Read this story all the way through. Copy it out, adding adjectives/adverbs in the blank spaces. Check that they make sense before you write them down, and check the spelling in the dictionary if you are unsure of them.
“I can’t believe how __________ this tree is,” I said, staring up at the ___________ branches. The air was beginning to get ___________, and the _________ sky was turning _________ on the horizon.
It was the end of the first day of the _______ summer holidays.
My ________ bike was nearby, looking very ________. It had ________ handlebars and ________ tyres.
“It’s ________ way home,” said Carla, with a ________ frown on her ________ face. In the distance, we heard a ________ clap of thunder, which rolled_______ up the valley. The ______ clouds on the horizon looked like _______smoke from some ________ fire. The day had been ________ until now, but a ________ event was about to take place.
Conjunctions
or and so but yet then only since therefore
although because either neither/nor while until as however
1. I didn’t go out ___________ it rained.
2. John went to the shops __________ Bill stayed in.
3. This flower is white, ____________ this one is red.
4. I will wait for you __________ five o’clock.
5. The rabbit ate too much, __________ it got fat.
6. Bill stayed in ____________ John went to the shops.
7. I like toast ___________ it tastes nice.
8. I like apples ____________ I don’t like pears.
9. Tom went out to play ___________ came in an hour later.
10. Charlotte __________ Maggie are friends.
11. He was a giant, ___________ he was weak.
12. The book was not on the shelf, ___________ it was on the desk.
13. We quarrel ___________ we are friends.
14. Both the highwayman ___________ the innkeeper were guilty.
15. Would you be so good __________ to repeat the directions?
16. Either you will confess ___________ I will tell the whole story.
17. ____________ Freddie nor Lynn wants to go to the party.
18. It does not matter to me whether you play ___________ not.
Penpal Letter
11 Princes Place
Stevington
Longmanshire LM2 7UP
25th August 1997
Dear Big Bad Wolf,
My name is Rosie and I am 8 years old. I am quite small, with blue eyes and long, curly red hair. I live with my mum and my two brothers, Robert and Mark. Our house is big with room for us all to play and make noise. We have a climbing frame and swings in our back garden. My brothers like to play football but I like to try and catch butterflies in the back garden.
My favourite food is spaghetti. I like to eat it with everything! What is your favourite food? Is it grandma’s pigs? Why did you eat the two pigs, and Red Riding Hood’s grandmother? Are you always mean? I like going for walks in the woods and visiting my grandma and I don’t think nasty wolves like you should make girls and pigs scared. I think you should try and catch butterflies instead. They’re pretty and you will have to be really gentle and quiet to see them.
When it’s raining I like to write stories about fairies and ballerinas. I like to read stories about real people and people from history but I hate reading stories about teddies that come to life. I also don’t like homework, computers, burglars and cleaning out the fishbow. We have three goldfish called Itsy, Bitsy and Titchy. They live in a big tank in my bedroom and sometimes keep me awake at night when they blow bubbles.
My best friend is called Bill. He likes watching Tom and Jerry on television. He likes boiled eggs but he hates spaghetti. When I eat it he always says “yuk”! When we grow up we want to be astronauts and go and visit other planets and meet the people. Which planet would you like to visit?
Bill and I are in the same class at school. Our teacher is Miss Jenkinson. She is very fat and has curly hair and glasses that she wears on the end of her nose. My favourite subject is P.E. and my worst is Maths. I’m not very good at sums. Did you go to school? What was your favourite subject?
That’s everything about me. Please write back and tell me about you.
Love from your friend
Rosie XXX
Who will you write to?
Your best friend
Someone from another planet
A TV or book character
A relative
A cartoon character
A historical character
Someone from another country
A sporting hero or celebrity
A robot
An animal
What will ou write about?
In your letter you might tell them about your…
self
family
weekend
dreams
likes
dislikes
pets
home
friends
hobbies
hopes
Ask them about all these things and also their…
life
planet
typical day
interests
favourite things
holidays
activities
dream
job
Every English teacher thinks about the “best” way to teach grammar, because there are many difficulties for our students in teaching English grammar. Some grammar structures have exact parallels in the Russian language and that is why they are easy for students. Others have no such parallels but are simple in themselves, while still others are alien and very difficult to grasp.
Very often I think about how to make teaching grammar fun. Before planning a series of exercises for a particular grammar topic I try to do my best to suggest to the students a number of interesting, game-like or communicative practice exercises. Everybody knows guessing games. Not only children like guessing, adults like guessing too. Nowdays there are many popular TV quiz programs. The basic rule of guessing games is very simple: one person knows something that another one wants to find out. I think guessing games are true communicative situations and are very important for foreign language learning. Students like them because they offer good language practice with fun and excitement. Here are some grammar activities I use in my lessons.
Guessing adjectival phrases
Aims: speaking; asking questions
Level: beginners
Time: 10 -15 minutes
Materials: a set of cards or slips of paper on each of which an adjective
noun phrase is written
Procedure: One student is given a phrase (a card) and he tells the others only the noun. The other students have to guess the written phrase. For example, the “knower” gives the noun “girl” and the others might guess:
A good girl? A tall girl? A smart girl?
A teacher can help their students by giving hints to guess an adjective. He/she tells them when they are getting “warm”, and so on. The one who guesses the correct solution gets the next phrase.
Variations:
later, next lesson, the students are given for their homework the assignment to think up their own combinations for guessing.Aims: speaking, writing
Language: use of comparative adjectives to compare subjects
Organization: class
Materials: a blackboard or slips of paper
Procedure: Write several nouns on the blackboard in a circle.Ask the students to suggest a point of comparison between any two.
For example:
A fly is faster than a caterpillar. A dog is cleverer than a cat. A lion is stronger than a dog. |
 |
Draw a line between “a fly and a caterpillar” to represent the comparison. Students try to link as many items as they can, until there is a criss-cross of lines linking the words.
For example:
| Yoghurt is more fattening than milk. Spaghetti is cheaper than cheese. |
 |
Variations
– a teacher can ask students to recall the sentences that are represented by the lines. A teacher points to one line and ask the class what was said when it was drawn in. When a student repeats the sentence, you delete the line and go on, until all the lines are removed.
By Tatyana Abramova, Chita