SIGHT WORDS

Hi! It's me - Professor Panda with a new and really important new English lesson. Today we are going to revisit, SIGHT WORDS! What is a SIGHT WORD?

• A sight word is any word that should be known to a reader automatically. Sight words are pronounced without thinking about how the word is spelled. A common first sight word is a person's name. Beginning readers are at an advantage when they learn to read sight words that occur frequently in print. However, it is possible to read a word on sight but not know the meaning of the word. For example, a student might be able to read on sight "there, their and they're" but not understand the differences in meaning. So, learning words by sight only, should not be seen as a complete reading solution.

• It is estimated that there are approximately 100 to 220 common words in English that require specific memorization.

So, here are the first group of sight words for you. Memorize them and if you are not clear on their meaning or use, look them up in a nice dictionary.

A very good way to learn sight words is to make a flash card for each one. Write the word down on one side, and on the other, write down a sentence using that word. Look at these cards at least once a day, or more! The more you practice, the more automatic they will become, and the better your English will be.

Here are the first 15 sight words you should know:

the Did you see the dog?

of I saw two of them.

and I saw Kimiko and Ichiro.

a I saw a cat.

to Takumi went to the store.

in Shou is in the house.

is Mr. Saito is here.

are Are you going home?

that Did you see that bird?

it I put it on the table.

he He took my bike!

was Kouhei was late for school.

for Mai made this for you.

on The cat is on the chair.

are Aoi and Aya are cute.

Remember: Each sentence begins with a capital (big) letter and ends with either a period, question mark, or exclamation mark. As you practice these sight words and become more comfortable with them, try to make up your own sentences.

THE WONDERFUL TEAKETTLE: QUIZ

Hi! It’s me again, Professor Panda! Sorry I am so late, but sometimes things just get too busy around here! Today here is the short quiz I promised on the story about the teakettle. There are ten questions and one bonus question. Each one is worth 10 points. This is a “fill-in” quiz, so you get to write your answers in English to each question. At the end of the week, Friday (Japan time) I will give you the answers. You can also send me your answers (in English) by email to Panda_English@yahoo.com and I will grade them for you. 100 points is an A, 80 points is a B, and 70 points is a C. If you get the bonus question correct, you get another 10 points. Read the story again and then take the quiz. Good Luck!

Professor Pannibal P. Panda, PhD.

1. Why was the old priest so happy?
2. What was his new teakettle made of?
3. What did the third boy see when he peeped through the screen?
4. What did all the boys see when they looked through the screen together?
5. What did the teakettle do when the old priest put it on the fire to heat?
6. Who did the old priest sell the teakettle to?
7. Where did he take the teakettle to after he bought it?
8. What did the badger say he liked to eat now and then?
9. What did the people who saw the dancing badger on the tightrope do after they saw it?
10. Where did the owner of the teakettle put the teakettle after he became rich?
11. Bonus: Using the story, describe what a badger looks like.

Could, Could Have Been, Could Be

Hi! It's me, Professor Panda, PhD. Today I wanted to answer a question about the word "could" from a reader. Because this word and its uses can cause a lot of confusion, I thought I would share this question with everyone! So here it is!

Could is what is known as an AUXILIARY VERB; that is, a verb used to help form the tenses, aspects, or moods of other verbs such as, have, do , be, should must, can. The word could is used in verb phrases that have a past, present, or future time reference and is generally equal to can in meaning and use, with the following functions:

1. Expressing a shade of doubt or a smaller degree of ability or possibility such as in: It could be so.
2. Expressing permission, as in: Could I go?
3. Forming the present condition as in: It would help if he could wait.
4. Forming the past condition as in: He would have left if he could.
5. Expressing or suggesting politely less certainty than the word can, as in: Could you wait?

