Para esclarecer dúvidas ou ajuda on line: julianofraga13@hotmail.com

19/01/08

Hoje, uma aulinha de próverbios do inglês:

 

Oi pessoal, início de ano é sempre a mesma história, a gente faz um monte de planos e anota (write down) tudo. Esses dias eu estava conversando com Adam (American English Speaker) e perguntei, “What are your new year’s resolutions” a resposta dada foi digna de reflexão. Ele me falou que ele não costuma fazer esse tipo de planejamento anual, que não espera um ano inteiro para começar a agir em busca da realização dos seus sonhos. Creio que ele tem razão, pois eu acredito no ditado:

 

Não deixe para amanhã o que você pode fazer hoje. Do not put off for tomorrow what you can do today.

 

Aliás, vamos conhecer mais alguns ditados interessantes.

Haste makes waste.A pressa é inimiga da perfeição.

 

One man’s happiness is another man’s sadness.Alegria de uns, tristeza de outros.

 

Half a loaf is better than none.Antes pouco do que nada.

 

Better alone than in bad company.Antes só do que mal acompanhado.

 

Better late than never.Antes tarde do que nunca.

 

Behind a great man there is always a great woman.Atrás de um grande homem há sempre uma grande mulher.

 

Barking dogs seldom bite.Cachorro que late muito não morde.

 

Only the wearer knows where the shoe pinches.Cada um sabe onde o sapato aperta.

 

Do not look a gift horse in the mouth.Cavalo dado não se olha os dentes.

 

Enjoy every moment because life is short.Curta que a vida é curta.

 

Grain by grain the hen’s stomach is full.De grão em grão a galinha enche o papo.

 

God is great.Deus é grande.

 

He who treads softly goes far.Devagar se vai ao longe.

 

A man is judged by the company he keeps.Digas com quem andas e eu te direi quem és.

 

Do as I say, not as I do.Faça como eu digo e não como eu faço.

 

Até sábado!

 

12/01/08

The adverbs in English

Adverbs tell us in what way someone does something. Adverbs can modify verbs, adjectives or other adverbs.
Adjectives tell us something about a person or a thing. Adjectives can modify nouns or pronouns.

Adjective	Adverb
Mandy is a careful girl.	Mandy drives carefully.
Mandy is very careful.

---

Form

Adjective + -ly

Adjective	Adverb
dangerous	dangerously
careful	carefully
nice	nicely
easy	easily
horrible	horribly
electronic	electronically
irregular forms
good	well
fast	fast
hard	hard

Tip: Not all words ending in -ly are adverbs.
adjectives ending in -ly: friendly, silly, lonely, ugly
nouns, ending in -ly: ally, bully, Italy, melancholy
verbs, ending in -ly: apply, rely, supply
There is no adverb for an andjective ending in -ly.

---

Types of adverbs

1) Adverbs of manner
quickly
kindly
2) Adverbs of degree
very
rather
3) Adverbs of frequency
often
sometimes
4) Adverbs of time
now
today
5) Adverbs of place
here
nowhere

Die comparison of adverbs in English

There are three forms:

- positive
- comparative
- superlative

---

A - Comparison with -er/-est

hard - harder - (the) hardest

We use -er/-est with the following adverbs:

1) all adverbs with one syllable

fast	faster	fastest
high	higher	highest

2) The adverb: early

---

B - Comparison with more - most

carefully - more carefully - (the) most carefully

adverbs ending on -ly (not: early)

---

C - Irregular adverbs

well	better	best
badly	worse	worst
much	more	most
little	less	least
late	later	last
far	farther further	farthest furthest

ATTENTION!
In informal English some adverbs are used without -ly (e.g. cheap, loud, quick). There are two forms of comparison possible, depending on the form af the adverb:
cheaply - more cheaply - most cheaply
cheap - cheaper - cheapest

The position of adverbs in sentences

We can put adverbs in different positions in sentences. There are three main positions but also a lot of exceptions.
In English we never put an adverb between the verb and the object.

We often play handball. - CORRECT

We play often handball. - WRONG

 

---

The three main positions of adverbs in English sentences

1) Adverb at the beginning of a sentence

Unfortunately, we could not see Mount Snowdon.

2) Adverb in the middle of a sentence

The children often ride their bikes.

3) Adverb at the end of a sentence

Andy reads a comic every afternoon.

