Adverbs

What are adverbs?

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Adverbs are words that tell us more about verbs....they add information to
the verb.
(A verb is a 'doing' word or a 'being' word, e.g. 'walk', 'feel')
Using adverbs makes your sentences more interesting.
Any verb you use can have an adverb added.
The girl smiled nervously.
The boy grinned sheepishly.
The light shone feebly.
e use adverbs!
to say how something ha""ens
'The family walk (how?) quickly.'
to say where or when something ha""ens
'# met him (when?) yesterday.'
to say how often something ha""ens
'$he gets the bus (how often?) daily.'
to make the meaning of an ad%ective, adverb or verb stronger or
weaker
'&ave eats (degree?) more slowly than his wife.'
Adverbs are often created from ad%ectives (describing words that tell you
more about nouns) by adding 'ly' to the end of the ad%ective.
e.g. slow becomes slowly
''oe is a slow "erson. (e walks slowly.'
)ertain words change when they become adverbs. #f an ad%ective ends in a
'y' you need to change the 'y' to an 'i' before adding 'ly'.
Happy becomes happily
Heavy becomes heavily
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Position of adverbs
There are three "laces in the sentence where adverbs can come.
At the beginning of a sentence!
'Suddenly I had earache.'
'Recently I had earache.'
#n the middle of a sentence!
'I suddenly had earache.'
'I recently had earache.'
At the end of a sentence!
'I had earache suddenly.'
'I had earache recently.'
How do you know where the adverb goes?
-ost kinds of adverbs can go in 'mid."osition' (before the verb) in a
sentence!
'I'm usually working at weekends.'
'I never said I liked you.'
/ther adverbs may fit more comfortably at the beginning or end of a
sentence!
'Yesterday I went to the skate park.'
'I went to the skate park yesterday.'
The best way to know if the order is right is to say the sentence to yourself.
&oes it sound right0
'She often is late.'
'She is often late.' This sounds better.
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Spotting adverbs
Adverbs are 4uite com"licated. 5ou cannot tell by the look of a word that
it is an adverb. 5ou can recognise it as an adverb only by the work it does
in a sentence.
A word may be an adverb in one sentence and a different "art of s"eech in
another sentence.
The job went well. (ere well describes the verb 'went', so it is an
adverb.
The well was drained by morning. (ere well names something, so it
is a noun.
The well water tasted disgusting. (ere well is being used to name a
ty"e of 'water', so it is not describing a verb. #t is not an adverb here.
'-ly' on the end of a word is a good clue that it's an adverb. -any adverbs
are made by adding 'ly' to the end of ad%ectives
6.g. 'careful' (adjecti!e) becomes 'carefully' (ad!erb)
$unita is very careful with her money. $he s"ends her money carefully.
(owever, lots of other adverbs are irregular
76A869 $ome words ending in 'ly' are never used as adverbs
6.g. 'friendly', 'lovely', 'lonely'
Also, look out for adverbs that have the same form as ad%ectives.
'(ard' and 'early' are both ad%ectives (used to describe "eo"le, "laces and
things) A:& adverbs (used to tell us more about the verb)!
#t's still early. (adjecti!e)
e arrived early. (ad!erb)
(e works very hard. (ad!erb)
(e's a hard man to know. (adjecti!e)
/ther adverbs with the same form as ad%ectives are fast, high, low, late
and long.
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More about spotting adverbs
Adverbial phrases
Adverbial "hrases are small strings of words that do the same %ob as
single.word adverbs!
'I'll see him on Saturday.'
'She's in the kitchen.'
''The thief ran down the road.'
'The mobile phones rang all at once.'

ther places to find adverbs!!!
An adverb may also be used to describe another adverb or an ad%ective.
'The weekend passed !ery "uickly.'
quickly describes the verb passed! "uickly is an adverb.
very describes the adverb "uickly! !ery is also an adverb.
'That seemed an e#tremely interesting plan.'
interesting describes the noun plan! interesting is an ad%ective.
extremely describes the ad%ective interesting! e#tremely is an adverb.
Adverbs can also 4ualify (describe) whole sentences!
'Hopefully the shoes will fit.'
'The dress$ unfortunately$ was ruined.'
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Adverbs " degrees of comparison
Adverbs are often used to make the meaning of a verb or other adverb
stronger or weaker. This is known as 'degrees of com"arison'.
What are they?
The "ositive degree is the sim"le form of the adverb ! slowly, early.
e.g. '(e walked slowly.'
The com"arative degree is used to com"are two actions ! slower, more
slowly, earlier.
e.g. '$arah walked more slowly than 7en.'
The su"erlative com"arison is used to com"are three or more ! slowest,
earliest.
e.g. 'e all take our time, but # walk the slowest of all.'

How do you make them?
Adverbs of one syllable usually form the com"arative by adding " er and
form the su"erlative by adding " est
'hard' (positi!e) . 'harder' (comparati!e) . 'hardest' (superlati!e)
Adverbs of two syllables or more generally form the com"arative by
adding more and the su"erlative by adding most.
'4uickly' (positi!e) . 'more 4uickly' (comparati!e) . 'most 4uickly'
(superlati!e)

Watch out# $%amples of e%ceptions
badly! worse (comparati!e) . worst (superlati!e).
well! better (comparati!e) . best (superlati!e).
far! farther (comparati!e) . farthest (superlati!e).
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&Adverbs& tutor notes
The 'Adverbs' to"ic area aims to hel" learners to recognise and use
adverbs.
How does this tie in with the curriculums?
$ngland
8$>?1.1 . ?earners need to understand the use of adverbs and
adverbial "hrases.
Wales
As 6ngland.
'orthern (reland
As 6ngland.
Scotland
$ee www.aloscotland.com for details of the $cottish curriculum.
(n the Skillswise module you&ll find)
Adverbs factsheets
There are five factsheets for this module, each on '"rint.out.and.kee"'
sheets. 5ou'll find curriculum references on the to", right.hand corner of
the factsheets.
*actsheet + . hat are adverbs
*actsheet , . @osition of adverbs
*actsheet - . (ow to s"ot an adverb
*actsheet . . -ore about s"otting adverbs
*actsheet / . &egrees of com"arison
Adverbs worksheets
$iA "rintable worksheets give the learner o""ortunities to identify adverbs,
their "ur"ose, degree of com"arison and "osition in a sentence. They also
give the learner the o""ortunity to select and use a""ro"riate adverbs.
5ou'll find curriculum references in the to" right.hand corner of the
worksheets. They are "rintable resources to carry on the work learners
have done online.
Worksheet + . Bind the adverbs
Worksheet , . hat are these adverbs doing
Worksheet - . Using adverbs to com"are
1<
Worksheet . . @ositioning adverbs
Worksheet / . Bill in the ga"s
Worksheet 0 . )hanging meaning
1echnical help)
#f you are new to the web, why not try the 77) ebise online course,
7ecoming ebise0 #t's free, you can do it in your own time from any
com"uter and it will take you through everything you need to know to use
the web successfully in your teaching.
Bind out more about ebise.
5ou can find out more about the technical re4uirements for $killswise in
our (el" . Technical #nformation section.
1aking it further)
With Skillswise
Bor adverbs "ractice, don't forget to visit '#nstructions' and 'Ty"es of teAt'
With the web
(ere are a few suggestions of other "laces where you might find resources
that you can use to hel" you with adverbs.
$nglish language centre2 3niversity of 4ictoria2 5anada
#n.de"th review of adverbs with an eAercise at the end.
Activities for $S6 Students
This site offers a good 4uiC that com"ares ad%ectives and adverbs.
(nternet 7rammar of $nglish
This site was created for university undergraduates, but their adverbs
section is very good and offers a series of eAercises at the end of their
factsheet. ords 4uiC
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Apostrophes
Apostrophes factsheet
A"ostro"hes have two uses!
1. Apostrophes show you that some letters have been taken out of a
word to shorten it!
8o not becomes don&t.
( will becomes (&ll.
5ould have becomes could&ve.
The a"ostro"he goes where the letters have been removed.
5ou use a"ostro"hes this way in informal writing. 5ou should not
shorten words when you are writing formal letters.
:/T6 . sometimes words are shortened in an irregular way. The
a"ostro"he, however, is still used to show where letters are missing.
6.D! Will not becomes won&t.
*. Apostrophes show you that something belongs to something else!
1o show belonging you add &s
The cat's tail . says that the tail belongs to the cat.
The car's lights . says that the lights belong to the car.
Tony's hair . says that the hair belongs to Tony.
Usually the a"ostro"he goes before the s.
#f the owner already ends in s then the a"ostro"he goes after the s
that is already there. 5ou %ust need to add an a"ostro"he. 6g!
The dogs' bowls . says that the bowls belong to some dogs.
The boys' coats . says that the coats belong to some boys.
The cars' wheels . says that the wheels belong to some cars.
atch out for "lurals that don't end in s. ords like men and
children don't end in s, but they are talking about lots of "eo"le.
These words use &s to show "ossession. 6.D!
The men's hats . says that the hats belong to the men.
The women's house . says that the house belongs to the women.
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&Apostrophes& tutor notes
The aim of the a"ostro"hes to"ic area is to hel" learners revise the use of
a"ostro"hes to show where letters are missing in informal writing and to
demonstrate that one thing belongs to something else.
How does this tie in with the curriculums?