Now as to your question:

I often see or listen to the following phrase: " a could have been. " For example, “He is a could have been;” or, “It is a could have been story;” or “a could have been beauty Queen.” What is the meaning " a could have been? "

First let us look at the present tense of the world can, as it applies to your phrases:

1. He can be…
2. He is a can be…
3. It is a can be story…
4. … can be beauty queen

In these phrases, the subjects (he, it, and she (which is implied here) have the ability to do or to be something: he has the ability to be, the story can be, she can be a beauty queen. Could refers us back to the past. While your phrases are idiomatic, that is, they are used as idioms (the usual way in which words of a particular language are joined together to express a thought, with particular reference to a dialect of a population or community, region, social class, etc.) they are still acceptable forms of English for conversation as well as informal forms of writing (news articles, essays, short stories, etc. – almost everything except formal research papers or a high school and university thesis). What these phrases say are as follows:

1. He is a person who could have been (what ever it is, a ball player, actor, student, etc.).
2. It could have been a story (if/but…….).
3. (She) could have been a beauty queen (if/but…..).

although, each of these idioms tend to be a bit negative or critical in their use.

Next time, we will discuss the phrase “wanna be” or more clearly “want to be,” which is similar in its use.

P. Panda, PhD.

MORE ABOUT NOUNS

More About Nouns

Hi! It's time for more fun with Professor Panda's English! I hope you enjoyed the last lesson on nouns. Did you practice the words and sentences? Good! Today, we will continue our study of naming words, or nouns, so let's get started! Today we will talk about two kinds of naming words or nouns. Some words name common things and these are called common nouns.

Here are some examples for you:

• child
• park
• story

Some words name special things. These words are called proper nouns. They begin with large or capital letters. Here are some examples:

• Sam
• Peace Park
• "The Red Pony"

Read each sentence below. Circle the special name in each sentence and then, write the special name on the line.

1. The boy is Chris.__________________________________

2. That girl is Lina.__________________________________

3. My friend is Lee Chin.______________________________

4. I live on Main Street._______________________________

5. I read "All About Worms."____________________________


Special Names of People and Places

The special name of a person begins with a capital letter. The special title of a person begins with a capital letter. The special name of a place begins with a capital letter.

Here are some examples for you:

• Katie
• Dr. Jones
• New York City

Read the sentences below. Then, write each special name or title correctly. Be sure to use capital letters.

1. This book is for sam.______________________________________

2. mr. Saito has a new car.____________________________________

3. My frined goes to parker school._______________________________

4. We live on baker road._____________________________________


Practice with Proper Names

A special name of a person begins with a capital letter. The special title of a person also begins with a capital letter. The special name of a place begins with a capital letter.

Here are some examples:

• Ms. Reed
• Chicago
• Lucy

On a piece of paper, answer each question using the special name of a person or a place. Remember to use capital letters.

1. What is your name?

2. What is your teacher's name?

3. What is the name of your school?

4. What is the name of your town or city?

5. What is your best friend's name?


Well, that is our lesson for today. Please read the sentences and nouns carefully. After you have done all the exercises, come back in a day or two and do it again. Then later on, try it again, and keep repeating the exercises until you feel comfortable with these kinds of nouns. When you are reading, look for new "naming words" or nouns, write them down, put them in sentences of your own, and make them part of your vocabulary.

See you next time!

~Professor Panda, PhD.~

PANDA ENGLISH BEGINNING GRAMMAR: NOUNS

Hi! It's me, Professor Panda!

Because so many pupils are just getting started in studying English, I thought it would be a good idea, for a while, to study the basic rules of English Grammar or Language Arts. Today we are going to look at what are commonly called "naming words". Let's get started!

NAMING WORDS

"Naming words" are called nounds. Nouns name people, places, and things.

Here are some examples for you:

• man


• house


• boat


• boy


• girl


• dog


• cat


• baby


• school


• store


• car


• fish

Try to write a simple sentence using each of the "naming words" or nouns that are listed above.

NAMING WORDS FOR PEOPLE

Some nouns name people. Here are some examples for you:

• farmer


• doctor


• cook


• worker


• nurse

Try to write some simple sentences using the nouns that name people that are listed above.

NAMING WORDS FOR ANIMALS

Some nouns name animals. Here are some examples:

• frog


• fish


• dog


• cat


• bird


• fox


• whale


• pig


• horse


• whale

Try to complete the following sentences using nouns from the list above. Then, make up your own sentences using the list of nouns.

1. A ____________________ swims in the sea.


2. A____________________ jumps out of a pond.


3. A____________________runs in the woods.


4. A____________________flies in the sky.


5. A____________________barks at strangers.


6. A____________________ meows.

NAMING WORDS FOR PLACES

Some nouns name places. Here are some examples:

• house


• farm


• lake


• park


• city


• beach


• library

Try to write some simple sentences using all the nouns listed above.

