Weekly Lessons¶

Week 1 — Principles and Words¶

What Is Grammar?¶

Grammar: the underlying system of rules of a language — what it can and cannot do.
Syntax: arrangement and inter-relations among words in a sentence.
Word classes (contemporary linguistics) vs parts of speech (traditional grammar): function in a sentence determines classification, not the word alone.
You already have intuitive grammar; the goal is conscious command of rules for writing.
Know the rules so you know when it’s OK to break them (Strunk & White: grammar is about style, not rigid constipation).

Writing at the Word Level¶

Voice — your relationship with the reader; what comes through about you.

Tone — the effect of your message on the reader (informed, bored, patronised, etc.).

Style — result of choices at word, sentence, and paragraph level.

Key principles:

Choose words carefully.
Denotation = dictionary definition; connotation = associations a word carries.
Build a rich vocabulary; use figures of speech (metaphors, similes) deliberately.
Aim for le mot juste — the intensely right word.
Vigorous writing is concise (Strunk & White): every word must tell.

Spelling Variants¶

US	UK/AU
catalog	catalogue
center	centre
color	colour
organize	organise

Vocabulary Pitfalls¶

Contronyms: same word, opposite meanings in different contexts (e.g., slim chance vs fat chance — similar; wise man vs wise guy — opposite).
-ough words pronounced differently: enough, although, plough, through, hiccough.
Avoid fillers in speech: “you know”, “like”, “actually”.
Avoid mispronunciations: expresso → espresso, haitch → aitch.

Week 2 — Sentences¶

Parts of Speech and Word Classes¶

Traditional nine parts of speech: noun, pronoun, verb, adjective, adverb, article, conjunction, preposition, interjection.

Example using all nine:

However the good goblin apparently noticed me in the crowd, GOSH!

A word’s function in a sentence determines its part of speech — many words multitask (face as noun vs verb).
Form-class words (open/lexical): nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs — carry content meaning.
Structure-class words (closed/function): articles, prepositions, conjunctions, pronouns — connect and structure.

Rules you can break (zombie rules):

Split infinitives: to boldly go — fine in English.
End sentence with preposition: I have nobody to go with — fine.
Start with and, but, because — fine when purposeful.

Sentence Structure¶

A sentence is grammatically complete, expresses a complete idea, starts with a capital, ends with a period.

Subject + predicate (must contain a finite verb agreeing with the subject).
Finite verb: shows tense and agrees with subject — I did my homework.
Infinitive: to + base form — I love to read. Not finite; alone = sentence fragment (To be, or not to be).

Clause: string of words with subject + predicate including a finite verb.

Independent (main) clause: stands alone as a sentence.
Dependent (subordinate) clause: incomplete alone — Because I love reading…

Sentence Functions¶

Function	Example
Statement	The cat sat on the mat.
Question	Did the cat sit on the mat?
Command	Sit on that mat, cat!
Exclamation	Wow! Look at that cat!

Sentence Forms¶

Simple: one independent clause — Sherlock Holmes waited.
Compound: two+ independent clauses joined by semicolon or coordinating conjunction (FANBOYS: **F**or, **A**nd, **N**or, **B**ut, **O**r, **Y**et, **S**o).

Sherlock Holmes waited, and Watson delayed his visit.
Complex: one dependent clause subordinated to one independent clause.

While Watson moved the lamp, Sherlock Holmes waited. (left-branching)
Compound-complex: combination of compound and complex.

Loose vs Periodic¶

Loose sentence: important information at the beginning.
Periodic sentence: important information at the end — builds suspense.

Common Sentence-Level Problems¶

Problem	Issue	Fix
Fragment	Missing subject or finite verb	Add missing element or combine
Fused/run-on	Two sentences joined with no punctuation	Add period, semicolon, or conjunction
Comma splice	Comma joins two independent clauses	Use period, semicolon, or conjunction — commas don’t join
And-ness	Too many clauses chained with and	Restructure; use subordination
Is-ness	Over-reliance on to be	Replace with strong action verbs
Of-ness	Excessive of constructions	Rewrite with verbs
List-like	Series of tiny independent points	Combine into flowing prose

Week 3 — Verbs¶

Verbs are the heart-throb of the sentence — they do most of the work.