$ngland
8s>?1.* . Understand that grammatical clues can be used to make
sense of individual words and of com"lete sentences.
Enow and use the term 'a"ostro"he'. Understand the function of the
omissive a"ostro"he to indicate contracted word style.
Wales
As 6ngland.
'orthern (reland
As 6ngland.
Scotland
$ee www.aloscotland.com for details of the $cottish curriculum.
(n the Skillswise module you&ll find)
Apostrophes factsheet
The facts about a"ostro"hes, with eAam"les, on one '"rint.out.and.kee"'
sheet.
Apostrophes games
There are two games in this section, both of which have a similar structure.
7oth games re4uire some level of familiarity with a keyboard, as answers
have to be ty"ed in. #f you don't get all the answers right, your friend gets
gunged.
@lease also note that students have to click the cursor into the teAt boA
before they can ty"e the answer. #deally, the cursor would a""ear
automatically in the teAt boA, but unfortunately this isn't "ossible in Blash
version , (the software that is the s"ec for further education).
1P 1(P# To see the game com"letely full screen, "ress the B11 key on
the keyboard. This takes away the distraction of the to" browser bar. To
bring the browser bar back, %ust "ress B11 again9
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Apostrophes activity " &5utting a 8ash&
e are sorry but we have had to remove the 77) 8adio , "rogramme
about a"ostro"hes, ')utting a dash', from this website. This is because of
changes in co"yright. e a"ologise for any inconvenience caused.
Apostrophes qui9
The learner can choose their level. ?evel A is the easiest, level ) the
hardest.
$tudents can "rint out a certificate if they score 1=F or more in the 4uiC.
This will a""ear as a link on the results "age . click on the link and the
certificate will a""ear in a new window. /nce "rinted students can write
their name on the certificate.
Apostrophes worksheets
There are two worksheets in this section. They are meant to be "rintable
resources to carry on the work learners have done online. The two
worksheets are based on s"orts stories, where students have to decide
where to "ut the a"ostro"hes.
1echnical help)
To get the most out of this to"ic area you need the following '"lug.ins'!
*lash
The game in this to"ic section uses Blash. This is free to download
and should only take a few minutes. 5ou can follow the 77)
ebise instructions to download it to your machine.
Bind out more.
#f you don't have Blash the same learning "oints are covered in the 4uiC
and in the worksheets and factsheets.
#f you are new to the web, why not try the 77) ebise online course,
7ecoming ebise0 #t's free, you can do it in your own time from any
com"uter and it will take you through everything you need to know to use
the web successfully in your teaching.
Det ebise.
5ou can find out more about the technical re4uirements for $killswise in
our (el" . Technical #nformation section.
1aking it further)
*3
With Skillswise!
&on't forget to check out the $killswise ?esson "lans and Teaching
ins"irations areas for more ideas about teaching a"ostro"hes.
n the web!
(ere's a few suggestions of other "laces on the web that you might find
useful resources that you can ada"t for teaching a"ostro"hes.
6ive chat
@rint out some interviews with celebrities at 77) ?ive )hat as teAts
that you could use to highlight the a"ostro"hes that indicate a letter
(or letters) have been omitted.
::5 'ews
@rint out a news story from 77) :ews, then ask learners to rewrite
the story using a"ostro"hes so it reads less formally.
Home for abused apostrophes
@ictures of real.life eAam"les of cruelly misused a"ostro"hes.
ersonal pronouns
What are personal pronouns?
A noun is a word that is "erson, "lace or thing.
e!g! %rian$ the car$ the dog$ Sunita$ &ondon
A pronoun is a word that can be used in "lace of a noun.
A personal pronoun is used in "lace of a noun that is a "erson or a thing.
@ersonal "ronouns for "eo"le G #, you, he, she, we, they
me, you, him, her, us, them
@ersonal "ronouns for things G it, they, them
Why use a personal pronoun?
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@ersonal "ronouns are useful because you don't have to re"eat words.
They can be used to talk about something or someone that you have
already talked about.
e!g! 'li(abeth put the coat on because 'li(abeth was cold.
This would be better written as!
'li(abeth put the coat on because she was cold.
The word she is a "ersonal "ronoun and means '6liCabeth' in this sentence.
This makes the sentence shorter and more interesting, as you don't have to
re"eat '6liCabeth'.
There are two ty"es of "ersonal "ronouns!
$ub%ect "ronouns are the 'who' or 'what' the sentence is about!
(2 you2 he2 she2 it2 we2 they are all sub%ect "ronouns
/b%ect "ronouns are the 'who' or what' acted u"on!
me2 you2 him2 her2 it2 us2 them are all ob%ect "ronouns
e!g! 'li(abeth put the coat on.
#n this sentence '6liCabeth' is the sub%ect and 'the coat' is the ob%ect.
6liCabeth is doing the action ("utting on) and the coat is the thing that is
'done to' (it is the thing that she "uts on).
#f you wanted to re"eat this information later you could say!
She put it on.
Problems with personal pronouns
8emember that "ersonal "ronouns are small words that you can use to
re"lace a "erson or thing, when you have already talked about them.
e!g! %arry lo!es )athalie. He (%arry) is always buying her ()athalie)
presents.
Singular or plural?
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The singular (talking about 1 thing) "ersonal "ronouns are!
( ; me ! he ; him ! she ; her ! it ! you
The "lural (talking about more than 1) "ersonal "ronouns are!
we ; us ! they ; them ! you
$ingular "ersonal "ronouns are used to re"lace singular nouns (one "erson
or thing).
@lural "ersonal "ronouns are used to re"lace "lural nouns (many "eo"le or
things).
:/T6 . '5ou' can be used to re"lace one "erson or many "eo"le, it is both
singular and "lural.
Should it be &(& or &me&?
These "ersonal "ronouns are often used in the wrong "lace. Think about
whether the "ersonal "ronoun is the sub%ect or the ob%ect.
(s it &(& doing something or &me& being acted upon?
e!g! *ohn and ! are going there.
+lease gi!e the money to me.
A good trick for working out which one to use is to say the sentence to
yourself with the other "erson taken out.
e!g! *ohn and I are going to the cinema.
Take out ''ohn' and what do you get0 5ou get '# am going to the cinema' .
which is right. #f you said '-e are going to the cinema' you can hear that it
is wrong.
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&Personal pronouns& tutor notes
The aim of the '"ersonal "ronouns' to"ic area is to revise the rules and the
uses of the "ersonal "ronouns ( ; me ; you ; it ; he ; him ; she ; her ; we ;
us ; they ; them.
'!:! This module deals with personal "ronouns . not possessi!e "ronouns.
5ou may feel that some of the work in this module stretches into ?evel *.
The ma%ority of work on "ronouns does take "lace at ?evel * of the
curriculum, but ?evel 1 s"ecifies that learners should 'understand the term
"ronoun'.
How does this tie in with the curriculums?
$ngland
<s;6+!+ . 'Use im"licit and eA"licit grammatical knowledge ... to
"redict meaning, try out "lausible meanings and to read and check
for sense.'
'Understand the term "ronoun.'
Ws;6+!, . 'Use correct grammar . write grammatically correct
sentences...'
Wales
As 6ngland.
'orthern (reland
As 6ngland.
Scotland
$ee www.aloscotland.com for details of the $cottish curriculum.
(n the Skillswise module you&ll find)
Personal pronouns game
There are + levels of game. At level 1 learners have to identify the "ersonal
"ronoun within a given sentence and ty"e it into a teAt boA. At level *
learners have to choose the best "ersonal "ronoun to fill the ga". At level
+, the hardest level, learners are asked to re.ty"e a sentence using "ersonal
"ronouns where they make sense.
/n each level, if a learner gets the right answer they are given the chance
to dig for treasure on the treasure ma", to build u" "oints.
#t is "ossible to "lay each level of this game over and over again, as
sentences are randomly "ulled in from a large selection and the treasure
ma" will randomly generate, so that the treasure is always in different
+;
"laces. @lease note, however, that the treasure ma" and score start afresh
each time the game is closed or a new level is started.
A note on level + of the game .
There is only one right answer for each re.ty"ed sentence. A sentence will
only be marked as correct if it is entirely correct, i.e. the s"elling and
"unctuation are correct aswell as the use of "ersonal "ronouns. Beedback,
however, will give an indication of what the mistake was (use of "ronouns
or s"elling). Answers can be entered entirely in ca"ital letters (so if ca"s
lock is accidentally on it's not a "roblem), but if answers are ty"ed in lower
case then the learner must make the correct use of ca"ital letters.
As with all our games, we recommend that you take a look at the '(ow to
"lay' demonstration on the flash game, before introducing your students to
the game. 5ou can find this on the bottom, black bar when you o"en the
game.
@lease let us know what you think about this game.
Personal pronouns qui9
The learner can choose their level. ?evel A is the easiest and level ) the
hardest. All + levels deal with "utting the right "ersonal "ronoun into the
ga" in the sentence.
$tudents can "rint out a certificate if they score 1=F or more in the 4uiC.
This will a""ear as a link on the results "age . click on the link and the
certificate will a""ear in a new window. /nce "rinted students can write
their name on the certificate.
Personal pronouns factsheets
The facts about using "ersonal "ronouns, with eAam"les. #n this case there
are two "rintable sheets . 'hat are "ersonal "ronouns' and '@roblems with
"ersonal "ronouns'.