NAMING WORDS FOR THINGS

Some nouns name things. Here are some examples:

• toy


• chair


• shoes


• cup


• hat


• bed


• apple


• crayons


• box

Try to complete each sentence below using one of the nouns in the list above. Then write your own sentences using all the nouns in the list.

1. I drank juice from a _____________________________.

2. I use _______________________________________ for coloring.

3. I eat an ____________________________ for lunch.

4. I sleep in a ___________________________.

5. I wear a ___________________ on my head.

6. I keep my toys in a ___________________________.

Well, that is our lesson for today. Please read the sentences and nouns carefully. After you have done all the exercises, come back in a day or two and do it again. Then later on, try it again, and keep repeating the exercises until you feel comfortable with these kinds of nouns. When you are reading, look for new "naming words" or nouns, write them down, put them in sentences of your own, and make them part of your vocabulary.

Have fun! See you next time when we will talk more about nouns!

~Professor Panda, PhD.~

LOOK AND SEE: I AM SO CONFUSED! WHICH WORD TO USE?

Hi! It’s Professor Panda with another English lesson for you! Today I am writing in answer to two recent questions concerning the proper use of two common words: see and watch. Which to use and when to use? It really is confusing because often, especially in the West, both words seem to be used for the same thing in casual conversation; however, that is not really correct speech and definitely not correct for writing.

“Dear Professor Panda,

My son has a question for you. Recently a friend of his said, “I saw that movie. It was wonderful! You should watch that movie.”

“Dear Panda,

What word should I use in connection with a film or DVD? Watch or see?

In my English class we were taught that we use “watch” when we consciously pay attention to something like a film or TV or when we are closely examining something. They said that the word “see is used mostly to describe the use of your sense of vision. But, I have heard the word “see” being used just like “I watched a film.” I don’t know which is absolutely correct, but “watch a film” and “watch TV” seem to be the better ones.

What is right?”


Well then, the words “look”, “see” and “watch” are all very similar. Each word says a little something different about the ways in which you use your eyes. There are, however, important differences.

First of all, it depends on how you intend to look or watch, and how intense the looking is. Oh! Don’t panic! I will explain. When we say “see”, we are normally talking about things that we cannot avoid; so for example, in the sentence “I opened the curtains and saw some birds outside” I did not intend to see them, it just happened.

When we use the verb “look”, we are talking about intending to see something. So, “This morning, I looked in the cupboard for some breakfast.” I intended to look in the cupboard.

When we watch something we intend to look at it, but we are also looking at it rather intensely, mostly because it is moving. So, for example, “I watched the bus go through the traffic lights.” Or, “I watched the movie.” We want to se it, we are looking at it intensely, and it is normally moving.

When we use verbs that relate to our senses (hearing, sight, touch, smell, taste), and “look”, “see” and “watch are verbs of the visual sense, there is usually a difference between intending to do it and not intending to do it. “I heard the radio” means I didn’t intend to hear the ready, it just happened. “I listened to the radio” says that I turned it on to a program I was interested in.

“I felt the wind on my face” means I did not intend to feel it, but it just happened that way. “I touched the bug” means I intended to feel the bug.

It is important that when you find these verbs of senses, to group them together and try to find the differences between them.

Remember: When you look at words that seem to be similar, it is important to find out exactly the differences between them, because basically, you cannot really use them in place of one another.

Also remember that with “see”, you didn’t really intend to do it, it just happened. With “look”, you intended to do it, and with “watch” you intended to do it and you were looking intensely, usually because it was moving.

The word “look” when used without any prepositions (such as “look at” or “look for”) suggests that the attention is diverted from something to something else.

Here are some other things to help you decide which word is correct to use:

“See” is an inactive word. When your eyes are open, you do it without thinking: I see a car near the store.

“Look” is an active word. You must want to do it, but it is basically for only a short time: Look at this pen.

“Watch” is also an active word. You must want to do it, but it is for a longer period of time: Let’s watch television.

OK! Here is a small quiz to help you even more.

