Friday, April 15, 2011
Nouns!
Here is a great resource that will tell you everything that you ever wanted to know about nouns. :)
Using Quantifiers with Count and Noncount Nouns
This is a very helpful explanation of how to use "much" or "many" as well as some other quantifiers in front of count and noncount nouns.
More About Imperatives
Remember that to make an imperative statement, the subject "you" is implied and not directly said. An example of an imperative is "Sit down." Negative imperative statements often have "don't" in them: "Don't forget to wear your seatbelt!" We know who the speaker is talking to even though the subject is not directly mentioned. You can practice making imperative statements here.
Spelling Quiz
If you are still having trouble with spelling -ed and -ing words correctly, try this quiz.
How to Use A, An, The
This video was created by a professor at Miramar, and it will help you understand when to use a, an, or the.
English With Jennifer
Jennifer Lebedev is an English instructor who has compiled a website and youtube channel to help students learn English. She makes her own videos and activities, which are easy to understand and cover a wide range of topics. She discusses basic grammar, advanced grammar, vocabulary, slang, pronunciation, and much more!
Friday, April 8, 2011
Because and Because of
Keep in mind that "because of" is followed by a noun or noun phrase, but "because" is followed by a complete sentence with a subject and a verb.
The traffic was really bad last night because of the accident on the freeway. (noun phrase)
I was really tired yesterday because I didn't get much sleep. (complete sentence)
Here is an activity that you can use to practice the difference between "because" and "because of."
The traffic was really bad last night because of the accident on the freeway. (noun phrase)
I was really tired yesterday because I didn't get much sleep. (complete sentence)
Here is an activity that you can use to practice the difference between "because" and "because of."
Modal Tutorial
Here is a modal tutorial with an explanation and several quizzes to help you practice the differences between the modals. There are many modals and some have multiple meanings, so it will take some time to feel comfortable with all of them. Just keep practicing! :)
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Adverb placement
Figuring out where to put your adverbs can be tricky. Click here for a quick guide to help you!
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Imperatives
This website contains a good explantion of how to form/use an imperative.
Here is a video that will show you additional ways that we use imperatives. (This is also a good example of how the British use adjectives differently than Americans. The British host says "politer," but Americans say "more polite." Also, he makes a mistake with the superlative in the middle of the video by saying "more shorter." Did you hear how he corrected himself?)
Here is a video that will show you additional ways that we use imperatives. (This is also a good example of how the British use adjectives differently than Americans. The British host says "politer," but Americans say "more polite." Also, he makes a mistake with the superlative in the middle of the video by saying "more shorter." Did you hear how he corrected himself?)
Prepositions
This website has some good examples of how to use prepositions.
Here is a good explanation of how to use in, on, and at.
Here is a good explanation of how to use on, onto, to, in, into.
Here is a good explantion of the relationship between objects.
Here is a good practice activity with prepositions.
Here is a good explanation of how to use in, on, and at.
Here is a good explanation of how to use on, onto, to, in, into.
Here is a good explantion of the relationship between objects.
Here is a good practice activity with prepositions.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Adjective Clauses
This explanation gives more information about adjective clauses.
Here is a good practice exercise about adjective clauses.
Here is a good practice exercise about adjective clauses.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Happy St. Patrick's Day!!
Happy St. Patrick's Day, everyone! Don't forget to wear green for good luck!!
Thursday, March 10, 2011
TED Talks: Listening and Critical Thinking Practice
"TED Talks" is a small non-profit agency. They "believe passionately in the power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and ultimately, the world" and the site is dedicated to "ideas worth spreading." Their site offers "free knowledge and inspiration from the world's most inspired thinkers, and also a community of curious souls to engage with ideas and each other."
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Announcements
Hi Everyone!
Here are a few reminders and announcements:
1. I wanted to thank you for your participation last night! We had a LOT to do with the pronouns! I appreciate everyone giving examples and coming up to the board. I prefer to give you "real life" examples, rather than examples out of the textbook, and the only way that I can do that is with your help. :)
2. I was thinking about Zary's question about word order, and I thought of a better way to explain it. Take a look:
a. CORRECT: I want to play tennis with her. OR I want to play with her.
I want to play tennis with her. (The action that you want to do is to play tennis.)
I want to play with her. (You want to participate in some activity with her.)
ALSO CORRECT: I want to play with her toys. In this case, "her" is possessive adjective. She owns the toys, so you CAN say it this way.
b. INCORRECT: You can't say "I want to play with her tennis." The reason that you can't say this is because "her" is a possessive adjective in this case. She doesn't own/possess tennis, so you can't say it this way.
Great question, Zary!!! I had to think about that one! I hope this explanation helps!
3. I'm also attaching the review of the in-class writing that we talked about last night. Please review this and look at the comments on your paper to see what you did well and what you can improve. In-class writing is always the most difficult type of writing. If you did well, you should be very proud! If you did not do as well as you would like, just consider this a learning experience and try to practice a bit more before the midterm.
4. On Thursday, we will do a midterm review. I will give you a study guide, and we will talk about your binders. I will give you time in class to complete the study guide and ask questions. And, I will also give you time to work on your binders.
