Exploring Language

 

These lessons have been piloted with grades 6-12, and they correspond to the CCSS for those grades.

 

Table of Contents

Section 1: Grammar – Syntactic Explorations

Part 1: Nouns

Lesson 1.1 : Introduction to Nouns – Nouns and Unconscious Knowledge

Lesson 1.2: Noun Morphology

Lesson 1.3: Noun Syntax

Lesson 1.4: Pronouns

Part 2: Verbs

Lesson 2.1: Introduction to Verbs – Verbs and Unconscious Knowledge

Lesson 2.2 Verb Morphology

Lesson 2.3: Verb Forms - Infinitive, Present, Past

Lesson 2.4: Past and Present Participles

Lesson 2.5: Main Verbs and Auxiliary Verbs

Part 3: Clauses

Lesson 3.1: Introduction to Clauses

Lesson 3.2: Identifying Clauses Using Tag Questions

Lesson 3.3: Identifying Clauses Using Subject-Auxiliary Inversion

Lesson 3.4: Subject-Auxiliary Inversion and Fragments

Lesson 3.5: Restrictive and Non-Restrictive Relative Clauses - and punctuation again

Part 4: Adjectives, Adverbs, and Prepositions

Lesson 4.1: Adjective Morphology and Syntax

Lesson 4.2: Verb or Adjective – Understanding Passive

Lesson 4.3: Adverbs

Lesson 4.4: Degree Words

Lesson 4.5: More on Adverbs and Other Modifiers – and Punctuation!

Lesson 4.6: PrepositionsLesson 4.7: PPs and Subject-Verb Agreement

Lesson 4.8 – Prepositions or Particles? Learning about Phrasal Verbs

 

Section 2: Vocabulary - Morphological Explorations

 

Lesson 1: Nonsense and Made-Up Words, Focusing on Nouns and Breaking Real Words into Morphemes

Lesson 2: History Lessons:

Lesson 3: Greek and Latin Roots

Lesson 4: The Grimm Brothers Make a Discovery or Why Sound Change Matters

Lesson 5: Analysis Reveals Verbs and Adjectives

Lesson 6: More on Verb Affixes

Lesson 7: Verbal Affixes Follow-Up (an -ate problem)

Lesson 8: Meaning Relations: Synonyms, Antonyms, and Other Nyms

 

Section 3: Conventions – Exploring Grammar and Writing

 

Lesson 1: Mini History of Punctuation

Lesson 2: “Hearing” Punctuation

Lesson 3: Punctuation Clarifies – or Doesn’t

Lesson 4: Conventional Punctuation

Lesson 5: Choosing Punctuation for Effect

Lesson 6: Punctuating Complex Clauses

Lesson 7: Apostrophe’s Apostrophes

Lesson 8: Punctuation Attitudes

Lesson 9: Punctuation Variation - The Oxford Comma

Lesson 10: New Punctuation…☺

 

Section 4: More Language Exploration

 

Lesson 1: Language Variation: Why We Have Dialects

Lesson 2: Dialects and LInguistic Discrimination

Lesson 3: Bilingualism

Lesson 4: Language and Power: Official Languages

Lesson 5: Native Languages of the United States

Lesson 6: Non-Native Languages of the United States

Lesson 7: Exploring Simile and Metaphor

Lesson 8: Language Change: from I see to literally

Lesson 9: Language in Context: Exploring Discourse and Pragmatics

Lesson 10: Idioms: Raining Cats and Dogs