1. He is very shy and doesn’t __________ you in the eye.
a. look
b. see
c. watch
2. Did you ­­­­­­­­__________ the advertisement in the newspaper?
a. see
b. watch
3. I can’t __________ much in this light.
a. see
b. watch
c. look
4. The police are ­­­­__________ the house in case the criminals come back.
a. looking at
b. watching
5. I spent the evening ­­­­­­__________ TV.
a. seeing
b. looking at
c. watching
6. ­­­­__________ out! There is some water on the floor.
a. Look
b. See
7. Did you __________the football game last night?
a. look at
b. watch
8. I __________ in the shop window, but I didn’t see anything I liked.
a. looked
b. saw
c. watched
9. I can’t __________ any milk in the refrigerator.
a. see
b. look
c. watch
10. I have never liked it. I don’t know what you ­­­­__________ in it.
a. look
b. watch
c. see



Answers (Don’t peak until you have done the quiz!)

1. look
2. see
3. see
4. watching
5. watching
6. Look
7. watch
8. looked
9. see
10. see


Well, I hope that clears up a question that I am sure a lot of us have had! See you next time!

P. Panda

MORE ABOUT NOUNS

MORE ABOUT NOUNS

So, as we learned last time, a noun is a word that names or refers to a person, a place, or a thing. To make things even more clear, I hope, a thing, can actually be not just an object or a person, but also a quality or even a concept.

We also leaned about common nouns, which name any one of a class of persons, places or things, and proper nouns, which name a specific person, place, or thing.

Let’s talk for just a moment about “number”. Number means that a word can be singular (which means that it referrs to one person, place or thing) or plural, which means that it refers to more than one person or place or thing. Of course, in Japanese, we don’t bother with number because the same word can be used for one or for more than one person, place, or thing. Here are some examples:

· Hon = book or books
· Shinbun = newspaper or newspapers
· Uchi = house or houses
· Ki = tree or trees
· Te = hand or hands
· Hon o motte imasu. ( I have a book) or
· Hon o motte imasu. (I have some books).

We should also begin to think a little bit about articles! In Japanese we do not use articles before nouns. There are no words in Nihongo that correspond to the English a, an, or the. For right now, just be aware that English does use articles a lot and that they are an important part of learning to both speak and write in English well. A major mistake that is often made is to forget to use articles when speaking or writing in English because Japanese people don’t normally use them or even give them a thought.

Some English nouns also show gender. Not so much in Japanese right? There are no special endings to show masculine, feminine, or neuter forms, but there are in English, so for now, just be aware that they exist.

Now, let’s talk a little bit about two “new” kinds of nouns. The are compound nouns and collective nouns. Please don’t be intimidated by these new names. The ideas behind them are pretty simple.

Compound nouns are two or more nouns that function or work together as a single unit. They are partners! A compound noun can be two individual words, words that are joined by a hyphen (-), or two words that are combined into one “new” word.

· Individual words: time capsule
· Hyphenated words: great-uncle
· Combined words: basketball (basket + ball)
Collective nouns name groups of people or things.

· Audience
· Family
· Herd
· Crowd.

Don’t forget, as you learn to read, write and to speak English, a really good dictionary is an important thing to have close by to refer to. My favorite is the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language which I always keep at my desk (yes, even I need a dictionary, often!!!). You can see it here for yourself:

http://www.amazon.co.jp/American-Heritage-Dictionary-English-Language/dp/0618701737/ref=sr_1_26?ie=UTF8&s=english-books&qid=1209238747&sr=8-26

Another really good dictionary is the Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, available in several forms:

http://www.amazon.co.jp/s/ref=nb_ss_fb/250-4870713-0556251?__mk_ja_JP=%83J%83%5E%83J%83i&url=search-alias%3Denglish-books&field-keywords=webster+collegiate+dictionary

Well, we have covered a lot of material today so take a minute to relax! After you have done that, we have a short quiz for you! Oh, it’s not too hard and it is good practice for you.

QUIZ

If you can, print out a copy of this quiz onto paper. Underline the nouns in each of the following sentences.