---

More than one adverb at the end of a sentence

If there are more adverbs at the end of a sentence, the word order is normally:
Manner - Place - Time
Peter sang the song happily in the bathroom yesterday evening.

Adverbs of frequency

always, usually, regularly, normally, often, sometimes, occasionally, rarely, seldom, never are adverbs of frequency.
The position of these adverbs is:
before the main verb

		Adverb of frequency	Verb
I		always	get up	at 6.45.
Peter	can	usually	play	football on Sundays.
Mandy	has	sometimes	got	lots of homework.

after a form of to be am, are, is (was, were)

	Verb	Adverb of frequency
Susan	is	never	late.

The adverbs often, usually, sometimes and occasionally can go at the beginning of a sentence.
Sometimes I go swimming.
Often we surf the internet.
Somtimes these adverbs are put at the end of the sentence.
We read books occasionally.
The adverbs rarely and seldom can go at the end of the sentence.
He eats fish very seldom.
 
The following adjectives and adverbs have the same form:

Adjective	Adverb
close	close
daily	daily
early	early
fair	fair
far	far
fast	fast
free	free
hard	hard
high	high
late	late
long	long
low	low
right	right
wide	wide
wrong	wrong

 
The following adverbs are not derived from adjectives:

Adverbs	Comment
here	adverb of place
there
today	adverb of time
now
then
still
soon
yet
often	adverb of frequency
sometimes
never
hard
hardly

 
These adverbs have two forms:

without -ly	with -ly
fair	fairly
free	freely
high	highly
late	lately
most	mostly
near	nearly
pretty	prettily
right	rightly
wrong	wrongly

 

Fill in the words in brackets as adjective or adverb like in the example. Example: Peter works ______ (slow). Answer: Peter works slowly.

1) He reads a book. (quick) 2) Mandy is a girl. (pretty) 3) The class is loud today. (terrible) 4) Max is a singer. (good) 5) You can open this tin. (easy) 6) It's a day today. (terrible) 7) She sings the song . (good) 8) He is a driver. (careful) 9) He drives the car . (careful) 10) The dog barks . (loud)

Imp

Fill in the words in brackets as adjective or adverb like in the example. Example: Peter works ______ (slow). Answer: Peter works slowly.

1) He reads a book. (quick) 2) Mandy is a girl. (pretty) 3) The class is loud today. (terrible) 4) Max is a singer. (good) 5) You can open this tin. (easy) 6) It's a day today. (terrible) 7) She sings the song . (good) 8) He is a driver. (careful) 9) He drives the car . (careful) 10) The dog barks . (loud)

Imp

Fill in the words in brackets as adjective or adverb like in the example. Example: Peter works ______ (slow). Answer: Peter works slowly.

1) He reads a book. (quick) 2) Mandy is a girl. (pretty) 3) The class is loud today. (terrible) 4) Max is a singer. (good) 5) You can open this tin. (easy) 6) It's a day today. (terrible) 7) She sings the song . (good) 8) He is a driver. (careful) 9) He drives the car . (careful) 10) The dog barks . (loud)

Fill in the words in brackets as adjective or adverb like in the example. Example: Peter works ______ (slow). Answer: Peter works slowly.

1) He reads a book. (quick) 2) Mandy is a girl. (pretty) 3) The class is loud today. (terrible) 4) Max is a singer. (good) 5) You can open this tin. (easy) 6) It's a day today. (terrible) 7) She sings the song . (good) 8) He is a driver. (careful) 9) He drives the car . (careful) 10) The dog barks . (loud)

Fill in the words in brackets as adjective or adverb like in the example. Example: Peter works ______ (slow). Answer: Peter works slowly.

1) He reads a book. (quick) 2) Mandy is a girl. (pretty) 3) The class is loud today. (terrible) 4) Max is a singer. (good) 5) You can open this tin. (easy) 6) It's a day today. (terrible) 7) She sings the song . (good) 8) He is a driver. (careful) 9) He drives the car . (careful) 10) The dog barks . (loud)

Fill in the words in brackets as adjective or adverb like in the example. Example: Peter works ______ (slow). Answer: Peter works slowly.