Types of Verbs¶

Finite vs non-finite

Finite: belongs to a subject, shows tense — I wrote, she writes.
Non-finite (verbals): infinitive, participle, gerund — cannot complete a clause alone.

Transitive vs intransitive

Transitive: requires a direct object — I made a cake (cannot say I made alone).
Intransitive: complete without object — Ice melts in the sun.

Linking (copular) verbs: link subject to complement — be, seem, appear, become, feel, look, sound, taste, smell, remain, stay, prove, turn.

Agatha seems intrigued.

Helping (auxiliary) verbs: form tenses with main verb — parts of to be, to do, to have.

Modal auxiliaries: express modality — can, could, may, might, shall, should, will, would, must.

You should read this book next.

Verb Phrases and Phrasal Verbs¶

Verb phrase: main verb + helping verb — I can read, the film has started.
Phrasal verb: main verb + preposition/adverb essential to meaning — turn on, climb up. Never hyphenate.

Non-Finite Verb Forms¶

Form	Ending	Function	Example
Present participle	-ing	With helping verb	I am riding
Past participle	-ed/-en/-t	With helping verb; can be adjective	I have cooked; bored students
Gerund	-ing	Always functions as noun	Swimming can be therapeutic
Infinitive	to + base	Base form	I want to breed show ponies

Split infinitives (to boldly go) are fine in English — the Latin-based rule does not apply.

Tense, Mood, and Voice¶

Three tenses, each with four aspects:

Tense	Simple	Continuous	Perfect	Perfect Continuous
Past	wrote	was writing	had written	had been writing
Present	write	is writing	has written	has been writing
Future	will write	will be writing	will have written	will have been writing

Mood:

Declarative/indicative: statement — I like that cat.
Interrogative: question — Do you like that cat?
Imperative: command — Be kind to that cat!
Subjunctive: hypothetical/wish — If I were that cat… (were replaces was; singular verbs lose -s)

Voice:

Active: subject performs action — I wrote a book.
Passive: subject is acted upon — The book was written (always: form of to be + past participle).
Test: if you can add by goblins after the verb, it’s passive.
Impersonal passive: It was decided, It is felt that… — avoids responsibility.
Use passive deliberately (soften tone, unknown agent); default to active.

Week 4 — Nouns and Pronouns¶

Nouns¶

A noun names a person, place, thing, quality, act, or idea.

Number

Regular plural: add -s/-es (book/books, boss/bosses).
Consonant + y → replace y with i, add -es (city/cities); vowel + y → add -s (boy/boys).
Irregular: child/children, mouse/mice.
Latin plurals: criterion/criteria, phenomenon/phenomena.
Uncountable (no plural): furniture, milk, training.
Collective nouns: singular or plural depending on meaning — The group was unanimous vs The group were divided.

Types

Concrete (tangible): book, chair.
Abstract (ideas): pleasure, justice, wisdom.
Common (non-specific): house, captain.
Proper (specific, capitalised): Sherlock Holmes, London.

Cases: subject, object, complement, appositive, possessive (book’s cover, books’ authors).

Common Noun Problems¶

Noun strings: too many nouns bunched — uncertainty management system → system for managing uncertainty.
Nominalisations (heavy nouns): nouns derived from verbs, often ending in -tion, -ment, -ance — replace with verbs when possible.

Our lack of knowledge about local conditions precluded determination of committee action… → We lacked knowledge of local conditions, so we could not determine how effectively the committee allocated funds…

Pronouns¶

A pronoun stands in place of a noun (pro + nomen).

Person: first (I/we), second (you), third (he/she/it/they).

Types

Type	Examples	Notes
Demonstrative	this, that, these, those	Point to
Interrogative	who, whom, which, what, whose, where	Ask questions
Relative	who, whom, whose, which, that, what	Join to antecedent
Indefinite	anyone, everyone, none, some	None often = not any
Reflexive	myself, yourself, themselves	Subject = object
Intensive	myself, yourself	Emphasis only
Distributive	each, either, neither	Always singular verb
Expletive	it, there	Fill subject slot — use sparingly

That-creep: use who for people, not that — She’s the girl **who* arrived first.*

Pronoun Problems¶

I vs me vs myself

I = subject: Ben and **I* ate breakfast.*
Me = object: The supervisor congratulated Josie and **me*.*
Myself = reflexive or emphatic only: I told **myself*…* / I **myself* knew the answer.*

Agreement: pronoun must agree in person, number, gender with its antecedent — keep the link close and unambiguous.

