English Home Language - Term 1 - Week 9

Grammar is the set of rules that govern how we use language. It includes the structure of sentences, the use of verbs, nouns, and adjectives, and the correct placement of punctuation marks. Punctuation is essential as it helps clarify meaning and indicates pauses in speech. For example, a comma can change the meaning of a sentence, such as in 'Let's eat, Grandma!' versus 'Let's eat Grandma!' This week, we will focus on identifying common grammatical errors and using punctuation correctly.

Let's look at the following sentence: 'She go to the store yesterday.' This sentence contains a grammatical error. The correct form should be 'She went to the store yesterday.' Here, 'go' should be changed to 'went' to match the past tense. Another example is 'Its a sunny day.' The correct punctuation should be 'It's a sunny day,' where 'It's' is a contraction for 'It is.'

In groups, students will receive a set of sentences that contain grammatical errors and punctuation mistakes. Each group will work together to identify and correct these errors. For example, they might receive the sentence 'He dont like apples.' Students should discuss and correct it to 'He doesn't like apples.' After correcting, each group will present one sentence and explain the changes they made.

Students will individually receive a short paragraph filled with grammatical errors and incorrect punctuation. Their task is to edit the paragraph, correcting any mistakes they find. For instance, they might encounter a sentence like 'The dog run fast.' They should rewrite it as 'The dog runs fast.' After editing, students will share their revised paragraphs with a partner for peer feedback.

• She go to school every day.
• She goes to school every day.
• She gone to school every day.
• She going to school every day.

Answer: She goes to school every day.

The correct form uses the present tense 'goes' to match the subject 'She.'

• Comma
• Period
• Exclamation mark
• Question mark

Answer: Comma

A comma is needed to clarify that we are addressing Grandma, not suggesting to eat her.

Answer: He doesn't like bananas.

The contraction 'doesn't' is needed to indicate the negative form.

• Its raining outside.
• It's raining outside.
• Its' raining outside.
• It is' raining outside.

Answer: It's raining outside.

'It's' is the correct contraction for 'It is.'

Answer: I love ice cream; do you?

A semicolon is used to connect two independent clauses.

• Runned is correct.
• She runs to the park.
• She ran to the park.
• She running to the park.

Answer: She ran to the park.

'Runned' is incorrect; the past tense of 'run' is 'ran.'

Answer: They were happy.

'Were' is the correct past tense form for the plural subject 'They.'