1) He reads a book. (quick) 2) Mandy is a girl. (pretty) 3) The class is loud today. (terrible) 4) Max is a singer. (good) 5) You can open this tin. (easy) 6) It's a day today. (terrible) 7) She sings the song . (good) 8) He is a driver. (careful) 9) He drives the car . (careful) 10) The dog barks . (loud)

 

Itaúna, 28 de novembro de 2007:
 
Caros leitores,
 
Venho através deste informativo comunicar à vocês que a partir de 30 de novembro, entrarei de féria desta coluna e somente retornarei no dia 02 de janeiro de 2008, portanto, não haverão mais publicações, dicas ou matérias nesse local esse ano.
Agradeço à todos pelas visita, comentários, pedidos de dicas!
Informo novamente de que a partir do dia 02 de janeiro volto e já respondo dúvidas e dou sugestões além de novas publicações!
Agradeço e desejo boas férias à todos, um ótimo ano novo e feliz natal, com ótimos acontecimentos.
 
Juliano Fraga

 

17/11/07

Olá!
Aí vai um texto para tradução!Curtam!
Juliano
 
History of Halloween

Halloween falls on October 31st each year in North America and other parts of the world.  What do you know about Halloween?  Do you celebrate it in your country?  Here is a little history about it.

Like many other holidays, Halloween has evolved and changed throughout history.  Over 2,000 years ago people called the Celts lived in what is now Ireland, the UK, and parts of Northern France.  November 1 was their New Year's Day.  They believed that the night before the New Year (October 31) was a time when the living and the dead came together.
More than a thousand years ago the Christian church named November 1 All Saints Day (also called All Hallows.)  This was a special holy day to honor the saints and other people who died for their religion.  The night before All Hallows was called Hallows Eve.  Later the name was changed to Halloween. 
Like the Celts, the Europeans of that time also believed that the spirits of the dead would visit the earth on Halloween.  They worried that evil spirits would cause problems or hurt them.  So on that night people wore costumes that looked like ghosts or other evil creatures.  They thought if they dressed like that, the spirits would think they were also dead and not harm them.
The tradition of Halloween was carried to America by the immigrating Europeans.  Some of the traditions changed a little, though.  For example, on Halloween in Europe some people would carry lanterns made from turnips.  In America, pumpkins were more common.  So people began putting candles inside them and using them as lanterns.  That is why you see Jack 'o lanterns today.
These days Halloween is not usually considered a religious holiday.  It is primarily a fun day for children.  Children dress up in costumes like people did a thousand years ago.  But instead of worrying about evil spirits, they go from house to house.  They knock on doors and say "trick or treat."  The owner of each house gives candy or something special to each trick or treater.

Happy Halloween!

Other text:
 
 
Levi's Blue Jeans

Do you enjoy wearing Levi's blue jeans?  Blue jeans have become popular all over the world, but do you know how they got started?  Read on to find out...

Levi Strauss was born in Germany in the mid 1800's and emigrated to the United States as a young man.  He lived in New York City and learned the dry-goods business for several years.  In 1853 he took his knowledge and his dreams to San Francisco (California., USA.)  His dream to succeed came true over the next 20 years as he became a very successful businessman.

Many of Levi Strauss' customers were cowboys and miners.  They needed clothing that was strong and durable.  Strauss found a special fabric from France that was comfortable and lasted a long time.  It was called "serge de Nimes," which was later shortened to the word denim.

Another man named Jacob Davis bought large amounts of the denim fabric from Levi Strauss.  He was a tailor who made pants for hard-working men.  One of his customers was continually tearing the pockets off his pants.  So Jacob Davis decided to put rivets on certain parts of the pants to make them stronger.  The customer loved the new pants so much that he told all his friends, and soon Jacob Davis was busy making lots of pants with rivets.
Jacob Davis soon realized that using rivets was a great business idea, and he didn't want anybody to steal that idea.  He decided that he would need to get a patent.  But being a poor tailor, he didn't have enough money to pay for the patent.  After thinking it over, he went to the businessman Levi Strauss and told him his idea.  He said, "If you agree to pay for the patent, we will share the profits from the riveted pants."  Levi Strauss did agree, and the new riveted pant business was called Levi Strauss and Company.  Today Levi's jeans are more popular than ever, and Levi's name continues to live on.

 

April Fool's Day 

I want to tell you...   I just gave birth to 5 babies last weekend.  Isn't that exciting?  Oh, you don't believe me?  Okay then, I stole some money from a bank on Saturday night.  Now do you believe me?  (Actually, I hope you don't.)  April 1st, or April Fools Day, is the day when we play jokes on people.  Do you have it in your country?