Personal pronouns worksheets
There are three worksheets in this section. The first involves filling ga"s in
short tele"hone messages, the second involves filling ga"s in a longer
"iece of teAt (a "ostcard) and the third offers a blank tem"late for learners
to write their own "ostcard.
#f you have a great worksheet for "ersonal "ronouns at level 1 . tell us
about it and we might add it to the site9
1echnical help)
+<
To get the most out of this to"ic area you need the following '"lug.ins'!
*lash
The game in this to"ic section uses Blash. This is free to download
and should only take a few minutes. 5ou can follow the 77)
ebise instructions to download it to your machine.
Bind out more.
#f you don't have Blash the same learning "oints are covered in the 4uiC
and in the worksheets and factsheets.
#f you are new to the web, why not try the 77) ebise online course,
7ecoming ebise0 #t's free, you can do it in your own time from any
com"uter and it will take you through everything you need to know to use
the web successfully in your teaching.
Det ebise.
5ou can find out more about the technical re4uirements for $killswise in
our (el" . Technical #nformation section.
1aking it further)
With Skillswise!
&on't forget to check out the $killswise ?esson "lans and Teaching
ins"irations areas for more ideas about teaching "ersonal "ronouns.
n the web!
(ere's a few suggestions of other "laces on the web that you might find
useful resources that you can ada"t for teaching "ersonal "ronouns.
b=ect ; sub=ect worksheet
This is a free worksheet from the ?ongman '$"ectrum' series that is
available in @&B format (so you will need the free Adobe Acrobat
8eader software to be able to access it). #t asks learners to "air u"
sub%ect and ob%ect "ronouns and then to re.write sentences that have
been miAed u".
Do down to Unit 3 and click on the '/b%ect @ronouns' link.
5ou will need the free Adobe Acrobat software to view this,
:ritish 5ouncil game
The 7ritish )ouncil has a site with games and activities for "eo"le
who are learning 6nglish as a foreign language. This includes a 'drag
and dro"' game for "ronouns. The learner has to choose which
,=
category of "ronoun a word comes under . ob%ect, sub%ect, "ossessive
or refleAive ... so it may be a bit high for level 1. #t is also very
lacking in feedback, as you don't get a res"onse about whether you
are right or wrong. -ight be useful, however, for a student and tutor
to use together.
Worksheets galore#
1+ worksheets from 'ed(el"er.com' "ractising both "ersonal and
"ossessive "ronouns. -ight be 4uite useful for early work, as the
"ronouns are broken down into "airs (e.g. choosing 'she' or 'her').
This is an American site and you can subscribe for more worksheets
and lesson "lans, but the "ronoun ones are available for free.
1eacher <esource $%change
This is a site set u" by the UE government to allow teachers to
eAchange lesson ideas, "lans and worksheets. This "articular resource
is aimed at Eey $tage *, but doesn't feel "articularly non.adult. There
are * charts showing "ersonal and "ossessive "ronouns and *
eAercises . the first sorting "ersonal and "ossessive "ronouns and the
second identifying "ronouns in sentences.
(nteresting discussion point?
/n the 77)'s (*D* community "ages it seems that "ersonal
"ronouns have been causing a bit of a stir9 The debate seems to
centre on how using the wrong "ronoun can be "erceived as being
seAist (are builders always 'he'0) and how some "eo"le seem to go to
great lengths never to reveal the gender of their "artner. )ould this be
a good game for raising awareness of "ronouns . talk about someone
you know without ever giving away what seA they are0
,1
"erb sub#ect agreement
How to make verbs agree with their sub=ects
+! What are verbs and sub=ects?
4erbs are action words .
e$g$ eat$ sleep$ talk$ walk$ do$ buy are all verbs
Sub#ects are the "erson or thing who are doing the action of the verb .
e$g$! eat, %he dog sleeps, &eorge talks a lot, %hey walk to work.
The sub%ect of a sentence can be singular >one? or plural >many?!
e$g$ The computer is old. (singular)
The computers are old. ("lural)
,! What is verb"sub=ect agreement?
The verb form can change de"ending on whether the sub%ect is singular or
"lural.
e$g$ The car park (singular subject) was (!erb) full.
The car parks (plural subject) were (!erb) full.
#n these sentences each of the verbs agrees with its sub%ect. The correct
verb form has been used.
The verb must always agree with its sub%ect. $ingle sub%ect G single verb,
"lural sub%ect G "lural verb.
-! How does this work?
(n regular verbs)
singular plural
Birst "erson # like bananas. e like bananas.
$econd "erson you like bananas. you like bananas.
Third "erson he > she > it likes bananas. they like bananas.
,*
She likes to cycle to work.>correct? > She like to cycle to work.>incorrect?
-e like swimming. >correct? > -e likes swimming. >incorrect?
Helpful hint) &s& is added to the third person singular! 1his is the way
most regular verbs in the present tense work!
Problems with verb"sub=ect agreement
1. (rregular verbs
:ot all verbs work in a regular way (see factsheet 1). $ome of the
most common verbs are irregular.
e$g$ be$ go$ do$ ha!e
Herbs and sub%ects must still agree, but you have to learn and
remember the way the irregular ones work.
:ote the correct verb form for the third "erson singular for these
irregular verbs!
&to do& G # do . he > she > it does (:/T do)
&to have& G # have . he > she > it has (:/T have)
&to go& G # go . he > she > it goes (:/T go)
e$g$ She does karate on Thursdays. They do lots of sparring.
It has soft fur. They have soft hands.
She goes sailing e!ery month. I go e!ery week.
*. 1oo many words
$ometimes it's difficult to work out the sub%ect, because there are lots
of words between the sub%ect and the verb
e$g$Steve$ who has just returned from .ustralia$ does not intend to go
back.
($ingular sub%ect, '$teve' G singular verb)
,+
The children$ e#cited about /ather 0hristmas$ went to bed early
without complaining.
(@lural sub%ect, 'children' G "lural verb)
The best thing on tele!ision last night was 'ast'nders.
($ingular sub%ect, 'thing' G singular verb)
Problems with plurals in verb"sub=ect agreement
$ometimes the sub%ect (the "erson or thing doing the action of the verb)
may seem to be "lural, because it is a 'collecti!e noun' . a singular (one)
noun that grou"s together many things or "eo"le.
e$g$ . swarm of bees 1 2 swarm$ containing many bees
. pack of cards 1 2 pack$ containing many cards
This is an area of some debate, but as they are treated as a singular unit,
collective nouns usually take the singular verb form.
e!g! A herd of ele"hants was charging towards us.
The class is very noisy today.
-y football team is doing really well.
,,
e!g! 'y colleague and manager were both "romoted today.
(Two "eo"le G "lural sub%ect)
Rupert and (ane are football fans but )olin prefers sho""ing.
(Two "eo"le G "lural sub%ect, takes the "lural verb 'are'I one "erson G
singular sub%ect, takes the singular verb '"refers')
e!g! %he bag of shopping was too heavy to carry.
(7ag of sho""ing G singular sub%ect. ?ots of sho""ing, but there's only one
bag.)
<emember) if you are unsure which verb form to use2 look at the
sub=ect carefully! (s the sub=ect singular >one?2 or plural >many?? A
singular sub=ect requires the singular verb form! A plural sub=ect
requires the plural verb form!
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'Verb subject agreement' tutor notes
The aim of the 'verb subject agreement' topic area is to revise the rules of
making verbs agree with their subjects and to offer plenty of opportunities to
learn by practice.
How does this tie in with the curriculums?
England
Rs/L1.1 - 'use implicit and explicit grammatical knowledge ... to predict meaning, try
out plausible meanings and to read and check for sense.'
Ws/L1.2 - 'understand that, while writing, a writer needs to keep checking that
singular subjects have a singular verb and that plural subjects have a plural verb'
Wales
As England.
orthern !reland
As England.
"cotland
ee www.aloscotland.com for details of the cottish curriculum.
!n the "#illswise module $ou'll %ind&
Verb subject agreement - game
There are 3 levels to this game, getting progressively more difficult. At each
level, learners are given the chance to hunt for treasure after they successfully
complete each task.
At level 1 learners are asked to spot the subject of the sentence. At level
learners have to choose which form of the verb best fills the gap in the
sentence !this covers some tense practice as well as verb"subject agreement#.
At level 3, the hardest level, learners are given a sentence and asked to re"type
it using the new, given, subject. The sentence must be e$actly right, with
correct spelling and punctuation as well as correct verb subject agreement, to
gain the chance to uncover the treasure.
%f you have any comments at all on this game, please do get in touch.
Verb subject agreement - quiz
As usual, there are 3 levels of &ui', which get harder as you progress from level
A to level (. At level A learners have to answer 'true' or 'false' to a number of
statements about verbs and subjects. )evels * and ( ask learners to decide
which sentence is correct.
+ou might like to know that all the statements in level A are true. The tutor
writing this material felt that it would be confusing to present students with
statements that weren't true, as verb subject agreement is &uite a confusing
area. )et us know if you don't agree,
-tudents can print out a certificate if they score ./0 or more in the &ui'. This
will appear as a link on the results page " click on the link and the certificate
will appear in a new window. 1nce printed students can write their name on the
certificate.
1,
Verb subject agreement - factsheets
There are 3 factsheets in this section. They all give hints and tips and e$amples
to help learners learn the rules of verb subject agreement.
The first factsheet looks at the basic rules. The second looks at some common
things that can cause errors and confusion and the last factsheet looks at some
specific problems to do with working out if something is singular or plural.
