Tag: writing skills

Frame sentences with gerund Sentence Formula – Part 6
Sentence Syntax · Writing skills

Sentence Formula – Part 6

reshana

Make sentences with gerundial phrase.

want to speak fluent English? Train yourself more in framing sentences. This may not sound acceptable, but once you train yourself to frame flawless sentences, you can slowly achieve your fluency. 

For those who find it difficult, these formulas come in handy. You have to just remember the formulas and apply words in those places and speak. This is the 6th formula which we are going to see, and will be of great help to middle schoolers. 

After each grammar topic is taken, you should train more by framing sentences on that particular topic. As almost all grammar topics are interconnected, moving on to the next one without learning the first one, may lead to a confusion or improper understanding of the language. 

So, the teacher should ensure that this is done, i.e., enough practice is given through worksheets or activities and make the child understand the grammar concept and then move on to another.  

Formula 6:

It + be + (no use)etc + gerundial phrase.

A gerund, in simpler form, means adding ‘ing’ to the verb.

sleeping

talking

eating

watching etc.

We are going to start our sentence with an “It”, followed by ‘be verb’ and then a gerundial phrase.

Example:

It was fun talking to you.

Start your sentence with ‘It’, 

was – refers to the event that happened in the past tense. 

Adding “ing” to the verb makes it a gerund.

Here, its – talking

Gerundial phrase – talking to you.

Talking to you is a phrase. Since it has a gerund in it, it is a Gerundial phrase.

[[- A phrase is a group of words that has no subject or predicate.

– A phrase can either have a noun or a verb but not both. 

– A phrase cannot stand on its own.]]

Frame sentences without grammar mistakes with these formulas Sentence Formula – Part 5
Sentence Syntax · Writing skills

Sentence Formula – Part 5

reshana

Make sentence with an adjective and 'to' infinitive.

Alphabets form words, words form sentences, sentences are linked with linking words forming compound and complex sentences. Sentences form paragraphs and paragraphs form essays. 

As we have already discussed a lot of how important framing sentences in a child’s education while learning a language. If the child doesn’t learn it correctly in the primary and middle school level, he/she may find it extremely difficult in high school, college, interviews and in his/her job environment. He/ she may stammer a lot as the child did not master the basic skill of forming sentences. 

Let’s jump into formula No.5 without any delay.   

Sentence Formula 5:

It + be + adjective + 'to' infinitive.

This formula no. 5 is looking similar to Formula No.2. Let’s do a comparison.

Formula 2 is:

Subject + verb + Adjective + ‘to’ infinitive.

In formula 2, we start the sentence with a subject like Sara, book, carpet, cat, dog, pen, table etc. 

Example: This book is difficult to solve.

Subject: This book.

Be verb: is – used when the subject is singular and the event happens in the present tense.

Adjective: difficult. (Adjectives are describing nouns).

‘to’ infinitive: to solve. (When ‘to’ is followed by a verb, it is called a ‘to’ infinitive.

In formula 5, we are starting the sentence with “It”, followed by the “be verbs” (am, is was were, are), then an adjective and conclude with a “to” infinitive.

Start the sentence with 

It is (for events that happens in present tense), 

It was (for events that happens in past tense), 

It will be (for events that happens in future tense) or 

It may be (to speak of something which you are not sure of).

Adjective to be used are:

easy, difficult, hard, bad, cruel, impossible, possible. 

Worksheet

Sentence Formula - How to frame sentences? Sentence Formula – Part 4
Sentence Syntax · Writing skills

Sentence Formula – Part 4

reshana

Sentence formula -4

Make sentences

Make sentences with adjectives expressing emotion or desire.

A child excels in English or in any language he/she learns, once she masters the skill of framing sentences with the grammar topic or any new vocabulary word the child learns. But sometimes, a few students who are new to the language find it difficult to do so even after n times of practice. For them, they can try these formulas and just apply words and easily make sentences. They have to just remember the skeleton of the formula. 