The chef and her daughter were pleased with **her* progress* — ambiguous.

Who vs whom: whom as object — The girl **whom* you’ve been dancing with*; in practice who is widely accepted in informal writing.

Week 5 — Adjectives and Determiners¶

Adjectives¶

Adjectives modify nouns and pronouns — clarify, describe, delimit, qualify.

Attributive: before (usually) or after the noun — the happy goblin, proof positive.

Predicative: after linking verb, as complement — The goblin seemed happy.

Degrees of comparison

Positive	Comparative	Superlative
bright	brighter	brightest
good	better	best
bad	worse	worst

Add -er/-est for short adjectives; use more/most for longer ones.
Absolute adjectives cannot be graded: perfect, unique, eternal, impossible, minimum.

Royal Order of Adjectives: observation → size → shape → age → colour → origin → material → qualifier.

An expensive old umbrella stand / her long black silk gown

Punctuation

Comma between adjectives of the same category: the long, rectangular wooden box.
No comma after determiner or before noun: six small apples.
Phrasal adjectives hyphenated before noun: wine-dark sea; not after: the sea was wine dark.
Shared ending: the eight- or nine-year-old boy.

Use adjectives sparingly — let nouns and verbs do the work. Avoid clichés (snow-capped mountains, azure skies).

Determiners¶

Introduce nouns; express possession, definiteness, specificity, or quantity — not adjectives (they express relationships).

Types: articles (a, the), possessives (Kate’s), demonstratives (this, that), quantifiers (some, several, one), numbers (first, three).

Same word can be determiner or pronoun depending on function:

We ate several chocolates — determiner.
We ate several — pronoun.

Week 6 — Adverbs¶

Adverbs¶

Adverbs answer: when, where, how, how much, how often, in what manner, to what degree.

Often formed with -ly (quickly), but also: here, now, often, well, almost.
Can modify: verbs, adjectives, prepositions, conjunctions, phrases, clauses, other adverbs.

Degrees: soon, sooner, soonest; badly, worse, worst. Some cannot be graded (now, first, eternally).

Intensifiers: quite, very, rather, extremely, too — enhance emotionally but weaken writing if overused.

Position changes meaning:

I have eyes **only* for you* — only you, no one else.
*Only I have eyes for you* — no one else has eyes for you.

Royal Order of Adverbs: manner → place → frequency → time → purpose.

I meditate blissfully in my garden every afternoon at 4pm to find inner peace.

Use adverbs deliberately and sparingly — prefer strong verbs over adverb + weak verb:

Daria walked lazily → Daria slouched to the bus stop.
Jane ate messily → Jane guzzled her pizza.

Avoid weasel words: actually, basically, generally, apparently, essentially.

Conjunctions¶

Coordinating (FANBOYS): connect independent clauses — for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so.

Alfred is very bright, but he doesn’t concentrate.

Subordinating: introduce dependent clause — although, because, if, unless, until, when, while, whereas.

The day is lost unless we make up some time.

Correlative (always in pairs): either…or, neither…nor, both…and, not only…but also, whether…or, as…as.

Neither a borrower nor a lender be.

Conjunctive adverbs (join main clauses; punctuated with semicolon): however, therefore, moreover, nevertheless, consequently, furthermore, in addition, as a result.

We went to the longest film ever made; finally, it was over.

Week 7 — Prepositions and Paragraphs¶

Prepositions¶

A preposition establishes a relationship with the word following it. Prepositional phrase = preposition + noun/pronoun (functions as adjective or adverb).

Time: on (days/dates), at (specific times), in (non-specific periods), for (duration), during.

My birthday is on Wednesday. I have work at 9:30. She was born in 1946. I studied for eighteen years.

Place: at (addresses), on (streets), in (areas/towns/countries).

I live at 1 Silk Street. I live on Silk Street. I live in London.

Movement: to, toward/towards — I went to the castle gates.

Parallelism: omit repeated preposition when same — I’m repulsed and intrigued by that (not repulsed by and intrigued by).