5. Homework for Thursday:
a. Complete your edited C-3 about your favorite place (if you choose to fix it)
b. Review your binder – see if you are missing any papers or if any papers are incomplete (to get an “A” you must have all the papers and they must be complete)
Here are a few reminders and announcements:
1. I wanted to thank you for your participation last night! We had a LOT to do with the pronouns! I appreciate everyone giving examples and coming up to the board. I prefer to give you "real life" examples, rather than examples out of the textbook, and the only way that I can do that is with your help. :)
2. I was thinking about Zary's question about word order, and I thought of a better way to explain it. Take a look:
a. CORRECT: I want to play tennis with her. OR I want to play with her.
I want to play tennis with her. (The action that you want to do is to play tennis.)
I want to play with her. (You want to participate in some activity with her.)
ALSO CORRECT: I want to play with her toys. In this case, "her" is possessive adjective. She owns the toys, so you CAN say it this way.
b. INCORRECT: You can't say "I want to play with her tennis." The reason that you can't say this is because "her" is a possessive adjective in this case. She doesn't own/possess tennis, so you can't say it this way.
Great question, Zary!!! I had to think about that one! I hope this explanation helps!
3. I'm also attaching the review of the in-class writing that we talked about last night. Please review this and look at the comments on your paper to see what you did well and what you can improve. In-class writing is always the most difficult type of writing. If you did well, you should be very proud! If you did not do as well as you would like, just consider this a learning experience and try to practice a bit more before the midterm.
4. On Thursday, we will do a midterm review. I will give you a study guide, and we will talk about your binders. I will give you time in class to complete the study guide and ask questions. And, I will also give you time to work on your binders.
5. Homework for Thursday:
a. Complete your edited C-3 about your favorite place (if you choose to fix it)
b. Review your binder – see if you are missing any papers or if any papers are incomplete (to get an “A” you must have all the papers and they must be complete)
Schedule
Thurs (3/10): Midterm Review & Binder Preparation
Tues (3/15): Grammar Midterm
Thurs (3/17): Writing Midterm + Binder Evaluation
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Pronouns
Here is a list of the English pronouns. Remember that some of these can be used as adjectives if they are followed by nouns!
His car is red. (his = adjective)
His is orange. (his = pronoun)
Be careful about some common mistakes with pronouns. A pronoun REPLACES a noun in the sentence, so we can't have a noun and a pronoun together.
INCORRECT: My brother he is a doctor.
CORRECT: My brother is a doctor.
His car is red. (his = adjective)
His is orange. (his = pronoun)
Be careful about some common mistakes with pronouns. A pronoun REPLACES a noun in the sentence, so we can't have a noun and a pronoun together.
INCORRECT: My brother he is a doctor.
CORRECT: My brother is a doctor.
Monday, February 28, 2011
Past Continuous Tense
EnglishPage offers a great explanation of all the ways that we use the past continuous tense.
You can also practice when to use the simple past and when to use the past continuous with these activities:
Activity #1
Activity #2
You can also practice when to use the simple past and when to use the past continuous with these activities:
Activity #1
Activity #2
Simple Past Tense
EnglishPage offers a good description of all the ways that we use the simple past tense in English.
Workshops in the Tutoring Lab
Hi Everyone!
I hope you're having a good day! I wanted to let you know about some special, free classes (workshops) that we are offering in the tutoring lab. There is a workshop each week from now until the end of the semester. Each workshop is one hour long.
I will give you extra credit if you go to the workshops. I will give you 5 points for each workshop you attend if you write a paragraph about what you learn and bring it to me. There are 8 workshops total, so if you go to every one, you can earn 40 points of extra credit!!! :)
If you can't go to the workshops because the times are not convenient for you, you can still earn extra credit. If you go to the lab for 20 OR MORE hours during the semester, I will give you 20 points of extra credit for your grade. You must go for at least 20 hours to get these points.
If you have any questions, please let me know.
Here is the schedule for the workshops: https://sites.google.com/site/miramarbasicskillslab/workshops
Tuesday, March 1st
1:00 PM
Note-taking strategies: Why take lecture notes? Did you ever wonder why instructors make such a big deal about taking notes during a class lecture? In this workshop, learn some effective note-taking strategies that will help you find success in the classroom. Learn how to be an active listener and take purposeful notes.
Tuesday, March 8
3:30 PM
Annotation: Do you read your textbook but feel that you have not remembered the information? Annotation is a skill that helps you stay focused, remember that important information, and become a more active reader. Attend this workshop and learn strategies for annotation while actively participating in activities to hone your skill.
Monday, March 14th
5:00 PM
Vocabulary Attack Skills: This workshop will teach you specific skills that you can use while reading to help you better understand unfamiliar words and phrases. Special attention will be placed on the use of context clues and word families to help improve your reading comprehension. Hope to see you there!
Monday, March 21st (THIS IS TAMI'S WORKSHOP!)
4:30 PM
Brainstorming and Organizing Ideas for Essay Writing: Do you have problems coming up with ideas for your writing assignments? Do you have a lot of ideas, but have no idea how to organize them into an essay? Are you stuck staring at a blank page? Then this workshop is for you! We will discuss techniques for generating new topic ideas and details, and practice organizing them into logical outlines. Come to this workshop and kick writer's block to the curb!
