, yellow, brown, grey.

Size etc

Large, big, great, small, long, tall, short, wide, narrow, thick, fat, thin, high, low, deep, shallow.

General

Light- dark. Bright- dull. Dry- wet. Clean- dirty. Rough- smooth. Fast- quick- slow. New- old. Young- old. Full- empty. heavy- light. Hot, warm- cool, cold. Round, square. Hard- soft. Smooth- rough. Sharp- blunt. Tight- loose. Still- moving. Near- far. a long away.

The following adjectives are not so easy to teach by demonstration or object lessons. They are generally taught in their context and in suitable situations.

Good better the best

Bad worse worst

Nice nasty

Right correct wrong incorrect

True untrue non true

Difficult easy simple dangerous safe

Possible impossible

Important unimportant not important

Strong weak

Pleased glad sorry

Happy unhappy

Early late

Sick ill well better

Rich poor

Clever stupid silly

Kind unkind cruel angry

Hungry thirsty tired sleepy

Ready

Busy free not busy lazy comfortable, uncomfortable,sunny,cloudy,rainy,foggy,misty,windy,stormy,shady,hilly,rocky,stony,muddy,slippery,greasy.

Note that most adjectives are often preceeded by such words as very, rather, too, so, as, quite, nearly almost or followed by enough.

Communicative Activities for middle school classrooms

Middle school teachers often attend seminars and workshops where the advantages of communicative activities are discussed at great length. Teachers may even enjoy doing the communicative activities themselves during a teacher training session. However, many teachers are afraid to use communicative activities in the classroom. In theory teachers often believe that communicative approach with antsy middle school pupils.

The purpose of this article is to share with teachers some activities that I have applied in my classroom and that my pupils enjoyed. The objective of these activities is to make pupils practice their oral skills with interesting, motivating topics that allow them to talk about themselves and others and to express their points of view. The idea is to get them to talk, which is something that middle school pupils love to do. When the activities are carefully presented, pupils will be eager to use their English language skills, which, of course, in the point.

Tips for using communicative activities

It is demanding for teachers to apply communicative activities to the middle school classroom context in part because middle school pupils are known for misinterpreting instructions. To ensure that pupils understand the activities, it is important to:

Give one instruction at a time

Make sure that the instructions are very clear. Note that the sample communicative activities listed below have been broken

into simple steps that pupils can follow.

Teach pupils how to work in pairs before having them work in small groups.

Make sure that there are predetermined signals for quieting pupils in case they get too noisy.

For example, you may want to hold up your right hand as a signal for everyone else to hold up their right hands as well and to stop talking. This way you will be able to tell pupils to be quite or to give the next instruction without trying to yell over the noise.

Time Pie

Purpose: To practice oral skills by talking about activities that are meaningful to the pupils.

Number of pupils: First individually and then in pairs.

Materials: a sheet of paper, pencil, colors, calculator, and compass.

First of all, the teacher elicits from pupils the variety of activities they do during the week and the weekend; for example: sleeping, homework, email, transportation, phone, family time, friends, meals, etc.

Pupils' participation:

1. Pupils use the compass to draw 14 circles on one sheet of paper.

2. Pupils then divide the 14 circles into 12-hour clocks(two clocks for each day of the week). Pupils then mark off and label «pie slices» of the clock to indicate how they spend 24 hours. They can do this for a weekday or weekend day, whichever they prefer.

3. Have pupils draw four columns on the second piece of paper. They should make at least eight rows

4. Pupils label the columns as shown below

5. In the first column, pupils write the days of the week.

6. Pupils copy the activities from their clocks and put them in the boxes under the word Activity.

7. Have pupils divide the total hours of each activity by 168 hours in order to obtain the percentage of hours spent doing that activity during the week.

8. After adding up the hours for each activity and finding its percentage, pupils must then add up all the percentages to get a total of 100.

9. Have pupils draw a big a big circle in the centre of a sheet of paper and then divide it according to the corresponding percentage of each activity. Each wedge of this pie chart can be colored and labeled to differentiate it from the others.

10. Next, pupils are paired with a partner and discuss the following items using their charts as speaking guides.

a. Which activity did you spend the most time doing?

b. Did you like that activity? Why or why not?

c. Which activity did you spend the least time doing? Did you like it? Why or why not?

d. What did you learn about how you spend your time?

e. Do you want to change anything about how you spend your time?

