Grammar for Everyone - Barbara Dykes 2007
Glossary
Definitions are also given for each grammar term under its respective section category. Below are short definitions of terms as used in this book.
abbreviation: that which cannot be seen or touched, i.e. not concrete
accusative: of case, identifying the direct object
active: of voice, describes a verb in which the subject is responsible for the action
adjectival: concerning, or having the function of an adjective
adjective: a word that describes (qualifies) a noun or pronoun
adverb: a word that gives information about (modifies) a verb
adverbial: concerning or having the function of an adverb
analysis: the division of a sentence into its constituents
apostrophe: a punctuation mark indicating possession, or omission (contraction)
article: the words a, an, the, indicating any one of something, or a specific one
auxiliary: of a verb, a helper, usually accompanying an infinite verb, in order to form a finite tense
brackets: punctuation marks, showing parenthesis, and enclosing information additional to the structure of a sentence
capital: of letters, upper case
case: term denoting the function of a noun or pronoun in a sentence
clause: a group of words, including a finite verb, forming all or part of a sentence
collective: of a noun, denoting a word in the singular, given to a group of something
colon: a punctuation mark indicating additional information to follow
comma: a punctuation mark which serves to separate part of a sentence, and indicating a pause
common: category of noun applied to things which are common to a group, i.e. not a particular one
comparison: that which compares
complement: a word or group of words completing the sense of any form of the verb ’to be’, and being, or referring to, the same person or thing that is the subject of the verb
complex: of a sentence which includes one main clause and one or more subordinate clauses
compound: of a word, two words put together to form a third word; of a sentence, one consisting of two or more main clauses
compound-complex: of a sentence, one consisting of more than one main clause, plus one or more subordinate clauses
concession: of a phrase or clause, that which concedes or admits a possible happening
condition: of a phrase or clause, that which depends for its fulfilment on something else happening
conjunction: a word that links two things, or introduces a subordinate, adverbial or noun clause
continuous: of tense, expressing continuous action
dashes: punctuation marks in the form of short lines, that separate a piece of information from the remaining part of the sentence - usually less formal than brackets
dative: of case, the part of a sentence forming the indirect object indicated by ’to’ or ’for’ someone or something
definite: of article, the
degree: a level of comparison applied to gradable adjectives or adverbs
demonstrative: of adjectives or pronouns, indicating particular items, e.g. this ...
determinant: (or determiners) modern term generally referring to articles and various kinds of adjectives
direct: of speech, the exact words spoken, marked with inverted commas
direct object: that part of the sentence which is acted upon by the verb
distributive: of pronouns, referring to an individual member of a class or group, e.g. each
emphasis: of speech, the stress given to a particular part of a sentence for additional meaning
exclamation mark: a punctuation mark, following a word or phrase that shows strong feeling such as surprise or horror
feminine: of gender, pertaining to female
finite: of a verb, a form that is complete in tense and has a subject
full-stop: (or period) a punctuation mark at the end of a statement or command
future: of a verb, the tense relating to something yet to happen
gender: the distinction between masculine, feminine or neuter
genitive: of mood, the form of a sentence which denotes possession
gerund: a participle, having the function of a noun
idiom: a phrase of which the meaning cannot be deduced from the words that comprise it
imperative: of mood, the verb form of a sentence that constitutes a command
indefinite: of article, a or an; of pronouns, those which are non-specific, e.g. someone
indicative: of mood, the verb form of a statement
indirect: of object, that person or thing indirectly affected by the action of the verb; of speech, that which is reported to have been spoken, by someone addressing a third party
infinitive: the form of a verb that shows no tense and has no subject, often preceded by ’to’ as in ’to be’
inflexion: that action by which various spelling forms such as affixes alter the meaning of a word, as in break, breakable
interjection: an exclamation, one word or several denoting shock or other strong emotion
interrogative: of a pronoun, adjective or adverb, introducing a question; of a sentence, a question
intonation: of speech, the tone which helps to convey meaning
intransitive: of a verb, one that does not have an object
inverted commas: (quotation marks) punctuation marks that enclose direct speech
irregular: of a verb, one which in speech or pronunciation does not conform to the usual pattern, such as one which changes its inside vowel according to tense
limit: of adverbs, modify
manner: of adverbial phrases and clauses, that modify a verb according to the way in which the action of the verb takes place
masculine: of gender, pertaining to male
mood: of a verb, showing its form according to the kind of sentence, e.g. imperative, subjunctive
neuter: of gender, pertaining to that which is neither masculine or feminine
nominative: of case, identifying the subject of a sentence
non-finite: of a verb, the form that is not complete, and cannot take a subject
noun: the name for a person, place or thing
numeral: to do with number
object: the part of a sentence which is acted upon or affected by the action of the verb
parentheses: brackets or dashes enclosing information additional to the basic sentence
parse: to separate a sentence into its individual components, usually by naming them according to their function
part of speech: one of the eight categories of words, nominated according to their function in a sentence
participle: part of a verb tense which can take the function of other parts of speech
passive: of voice, describing a verb, the subject of which suffers the action of that verb
past: of a verb, the tense relating to something which has already happened
perfect: of tense, relating to an action completed in the past
person: of a verb, relating to the subject such as I (singular), they (plural)
personal: of a pronoun, that which shows person, gender and number
phrase: a group of words without a finite verb, qualifying a noun, modifying a verb or having the function of a noun
place: of a phrase or clause, indicating where the action of the verb takes place
pluperfect: of tense, relating to an action that was already complete at some time in the past
plural: of nouns or pronouns, indicating a number that is more than one
possessive: of nouns, pronouns or adjectives, indicating ownership
predicate: all of a sentence or clause, not including the subject
prefix: word element added in front of a base word to modify meaning
preposition: a part of speech showing the relationship of one noun or pronoun to another, usually preceding the word it governs, to form a phrase