Verb subject agreement - worksheets
There are 2 worksheets in this section. The worksheets ask learners to choose
which are the right forms of verbs within a number of sentences, to spot verb"
form errors within an informative piece of te$t and to change singular verbs
and nouns into plurals.
%f you have a great worksheet for practising verb subject agreement " tell us
about it,
'echnical hel(&
To get the most out of this topic area you need the following 'plug"ins'3
)lash
!he game in this topic section uses "lash. !his is free to download and should only
take a few minutes. #ou can follow the $$% &eb&ise instructions to download it to
your machine.
"ind out more.
%f you don't have 4lash the same learning points are covered in the &ui' and in
the worksheets and factsheets.
%f you are new to the web, why not try the **( 5eb5ise online course,
*ecoming 5eb5ise6 %t's free, you can do it in your own time from any
computer and it will take you through everything you need to know to use the
web successfully in your teaching.
7et 5eb5ise.
+ou can find out more about the technical re&uirements for -killswise in our
8elp " Technical %nformation section.
'a#ing it %urther&
8ere's a few suggestions of other places on the web that you might find useful
as resources that you can adapt for teaching verb subject agreement.
*nline Writing Lab +*WL, at -urdue .ni/ersit$
!his American university website offers online guidelines for English language
learning. !his particular section of the website gives you several guidelines to help
your subjects and verbs agree.
0ui1 %rom 2it$ .ni/ersit$3 Hong 4ong
!his is a '' (uestion multiple-choice (ui) aimed at learners of English as a foreign
language. !he learner has to choose the right form of the verb from a drop-down.
!hey can then mark their own answers at the end.
0ui11es galore5
*ultiple-choice (ui))es where learners choose the right form of the verb. Again,
11
they can mark their own answers at the end. !his is a + site from %hicago public
schools. !he font is still small, but these are probably the best (ui))es for level.
,ui) - . overview / (ui) ' . '0' / (ui) 1 . 'you' / (ui) 2 . 'he' / (ui) 3 . 'we' / (ui) 4 .
'they' / (ui) 5 . various
Wise6u( to /erb subject agreement
*ore background information on the ins and outs of making verbs and subjects
agree. Enjoy6
Adjectives
What are adjecti/es?
Adjectives are describing words - they tell you more about nouns.
7ouns are 'naming' words, they are a person, place or thing.
Adjectives tell you more about the noun. +sing adjectives makes your sentences more
interesting.
!he (rett$ girls laughed.
0n this sentence8
'girls' is the noun 9it says who's laughing:.
'(rett$' is the adjective 9it says more about the noun:.
;ere are some more sentences with nouns and adjecti/es.
!he %at captain ate dinner.
am is blonde and gorgeous.
*ld ;ani and 0 drove up the big hill.
<emember that adjectives tell you about the noun, they describe the noun. =on't confuse
adjectives with adverbs. Adverbs describe the verb, they tell you more about an action -
eg8 'he laughed loudl$'.
<emember that adjectives usually come before the noun.
#ou can use more than one adjective if you need to. Eg8
!he tall, bright, beauti%ul waitress picked up the dar#, dirt$ coffee.
!here are rules about the order that you should put adjectives in when you use more than
one, but the best way to know is to say the sentence to yourself. =oes it sound right>
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'7djecti/es' tutor notes
The aim of the adjectives topic area is to remind learners what adjectives are
and to encourage them to use adjectives to make their sentences more
interesting. This area also reminds learners that adjectives can be used to
make te$ts positive or negative.
How does this tie in with the curriculums?
England
<s/?-.- - +se implicit and explicit grammatical knowledge along with own
knowledge and experience to predict meaning, try out plausible meanings, and to
read and check for sense.
<w/?-.' - <ecognise and understand the vocabulary associated with different types
of text.
&t/?-.2, - +se language suitable for purpose and audience.
Wales
As England.
orthern !reland
As England.
"cotland
ee www.aloscotland.com for details of the cottish curriculum.
!n the "#illswise module $ou'll %ind&
Adjectives game
The learner is advised that they've got a new job on a newspaper. The training
programme has three levels " lonely hearts, classifieds and late news editor.
The learner has to make the ads more interesting by picking the best adjective
from a selection. 9ot every adjective will work everywhere. -ometimes a word
will be refused because it doesn't make sense, sometimes it won't work
grammatically in the sentence !eg3 where it would need 'an' and not 'a' before
it#.
:on't try and get the student to do all 3 levels at once, this is meant to be a
game that people can come back to and play again and again.
%n the ')onely hearts' section look out for the secret 'bonus' bit, only available
when the student has amended the adverts of all the people.
The last section, ')ate news editor', specifically practises positive and negative
adjectives.
TOP TIP! To see the game completely full screen, press the 411 key on the
keyboard. This takes away the distraction of the top browser bar. To bring the
browser bar back, just press 411 again,
Adjectives quiz
The learner can choose their level. )evel A asks learners to choose the best
adjective for the job, level * deals with identifying the adjective and level (
asks learners to identify positive and negative adjectives.
5e have now put in place a system that will allow the student to print out a
certificate if they score ./0 or more in the &ui'. This will appear as a link on
1;
the results page " click on the link and the certificate will appear in a new
window. -tudents can write their name in once the certificate is printed.
Adjectives factsheet
The facts about adjectives, with e$amples, on one 'print"out"and"keep' sheet.
Adjectives worksheet
1nce a student has tried the game, maybe they'd like to write their own
personal advert6 1r each member of the class could write an advert for
someone else " then the students have to work out who everyone is. This
worksheet provides a template, plus some suggested adjectives.
'echnical hel(&
To get the most out of this topic area you need the following 'plug"ins'3
)lash
!he game in this topic section uses "lash. !his is free to download and should only
take a few minutes. #ou can follow the $$% &eb&ise instructions to download it to
your machine.
"ind out more.
%f you don't have 4lash the same learning points are covered in the &ui' and in
the worksheets and factsheets.
%f you are new to the web, why not try the **( 5eb5ise online course,
*ecoming 5eb5ise6 %t's free, you can do it in your own time from any
computer and it will take you through everything you need to know to use the
web successfully in your teaching.
7et 5eb5ise.
+ou can find out more about the technical re&uirements for -killswise in our
8elp " Technical %nformation section.
'a#ing it %urther&
ith !ki""swise3
:on't forget to check out the -killswise )esson plans and Teaching inspirations
areas for more ideas about teaching adjectives.
On the web3
8ere's a few suggestions of other places on the web that you might find useful
resources that you can adapt for teaching adjectives.
.4 7dult 8asic "#ills Resource 2entre
A complete, "<EE, follow-on lesson plan 9complete with great printable resources:
from this excellent basic skills resources site. ent in by a tutor everything is
mapped to the curriculum, there are links to other resources such as adjectives
games and suggestions for further activities. 0t would seem that this is the home of
the now renowned lemon sherbet game6
'he science o% adjecti/es
=id you know that the adjectives you choose to include in your lonely heart advert
1<
reveal an awful lot about you and that in lonely hearts 'the veneer of civilisation is
stripped away and men and women are slaves to their most basic instincts'.
@rofessor <obin =unbar of ?iverpool +niversity has spent a lot of time studying
lonely hearts adverts and this is his conclusion. An the $$% cience site you can fill
in your own advert and get the benefit of his insight.
!he font is small and the language is (uite complicated, but it would be a lovely
exercise to adapt.
EastEnders
Bet your students to write a personal ad for their favourite EastEnders character.
=o they think @auline needs help with her love life> Cisit the characters page to
print out summaries of each character.
Loot
!he website for the famous classified ads maga)ine will let you hunt for cars,
homes and even musical instruments. %hoose your category and then browse by
'classification' to find real small ads for use in class. Ar if you're feeling adventurous,
set the class a set of criteria and let them search6
Commas
When to use commas
&e use commas in two main ways8
1. 2ommas se(arate the items in a list.
ometimes these items are real things.
E.g. I need some pens, pencils, paper and a calculator before I start my class.
I must buy some eggs, milk, sugar and tea.
ometimes these items are things you do, or places you go.
E.g. Yesterday I went to work, played badminton, went to the pub and then went to
bed.
I'm going to spend my holiday walking on the beach, sleeping in the sun and
reading my book.
$E&A<E6
Always make sure you use and to separate the last two items in your list.
*ake sure that you don't use a comma before the word and at the end of your list.
9on't use commas where you should use a full-stop. 0f the words could stand alone
as a proper sentence then you need to put a full-stop or a joining word 9'and', 'but'
etc: in and not a comma.
'Yesterday I went to work, I walked the dog, I went shopping and I washed the car.'
!his doesn't work as these could all stand alone as proper short sentences. 0f you
want to write them as a list 9for example, to show you were in a hurry, or that you
had a lot to do: take out the '0'.
'Yesterday I went to work, walked the dog, went shopping and washed the car.'
2=
*. 2ommas mar# out the less im(ortant (art o% a sentence.
!his is a useful way to make your sentences more interesting by adding extra
information.
E.g. The car, which was parked by the light, had a dog in the back seat.
!his sentence is about the car and the dog, it's not about where the car was parked.
Tony, his mum's favourite, was given chocolate cake for tea.
!his sentence is about !ony eating chocolate cake. &e don't need 'his mum's
favourite' for the sentence to make sense, it's extra information.
Rajinda, the youngest in the family, is about to get married.
