Resources: Grammar Activities

(source: http://www.oxbridgeediting.co.uk/
blog/the-funny-grammar-guide-to-prepositions-659/)

In my last blog entry, I already gave you some helpful links about learning and training the English grammar. 

As I pointed out in my last update, it is essential to constantly and frequently practice your grammar knowledge. This will help you to get more confident and assured in the English language.

This is the reason I want to give you some more helpful resources to practice your grammar skills.




Helpful online links:

• http://www.agendaweb.org/  (This is a very good homepage with many links for practicing the English grammar. On this homepage, you will find several links for practicing the English vocabulary. It offers also links for videos and texts in order to train your comprehension skills.)
• http://www.englishpage.com/ (This homepage offers a lot of explanations concerning the English grammar as well as mini-tutorials. It also offers dictionaries and weekly lessons.)
• http://esl.fis.edu/grammar/  (It is also a very good homepage for English language learners. It has several quizzes, but also analyses and differences in languages)
• http://www.edufind.com/english/grammar/grammar_topics.php (Here you will find many explanations regarding the English grammar. It also offers many tests and quizzes, so you can practice your grammar skills straight away.) 
• http://www.learn-english-today.com/lessons/exercise-list.html (Here you will also find many many many exercises to practice your grammar skills.)

Helpful books*:
(*the prices of the books are looked up on various homepages and may vary)

(source: http://www.buch24.de/
shopdirekt.cgi?id=8052431&p=3&sid=26&static=0)

Bas Aarts: "Oxford Modern English Grammar"
(price: 20€)
This is a very helpful book with many explanations. A lot of grammatical rules are explained in a very understandable language. You will not find an opportunity to practice your grammar skills, though.

(source: http://www.languagetrainers.com/reviews/
course-book-reviews/english/advanced-grammar-in-use)

Martin Hewings: "Advanced Grammar in Use" (price: 25€)
This books offers many explanations regarding the English grammar as well as a lot of exercises. This helps you to practice your grammar. At the end of the book you will find the solution key and also additional exercises.


 

(source: http://www.ebook.de/de/product/2737722/
ellen_henrichs_kleinen_englische_grammatik.html)

Ellen Henrichs: "Englische Grammatik"
(price: 10€)
This book offers German speakers a lot of help with the English grammar. A lot of grammatical aspects are covered and most of the questions the learner has about the English grammar will be answered. The book gives an explanation in German and examples in English. After each chapter you will find exercises to practice the grammar.





Other helpful links:

If you search online, you will also find many worksheets you can print out at home. Those worksheets are very helpful if you want to learn grammatical rules because they give you grammatical rules in a compact version.
Here are two examples:

(source: http://www.grammar.cl/Notes/still-yet-already.htm)

(source: http://www.mailxmail.com/curso-grammar-business-english-gramatica-ingles/
nouns-pronouns-and-articles-nombres-pronombres-articulos-ingles)

Learning grammar

When acquiring a new language, you are automatically confronted with grammar.

But what is grammar exactly?

Grammar is defined as “the whole system and structure of a language or of languages in general, usually taken as consisting of syntax and morphology (including inflections) and sometimes also phonology and semantics.” (source:http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/grammar)

Well, that is very complicated!

How about this definition? “The study of how words and their component parts combine to form sentences.” (source: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/grammar) I think now it is a bit easier to understand and grasp.

We use grammar every day without even realising it. As soon as we start speaking we use a set of rules to make ourselves understandable to others. But we do not really think about grammar as long as we do not acquire another language.

Why do we need to study grammar?

Grammar does not need to be a confusion
(source: http://www.strategicl2.com/
grammar-as-a-way-to-measure-speaking-skills/)

In order to speak a language you do not necessarily need to know its grammar. But if you want to speak a language very well and try not to make any mistakes, you should know the grammar of that language. If you know a grammar of a language it will save you a lot of time because you already know about the rules and constructions. Studying grammar also helps you when you want to study a new language because you are familiar with the terms. If the languages belong to the same language families it is even easier for you.