Thursday, March 31st
10:30 AM
Outlining:Do you ever feel like your ideas are all over the place? This workshop will help you to organize those ideas by focusing on outlining. Outlining is an important tool when writing an essay; it can help you fill in the holes your essay needs, and it can help you organize your thoughts more clearly. In this workshop we will try various outlining techniques including emphatic and chronological organizing. We will also use outlining in each of the different phases of the writing process. Outlining is a great tool that will help you develop as a writer and will help you in all your college-level classes.
Monday, April 4th
1:00 PM
Supporting Your Essay with Examples: This workshop will focus on strategies for providing examples in essays. We will discuss and practice how to implement various examples such as text quotes, statistical evidence, and personal examples. You will learn how to avoid listing examples, how to avoid long and irrelevant quotes, and how to avoid going on and on about your example without coming back to your point. Please come with any questions related to this topic!
Thursday, April 7th
4:00 PM
Argumentative essay process: What should an argumentative essay consist of? This workshop will provide you an overview outline on how to organize an argumentative essay. You will also learn some Do’s and Don’ts. Many classes require this type of essay, so come and find out what an argumentative essay is about!
Tuesday, April 26th
11:00 AM
Sentences: Confused by commas splices and run-on sentences??? Not sure what they are, or more importantly, how to fix them? This workshop will show you how to identify these common student errors AND simple ways to correct them. Lots of practice will be included!!! Please join us!
I hope you're having a good day! I wanted to let you know about some special, free classes (workshops) that we are offering in the tutoring lab. There is a workshop each week from now until the end of the semester. Each workshop is one hour long.
I will give you extra credit if you go to the workshops. I will give you 5 points for each workshop you attend if you write a paragraph about what you learn and bring it to me. There are 8 workshops total, so if you go to every one, you can earn 40 points of extra credit!!! :)
If you can't go to the workshops because the times are not convenient for you, you can still earn extra credit. If you go to the lab for 20 OR MORE hours during the semester, I will give you 20 points of extra credit for your grade. You must go for at least 20 hours to get these points.
If you have any questions, please let me know.
Here is the schedule for the workshops: https://sites.google.com/site/miramarbasicskillslab/workshops
Tuesday, March 1st
1:00 PM
Note-taking strategies: Why take lecture notes? Did you ever wonder why instructors make such a big deal about taking notes during a class lecture? In this workshop, learn some effective note-taking strategies that will help you find success in the classroom. Learn how to be an active listener and take purposeful notes.
Tuesday, March 8
3:30 PM
Annotation: Do you read your textbook but feel that you have not remembered the information? Annotation is a skill that helps you stay focused, remember that important information, and become a more active reader. Attend this workshop and learn strategies for annotation while actively participating in activities to hone your skill.
Monday, March 14th
5:00 PM
Vocabulary Attack Skills: This workshop will teach you specific skills that you can use while reading to help you better understand unfamiliar words and phrases. Special attention will be placed on the use of context clues and word families to help improve your reading comprehension. Hope to see you there!
Monday, March 21st (THIS IS TAMI'S WORKSHOP!)
4:30 PM
Brainstorming and Organizing Ideas for Essay Writing: Do you have problems coming up with ideas for your writing assignments? Do you have a lot of ideas, but have no idea how to organize them into an essay? Are you stuck staring at a blank page? Then this workshop is for you! We will discuss techniques for generating new topic ideas and details, and practice organizing them into logical outlines. Come to this workshop and kick writer's block to the curb!
Thursday, March 31st
10:30 AM
Outlining:Do you ever feel like your ideas are all over the place? This workshop will help you to organize those ideas by focusing on outlining. Outlining is an important tool when writing an essay; it can help you fill in the holes your essay needs, and it can help you organize your thoughts more clearly. In this workshop we will try various outlining techniques including emphatic and chronological organizing. We will also use outlining in each of the different phases of the writing process. Outlining is a great tool that will help you develop as a writer and will help you in all your college-level classes.
Monday, April 4th
1:00 PM
Supporting Your Essay with Examples: This workshop will focus on strategies for providing examples in essays. We will discuss and practice how to implement various examples such as text quotes, statistical evidence, and personal examples. You will learn how to avoid listing examples, how to avoid long and irrelevant quotes, and how to avoid going on and on about your example without coming back to your point. Please come with any questions related to this topic!
Thursday, April 7th
4:00 PM
Argumentative essay process: What should an argumentative essay consist of? This workshop will provide you an overview outline on how to organize an argumentative essay. You will also learn some Do’s and Don’ts. Many classes require this type of essay, so come and find out what an argumentative essay is about!
Tuesday, April 26th
11:00 AM
Sentences: Confused by commas splices and run-on sentences??? Not sure what they are, or more importantly, how to fix them? This workshop will show you how to identify these common student errors AND simple ways to correct them. Lots of practice will be included!!! Please join us!
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Using the Definite and Indefinite Articles
Use these links to practice the definite and indefinite articles (The/A/An).
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