November 28, 2007

Homework:
Choosing the right word
(I am requiring them to highlight the context clues.)

Today:
Buzzword
Put pictionaries on the board
Reviewed synonyms
Continued with our discussion of sub/verb agreement

Today's lesson in grammar is hard for students. Look at the following sentence:

The silence in the halls is unusual.

The verb is "is." Students can find that. The problem happens when they try to find the subject. There subject is NOT in the prepositional phrase, in the halls. The subject is silence. Here is another:

The chimes in the tower play every hour.

The verb is play, but the subject is chimes, not tower. Students will say the verb is "plays" because they think the subject is tower.