After the practice in pairs gets to its end, the teacher may motivate the class to ask questions or make comments about the activity.

Symbol Portraits

Purpose: To have pupils practice their oral skills by talking about a person or character who is meaningful to them.

Number of pupils: Groups of 4-5 pupils.

Materials: Biographical information about different characters from magazines, the Internet and/or books, poster board, and markers.

1. Explain to pupils that a portrait is a picture of someone. Tell them that they

2. are going to make symbol portraits of their favorite person. They are going to make a poster with symbols about the person whom they chose.

3. Divide pupils into teams of four or five.

4. Pupils select a famous person, either alive or no longer living. They must select someone they know a lot about or can learn a lot about.

5. Pupils make a list of fifteen things about the person. They can use history books, newspaper or magazine articles, or the Internet to come up with a list of facts about the person. For example, if the person were Abraham

Lincoln pupils could put together a list such as:

a. This person was a man.

b. This person lived in the United States.

c. This person was a president

d. This person was shot and killed.

e. This person's picture is on a U.S. coin called a penny.

f. This person was born in 1809

g. This person was born in Kentucky.

h. This person was married to a woman named Mary Todd.

i. This person had four sons.

j. This person gave a special speech called the Gettysburg Address.

k. This person was killed at a theatre.

l. This person was killed by a man named John Wilkes Booth.

m. This person was the 16^th president of the United States.

n. This person love to read.

o. This person was killed in 1865.

6. Next pupils go through their list and discuss symbols that could represent each item on their list. For example, for item a, to indicate that «he was a man,» pupils might draw a stick figure of a man.

7. Pupils decide on one symbol for each item and write the symbols on scratch paper.

8. Pupils take the 15 agreed - upon symbols and draw them on the poster board.

9. When the posters are completed, pupils use them to facilitate their group discussions. Each pupil tells three things about the person, using the symbols a prompts. Pupils are not allowed to look back at their notes during the discussion.

(If there are four pupils in the group, then three of the four pupils present four items and one pupil presents just three items.)

10.The time that has been able to remember all of the items correctly using the symbols wins. Note that more than one team can win.

Conclusion

Communication is a form of human interaction. People cannot maintain normal life, share experience, work- related and everyday skills without communicating with and influencing one another. Communication enables people to form a view of the world, reach mutual understanding and find a communications language.

However, It is also an exchange of action, acts, thoughts and emotions with others, as well as drawing on ones own inner world memories, consciousness and aspirations. The `secret ` of communication lies ones desire and ability to live with other people in harmony and in an atmosphere of good will, generously sharing with them the riches of ones own heat.

Communication is a of education and self-education in which people influence one another without didacticism or moralizing. This makes the issue of the moral content and cultural forms of communication very import.

Genuine human communication is a form of creative activity that helps bring out one's best qualities. Communication is based on respect for the dignity of others, for basic universal moral standards.

The spoken word is the most meaningful, embracing and expressive means of communication. An ability to talk, listen and converse is an essential condition for mutual understanding and a means checking on the truth or error of one's own views and ideas.

What might be called the «mute language» of communication of emotions has in its arsenal the look and the gesture that may be warm or offensive. Nice or vulgar covering sympathy of antipathy. While posture manner in conversation etc… are also a measure of civilization and breeding. The manner and means of communication have an ethical, humanistic meaning in that they indicate the extend to which one is able to put oneself in place of another. Formation and

development of the need for communication is a major task of moral education. It is also a guarantee of proper orientation in the evolution of socialibility of the of the standards of communication itself.

Communicative language teaching began in Britain in the 1960s, in part as a replacement for the earlier, highly-structured method of situational language teaching. In this early model, pupils were given a specific situation or a dilemma that they had to solve. The given situations, more often than not, were irrelevant to the needs of pupils. For example: teenage pupils role played as the manager and staff of a company that was having a financial crisis, unfortunately, many language textbooks are still presenting this model of situational teaching. This is because textbooks are written for a large readership in different countries where English may be the first, second, or a foreign language.