!his sentence is about <ajinda getting married, it's not about her position in the
family.
;A& %A7 0 %;E%D>
A (uick way to check this second use of commas is to see if the sentence makes
sense without the words between the commas.
!he first sentence -
''he car3 which was (ar#ed b$ the light3 had a dog in the bac# seat.'
would become
''he car :::: had a dog in the bac# seat.'
!his sentence makes sense so the commas are in the right places.
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'2ommas' tutor notes
The commas topic area aims to help learners revise the use of commas to
separate items in a list and to mark out information in a sentence that is
'e$tra'.
;elated topic areas on -killswise are3
<aking simple sentences
(ompound sentences
How does this tie in with the curriculums?
England
<s/?-.- - +se grammatical knowledge to predict meaning and read and check for
sense
<s/?-.' - +se punctuation to help understanding.
&s/?-.- - +nderstand that complete sentences should not be strung together with
commas 9comma splicing:
&s/?-.1 - @unctuate sentences correctly and use punctuation so that meaning is
clear. $e clear about where not to use commas.
Wales
As England.
orthern !reland
As England.
"cotland
ee www.aloscotland.com for details of the cottish curriculum.
!n the "#illswise module $ou'll %ind&
#ommas factsheet
The facts about commas, with e$amples, on one 'print"out"and"keep' sheet.
#ommas game
%n this 4lash game learners are told that it's their first day at work. Through
activities such as getting their colleagues cups of tea, they have to amend
sentences deciding whether a comma or 'and' is more appropriate. They are
also asked to match the right picture to the sentence, demonstrating that the
meaning of a sentence can be changed by a comma.
After feedback from you we have recently updated this game. 5hen the 'and' is
erased the personal pronoun !normally the '%'# is now taken too, so that you are
left with a list and not with separate proper sentences. <any thanks to
everyone who pointed this out to us.
TOP TIP! To see the game completely full screen, press the 411 key on the
keyboard. This takes away the distraction of the top browser bar. To bring the
browser bar back, just press 411 again,
#ommas activit$
=nfortunately, because of copyright changes, we have had to take down the
**( ;adio 2 programme '(utting a dash', which was all about commas. 5e
apologise for any inconvenience caused.
2<
#ommas quiz
The learner can choose their level. )evel A is the easiest, level ( the hardest. At
each level the learner has to choose the sentence that has the commas in the
right place.
-tudents can print out a certificate if they score ./0 or more in the &ui'. This
will appear as a link on the results page " click on the link and the certificate
will appear in a new window. 1nce printed students can write their name on the
certificate.
#ommas worksheets
There are 3 worksheets in this section !plus each worksheet has a printable
answer sheet#. The worksheets are basically te$ts !a diary and two informative
pieces# which the students have to add commas to.
'echnical hel(&
To get the most out of this topic area you need the following 'plug"ins'3
)lash
!he game in this topic section uses "lash. !his is free to download and should only
take a few minutes. #ou can follow the $$% &eb&ise instructions to download it to
your machine.
"ind out more.
%f you don't have 4lash the same learning points are covered in the &ui' and in
the worksheets and factsheets.
%f you are new to the web, why not try the **( 5eb5ise online course,
*ecoming 5eb5ise6 %t's free, you can do it in your own time from any
computer and it will take you through everything you need to know to use the
web successfully in your teaching.
7et 5eb5ise.
+ou can find out more about the technical re&uirements for -killswise in our
8elp " Technical %nformation section.
'a#ing it %urther&
:on't forget to visit )esson plans and Teaching inspirations for more ideas for
teaching commas.
8ere's a few suggestions of other places on the web that you might find useful
resources that you can adapt for teaching commas.
Reci(es
At the $$% "ood site tickle your tastebuds by browsing through the recipes. #ou
could print out recipes with a small number of ingredients and ask learners to write
a shopping list using commas.
)ilm re/iews
!ake a look at the latest film reviews on the $$% "ilms site. #ou could print out your
favourite film reviews, create a version without the commas and ask the learners to
read and amend them.
3=
;ore online e<ercises
!here's plenty more information about commas on this site A7= 3 online exercises
9all with printable versions:. !he background information is clear, but is aimed at
university students. !he exercises should be accessible to ?- / ?' learners. !he
whole thing is brought to you by the Awl Anline &riting ?ab at @urdue +niversity in
the +.
!nter/iew with L$nne 'russ
?ynne !russ's book about all things punctuation 9especially the misplaced comma:
'Eats, hoots and ?eaves' was the surprising best seller of 'EE1. !his Buardian
interview could be usefully adapted for the classroom, or try the $$% 7ews article
and punctuation (ui).
Making sentences
Rules and e<am(les to hel( $ou ma#e sim(le
sentences.
!o make a sentence you need three things8
1. 7 sentence is a grou( o% words that ma#es sense on its own.
heese, car, house, table on Tuesday.
!his isn't a sentence - it doesn't make sense.
I parked my car ne!t to my house.
!his is a sentence. #ou can understand what it means. 0t makes sense on its own.
2. When $ou are writing $ou need to use the right sentence (unctuation.
+sing punctuation will show the person who is reading your writing where the sentences
begin and end.
A sentence must begin with a capital letter.
A sentence must end with a full-stop 9.:, a (uestion mark 9>:, or an exclamation
mark 96:.
$E&A<E6 ometimes people confuse the punctuation to use at the end of a sentence.
#ou can use commas 9,:, colons 98: or semicolons 9F: in your writing, but they should never
be used instead of a full-stop.
=. 7 sentence also needs two #inds o% words in it8
A sentence must have a VER8 9a doing word:.
e.g. like, is, cooking, walked, need.
A sentence must also have a SUBJECT. !his is the person, or the thing, that is
doing the verb.
e.g. I, "eppe, Tuesday, dog, you, table, the weather,.
;ere are some examples of sentences that show you the /erbs and the subjects8
?ast week Peggy redecorated the pub.
31
7re you hungry yet>
Martin, be (uiet.
Tuesday was very rainy and cold.
*ther things to #now about sentences&
entences can be very short, or very long. !here is no correct number of words that
should be in a sentence. !he length of the sentence depends on what you want to say and
the effect you want to get.
$E&A<E6 0f your sentences go on for many lines, make sure that you haven't really put
several sentences together as one sentence.
0t's important to remember that you don't always need to write in sentences. "or example,
a shopping list doesn't need sentences, but a job application does.
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';a#ing sentences' tutor notes
The aim of the 'making sentences' topic area is to revise the basics of how to
structure a simple sentence. The section concentrates on how to identify where
sentences should end and begin in te$ts and what the key grammatical
elements of a sentence are " i.e. the rules.
1nce learners are confident making simple sentences, they can progress to the
'commas' module and > or the %utting sentences together' module that
practises using conjunctions to put sentences together.
How does this tie in with the curriculums?
England
Rs/L1.1 - '+se implicit and explicit grammatical knowledge ... to predict meaning, try
out plausible meanings and to read and check for sense.'
Rs/L1.2 - '+se of punctuation to help their understanding.'
'ecure knowledge of end-of-sentence punctuation ... in helping to make sense of
continuous text.'
Ws/L1.1 - '&rite in complete sentences'.
'?earn to recognise sentence boundaries when proof-reading their own writing by
looking for where a new idea or action begins.'
Ws/L1.= - '@unctuate sentences correctly and use punctuation so that meaning is
clear.
'Dnow all the punctuation markers for the beginning and end of sentences, and
know when to use each one.'
8&killswise resources are designed for students at level -. !here is some cross-
over with this module, however, with level 1 - <s/E1.1 and &s/E1.1. !his arose
because tutors have advised us that even at level - students have some problems
with the basics of sentence construction.
Wales
As England.
orthern !reland
As England.
"cotland
ee www.aloscotland.com for details of the cottish curriculum.
!n the "#illswise module $ou'll %ind&
&aking sentences games
There are 3 games in this module. They look and feel the same, but progress in
comple$ity. %n game 1 the learner must identify whether a line of te$t is a
sentence or not with a simple 'yes' > 'no' option. %n game the learner must
choose the beginning or ending that will make the te$t on the page into a
sentence. %n game 3 the learner is offered a choice of ? punctuation"free te$ts
to work on. @ach te$t has an audio reading available and in each te$t the
learner must mark out the sentences by clicking the mouse where they believe
a capital letter or full"stop should appear.
%n each game there is a timer option. Timing is one of the most difficult things
to work out when building a game. %f you feel that the game is too fast !or too
;+
slow,# then do let us know. +ou can contact us about this and anything to do
with this module here
&aking sentences quiz
The learner can choose their level. )evel A is the easiest and level ( the
hardest. All 3 levels deal with identifying the essential parts of a sentence
!verb, subject etc# and testing the learner's knowledge of the rules of simple
sentence making.
-tudents can print out a certificate if they score ./0 or more in the &ui'. This
will appear as a link on the results page " click on the link and the certificate
will appear in a new window. 1nce printed students can write their name on the
certificate.
&aking sentences factsheet
The facts about making simple sentences, with e$amples, on one 'print"out"
and"keep' sheet.
&aking sentences worksheets
There are . worksheets in this section. These range from adding the correct
end"of"sentence punctuation to a number of sentences, to spotting whether
sentences are complete or not, to writing sentences for a letter of complaint
from a selection of given words.
