The Grammar Page

This link below will give you basic grammar information. All you need to know about Articles, Tenses, Direct/indirect speech, sentences, subject-object-predicate. You name it, you got it here.It's all here!


http://www.studyandexam.com/learn-english.html

Articles

English language has two articles, “the and a/an”. An article is used for a noun. An article like an adjective modifies a noun.

For example, a book, the book, a cup, the cup, an umbrella, the umbrella
The article “the” is called definite article and the article “a/an” is called indefinite article.

Types of Articles

There are two articles in English language.

1. Indefinite article: a/an
2. Definite article: the

An article is used before a noun or an adjective modifying a noun.

                         
                           Definite Article: (the)

The definite article "the" is used for a definite, specific or particular noun.

Example. He bought the shirt.

The article “the” before the noun “shirt” in above sentence means that the shirt, he bought, is a specific or particular shirt and not any shirt.

                          Indefinite Article: (a/an)

The definite article “a/an” is used for indefinite, non-specific or non-particular (common) noun.

Example. He bought a shirt.

The article “a” before shirt in above sentence means that the shirt he bought is any shirt and not a specific shirt.

Rules for using Indefinite Article (a/an)

The article form “a” is used before a word (singular) beginning with a consonant, or a vowel with a consonant sound.
e.g. a book, a cat, a camera, a university, a European

The article form “an” is used before a word (singular) beginning with a vowel (a, e, i, o, u) or consonant with vowel sound (or beginning with mute h ).
e.g. an apple, an elephant, an umbrella, an hour, 

1. Before a singular noun which is countable
    e.g.  He bought a book
            She is eating an apple.

2. Before a singular noun which refers to a class of things.
     e.g.  An orange is rich in vitamins.

3. Before a name of a profession
    e.g. She wants to be a doctor
           He is an engineer.

4. For certain expressions of quantity
    e.g. a lot of, a few, a couple, a dozen

5. For certain numbers.
    e.g. a hundred, a thousand, a million

6. Before a singular, countable noun in exclamation.
    e.g. What a beautiful flower!
           What a nice shirt!
7. Article a/an is not used before uncountable nouns
    e.g. water, milk, sand etc

Rules for using definite Article (the)

The article “the” can be used both before a singular and plural noun according to the following grammatical rules. e.g. the book, the books

1. Before the place, object or group of object which is unique or considered to be      unique and geographical region and points on globe.

     e.g. the earth, the moon, the sky, the stars, the north pole, the equator

2. For a noun which becomes definite or particular because it is already mentioned     and is being mentioned a second time.

    e.g. The teacher helped a student and the student became happy.

3. For a noun made specific or definite in a clause or a phrase.

    e.g. The old lady, The girl with blue eyes, The boy that I saw, The nice red shirt

4. Before superlatives, and first, second,.. etc, and only

    e.g. The best day, The only method, the second month,

5. Before a phrase composed of a proper and common noun

    e.g. The New York city, The river Nile, The library of Congress

6. Before the names of organizations

    e.g. The Association of Chartered Accountants, The World Health Organization

7. Before names of scientific principles, theories, laws etc. e.g. the Pythagorean theorem, the laws of Newton, The Fahrenheit Scale. But no article will be used for      these names if written in forms like, Newton’s Law, Dalton’s Law of Partial      Pressures, Hook’s Law of Elasticity

8. Article “the” is not used for names of universities if written in forms like Oxford University, Yale University, Columbia University. But article “the” is used if names      of university are written in forms like The University of Oxford, The University of Yale, The University of Toronto.  

9.  Article “the” is not used for names of countries of places. e.g. New York, America, Mexico, Japan, London. But article “the” is used for a name, if it expresses a group of place, states, or land. e.g. The United States, The Philippines, The Netherlands

DIRECT-INDIRECT SPEECH

Table for change in tense of reported speech for all TENSES.