Now we are going to have a look on Formula No. 4.

Sentence Formula 4:

Adjectives expressing emotion or desire.

Subject + verb + adjective + 'to' infinitive.

This formula looks familiar for those who have been going through all the formulas so far. 

Yes, it’s same as our formula no.2. The difference is that we were framing sentences with adjectives like, impossible, hard, easy, pleasant in formula no. 2. 

But, here we are going to practice with adjectives that express emotions or desire. The formula is the same. 

I want to differentiate it and show to have a clear idea, and so 2 different posts. 

What are the adjectives that express emotions or desire? 

Fear, scared, afraid, happy, sad, angry, patient, anxious, eager etc.

Example: He was desperate to go there. (DESIRE).

Subject: He

Be verb: was (Event happens in past tense, he refers to one person so singular)

desperate: adjective expressing desire.

‘to’ infinitive: to go (to followed by a verb is called ‘to’ infinitive).

conclude as – to go there/to go to the party etc. 

Worksheet

How to frame sentences in English? Sentence Formula – Part 1
Sentence Syntax · Writing skills

Sentence Formula – Part 1

reshana

Sentence part 1:

How to start the sentence with 'there'?

All living organisms communicate with each other in their own ways including birds, animals etc. Humans communicate through languages. We are having various languages according to the region we live in. 

There are a set of rules to be followed to speak or write a particular language. In order to speak or write that language we have to master that language and practice it a lot to master it. 

For that purpose schools and colleges have been created to impart and expand our learning abilities for us to be successful in future. Only if we know a particular language we can further keep on learning and  understand what is being taught in colleges and universities. So at school level itself we should master the language. This helps us a lot in facing seminars, projects, assignments, group discussions, even simple examinations etc. 

There should be a proper correlation between what we think and what we speak or present.  Or else it would be total disaster. To avoid these let’s learn from basic. 

This sentence formula one is useful for primary students and beginners to help frame sentences at ease. Hope its helpful for teachers. I have attaches a pdf worksheet too, as practice makes a man perfect.

Our sentence formula 1 is:

There + be verb + Subject.

First let’s see what ‘be’ verbs are: 

am, is was, were, are.

am

is

was

were

are

Used when the subject is "I", i.e., when I talk about myself.

Used when the subject is singular and when the event happens in the present tense.

Used when the subject is singular and when the event happens in the past tense.

Used when the subject is plural and when the event happens in the past tense.

Used when the subject is plural and when the event happens in the present tense.

There + be verb + Subject.

This formula is beginners and primary students who are introduced to be verbs. It helps them frame sentences with be verbs. The teacher can use this formula for students who find it difficult to frame sentences or for all students indeed to form proper sentences.  

Like, how we learn formulas in Math and tables which we remember for a lifetime (which is because of repetition), we can adopt this in our English too for those who find it difficult to learn the language. Even if they forget while speaking they can just recall the formula and frame accordingly. 

In this formula, we start our sentence with “There”, followed by the be verbs and then a subject.

As given in the table above, the be verbs are applied according to the subject whether its singular or plural and whether the event happens in the past, present or future tense. 

So always remember while speaking or writing look for the SUBJECT and the TENSE and write accordingly.

For example, 

In the first sentence in the picture, 

“There is a bottle near my table”.

Bottle – singular. 

Event – present tense.

So, we use “is”.

Similarly examine for the other 4 sentences in the picture above. 

Start your sentence with ‘there’, use be verbs according to your sentence(depending on whether the event happens in past or present tense and whether the subject is singular or plural). Refer the table above.

 

Worksheet with answers

How to write a story in English? Story writing
Writing skills

Story writing

reshana

Story writing

Story writing essentials

A story is an account of incidents or events, either fictitious(not true) or non-fictitious(true).

Fiction – Fiction story describes imaginary events and people. It refers to something that is not true. It is not based on the true story. We learn things differently from fiction than from non-fiction.