%f you have more ideas for sentence worksheets tell us about them,
'echnical hel(&
To get the most out of this topic area you need the following 'plug"ins'3
)lash
!he game in this topic section uses "lash. !his is free to download and should only
take a few minutes. #ou can follow the $$% &eb&ise instructions to download it to
your machine.
"ind out more.
%f you don't have 4lash the same learning points are covered in the &ui' and in
the worksheets and factsheets.
%f you are new to the web, why not try the **( 5eb5ise online course,
*ecoming 5eb5ise6 %t's free, you can do it in your own time from any
computer and it will take you through everything you need to know to use the
web successfully in your teaching.
7et 5eb5ise.
+ou can find out more about the technical re&uirements for -killswise in our
8elp " Technical %nformation section.
'a#ing it %urther&
ith !ki""swise3
:on't forget to check out the -killswise )esson plans and Teaching inspirations
areas for more ideas about teaching sentences.
;,
On the web3
8ere's a few suggestions of other places on the web that you might find useful
resources that you can adapt for teaching the basics of making sentences.
>ob re?uirements game
!his is a printable resource available online. !here are two sets of cards to print out
- the jobs and the skills needed for those jobs. tudents choose one of each to
make a sentence. #ou could use the resource to make simple sentences, but also
to extend work into more complex sentences - e.g.'@ilots must be good at
languages because they travel a lot.'
"crambled sentences
As with the link above, there is no information on this site about who has created it,
but the game is (uite good. !he learner has to 'drag and drop' a selection of words
into the correct order to make the sentence. !he sentences seem to all be about
auctions 9>: so they are definitely aimed at adults rather than children. !he site is a
+ site.
Putting sentences together
How to (ut sim(le sentences together
%onstant use of short sentences can be a bit strange to read.
!o make your writing more interesting, you can use two other sorts of longer sentences.
!he simplest of these is the com(ound sentence.
How do ! ma#e a com(ound sentence?
&hen you have two or more short, independent, simple sentences which are of e?ual
weight you can join them together using special words called conjunctions.
e.g. 'I hate curry.' is a simple sentence.
'I like Thai food.' is also a simple sentence.
#ou can put these together to make one, longer and more interesting compound sentence
using a conjunction -
'I hate curry' # but # 'I like Thai food' $ 'I hate curry, but I like Thai food.'
Gunctions join two or more roads together, so we use conjunctions to join two or
more short sentences together
%ommas are not conjunctions and they should never be used to join short
sentences together 9commas aren't sticky, so you can't use them to stick
information together6:.
!hese are the most common conjunctions8
and3 as3 but3 or3 so
!ry to avoid using the same conjunction over and over again. 0t is much better to
'mix and match'.
;1
$E&A<E6
!he conjunction that you use may change the meaning of your sentence6
%onjunctions don't just stick sentences together, they show the relationshi( between the
pieces of information.
e.g. 7ote the slightly different meaning in these sentences8
I walked home. I was tired.
I walked home and I was tired.
I walked home as I was tired.
I walked home but I was tired.
I walked home so I was tired.
I walked home or I was tired.
!he final sentence, using or doesn't really make sense. #ou can't use every conjunction
everywhere - so choose wisely6
2om(le< sentences
%onstant use of short sentences can be a bit strange to read.
!o make your writing more interesting, you can use two other sorts of longer sentences.
"actsheet - looked at 'compound' sentences. !his factsheet looks at 'com(le<' sentence.
How do ! ma#e a com(le< sentence?
&hen you make a compound sentence 9see factsheet -: you are joining two or more
simple sentences together with a conjunction. 0f you took the conjunction away, the
sentences would be complete and they would still make sense.
e.g. 'I hate curry, but I like Thai food.'$ ! hate curry # but # ! "ike Thai #ood
!his isn't the same for complex sentences. %omplex sentences don't just divide into neat,
complete, simple sentences if you take out the conjunctions. 0n complex sentences the
conjunction is used to join together clauses. A clause is a group of words that contains a
subject and a verb. ome of these clauses might be complete short sentences, but in a
complex sentence at least one of them will de(end on the conjunction %or its meaning.
0n other words, if you take the conjunction away, the sentence won't divide into complete
units that make sense by themselves.
e.g. 'The dinner was burned because she had forgotten it.'
$ 'The dinner was burned' # 'because' # 'she had forgotten it.'
!his is a complex sentence8
'The dinner was burned' . complete, short sentence
'because' . conjunction 9joining word:
'she had forgotten it' . subordinate clause. !his doesn't make sense on its own.
&hat had she forgotten> !his is called a 'subordinate clause' because without the
rest of the sentence it doesn't really make sense.
'%lthough I'm not very good, I really enjoy playing football.'
$ '%lthough' # 'I'm not very good' # 'I really enjoy playing football.'
Again, this is a complex sentence8
;2
'%lthough' . conjunction 9joining word:. #es, sometimes conjunctions can appear at
the beginning of a sentence6
'I'm not very good' . subordinate clause. !his doesn't make sense on its own. &hat
are you not very good at> !his is called a 'subordinate clause' because without the
rest of the sentence it doesn't really make sense.
'I enjoy playing football' . complete short sentence
$E&A<E6
As for compound sentences, commas are not conjunctions and they should never be used
to join short sentences or clauses together 9commas aren't sticky, so you can't use them to
stick information together6:.
e.g. 'The dinner was burned$ she had forgotten it.' . incorrect
'The dinner was burned because she had forgotten it.' . correct
'he im(ortant joining words
"actsheets - and ' told you about making more interesting sentences by using
com(ound and com(le< sentences.
"or both of these, you need a good selection of conjunctions, or joining words.
!he 'magnificent seven' conjunctions 9the most commonly used: are8
and, although, as, because, but, if, or
!here are a number of other important conjunctions that you can use.
!hese can be put into categories of time, (lace, or agreement.
'!;E @ before, after, until, since, when, whenever, while
e.g.
&e all went home be#ore a fight broke out.
'he went to bed a#ter she put the cat out.
There will be no peace unti" somebody says that they are sorry.
It has not been the same around here since our friends moved away.
They put the television off %hen the programme had finished.
(e washes his new car %henever it gets mucky.
The children go to the cr)che %hi"e *um goes to work.
-L72E @ where
e.g.
Remember that restaurant %here you ate a huge steak.
;3
7AREE;E' @ though, although, whether
e.g.
(e could play the violin though he was only five years old.
I would invite you to come in a"though the place is a mess.
It was a great show %hether you wanted to join in or just watch.
<emember6
!ry to avoid using the same conjunction over and over again. 0t is much better to
'mix and match'.
!he conjunction you use can change the meaning o% the sentence. #ou can't use
every conjunction everywhere - so choose wisely6
;;
;<
<=
<1
<*
<+
<,
<1
<2
'-utting sentences together' tutor notes
The aim of the 'putting sentences together' topic area is to revise how to put
complete simple sentences together into longer, compound sentences using
conjunctions. (omma splicing is also covered here.
5e recommend that students look at the commas and making sim%"e
sentences sections of the site, before tackling this module.
How does this tie in with the curriculums?
England
Rs/L1.1 - '+se implicit and explicit grammatical knowledge ... to predict meaning, try
out plausible meanings and to read and check for sense.'
Ws/L1.1 - 'write in complete sentences ...understand that sentences can be joined
with a wider range of conjunctions than 'as', 'and', 'but'. E.g. 'if', 'so', 'while', 'though',
'since', 'when' ...'
'understand that complete sentences should not be strung together with commas
9comma splicing: but should be split into separate sentences or be correctly
joined...'
Wales
As England.
orthern !reland
As England.
"cotland
ee www.aloscotland.com for details of the cottish curriculum.
!n the "#illswise module $ou'll %ind&
Putting sentences together - games
There are now 3 games in this section. These games are very similar in
structure to the games in the '<aking simple sentences' module. %n game 1
learners simply spot the compound sentence and in game they chose the
correct ending for the compound sentence. *oth these games pull in sentences
each time from a 'pot' of ./ sentences, so the game can be played several
times before encountering all the same sentences.
7ame 3 is a little different as it practises 'drag and drop', where learners need
&uite good mouse control to 'drag' items from a list and 'drop' them into the
correct place in a te$t. %n this game learners can chose from ? different te$ts to
drop in commas, conjunctions and full"stops.
Alease do tell us what you think of these games.
Putting sentences together - quiz
3 levels of &ui' to test compound sentence skills. The learner can choose their
level. )evel A asks learners to spot the joining word, level * asks learners to
choose the best joining word to fill the gap and level ( asks learners to choose
from joining words, commas and full"stops and concentrates on how different
joining words can effect meaning.
5e have now put in place a system that will allow the student to print out a
certificate if they score ./0 or more in the &ui'. This will appear as a link on
<3
the results page " click on the link and the certificate will appear in a new
window. )earners can write their name in once the certificate is printed.
Putting sentences together - factsheets
There are two factsheets in this section. They both give hints and tips and
e$amples for using conjunctions to bring two sentences together into a longer,
compound sentence.
The first factsheet looks at the most common conjunctions !and, although, as,
because, but, if, or#. The second looks at some less common conjunctions that
are specified in level 1 of the curriculum !see below for curriculum references#.
Putting sentences together - worksheets
There are four printable worksheets with answersheets in this section. The first
looks at the most common conjunctions, numbers two and three look at using
some less common conjunctions and worksheet four deals with comma
splicing.