     TENSE CHANGE - IN - INDIRECT SPEECH
     Present simple tense into Past simple
     Present Continuous tense into Past continuous
     Present Perfect tense into Pas perfect
     Present Perfect Continuous into Past perfect continuous
     Past simple into Past Perfect
     Past Continuous into Past Perfect Continuous
     Past Perfect into Past Perfect
     Future simple, will into would
     Future Continuous, will be into would be
     Future Perfect, will have into would have

Examples.

DIRECT SPEECH	INDIRECT SPEECH
PRESENT TENSE
PRESENT SIMPLE changes into PAST SIMPLE
He said, “I write a letter” She said, “he goes to school daily” They said, “we love our country” He said, “he does not like computer”	He said that he wrote a letter. He said that she went to school daily. They said that they loved their country He said that he did not like computer.
PRESENT CONTINUOUS changes into PAST CONTINUOUS
He said, “he is listening to the music” She said, “I am washing my clothes” They said, “we are enjoying the weather” I said, “it is raining” She said, “I am not laughing”	He said that he was listening to the music. She said that she was washing her clothes. They said that they were not enjoying the weather. She said that she was not laughing.
PRESENT PERFECT changes into PAST PERFECT
She said, “he has finished his work” He said, “I have started a job” I said, “she have eaten the meal” They said, “we have not gone to New York.	She said that he had finished his work. He said that he had started a job. I said that she had eaten the meal. They said that they had not gone to New York.
PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS changes into PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS
He said, “I have been studying since 3 O’clock” She said, “It has been raining for three days.” I said, “She has been working in this office since 2007”	He said that he had been studying since 3 O’clock. She said that it been raining for three days. I said that she had been working in this office since 2007.
PAST TENSE
PAST SIMPLE changes into PAST PERFECT
He said to me, “you answered correctly” John said, “they went to cinema” He said, “I made a table” She said, “I didn’t buy a car”	He said to me that I had answered correctly. John said that they had gone to cinema. He said that he had made a table. She said that she had not bought a car.
PAST CONTINUOUS changes into PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS
They said, “we were enjoying the weather” He said to me, “ I was waiting for you” I said, “It was raining” She said, “I was not laughing”	They said that they had been enjoying. He said to me that he had been waiting for me. I said that it had been raining. She said that she not been laughing.
PAST PERFECT changes into PAST PERFECT (tense does not change)
She said, “She had visited a doctor” He said, “I had started a business” I said, “she had eaten the meal” They said, “we had not gone to New York.	She said that she had visited a doctor. He said that he had started a business. I said that she had eaten the meal. They said they had not gone to New York.
FUTURE TENSE
FUTURE SIMPLE TENSE WILL changes into WOULD
He said, “I will study the book” She said, “I will buy a computer” They said to me, “we will send you gifts” I said, “I will not take the exam”	He said that he would study the book. She said that she would buy a computer. They said to me that they would send you gifts. I said that I would not take the exam.
FUTURE CONTINUOUS TENSE WILL BE changes into WOULD BE
I said to him, “ I will be waiting for him” She said,” I will be shifting to new home” He said, “I will be working hard” He said, “he will not be flying kite”	I said to him that I would be waiting for him. She said that she would be shifting to a new home. He said that he would be working hard. She said that he would not be flying kites.
FUTURE PERFECT TENSE WILL HAVE changes into WOULD HAVE
He said, “I will have finished the work” She said, “they will have passed the examination” He said, “I will have gone”	He said that he would have finished the work. She said that they would have passed the examination. He said that he would have gone.

Note: The tense of reported speech may not change if reported speech is a universal truth though its reporting verb belongs to past tense.

Examples.
       Direct speech: He said, “Mathematics is a science”
       Indirect Speech: He said that mathematics is a science.
       Direct speech: He said, “Sun rises in east”
       Indirect Speech: He said that sun rises in east. 