1. In ancient China, a hungry tiger was roaming through the jungle looking for something to eat.

2. He came across two men.

3. One man was sitting under a tree and reading a book; the other man was writing on a piece of paper.

4. The tiger quickly pounced on the man reading the book and devoured him.

5. Even a tiger knows that readers digest and writers cramp.

Give yourself 5 points for each noun you find. Also, there are two puns in this quiz. Yes, even English speaking people have fun with puns. Can you find them? If you can, give yourself an extra 5 points for each one.

THE PARTS OF SPEECH

Hi everybody! I thought it would be fun to begin to study the basic "parts of speech": all the words we use to speak and write English well. They are like our basic tools and we can't do a good job on something unless we know our tools well. So let's get started!

THE PARTS OF SPEECH

Words in English or divided into eight parts of speech, each one different, according to their “job” in a sentence. Oh yes indeed, there are different kinds of words and each kind of word has a specific function in a sentence. They are:

Adjectives
Adverbs
Conjunctions
Interjections
Nouns
Pronouns (No, these are not nouns that have given up amateur status to become professionals!)
Prepositions
Verbs

These are some of the “nuts and bolts” (the basic parts) that make up English, and to speak and write English well, we must have a good understanding of them and their jobs. I say “some”, because there are other parts of speech, but I do not want you to go running away into the night, screaming in terror, so I will keep them to myself for a while until you are comfortable with the parts I have mentioned above.

So, let’s get started!

NOUNS

A noun is simply a word that names a person, place, or thing. A good way to remember nouns is this:

NOUN = NAMAE

A noun is a name and they come in different varieties; and just like names, there are some what we like, some that maybe we don’t like so much, and some that we are stuck with no matter what. The varieties of nouns are:

Common nouns
Proper nouns
Compound nouns
Collective nouns.

Don’t panic! It’s not as complicated as in sounds, as you will soon see. For today’s lesson, we will explore two types of nouns: common nouns and proper nouns.

Common nouns – nouns that name any one of a group, or class, or type of person, place or thing.

girl
city
food

Easy right?

Proper nouns – nouns that name a specific or certain person, place, or thing.

· Mitusko
· Osaka
· California Roll

Until next time, look through your favorite magazines or books, and see if you can pick out common nouns and proper nouns. I am sure you will find lots of them and suddenly you will discover that you have a new way of thinking about the words you see.

Ok, now let's relax and have some tea!

MORE ABOUT VOWEL SOUNDS

Hi! It's me again - Professor Panda! I hope everyone is fine. Did you have fun over the Lunar New Year? I sure did!

Today I want to talk a little more about vowel sounds in English. I know just about everybody who comes to this blog is studying English as a second language - a language they want to speak in addition to the language spoken in their home or country. Even Mrs. Panda is studying English as a second language and she says our cat is learning it as well! I guess the kitty will speak three languages, Kitty, Kitty Japanese, and Kitty English! Busy cat!

Whenever we are learning a new and different language, how the language sounds, especially what sounds the vowels make is extremely important to us. Unfortunately, here in this blog, it's very hard to teach much about the actual sounds, especially in a way that you can practice them. But have no fear! I have some fun tools I am going to share with you, that can make learning and practicing English vowel sounds much easier and fun.

The first one is from an organization called fonetiks.org.They offer vowel sounds for 9 varieties of English and also 9 other languages. You can study vowel sounds for American English, British English, Irish English, and several other styles. And the offer the sounds that one vowel make, two vowels together, three vowels together, and several other kinds of sounds that you will encounter in speaking and listening to English, Just follow the link below, and then click on the kind of sounds you want to hear, like American English Single Vowel Sounds or British English Two Vowel Sounds and so on. A new page will open up. just place your cursor over the letters at the left and someone will pronounce the sound. To the right are examples of words with that particular sound.

http://www.fonetiks.org/

Now the second tool, and I think it is the best one, is an online dictionary. Actually, it's a lot of things, a full Webster's New World Dictionary, which is one of the best, a full Roget's Thesaurus, plus audio pronunciations for each word you look up in the dictionary. If you look up "dog" there will be a small icon at the top with the shape of a speaker. Click on it and you will hear the word. Also there are many examples of how the word is used. So this is a really useful thing to have and I hope you will use it often.

http://www.yourdictionary.com/

Just be a bit careful with both of these fun sites, not to have your computer sound up too loud or it might make it so you can't understand the word or the sound. If you experiment a little, you can figure it out! I did!!!!