April Fool's Day started in the sixteenth century in Europe.  Before that time, New Year's Day was celebrated on April 1st.  Then a new calendar was introduced called the Gregorian calendar.  January 1st became the first day of the year, but many people did not know about it.  So those who continued to celebrate New Year's Day on April 1st were teased.  They were called fools. 
Nowadays we play jokes on people on April 1st.  For example, someone might put salt in the sugar container so another person could "accidentally" put it in their coffee.  Or someone might change the time on another person's alarm clock so that person would unknowingly wake up earlier or later than planned.  Or maybe a person would tell a lie to make someone else shocked. 
After we  play the trick, we say "April Fool."  Then the poor person realizes he was fooled.   It is generally done in the spirit of fun and doesn't cause any real harm to anyone.  Do you have any great jokes to play on anyone today?  Try it out.  Just don't forget to say "April Fool" when the other person begins looking a little confused.
 

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Have you heard of Martin Luther King, Jr.?  Every year on the third Monday of January, we have a holiday.  It's called Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.  Martin Luther King, Jr. was a famous man.  Learn more about him.
 
Vocabulary
races/ racial- groups of people based on looks (skin color) and background, for example- white people, Asian people, black people, etc.
to segregate/ segregation- dividing into groups, usually talking about race, for example- black people and white people didn't go to the same schools and lived in different neighborhoods
minister- leader of a church
rights- freedoms, what you are allowed to do
violence- hurting other people
to assassinate- to kill
 
Reading
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was born in Atlanta, Georgia in the United States in 1929.  At that time in America, black people didn't have equal rights with white people.  Black people had to sit in the back of busses.  The schools were segregated and there were even separate public restrooms for black people and white people.  Black people's lives were not very good.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was a minister in the Baptist Church.  He fought against racial segregation.  He wanted equal rights for all people.  But he didn't use violence in his fight.  He asked people to fight peacefully.  For example, he asked black people to ride in the front of the bus.  More than 200,000 people went to Washington D.C. to listen to him speak and ask the government to change unfair laws.    
Because of Martin Luther King, Jr., many laws began to change in the United States.  But many white people disagreed with him and his ways.  In 1968, Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated by a white man.
Every year on the third Monday of January, Americans remember Martin Luther King, Jr.  They try to remember how much America has changed.  And they think about how much more America should change in the future.

5-Minute English: gramática, leitura e áudio para inglês básico

10.09.2007 | Básico: áudio, Básico: leitura | Comente

A proposta do 5-Minute English, criado pela professora Sheri Summers, é oferecer lições de inglês curtas para quem precisa ou gosta de estudar sozinho. Tem de tudo: gramática, vocabulário, leitura, áudio e até um pouco de pronúncia. As lições de gramática, por exemplo, tem uma explicação curtinha seguida de exercícios interativos (veja essa sobre o Present Perfect); as de leitura começam com um glossário - tudo em inglês - seguido do texto e exercício de compreensão (veja essa sobre o livro O Alquimista, um dos favoritos da professora). Em geral, o 5-Minute English é indicado para quem já tiver um inglês básico ou intermediário.
Veja as principais seções do site:
Gramática: cerca de 30 lições curtas com exercícios interativos
Leitura: mais de 20 lições com glossário, texto e exercícios de compreensão
Vocabulário: lições bem específicas, não tem tanta coisa assim
Áudio: cerca de 15 lições - uma parte delas ainda está sem áudio, apesar de constar do índice de Listening - leia, ouça e faça exercícios.
Speaking: a professora Sheri oferece aulas ao vivo (duração de 75 minutos) com Skype para grupos de 3-4 alunos ao custo de US$ 10 por hora (cerca de 20 reais). No fim da aula, os alunos recebem a gravação da aula em mp3.
Acesse o 5-Minute English

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Wacky Web Tales: estorinhas interativas para testar seu inglês básico

14.08.2007 | Professores de Inglês, Básico: leitura | Comente

Você sabe dar exemplos de substantivos no plural, adjetivos, verbos no presente ou no passado - em inglês? É coisa desse tipo que o Wacky Web Tales vai pedir que você faça antes de ler as estorinhas do site - e o resultado é divertidinho porque usa as palavras que você inseriu.

Como usar:
Lá na página do Wacky, clique em um dos títulos para chegar na tela interativa, e insira as informações pedidas. Desde nome de país até uma exclamação (como Wow!), tudo será usado como parte da estória.
Depois que você completar todos os campos, clique no botão vermelho, See Your Wacky Web Tale, para ver o resultado. Se precisar de ajuda, tente o botão verde, Parts of Speech Help, para explicações básicas sobre substantivos, verbos, advérbios e adjetivos, ou veja o Grammarnet, que explica tudo em português.

