Teaching Grammar

How do I teach grammar? To me, teaching grammar looks very different depending on the students you are teaching. Many teachers in the elementary school setting use the deductive approach to teach grammar. I feel that this approach is a more traditional way of teaching grammar, and it is the way I was taught when I was in elementary school. I am not so sure that it is the best way to teach, though. I remember sitting in school and my teacher using the “drill and kill” method. We had to memorize the grammar rules and do practice exercises. Although this helped me to “memorize” the way to speak and write, I didn’t actually “learn” the usage of grammar until I put it into practice. In the upper elementary grades, middle schools and high schools, the inductive approach may be more beneficial. Students can use the rules they have been taught and put them into action when writing and speaking.

The article about Principled Eclectisim by Kenneth Beare, refers to the use of various teaching styles based on learner needs. All students learn in different ways. We as teachers must teach all of our students. As a kindergarten teacher I feel that my main grammar teaching comes from just talking to the students. Kindergarten students are still learning language even as they begin school. Many of them come in speaking the “grammar” of their families. It is my job to speak correctly to them and help them speak correctly so grammar is “caught, not taught”. In the article What is Grammar, by Richard Nordquist, he refers to descriptive and prescriptive grammar. In kindergarten, especially ELL kindergarten, descriptive grammar is what I am listening for each day. When a student comes up to me during center time and says, “He no share me.” I know he is telling me that another student won’t share the items with him. As an ELL student, I know that he has grasped the language enough to convey his message, but needs that extra support to phrase it correctly. In order to model the correct grammar, I have him repeat the phrase correctly, “He won’t share with me.” This type of teaching should be ongoing in an ELL classroom.

It is my hope that my ELL kindergarteners are learning grammar every day as we talk, play, read stories, and interact with each other. It is my job, to create activities that foster that learning.