Fortunately, English is a relatively easy grammatical language concerning the basics. It has a set of non-changeable rules concerning grammar.

The classical sentence in English
(source: http://clubweb.interbaun.com/
~mward/gmc/gramm01.html)

Basically, every sentence has the same construction: Subject – Verb – Object. You cannot change that order when speaking English correctly.

Questions are usually easy as well: Question Word– Verb – Object OR Auxiliary – Subject – Verb – Object. Again, these are the basics.

Of course, English is slightly more complicated than that. But, at least this is something to start with.

Unfortunately, English has a lot of exceptions concerning grammar. It will take too long to describe the English grammar in detail.

But I can help you with some tips to facilitate studying the grammar of a language:

1. You should start slowly. Study ONE section of grammar, like tenses or adverbs. First of all, you should read and understand the rule. If you have some problems, ask someone to help you or search for other explanations. In order to facilitate memorising grammar rules, you can have a look at my blog entry called “memory and language learning”.
2. Have a look at various examples. Usually grammar rules can be understood as mathematics. You have a certain formula you can apply in most cases. Try to figure out that certain rule and memorise it.
3. After understanding the rule, you should practice this particular rule. In order to internalise a grammatical rule, you need to practice that rule a lot of times. Fortunately, you will find a lot of exercises online which help you training.
4. Try implementing the new learned rule in your everyday usage. This will help to store the grammatical rule in your long-term memory, but also to retrieve the grammar rule very easily.

There are also a lot of books
concerning grammatical rules
(source:http://bookysh.wordpress.com/
2012/07/10/reading-eats-shoots-leaves/)

When I studied for grammar tests, I used the following homepages, which I highly recommend. All of them cover most aspects concerning grammar:

• http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises_list/alle_grammar.htm
• http://www.english-4u.de/grammar_exercises.htm
• http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/en/grammar-exercises

Of course, there are many many more homepages offering grammar exercises. Almost all of them are interactive and give you help and solutions right away. Therefore, you should have a look online yourself and figure out which homepage suits you best.

Memory and language learning

(source: http://theofficeprofessional.com/
simple-strategies-improving-your-memory)

When it comes to learning a language, a good memory is essential. But, when we study languages there is a lot we need to memorize: grammar, idioms, rules, pronunciation, etc. Some people have difficulties remembering everything and also transferring everything from our working memory to our long-term memory and therefore, safe information for a long time.

 But how can we train our memory without exhausting ourselves?

We do not need to read a grammar section over and over again, so we keep information in our memory. There are some tips and tricks to preserve information in our minds.

When acquiring a new language, try to use various formats while learning. Try to memorize information auditory and visual. By using different learning channels, information is also stored in different ways. Therefore, it is more likely to last longer. If you want to acquire another language it helps to read, listen to and talk in the language. 

Teach yourself memory strategies. There are many strategies which facilitates storing information in your memory, but also retrieving that information from your memory.

You can use the following memory strategies for example:

• mnemonics (e.g.  “How do you spell ‘necessary’?” à C comes before S in the alphabet)
• thinking in pictures, colours and shapes (create mental images of the information)
• repetition (going over the information several times; it is best using different learning channels)

Another strategy is called “retrieval practice”. When applying this strategy you make up your own tests. When you think about the content of a test, you not only think about the information, but also what an upcoming test could be about. You do not only concentrate on details, but the essential information.

Various memory strategies
(source:http://www.nicholabrown.co.uk/studskills_res.html)

What else should you keep in mind when applying memory strategies?

When studying, you should be rested and relaxed. Try to plan and organise everything so you can learn efficiently. Choose those strategies which are easy for you to apply and are fun to work with. This will facilitate your learning progress. It helps to apply more than one strategy to improve your language skills.

I hope I could help you a bit with learning about memory strategies.

If you look and search online, you will find a lot more related articles.