 

Non-fiction – It refers to factual(true) stories focused on actual events and people. Examples include biographies, scientific, technical, or writings on art and literature.

Genre – It refers to the category or style of literary composition, like comedy, tragedy, romance, thriller, science fiction, fantasy, horror, drama, fairy tale, folklore, fable etc.

Genre = setting + plot + character.

E.g., Forest + kill + villain = Thriller.

Haunted house + possession + ghost = Horror.

 

 

What makes a story a story?

Let’s move on with the steps of how to write an awesome story.

Step 1: PLOT

Have a clear idea of the plot of the story. The plot should be designed in your mind before you begin to write.

Title of the story

You may choose the main character of the story, or a proverb or quotation that suits the story. 

Character

The reader should feel something for the characters. All the characters in your story should be realistic, memorable and interesting. Characters are the heart of any story and the depth of the character is important.

Setting

The place and time, i.e., when and where the action takes place is called the setting. 

The time refers to the actual date and time or seasons, climate or an era.

The place can be anything ranging from a room in the house or outer space. It can be imaginary as well. 

Plot and the story mountain

The beginning, middle and the end is the plot of the story. The plot is what actually happens in the story and the main structure of the story.

Story mountain is dividing the story into sections. It can be drawn for each character of the story to get a clear idea of what happens to the character at the beginning , middle and end of the story. This enables to have a clear idea of each character in the story and to avoid confusion later while writing the story. 

Beginning – Introduction of main characters, sets a tone to the story.

Conflict – It gives an idea of things to come. 

Climax – Where the tension arises and major action or turning point takes place.

Deflation – The tension falls and cleaning up process is done.

Resolution – The actual end of the story, maybe, happy or sad or sometimes left up to the readers. The conclusion is important. The whole story should be made up to it naturally, and then it should come up as a bit of surprise. 

Theme

The main story line is referred to as the theme and it is the message(moral) of the story. The author writes the story to deliver the message (theme) to the readers. 

E.g., forgiveness, love, patriotism, neglection, isolation, democracy, war, hatred, fear, parenting today, friendship, revenge, good vs evil, evolution, the future, etc.

Dialogues

The communication between two characters is called a dialogue. Dialogues help the characters move along the plot in a realistic way. Dialogues express feelings, thoughts and motives. It reveals important details and secrets. 

It is important as it shows relationship and tension between characters  and character traits. It sets the tone and atmosphere of the scene and helps advance or carry forward your storyline. 

Step 2: OUTLINE

In case an outline is given, follow it and do not omit any point. Keep the order in which the points are given in the outline. 

Connect to the points accordingly or else the whole story will be disconnected and jerky. 

Example:

Lamb eating grass – wolf came near her – sheep started pleading – sheep asked to wait – let the grass digest – to taste better – asked to let her dance – asked the wolf to ring the bell – shepherd heard sound – saved the wolf.

This is the outline of the story. You can write an outline for your own story, before starting to write the complete story. This helps to have a clear idea of the framework or structure of the story. From the outline, write the complete story with proper dialogues and connectivity. 

 

Step 3: COMPLETE STORY

The clever lamb.

One fine evening, near a hill, a lamb was eating fresh, sweet grass. She failed to notice that she was away from her flock of sheep. A wolf seeing this sheep alone planned his meal and started walking nearer to her. When she saw the wolf, she was shocked and immediately started to plead. 

“Please don’t eat me. My stomach is full of grass. You can wait till the food digests so that my meat tastes much better”. 

The foolish wolf believed her. The sheep wanted to buy more time so she said, “Allow me to dance so that the food gets digested fast”. 

The wolf said, “Fine”.

As the sheep danced she got an idea.

“Dear wolf if you ring my bell louder I can dance faster”

The wolf rang the bell so hard the shepherd heard the sound and ran quickly. He seized out his stick, chased the wolf and saved the lamb.

Moral – Be quick witted and shrewd.

story elements
story mountain elements

Story writing final pointers

 – You can elongate or add in more dialogues and details to the above story as per your vast imagination. If you wish to elongate, make sure to hold the interest of your readers by making your story interesting.