É uma atividade que pode ser legal para quem ensina inglês a crianças e tem acesso à Internet na sala de aula, ou simplesmente para quem quer treinar parts of speech (as “partes do discurso” - em outras palavras, saber o que é um substantivo, um verbo no presente, um adjetivo, etc) e fazer uma leitura não muito séria.
Acesse o Wacky Web Tales

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Notícias em inglês bem simples com áudio, para nível básico: Simple English News

02.04.2007 | Sites com RSS, Básico: áudio, Básico: leitura | Comente

Feito pelo jornalista e professor de inglês Sam Margolis, o Simple English News é o que o nome diz: um site de notícias em inglês simples. Tem esportes, negócios, tecnologia e outras seções comuns em jornais, todas com notícias bem curtinhas e com áudio. Recomendado para alunos de básico “avançado” e pré-intermediário, o Simple English News é até melhor do que o VOANews por ser menos complexo e ideal para quem quiser treinar diariamente sem gastar muito tempo.
Para acompanhar as atualizações do site, inscreva-se em um dos programas (leitores de feeds) como o Meu Yahoo ou o Google Reader.

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Contos infantis de Beatrix Potter em inglês, com texto e áudio

11.02.2007 | Básico: áudio, Básico: leitura, Intermediário: áudio, Intermediário: leitura, Inglês para Crianças | Comente

Nove contos infantis em inglês da escritora e ilustradora Beatrix Potter estão disponíveis para leitura no Kid’s Corner. Clique nas figuras na página inicial para ver os textos de Peter Rabbit, Two Bad Mice, Timmy Tiptoes e outros, todos com as ilustrações originais.
Mais embaixo na página você encontra também dois desses contos com o áudio em inglês: Squirrel Nutkin e Two Bad Mice.
E lá no fim da página, mais estórias com áudio de Lewis Carroll (Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland), dos irmãos Grimm (The Frog Prince), Charles Dickens (A Christmas Carol) e mais…

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Diálogos, leitura e vocabulário de inglês: saiba como ir ao médico nos EUA

10.02.2007 | Básico: vocabulário, Básico: leitura, Intermediário: vocabulário, Intermediário: leitura, Cultura estrangeira / Ajuda ao aluno | Comente

Para quem quer conhecer melhor os diálogos típicos relacionados a marcar horário com médico e fazer consulta nos Estados Unidos, aí vai: essa página do site LiteracyNet.org é um índice de recursos só para esse fim.
Em Dialogs, vários exemplos de conversas em pessoa e por telefone sobre consultas, sintomas e idas ao hospital. Não tem áudio, mas vale a pena ler para ter noção de como as coisas acontecem por lá (um dos objetivos do site é ajudar quem veio de outros países a melhorar o inglês e se adaptar melhor à cultura americana.) Em Readings, você pode ler artigos em inglês relacionados à saúde e depois fazer um teste on-line para verificar a compreensão; e em Puzzles, você pratica vocabulário relacionado a corpo, saúde, farmácia e mais com palavras cruzadas e outros jogos.
Indicado para nível básico e acima.

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Starfall: site multimídia para crianças aprendendo inglês

07.02.2007 | Professores de Inglês, Básico: áudio, Básico: leitura, Inglês para Crianças | Comente

O Starfall é um site feito para crianças americanas que estão aprendendo a ler - é um ótimo recurso para professores de inglês que queiram tentar algo diferente com crianças, se tiverem acesso a Internet durante a aula. O site tem uma variedade muito grande de materiais, quase tudo animado e com som. Veja as 4 seções (da inicial à mais avançada):

• Clique em ABC’s para ouvir os sons das letras do alfabeto e exemplos - no topo, você vai ver ABC printouts, onde você pode imprimir uma worksheet para cada letra do alfabeto inglês;

• Em Learn to Read, animações com áudio ajudam as crianças a praticar a formação de palavras do inglês usando vários fonemas (an, et, og, etc.) Para cada dupla de sons (por exemplo, a primeira dupla é an e at) tem uma estorinha que reforça o aprendizado com várias palavras com os mesmos sons (a primeira é Zac the Rat.) Na coluna à direita, Skills, mais atividades multimídia.