Ok, that's it for today! Have lots of fun listening to and practicing making the vowel sounds you hear on these two sites and have fun finding new words in your new dictionary!

ENGLISH SOUNDS: PART I

ENGLISH SOUINDS: PART I

Hi! This is Professor Panda again! How are you? I hope everyone is well.

Today I want to cover just a few extremely basic points that might be of help to you in understanding both how to speak and how to write in English. I must apologize for the fact that some of what I will talk about is a bit “slanted” toward those who speak Japanese (Nihongo), but along with English, they are the languages I know best. I used to know some Vietnamese but over many years and lack of practice, I have forgotten 99% of what I learned. I hope sometime in the next couple of years, to return to Viet Nam and then I can get a bit of much needed practice!

Anyway, let’s get started and remember to have a good dictionary with you for this lesson.

Before I do however, I want to mention something that will be very helpful to you. When you are studying all the words and phrases and sentences in these lessons, make sure that you articulate (speak) aloud. In fact, it is really helpful if you read the entire lesson aloud. Try never to read these lessons silently. Perception of a sound is not the same as the production of a sound – thinking the sound is not the same as speaking the sound. Clear speaking (articulation) is the best way to make your brain recognize sounds as English sounds. Silent reading does not activate your brain, speaking aloud does. I assure you that you will make much faster progress this way.

Consonants

Ok, the first things I want to talk about are consonants, which are simply speech sounds that are characterized by constriction or obstruction of the airflow at various points in the mouth or throat when talking. For example: “t” is a consonant because in order to pronounce it, you use the tongue to block airflow at the edge of the mouth between the upper teeth and the gum.

What letters in English are consonants? As you will see in a minute, anything that is not a vowel (I know, I know, I’m a big help!)

Vowels

Vowels are speech sounds that are produced without any obstruction of airflow in the mouth. For example: “i” is a vowel because to pronounce it, you push air forward and out smoothly, without using your tongue.

Syllables

A syllable is a unit or part of spoken language that consists of:

• A vowel or vowel-like consant alone, or,



• A vowel or vowel-like consonant pronounced with one or more consonant sounds before or after
  

It is how words are divided when speaking. For example: the word consonant is divided into three syllables – con-so-nant. By looking up a word in your dictionary, you see that the word is broken down for you into syllables. Practice the word by slowly pronouncing each syllable slowly, and then you can increase speed until you are comfortable with how you are saying the word.


Sounds

Japanese is quite simple in comparison to English when it comes to sounds. Japanese has only 14 consonants and 5 vowels. English however has 24 consonants (which include the “semi-vowels “Y” and “w”) and even though English has only 5 vowels as well, it has at least 12 vowel sounds! It is much easier for and English speaker to speak Japanese sounds because they already exist in English; however, it is often a real struggle for Japanese speakers to master English pronunciation because they have to deal with many sounds that do not exist in Japanese!

Also, in Japanese, each syllable ends with a vowel and each syllable is considered to have the same “weight” or emphasis – Japanese syllables sound as though they have the same length. This is not quite the same in English, for example:

Karaoke – in Japanese the word has four syllables: Ka-ra-o-ke. In English the same word also has four syllables: car-rie-oh-key. You can already start to see a difference in pronunciation!

In Japanese, each syllable sounds as though it has exactly the same length as all the others. Each syllable is short and open. In English, syllables are not characterized by the same length – car-rie-oh-key. Pronounce both the Japanese word and the English word. With care, you can begin to hear the slight difference in length between “oh” and “key”. The same thing applies in other words like Eng-lish or Jap-a-nese. Can you hear the long “nese”?

Well, that’s enough for today! Next time we will discuss specific vowel sounds to help you along the way to pronouncing Western English. I’m a bit hungry now and need a snack! I think I’ll have a bit of panda soup! Would you like some?

Bye bye until next time!

Lesson 2. What Is Grammar?

WHAT IS GRAMMAR?

 

            “Grammar,” Henry Fowler wrote in his soon-to-be famous, 1926, Dictionary of Modern English Usage, is “a poor despised branch of learning.”  Well maybe he was a bit grumpy that day.