present: of a verb, the tense indicating something taking place currently
principal: of a clause, main
pronoun: part of speech which takes the place of a noun to prevent repetition or ambiguity
proper: of a noun, the name or title given to an individual or a particular place, or thing
purpose: of a phrase or clause, indicating intention
qualify: of adjectives, adjectival phrases or clauses, to tell more about a noun or pronoun
question: the kind of sentence that pre-supposes an answer
question mark: the punctuation mark which ends a question, instead of a full stop
reason: of an adverbial phrase or clause, indicating why the action of the verb in the main clause takes place
reflexive: of pronouns which have ’self’ (singular) or ’selves’ (plural) added for emphasis
regular: of verbs, conforming to the common patterns of tense formation
relative: of pronouns, introducing adjectival or noun clauses, and referring to the same subject as that mentioned in another clause
result: of a phrase or clause, indicating something occurring due to the action of a verb in another clause
semi-colon: a punctuation mark used instead of a conjunction to provide a pause, and to link two closely related parts of a sentence
sentence: a group of words including a finite verb and expressing a complete idea; it begins with a capital letter and ends with a full stop, question mark or exclamation mark
simple: of a sentence, consisting only of one main clause; of tense, of which the action is not continuous
singular: of nouns or pronouns, indicating single number, i.e. one only
strong: of verbs, irregular - the inside vowel changes in the past tense
subject: the person or thing that performs or suffers the action of the verb; necessary to form a finite verb
subjunctive: of mood, the verb form that expresses doubt, wish or supposition
subordinate: of a clause, adjectival, adverbial or noun, that is dependent on the main clause and cannot stand alone
suffix: word element added to the end of a base word to indicate part of speech
tense: of a verb, the form which shows the time at which the action of the verb takes place
time: of a phrase or clause, indicating something which occurs at the time at which the action of the verb in the main clause takes place
transitive: of a verb, one which has an object
verb: part of speech expressing doing, being or having
vocative: of case, a word such as a name, addressing someone
voice: of a verb, indicating active or passive
weak: of a verb, the past tense of which ends with ’d’, ’t’ or ’ed’ in a regular form
From bestselling author Isabel L. Beck—an experienced educator who knows what works—this concise volume provides a wealth of practical ideas for building children’s decoding skills by teaching letter-sound relationships, blending, word building and multi-syllable words. The strategies presented for explicit, systematic phonics instruction are ideal for use in primarygrade classrooms or with older students who are having difficulties. Many specific examples bring the instructional procedures to life while elucidating their underlying rationale; appendices include reproducible curriculum materials.
’Making Sense of Phonics makes good sense because it is based on fi ndings from strong evidence-based research. It provides practical strategies for teachers that are consistent with key fi ndings and recommendations from the National Inquiry into the Teaching of Literacy.’
Dr Ken Rowe, Research Director of ACER’s Learning Processes and Contexts research program, and Committee Chair of the National Inquiry into the Teaching of Literacy (2004-2005)
About the author
Isabel L. Beck, PhD, is Professor of Education in the School of Education and Senior Scientist at the Learning Research and Development Center, University of Pittsburgh.
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This comprehensive guide to teaching reading more effectively presents a variety of research- supported approaches to teaching. These approaches have been designed to make learning to read easier and more successful for all children.
By examining the way readers process texts and identifying the knowledge and skills needed to become a proficient reader, author Peter Westwood explains why learning problems can sometimes occur and what can be done to prevent or overcome these difficulties.
About the author
With nearly 50 years of experience in education, Peter Westwood has published many articles and books for teachers and children. He has taught students of all ages from preschool to tertiary, and much of his classroom career was spent teaching students with special educational needs. For many years Peter Westwood has been involved in teacher education in Britain, Australia and Hong Kong, where his most recent position was as Visiting Associate Professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Hong Kong. He now works as an education consultant, and his research interests include learning difficulties, literacy, numeracy, effective teaching methods, teacher competencies, and curriculum adaptation.
Other titles from Peter Westwood:
Numeracy and Learning Difficulties
Learning and Learning Difficulties
Spelling: Approaches to Teaching and Assessment
Second edition
Teaching and Learning Difficulties
Peter Westwood Complete Set
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Engaging and insightful
The Millennial Adolescent
Nan Bahr and Donna Pendergast ACER Press, 2007
How can teachers understand, appreciate and connect with the young people they are educating? What do teachers need to know to develop the most relevant and empowering curriculum; to employ appropriate practices; and to utilise meaningful assessment for adolescents?
Teachers play a pivotal role in the lives of adolescents. They are given the responsibility to educate young people to live as active, informed and engaged members of society. In aspiring to this vision, teachers are mentors and role models; collaborators and guides; disciplinarians and managers; assessors and designers.
The Millennial Adolescent is an insightful new text from ACER Press that will help teachers working with adolescents - as well as those preparing to become teachers of adolescents - understand, appreciate and connect with them.
The text is structured around the principle that effective teachers need to know who they are teaching as well as what to teach, how to teach it, and how to assess the outcome. Using generational theory, The Millennial Adolescent investigates the characteristics of Generation Y, or the Millennial Generation, and points out what all teachers need to know about working with this current generation of students who are described in a number of ways - digital natives, team oriented, confident, multi-taskers, high achievers, and a generation unlike any other.
The book contains well-known frameworks for developing understandings about adolescents, blended and contrasted with a contemporary socio-cultural construction of adolescence, set in our particular time, era and society. This book reflects the uniqueness of Australian contexts, while connecting with international trends and global patterns.
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