Approaches to Teaching Grammar

Kristen Hawley Turner

krturner@fordham.eduCreated March 2010

Revised April 2010

My Story

How do we help students “get it right”?

Notes on Grammar

What is it? When/ how would I use it? Other notes Traditional Grammar

Grammar in Context

Mini-lesson

Grammar as Brushstrokes

Grammar Matters

Contrastive Analysis

Patterns of Error

TRADITIONAL APPROACH:Grammar as a separate subject Isolated skill work absorbing huge amounts of

curricular time

Prescriptive approach (do this, don’t do that)

Emphasis on memorization, identification, and nomenclature

Minimal units of analysis: parts of speech

Taught in the ELA classroom

The Research Says…

Traditional grammar instruction does not transfer to writing development

Issue of transfer – mastery of nomenclature to application in writing (declarative to procedural knowledge)

Syntactic maturity hinges on the varied application of clauses and phrases.

Syntactic maturity – biggest growth in the shift from compound construction to inserted modifiers

Developing Syntactic Maturity

The girl dodged the car.

Opening brushstrokeJumping onto the curb, the girl dodged the car.

Inserted, or periodic, brushstrokeThe girl, surprised by the sudden roaring engine, dodged the car.

Strung-along brushstrokeThe girl dodged the car flying down the street.

Grammar as Brushstrokes

“Painting” with grammatical structures

Focuses on developing style, rather than naming

Teaching Grammar and Style in Context (Mini-lessons)

Addresses errors and issues that occur in the students’ writing

Individual (micro-lesson) and class (mini-lesson) instruction based on these errors and issues

Tackle errors within their own writing

Characteristics of a Mini-Lesson (Atwell, Calkins) Brief, approximately 10 minutes

Include direct instruction on the nature of the error, its effect on writing, and strategies for recognizing the error

Presented to the whole class when teacher believes most students will benefit

May require follow-up mini-lessons

Require demonstration that is facilitated by technology

Most effective when part of class routine

Embedding grammar instruction in context of writing

• Must be strategic. Students must have opportunity to tackle errors relevant to their own writing.

• Must be sequenced. Writing assignments across the school year must expand attention to particular patterns of error that are relevant to whole class.• Modification of scoring rubrics to reflect expanded

attention to issues of grammar, mechanics, and style.• Record keeping that allows students and teacher to

document progress.

Patterns of Error

Helping students to recognize the patterns of error in their own writing (seeing the errors)

Maintaining expectation that students are responsible for recognizing and documenting their own growth and mastery

Providing a system of record keeping that is accessible and sensible to students

P-rules (Comma Usage)

P1: Compound Construction

P2: Run-on

P3: Adverbial Clause

Grammar Matters Knowing “the definition of a few terms”

Experiencing “the importance of those terms, as much as possible, in the context of their reading and writing”

Applying the terms immediately to “work that matters to students and that clearly counts in the world”

Smith and Wilhelm, 2007, p. 15-16

Hierarchy of Errors

Identify the errors students make.

Determine the high cost errors.

Address the errors in meaningful ways within the context of students’ own writing.

Consider what you call it.

Proper Noun

OR

Name

Key Ideas

Correctness an important goal

Work “directed toward bringing student writing and/or speaking in line with what is called Standard American English”Smith and Wilhelm, 2007, p. 5

Contrastive Analysis

Seeing language and register as different, not deficient

Identifying features and patterns of language

Code-switching from home to school discourse

Features of AAVEHe say he not ready to get married. Absence of 3rd person singular s

Absence of helping “to be”

She don't believe nothin I tell her. Double negativeDropping of final gAbsence of 3rd person singular s

Carol be hungry. Habitual be

We was watching television. Generalization of is/was

Features of Digitalkimma go shoppin at old navy Nonstandard capitalization

Nonstandard end punctuationAbbreviationsCompound constructions

wuz up w/ skool? Nonstandard capitalizationAbbreviationPhonetic spelling

what r u doin? Nonstandard capitalizationLogogramsAbbreviation

Lily: heyyyy (:

Lily: nm, chillennn; whatchu up too ?

Lily: mm, y quien ta jugandoo ?

Lily: WHAAAATT A JOKEEEEE, dime como yankees lostt againstt them yesterdaii.

Lily: & the nationalsss won like only 16 games . . . one of the worst teams homieeegee.

Lily: AHA, naw gee thats easy $ for youu ! =p

Lily: lol imma talk to you later . . . i got pizzaa awaitinggg meeeee (;

multiple consonant

abbreviation

multiple vowel

missing cap

ellipses

phonetic spelling

missing apostrophe

missing end punct

combined words

What is it? When/ how would I use it? Other notes Traditional Grammar

Grammar in Context

Grammar as Brushstrokes

Grammar Matters

Contrastive Analysis

Patterns of Error

Let’s share what we know.