AAAWWWWUUBBIS, some may know what these letters mean, others may not. Before this week I didn’t know these letters, capitalized and put together are actually a name for subordinating words and phrases. In most writing whether it be newspapers, magazines, or books you will find subordinating phrases used very often. I have used a lot of these in my own writing not even knowing that what I was doing had a name. I have found that most things have a name so I should just assume that anything I do or use is called something specific and that I am not the only one that uses it. So I’ll explain what subordinating words are so that you can identify them in your own writing or reading.
Subordinating words are specific words that act as a linking word or time/place description. Most specifically they link a dependent clause with an independent clause. As I stated in my previous weeks blog an independent clause is a statement or fact that can stand alone and a dependent clause cannot stand alone. These words can be placed at the beginning of a sentence or within a sentence but they include words like: after, although, because, before, unless, until, where, or whenever. There are several more but these are some common ones. I think these subordinating words are important in writing because they connect ideas and help make a sentence complete. If you didn’t have these words you probably would have a lot of questions while you’re reading.
While the subordinating words are important, so too are the subordinating phrases. The phrases use some of the same subordinating words but add in other words to make it a phrase. Even though that was an obvious statement I wanted to try and explain the difference. Phrases include: as if, as though, even after, in order to, and rather than. These help to make the already specific words more specific and able to flow within a sentence. Phrases also help connect parts of a sentence that are not of equal rank. That is what I have learned this week pertaining to sentence structure. Along with subordinate clauses are relative clauses. These clauses also help answer questions while you’re reading with words like: who, which, and that. Subordinate clauses act as a single part of speech like a noun or adjective.
Question: As we were looking for subordinating words and phrases in the newspaper I was confused as to whether or not every time I saw the words was important. I’m wondering if when looking for these words and phrases, does it matter where they are in the sentence or does every time you see one count as something I should highlight?
Friday, February 26, 2010
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Learning to Teach
I can’t believe 5 weeks has already gone by and how much I’ve learned in such a short amount of time. This week has been kind of hectic and a challenge for me. I thought I was supposed to post a blog of an old paper I wrote and mark the subject-verb-object in each sentence. As it turns out, that isn’t due until week 11! So I have been stressing out for two days because I didn’t know if I was doing the work right and realized this morning I am just supposed to blog about what I’ve learned this week. So now that I’m back on track, this week I would like to talk about teaching grammar.
Our assignment this week was to read part of an essay about Dora, a first grader who is learning to write. Dora first starts learning about periods, which for her is a very interesting and complicated process. At first Dora does not use periods at all. To some, reading a paper with no periods or spacing between words would be very frustrating, but for Dora’s teacher it was inspiring. The teacher was very patient with Dora and would point out how writing looked in books and ask Dora if her paper looked like the books. Dora had to think for herself and decide how to edit and revise her writing. Step by step Dora slowly began to learn what a period was used for and where to put them in her paper. Along the way the teacher would help her along, sometimes giving direct instruction, and other times giving hints. This way Dora was never given answers directly, she always had to figure it out for herself.
The most important thing to learn from a lesson like this is that as a teacher you must find a happy medium between direct instruction and guiding words. If students do not learn information for themselves they will not remember it as well. That is why Dora’s teacher made sure each step of the way Dora was finding out the answer for herself. This took a lot longer of course but it is a learning process that teachers must understand. I never knew that children wouldn’t fully understand the concept of periods so this lesson is very helpful to me. I know as a teacher that I must never assume something of my kids. I should always believe that they can do something but never skip over a lesson because I assumed that they already knew it. Taking students step by step through every part of learning is very important and making sure to help them along when needed is also important. I think too often teachers will get frustrated and just give out answers when they should take a step back and watch the brilliant mind of a child at work. Children can do a lot when given the chance. Most importantly is that no matter who we are, a teacher, friend, or parent we must always encourage students to keep working and give them positive feedback. By doing this more students will have the confidence to learn and try new things.
My question this week for everyone is about subject verb object. Since I had started on the assignment that is not due for another 3-4 weeks I got very confused. Looking at one of my old papers and try to identify the subject-verb-object in every sentence was very difficult so I was wondering if someone would identify them in this sentence to make sure I’m doing it correctly.
“Brothels were old houses that the owners would turn into living quarters for the prostitutes to work out of, and saloons were town bars that women would perform in”
Our assignment this week was to read part of an essay about Dora, a first grader who is learning to write. Dora first starts learning about periods, which for her is a very interesting and complicated process. At first Dora does not use periods at all. To some, reading a paper with no periods or spacing between words would be very frustrating, but for Dora’s teacher it was inspiring. The teacher was very patient with Dora and would point out how writing looked in books and ask Dora if her paper looked like the books. Dora had to think for herself and decide how to edit and revise her writing. Step by step Dora slowly began to learn what a period was used for and where to put them in her paper. Along the way the teacher would help her along, sometimes giving direct instruction, and other times giving hints. This way Dora was never given answers directly, she always had to figure it out for herself.
The most important thing to learn from a lesson like this is that as a teacher you must find a happy medium between direct instruction and guiding words. If students do not learn information for themselves they will not remember it as well. That is why Dora’s teacher made sure each step of the way Dora was finding out the answer for herself. This took a lot longer of course but it is a learning process that teachers must understand. I never knew that children wouldn’t fully understand the concept of periods so this lesson is very helpful to me. I know as a teacher that I must never assume something of my kids. I should always believe that they can do something but never skip over a lesson because I assumed that they already knew it. Taking students step by step through every part of learning is very important and making sure to help them along when needed is also important. I think too often teachers will get frustrated and just give out answers when they should take a step back and watch the brilliant mind of a child at work. Children can do a lot when given the chance. Most importantly is that no matter who we are, a teacher, friend, or parent we must always encourage students to keep working and give them positive feedback. By doing this more students will have the confidence to learn and try new things.
