Assignments!! Assignments!! Assignments!!

In this section you will find most of the assignments that are given in class. So learners beware!!!There is little or no excuse for not completing your assignments! You can always check this site to see if the assignment is posted!

Nouns, Verbs and Tenses - June 25, 2009

Basic English Grammar (Part 1)

Often times learners experience challenges when writing English because they have not mastered the basic grammar constructs. In this section I will attempt to present my own way to view the basic structure of the English language

Backbone

1. Noun (identifies persons, places, animals and things)
2. Pronoun (used instead of nouns)
3. Verb (denotes actions or links subject to predicate)

Adds More Information

1. Adjective ( provides more information to nouns and pronouns)
2. Adverb ( provides more information about verbs, adjectives and other adverbs)

Connectors

1. Conjunction (joins phrases or sentences)
2. Preposition (connects persons or objects with their location)

Unique Expressions

1. Interjection

This can be used by the learners as a checklist to gauge their level of competence in the use of English. The first section includes the most important grammar constructs. Learners should be encouraged to master the elements in this section first as their first step in the journey to master the use of English.

Nouns

Below is a link to EnglishClub.com that provides a simple definition for a noun.
Noun Definition

It attempts to add a little more explanation than the one that most learners know ( 1.e. nouns are names of persons, places, animals and things). It also points out that the commonly recited definition often inadequately explains certain nouns. The problem is how to correctly identify "things". The concrete nouns/things, such as car or boat, tend to be easy to identify. However the abstract nouns/things, such as determination or idea, tend to be difficult to identify.

The following tip may be useful: "Anything that can be quantified is a noun". Let me explain further. If you can use the following words to pluralize the word then it is a noun.

• a, an
• some, any, no
• a lot of, few, most
• one, two, three etc
• much, many
• several

The list above is not exhaustive and other words could be used as well. This tip is useful mostly native speakers of English. It presumes that you have adequate exposure to English so that you can rely on the ability to recognize what sounds right. For example state which of the following are nouns.

1. concept
2. trip
3. speak
4. love

Hint: Try and apply the words from the first list and then see if it "sounds" right.

The nouns from the list are concept (a concept, two concepts), trip (several trips), love ( a lot of love). For native speakers applying the words from the list to the word "speak" should sound ackward ( a speak?, two speaks, much speak?) Of course it is possible to say "many speak" but that is when many is a pronoun. Despite the last observation, the tip is simple and very useful.

There are several groups that nouns may be placed in, depending on the property being highlighted. Below are some the groupings that exist for nouns (Click on the link for additional information from the EnglishClub.com):

• Concrete vs Abstract
• Countable vs Uncountable
• Proper vs Common
• Adjectival Nouns (Nouns used as adjectives)

Verbs

Below is a link to a wonderful site that provides a wide range of useful information on verbs in what I believe is a colorful and fun manner. Enjoy!

Verbs

Subject-Verb agreement is normally a problem for some learners. Below is a link to an excel sheet that contains three verb tables. These tables greatly simplify the rules for subject-verb agreement.

Verb Tables (Present Tense)

Learning can be so much fun!!!

The links below contain some useful links to some activities that help to improve your memory, grammar and spelling. Some of the activities are loads of fun! The last link under spelling practice is my favourite! You can send me feedback on the links at marvin_williams9@gmail.com. Use the email login located on the right hand side of the page.


English Grammar Workout Exercises (Was it fun? Please comment)
http://www.ericschiller.com/activities.htm

Testing Your Vocabulary
http://www.manythings.org/dl/

Pronunciation Practice
http://www.manythings.org/pp/

Spelling Practice
http://www.manythings.org/cts/
http://www.manythings.org/vocabulary/games/l/
http://a4esl.org/q/j/ck/mc-spelling.html
http://a4esl.org/q/h/mc-lr.html
http://www.manythings.org/wbg/

Writing Technical Reports

Writing technical report is a challenging exercise that requires a lot of thought. However every difficult task can be broken up into steps that can be accomplished one at a time. Therefore learners should try to understand technical report writing one task at a time.

Task 1: Understanding the structure of a technical report

STRUCTURE OF A REPORT

The list below shows the general content of a technical report.

1. Introduction
2. Background and Context
3. Technical Detail
4. Results
5. Discussion and Conclusion

The report may also include a summary or abstract which is normally placed before the introduction. You may also include appendices after the discussion and conclusion.

Technical Report Format

Click on the link below to see an outline of the format of a typical technical report.
Technical Report Format

Sample Technical Report

One of the best way to learn sometimes is by example. Click on the link below to view an example of a technical report from Online Technical Writing- a site created by David A. McMurrey.
Sample Report

The site has a plethora of useful notes on technical writing. You may view the notes by navigating through Online Technical Writing.

APA Referencing

The link below provides very detailed explanations and examples of how to use the APA referencing format for citing sources.
APA Format Notes created by David S. Baker
and Lynn Henrichsen

Advanced Technical Report-Overview

The aim of this unit is to provide the requisite skill required for conducting formal research. At the end of the unit learners should have a clear understanding of how to:

• gather information
• tabulate and present findings
• discuss the findings
• apply the appropriate referencing format
  

In addition to the unit will recap the basic elements of creating and using incident report documents.