grammar
‘Tis a funny ole thing, that English language.
I’ve been reading a grammar book today in preparation for my class on Thursday. There is so much I just don’t know about the nuts and bolts stuff. I can’t remember ever learning this sort of building blocks material at school.
Although we did do a lot of spelling bees.
And I distinctly remember a lesson about using an apostrophe to indicate a possessive.
Our main learning tool at primary school seemed to be chanting. We would chant out the spelling of words, the times tables, capital cities, dates, countries and any number of other lists.
And most of this stuff is indelibly imprinted in my memory.
Perhaps I can annoy people on the train on the way to work by chanting out what I need to learn for my course. Or perhaps not.
*Not*, I think. Have pity on them.
March 3rd, 2004 at 7:05 amPhee’s learning her times tables now that she’s in grade 3. I remember doing the “1 times 1 is 1, 2 times 1 is 2” etc etc and chanting it.
I don’t know if that’s what they are doing in class, but we’re trying to test her by asking her a question, then have her answer it. Maybe we should be getting her to chant.
Then again, the neighbours might think we’re a cult….
March 3rd, 2004 at 9:46 amWe didn’t learn things so much by chanting in primary school, but rather by ruthless and blatant competition.
March 3rd, 2004 at 11:29 amWhen I was in grade 6 my teacher made us play “Educational Football”, a quiz game of his own creation based on the moves of football (eg. a goal for your team if you got the question right, a rushed behind for the other team if you got it wrong, or something along those lines). We also played a times tables game where we basically ended up shouting the right answers at each other or at him. No chanting, just shouting. We also had a weekly competition for the neatest handwriting and also for who made the most artistic design using the letter of the week in a square 5 x 5 cms. The winners’ names were then written up on the blackboard for the whole class, and other passers-by, to see.
I continue to blame this teacher, Mr Olsen, for making me into the ruthless, cold-blooded competitor that I am today! If I only I had been one of the chanters, then I might be more willing to have a casual game of Scrabble or Risk etc …