• Em It’s Fun to Read, historinhas animadas com áudio sobre música, poesia, artistas famosos e outros temas oferecem prática adicional com frases curtas em inglês;

• Em I’m Reading, um menu com séries de mini-livros on-line divididos em temas: Fiction and Non-Fiction, Comics, Chinese Fables e outros. Todos os mini-livros são ilustrados e ao clicar em qualquer palavra o aluno ouve a pronúncia.

Pode parecer que isso tudo já é muito, mas tem bem mais. Para quem trabalha com crianças, o Starfall é imperdível mesmo que seja só para ter idéias novas para as aulas.

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Modals

Can

2. permission

3. theoretical possibililty - Anybody can make mistakes. The road can be blocked (it is possible to block the road).

Could

1. past ability

2. present or future permission

3. present possibility (theoretical or factual) - We could go to the concert. The road could be blocked.

4. possibility or ability in UNREAL conditions - If we had more money, we could buy a car.

May

1. permission

2. possibility (factual) - The road may be blocked (it is possible that the road is blocked).

Might

1. permission (rare)

2. possibility (theoretical or factual)

Shall

1. willingness (2nd or 3rd person) - He shall get his money.

2. intention (1st person) - We shall overcome.

3. insistence - You shall do as I say (I insist on it).

Should

1. obligation

2. logical necessity

3. after certain expressions - It's odd that you should say that. I'm sorry that this should have happened.

4. in normal real conditions - If you should change your mind, please let us know.

Will

1. willingness (in polite requests)

2. intention (usually contracted) - I'll write as soon as I can.

3. insistence (no contraction) - We will do it, whatever you say (He insists on it).

4. logical necessity - The game will be over by now.

5. habitual present - Oil will float on water.

6. future

Would

1. willingness

2. insistence - He would do that (he insists on it).

3. characteristic activity in the past

4. unreal condition - He would smoke too much it I didn't stop him.

5. probability - This would be his mother.

Must

1. oblligation

2. logical necessity

Irregular:
 

VERB GROUPS

IRREGULAR PAST TENSES

II. beat - beat, cost - cost, cut - cut, fit - fit, hurt - hurt, hit - hit, let - let, put - put, quit - quit, set - set, shut - shut,

III. blow - blew, draw - drew, fly - flew, grow - grew, know - knew, see - saw,

IV. bind - bound, find - found, grind - ground, wind - wound,

V. begin - began, drink - drank, ring - rang , run - ran, shrink -shrank, sing - sang, sink - sank, sit - sat, spit - spat, spring -sprang, stink - stank, swim - swam,

VI. bite - bit, hide - hid, light - lit, slide - slid,

VII. bend - bent, build - built, lend - lent, send - sent, spend - spent,

VIII. break - broke, choose - chose, dive - dove, drive - drove, freeze - froze, ride - rode, rise - rose, sell - sold, shine - shone, speak - spoke, steal - stole, swear - swore, tell - told, tear - tore, wake - woke, wear - wore, write - wrote,

IX. become - became, come - came, eat - ate, forgive - forgave, give - gave, lie - lay,

X. cling - clung, dig - dug, fling - flung, hang - hung, spin - spun, stick - struck, sting - stung, strike - struck, string - strung, swing - swung, win - won,

XI. bleed -bled, breed - bred, creep - crept, deal - dealt, dream - dreamt, fall - fell, feed - fed, feel - felt, flee - fled, hear - heard, hold - held, keep - kept , lead - led, leave - left, mean - meant, meet - met, read - read, XII. lay - laid, pay - paid, say - said,

OTHERS: can - could, forget - forgot, get - got, go - went , have - had, lose - lost, make - made, shoot - shot, stand - stood, take - took, understand - understood,
 
Very easy:
 
The articles:
 

The Article I

The Indifinite and Definite Article

THE INDEFINITE ARTICLE

The indifinite article is 'a' before a singular noun beginning with a consonant sound and 'an' before a singular noun beginning with a vowel sonnd.

EXAMPLE: There is a book on the table. There is an apple on the table.

A and an are not used before uncountable nouns.

EXAMPLE: There is sugar on the table.

A and an have no plural form

EXAMPLE: There are books on the table. There are apples on the table.

The word some can be used before uncoutable nouns and countable nouns in the plural.

EXAMPLE: There is some sugar on the table. There are some books on the table. There are some apples on the table.

EXERCISE: In the space provided, copy the following sentences, putting a, an, or some in place of the blanks. All necessary punctuation.