(Tense didn't change because reported speech is a universal truth thought its reporting verb belongs to past tense)

A 10 year old blogger

Hey class i understand that most of you don't get to check out the net, but this link below i urge you to go through at least once, and those who can do that, please pass the word around to your friends, see how a ten year old boy from Thimphu is blogging. And we know that in our class everybody is above ten right? So if he can do it, i believe you can too, i have faith in you people, so please please please, come and join. Read the reviews, they are great!!

http://singye.bt/sample-page/#comment-76

Class this is a simplified version on how to write a book review compared to my last post on writing a book review. Please go through before writing your reviews.

I. Introduction Paragraph: This should include the title of the book (underlined),
the author’s name, the type of book and a brief introduction to the book in
general so as to grip the reader’s attention.
II. Body: You have to explain what the book is about and then write your opinion
about the book and how successful it is. Explain the author’s purpose on the main
themes of the book. DO NOT WRITE IN THE FIRST PERSON. 
For Fiction: Briefly describe the main setting, the point of view from which the
story is being told, and a brief overview of the main characters of the story. Then
focus on one main character in the story and explain that characters personality,
physical attributes, and how the story is developed through this character. Next,
give a plot summary along with a sequence of events that took place in the
narrative, which includes the climax and resolution of the story.
For Non Fiction: Give a general overview of the author’s topic, main points and
arguments. Write what the book is focusing on and the important conclusion. III. Analysis and Evaluation: Analyze and critique (review and evaluate) the book.
Consider the following questions that will help in doing this:
For Fiction: 
1. Did the author achieve his or her purpose?
2. Is the writing effective, powerful, difficult, beautiful, and gripping?
3. What are the strengths and weaknesses of the book? (Style of writing,
clear or confusing, order of events, depiction of characters, etc.)
For Non Fiction: 
1. What are the author’s qualifications to write about the subject?
2. Do you agree with the author’s arguments and conclusions?
3. Your overall response to the book (do not write in first person). Did
you find the book interesting, moving, dull…?
4. Would you recommend it to others? Why or why not?
IV. Conclusion: Briefly conclude by wrapping up your thoughts together. You may say what an impression the book left with you, or emphasize what you want your reader to know about it.

Active - Passive ; Rule

Active Voice	Passive Voice
Simple present (love)	am/is/are + Pp
Simple past (loved)	was/were + Pp
shall/will + V	shall/will + be + Pp
are +..ing	is/am/are + being + Pp
was/were + ing	was/were + being + Pp
shall + be + ing	No Passive
has/have + Pp	has/have + been+ Pp
had +Pp	had + been + Pp
shall/will + have + Pp	shall/will + have + been + Pp

Writing a Good Book Review

Writing a Good Book Review

Introduce the type of book.

• Identify the book by author, title, and sometimes publishing information.
• Specify the type of book (for example, fiction, nonfiction, biography, autobiography). Help your readers to review with perception.
• Mention the book's theme.
• Sometimes you will need to include background to enable reader to place the book into a specific context. For example, you might want to describe the general problem the book addresses or earlier work the author or others have done.

Briefly summarize the content

• For a nonfiction book, provide an overview, including paraphrases and quotations, of the book's thesis and primary supporting points.
• For a work of fiction, briefly review the story line for readers; be careful not to give away anything that would lessen the suspense for readers.

Provide your reactions to the book

• Describe the book: Is it interesting, memorable, entertaining, instructive? Why?
• Respond to the author's opinions: What do you agree with? And why? What do you disagree with? And why?
• Explore issues the book raises: What possibilities does the book suggest? Explain. What matters does the book leave out? Explain.
• Relate your argument to other books or authors: Support your argument for or against the author's opinions by bringing in other authors you agree with.
• Relate the book to larger issues: How did the book affect you? How have your opinions about the topic changed? How is the book related to our own life.

Conclude by summarizing your ideas

• Close with a direct comment on the book, and close together issues raised in the review. Briefly restate your main points and if you like, you can offer advice for others who might want to read.

Key Questions to be answered:

1.    What was the story about?

2.    Who is the main character in the story?

3.    What do the characters do in the story

4.    In which point of view the story is written?

5.    Who all are the minor characters in the story?

6.    Who is your favorite character in the story?

7.    What is the theme of the story?

8.    Who is the author?