04.1 A RADICAL ALTERNATIVE

04.2 A new systemising of teaching material

04.3 Grammar, bad and good

04.4 Description of our "Make Grammar Talk"

04.5 Some brief discussion points about language learning

04.6 Some examples of grammar "plays" for acting

plays 2 presents and exceptions

plays Im going out tonight Dad Q A (with two presents and exceptions)

playlets Qestion Answer Q A (with 2 pasts)

something in the cellar. Depression (with some any)

04.7 Some examples of "Grammared" newspaper articles

Amazon facts plus my sample essay

Jose, hero

A modern witch and "Dave"

pacifism discussion TV version

04.8 Some examples of my "Express grammar"

New 2 pasts

some, any something anything etc + a play using this grammar

3 futures + plays

04.9 What is CLIL (language integrated learning: ie.Vehicular English in subject teaching)

04.10 What would be the base for "interdisciplinary studies"?

The idea of grammar plays.

There is so little time in class at school, so what time there is must focus on the essential. Unlike those who think grammar is unnatural slavery to rules and abstraction, I think it liberates: YOU decide what you want to say. Most modern formulations of language material (such as European Portfolio) are what I'd call "phrase book naturalists": where the naturalism requires "real language" and so what is learnt is bits and pieces of a phrase book.

Even basic and recurrent phrases I like to teach in grammar groups so that usefulness and language regularity are learnt together.

In these short grammar plays, one structure is highlighted and emphasised in a most UNNATURAL way, yet the speech is perfectly typical. It is just that without such artifical presentation, there is no hope in the school context, of creating that intuitional familiarity with a language's regularities (= grammar!). (You can find other plays on www.middlesmoor.com/teachers section).

see above index for links to examples