My question this week for everyone is about subject verb object. Since I had started on the assignment that is not due for another 3-4 weeks I got very confused. Looking at one of my old papers and try to identify the subject-verb-object in every sentence was very difficult so I was wondering if someone would identify them in this sentence to make sure I’m doing it correctly.
“Brothels were old houses that the owners would turn into living quarters for the prostitutes to work out of, and saloons were town bars that women would perform in”
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Verb Structure
I am so happy to be taking a course on grammar. I cannot tell you enough how wonderful it is. Not only am I learning a lot and refining my skills but I’m also studying for my West B test. Everything I’ve learned so far has already prepared me for this test, but what I learned this week has given me even more knowledge. The great thing about this course is that you really do learn something every week. This week we went over the three different types of verb sentences.
The first kind is called a subject-verb intransitive. It is important to pay attention to these names because they are used in dictionaries and if you know what they are, dictionaries are much easier to understand. Intransitive verbs are verbs that can stand alone but may have modifiers. Examples of sentences like these would be something like: the family jumped when they saw the clown. You do not have to say this whole sentence; you could simply say the family jumped. This is an intransitive verb. You can also add the preposition or modifier in but it is not required. For future reference this type of verb sentence is abbreviated as S-Vi.
Transitive verbs are another type of verb sentence structure. Most important with transitive verbs is that they require direct objects. Direct objects can be either nouns or pronouns that will follow the transitive verb. Sentences with this structure could say, My mom baked the cake. In this example “baked” is the verb and “cake” is the following noun or direct object. When looking in a dictionary a transitive verb will be written as S-Vt-O meaning subject verb transitive direct object.
The third sentence pattern for verbs is linking verbs. Linking verbs are meant to connect the subject with a description of that subject. Linking verbs are “to be” verbs. These include am, is, are, was, and were. Also included are verbs of the senses like look, feel, sound, taste, and smell. There is a wide range of linking verbs but the easiest way to understand is by looking at a sentence and determining if there is a verb that links the two halves. Pretty simple concept but just in case you don’t get it an example is “that hamburger looks delicious.” Another sentence would be “Michelle Obama became the next first wife.” When looking at a word in the dictionary how you will know that it is a linking verb is if it has S-LV-SC next to it. Those are the three types of verb patterns. Most of the time you won’t even notice the difference but try picking them out while you’re reading. It can be a brain work out while also refining your grammar.
Another important piece of grammar to keep in mind is prepositions. Prepositions include to, at, by, in, of, from. A lot of headlines in newspapers use these. After a preposition is used a noun or pronoun is sure to follow. If however a verb follows these words then it is infinitive. And that’s my last little tid-bit for the day. Hope this helps anyone that cares. Like I said if you’re a teacher in training this is a great course for the West B.
My question this week is about “affect” and “effect.” What is the difference because I always mess these up, along with “then and than.” If anyone can explain this I would greatly appreciate it. I know it’s a simple concept but I thought it would be a good one to ask!
The first kind is called a subject-verb intransitive. It is important to pay attention to these names because they are used in dictionaries and if you know what they are, dictionaries are much easier to understand. Intransitive verbs are verbs that can stand alone but may have modifiers. Examples of sentences like these would be something like: the family jumped when they saw the clown. You do not have to say this whole sentence; you could simply say the family jumped. This is an intransitive verb. You can also add the preposition or modifier in but it is not required. For future reference this type of verb sentence is abbreviated as S-Vi.
Transitive verbs are another type of verb sentence structure. Most important with transitive verbs is that they require direct objects. Direct objects can be either nouns or pronouns that will follow the transitive verb. Sentences with this structure could say, My mom baked the cake. In this example “baked” is the verb and “cake” is the following noun or direct object. When looking in a dictionary a transitive verb will be written as S-Vt-O meaning subject verb transitive direct object.
The third sentence pattern for verbs is linking verbs. Linking verbs are meant to connect the subject with a description of that subject. Linking verbs are “to be” verbs. These include am, is, are, was, and were. Also included are verbs of the senses like look, feel, sound, taste, and smell. There is a wide range of linking verbs but the easiest way to understand is by looking at a sentence and determining if there is a verb that links the two halves. Pretty simple concept but just in case you don’t get it an example is “that hamburger looks delicious.” Another sentence would be “Michelle Obama became the next first wife.” When looking at a word in the dictionary how you will know that it is a linking verb is if it has S-LV-SC next to it. Those are the three types of verb patterns. Most of the time you won’t even notice the difference but try picking them out while you’re reading. It can be a brain work out while also refining your grammar.
Another important piece of grammar to keep in mind is prepositions. Prepositions include to, at, by, in, of, from. A lot of headlines in newspapers use these. After a preposition is used a noun or pronoun is sure to follow. If however a verb follows these words then it is infinitive. And that’s my last little tid-bit for the day. Hope this helps anyone that cares. Like I said if you’re a teacher in training this is a great course for the West B.
My question this week is about “affect” and “effect.” What is the difference because I always mess these up, along with “then and than.” If anyone can explain this I would greatly appreciate it. I know it’s a simple concept but I thought it would be a good one to ask!
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