5orksheets are fairly easy to add, so if you have a good idea for a worksheet
that practises using conjunctions tell us about it,
'echnical hel(&
To get the most out of this topic area you need the following 'plug"ins'3
)lash
!he game in this topic section uses "lash. !his is free to download and should only
take a few minutes. #ou can follow the $$% &eb&ise instructions to download it to
your machine.
"ind out more.
%f you don't have 4lash the same learning points are covered in the &ui' and in
the worksheets and factsheets.
%f you are new to the web, why not try the **( 5eb5ise online course,
*ecoming 5eb5ise6 %t's free, you can do it in your own time from any
computer and it will take you through everything you need to know to use the
web successfully in your teaching.
7et 5eb5ise.
+ou can find out more about the technical re&uirements for -killswise in our
8elp " Technical %nformation section.
'a#ing it %urther&
ith !ki""swise3
:on't forget to check out the -killswise )esson plans and Teaching inspirations
areas for more ideas about teaching sentences.
On the web3
8ere's a few suggestions of other places on the web that you might find useful
resources that you can adapt for teaching compound sentences.
<;
882 8itesi1e 6 4e$ "tage =
Exercise designed for Dey tage 1 school pupils, but the context is adult enough to
use with adult students if you print out the page and remove references to 'Dey
tage 1'.
!here is another printable worksheet on this Dey tage 1 site which may also be
helpful, covering both compound and complex sentences. ?earners have to fill the
gaps in a story from a selection of given conjunctions.
2onjunctions ?ui1
!his is a "rench based site designed for E"? students, but it is written entirely in
English and has a large selection of free activities to choose from.
!he conjunctions (ui) is multiple-choice, with immediate feedback. ?earners have
to choose the most appropriate way of linking the sentences / clauses given.
7nother ?ui15
Another E? site, this time created by the 0nternet !E? journal. ?oads of free
activities. !he conjunctions (ui) practises a lot of the conjunctions covered in this
module, but it might be better used as a printed resource as it isn't actually
interactive6
Hunt the conjunction
A bi)arre little tool that allows you to search for examples of conjunctions in places
like the $ible, Agatha %hristie stories and some newspaper and business
publications.
!ype a conjunction into the text box that says 'search string', then choose your
'corpus' 9e.g. Agatha %hristie:, then hit the 'search for concordances' button.
&etting the right tense
'he sim(le (resent
!he tense of a verb tells us when the action was done. !he action can be done in the
past, present or future.
When do ! use the (resent tense?
!here are two types of present tense -
1. -resent sim(le
+se the present simple form of a verb when
!he action takes place now.
e.g. I want you to help me now.
!he action is something that happens regularly.
e.g. I walk the dog everyday.
<<
#ou are describing things that are generally true.
e.g. Train travel is e!pensive.
*'E5 &hen it is 'he', 'she' or 'it' doing the action, remember to add 's', 'es' or change
the '$' to 'ies'.
e.g.
I like football, we like football, he likes football.
I always try hard, we always try hard, she always tries hard.
I watch a lot of films, we watch a lot of films, he watches a lot of films.
I seem +,, we seem +,, it seems +,.
'he continuous (resent
!he tense of a verb tells us when the action was done. !he action can be done in the
past, present or future.
When do ! use the (resent tense?
!here are two types of present tense -
2. -resent continuous
+se the present continuous form of a verb when8
!he action isn't a single action, it is an action that carries on. 0t is good for
describing what people are doing at a particular moment.
e.g. I am kicking the ball.
(e is %a"king the dog.
!he present continuous is made by having am, is or are H the verb H 'ing'.
0 am working hard
you
we
they
are working hard
he
she
it
is working hard
1==
*'E5 ometimes you can use the present continuous to talk about the future.
e.g. I am going on holiday on -riday.
!his is explained in factsheet 3.
'al#ing about the (ast +1,
!he tense of a verb tells us when the action was done. !he action can be done in the
past, present or future.
When do ! use the (ast tense?
!here are many ways of talking about the past in English, but the two main ones are the
simple past and the continuous past.
1. "im(le (ast
+se the simple past form of a verb when you are talking about an action that took place at
a specific point in the past and that is now finished.
e.g. I kicked the ball and scored a goal.
I walked the dog yesterday.
I %ent to -lorida last year.
*'E5 !he simple past is formed in different ways for regular and irregular verbs. "or
regular verbs there is a rule, but irregular verbs just have to be learned6
e.g. 'I live in .ondon now, but ! "ived in -rance for five years' . regular simple past tense
'I normally go to work by bus, but yesterday ! %ent in the car' . irregular simple past tense
'al#ing about the (ast +2,
!he tense of a verb tells us when the action was done. !he action can be done in the
past, present or future.
When do ! use the (ast tense?
!here are many ways of talking about the past in English, but the two main ones are the
simple past and the continuous past.
2. -ast continuous
1=1
+se the past continuous form of a verb when you want to talk about a long action that
carried on in the past. !he continuous past is often used to describe what people were
doing when something else happened.
e.g. I %as kicking the ball when /ave broke his arm.
(e %as %a"king the dog when I saw 0eorge.
!he past continuous is made by having was, or were H the verb H 'ing'.
0
he
she
it
was working hard
you
we
they
were working hard
'al#ing about the %uture
!he tense of a verb tells us when the action was done. !he action can be done in the
past, present or future.
When do ! use the %uture tense?
!here are three main ways of talking about the future. #ou can say8
I %i"" %ork late tomorrow. . future tense
I am %orking late tomorrow. . present continuous tense
I am going to %ork late tomorrow. . 'going to' H verb
1. )uture tense
!his is made by 'will' or 'shall' H the verb, as in the example above 'I %i"" %ork late
tomorrow.'
7ote that 'will' and 'shall' are often shortened.
e.g.
%utumn %i"" soon be here.
!t"" break if you drop it.
&hat %i"" you do1 I don't know what !"" do
2. -resent continuous
#ou can use the present continuous when you are making plans. 0t's useful to talk about
definite arrangements in the near future, as in the example above 'I am %orking late
tomorrow.'
e.g.
&hat time are you "eaving tomorrow1 !m "eaving at 2 +'clock.
!m going out tomorrow.
!m getting a new car ne!t week.
1=*
=. Aoing to
'Boing to' H the verb is also useful to talk about plans. 0t suggests that something is
decided.
e.g.
&hat are you going to do this evening1
!m going to %atch a film on T3.
I think its going to rain.
'es going to ("ay football.
1=+
1=,
1=1
1=2
1=3
1=;
1=<
11=
111
11*
11+
'Aetting the right tense' tutor notes
The aim of the 'getting the right tense' topic area is to revise the formation and
use of the present simple and continuous, the past simple and continuous and
the future tenses.
How does this tie in with the curriculums?
England
Rs/L1.1 - '+se implicit and explicit grammatical knowledge ... to predict meaning, try
out plausible meanings and to read and check for sense.'
Ws/L1.2 - 'use correct grammar ...e.g. correct use of tense'
'understand that it is easy to change tense unintentionally while writing and that it is
important to check for the correct tense...'
Wales
As England.
orthern !reland
As England.
"cotland
ee www.aloscotland.com for details of the cottish curriculum.
!n the "#illswise module $ou'll %ind&
'etting the right tense - worksheets
There are si$ printable worksheets !with answersheets where appropriate# in
this section. The first worksheet compares the past and present tense and asks
students to fill the gaps using the past tense. The second worksheet is another
gap"fill, but this time the learner is asked to use the present tense. This
worksheet also asks learners to complete a few sentences using the present
and past tenses about how their life has changed over the past 1/ years.
5orksheet 3 looks at 'Annie's holiday' and practises using the present and
future tenses, whilst worksheet 2 asks learners to use the 3 most common
ways of talking about the future to dream about things they would like to do in
the future. %n worksheet . there is a tenses table where learners have to write
the past, present and future tense of verbs. 5orksheet ? is a letter written to a
potential pen pal. )earners have to select the correct tense of the verbs.
%f you have a great worksheet for practising tenses, or if you think we haven't
got it &uite right, tell us about it,
'etting the right tense - game
This module uses a version of the 'Treasure 8unt' game for learners to practise
their tenses.
The game has 3 levels. At level 1 learners have to type the word!s# they think
make up the verb in the given sentence into the te$t bo$. At level learners
are presented with 2 options to fill a gap in a given sentence and they have to
chose the right one. @ach option is in a different tense !and there are
occasional e$amples of the imperative at this level#. )evel 3 is the hardest level
and involves learners re"typing a whole sentence in a new, given, tense. At this
level learners must get everything right " the use of the tense, plus all their
spelling and punctuation !although the feedback is &uite 'intelligent' and will be
11,
able to tell a learner whether their error was in the use of the tense or in their
typing#. 4or each level, when a learner is right they are taken to the treasure
map for a chance to uncover all the hidden treasure.
%f there is anything about this game you really like or dislike, please do let us
know, (ontact us via our feedback page.
'etting the right tense - quiz
3 levels of multiple"choice &ui' to test tenses skills. The learner can choose
their level. )evel 'A' is the simplest and asks learners to say which tense a verb
is written in !mostly through 'true' and 'false'#. At levels '*' and '(' the learner
must decide which sentence is correct.
5e have now put in place a system that will allow the student to print out a
certificate if they score ./0 or more in the &ui'. This will appear as a link on
the results page " click on the link and the certificate will appear in a new
window. A student can write their name in once the certificate is printed.
