GRAMMAR WORKSHOP
NB These notes are meant as a reminder for participants in Grammar Workshop English Week 2018
Procedure = Putting the horse before the cart (The recommended order of proceedings)
- Experiencing language (Hearing rhythms)
- Becoming aware of structures (=Feeling differences in meaning)
- Aha! (Gradual awakening to concepts / ideas)
(1) Experience:
English words have long and short vowels (cf. send / sent, got / caught)
The English Verb has two shapes: ING-Form; INFINITIVE (with/without TO)
(2) Feel the difference in meaning:
- I saw the man come / coming down the stairs; She felt someone touch / touching her.
- Where do you sit? / are you sitting? (Context main lesson / English lesson).
- George Best gets the ball, passes it to Bobby Charlton … (Football commentary); Oxford is rowing beautifully, Cambridge are four lengths behind. They are getting closer …
- The class teacher is not playing the violin, she is drinking coffee (the violin is in its case). But she plays the violin (= she can)!
- Do you like sailing? (It is now winter). Would you like to sail? (There is a good wind, the boat is ready); Do you remember kissing on the park bench? Did you remember to kiss?
- (Situation: Airport lounge while and after flight was called) What was the lady doing when the flight was called? What did she do when the flight was called?
- While I was sitting in the bath, the doorbell rang / was ringing .
- Discussion of differences people “felt” led to some provisional ideas:
- The idea of an action being completed or not (saw him come/coming)
- The idea of now (or then), at this (that) moment (sitting)
- The idea of a number of completed actions being one after the other (football)
- The idea of describing an action while it is happening (rowing)
- The idea of talking about an action (sailing) or actually doing it (to sail)
- The idea of an action happening until a certain moment (was waiting)
- The idea of what happened after a certain moment (got up, went to the gate)
- The idea of something happening when a sudden action started to happen
Training Waldorf School English teachers