 

            To the rest of us, grammar is a branch of linguistics (the study of language) that deals with the form and the structure of words.  It is an attempt to make clear  what the skilled writer and speaker of English does by instinct.  When people are said to have “good” or “bad” grammar, the understanding is that they choose to obey or ignore the rules of accepted usage associated with their language whether it is English or Japanese.

 

            Grammar is one of the oldest fields of study, as well as one of the most durable.  Even Plato can be labeled as an early grammarian (a person who studies grammar), because he was responsible for dividing the sentence into subject and verb, a division still exists today!

 

WHAT IS USAGE?

 

            Usage is the normal way we use language in speaking and writing.  Because we use language for different purposes, there are various levels of usage.  The following table lists the “big three”.

 

LEVEL OF USAGE	EXAMPLES
1.  Standard English:  formal usage	They have done nothing.
2.  Standard English:  informal (conversational) usage	They’ve done nothing.
3.  Nonstandard (“Friendly-speak”) usage	Dey ain’t done nothin’.

 

 

LEVEL OF USAGE

 

1. Standard English (formal usage) – “They have done nothing.”
2. Standard English (informal (conversational) usage) – “They’ve done nothing.”
3. Non-Standard (“Friendly-speak”) usage – “Dey ain’t done notin’.”

 

The main difference between Standard English and non-Standard English (“Friendly-speak”) appears in the use of pronouns and certain verb forms.  For example, where a speaker in Standard English would use brought, a speaker of nonstandard English would use brung.  There are also several words and expressions that are considered nonstandard, such as slang words.

LEVEL OF USAGE

 

1. Standard English (formal usage) – “They have done nothing.”
2. Standard English (informal (conversational) usage) – “They’ve done nothing.”
3. Non-Standard (“Friendly-speak”) usage – “Dey ain’t done notin’.”

 

The main difference between Standard English and non-Standard English (“Friendly-speak”) appears in the use of pronouns and certain verb forms.  For example, where a speaker in Standard English would use "brought", a speaker of nonstandard English would use "brung".  There are also several words and expressions that are considered nonstandard, such as slang words.

 

DECIDING WHICH GRAMMAR TO LEARN

 

            Which grammar?  Does that mean that there is more than one?  Yes, indeed there are several different types of grammar, including historical (how language has changed through the centuries) and comparative (comparing languages).  But don’t worry too much.  Here we I will only be interested in two types of grammar:  the two you have to know in order to improve your speech and writing.

            Descriptive English grammar gives names to things:  the parts of speech and the parts of a sentence.  When you learn descriptive grammar, you understand what every word is (its part of speech) and what every word does (its function in the sentence).  If a person is not careful, however, descriptive grammar can go overboard fast and you can end up saying things like “balloon is the object of the gerund, in a gerund phrase that is acting as the predicate nominative of the linking verb ‘appear’.”  Don’t worry because we will not go into that level of terminology; besides, I’m not quite sure what that all means anyway.  There is, however, one important reason to learn some English grammar terms and that is to understand why a particular word or phrase is correct or incorrect. 

            Functional grammar makes up most of what we will learn.  Functional English grammar tells you how words behave when they are doing their jobs properly.  Functional grammar guides you to the right expression; that is, the one that fits what you are trying to say, by insuring that the sentence is put together correctly.  When you are agonizing over whether to say I or me, you are actually solving a problem of functional grammar.  So in order to be successful in our study of English grammar, we will use this formula:  a little descriptive grammar + a lot of functional grammar = better grammar overall.

 

LET'S STUDY ENGLISH!

Hi! I'm Professor Panda!

For the last couple of years I have been providing informal lessons and discussions about English Grammar, usage, spelling, and composition for our friends in Japan! We decided to expand things just a bit, and provide a place where all our "pupils" can find the lessons we have published in Japan, in case they missed or lost one, as well as a place to discuss "Western English" as is spoken in the US and Canada, rather than the UK. Here we can discuss problems, find solutions, and practice, practice, practice. So please join us - young and old - boys and girls - and we will have lots of fun along the way!

Oh! And coming in 2009, we hope to be providing actual "up close and personal" English lessons and practice for all of our friends in Gifu Prefecture! Stay tuned for more information!

Now - let's study English!