'etting the right tense - factsheets
There are . factsheets in this section. The first one looks at the present simple,
the second at the present continuous, the third at talking about the past using
the simple past and the fourth at using the past continuous to talk about the
past. The last factsheet looks at the 3 most common ways of talking about the
future !the future tense, the present continuous and 'going to'#.
Tenses is &uite a complicated area and all of these factsheets are designed to
be revision resources. They give a brief overview of the formation of the tense
and details of where it is appropriate to use it.
'echnical hel(&
To get the most out of this topic area you need the following 'plug"ins'3
)lash
!he game in this topic section uses "lash. !his is free to download and should only
take a few minutes. #ou can follow the $$% &eb&ise instructions to download it to
your machine.
"ind out more.
%f you don't have 4lash the same learning points are covered in the &ui' and in
the worksheets and factsheets.
%f you are new to the web, why not try the **( 5eb5ise online course,
*ecoming 5eb5ise6 %t's free, you can do it in your own time from any
computer and it will take you through everything you need to know to use the
web successfully in your teaching.
7et 5eb5ise.
+ou can find out more about the technical re&uirements for -killswise in our
8elp " Technical %nformation section.
'a#ing it %urther&
111
8ere's a few suggestions of other places on the web that you might find useful
resources that you can adapt for teaching tenses.
882 Learning English
!his is the $$% &orld ervice site that aims to help E"? students improve their
English. ;ere you can find a past tense (ui) and a language bank that includes
answers to tense (uestions. &hile you're there, why not delve into the music of the
5E's, IE's and JE's in <etro English and use the text and audio descriptions to
practise talking about the past>
'utor recommended5
*any thanks to Go who emailed us to recommend this E? / E"? English grammar
site, 'Englishpage.com'. 0t's free, easy to use and has a large number of resources
built around tenses. !here's plenty of overview material 9with a great '(uick fix' grid
at the bottom of the screen:, backed up with interactive exercises.
Aames galore5
!his is the $ritish %ouncil website, so it is aimed at students of English as a foreign
language. !his page links you to lots of games that practise various tenses. !he
games are built in Gavacript, so they should work on most machines 9you don't
need the "lash plug-in:. *ost of them involve using the mouse to 'drag and drop'
and are fairly simple to follow. ;owever, they are not always that legible6
Lesson (lans and ideas
=ave's E? cafe is a famous resource in E? circles and you'll find a feast of ideas
here. All the ideas are sent in from E? teachers from around the world.
)irst time in England
&ritten by a !E"? teacher from ;ove, this site is a free resource. 0t's the story of
two panish students coming to England for the first time to attend college. !he
story is divided into chapters and is written in simple English. ome chapters have
exercises attached, but otherwise these might be passages that you could print out
and adapt. %hapter ' looks at the present simple and continuous, %hapter -2 looks
at the irregular simple past.
)lash games 6 t$(e in the right tense
Another E? site, this is part of a project organised by the 0nternet !E? Gournal.
!here are (uite a few tenses games here, including a very simple but effective
game where learners have to type in the right version of the verb.
)oub"e negatives
What are double negati/es?
A double negative happens when you put two negative words together in the same
sentence.
0f the two negative words are talking about the same thing, they cancel each other out - so
the message becomes positive. !his is confusing and it is a major mistake if you are in a
formal situation 9for example, writing a letter or at a job interview:.
E<am(les o% negati/es&
egati/e words egati/e /erbs
no, not, none doesn't, isn't, wasn't
112
no-one, nothing, nowhere
neither, nobody, never
wouldn't, couldn't, shouldn't
won't, can't, don't
0f you combine an$ two of the above words in the same idea, your sentence will be
positive 9the opposite to what you intended:.
egati/e B negati/e @ (ositi/e. "o onl$ use one negati/e word in a sentence when
$ou want to sa$ that something is negati/e.
113
11;
11<
1*=
1*1
1**
1*+
'9ouble negati/es' tutor notes
5hilst the curriculum talks about the use of negative verbs, in our research
sessions with tutors we found that everyone felt that double negatives were a
real problem for level 1 learners. 5e have therefore chosen to concentrate our
work on negatives on this area. %f you feel differently please let us know.
How does this tie in with the curriculums?
England
Rs/L1.1 - '+se implicit and explicit grammatical knowledge ... to predict meaning, try
out plausible meanings and to read and check for sense.'
'+nderstand the term negative'
Ws/L1.2 - '&rite grammatically correct sentences...'
Wt/L1.= - '@resent information in a logical se(uence, using paragraphs where
appropriate'
Wt/L1.C - '@roof-read and revise writing for accuracy and meaning'
Wales
As England.
orthern !reland
As England.
"cotland
ee www.aloscotland.com for details of the cottish curriculum.
!n the "#illswise module $ou'll %ind&
(oub"e negatives - factsheet
Arint out this single factsheet to find out what a double negative is and how to
avoid using it.
(oub"e negatives - activit$
As double negatives are especially a problem in a formal environment, this
interactive flash activity focuses on helping Boanne get a job. There are three
levels to the activityC at level 1 students have to help Boanne fill in the
application form, at level they help with the formal letter and at level 3 the
students have to choose the correct speech bubble to help Boanne at her
interview.
(oub"e negatives - quiz
3 levels of multiple"choice &ui' to see if students have grasped the concept of
double negatives. The learner can choose their level. )evel 'A' is the simplest
and level '(' is the most difficult.
5e have now put in place a system that will allow the student to print out a
certificate if they score ./0 or more in the &ui'. This will appear as a link on
the results page " click on the link and the certificate will appear in a new
window. )earners can write their name on the certificate once it is printed out.
(oub"e negatives - worksheets
There are 3 printable worksheets !with answersheets where appropriate# in this
section. %n the first worksheet learners re"write sentences that contain a double
1*,
negative. %n the second worksheet learners are asked to re"write a newspaper
report and in worksheet 3 the objective is to find the correct sentences that
make up a letter to the bank.
%f you have a great worksheet for learning about double negatives, or if you
think we haven't got it &uite right, tell us about it,
'echnical hel(&
To get the most out of this topic area you need the following 'plug"ins'3
)lash
!he game in this topic section uses "lash. !his is free to download and should only
take a few minutes. #ou can follow the $$% &eb&ise instructions to download it to
your machine.
"ind out more.
%f you don't have 4lash the same learning points are covered in the &ui' and in
the worksheets and factsheets.
%f you are new to the web, why not try the **( 5eb5ise online course,
*ecoming 5eb5ise6 %t's free, you can do it in your own time from any
computer and it will take you through everything you need to know to use the
web successfully in your teaching.
7et 5eb5ise.
+ou can find out more about the technical re&uirements for -killswise in our
8elp " Technical %nformation section.
'a#ing it %urther&
ith !ki""swise3
:on't forget to check out the -killswise )esson plans and Teaching inspirations
areas for more ideas about teaching double negatives.
On the web3
8ere's a few suggestions of other places on the web that you might find useful
resources that you can adapt for teaching double negatives.
882 Learning English
!his is the $$% &orld ervice site that aims to help E"? students improve their
English. 0n the '?earn it' archive there are answers to lots of grammar (uestions that
have been sent in by students - including (uestions on the use of 'no' and 'not' and
the use of 'no' and 'any'.
&ithin this site you will also find a great section on English for work, which includes
how to handle phone calls and how to get through a job interview.

Has it alwa$s been this wa$?
$rush up on a little history with this short piece on the evolution of the double
negative from Axford dictionaries online. 0t wasn't always a 'no no', as %haucer and
hakespeare can testify.

1*1
)actsheet and e<ercise
%learly laid out factsheet with a short exercise from the t %loud tate +niversity in
*innesota.

Wor#sheets
Again these are primary resources, but once you have printed the two worksheets
out you wouldn't really know that. !he two sheets are available as web pages or as
@=" documents.
90f you want to access them as @=" files you will need to have the free Adobe
Acrobat software on your machine.:

;a#e $our own ?ui11es3 wor#sheets etc
&ith this nifty - and free - resource you can put together and print out your own
flash cards, (ui))es, word lists, wordsearches.... !he fun is endless - just make
sure that you send them into our lesson plans area once you have created them6
!nstructions
)ollowing and writing instructions +grammar,
&hen you see instructions on signs, or in recipes or =0# manuals they are usually written
using the im(erati/e.
!he imperative is formed by using the verb Kthe action wordL without 'to' or any noun or
pronoun in front of it.
E.B8 'Dou need to turn left at the @ost office' becomes ''urn left at the post office.'
!his type of instruction doesn't say &;A has to follow it.
;ere are some examples of instructions written using the imperative8
entence 0mperative instruction
#ou should not smoke here . 9on't smo#e here
#ou must fix this with glue . )i< this with glue
#ou must not run . 9on't run
#ou will need 1EEg of flour . 'a#e 1EEg of flour
!his type of instruction isn't written as a full sentence. 0mperative instructions are often
written as a list, you start at the top and you work down. !he list may be numbered, or may
have bullet points.
0mperative instructions should never be used when you are writing formally, for example in
a letter to the bank.
1*2
0f you see the imperative 9E.B8 '2oo# for 3 minutes': then you know you are looking at a
set of instructions. #ou can find imperative instructions all over the place, they may be on a
microwave meal, on a jar of medicine, or on a tin of paint. ?ook out for them especially on
signs and notices.
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