1. im drinking ______________ coffee

2. im reading ______________ book

3. im buying ______________ shirts

4. johns studying _____________ english book

5. marys buying _____________ new dress

6. teds singing _____________ old songs

7. ellens talking to _____________ old friends

THE DEFINITE ARTICLE

The definite article is the. It has several uses in English. We are going to study two of them now. The definite article is used with unique and identified things.

EXAMPLE: There is a book on the table. The book is new.

The table in the first sentence is unique. It may be the only table in the room. At least, it is the only table the speaker of the sentence is speaking about. In the second sentence the book is identified. The speaker identified it in the previous sentence, so it changes from a book to the book.

EXAMPLE: There is a pen in my hand. The pen is red.

Again, we say the pen in the second sentence, because it is not only a pen, it is the same pen that is in the first sentence. It is now identified.

EXAMPLE: There are two windows in the room. The windows are open.

The windows are identified and unique. How?

EXERCISE: In the space provided, copy these sentences and put either a, an, the, or some in the blank spaces. Add all necessary punctuation.

1. there is __________ hat on Janes head __________ hat is pretty

2. there is __________ girl in __________ first seat __________ girl is pretty

3. there is __________ sign on __________ wall __________ sign is large

4. there is __________ man in this picture __________ man is handsome ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1. there are __________ pictues on my wall __________ pictures are pretty

2. there are __________ pens injohns pocket __________ pens are red

3. there are __________ cats in the living room __________ cats are crying

4. there are __________ cookies in that jar __________ the cookies are delicious ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1. there is __________ coffee in this pot __________ coffee is hot

2. there is __________ beer in my refrigerator __________ beer is cold

3. there is __________ candy in my pocket __________ candy is good

PART II MODEL PRAGRAPH

Mrs. Brown is working in her kitchen. She is working at a large table. There is a bowl on the table. There are some eggs on the table. There is a bag of flour on the table. There is a carton of milk on the table. There is some butter in the bowl. Mrs. Brown is mixing the butter and the sugar together and adding the flour and the eggs. What is Mrs. Brown making

EXERCISE: Cover the Model Paragraph with a piece of paper. Copy the following paragraph. Fill in the blanks with a, an, the or some. Add all necessary punctuation.

mrs brown is working in her kitchen she is working at ________ large table there is ________ bowl on ________ table there are ________ eggs on ________ table there ________ box of flour on ________ table there is ________ carton of milk on ________ table there is ________ butter in ________ bowl mrs brown is mixing ________ butter and ________ sugar together and adding ________ flour and ________ eggs what is mrs brown making

Rainsbury, Robert. Written English An Introduction for Beginning Students of English as a Second Languauge. Lesson 9. Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 1977, pp. 41-3.

 
How To Choose Articles

 
Some Tips on Chosing ArticlesWhat Makes a Noun Refer to One Unique Thing?

• It refers to something previously mentioned: "The reading you did for today's class".
• It stands for all other items of its type: "Bell Labs invented "the transistor."
• It is identified by a special marker adjective, such as
  • a superlative: the biggest test of the semester, the most important point
  • a particular (ordinal) number: the second semester, the 50^th aniversary
  • a proper or distinctive name [usually]: The United States ( but Canada), the registrar's office, the 486 chip
• It refers to a time or place we treat as a collective unit: the sixties, the earth, the golden years
• It is followed by modifiers, especially relative clauses of "of" phrases: the dean who wrote the letter, the office in charge of admissions
• It refers to knowlege the writer/speaker and audience share: the group project, the next home game
• It refers to a particular object, even if the reader doesn't yet know it's particular: Plug the mouse into the socket on the back of the computer.

What Makes a Noun Something You Can Count?

• It is readily found in plurals: memos, students, tests, but not researches, waters
• It occurs readily with numbers: five class meetings, 238 casualties, 48500 workers
• It occurs with words that suggest numbers: few drawbacks, most classes, many jobs

What Makes a Noun Something You Cannot Count?

• It refers to physical mass without distinct form or shape: water, ROM, sand, fat, neon
• It refers to an absract concept: gravity, information, justice, satisfaction, apartheid
• It refers to ongoing processes: research, growth, pollution, communication, tutoring
• It refers to a field of study or endeavor: engineering, optics, materials, science, baseball

Do Not Use an Article With a Proper Noun When

• the noun is a common noun used as a t