Idiomatic: preposition choice varies — a knack for, a knack of, a knack to.

Ending a sentence with a preposition is fine (zombie rule). Churchill: “This is the sort of arrant pedantry up with which I will not put.”

Paragraphs¶

A paragraph is a unified block of sentences relating to one main idea.

Structure (expository/academic writing):

Topic sentence — states central idea.
Body — develops with evidence, examples, analysis.
Conclusion — summarises, may link to next paragraph.

Principles:

Unified: one idea or purpose.
Coherent: logical sequence.
Adequately developed: as long as needed, not by sentence count.
Length depends on purpose — newspaper paragraphs may be one sentence.

Cohesion through: transitional expressions, relative pronouns, deliberate repetition, punctuation.

Transitional expressions:

Contrast: however, nevertheless, on the other hand
Addition: furthermore, in addition, moreover
Cause/effect: therefore, consequently, as a result
Example: for instance, specifically
Summary: in conclusion, in short

Give information in broad terms first, then become more specific.

Week 8 — Punctuation¶

Principles¶

Punctuation reveals structure, clarifies meaning, controls pace.
Should be noticeable only to punctuation vigilantes — consistency is paramount.
A grammatically incorrect sentence can be perfectly punctuated; not vice versa.
Writing is not spoken language written down.

Four Types¶

Type	Marks
Stoppers	full stop (period), comma
Linkers	semicolon, colon, dash
Intruders	comma pair, dash pair, brackets
Intoners	exclamation mark, question mark

Also: apostrophe, hyphen, quotation marks, slash, ellipsis.

Full Stop and Comma¶

Full stop: ends a sentence; some abbreviations (check usage).

Comma uses:

After introductory element: However hard I try, I still can’t get everything right.
Prevent overreading: The trip had been fun, for her frame of mind was always good.
Separate main clauses with FANBOYS: The steering was stiff, but the car cruised like a dream.
Between coordinate adjectives: the shiny, silver coin.
Set off non-essential information: Our car, a red sedan, won.
Oxford/serial comma before final and/or in a series of 3+ items: Jane bought books, coffee, and milk.

Comma errors: no comma between subject and verb (The cat sat on the mat — no comma after cat).

Semicolon, Colon, Dash¶

Semicolon: closely related independent clauses — To write is human; to edit is divine. Also in lists with internal commas.

Colon: introduces explanation or list — Only two things matter: dark chocolate and light chocolate.

Em dash (—): gathers thoughts, afterthought — Mild sweetness, creamy centre, made in Belgium — my criteria are steep. Max one pair per sentence.

En dash (–): unspaced in ranges — 1950–2014.

Brackets and Quotation Marks¶

Parentheses (): supplementary material — lowercase, no period if mid-sentence.

Square brackets []: editorial additions to quotations; [sic] for faithful reproduction of errors.

Quotation marks: single for parts of whole (chapter “To Business”); italics for whole works (The Zone of Interest). Question marks inside if part of quoted speech.

Apostrophe, Hyphen, Other¶

Apostrophe:

Contractions: you’re = you are; it’s = it is.
Possessive: singular add ‘s (book’s cover); plural ending in -s add ‘ only (soldiers’ uniforms).
Never for plurals (tomato’s ✗) or possessive pronouns (yours, ours).

Hyphen: compound modifiers — man-eating crocodile vs man eating crocodile; line breaks.

Slash: choice (and/or); line breaks in poetry.

Ellipsis (…) : omission in quotations; pause or trailing off in prose.

Dear John Letter (comma placement matters)¶

Without commas — affectionate. With strategic commas — a breakup letter. Punctuation can completely change meaning.

Writing Assignment — Rubric Notes¶

Peer assessment criteria:

Content — imaginative, engaging, relates to a grammar point.
Structure — cohesive and coherent.
Style — clever, appropriate word choice.
Grammar — excellent command.
Punctuation — excellent command (Oxford comma emphasised).

Key Distinctions¶

Grammatical knowledge: sentence formation.
Grammatical ability: complete text as the unit of focus.
Colon announces or introduces; semicolon links closely related independent clauses.
Avoid passive voice as default — use active unless deliberately softening tone or hiding agent.

Oxford comma example:

I thought I knew how to use nouns, verbs, and adjectives.