If a teacher uses such an activity without any adaptation, English pupils will be distanced from the situation because the task won't be meaningful to them. Communicative language teaching requires authentic communication, which includes a believable setting, a normal speed in speaking, a range of lexical items suitable for the pupils' ages, and an overall promotion of learning. People should learn a foreign language for performing different functions. Therefore, it is natural to introduce authentic learning material in class.

New teachers always feel an obligation to complete all tasks in the textbook. Although they might have learnt about the usefulness of CLT in their teacher training, they can not always put them into practice because of base class schedules and other administrative duties.

This article suggests small modifications of activities, so that even when teachers have to follow textbook tasks, they can easily adapt them for communicative teaching with minimal extra preparation for themselves or their pupils. Also, this article shows that a small change of task can make it more authentic for pupils.

Can you remember the last time that you completed a working day without communicating with anyone? Whether it be email, letter, an informal meeting or a formal presentation, you're sure to have made contact with at least one person, if not several more.

The way you communicate with others not only reflects on you but ultimately affects the outcome of the situation you're in. teaching you

Communication Skills is the handy reference guide to help improve both your written and spoken interpersonal skills.

Using various communicative activities in the school classroom no matter the language level of the pupils. The point here is to provide the structure necessary to make learners feel comfortable. Little by little, the whole class will be involved, and teachers will be delighted with pupils' performance and the result of using activities like those described here. In the end, learners and teachers will have fun.

References

language mechanisms school

1.Branson.M.S.1999. Project citizen: An introduction. Calabasas, CA: Center for Civic Education. http://www.civiced.org/papers/articles_branson99.

2.Council of Europe (2001), Common European Framework of Reference for Languages: Learning, teaching, assessment. Cambridge: CUP.

3.Curriculum Development Council. 2002. English language education: Key learning area curriculum guide (primary 1-secondary 3). Hong Kong: Education Department.

4.Dubin, F. 1995. The craft of material writing. In Material writer's guide, ed. P. Byrd. Boston: Heinle, pp. 67-68.

5.European Commission, Derectorate-General XXII (1997), Working Paper. Imp/ementing the European Labet for Innovative Initiatives in the Field of Language Teaching and Learning. Aims, General Provisions and Implementation. Brussels, 24, November 1997.

6.Fairclough, Norman (1995), Critical Discourse Analysis. London: Longman.

8.Holliday, A. 1994. Appropriate methodology and social context. New York: Cambridge University Press.

9.Haller, Michaela (2001), «Innovation im Fremdsprachenunterricht in Osterreich - Beschreibung eines Forschungsvorhabens», in: Jantscher/ Keiper/ Heindler, eds. (2001), 21-23.

10.Heyworth, Frank (1999), Innovative approaches to the Organisation and set-up of language education. Workshop 6/99, Graz: ECML.

11.Jantscher, Elisabeth/ Keiper, Anita/ Heindler, Dagmar, eds. (2001), Europasiege/ fur innovative Sprachenprojekte. Die Durchfuhrung der Aktion 2000. Graz: Osterreichisches Sprachen-Kompetenz-Zentrum.

12.Jacobs, G. and S. Hall. (In press). Implementing cooperative learning. In Methodology in language teaching: An anthology of current practice, eds. J. C. Richards and W. A. Renandya, New York: Cambridge University Press.

13.Johnson, D. R. Johnson and E. Holubec. 1993. Circles of leaning(4th ed), Edina, MN: Interaction Book Company.

14.Kettemann, Bernhard (1997), «Innovative Second Language Education in Western Europe», Encyc/opedia of Language and Education,

15.Kagan, S. 1992. Communicative Learning. San Clemente, CA: Kagan Communicative Learning.

16.Littlewood, W. 1981. Communicative language teaching. Cambridge University Press.

17.Lynch, T. 1996. Communication in the language classroom. Oxford University Press.

18.Nunan, D. 1988. The lerner-centred curriculum. Cambridge University Press.

19.Owen, H. 1997. Open space technology: A user's guide. 2nd ed. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler.

20.Patrick, J. J. 2003. Essential elements of education for democracy: Center for Civic Education. http://www.civiced.org/pdfs/EEOEforDemocracy.pdf.

21.Quigley, C. N. 2000. Global trends in civic education. CA: Center for Civic Education. http://www.civiced.org/papers/articles_indonesia.html.

22.R.A. Cruse «A reference grammar for students of English» Moscow 1979.

Размещено на Allbest.ru

...