 – See that your composition is grammatical and idiomatic and in good simple English. Revise your work and if necessary rewrite it. 

 – Just make sure to connect the dots from the beginning till the end and not leave loose ends.

 – Try your hands on writing a bunch of short stories initially. Then move on to long ones and finally I wish you write an awesome story book.

Happy writing….

Tips on How to write a stunning paragraph? Paragraph writing
Writing skills

Paragraph writing

reshana

Alphabets form words, words form sentences, sentences are linked together with linking words, sentences form paragraphs and paragraphs form essays.

Let’s brush up on how to write an awesome paragraph.

Introduction

- Say how you feel (or)
- tell a fact about the topic given (or)
- ask a related interesting question about the topic.

Supporting details

- You can give descriptions, reasons, examples or details of your topic sentence.
- Have at least 3 supporting details.
- add comments and further explain the details.
- add only necessary details.

Conclusion

- Say how do you feel (or)
- What lesson did you learn (or)
- Give advice to the readers based on the topic (or)
- Ask an interesting question (or)
- tell your personal opinion (or)
- add a quote.

PARAGRAPH DEFINITION

A paragraph is a number of sentences grouped together and relating to one particular topic.

Why writing a proper paragraph is important?

An essay is broken up into sections. These sections are called paragraphs.
- It makes reading easier.
- For each new paragraph there should be a change of topic and development to the next level of the topic.
- If there are no paragraphs, it looks uninteresting and not easy to read.

paragraph writing tips
Paragraph writing outline

1. Learn to frame sentences, simple, compound and complex sentences. 

2. While framing sentences we deal with one thought. 

3. Similarly, each paragraph must deal with one topic or idea.

 

1. Every sentence in a paragraph must be closely related with the topic of what you are writing.

2. Set the theme in your mind and plan its details.

3. There should be a CONNECTIVITY of all the sentences in the paragraph you write and should not deviate from the main theme.

The topic sentence, also called the key sentence, carries the subject to be dealt with the paragraph. It is the first sentence of the paragraph or so called the introduction. 

Planning ahead of what to write.

Paragraphs are miniature essays, where there should be connectivity between sentences, treating one definite subject in a logical order of thought.
- When you are given a topic, choose one thing or theme to say about it and stick to it till the end.
- For e.g., if you are going to write about dinosaurs, choose one theme to write about it like,

  • Its habitat.
  • Food habits.
  • Hunting nature.
  • How it got extinct? etc.

Choose any one of the above categories for your paragraph. Stick to it till the end and don’t forget about the connectivity. Start with an interesting introduction and satisfying conclusion which sums up the whole idea of your paragraph. 

And if you write one paragraph for each category mentioned above, with a separate introduction and conclusion paragraph, TADA, it becomes an essay!!!! 

How to write a stunning paragraph?

1. The sequence of thoughts or the development of the subject must be related in the order of their occurrence, and all ideas should be connected with the leading idea and arranged accordingly.

1. The first and the last line of the paragraph are the two most important sentences.

2. The first line should arouse the interest of the reader and the last line should satisfy it. 

Avoid same sentence construction which makes your paragraph boring. Description, reasons, details, examples, comments, suggestions, ideas, opinion, can be added in a logical order to create variety in your paragraph.

Paragraph on Earthquake
Sample paragraph on Earthquake.

Here is an example paragraph on Earthquake.

My theme is a general description on it. 

You can choose your own, of which you find interesting, like,

–Parts of the Earth most affected (or)

–How to create awareness? (or)

–What happens after an Earthquake? (or)

–How to know if an Earthquake is going to happen? etc. 

 

Paragraph writing tips and essentials
Write a paragraph about your favorite star.
Paragraph writing tips and essentials
Write a paragraph on Examination.

Keep the language simple, the style direct, and the sentences short to keep your readers hooked to your paragraph. 

Enjoy writing!!!!