grammar

Any1 know a good site on grammar. My comp. keeps giving these little windows on the miss use of the word 'very' and such. And it's no help in explain y. So b4 I click yes(if I do I never listen to it), I would like 2 hav 2 lease some idea y.

 

http://www.sadlier-oxford.com/lang/papers/chinpaper.html
http://www.kidsource.com/kidsource/content4/grammer.morph.html
http://www.arlington.k12.va.us/instruct/ctae/adult_ed/REEP/reepcurriculum/grammarprinciples.html

just a few to start with. You just need to add a few words to your google search.

FYI, I did my Master's thesis on grammar instruction, so let me know if you have any question.

Direct grammar instruction became almost extinct after a wave of research showed it to be ineffective, but it is now coming back into fashion as new studies question the validity of those previous findings.

Good luck!

 

p.s. if all you are looking for is a grammar guide, just search for Chicago Style Manual, or APA, or MLA styles.

 

I don't tend to trust the computer grammar checker. It doesn't consider the context of the original sentence, therefore comes up with suggestions that, whilst technically correct, may not necessarily make sense.


Now my grammar can be pretty bad at times. Managed to learn mainly from reading other people's work and just considering whether it actually makes sense considering the details of the sentence construction. Most mistakes are stupidly obvious and easy to avoid when you pay attention to detail.

The rules are quite simple and easy to apply once you get the hang of them. The previously mentioned links look good for that purpose.

Good luck

 

Here's a tip. Get your spelling sorted out first, and then you'll be giving the grammar checker a fair chance. They're not programmed in chav speak (well out of date by the way as well, since we've had predictive text for years so you no-longer have to spend ages doing your SMS character by character).

 

Thanks I'll keep that in mind and I'll check the MLA stuff out. And Sax Machine, sry about my spelling, I'm bad enough as it is and my brain works faster then my fingers. I'm a pen and paper sort of girl. Thanks every1 4 the help.

 

Don't pay much attention to Sax_Machine. He's just a bit anal when it comes to spelling and grammar.

I do think you should spend more time worrying about your spelling before you decide to tackle grammar. You must crawl before you can walk, you know. Try typing just a tiny bit slower. Go back and edit, even on message boards. It's good practice.

And if you have questions about grammar rules, PM Sax_Machine. I'm sure he'd be happy to talk your ear off about such boring things.

 

yes, just as long as it's not 'real'.

 

There are many books written about the English language. What I would recommend for a school student would be Usage And Abusage by Eric Partridge revised by Janetm Whitcut, Penguin.